Its my time now

I started school last week. Im studying to be an Aesthetician. Ive only gone to school a few days but I am already LOVING it!!! By the 3rd day, we were already hands on. So that means that almost every day right now, I am giving a one hour facial and receiving one. Its absolutely amazing. I lay there and relax and the lights are dimmed and the music is going and everyone is quiet and working or relaxing. I just cant believe this is school. Its fun. I enjoy it. Im excited about what Im learning and excited to go each day. Its a first for me. So this is what its like to be working on something you love. I think its wonderful.

There are 18 girls in my class. Most of them are in their early 20's. Myself and 3 others are in our 30's and one lady is almost 50. Its fun. So far everyone is getting along fine. We are getting to know eachother and its already becoming a comfortable atmosphere where we joke and tell stories. We get two 30 minute breaks and an hour for lunch so its nice that we all have so much time each day to shoot the breeze. Ive been enjoying Tempe again. Its been years since I had a reason to be in Tempe on a regular basis. Today I ate at Dilly's Deli...just as good as ever. It has been years since Ive been there. Im planning on Nello's later this week. I get to go to lunch with new friends and hang out and talk about adult type stuff. I barely think about the kids and house when I am gone for 8 hrs a day. Its a HUGE mental break and it makes me really savor the time I do have with Sam and Charlie.

We are all adjusting just fine. Carl has been super helpful and that has been a very unexpected bonus. He feeds Charlie breakfast and gets him dressed and takes him to school each day. He said he would make dinner once a week and so far he has made Chalupa on my first day of school and Ceviche yesterday...both turning out perfect. He's been picking up and doing laundry and loading the dishwasher. It is sooooo nice to come home and find that I dont have to do it all.

Im just very thankful right now. I cant believe I get to do this.

First Day of School 2010

We have had a busy month this August. Sam started Kindergarten on the 11th and Charlie just started Preschool yesterday. They are both doing great!

Sam is going to Zaharis Elementary. Its a really awesome school. His teacher's name is Mrs. Moore and he has 26 kids in his class. He gets to go to computer lab, library, music once a week and PE twice a week. He gets to climb a rock climbing wall in PE. That is so cool. Sam had a tough time adjusting. We had some tears each day and he wanted me to stay with him on the playground in the mornings until it was time to line up and go in. When Id pick him up he'd announce how many times he cried and that he missed me. Finally on Tuesday the following week, he announced, "Mom! I cried Zero!" He is doing well now. I think he likes his class and he has made a few friends.


Charlie started at Desert Rose preschool here in Las Sendas. His teacher is Mrs. Rose and she is very sweet and nice. I was a bit worried about him because he was starting out right away with 5 days a week for 4 hrs a day. I need him to be doing this so I can go to school starting next month. When I went to pick him up, he was running around playing and having a lot of fun. When we left he kept saying, "I liked it! I liked it!" So cute.

Im so proud of both of them. They are growing up so fast.

Both kids riding bikes without training wheels in the same weekend!

We have graduated to a new level of big kid around here. Bikes without training wheels!

Its been stormy with the monsoons and overcast, so yesterday we decided to take the kids to the park and try to teach Sam to ride without his training wheels. So we did that and he was off and riding on his own in the first 5 minutes! He rode all over the park loving every second of it! He was so proud and I was so proud too. It felt like when he started walking or something. haha.

Then today, we went riding again and Charlie's training wheel broke off. So we took off the training wheels and Carl started running him around on the bike. Sure enough, he was off and riding too! Its crazy! All it takes is a big brother for motivation sometimes! I cant believe how fast Charlie picks up the things Sam does. Its crazy that they both learned to ride in the same weekend!

I also should mention that I was very proud of Carl this weekend. It was so humid and muggy out. He ran and kept up with both boys, who need help every time they fall. He was soaked with sweat. Im happy to have a husband that is almost 40 that can keep up with them. Go Carl!

Summer Fun 2010

The kids have been having a ton of fun lately. Summer is already coming to a close. Sam starts full day Kindergarten on Aug 11. Charlie will start his preschool the following week, going 5 days a week and I will start my school on Sept 15. I CANT WAIT! I am so excited to learn something new, meet new people and just have something else going on in my life. Im ready to start that next chapter. Im ready to move on from only being home with my kids all day. I hope that doesnt sound bad. I dont mean that Im sick of them at all. Im just excited about finally after almost 6 years to be doing something that is just for me. Im going to miss not having to wake up to an alarm clock, and having these leisurley mornings Ive enjoyed for quiet some time now. I have a hard time getting out of the house before 11am. Its time for more structure.


We didnt go on a vacation this summer. We have made up for that by taking little weekend trips. we went up to the cabin for 4th of July weekend with our good friends the Werners. We had a great time. The kids are all old enough to play outside on their own a lot so that really made things relaxing for Carl and I. We spent a whole afternoon at Fossil Creek and that was amazing and fun.

A couple weeks ago, Carl's sister Audrey and I went up to Flagstaff with our kids to visit the Whitney Cunningham clan. We had a blast. The kids had fun with all their cousins and the adults got to eat lots of yummy food and drink yummy wine and just get in some good relaxing time. We didnt get up to many plans at all and that was fine with me.

Tomorrow, Im headed back up to the cabin with 2 of my bestest girlfriends and our kids. I cant wait. Its a mid-week adventure for 2 nights. We may hit up Fossil Creek or the Tonto Bridge. Hopefully since its mid-week, there will be hardly anyone but us around.

Ive really enjoyed the cabin this summer. I think when we went for the 4th of July, and I saw my kids playing and enjoying the same things I used to enjoy, I realized how much I love that place. Its barely changed since I was a kid. Its the only place that we can go that has been there my entire childhood. I will really miss that place someday when it gets sold. I wish I could buy it and keep it in the family where I think it belongs.

Fun Grandpa

We went over to my mom's today to hang out for awhile. Mom and Randy got a play pool and a slip n slide for the kids. I was sitting inside reading and I start hearing the kids screaming and yelling and laughing like crazy. I look out the window to see Randy doing the slip n slide with his jeans and tye dye shirt on!

The kids were getting such a kick out of it. He would throw the kids down the slip in slide and they go slipping all the way past the end into the grass. Even Carl got into it. It was so funny. It reminded me of when we were kids and Randy would come home from running and he would run straight into the pool with his cloths and shoes on, just to get a laugh out of us. I really love Randy. He is a good grandpa to my boys. They are so lucky to have such awesome grandparents!

We have Sparky

We have a new pet for the time being. Sparky. Sam named him. He is a little bird that fell out of a nest that was up on the eves of our house, in the sun. Its been especially hot this weekend and the other bird in the nest died. This one had fell out and survived the 12 foot fall. So Carl brought him into the courtyard and put him in a planter that gets a bit of water and lots of shade.


He and the kids are nursing it back to life. He's made more than one trip to Pets Mart already. We were excited because Sparky started eating today. We couldnt get him to take anything yesterday, but today his mouth is wide open and ready.

Carl feeds him this:


Which are these meal worms crushed up. Eeeeew! I know!


Anyways, earlier we saw another bird come by and take note. Later that bird came back and was in the nest with Sparky for a bit. I had a great view from Sam's bedroom window. She was feeding Sparky! Awesome. We are all excited and hope that he will live and these other birds heard his tiny cries and are here to help :)

Cousins and Snow

This weekend we went up to Flagstaff and stayed in condos with Dad, Fran, Jason and Kristal and their kiddos, Felipe and Hannah, and Sarah and Jim and their kids. It was so much fun! We were each in charge of different meals and we all made such good food. The kids were all playing together constantly. We had a pretty good sledding spot, right outside of our back patios. The condos each have their own spa on the deck. It was so nice to see everyone. Uncle Al and Aunt Donna came over on Sat and Sunday night and both nights Al brought wonderful soups for us to eat. It was so nice!!! I just love my Prescott Family!

Charlie Schmarlie

Charlie is so funny. His vocabulary is really growing fast and he loves to chime in constantly! He is the biggest back seat driver. What is more funny than that is sometimes I hear him back seat driving in his sleep! He is such a sleep talker and he says the same stuff he says when he is awake and sounds so funny.

Here are a few recent ones:

"Mine Mommy! MINE!!"
"Dont wanna go to church"
"Wanna go home, wanna stay home"
"I wanna go to Grandmas"

It is so funny. Sometimes he almost throws fits in his sleep.

Five Years Old

Sam's Birthday was yesterday. I cant believe he is 5 years old already! The years are just flying by!!!!!!!!! I have to say that the last 5 years have been some of the hardest years of my life, but also the most rewarding. Ive given a lot more love in these 5 years than I ever did in my entire life before.

For Sam's Bday this year, we had a party at a bowling alley. It was so much fun! We invited our friends the Stoddards, the Werners and the Crists along with Mom and Randy and Bob and Pat. It was so much fun! The kids really loved bowling. They make it easy for kids to bowl these days. Even Charlie was able to bowl. Put the rails up on the sides so the ball cant go into the gutters and they have this thing-a-majig that you can wheel over and just set the ball on top and it rolls down and onto the lane in a perfect straight line.


Sam made out like a bandit like he always does. We got him 2 hermit crabs and the whole crabitat set up. He named his crabs Su Su and Yu Yu after Tiffany and Leslie's cats. I cant believe Tif and Leslie have cats named Su Su and Yu Yu. So funny! We also got Sam the new Super Mario Bros game for the Wii and we all love it. I stayed up until 1am playing it! It was a fun time.

Happy Birthday my sweet, thoughtful, caring little guy. I love you more than the world.

Tis the Season

We have been getting ready for Christmas. I think so far this is the most fun its been. Sam is super excited and he believes in Santa and all that fun stuff! We've been driving around looking at lights at night and we found a great cul de sac in Mesa. We also took the kids to the temple.



Sam had a Christmas program at his school this week. Once again, he was front and center, right where it was easy to see him! He did so good and they were all really cute.


I guess the biggest news of the month is that Charlie is potty trained! Yay!!! I had though a couple months ago how it would be a nice Christmas present to myself if I could be done with diapers. I didnt think it would happen, but on Sunday when we woke up, I asked if he wanted to use the toilet and he did. From that point on, he wore underwear. Its now Friday and he has only had a couple small accidents this entire week and none since Tuesday. He even goes on his own, without me asking him all the time. It is wonderful and Im so proud of how great of a potty trainer he has been. Pretty much perfect!

We are heading up to Prescott this afternoon for the Hardy/McGuire Christmas party at Dad and Fran's. Im so excited to see everyone.

Happy Thanksgiving

We have had a nice Thanksgiving weekend so far. We had a little dinner at my mom's on Wed night with just us, Mom and Randy and Grandpa Smith and Grandma Lumpkin. It was nice! It was the smallest Turkey meal Ive ever had. We got to sit at the dining room table and eat on China. It was very nice. The next day, we headed over to Bob and Pat's for a Cunningham family Thanksgiving. It was so much fun! The kids had a soccer tournament. There was lots of tree climbing and rough housing. The food was amazing too! It was great to see Whitney and Audrey's families. It had been a long time since we'd all gotten together. It was better than I had hoped.

hahaha...how gross!

Am I the only mom that see's a mess like this when she checks her kids bathroom? This is what the toothpaste ALWAYS looks like in the boys bathroom. Its so gross, but it makes me laugh at the same time. Charlie is pretty obsessed with brushing his teeth. He mostly likes to eat the toothpaste, but I usually find him in the bathroom 5 or 6 times a day trying to brush. Now if only I could get Sam to like it that much.

Halloween Madness

We hosted a Halloween party here for our friends with small kids. It was a lot of fun. Charlie was very into trick or treating. By the end of it, his bag of candy was so full he could barely carry it. Here are some pics of us from the party.

A Hustler, Cleopatra, and 2 Power Rangers: Oh and Carl glued that comb over on with rubber cement! OUCH.

Power Rangers:
My goblin cupcakes. I also made eyeball cupcakes !

Our Jack O Lanterns!

Where have the months gone?

I cant believe I havent updated this blog in over 2 months. Life has been busy.

Sam started Pre-K at his school this year. His teachers are Mrs. Martinez and Mrs. Klemmer. Sam's friend Will is in his class this year, so that is nice. Will's mom and I are good friends so we take turns picking up the kids from school and letting them play all afternoon. Here is a pic of Sam with his friend Will, on an opposing soccer team.


Charlie and I hang out when Sam is in school. I take him to the park and run errands. He goes to a babysitter here in my neighborhood on Wed mornings so I can have a few hrs to get things done. Miss Lina is his sitter and she is a very nice lady that does child care out of her home full time. She has 3 other 2 yr olds that are always there for Charlie to play with.

Sam is playing his 2nd season of soccer! He is on the Las Sendas league this year so I see all my friends at the games and practices. Its fun for all of us. This year, Sam really seems to understand it more. He actually knows what goal is his haha. He has also discovered that he is a great goalie! So this year that is his job. Its fun watching him, but its a nightmare dealing with Charlie at the games. Man that kid just wants to GO in his own direction.


The kids and I went up to Prescott over the weekend with Leslie who was in town for a wedding. We spent one night up there. It was a quick trip, but nice. We got to go to a pumpkin patch with Kristal and her kids and actually pick pumpkins off the vine! I dont think Ive ever picked pumpkins. Most pumpkin patches in AZ are field with pumpkins trucked in and scattered about.

We are looking forward to the holidays. We are kicking it off with a Halloween party here at our house for our friends and neighbors. Carl has plans to make a haunted house in our courtyard that the kids have to go through to get into the house....he is procrastinating it though, and busy with work so we will see.

Havasupai

Well, Im back from hiking Havasupai in the Grand Canyon. I had an amazing time! Everything from waking up at 2:30am and driving 3 hrs to get there, to the hike, the camping...it was all a lot of fun!! Not having to take care of kids, I felt like a kid again.

The hike in wasnt bad at all. Its 10 miles and the first mile is practically straight down, the switch backs. Then after that, its just a LONG walk. It was a beautiful walk though and I didnt get any blisters at all. Im sure not having to carry our packs made a huge difference.


The campsite was amazing! A large creek running through the middle and lots of little brooks and creeks all over the place! The spot we got was surrounded on both sides by creeks. We were right against the canyon walls and there was a really cool cave right up above us that had 4 tunnels that went back about 200 feet. The water falls were the most amazing waterfalls Id ever seen. They blew anything Id seen in Hawaii out of the water. Havasupai falls was nice, but the 2nd day we hiked to Mooney Falls and wow, it was so awesome! We had to go through this crazy little cave, and climb down latters and hold onto ropes and chains to get down. It really was one of the coolest spots Ive ever seen in my entire life.


Everyone hiked out, but my mom and I took a helicopter out. Aside from waiting forever, it was really cool. When you are in the bottom of the canyon, all you can see is the walls right by you, so the canyon doesnt look as big. But flying out, I saw all the other canyon walls that were set back and I was like, wow this really is the grand canyon! There is a village down at the bottom that 300 natives have been living in for over 1000 yrs. It was crazy seeing houses down there. The only way in is to walk, horse back or helicopter. They all keep their cars at the hilltop and fly in. I cant imagine living down there, totally cut off from the rest of the world. We saw horses carrying mail bags out.

Anyways, the whole trip made me realize how much I need to get back outdoors and starting camping and hiking again. I really enjoyed the rock climbing as well. It was scary but when I was down and saw what I climbed, I was so proud of myself. It was amazing being in a spot where there were no cars, no music, no noise at all but the creek. You couldnt even hear the other campers. It was really neat.

Here is the link to an awesome slide show that Carl made if you want to check out more of our pics:
3sevens.myshowit.com/havasupai2009

Have you ever gone backpacking??

Because I havent. And Im doing it this weekend for the first time. Carl and I are hiking to Havasupai with Tiffany and Luis, Leslie, and my mom and Randy. We are dropping Sam and Charlie off in Prescott to spend the weekend with my dad.

Packing for a trip like this is hard! Ive never had to include everything in one pack before. We each get 35 lbs and that has to include our tent, sleeping bags, clothes, food, dishes and everything else we might need! They dont allow fires down in the canyon, so we are bringing freeze dried meals and little bunsen burner stoves and mess kits that we cook with. We got beef stroganoff, beef stew, and bacon and eggs. We actually already tested out the eggs and they werent half bad! A bit salty and porky for my tastes, but the texture was fine, so I know I can eat that stuff for a couple days. I will take plenty of pics of our food and post them to my other blog

Its going to be 95-100 degrees down there, but the water is cool and it cools down enough at night that its tolerable. I feel like even though we will be roughing it, it will still be vacation because I wont have the kids. My load will be lighter because I only have to worry about myself, and that will be nice.

We will take tons of pics and I will be sure to share them all!

Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe

Dirty Jobs is a show on Discovery Channel and they are doing a show about my parents dirt shirt factory in Kauai. They did all the filming yesterday and today. The show will air this fall.

Pictures from San Diego

Carl made a pretty cool slide of our pics from San Diego. It includes all of our friends we were there with. Its really good! There are a lot of pics, but it goes really fast. Check it out!

San Diego Slide show

San Diego

We went to San Diego for July 4th this year. We were invited out by our friends Nate and Stacy and their 4 kids. They rented a big house right on the boardwalk of Mission Beach. We also met up with our old friends Jim and Elisabeth and their 3 kids too. There were 10 kids in one house. It was loud and crazy and everyone had fun. We had a really neat fire pit on our patio and we got to make smores. Each family was in charge of a dinner and everyone grilled and made really yummy food. We mostly stayed at the beach but on the last day we went to Sea World. We had a great weekend with our friends. Cant wait to do it again

Crazy Hair Day

Sam went to vacation bible school this week at our church. Yesterday was Crazy hair day. Since Sam's hair is so short, we decided to dye it any color he wanted! This is how it came out!