To Sand or Not to Sand

When we first moved into our house my father in law asked if he could do a project at our house with our son Mitchell. We said yes and ended up with a huge sand box, two uneven bars, a fire pole and a big blue slide that Mitch could barely caring over his head with most of it dragging behind him.
Since we have cats we have had issues with our sand box. Several years ago we made a cover for it. Last year we did not open the sand box once. Since the cover does not seal, rain water and sprinkler water can get inside. We debated rather we should replace the sand yet again with new sand, thinking that Rylee would like to play in it. I was not looking forward to having sand everywhere but we gave in. Rylee loves it and I think Madee is happy too. Here are some pictures of Rylee playing in the Sand box. These pictures were taken as we were shoveling the new sand in. She was a little excited to get in and dig. She didn't care that we had shovels and rakes all around her. And yes we have sand everywhere. In the shoes, socks, diaper, bed, crib, couches, and of course the wood floor!

If you look close you can see that she has sand in her hair and all over her face. Look at that smile how could we say no?

haPpy moTher'S daY!

I just wanted to wish all you Mother's out there a wonderful Mother's day. I don't know about you but there are few things I enjoy more than being a mom! Somedays I wonder about my parenting skills and some days I feel like I am running in place and not getting anywhere, but one little smile, thank you or love you makes it all worth it!

I hope you are all happy and well and Have a GREAT DAY!

MOTHERS ROCK!

kiDs sAy thE funNieSt tHinGs!

When Mitchell and Maridee were little I bought the cutest Anne Geddes day planners and wrote down some of the cute things they said and did. I also did the same for Madee in her darling Pooh Bear baby book. I have not come across a baby book I just love for Rylee. She has two scrapbooks I am working on. Being inspired again by one of my blogger friends I decided to make a book for Rylee to write down all the things she is saying. I found a great 2 year planner and decorated it for her. I thought I would share it with you.

This is the front cover and inside cover. The plaque reads, May you never lose your sense of Wonder.

These are a few devider pages within the planner.

I am so glad I wrote things down. My girls were reading their books yesterday and some of the things I had forgotten. Most I remembered and it brought back fun memories.

spRinG iN utAh!

What a difference a day makes. After 38 years I am still amazed each spring how one day differs from another. Here are some pictures for example.

Day 1

Day 2

Now I just have to remember this when I am feeling sorry for myself. I try to show gratitude everyday, but I am unfortunately a little pessimistic at heart. Just for the record I love snow and I love the sun. I am grateful to live in a climate with seasonal changes. I am so amazed by my friends blogs. Even when they are going through some very stressful things, they are so positive. Thank you all for your awesome blogs they brighten my day. Hopefully your opptomism will rub off on me!

haPpy biRthDay daDdy!

Happy Birthday to a great Dad and Husband! Roger is turning 41 today! Wow! We will have been married 18 years in June, that is almost half Roger's life. I am sure some days it feels like the years have flown, and other days it seems like we have been together forever! Madee came home sick from school today, I think she may have just wanted to go to lunch with Dad!:)(except she did have a low grade fever) I feel so blessed to have a husband that loves being a dad and spending time with his family! I hope he has a wonderful day! We love you DAD!

Rog and Mitch on top of Benlomond Peak and Rog and the girls after going on Wicked...Mom and Mitch passed!

Roger , Rylee, Watermelon, 4th of July!

Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach.
Just a few fun pictures with dad!

juSt a LitTle cHocoLate!

Most people who know me, know I like chocolate. I can pass up some desserts, I save the calories for chocolate. I NEVER pass up a chocolate dessert. This doesn't help with my goal to lose weight again this year, but I tend to think it helps with my goal to be more patient!:)

For my birthday last year my In Laws gave me a 50lb bag of chocolate chips! Then for Christmas they gave me a 50lb bag of chocolate chips! Yes! 100lbs of chocolate chips! Believe it or not we will use them (not sure how long it will take, I am interested and scared to find out). My kids are like little mice taking handfuls out of the container. Hmm, wonder where they got that from! My father in law says they have chocolate flowing through their veins! Little miss Rylee knows where the chocolate chip container is and has figured out how to open it! Here she is camped out in the baking drawer having just a little chocolate! :)

I hope you all get your little piece of chocolate today!

haPpy biRthDay miTcheLL!

Mitchell turned 15 on Sunday! Yes! 15! He is getting so grown up. Thank goodness he still acts like a teenager, I am having a hard time with him being taller than me! We went and picked up the manual so he could study for his driving test to get his permit. I'm not ready! We also have to turn in his regristration for high school tomorrow! He decided he was too old for parties:(

He said it would save us money. We did take him out to eaton Friday. We went to the Union Station and ate as the train went by. Afterward we went out and walked around the trains. Rylee followed her brother everywhere. She LOVES him! I am sure he really enjoyed it, but he didn't want to admit it. I couldn't help but to think how he would have acted around the trains when he was five(so adorable)! So, I don't know if I want to crawl into bed and sleep for a month because of winter or because my little boy is so grown up!:)

Kidding aside, we love him very much and are so proud of him!

Happy Birthday Mitchell!

These pictures were taken in San Diego Zoo. I don't have any pictures of mitchell without Rylee. They are inseperable! I love him for that!