Party!

There are many pictures of the shower, although not many I was happy with. :( But it was great fun, lots of gals and no boys! Of course it was Mary's party, but I think all would agree that 3 other girls stole the show! So here are the 4 party girls!

#1. Mary got many wonderful gifts.

#2. Fern thought they should be hers, Aunt Mary found out how strong her niece is!

#3. And Fern's new friends, Maya & Sahara. Don't ask me which is which, they were both just adorable! Sorry for the blur, moving targets!! You can see clearer photos on their Mama's Blog.

It was great to see old friends and make new, and of course lovely to be with family! Can you see Mary's cute belly, she is getting good and round now. The dress she is wearing is one she made herself! Oh, if only everyone were so talented!! :)

More California!

Here is our gang of skaters, good thing they are better behaved than the previous skaters I hung with! :)

Ryan and Aunt Mary got the boys skate boards for Christmas, they had a blast landing on their faces!!

So here is Riley winking while skating, Ryan trying to show Jake he should stand on it instead of belly ride. And Miss Fern our skater girl with the help of Grandpa M. It was a lot of fun, too bad there was not enough room in our luggage to bring them home on the plane, so we are waiting for them to come in the mail, of course that is another fun thing, getting mail!! :) Thanks Mary and Ryan!!

The last photo is our family shot, we were going to go to a portrait studio, but we partied too long at Mary's baby shower. So this will have to suffice! It seems we end up taking quite a few pictures with the timer, Dan thinks I should get a tripod. He just doesn't like all my balancing acts!! :)

Dan is enjoying Florida sun, yesterday it never got out of the teens and with the wind chill it was negative!!! Today we got in the twenties, and watch out tomorrow it is suppose to be in the low 30's, toasty! :) Dan will get to enjoy the negatives tomorrow night when he gets in. Then off to New Mexico next week. I have recently decided I'd like to see New Mexico, maybe I'll go there someday! :)

Time Out!!

From Calif. pictures for the first before and after pictures of the house!!! We finally have a room primarily done! Wow only took us 3 months! :)

So here is the kitchen, we ripped all these cabinets out, Dan grabbed a couple to use as a work bench in the garage, the rest we junked!!

We used our fridge, the dishwasher left was dead, and the stove worked occasionally and was extremely gross!! So we had propane plumbed in so we could get a gas range and we got a new dishwasher! There was just a single sink, so Dan made me happy and we got the farm house sink I love!!

And after!! We built and put in all the cabinets, installed the sink, dishwasher, etc. Then had the counter tops custom made and installed. They are like corian just with out the name!! :) There are a couple things not up yet, but it is pretty much DONE!!!!!!

What a Diffrence a Week Makes!

Last Monday we were enjoying the day with Grandpa at the Wild Animal Park in Escondido (where I was born!!). Today it never got out of the 20's and it is snowing!!!

The big fun last Mon. was that Jake is now a "bigger man" so we bought him his very own San Diego Zoological Membership!! I can't believe he is 3!!

The first picture is Riley and Fern popping out of a fake log they have out for the kids to play on. The second is a picture of my 3 flamingos out in the Heart of Africa! Pretty cute hu!! Plus they don't smell quite as bad as the real deal!! And last but not least, our adventures at the Lion Camp! Here is Riley, Jake, Fern, and Grandpa.

We have enjoyed going to the Wild Animal Park for a long time, and the pictures are the same only the kids are bigger! I have a picture of Riley and baby Jake popping out of the log, and I have a picture of Grandpa and little Riley in front of the lion! Too much fun!!

More of our trip to come!!

From the end!

Well I thought I would start our trip from the end. Why not, I know it is not "normal" but have you ever seen me do anything "normal"?

So here is a photo of Fern and I yesterday before we left Daddy's. I mostly took this picture for Aunt Mary, when we were there we did our Christmas together and she got both Fern and I boots! Fern is in love with her lavender boots! She wants to wear them all the time. I got lucky with a new pair of Uggs! I have been wearing my old pair since Jr. High or High School when Daddy finally relented to my pleadings that it was not a fad, but that I would really wear them!! :)

The second picture is what Fern has learned from Jake, he had an ear infection a couple weeks ago so he was sensitive to loud noises. Fern thought it was hysterical that he covered his ears, so she started doing it too. This is her last night on the airplane being silly!

I'll try to post a few pictures every day, Dan leaves for a trip later in the week, so it will be busy. So no flaming Aunt Mary!!! :)

Leaving...

California :(

We are packing up and getting ready for our 4-5 hour flight to JFK, where it is snowing!!!! Please cross your fingers that our flight is not delayed, and that we can drive safely back to CT!!

Watch for some great Calif. pictures next week!!

Off to California!

We'll be back soon, we are going to visit pregnant Mary! Don't forget the link to Mary and Ryan's Baby registry! I'll still check my email! Love ya all!

My Cooking Staff!

Who would not want these handsome boys cooking in your kitchen!!! They just look too big in this picture! These are their new aprons, Riley's is The Cat in the Hat, and Jake's is Green Eggs and Ham.























Here is Miss Fern, she did not want to take a picture with her brothers. But I had to get a picture of her looking too cute! Her new apron is Red Fish, Blue Fish, One Fish, Two Fish. She likes to be the taste tester when we cook, along with Jake! Grandpa M. got these for the kids for Christmas from Bumkins. They have adult sizes too! :)


Posts may get a little infrequent in the next week (sorry Aunt Mary). We are getting ready to head out to California (to see Aunt Mary), I am praying for sun, Santa Ana's, and lots of HEAT!! Dan keeps teasing me that I just want to go thaw out! :)
Dan got back safe and sound from the Caribbean on Tues. he walked in all tanned, with beautiful pictures of the beach. It was not nice! But we are glad to have him here. As of right now, knock on wood he will be flying out to Calif. with the kids and I. THANK GOODNESS!!! Flying with 3 kids by myself is not what I call fun! :)

Happy Cooking!!

Hard Work!

Of course while Grandpa was here, Riley and Jake wanted to do their favorite things; work, outside, tree house, hammer, and build. All the better because the got to do it with Grandpa! Our little California boys have less feelers than the big California boy, Grandpa came in for some warmer accessories before they had been out long. Dan and I enjoyed watching them work together (from the comfort of the warm house), it had been much too long! Maybe it has been so warm this year to be nice to Grandpa! :)
Our temperatures have gone down a bit, my new wireless weather station said it was 28 deg. F. when I went to bed last night. It seems to get colder when Dan is off gallivanting, right now he is on the beach on an island in the Caribbean. It looks lovely there. Hope your New Years celebrations are fun. The kids and I went out and rented a bunch of movies and got some snacks. The boys can't wait to dive into the licorice, Mama got crazy and said yes to their petitions! Happy New Year!!!

Real Life!

Ok lets see if this works! On my page it does not show a picture, but if you click on them they will take you to a video. One of Fern and her new skill, and another of Jake and his too cute new song! :) I hope this works! The videos are a bit dark, sorry. We'll try a video of Riley tomorrow! Love ya all!!

Merry Christmas!!

Here is our Christmas morning for anyone perusing my blog today! :) The first picture is last night after the stage was set. I think it was a record, we were all done and in bed by a little after 10pm. The second picture is our 3 silly babes on the trampoline Grandpa M. gave them, even Fern tried jumping! :) The third is Fern and her Mama, Dan made us all yummy blueberry muffins for breakfast and Fern thought it was great. She gave the camera her best grin. Number four is sweet Fern trying out her rocking horse. It was my rocking horse when I was little. We had it repaired, then Dan and I painted it. She got much more rambunctious riding it as the day went on. A little out of order, but here are the guys opening their stockings, Jake got a Jacob's Ladder in his and as I asked him later in the day if he liked his Jacob's Ladder, he replied, "my ladder" he just thinks we are calling it Jake's ladder, not that it is it's name. :) We didn't get any of the pictures up with Grandpa M. in them but I promise he is here! :) We are enjoying him, and feel so blessed he was able to come. I might try hiding his airplane ticket so he can not leave in the morning! There will be a few cute photos including him up in a couple days! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, and that you have felt the love of our Savior during your Christmas Celebration! We are so blessed with His love! Merry Christmas!!

My Baby.

How could she have gotten SO BIG?? It seem like just yesterday I was lamenting over being on bed rest with Fern still safely in my belly. Or even laying in bed relaxing through the contractions. Now, gosh we have had a successful nursing relationship for 14 months! And today, sice we could put it off no longer Fern moved into the bigger carseat and facing forward! As I drove over to the CSA farm I kept looking in my rear view mirror, and there she was LOOKING at me. I just can't believe it has passed so quickly. Where did the baby go? She is amazing lately, when the phone rings she jumps up to go running over to it, she has a hand motion she does for things that are "owie", and knows what is owie before touching it. She has also recently discovered that Daddy is good for hugging and holding, it is too cute! Although she will still scream bloody murder if he tries to hold her at bed time or in the middle of the night. :) She is so sweet, we are so thankful to have two boys but oh is it sweet to have a girl! :)

Cookies with Dad!

Here are a few pictures of Fern eating a (Vegan) oreo cookie while sitting on Daddy in the kitchen (see our new stove). She was so proud of herself! She imedetly pulled it apart and licked the iceing! :) It was fun! Good thing the boys don't know what we let Fern do after they went to after they go to bed! Our own little cookie monster!

He loves me... He loves me not...

So I finally got Dan to rake the leaves, and I think he is not quite so enamored with our yard anymore. The only reason it even got done is that it has been so warm, in the 50's most days. The back yard now looks fantastic! Now I have asked for the front too! :)
Jake was "helping" dad, and so was Riley, so much so that he is not even in the back yard! :) Jake is in love with his Super Man snow boots, he has worn on other shoes all week! :) He is a cutie!!

Little Miss!

Fern was looking too cute the other day as we were heading out, so I dutifully pulled out my camera. Well Fern was not so cooperative! I kept standing her up, she kept sliding down, I kept pulling her thumb out, she protested! So you get a cute photo of Fern, even if it was not my intended pose! :)
Our counter tops got installed yesterday! Dan has been working all day to get the sink and the dishwasher installed. They are both giving him trouble! But hopefully we will have running water later tonight, for now I have ordered pizza for dinner! :) Our propane is all plumed in, now we are waiting for the building inspector to come inspect, then next week we should have the range all hooked up. So hopefully next week you all will see pictures of my before and after kitchen right here on the blog! :) I can not tell you how heavenly a real put together kitchen will be!!!
We must have won the lottery! Dan does not have another flying trip until the 29th! So he will be home for Christmas!! We also get to have Daddy here too, he comes in on the 22nd! Dan will be spending New Years in the Caribbean! Oh la la! I will probably, hopefully spend it in bed, asleep!! :) So boring, aren't I! Love ya all!

Christmas Tree!

Well we finally got out and got a tree, we went and cut down our own. The older gentleman who owned the tree farm asked if we had came all the way from Calif. to get the tree, He He. It was fun to have the boys see how they grow, that they do not just appear! :)

Then we got it up the same night, are you impressed? Don't be too much, I only pulled out a couple decorations, it was just too much this year to unpack Christmas stuff while trying to unpack our regular stuff! :)
You might be wondering what happened to Riley's face in between getting a tree and trimming the tree! Well after we got the tree, we ran over to the hanger, as Riley went running to see the airplane, he biffed it hard and landed on his face, which would have been just a bruise except he had his sunglasses on. They gashed the bridge of his nose, and it left a bruise up around the top of hi eye! A little blood and a few tears, and all was fine! :) Boys!!

Happy St. Nickolastag!

So tonight was our fun with friends, we had a fun celebration, Dan told everyone a bit about St. Nickolas then we built ginger bread houses! Here are a couple pictures with most of the participants, but not all! Here is Dan and the boys and the Carter Family. Then in the next is part of the Chapman family, we went to SVC with Kimball, and Kandi back just a couple years ago! :) We all had a great time, the kids had too much candy and stayed up way past bedtime! But the excitement was that St. Nickolas visited while we were busy building! He left everyone a beautiful California Orange in their shoe, and a glass pickle ornament for each family! :) Happy St. Nickolastag!

These shoes were made for running! So what do you think Aunt Mary, did you get your moneys worth out of these? These were the cool new thing back when Jake was born, and Aunt Mary splurged and bought them for Riley for Christmas, 2003. Riley LOVED his red shoes from Aunt Mary and was o-so-sad to out grow them. But then Jake grew into them, he has worn them for a good long while! And he loves them and protests (loudly) when ever Riley says they were his first. :) They have been an awesome pair of shoes, they are now a bit hole-y, and will soon have to be retired. But I don't think there will ever be another pair as great! Thanks Aunt Mary!!
Here is our beautiful produce today! We joined a CSA, and Saturday is our day to head out to the farm to pick up our share. This is the second week of the 5 week period, last week we still had produce grown outside, but this week with the bit of snow we had we are mostly getting their green house crop. We have our share with the Gazy Brother's Farm in Oxford, but you can find a CSA and support a family farm right where you are on Local Harvest. In this box we had radishes, arugala, tomatoes, basil, potatoes, apples, squash, & broccoli. We had the broccoli tonight, soo yummy! :)

Mary & Ryan's Baby Registry!

Here they are the 2 very excited parents to be! Mary and I thought it would be a good idea to have her registry here on my blog, because along with the regular store registries there are a few "loose" items they would like. If you choose to purchase one of these said "loose" items just email me (Aunt Danna, Dannashooked1 @ yahoo.com ) and I will take it off the registry, that way they do not get too many of any one cute item! If you need their address I have it, just email me! Even though this will fall down the list of entries as I put new pictures up, I will have a link to go strait to it under the "LINKS" section!

Pottery Barn Kids Registry

Baby Style Registry

Short sleeve onesie, size 3-6 months

Love Bug onesie, either size

Monkey onesie, either size

Bohemian Baby Food gift certificate

Ladybug play suit Size 0-3mo.

Camo tights size 6-12 mo. in purple

Too cute shoes in size 12-18mo.

B!

Riley and I were working on the letter B last week and I sent him on a B scavenger hunt around the house, he had to find 3 things. He thought it might be too hard, but he was so proud of himself when he had done it! He asked if I would take his picture with his "B things"! :) He found Fern's bear, the little boat which is also a bead, and the blue, basket, bowl! a 3 B word object! Fun Fun!

Happy December!

Well Dec. has come and we do not have snow yet, to the boys dismay! They had their hopes up yesterday, we got up super early and took Grandma J. to the airport in Hartford to go home. :( As we got close to the airport we had a few flurries, by the time we got to the airport it was snowing, we said our good byes then got on our way. It started snowing even harder! The car behind us started slipping and sliding as I prayed he would not come into me. Thankfully we were driving a rental car as the brakes had gone out on the van. Yes another problem with the van, anyone know a good cliff? Anyway back to the snow, it was sticking and falling steadily, then miraculously as we came into down town Hartford it just stopped. The boys decided that it would soon be snowing at our house, but alas it was sunny (but VERY cold) all day. There is a chance on Friday, we will wait and see!

Ok this picture is of my budding baby! She was being a bit cranky, so I had picked her up, rhetorically as I always do I said "Fern, you have to tell me what you need", that's when it happened! She did the sign for food, she has been doing the sign for milk for a while but mostly just as I am about to nurse her, this was the first time she used the sign and used it to tell me what she needed!! So here she is eating her ASKED FOR food! Later that night Grandma and I were working with her to blow kisses, and then as I was putting her in her jammies she started blowing me kisses. So sweet! I can't believe she is so big! We did sign language with Jake a bit, but he quit as soon as he started talking, we'll see what Fern does!

Dan is hob-nobing with friends and family in California. He got to go to mutual last night to see his Deacons, tonight the Deacons are coming to see his airplane. Daddy is also coming up to see the airplane and to go out to dinner, maybe Mary and Ryan will join in on the fun, and then I will be the only one not there. :( Dan will be coming home Friday, then Sat. evening we will be having a couple of families over to celebrate St. Nicholas Tag. Sorry my German spelling is amazingly worse than my English spelling hu! :) Love ya all!