go JaSoN!

We spent the morning cheering Jason and Daniel on in the OC triathlon. It was nice because we found a spot in the shade to see them on part of the run, then again at the finish line. They both did great, though Jason would have done better had he not gotten a flat tire on his bike. He still did great and they both felt good afterwards. Jason had to get to work (bummer!) but we enjoyed In N Out with Daniel and Bethany for lunch.
After that we went to the Fitzpatrick's, since we haven't seen them in awhile and I was picking up scrubs from Sarah (her mother-in-law found a bag of scrubs - my size- at a garage sale and gave them to me - great!!). The boys played and Sarah, Violet and I went to Costco. It was fun to shop with someone else! Plus it was nice to leave the boys behind - made for an easier trip.

At the finish
waiting for daddy/uncle daniel
poppa dan came to cheer Jason on
go daniel!!
go jason!!
waiting for daddy at the finish
I'm so proud of jason - he has worked hard running, swimming and biking. He is driven to be in good physical shape and I love the example he is to our kids too - that you can work hard to accomplish what you want.

little this, little that

I don't think you can really see in this picture, but Ezekiel has a bump on his forehead. This actually happens quite often, though less often now as he gets older. Until he turned 2, he almost always had a bump or bruise somewhere on his head. I'm shocked we haven't had to get stitches anywhere yet! I love those big blue eyes. Also, I'm thinking I'm glad we never lasered off the hemangioma on his forehead (the red spot) because it is fading and getting smaller by itself!

Last night I looked at an online cookbook my mom has been cooking with. Its amazing!! Healthy for the most part and really creative recipes. If you're interested, its www.101cookbooks.com
For dinner last night I made caramelized onions and tofu with sauteed green beans over brown rice. The boys LOVED it, as did I! I made butternut squash tonight sauteed in olive oil and garlic and both boys prayed before bed that they could eat more of it tomorrow.
Gdiaper update: I was not well prepared so I used them for about 2 days, then ran out of the inner diaper part...which I forgot to buy when I bought the starter kit. Whoops. It came with 10 diapers and that just doesn't go too far. I like them a lot so far. They are a bit bulkier than normal diapers, but I don't mind that. The cloth part has a plastic liner that snaps into it, then a "diaper" (kind of looks like a large maxi pad) gets put into that plastic liner. When V poops, it gets on the plastic liner, so it has to be washed and dried (takes about an hour), but that puts that diaper out of commission. I only have 1 other one right now so its not really doable. I just ordered 2 more cloth outer diapers and some extra plastic liners. All that to say: I'm happy with them. She has not leaked through them at all - not even overnight.
Bathtime has become more enjoyable as I can now put V in the bathtub with the boys instead of giving her a bath alone in the sink or her baby bath. She thinks its really fun and the boys love having her in there.
Dancing boys...wow do they love to dance. Its blurry, but they're in jeans and boots because they are trying to do some sort of cowboy dancing. Avalanche ranch - VBS from 2007 - is a favorite and its western music. They love it. G has also started to do his own rendition of tap dancing.

The other day we decided to do a science experiment. We made a mixture of water, vinegar and backing soda and then tried different foods and objects to see if they sank or floated in the jar. It was great fun for all of us.

Violet is so funny and so different than the boys in many ways. One of those ways is her screaming. When she is excited, she will often scream a most shrill scream to let us know she's loving life. I think its adorable. She has different screams for different communication, but below she was screaming to get my attention.
Daniel and Bethany came into town Thurs because Daniel and Jason are doing a triathlon tomorrow. Yesterday we hung out downtown in the fog. It was fun - the boys especially loved playing soccer with Uncle Daniel and the rainbow colored kettle corn he bought them.

Dog Lover

I have always like animals, but I'm not sure I would say I'm necessarily an "animal lover." I have loved several dogs that our family has owned over my lifetime and I definitely loved Rocky (see picture above - when I was pregnant with Gavin... rip) who died while I was pregnant with Ezekiel. And now we have Shima...I don't love Shima. I'm sure I've shared before - I'm not attached to Shima and if we happened to trade her in for another dog, I would be ok (read: thrilled) with it. Jason thinks I'm evil for even verbalizing this, but its true.

My daughter, on the other hand, LOVES Shima. Every time she sees Shima she gets excited and tries to get to the dog with her movements. She doesn't mind the licking or the french kissing - YUCK!!! I don't "let" it happen, but it has before (just being honest).

(random - nothing to do with dogs...) This picture is Gavin and Violet on the couch the other morning saying good morning to each other.
Violet also LOVES Charlie, my parent's new dog. I do too!! The picture above is Charlie - he's a labradoodle - no shedding!! He's also so sweet and I would trade him for Shima in a heartbeat. I also love this picture because Violet is smiling this smile that I love.
She sits up so well now - hardly falls over at all.

a few new things

On Monday, while I was at work, I gave my notice to my boss. I'm quitting my job at UCI with a mix of emotions. I have been there almost 5 years and am sad at the thought of leaving. Most of what I love about UCI is that I belong. Everyone knows me. I know what I'm doing. Its comfortable. I've finally gotten the courage to do something I've thought about doing for awhile. I'm going to do registry. What is registry? Its the equivalent of substitute teachers - but its nurses in the hospital. The main reason is that it is 100 times more flexible. I can work whenever I want. I can work once a week or once a month. Doesn't matter. I'm looking forward to that. The scheduling of my shifts with Jason's work schedule has been stressful for me the past year or so. It doesn't hurt that I will make more money, either! I will continue at UCI until Oct 13th - thats my last shift. The funny thing is I can work at UCI as registry too - once I quit!

Yesterday we had a repairman here for 2 1/2 hours working on the microwave that hasn't worked for almost 2 weeks. I'm so thrilled its fixed now. Thank you Mark for getting it fixed for us! I didn't realize how much I used the microwave.

Today I did some grocery shopping at Whole Foods. It was my first time shopping there and was not the best experience since I was with all 3 kids, Gavin had to go poop once and Ezekiel twice while we were there, we were all hungry and I didn't have a grocery list or know where anything was. BUT - I made the best of it, gave the boys snacks and tried to have lots of patience :-) I really like that store! Right now, I do almost all my shopping at Mothers and Trader Joes. I would love to have 1 store that I can get everything at rather than 2 stores. I'm going to make a detailed list and do all my shopping there next time and see how it goes! The whole reason I went was to purchase gdiapers:
These are a hybrid between cloth and disposable diapers. I'm excited to try them out. They are biodegradable and you can actually flush them if you want! The outside is a cloth type diaper. I'm going to start using them tomorrow. I'll let you know how it goes. Its more expensive for sure, but I think its worth it to be more "green" in this area and stop adding diapers to the landfills that will never biodegrade.

The in-between state

There is an "in-between" state of sleeping...you are not quite asleep, but not quite awake either. I remember a time in college when I was on the phone with Jason. We had been talking for several hours (you know how it is during dating...you can't stop talking!) and I said something (can't remember what) and he said "why don't you just go buy a van?" in an irritated voice. I was laughing and told him to hang up and go back to sleep.
Well, this morning, I had a similar experience. Ezekiel had come into our room at 6am, which was purely disappointing since he want to bed at 10pm, so I told him to get into bed on Jason's side (already gone to work) and go back to sleep. About 15 minutes later he was standing next to me with his diaper off (wears a diaper only for bedtime) and said "mom, can you wipe my bottom please?" Ok, so I get up and wipe his booty, and tell him to get back into bed and go to sleep (yeah right...that is wishful thinking at its best). He gets into bed and is snuggling with me for about 10 minutes at which point he decides he is STARVING so he starts asking what he can eat.
A cracker?
no. How about fruit?
ok, can i have an apple?
yes.
mom....can I have an apple?? please get up and get me an apple. I'm hungry. mom mom mom mom mom wake up. get me an apple. mom i'm hungry.
You get the picture. I was dozing off and he was begging for an apple. I am trying to fully wake up because I know somewhere in my brain that I am sort of asleep but sort of awake when I hear my own voice say: " what number do your parents live in?" As soon as I heard it, I am laughing. I know what I have just said and its hilarious. Meanwhile Ezekiel is highly confused. He cannot figure out what I am talking about and why I'm laughing hysterically. It actually put me into a good mood and even better when I poured my coffee and it was the Pura Vida Hawaiian Hazelnut that was still hot (YUM!).

Bathroom Talk Blog

Today I took the kids to the beach for a few hours to play in the sand and water, then buy some produce at the Farmer's Market. As we got back to our car, the 4 of us are tired, sandy and ready to get home...but we have a problem: "Mommy, I have to poop."
....."are you sure, Ezekiel? Because you've already pooped 2 times today."
"I'm sure. I have to poop."
"Can you wait until we get home?" (there is no way I'm walking back to where there is a bathroom - that would be another 20-30 minutes min.)
"No, I have to go NOW."
"OK..." At this point, I take off Ezekiel's pants, stand him next to the car, and hold him as he squats over the gutter area. The kid wasn't lying. He had to go and boy did he go! No wonder he was complaining of a tummy ache an hour previous.
This is one of those things I was thinking I never would have done before kids. Why would you ever let a kid poo in the street? When you have been working hard at potty training and you have JUST gotten him to start going in the toilet. Thats when. No way I'm risking losing that. So poop in the gutter he did. Don't worry, I picked up after myself! Into a plastic bag it went and in the back of the car until we got home.
Except once we got home, I had to get the boys down for naps and feed V and try and get her down, so I forgot about bag of dung.....until several hours later when I was telling J the story and realized it was still in the car - YUCK! Stinky car. Jason was not amused at my forgetfulness.

Foamy

We are happy to have Jason home from his couple days in Seattle! He was even off a couple days after getting home which was a treat.
Our week has been pretty good...though today we ran into a problem because Jason worked but I had a mandatory class at work...I asked my faithful friend Becky, and of course she came to the rescue! My mom took the kids for the morning, B picked them up around lunchtime and had them until I was done at 4pm. Then we went back to my parent's house where I ran while my mom hung with the kids, ate a fantastic dinner and had sugarfree berry pie for dessert. DELICIOUS!!!!!!! Seriously. My mom is turning into Rachel Ray. But TASTY super duper HEALTHY rachel ray. Thanks Momma Joe.
Gavin and Ezekiel LOVE playing with gloves on...I bring them home a pair from work and its fun for hours. Its great.
At Ikea they have a "foamer" for 2.99, I think...and if you put a little milk in your cup, foam it up, then add your milk, its like you've made your own latte. Yum.
Tuesday night Dan and Judy offered to babysit and J and I went out to dinner and coffee. We had a great time together and I discovered that green tea lattes are FANTASTIC.
That's about it for us. I have been doing "school" stuff with G here and there. Nothing too structured yet. I'm feeling a little bit of pressure, but keep reminding myself : ITS PRESCHOOL NOT COLLEGE. He'll be fine if I didn't do a thing. I really believe that. BUT...I want to teach him things....I'm going to get my pictures and stuff that I got in Bangladesh and teach him about that country first. As for Ezekiel, he has actually been a bit more challenging for us lately. He seems to be really pushing the limits with us. He has such a different personality than G that I have to constantly modify my disciplines for him because what works for G does not work for E. Something great is he is doing all things toilet-wise actually IN the toilet. Good news for those of us who actually do not enjoy large smelly things in undies.......enough said. Good job Ez! And V is just beautiful and superb as ever. She's sitting up on her own here and there, but still a bit wobbly and rolls all over when she wants to get to something. Ok, I'm kind of rambling. Better stop for now!
Cheers.

As I sit here typing, I am eating a bowl of my homemade yogurt feeling quite proud of myself. Its delicious! Thanks for the recipe on your blog a couple years ago, Pam :-) Today was the day Becky took the kids for a few hours and it was fantastic. I was going to run and get some practical things done, but then decided against that. Since J has been working a lot and is now gone, I have not had much time to myself. I can run any day (even if it is pushing 3 kids...) but I can't go shopping by myself almost ever! So I finally spent my Sephora gift card I got for my b-day AND I shopped at a thrift store in CM I just heard about. I got 5 new shirts, a sweatshirt and a shirt for Jason! The prices are slightly higher than a normal thrift store because its all "fashionable" clothes - more trendy-ish...but lower than normal stores. Plus - its not supporting the industry that is keeping child labor and sweatshops in business(had to throw that in).
One more thought...the closest Sephora to us is in South Coast Plaza and to tell you the truth, I hate this mall. The majority of the stores are VERY high end and the people who shop in this mall reek of prosperity and wealth. Today as I walked around, I was pleased to find myself out of place. Normally not a coveted position for me or anyone else, in this situation I'm thrilled with it. I do not want to be in this category...carrying a purse that costs hundreds of dollars and flashing a diamond more costly than my car. Not now or ever.
Off my soapbox...

My cute girl had her 6 month check-up and all is well. She weighed 16 lb 8 oz!
They both look a little silly here
Last night I was holding V making dinner when I smelled her poo. This is what I looked down to:
She certainly wasn't bothered by it! She LOVES G..as you can see in this pic she is always smiling and "talking" to him (sorry we cut you off E)
Something funny about G...he LOVES bell peppers. Most fresh veggies, but especially bell peppers. He asked to eat it like an apple last night!

Enjoy your weekend! We look forward to Sunday when J will be home!

just one...

I'm so excited about these pics Becky did for us...she sent me just a few of the family ones tonight and I LOVE them. Thank you Becky, you're amazing!

anyone?

I'll post a real post tomorrow with fun pictures and updates, but just wanted to know if you happen to have a t-mobile phone that you don't use anymore?? My phone is not working and I don't want to buy a new phone since we will probably switch carriers when our contract is up in Feb....so just wondering. anyone?

Little of this, Little of that

I love Ezekiel's hair. It's WHITE blond...and still a little curly. I have always like it longer, but a few days ago, he told me he needed a haircut. He said it was bugging him in his eyes. Ok, little boy. Off with the beautiful hair....

He looks so different to me now. Very cute boy and now I can see his blue eyes better!After the haircut, we decided to go to Ikea for the big REWARD. Ezekiel is fully POTTY-trained. Notice the emphasis on POTTY...poop is a whole different story, but that's ok. I'm ok with it for now. He has done amazing and is in undies all the time except at night and I don't even have to remind him anymore. He goes on his own to the bathroom. Its fantastic! We ate lunch upstairs first and Violet went into the high chair and loved it...
Then into the playroom. Ezekiel was SO excited and had much fun. Here is when we were picking the boys up...
On Tuesday, I had the Fisher girls for a couple hours. Reese slept the entire time and Reagan just hung out with the boys! Look at her beautiful red curls!

And finally, I had a little photo session with Violet yesterday. I wanted to remember her "comb over." Its in full effect these days. Maybe sometime I will need to trim it, but not yet. Just can't do it yet.
When she gets excited, she shows it all over - even her chubby legs that kick and go crazy

A few thoughts:

* I wish someone in my family was a hairdresser. I ALWAYS have this dilemma...I like my hair to be cute (who doesn't??) but really can't justify spending a boatload to get it done. I'm really needing a haircut, but can't go back to the last girl I went to. She charged me A LOT. Hmmmm...anyone wanna go back to school?? That would help me in this quandary. :-)

*My mom taught me how to make bread this week. I made a loaf of bread that turned out fairly good, for my first one. I'm going to make yogurt this weekend too!

*My house is still fairly clean...the maintenance is much easier now. I still love it.

*Someone asked how I had time to clean - with the kids and all...my boys play amazingly well together most of the time. Of course they have their times of not getting along, but for the most part, they love to be together. Monday (my big cleaning day) they played together all day. They use their imagination alot and make up games. They play daddy/son, nurses, policemen, they go fishing in the backyard, pretend they are scientists, and many other games. I love watching them and listening to them as they play. My hope is that they remain this close for many years to come. As for Violet...she just sleeps, eats and hangs out in a swing or a blanket with toys. Near bedtime she prefers to be held, but she is a very laid back baby, so (monday)I just moved her with me from one room to the next with her toys.
*Jason is going to Seattle next week for a LAPD soccer tournament. I'm rather bitter since he might see Kristen/Ryan and I won't. I guess I just need to become a cop, get really good at soccer and then I'll get a free trip to Seattle. Hang on, Kris - I'll be there in 2 years.......... hahaha.

Roadtrip games

As I mentioned in a previous post, on the drive home from AZ, Gavin and Violet were with me for the first 5 hours, then we switched and I had Ezekiel and Violet. I had a great time with each of the boys and it was nice to have them each of them alone. With Gavin we talked, pretended we were a medical helicopter picking up injured people and taking them to the hospital. On one of our trips we picked up Santa Claus and a penguin from the North Pole. That then led to a discussion on Santa Claus that was quite lengthy and hilarious. I was trying not to laugh as I answered the questions about Santa's cell phone and where he might get in to our house this year since we don't have a chimney, but G doesn't want him to come in the front door. (I have not led him to believe in SC, but have not discouraged it either.)
We also played a game where G made funny faces while I faced the camera toward him. Don't worry, I never took my eyes off the road :-) Here are some of those pictures...




With Ezekiel, we talked a lot about how sad he was when he was with Nannie and Poppy. He had a hard time in their car for awhile because he wanted to be with G and I. He is SO attached to his brother. When I put them into different rooms for "rest time" Ezekiel will sometimes ask if G can come in with him. When I say no, he looks at me with a sad face and says: "but he's my brother (bruvver)..." I assure him that G will still be his "bruvver" after rest time too. In this picture, E is showing me his granola bar in his mouth.
I love love love my boys.

(and you too V)

The Pumping Club

I have this hilarious friend, Kristen, who played a joke on me several years ago. She made up an email address and pretended she was in a breastfeeding "club" from UCI (where I work) and she emailed me from this address. At first, I was completely duped - and even wanted to join - pumping in the van in the parking lot and everything (sorry...somewhat of an inside joke). I laughed at myself for believing some of what she wrote but it kind of proves my passion. This might sound weird to some and totally make sense to others. Since I started nursing Gavin I have become very passionate about b-feeding. I know its the best for the baby and I have had some major difficulties (first 6 months at least with G) but have also enjoyed it more than I ever thought I would. (Please don't' think if you don't or don't like it or just want to feed formula that I would think anything different of you. I won't. I'm just speaking for myself. I have plenty of good friends who do not b-feed.)
Shortly before I had Violet, my sister-in-law asked me if I knew about a website that allows you to donate your milk. I had not heard of it, but immediately looked into it. Over the past 6 months, I have been in a process to be qualified to be a milk donor. Today I received this in my inbox :
Congratulations, you are now a qualified breast milk donor with the International Breast Milk Project! By becoming a breast milk donor, you have taken a step that can directly impact the lives of infants orphaned by disease and poverty in Africa.
It turns out, this organization sends milk to babies in Africa who have been affected by HIV/AIDS. Its kind of complicated, but part of it goes to Africa and part of it stays here for premature babies in the US, but that makes a bit of money and the money that is made on that is put into health initiatives in Africa. I'm excited because this is where I am in my life. I have 3 small children and I have been trying to find ways that God can use me right where I'm at. I can't travel to Africa and do medical missions right now, but this is another way Jesus can use me to minister in Africa now!
SO...I'm passionate about b-feeding and Jesus and this is where the 2 meet! If you're interested in more info you can go to: http://www.breastmilkproject.org/

Carrie (Merry) Maids

Did I clean, you ask?? YES! I cleaned for 12 hours...stopping to sit only to feed Violet. When I finally sat down at 9:30 last night I was exhausted but delighted. My house is spotless and organized. I love it. I'm turning over a new leaf. No more clutter.

unplanned road trip

While I was at work Thurs, I found out from my parents that my grandma (my dad's mom) was not doing well...she had had a heart surgery about a week before and then a few days later had a massive stroke. There was swelling in her brain that the doctors said could prove to be fatal. My parents were going to drive to AZ Fri morn and I decided to drive with the kids to see her. I felt strongly that whether or not she lived through this, I needed to see her. SO...we set out at 6:15am Friday morning to drive the 400+ miles to Prescott, AZ. It was a long, long drive - we didn't get there until about 5:30pm that night. 11 hours in the car with 3 kids...use your imagination. The great thing is my parents caravaned with us so they stopped every time we did and helped out SO much. We had to stop numerous times for the bathroom for the boys, to feed Violet, and to pick up my brother in Phoenix and eat lunch....the good thing is we made it safely. We saw my grandma that night, a few times Saturday and Sunday morning before we left. Prescott is actually a beautiful part of AZ - green and not desert hot. It was great to see some family we don't see very often and I know my grandma loved seeing us and the kids (especially!). Sunday we left around 12:30 and were home by 9. It was a MUCH easier drive mainly due to the fact that my parents took Ezekiel for the first 5 hours, then Gavin for the next 4 so I only had Violet and 1 boy at a time. Separating them was a great idea - made the drive so much more manageable. That and I decided to put Ezekiel in a pull-up so I wasn't having to stop every hour to get him to pee or worrying about him peeing in his pants. By the time we got home last night at 9 I was exhausted. 20 hours of driving...being in someone else's house without our "normal" stuff and routine...glad to be home. The kids all slept fantastic while we were there, so that was good. Today is laundry, groceries and cleaning. I've been disappointed in myself lately at how poorly I'm doing keeping my house clean. I know - I've got 3 little kids...but I can do better. I know this - so I'm going to. Today is SUPER CLEAN DAY 2008.
Cheers.
Update on Grandma: She's been in a "step-down" unit - not ICU, but not floor. Today they are planning on moving her to a Neuro Rehab hospital. She is paralyzed on her left side and will not regain any movement so her future mobility is questionable. Its just a matter of time. She is very weak and tired right now.