Sunday night Rich wanted to go for a drive.  We loaded up the car with the kids and the dog and drove...2 minutes to Pelican Bay.

  I guess we just love that place too much to stay away.

*Simple photo tip- when shooting a landscape, move your camera setting to the icon that looks like a mountain.  It's an easy way to get a large depth of field, so the entire picture is sharper.

 It's just a little marina with a couple of docks, some barbeque pits, a 25 foot stretch of man made beach, and some walking trails.  The last time we came here was in July, and it was packed.  The parking lot was overflowing; trucks towing boats were lined up down the street waiting to get in.  This time we nearly had the place to ourselves.

London tripped and scraped her little knee.

 We decided if we took a picture of it, she would feel better.

 It worked.

Ya gotta love the power of the camera.

You can really see the similarity from this angle- round, nearly bald heads.

Fendi takes a break from being lead around (and around) by the 4 year old. 

We basked in the serenity of the dusk until the light breeze went away. Then we ran for the shelter of our car to get away from the hoards of mosquitoes that appeared out of nowhere.

 (I'm pretty sure that's a bug on Handsome Jack's face).

Does your family have a place you like to spend time together at?  Do tell.

 

3 Blogs I love

At our GNO Thursday, we all agreed to share 3 of our favorite blogs.

  I'm secretly addicted to THIS BLOG . There is a part of me that feels...like a sort of a voyeur as I watch the tragic events of Sarah's life unfold.  Her blog needs to come with a "To read is to cry" warning. When Rich finds me sitting in front of my laptop, sobbing, he asks, "Are you reading that blog again?" I sniff and and tell him yes and quit staring at me.  He leaves the room as quickly as possible.  I then go and find my children and hug them.


Jamee at THIS BLOG is hilarious! At least her blog is.  Jamee and I used to live on the same street, but in real life Jamee is the most anti-social person I have ever met.  My West Valley friends and I invited her to every get together, every girls night out, to go early morning walking with us, and I even invited her to dinner at my house a couple of times.  She never came.  Not once.

Oh, she's nice and everything, she just never wanted to hang out. Ever.  Our husbands were actually pretty good friends- Christian is one of the nicest people I have ever met, and their 3 little boys and super duper adorable!  We have both since moved, and I found her blog through a mutual friend a few months ago.  It made me mad.   It pissed me off that this woman is such a cool person, but I never really got to know her while I lived by her. Why did she hide her awesome self away from us West Valley girls?  Were we that ghetto? Or is she really just that introverted?

She is SO FUNNY! I absolutely LOVE reading what she has to say.  I hope you check her out, and while you're there feel free to tell her how cool I am, and that she should come hang out with me sometime.  For real.

Last, but certainly not least- my IRL friend Debbie has recently started a NEW BLOG, and if I know anything about Debbie, it's that whatever she does, she does it well.  Her blog is going to rock, and I want my followers to be her first followers so we can all claim bragging rights when she becomes famous.  Stop by, put some pressure on her to keep writing by becoming a follower, and tell her I sent you.

 This is just a completely random photo of Nathaniel's Legos.

Enjoy the rest of your Monday!

Sunday Snapshot

One big boy and one little boy.

Two pieces of my heart.

August 2010.

Friday Confessional

It really has been awhile!  I miss confessional, there's something so uplifting about telling the world all 28 of you how lame I really am. 

So-

Last night I went to dinner with some of the coolest bloggers on the planet.  I have often wondered how those I follow are IRL- would I ever really hang out with these people?  What if they can write beautifully, but in reality they are socially challenged or just really obnoxious? 

This girl's night out certainly proved that I am pretty much paranoid (but, hey- just beacuse you're not paranoid doesn't mean they're not after you) these ladies, all of them,are so much fun to be around!  They had me laughing the entire night.  

 So here are my first impressions of each of them- and I'm going to be totally honest here:

CRYSTAL- Super cute....maybe too cute.  Surprisingly real, though and down to earth.  I would love to get to know her better.

KyAnn- Warm and FUNNY FUNNY FUNNY!!  She had me rolling  with laughter- my favorite thing was when Mindi started to say "You know, if Mormons would just drink, then they could..." Kyann steps in, "Forgive."  

MINDI - Brutally honest with a sophisticated sense of humor.  She comes across as very confident, comfortable in her own skin. 

TYLAINE- honestly, probably one of the bloggers I have wanted to meet the most.  She was sweet and quiet- comes across as shy.  (She has perfect skin).

KATE- she was  a little hard to read.  Maybe sassy and funny would be a good description? Love her hair!

GLAMAZON- I have the hardest time calling her Melissa!  Sorry, Glam.  She claims to be huge- it's a lie, she SO isn't! She's gorgeous and even more interesting to talk to than to read about. She's sweet and very open.

LAURA- You know how she comes across as the sweetest, most caring person online?  She is so rude and mean, I was completely offended by every....oh, JUST KIDDING!!!  Seriously she is the nicest person you'll ever meet. She has a very calming presence. And how cool is she to put this whole thing together?  I love her to pieces!!

And then theres me.... Here are some confessions for you- Yeah, I brought Jack to Girl's Night Out.  I didn't even ask permission.  And then I nursed him right there in Cafe Rio.  And I made Laura get my food for me.  I chewed on my ice all night (Cafe Rio ice is like chocolate to me.  I can't get enough.  Weird, I know.)  I laughed a little too loud, and secretly hoped there was nothing in my teeth. I stood facing the camera straight on for the first 2 photos, and dang! my birthing hips looked freaking huge! I was sooo relieved when KyAnn wanted to have another shot taken, whew!  (Thanks, KyAnn)  And now I have to wrap this up because Jack just spit up all over me...

What a great group of women!

I can't wait to do it again, love you all!!

Sunday Snapshot

I admit it, I'm a bad blogger.  I'm inconsistent.  Oh, well, I'm over it. I've been a busy Mommy the past few weeks; trying to make up for 9 months of being in bed.  I'm up half the night with Handsome Jack (I forgot how hard the first few weeks of breastfeeding are, especially at 3 am) . This baby is an eating and exploding machine! 

Nathaniel started 3rd grade on Wednesday, London starts preschool this week.  

My fridge is clean. That's a small miracle.

  I wore perfume today- it was the first time since last fall. The world smells so different, I feel like my spirit is living in a new body.

Life is good again.

Time for a nap. 

Here he is

Jack...born on 8/8/10  7lbs 7 oz 19.5  in. long.


Amazingly easy delivery.


Perfect little boy.


Was he worth it  all? 


Absolutely.


(I'm in love)

Flylady

Just a quick post tonight- first of all, no baby yet.  But I am making some serious plans for what is next in my life and they include cleaning and organizing my house.  It's been neglected for the past...I don't know how many months, since December 7th, so 8 months, and I am pretty much overwhelmed with the mess.  

I found an awesome website called FLYLADY and I started the first baby step today- i deep cleaned my kitchen sink.  It felt great; and since I was up and started I got a lot more done, too.  If I can do this while I'm nauseous and 9 months pregnant, surely some of you can join me.  The site is free, and it breaks the first 31 days down into really, easy "baby steps" that help you get into good cleaning habits.  

I would love it if any of you wanted to try it along with me.  

I know I've already started, but you can do the first 2 steps tomorrow, or just know I'll be taking a quick break when I have this guy.  (I'll be induced on Monday- 8/9/10- if he doesn't come sooner.  I'm ready to start charging this  little guy rent)

Anyway, check it out and let me know what you think :)