Emma’s Preschool Halloween Party

Today was Emma’s Halloween Party with her preschool and she decided to go as a ballerina!

The party was set up like a carnival at an area park. There were different “stations” throughout the park area for face painting, cookie decorating, pumpkin decorating and various games.

Emma had a great time and loved getting a prize out of the prize bucket after each activity!

 

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

- Hebrews 11:1

Emma Goes to the Dentist!

Yesterday Emma had her first visit to the dentist. Her pure terror of going worked to our advantage as she laid still and let both the hygienist and the dentist clean her teeth and work in her mouth without moving a muscle!!

I think the fact that she was able to watch Cinderella and wear cool sunglasses during the visit helped as well!

If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
- Romans 12:18 

Emma’s First Field Trip

Today Emma had her first field trip. Her nursery school (and from the look of it every other child under 4 in the bay area!) descended like locust to Joan’s Farm in Livermore. Emma had been anxiously awaiting today and couldn’t wait to get there and see her friends!

We started the field trip with the kids getting to feed the animals. Emma fed a goat (out of a little cup – she wouldn’t let the goat eat out of her hand!) and thought it was hilarious.

 

After a short educational presentation (this is a school day you know!) the kids were let loose in the pumpkin patch.

I really felt badly for the pumpkins as what seemed like millions of 3 year olds came in ready to lay their hands on as many pumpkins as possible! After picking up (and dropping from a great height) several pumpkins Emma finally settled on one she deemed as perfect.

After a bit more playing and having her picture taken atop various farm animal statues we headed home. She told me in the car on the way home what a great day she had and how much she loved her first field trip thus making it all worth it!

Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.

- John 16:24 

Beach Day – in October!!

This past Saturday we took the kids to Ocean Beach in San Francisco. As usual they loved it and we couldn’t get Emma out of the water. She literally stood in it for 2 hours until we forced her to come back to the blanket and play in the sand!! It was our first time at this particular beach and it we really enjoyed it and there was tons of room to run and play family frisbee!!

It always amazes me how spending any amount of time staring at the waves can be so soothing and calming and makes you forget about the “real world” for a while. A much needed day of diversion for us all!

On the way home we stopped at the Presidio and got a good shot of Grace's favorite bridge.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

- Galations 5:22 

Pooler Pumpkin Patch Party!

Ok, it wasn't really a party, I just like to use alliteration!

A couple of weekends ago, we decided to take the kids to the Smith Family Farms Pumpkin Patch in Brentwood.

The girls were not all that interested in picking out a pumpkin, but rather sitting on all of the tractors on display. Emma was very upset and honestly shocked when we informed her that she couldn’t bring her favorite one home with us!

It was a great place to go – they had a whole area of animals to visit and then you could view cows and donkeys in a field together and they had the cutest Barn Show with a guy singing kid songs and playing the banjo. Emma even got to go up front and play an instrument!

We all had a great time and can’t wait to go back again next year!!

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

- Philippians 4:8 

Kindergarten Kraziness!

So the dreaded day has come and gone and we have all survived and thrived! Grace is officially in kindergarten, my heart is officially broken in two and there are officially 179 more days in this school year left!!

Grace started this monumental day by racing up and down our hallway screaming “it’s the first day of school, it is finally here, I am going to kindergarten!!” So that was a good sign and we went from there.

We started out really well, lunches packed, pictures taken and to school on time. School was a bit chaotic when we arrived as you would expect for 25 – 5 year olds in one room with parents and cameras.

We were allowed to stay for about 10 minutes and settle her in and then were asked to leave. No exaggeration, turning and walking away and leaving Grace at school with 24 kids I didn’t know for 6 straight hours felt like my heart was ripped in two and was hands down one of the hardest things I have done as a parent. Seriously it was horrible and I didn’t think I could do it, I literally don’t know what to do when she isn’t with me.

Grace did so well at school and when I picked her up and got home she had a snack and chattered on and on about school, her teachers, the kids and what she learned. This helped to lessen the blow of her being gone to see her so happy and enjoying herself so much from the start.

I can say that I counted down the minutes until I went to pick her up and cried just as hard when I picked her up as when I dropped her off. I couldn’t wait to hold her and kiss her and hear about her day. I feel happy when both of my girls are home with me! Tomorrow we will get up and do it all over again with smiles!

For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

- Proverbs 2:6 

Emma Goes to School

My summer came to an abrupt, screeching halt when I had to send my baby girl, sweet little Emma off to her first day of preschool last Thursday, August 11^th. I did really well and held it together – actually that is a big fat lie, I lost it before she even made it through the door!

I know that when I was pregnant everyone said “the years will fly by” and “they will be in school before you know it” and I would roll my eyes and think, these people have no idea. Boy was I wrong, the days and minutes have flown by and when I look at Emma, I still see that little 5 ½ pound baby and I can’t believe she is already in school (I know, just preschool, but this is a very unstable time for me, just go with it!).

Today was her third day of school – she attends every Tuesday and Thursday morning – and so far she loves it and her teachers. We are very fortunate that the school and curriculum are great and the teachers are even better. Still, I have such a hard time giving her that final kiss each morning when I leave and I can’t wait to go back and get her when school is over.

As hard as I have tried, I still do a double take each time she leaves school and walks toward me. I think “wow, that looks a lot like Emma, but it can’t be, she is way too young for school!”

I really do enjoy watching her grow and seeing her excited about making friends, yet selfishly, I miss her terribly and can’t wait to see her after only three hours!!  

On Tuesday the 23^rd, I will go through it all again with Grace when she starts FULL DAY Kindergarten. I will post after I finish wailing and crying (I would expect that to take 10-12 years!).

They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

- Acts 16:31

San Fran Here We Come!!!

We spent last weekend in San Francisco as a final (and very sad) farewell to summer (insert crying and screaming here!). Chris had always wanted to go to the Farmer’s Market on the pier and I had always wanted to walk across the Golden Gate Bridge and go to Sausalito, so we got into the car and made it happen!

Our first stop was the Farmer’s Market at the Ferry Plaza. Wow – we were not prepared for the sheer magnitude of vendors there. If there is a fruit, vegetable, protein or any other item you want and/or need and can’t find it there, I would say it doesn’t exist!! It was so amazing and the energy there was so wonderful I wish we could go every weekend!

While there I waited in line for 20 minutes (yes, that is right, no typo there!) for coffee from Blue Bottle Coffee Co. It was delicious and worth the wait and all part of the experience of the weekend! I can salivate still just thinking about it!

Before we left the mecca called the Farmer's Market, we ate at Gott's Roadside where you can get an amazing hamburger (or chicken tenders for my kids!) and I do mean AMAZING!!

After we were stuffed, we drove then waddled the rest of the way to the marina (my favorite part of the whole city) and Baker Beach. I find this to be one of the most amazing beaches I have ever been to because when you are there, the Golden Gate Bridge is in the background - so cool! The girls had a ball playing in the sand and the waves.

My favorite picture from the trip, I love to see my girls together. If I could have captions above this it would be Grace saying "Stick by my side Emma, and we can conquer anything together!"

After a fun night at the hotel complete with swimming, we headed out the next morning to walk across the Golden Gate Bridge. Since I had nightmares all night about the kids on the bridge, they were NOT allowed out of the stroller, I was terrified of Emma taking a header off of it, I appreciate how curious she is, just not that high up in the air!

 

Anyways, the bridge is amazing and such a beautiful landmark in our great country. We had a fun time, the weather cooperated (no small accomplishment in San Fran in the morning!) and everyone stayed seated in the stroller!

After the bridge we headed out of the city and into Sausalito. I have always wanted to visit and see what it was all about. It is a beautiful little seaside town with great views of the city and a beautiful marina area. There were lots of cute little shops and restaurants that we hope to go back and explore some day with no kids!!

All in all a great weekend spent in one of our favorite cities and we were sad to have to leave, but we will be back soon - we can't stay away for long!

By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

- Hebrews 11:3

Father/Daughter Camping Trip

Chris and Grace went on a camping trip together last night to this exotic place called - Our Backyard! Grace loves going "camping" and gets so excited she can't contain herself.

So I sent the campers out to their tent armed with flashlights, water, a cell phone (for emergencies, they were a good 4 feet from the house!!) and a couple of books - both about daddy's. They spent a good amount of time playing with the flashlights and Grace was frantically searching for a shooting star - she didn't spot one but she isn't giving up!

Chris said that Grace requested a lot of stories, so he made up several fairy tales for her. It seems like such a simple night, but I am so glad they have these memories together to cherish. I know that it won't be long until we look back on nights like last night and the pure simple pleasures of camping out in the backyard and wonder where the time has gone.

The next hurdle is camping with Emma . . .

Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.
- Ephesians 6:4

Birthdays, Graduations, Vacations and Family, oh my!

Ah, the blessed return of the laziest blogger around - I'm back!!

So much has happened since my last blog in April. Grace turned 5, Emma turned 3, Grace graduated from Nursery School, both sets of parents visited (at different times!!), we took a vacation to Lake Tahoe and so much more. I will try and hit some highlights and make a real effort to post more often, no really, I am going to do it.


We took a mini-vacation to Lake Tahoe. I have always wanted to visit so we decided since we live so close now, we should go and see what all the fuss is about - wow, we were blown away by the beauty of it. What a gorgeous slice of America. The weather was perfect and we enjoyed lots of time in the salt water pool at the hotel, played in the sand at the beach, rode the gondola up to the top of Heavenly Ski Resort where there was tons of snow still and overall we had a great, relaxing, fun family time.



We were so lucky to have both sets of our parents visit us. My parents visited for a couple of weeks in May. They were here for the conclusion of Grace's nursery school including the end-of-year festivities and graduation and we took a trip to Napa Valley.

The girls had a great time with them and loved all of the attention. They played lots of games and read lots of books and overall just soaked up the time they had together. We were sad to see them go, it never feels as if the visits last long enough, but we were so glad that they were able to visit us!


Then at the end of June my in-laws the Pooler's came to town for a visit. We had such a great time with them. I feel very lucky to have in-laws that I genuinely enjoy spending time with and I always feel like I can learn so much from them from being a good Christian, a good parent and an overall good person.

While they were here we spent a lot of time at home playing and reading and learning but we also took them to the Farmer's Market, Muir Woods and Napa Valley. We were so sad when they left and now we have no family visitors to look forward to :(

We have had a wonderful and busy last few months. I am making a vow before you all that I am going to blog more often.

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

God Really Outdid Himself Here!

Last week we went on a family vacation to Yosemite National Park. I hadn’t been there since 1987 and I have to say, the park has aged much better than I have.

Yosemite is only 3 hours away from where we are living, so it was an easy trip even with fidgety, recently sick children.

I’ll just hit on some highlights of the trip:

On our first night in the park we decided to take an after dinner stroll on a bike trail that runs behind our hotel. My inner voice said “this will be fine, no wild animals will go near a bike trail – bears don’t even ride bikes.” As is usually the case, my inner voice lied to me! Not only did we see a bear, but a coyote too and much too close to us! So, Emma of course wanted to pet the bear and coyote and play with them and Grace was terrified and the rest of the trip asked if there were bears nearby!

The waterfalls, holy man, I have never seen this many waterfalls and this large anywhere before. As a matter of fact, the only real memory I have of my first trip to Yosemite 24 years ago was that it had been a particularly dry spring so the waterfalls were dry. Talk about disappointing!

We had a couple of firsts on this trip – the girls got to ride a bus for the first time (the Yosemite National Park shuttle that drives you around the park). Grace was very impressed, Emma only liked it because she could eat her goldfish on it! We took the girls out for lunch at a “fancy” restaurant (i.e. real tablecloths and glasses!). They both did very well and Grace ordered for herself for the first time and was so proud. We will be more proud when they can both order and pay for themselves!!

We spent our days at the park enjoying limited technology, lots of the great outdoors, lots of playing in the snow and just hanging out together. It was so good to get away after a long, illness filled month of March. We are looking forward to many more returns to one of the most beautiful places on earth – Yosemite!

Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these?  He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name.  Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.

- Isaiah 40:26