Sawyer's 5th Birthday Party!

On Saturday, October 10th, our house came alive with the sound of pirate calls and kids screams. It was awesome. Sawyer decided he wanted a pirate theme for his party so we went all out...thanks to OTC and Party City...we decked out the house and the kids. :) Sawyer was surrounded by some of his favorite people (including Grammy & Grampa from Sunnyvale, CA) and had a great time. We barbequed brats, hot dogs and hamburgers, and even had a jumping castle courtesy of a friend of some wonderful friends! Check out the cake! Eddie and I dreamed that up. We had Albertsons do the waves and we did the rest. I am quite proud of it!!

Thanks to everyone who made is such a great day. :)

We are the parents of a kindergartner....

I am in shock. Really. I can't believe that the little 8lb 13oz boy we brought into this world is now in kindergarten. I was really composed about the whole thing until Labor Day evening. We were sitting at dinner and talking to Sawyer about starting school the next day. I told him I was REALLY excited but a little sad, too. He asked why I was sad and I said, "Mommy is soooooo excited to watch you grow up, to see what kind of person you are growing up to be. I love watching you learn new things and make new friends...but, all mommies get a little sad because we love you as little boys and babies, too. Maybe, as a big boy, you won't want to kiss me and hug me as much." Sure...maybe that's a little manipulative but I will stoop lower if it promises me cuddles from my kids. :) Anyway, he stood up and got about 5 inches from me face and said,"Mama! I will ALWAYS kiss you and hug you! Forever and ever! Even when I am big like Dada!" So...that was it. On came the waterworks and they really didn't stop until Tuesday afternoon.
The morning of his first day went well. Eddie took the morning off so we could witness it all as a family. We woke the kids up, fed them breakfast and put on the well-planned first day outfit. The school is only 3 blocks away but we drove because it was stinkin hot out. Get this...his teacher's name is Mrs Miller. Doesn't that just sound like the perfect name for a kindergarten teacher? There are 3 kindergarten classes in the school and all of their classrooms face their own little playground. When we got there there were about 100 parents standing around, taking pictures and looking a little weepy. We took pictures, gave Sawyer lots of hugs, sized up the kids he would have as his classmates, and sent him off through his classroom doors with a silent prayer to keep him safe.
He was pretty composed. He let me take pictures and wasn't the least bit clingy. When he was walking toward the door he told me not to watch him. I said I wouldn't watch and then I didn't take my eyes off of him. We even peeked through the door-jam crack. I went up to the window and watched him take a seat on the rug. Then, he turned and saw my big-ol' head peering at him through the blinds. :)teeeheeee. I smiled and took a few steps back. :)
The week went well overall. He was exhausted and a little nervous at times but, Mrs Miller was wonderful and took the time to assure me he was going to be fine. :)
I hope you enjoy the pictures of our beautiful kindergartner.

Funny story

Charlie, the dog, is GIGANTIC. He weighs about 100lbs and is still only 1 1/2 yrs old. In most people's eyes, he is a crazed lunatic but when he is home with just us, he is great. He is so gentle with little Cameron. Here Cameron is on his little mat with Charlie visiting. See the progression of the events. Owen and Gizmo join the crowd so I removed Cam from the Owen/Charlie pairing and look what happened.

Reading time!

Photo time!

We had a great visit with the Mastrantuono family who were out for a nice vacation. Cameron got some great love from the boys. The rest of the pictures are from a little photo shoot on the bed one morning. We had a lot of fun...you may recognize the setting as that of the photo on Cam's birth announcement.

Fourth of July Weekend

CLICK ON THE PHOTO ABOVE TO LINK TO THE 4th of JULY ALBUM

Fourth of July weekend was amazing. We were lucky enough to have my sister and her beautiful family out for a few days AND a visit from our neighbors from Maricopa, the Pembertons. It was great! On Friday, Sarah, Paul and I took the kids to La Jolla Shores for some playtime at the beach. Other than the HORRIBLE parking situation, the trip was a huge success. The boys had so much fun digging holes and playing in the water. Owen and Lukas had us cracking up because they were silently wrestling forever!!! They got so covered in sand!! On Saturday, we went over to Lake Murray (near our home), set up blankets and chairs and watched the fireworks. It was PERFECT...the kind of holidays you dream of. We were joined by the Germs, the Pembertons, Bill Homan, & the Sweeneys. I loved it and got really emotional during the fireworks as I looked around at my wonderful family and friends. I am blessed...truly blessed.

True Love

My true loves #2, #3, & #4.....Eddie is #1.

A Trip to the Zoo!

I was a brave woman today and took all three kidlets to the zoo! I only planned to go for a few hours but...well, THAT didn't happen. At 7:30pm I pushed a stroller with two tired kids and carried one tired infant in a sling, back to the car that was lost in the endless parking lot. Then, WHAM!, I got stung by a bee on my right foot! I was trying to be brave and not scream & cry because I didn't want my kids to be scared of bees but.....OUCH!!!!

Bathtime for Cam

I think he might actually have curls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

More pics

Owen decided to feed Cam sdome pretend popcorn and Cam seems a little concerned.


Time to fly! I am making the kids fly with my feet. :)

Smiles!!

Sawyer was so tired from our day's activities that he fell asleep in the car. When I tried to move him inside for a bath, he proceeded to complete his nap on the bathroom floor.

Just some fun pictures

Here are few cute pics of Master Cameron from 6/20. He is so beautiful and changing so fast! His acne has been CRAZY so birth announcement pictures will have to wait. :) Check out the hair! I call it his hurricane. Hopefully he is the eye of the storm...the calmness. We love him to pieces

Sea World with Friends

Click on the picture above to see pictures from our day at Sea World with Auntie K & Xander!!!

By the way, the strange pic at the beginning is the remnants of my wallet after a lonely dog decided to take revenge. Grrrrrr.

Beach Day!

Click on the photo above to see more pictures from our day!

Right after Cam was born my mom and sis came out to visit and meet our newest munchkin. One of those days we packed the kids up and went to the beach. It was a lot of fun even if they froze their booties off! So, these pics were taken in early May.

A Day at Sea World

Click on the picture above to see pics from our day at Sea World with my friend, Katrina, & her son Xander.

Just a little shout out to the middle child!

When Owen was born, I knew he was going to be a middle child. I held that sweet little munchkin-head in my arms and apologized. I also swore I would take as many pictures of him as I did of his brother. Well, I have fallen a bit short in that promise but, I do try hard. :) So, here are some from our pre-bedtime play tonight.

Eddie took Soy to the store and Cam was asleep so O and I got some time to giggle and play. It was great and he had sooooo much fun! He is still a pudge and I LOVE it! Check out those cheeks! He talks nonstop and his favorite phrases are, "Why?" and "Cuz, I don't like it!" He is always asking questions and has a funny sense of humor. He also LOVES to make friends! Unfortunately, he picked up a bit of a bad habit from the kids in Sawyer's class. When we would pick Soy up, the kids would come out and start this pushing game. They would all push each other down on the grass and laugh. Well, that's all fine and good when you know that it is a game. Owen does it to every new little kids he meets and thinks they are going to think he is the life of the party. You should see the looks the parents of his friend/victims give me!! I find myself apologizing, explaining, and scolding all in a single breath. Oh, Owen.

Cameron on camera!

Click on the photo above to see a cute video of this sweet child!

Cameron is growing so much and so fast! He had a doctor's appt last week and he now weighs 12lbs 14 oz which is a whole lb larger than Owen at this age! His hair is beginning to recede a bit in the front but is still long in the back. I tease that he has a baby mullet with a bit of a mohawk. It is perfect and soooo soft! He has gotten quite a case of baby acne. It is pretty common although the severity varies. He has is pretty bad so, I am definitely looking forward to when it clears up.
As you can tell from the video, he is a very social little boy even if most of his conversation is reserved for me. He is soo good at making eye contact and has, I swear, been smiling since he was a week old. He, like most babies, loves his changing table and that is his favorite place to share his wisdom.
Things have settled down quite a bit here and I must say that I am in a much better emotional place than I was even a week ago. We are getting more used to being a family of 5 and the new house is slowly becoming our home. Cameron is sleeping much better during the day which has allowed me more time to spend with Soy & O...for that, we are all grateful. I think that my hormone levels are starting to normalize as well....that has got to have an effect as well!

Sawyer

I wanted to get some pictures from Sawyer's second (and last) preschool graduation ceremony up here! He looked so stinkin' cute! I think we said it too many times though because when we arrived at the school and he saw one of his friends he dove back into the car headfirst and started to disrobe out of embarrassment!!! Hahahahahahah! Eddie ended up bribing him with a pack of M&Ms to he wore his shirt and tie until I was done taking pictures. What a good husband. Later, when the ceremony had started, we looked at our program and say that Soy was supposed to lead the class in the ABCs. Eddie and I looked at each other and said, "Um, that's not happening." He gets really shy around people he doesn't know well. When it came to be his turn, the teacher asked him to come to the front and he just sat there and shook his head. She tried to coax him out but it was to no avail. She looked our way to make sure we were okay with his decision (which we were fine with of course) and another kid took his spot. Everything worked out well though. He even let me take some pictures! He is amazing and we are very proud.