Chasing Girls and Goats in the Pacific Northwest

Christmas Program

2009-12-08T21:57:00.000-08:00

Please forgive us for this technically challenged but none-the-less enjoyable video from Hannah's Christmas Program last night.

She's near the bottom in a bright green shirt (however, if you turn your head so that the picture is orientated correctly, she's on the far left!).

Enjoy!

Happy Birthday! (OR Out of the frying pan...)

2008-12-14T14:49:00.000-08:00

That's 6 people, in case you were counting! We celebrated Hannah's birthday this past weekend with a rainbow party, at her request. We began with some rainbow t-shirt painting, played musical rainbow (our version of musical chairs) and pin the cloud on the rainbow. Above, Hannah poses with the rainbow she painted for the pin-the-cloud game.
Party girls with rainbow necklaces. (Not leis!) Hannah was excited to celebrate with some of her bffs and new friends from down the street.

We finished with hot fudge sundae style rainbow brownies. Yum! I don't know where the girl gets her taste in dessert! ;)

Shad came home at the end of the party with a surprise of his own (for ALL of us). Introducing Louie...

A young goldendoodle (golden retriever poodle mix), Louie has made some fast friends here. He's a real sweetheart!

The most wonderful time of the year!

2008-11-02T20:27:00.000-08:00

What a month it has been! I have such an affinity for autumn- I love the bright brisk days, the changing leaves. Seriously- it is MY time of year. Where we used to live this season would last at least a couple of months. Here, we're lucky to get it for a month before the rain sets in and those sunny days are much much fewer and farer between.

That said, this fall has been full of all kinds of new, exciting, and different things. Settling in at Kindergarten brings a plethora of autumn crafts, songs, poems, coming home everyday crammed in Hannah's pink backpack!

Hannah and I are both new Girl Scouts this fall. She's a Daisy Scout and I'm one of her fearless leaders. (Mark your calendars, I believe cookie sales start in late January!) We've had two meetings which have been SO energizing. I've seen a new side of her- the more independent, growing-up side, and it is amazing.

Sarah really got into the whole idea of Halloween this year. See photo below for proof. :)

This year we made our annual trip to a pumpkin patch with the company of our friends Elena, Jeff, Sam and Anthony and enjoyed carving pumpkins and a yummy soup dinner at their house. It was quite a feat to get this photo of all eight of us looking at the camera at the same time!

My pumpkin is the uncarved one, third from the right, Shad's is the ENORMOUS white one, Hannah's spider and Sarah's little cat are on the far right. I did manage to carve my pumpkin a couple of days before Halloween.

I really had it together and we did a full-blown costume run two days before Halloween so we could troubleshoot any issues. I even impressed myself when I remembered to bring my camera and get some shots in good light of my little ladybug and gypsy queen:

We were optimistic this year- Hannah has planned on being a gypsy since LAST Halloween when one of her girlfriends was one. Oma scored some great finds at local thrift stores to complete the look. Sarah vacillated a lot (let's see there was shark, octopus, bat, spider, pumpkin... that's the short list) and she made Oma really nervous when she would say, "Don't worry Oma, you make it for me." (Hee hee! What confidence that girl has in her Oma!)

Friday I was able to help out with the Halloween party in Hannah's classroom. The girls changed into their costumes so we could head out to the College to visit our girlfriend Sue O., who has known Hannah since before she was born! Sarah decided on the way to the van that she didn't want to wear her ladybug costume after all so she went in her black shirt and pants that went under the costume.

Then we ran to the bank as Hannah was the Grand Prize Winner in their Halloween coloring contest. She won a pumpkin full of candy and she was really tickled. Sarah got honorable mention in her age group. ;)

We met Shad at home for the final push out the door for dinner with Jeff, Elena, Sam and Anthony and check out the hayrides and carnival games in their neighborhood. I'm still not sure where it all went awry. The girls hit the dress-up box at the VERY last minute and we ended up going out with a bubble fairy and a dancer, as well as an Ewok and a witch:

I'm not sure why Sarah looks so glum in this photo. She had a great time. It was crazy weather- stormy all morning, gray skies, and WARM. Poor Anthony was roasting in his fur coat. Our evening was an early one- the girls were in bed, asleep by 8.

And, on a wholly unrelated note, Sarah asked me to do her hair for the first time in months. Pig-tails. Couldn't you just eat her up??

Happy B-Day to me! :)

2008-10-04T19:54:00.000-07:00

I'm so not one to toot my own horn BUT I had to share this card from my sweetie... he knows me so well! :)

Thanks, Mom, for a wonderful day with you, and Shad, of course, for helping make it happen.

Goodbye Friend

2008-09-29T18:57:00.000-07:00

Elwood- good dog. Smiling face. Wagging tail. Swimming, running, fetching. We called her Mama-dog because she was such a mother to the other animals she shared her time here with.

We knew that this time would come and find comfort in the small joys she had this summer: lots of naps and rest- inside and in the warm sun, love and special pats. Watching her deteriorate over the past week was difficult. We were so blessed to have our vet and friend come out this afternoon so she wouldn't have to bear one more trip to his office.

It has only been a few hours but already it feels like something is missing from the house.

Elwood- run hard, eat cookies, get belly rubs, swim in the river, and keep an eye on us. We will miss you always.

Firsts...

2008-09-02T11:21:00.001-07:00

Sooo, I recently received an obituary for my blog- eek! And we have news to share AND when I got on here to share the news I found this old post that I never finished AND it has some fun pictures so I thought I share it first!

Our end-of-summer tempera-paint the porch party turns into a tempera-paint your sister party!

Sarah's first day of Little Learners (for this school year, she went for a couple of months last year). Can you tell she's excited??
Hannah's first day of Kindergarten- she just keeps growing!
Sarah came home from school and I was aghast at the state of her hair (which is unruly at best)... ... so she had her first trim- bangs only. Still not sure if it was a good idea, but at least she could see! And, obviously, she was tickled with it!

Ok, now that I'm kind of up-to-date...

Big Week (Make that Two)

2008-08-10T09:47:00.001-07:00

Ok, I found this post from August sitting in the to be published box. Can I remember ANYTHING else about this post?? No! But, I started it, there's a couple of pics, so enjoy...

I started this post LAST Sunday and now I'm just hoping I can remember all the BIG events from the past two weeks...
Hannah and Shad collaborated on a sculpture to enter in an art contest for the summer reading program at the library (Jackson County, of course, as we still don't have one!). You can see them hard at work below. They worked together on the flower and Hannah made the ladybug and worm all by herself. Shad made the caterpillar for Sarah. I delivered the flower, ladybug, and worm to the library and Hannah won one of the prizes- a gift certificate to a local bookstore- she was really proud and tickled!

And so it goes...

2008-08-03T22:08:00.000-07:00

Summer, that is. August. Really? Where did that come from? It is almost unfathomable to me that six weeks have passed since last I blogged. Ah well... we've been going so fast that the calendar for July is literally empty- there wasn't even a chance to write anything down! And calendar #2, the one I maintained on the fridge for scrapbooking purposes- is still on April (at least it is another "A" month now, right??).

Late June found us in Bend for Shad's Summer Regional Meeting at Seventh Mountain Resort. It was fun for the girls and I to meet some new people and see some that we've missed for the past year. Here's a timed family pic from the award banquet evening:

We drove down to Ashland for their annual Fourth of July Parade and festivities- live music, food booths, etc and were home and the girls were in bed before dark- no fireworks this year (neither the good ooohh-and-ahhh in the sky kind nor the not-so-good screaming fits of rage kind- it was a nice balance!).

Shad and some of the other EJ offices in town hosted an ice cream social on June 12- there was a live band, clowns, face painting, gallon upon gallon of ice cream (and maraschino cherries). Shad's first jobs at She She's and Freddy's Ice Cream Shop came in handy as he gave the other Financial Advisors a quick lesson in scooping ice cream. Grammie, Oma and Opa were all there as well as Sam, Hannah's bff from preschool and her brother and dad.

DFD sent me to Seattle for three days in mid July for some DonorPerfect training. The training was great and it was a wonderful opportunity to expand my knowledge of this area of our office. Traveling without the girls was liberating in a my-load-is-lighter kind of way. I took the stairs instead of the elevator, ate when I was hungry, read two books. I apparently have also matured to the point that traveling by airplane just isn't really very exciting- definitely better than cars for long trips, but the novelty has worn off for sure.

When I returned home the girls and I packed up for a weekend in Corvallis enjoying Da Vinci Days in Corvallis with our wonderful friends, Amy, Ryan, Aidan, Lauren, Bethie, and Ryan's family. The weekend was full of live music, arts, crafts, science, frisbee dogs, solar powered car racing, kinetic sculptures, etc but the highlight for sure was spending time with friends and eating Indian food (in that order). Hannah and Aidan seem to have matured so much now that they are 5 (har!) and can enjoy each other's company and we see Sarah and Lauren entering some of those tough two-year-old times (will we have to wait three years for them to interact in a more socially acceptable/enjoyable way??).

This past week we had some family photos taken and on Thursday we hosted a tie-dye party for some of our dear friends- eight children between the ages of 2 and 7, five mamas, a hot day, all kinds of white clothing. It was definitely an event! In the days leading up to it I knew that I would be lacking some key organizational and preparation points (I worked three days that week!) and I decided that it was more important to have the party and have fun than to be the ultimate hostess-with-the-mostess. This is a huge step for me. Luckily, I am surrounded by four amazingly capable women and together we pulled the whole thing off. And, being as there were four scrapbookers there, it says a lot that we don't have a single picture of the process! :)

And now we're in the less-than-a-month til school starts countdown- gasp! We've got the fair, an art class or two for the kiddos, library days, a visit from the Mayfields, and as much Katie time as we can cram in to look forward to.

I'll leave you with a few pics!

I think Katie is pretty enterprising- she's got the girls thinking that washing her car is a great way to spend a summer day. For what it is worth, she is WAY more diligent than I when it comes to sunscreen- which is good given the pale skin we've got around here!

This picture melts my heart. The girls have been spending some quality time playing together. I love it when they pretend Hannah is the baby and Sarah is the mommy. It's a hoot, actually. (Sarah's new word- as in "I'm Pocahontas, actually.")

Cutest little bag lady out there! Don't y'all wish you could pick some of this lovin up at the store??

Wonderful, crazy week!

2008-06-15T21:34:00.001-07:00

I never cease to be amazed at just how quickly our schedule goes from empty to overflowing! This past week is a prime example:

Monday: Hannah and Sarah were absolutely tickled to have the company of M & E for a few hours Monday afternoon. These girls have been friends for coming up on 4 years and we've missed having regular playdates together as the girls have gotten older and school schedules have gotten more complicated. What fun they had playing dress-up and staging little plays.

Tuesday: Hannah's last official day of preschool. I went to work that day and Katie picked the girls up from school and took them to lunch.

Wednesday: Sarah's last official day of school til fall. I worked all day Wednesday and Super-Dad and Super-Oma manned the ship including drop-off for Sarah at school, lunch out with Oma and a super-fun shopping trip to Wal-Mart. (And they obviously did an excellent job, I love coming home to happy kids and family!)

Here's a picture of the completely installed swingset (note Hannah playing in the fort) and, in the foreground, the new tree I won at a silent auction at work. The swingset is getting A LOT of mileage. It was a very sound investment and the girls, especially Hannah at this point, use it a lot. She runs out there by herself quite often.

Thursday: Playday at Hannah's school for all the students in her preschool program and the toddler group that Sarah attends. It was a blast! The play area was filled with teachers, kiddos, parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, 2 bounce houses, face painting, bubbles, and picnics.

Hannah and Sarah decided on matching lady bugs at the face painting station.

It is a mixed crowd. There are students leaving for kindergarten, students who will be returning to the preschool program next year, toddlers who will move up to the preschool program, and toddlers who will be returning. There are also a few families who will attend a different preschool next year (although I cannot begin to imagine why!).

Here's a group of special friends: S, Hannah, Sarah, M, and E. Oh how we'll miss seeing those smiling faces each morning...

And Teacher Julie who has been Hannah's lead teacher in the Purple Class for the past two years. We love her and will miss her horribly until Sarah starts the preschool program there in a year!
The students who are moving on to Kindergarten get a special diploma in an informal ceremony during "Closing Circle" where we all gather together to share a book and a song. Here are S and Hannah with their diplomas. What big kids they're becoming!
Shad brought little balloons home to the girls on Thursday night as an end-of-school year surprise and we took them out to dinner to celebrate Hannah's moving-on from preschool. Hannah chose Matsukaze and we ate traditional-style at the low tables on the floor. Those girls can pack away the miso soup, chicken teriyaki, and rice!

I love this picture of Sarah just because it shows her absolutely crazy hair. I cannot believe how fine it is! It curls and waves every which way! ;)

Friday: Katie came to play ALL DAY while I went to work. It was a long day and it ended when I sprained my ankle trying to unload a bale of hay from our trailer (after Shad asked me not to, of course!). A trip to the Immediate Care and Pharmacy later and we were all tucked safely into bed for a good night's sleep. Shad is an excellent nurse and took superb care of me this weekend.

Saturday: Frog O' Faire. Hannah was heartbroken when we decided that it wouldn't be in the best interest of my ankle to traipse around the uneven ground at the park for this fun and exciting day. She's been anticipating it since the flyers went up over two weeks ago! Of course, Shad had an appointment scheduled and couldn't take the girls. We were very thoughtfully rescued by the P family who answered our call for help and took Hannah along with them. Hannah, E & M had a great time at the park. So much so that Hannah decided she wanted to go home with them for the whole afternoon and we didn't see her until almost 5! What a blessing- fun for Hannah and friends, naps for mommy, productive work time for Shad.

And, finally, Sunday: Father's Day! We slept in, went grocery shopping, took both girls to see Kung Fu Panda (Sarah's first movie at the theatre), and ended the day in the most appropriate way- eating barbecued burgers and corn on the cob on a blanket in the backyard, swinging on the swingset and in the hammock, and playing in the kiddie pool. Wahoo!
Yes, it is a strong a hammock. :) And no, I'm not actually laying on the ground, but I CAN feel the grass on my back! ;)Happy Father's Day Shad!! You Rock!!

And THE BIG NEWS is that THIS MORNING Hannah learned how to pump effectively. She keeps walking around (or swinging up high)saying "I am so proud of myself!" We ALL are! :)

So there you have it. More than you ever wanted to know about how we spend our time! I always heard that staying-home was all laid back and flexible schedule but I've got to tell you- I'm looking at our schedule in total disbelief at how the summer is filling up. Hopefully I'll survive these allergies (and all the meds I'm taking to try to alleviate the symptoms!) and update the blog again SOON- exciting times lay ahead!

Here's to summer adventures and time with friends (new and old!)- two of my favorite things!

Late March and all of April!

2008-04-28T21:00:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking and thinking and thinking about updating the blog... just goes to show that thinking doesn't always get you very far! Thanks to Evan for asking his mom when he was going to see some new pics of the girls on here!

In late February we enjoyed a week at the beach with Oma, Auntie Audrey and Uncle Dave. We were in Brookings this year (yay for shorter drives!) and the weather was mostly cooperative. We got down to the beach and in the hot tub almost daily (sometimes twice a day!), had a fun visit with Dave's daughter and grandson Derek who is Hannah's age. The girls had a great time having Mom, Oma, Auntie Audrey and Uncle Dave at their beck and call and Shad even drove over for a night and was there on Easter morning.
Here's a shot of Sarah holding Hannah up on a piece of driftwood. ;)

I was lucky to snap this shot of three of my most favorite things on our drive home! :)

The weather here has been absolutely wacky this month. (Yes, I know, we live in Oregon, what do I expect??) These photos were taken earlier this month while Hannah and Sarah were playing outside in the hose. That was mere days before the snow and hail. Yes, snow. It was less than two weeks ago that a nearby mountain pass was closed because 16" of snow fell one evening, two days after 90 degree temps!!!

And this last one shows the girls after we planted our little circle garden (tomatoes, strawberries, pumpkins, cukes, radishes, carrots, herbs) the Sunday after the 90 degree day. Just days before the snow. We were a little excited, I guess, that spring was actually here (not!).

Needless to say we replanted some of those plants this weekend (sadly we lost some, even with Shad's commitment to covering the garden on those frosty nights!).

We're looking forward to summer! Out of school, visits with friends, picking berries, playing in the hose (and the new found hobby of mud-pie making), swimming, a possible visit with long distance cousins... if we can survive the heat, the next few months will be most enjoyable. And then kindergarten... but we're not thinking about that yet. (haha)

Brave and Tender Soul

2008-03-18T10:38:00.000-07:00

I could write post after post after post about parenting. My parenting, that is, or these girls, or the million different thoughts or doubts I have each and every day about almost every single decision I make (or neglect to make, as the case may be).

Twice in the past week my heart has literally ached over Hanna's absolute (and resolute) bravery.

Last week Hannah had her 5 year well-child exam and I knew that she was due for shots. I decided not to mention the shots until the morning of the appointment. She knew she had an appointment, though, and out of the blue, the night before, she asked me how many shots she was going to get. (That girl's memory is AMAZING! Last year the nurse mentioned that Hannah was caught up on shots until she turned 5 and I'm sure that is where the shot question came from. Seriously, I could give you example after example of her long-term memory. Short-term, on the other hand....) I honestly told her that I didn't know. I hoped only one, but maybe two?

At that point I figured the gig was up. I tried to be optimistic but I was fully expecting to have to physically drag her, screaming, to the doctor, sit in reception while she melted in my lap, and wrestle her down for shots. It wasn't some unknown fear we were facing here- it hasn't been that long since she's seen Sarah get shots. Fortunately Katie was able to come play with Sarah the next day during Hannah's appointment (I think her last trip to the doctor and three shots were VERY fresh in Sarah's mind and she was VERY happy to stay as far away from there as possible!) which allowed me to be fully available for Hannah. On the way to the doctor she told me that she thought that getting some ice cream afterward might help her feel better (what is she, a mind reader? Or do four-year olds have some kind of secret training for this stuff??) and that was an easy agreement to make.

We went. She was weighed and measured (43 pounds and 42.5 inches tall), all her vitals were checked, Dr. P came in and looked and listened to all the normal stuff and then the nurse came back and told us Hannah was due for 4 shots- wow! Didn't see that coming... But she did it. She sat on my lap and watched Brenda clean her thighs and she watched as shots 1 & 2 went in the right leg, took a deep breath as Brenda went to get shots 3 & 4 for her left leg. Watched those go in and the band-aids go on.

Then she looked at me and her little eyes were so bright with tears, her cheeks were pink and I said, "Hannah, it's ok to cry if you need to." I think one or two little tears escaped and that was it. Even the nurse (who has been our nurse since before Hannah's birth) commented on how remarkably brace she had been.

Then we celebrated at Baskin and Robbins where Hannah discovered bubble gum flavored ice cream... (Which, surprisingly, is a flavor of ice cream that I can totally live without. Blech.)

On Tuesday the father of one of Hannah's classmates brought in some mounted "specimens" of bugs to help kick-off the new theme "Gardening." What we first heard was that he had brought in a tarantula (which we've seen at one of the local pet stores) and when Hannah looked up at me and said, "Let's go look at it Mom!" I was pretty blown away. Unfortunately when we got over there it wasn't one live tarantula it was a couple of small display cases with about 40 preserved bugs (butterflies, beetles, a tarantula, etc) and I was quick to point out to her that they were no longer alive. Suddenly she lost it- she was completely melting, head tucked into my neck, sobbing, clinging... I was bent down with Sarah on my hip (ready to leave, of course) trying to maintain my balance. Of course I tried to talk her through it- yes, it was about the bugs although she couldn't (and still won't) tell me exactly what the issue about the bugs was.

Soon the bugs disappeared and Hannah's teacher gave us a little book to read together (http://www.amazon.com/Things-Scary-Florence-Parry-Heide/dp/0763612227) about all different kinds of scary things (good-scary, exciting-scary, scary-scary). Hannah brought it down a few notches while we were reading and after the book, when they played the clean-up music that signals the beginning of Circle Time, she took a deep breath, looked up at me and said, "I'm ready for you to go now Mom." Oh my. There were still tears in her eyes. I think I even asked her, "Are you sure??" because I was so wholly unprepared for that. But yes, she was sure. She knew what was going to happen next, she was ready to welcome the day with her school-mates, she didn't need me there. I gave her a kiss, I turned around to walk out and I looked back- her face was bright from crying and she clutched a kleenex in her hand, but she wasn't even concerned about me walking away.

Oh this girl of mine. Oh my heart. You know, of course, that this child who has taught me so much of parenting, of stopping, listening, and being patient, this girl still wakes up in the morning and goes to sleep at night needing to touch me. She still has moments where she is so clingy that I absolutely wish I could just shrink out of her grasp (am I horrible for feeling that way? For writing it ?) and then there are moments like these. This push and pull, I imagine, is just a constant now and in the future. Needing me close, seeking her independence, making her own decisions, wanting advice or approval. Just another reminder, I suppose, to slow down and treasure these days- while I am still her closest confidant, her trust in me is 100%, her heart and arms are open. Now is not the shrinking time, it is time to step forward, arms open, and embrace her, all of her.

Just a few photos...

2008-03-13T21:24:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of pictures from Hannah's 5th birthday celebration-

Hannah can barely contain her excitement as Katie helps open a gift. This is the mostly dye-free funfetti cake that I decorated for the family party.

Apparently blowing out 5 candles (Yes, I got the right number on her cake- way to go Mom!) is pretty challenging- it took several tries but she finally did it! Yay!

The fairy-licious cake we bought from Dairy Queen (can you say Chocolate Covered Strawberry Blizzard Ice Cream Cake? Probably not without taking a deep breath and practicing a few times, eh? Anyway, if you know me well you also know it was the OBVIOUS choice, and one Hannah supported 100%.) came complete with this wholly unnatural blue frosting on top (our choice, we needed a pond-like setting for our fairy to sit in) which turned the girls' tongues blue and was thoroughly enjoyed by all. That was a REALLY long sentence! ;)

And finally, I've been remiss with goat pictures and, thankfully, it is NOT snowing here right now- just grey and rainy. These are from the big snowfall January. Billy and Babs (above) were not particularly excited about said snow and Buddy and Bonney (below) didn't even know if they want to come outside!
Brrrr!!!!

High Five!

2008-03-04T21:06:00.000-08:00

Look at that amazingly radiant face- it is the face of my sweetest, my nearly five year old girl...

And as I type this pre-birthday post in honor of Hannah and the celebration of her journey into this world almost five years ago, I think back to where I was at this moment five years ago. My closest guess is that Shad and I would have just called the hospital and would be walking out the door of our house as a family of two for the last time. Less than 3 1/2 hours from now I will mark the moment that this precious child was placed in my arms for the first time.

I hope to start a tradition with this first-ever birthday interview (idea gratefully borrowed from Lucia at http://bagelsandcrawfish.blogspot.com/2008/02/five.html ). Here goes:

J: What are you going to do when you are 5?

H: Go to the park, start kindergarten, and learn how to ride my bike without training wheels!

J: What is your favorite food?

H: Ice cream (especially hot fudge sundaes) and cheeseburgers.

J: What is your least favorite food?

H: Ranch dressing.

J: What do you want to be when you grow-up?

H: A scientist.

J: Any particular kind of scientist?

H: Just a scientist.

J: Who is the funniest person you know?

H: Sarah

J: Who is the smartest person you know?

H: Amy M.

J: What do you worry about?

H: I don't worry.

J: What's your favorite thing to play with right now?

H: Lily Rose (doll mentioned in previous post)

J: What do you like most about school?

H: Motor room (this is like inside playtime with scooters, a play structure, swing, big "motor" movement), table time (structured activities), and recess when it is not freezing outside.

J: If you could travel anywhere in the world where would you go?

H: To China- to eat potstickers and get lots of pretty clothes.

J: Anything you want to add?

H: I love summer!!

And, in honor of the girl, I will not editorialize this interview. Just the facts, no mommy opinions here!

I love you Hannah-Boo. Thanks for making me a mom, your mom. xoxo

1 Year Later

2008-02-29T09:37:00.000-08:00

We're celebrating this week! On Tuesday Shad marked the 1st anniversary of his "can-sell" date or, as he likes to say, the day they "turned me loose on the world." *~*WAY TO GO BABE!!*~*
He has been working at Jones since October of 2006 but officially became a Financial Advisor on 2/26/07. He earned his new office in August 2007 and moved in mid-October.

Shad, obviously, spends a lot of time at his office and the rest of us are there a fair amount of time as well. We're part of the remodel team, cleaning crew, decorating consultants (and contributors as the girls provide him with a steady stream of artwork), and, at times, wrecking crew. I've been meaning since October to get a picture of Shad at his office but, for some reason, I'm never there with the camera when he is dressed for success. I actually have a lot of pictures of him in remodel garb but yesterday I made a point of getting down there WITH the camera to get official anniversary pictures of him. Here they are:

If you squint, you can even read his name on the door! (I'm still figuring out all this photo-editing stuff and am currently taking the position that just getting the pictures on the blog is the most important thing!)

"How can I help you realize your financial goals?" He looks pretty official, doesn't he?

We are currently in the process of getting some family photos for Shad's rather sparsely decorated walls. And let me tell you, it IS a process (although I'm not going into details)! ;)

Shad, I know I speak for everyone when I say that we are SO proud of you. You stepped off the edge and you are FLYING! You are making it happen every day and I am continually impressed by your strength, courage, tenacity, and optimism. I am so blessed to have you as my best-friend, husband, and partner on this amazing journey! Thank you.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2008-02-13T21:54:00.000-08:00

Just a quick, I-should-be-paying-bills-right-now update!

Today, Hannah and her girlfriend Emma moved-up to the "big-girls" gymnastics class. Until now they've been having fun in the 3-5 year old class, running around and getting exercise during these cold winter months. On Monday, Coach Brandon mentioned that we might want to try this class- more focused skill building, a class of six girls between the ages of almost-five and seven.

Emma's mom (Carrie) and I were impressed at how Hannah and Emma joined right in and tried a lot of new things today- it was very exciting! This picture shows (from left) Unidentified Girl, Hannah (in purple), and Emma on the big balance beam- they also swung their legs over, pulled their feet up, and squatted on the beam. I decided I'd better stop with the camera when Unidentified Girl yelled "Cheese!" :)

For Christmas, Hannah received Lily Rose, an Only Hearts Club Doll, from Grammie and they have been almost inseparable since. The dolls are cute, much more "girlish" than Barbies, with soft bodies for cuddling, freckles, and changes of clothes, of course. Our biggest challenge is finding outfits that match- exactly. Hannah is very particular about that. I had the idea the other day to cut a little polar fleece scrap into a vest for Lily Rose. While I was working on that Hannah started flitting around the house and all of a sudden came up to me wearing the exact same outfit as Lily (or as close as we could possibly come with no pre-planned purchases), right down to the aqua vest. We also styled their hair the same, at Hannah's request.

Many of you are familiar with the name Katie. For those of you who aren't let me give you a brief introduction (I would post a pic, but I haven't asked her permission- yet!). Katie is our amazing babysitter and playmate (not to mention one-who-keeps-me-sane!) who spends a few afternoons a week with the girls so I have some time to get things accomplished! I can't really say enough about Katie- Hannah ADORES her and Sarah has a lot of fun with her too. She's going to graduate in June and go away to college. -sob- Until then, though, we'll enjoy every minute we can with her and especially the great pictures she takes of the girls. Like the one above. I found this photo on the digital camera and until then I had NO IDEA that Hannah and Sarah could sit next to each other and look affectionate without screaming, biting, hitting, or hair pulling. It really warmed my heart. ;) Thanks, Katie! We love you!

*~*~THE SUN~*~*

Shad took this picture after 11:00 one night earlier this month. Both the girls had been in bed and I was working on the couch. Sarah woke first and I brought her out because her teeth were bothering her. Hannah woke-up some time later and came stomping out- they kind of jockied for position while I tried to finish up some work- good luck with that!

When I'm feeling completely overwhelmed and everyone is calling my name at the same time and at least two of the three of them are touching me somewhere Shad calls me "THE SUN." He believes that this entire operation is orbiting around me- no pressure, though! I've been trying to convince him that, if that is the case, it's not all shining and glowing, and warm being the sun, there are definitely some real nail-biting, heart-racing, over-tired, back-aching moments as well. Who knew??

And so here's a Happy Valentine's wish to all of you, but especially to all the other "SUNS" who are reading this. It's amazingly wonderful that our orbits have crossed, it could be lonely being THE SUN, but not so much when you know there are others out there as well. I couldn't make it without you! Eat all that Valentine's Chocolate (or, if you're like me, your Choco-Cherry Love Blizzard) fast- they melt quickly in the heat of THE SUN.

It's Official- She's 2! (And pretty terrific!)

2008-01-31T19:12:00.000-08:00

Birthday morning- Sarah uses her presents as stairs to climb into the chair of honor. This would count as the beginning of party number 1, for those of you on party-watch! Party 1 continued throughout the day and ended with an excellent dinner at Matsukaze and ice cream at Baskin and Robbins!

Sarah models one of the horse party hats from party 2. The B family hosted an AMAZING farm themed party for four honorees (pictures follow). From the "Hay Hunt" to the "Toddler Feed Trough" it was an amazingly well-planned and fun event. Even more amazing, with at least twelve close-to-two-year-olds, inside, on a COLD winter day, the energy level and toddler behaviour was to be admired.
We were fortunate to celebrate another birthday with fellow close to 2's Isabel (pictured above),
Ethan (enjoying his cupcake with his dad), and Payton, also enjoying her cupcake with her dad. I was lucky enough to meet these kiddos' moms during my pregnancy with Sarah or shortly after her birth and we celebrated 1st birthdays together last year.
Even Hannah had a pretty good time at the toddler party- here she is with some bootie from the Hay Hunt!
Party 3 found us at Si Casa for rice and beans with Isabel and her mom and dad, our wonderful friends from Corvallis who drove down to celebrate with us, and Oma and Opa. Followed by homemade carrot cupcakes (yum yum!) at our house. Only when I uploaded this picture yesterday did I wonder why I only put one candle on Sarah's cupcake. Hmmm....

And, sadly, I didn't even take the camera to Party 4. We were so lucky to gather with Grammie, Aunt Doris, and Great-Grandma for dinner and cake at Grammie's house. We were also lucky to survive a wonderful weekend FILLED practically to the brim with friends and family. We're so blessed...

Is it possible?

2008-01-15T16:20:00.000-08:00

And we were four... celebrating at the hospital on Sarah's birthday.

Could it really be just three short days before Sarah's 2nd birthday?? What a blur the past two years have been! 'Tis true, though, the day is upon us and boy, are we going to celebrate! For some crazy reason we are looking at a calendar with four (yes, four!) birthday celebrations this weekend (that's right, four in three days, ach!). How this happend is really beyond me. Generally we excel (or at least do pretty well) at keeping the girls' lives and schedules manageable. We know all-too-well the meltdowns, flaring tempers, and dramatics associated with overscheduling. We avoid these things like we avoid bad haircuts and automobile accidents- we are on constant vigil. I kid you not, ask any of my Mama-friends, I'm infamous for cancelling, rescheduling, and postponing at the whim of the girls' moods. (Lucky for me they love me anyway!) All kidding aside, please wish us luck this weekend- wish us happy party karma, controlled chaos, sugar-highs (of the frosting variety) happily balanced by the eating of much broccoli. Send all your parenting wisdom and patience my way and pray that I need hardly any of it! :)

Bonney (foreground) and Buddy who are goat-field escape artists

contemplate taking a ride on the swing.

Baaabs (who hasn't mastered the art of escape) sneaks a peak at the girls.

And now, news of goats. For the past seven months if you asked us how many goats we had we would tell you four and you would look out into the field and count five; it has been an ongoing (and bad joke). Since last July we have been waiting for mama goat (Heidi) to go home. She came here in May with her two kids who were still nursing and our goat-dealer didn't seem to be able to get her stuff together to come and pick her up. Heidi is pretty pushy when it comes to eating, butts the baby goats around, and isn't nearly as cute or lovable as the other goats (plus she's a lot bigger, for now, and she kind of scares the girls). On Sunday we decided it had been long enough and Shad and I wrestled her into the back of the truck (Shad did most of the wrestling, and he did get into some interesting positions- I wish I had pictures although he probably could have been arrested for a lewd caprine act.) and we all hopped in the truck and took Heidi home!! YAY!! (With a trip through Dutch Bros first, of course, for good measure! Another picture I'd love to have!)

Last week we enjoyed a visit from one of Shad's childhood friends, Drew, whom we haven't seen in about three years (he and his wife relocated to Ohio). Shad and Drew spent some quality time catching up and we're excited by the prospect that their family is considering moving back out West. We'll be among the first to welcome you back when you get here guys!

I just finished the paperwork to get Sarah invovled in a Little Learners pre-preschool type program (twice a week for 1.75 hours) that is run through the same program that runs Hannah's preschool. She starts on February 6 and is pretty jazzed. Ask her what she's going to do at school and her answers are "Wash hands" and "Play, play, play." Which are both accurate- first thing they do every morning is wash hands, and then they learn through playing. Smart girl! :)

Regarding Hannah... for the past week or so Hannah has taken to saying to me (particularly when we're lying in the dark at bedtime), "I love you Mama. Soooo much. And I'll never forget you. Ever." This pure, sweet, declaration of love strikes something in the depths of me- more so than most things. My days (amazingly) are filled with hugging, kissing, holding hands, snuggling, carrying, and adoring these girls. I hate to even think that I might take this seemingly endless show of affection for granted but I probably do, on some level. But back to Miss H: Can I tell you that these four simple sentences almost bring me to my knees? That until she started saying this to me I honestly had never even really stopped to consider a time where she COULD potentially forget about me (or vice-versa)? I haven't made a big deal out of this, but each time she says it, maybe every other day or so, my poor heart shudders and, for a brief instant, the future flies by right before my eyes. I am not ready for this. Nor will I ever be.

And, finally, looking SO forward for the M family to journey south for our annual celebration of Sarah's birthday. Think of us Saturday night, we'll be eating rice and beans and, eventually, wrestling four small children to bed so that we can enjoy some adult conversation... Can't wait!

And we'll be leaving you with "Baby Blast-Off" apparently this Hannah, Sarah, and Katie's (our amazing babysitter) official name for one of their outdoor passtimes. I hope the video below works and that you don't feel as sick as I do when you watch it. :) In case you miss it, the VERY end is Sarah saying "baby blast-off-" she LOVES it!

Updates & Comments

2008-01-05T00:41:00.001-08:00

My goal will be to update this blog at least once per month so check back for new eye-candy. Also, feel free to leave comments, we'd love to hear from you!

Happy New Year!

2008-01-04T22:56:00.000-08:00

So, it seems as though EVERYONE has a blog and, to be honest, I didn't really want to blog, but I see some definite benefits here as far as posting pictures of the girls and goats to satisfy any and all of your urges to see them!

December was not the time for me to try and compose an "everything-we've-done-this-year" letter to include with our cards and last year (Christmas of 2006, that is) I didn't do one either. I just assumed that when you got our Christmas card with two children, rather than just one, you would assume that we had another child and that the little pink jacket would identify said child (Sarah, by name) as a girl!

I've decided to include some "everything-we-did-in-2007" reading here, in honor of introducing our blog. So, please read at your leisure, enjoy some new pictures, and know that we'd love to hear from you!

Here is what the holiday card would have said (and "Yay me!" for not wasting so much paper!):

Christmas Day 2007

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! And what a busy year it has been!

In late 2006 Shad left his job as Quality Manager with ESAM to become a Financial Advisor with Edward Jones Investments. He started studying for his licensing tests in late October, passed his tests with flying colors in mid-December and spent the first week of 2007 at training in Phoenix, Arizona. He's been back to Arizona for trainings at least twice since then (I may be losing count, though!) and we were able to attend the Summer Regional meeting as a family in San Francisco in late June! Shad moved into his own office in October (three months ahead of schedule!) and is really enjoying his new role. Highlights for him include a positive work environment and helping his customers recognize and realize their goals through sound financial planning.

Shad's first official day of "door-knocking." Anyone want to buy a snowman?? :)

Jessica returned to work, in a very part-time capacity, as a Grant Writer for Dogs for the Deaf. If you're not familiar with them, visit their website: http://www.dogsforthedeaf.org/ DFD was Jess's first job when we relocated from K Falls and she is excited to be back "in the pack" and working for an organization whose mission she supports. It has definitely been a learning process, though, not just learning about grant writing, but also balancing home and work. All-in-all, it has been a positive change, Jessica loves seeing other adults on a regularly scheduled basis, and appreciates the mental aerobics. Two of the four grants that she has applied for have been funded- wahoo! And the girls are almost used to the idea of mom going back to work (it's only been a year, after all!).

Girls cutting trees! Grrrr! December 2007

Hannah is in her second year of preschool at Gilbert Creek and turned four in March. She started the year with a little dancing (ballet and tap) and ended it in gymnastics which she plans to continue into the new year. Hannah is an amazing person- very sensitive, intelligent, and mild-mannered (at the best of times) and also very dramatic! If she could narrow it down she would list her hobbies as playing with dolls, playing with dolls, and, um, playing with dolls. Oh, throw a little tv watching in there for good measure (much to mom's chagrin!). And I suppose I've left out all the fun summer activities like swinging in the backyard, riding bikes and scooters, but summer is so far from my mind right now!

Hannah's first day of school. September 2007 (And our fruitful grape vines!)

Sarah celebrated her 1st birthday in January (she'll be two in two weeks!) and we've just spent the time since her birth wondering what happend to the time?? Sarah is a busy girl- of course, she has Hannah to keep up with and that is a full-time job in itself! She started walking last January and now is running, dancing, twirling, swinging, hopping, jumping, dumping, pouring, just about anything that ends with -ing is fair game for the girl. Her favorite activities right now would include painting (full-body painting, that is), getting in her sister's space, and changing her clothes (several times per day) which she manages to do on her own. "Sarah-do!" is heard about eight times per day on average in this house.

Sarah's 1st Birthday Cake, January 2007.

Highlights and additions:

-Jessica, Hannah, and Sarah spent a week at the coast with Jessica's mom, sister, and brother-in-law

-we welcomed a new kitten (Star) and five goats (one mama and four babies: Heidi, Billy, Buddy, Bonney, and Babs or Baaaabs) in early summer and the girls are official farm girls- they both have their own rubber boots (as do mom and dad) and love to spend time in the field with the goaties

-Jessica, Hannah, Sarah, and Jessica's Grandma took a car trip to visit Jess's Dad in early November. While they were there they got to see Disney Princesses on Ice- it was a huge hit with the girls

-Jessica's Grandma relocated to her aunt's house about 25 miles away in the late-summer and Jessica and the girls have enjoyed getting to visit her every other week or so

-Elwood will be 15 years old this year and Opal is seven now!

We are so blessed to be starting this new year with our lives so full and surrounded by our family and friends and we hope that 2008 is bright for you as well.

Happy Holidays,

Shad, Jessica, Hannah, Sarah and animals