LOL I think I've noticed a theme to my picture-y posts lately. With the amount of time & gas we spend on the beach ... really, we should just pitch a tent and call it done.

Seems like every chance we get we're outta this house and on our way to the coast. Mind you, it's not like the next town over or anything. It takes about 2 1/2 - 3 hours to get to a good spot. It's funny though, I wouldn't have it any other way.

Some people might read this and think "WHY, my God WHY would you travel so much or so far?" I guess they are just not beach bums. And honestly, I thank God everyday that my husband is as much of one as I am!

So last weekend we decided that we should do ... something. Tossed out ideas like fishing, lake-ing, gold panning (yeaaaaaah, not MY suggestion) ... but none of those ideas really made ya feel like jumpin outta your jammies, dumpin the coffee on the floor and sayin "OH YEAH BABY LET'S HIT THE ROAD!!!!"

So a few HOURS later, at like 11 (!) we gave in to the itch we love to scratch and headed out.

We decided to try and see a few spots in San Fran that we hadn't yet gotten to ... I know! You're saying "ARE there any? and HOW BIG is this San Fran?!" Well, it's big. We got out the maps, and by that I mean mapQUEST, and found a spot we had yet to see.

We packed a lunch and headed out. It took awhile to actually FIND this beach since appearently just because we have mapQUEST that in no way means we should actually PRINT OUT it's useful information and take it with us ;-) So we were winging it.

Which according to DH is half the fun. Yeaaaaah I think that's what my grampa said when he told us "We're not LOST! This is the scenic route!"

Eventually we got to a VERY cute, slightly cold & windy, beach on the outter side of the Golden Gate Bridge. It was pretty cool though, the kids had a GREAT time.

Right behind our table was a little area of trees and the kids decided it would a CRIME if they did not climb every single one. Lil Miss would not be out done, she was on that Boy like white on rice.

As it started to get cooler on the beach we decided to head inward a bit to Golden Gate Park which is one of my favorite parts of the city. There is just so much to do there! Everytime we go I see something else and say "NEXT TIME we are SO doing that!" There will be many next times.
We decided to go ahead and walk around the lake and get in a little exercise (read: wear the kids the hell out). DH and I took a row boat around this lake once, it's so pretty.
So the kids ran amok, chased ducks, did their best to fall in the lake and run people down with the stroller and we walked happily behind them.
The kids LOVED the waterfall, the Boy, Lil Miss and I climbed to the top and DH almost fell in the lake taking this lovely shot.
We continued walking around the hill in the middle until we came full circle decided to find a spot to sit and let the kids run the hell around since appearently they had a side crack with their lunch and were just plum FULL of energy!
We found a perfect spot on the side of the lake that was away from the wind. The children acted like caged monkies while we took the few moments of quiet we had to have a tiny bit of couple time.


Lil Miss and Boy played hide and seek, football with pine cones, ram each other with the stroller, and all manner of other crack-induced fun.

Then I foolishly said "Come here beloved and wonderful family and we will take a beautiful picture because the is the BEST DAY EVER!"
And proceeded to curse the rule of 3 (no more than 3 people in a picture will look right/good at any given time), and my self-picture taking abilities
until we got to picture eleventy-hundred and it came out ... ok ... ish ;-)

It started to get chilly-er, so it was time to head home. At first we were just going to stop at a little place closer to home for dinner ... until the BOY requested that we "go to that one place with the music and people and that awesome food!"
Weeeeeell, whadya know! he was talking about none other than the Rogue Brewery! And really, who were WE to say no to his ONLY request of the day?! ;-)
So we ended our 'BEST DAY EVER!' at our fav little place ever with most of our best family ever! And it was worth all the wind and lostness and gas and time in the world :D

So I've done a little (late) spring cleaning. You might have noticed.

I felt like the place didn't represent me very well. So I played with a few things and after much gnashing of teeth and threats to disembowel a certain computer, this is what we've got.

I kinda like it though. I changed the title, cleaned up some tags, took out some sensitive content, put up a pertty background (compliments of yours truly :D ) and here we are!

I think it's much more representative of me and my life now. Things for our family have changed, and are changing, so much. We are in a completely different frame of mind than we were not long ago. We've been doing so much more with our kids lately, enjoying them and each other, and just really loving our lives the way they are NOW. We're not the kind of people who say "I'll be happy when..." we instead say "I'm going to make this happen...whatever it takes".

I hope you enjoy!

My little ones are BACK IN SCHOOL BABY! That's right ... the BEST.YEAR.EVER has begun!

I say it's the best year ever because I have all the older kids in full day school, meaning they go and come home AT THE SAME TIME. Not like LAST YEAR when one went to school at 8, then the other at 11, one got out at 2:30 then the other at 4. There were a LOT of scheduling issues and sometimes it was just down right confusing and frustrating. I made the best of it though, knowing this year would be EASY :-D

And so Tween began 6th grade this year ... YES ... I am THAT old. My first born is almost in freakin middle school. That's the other part of the BEST.YEAR.EVER, they are at the same school for the last year AND Tween is still in elementary school. As any of you parent of older kids know ... it's a whole new ball game in middle school. And so I will enjoy the HELL out of this year ;-)

Princess started 1st grade and she is SO EXCITED to be such a grown up big girl! I don't know that *I'M* ready, but I'll deal ;-)

SOMEONE did NOT deal so well though. As I loaded Lil Miss (I can't call her Terrible Two now that's she 3) into the car she says "Come on Tween and Princess" and as I tell her no they're staying here and we'll get them later, she BREAKS DOWN and start crying "NOOOO! They're GONE MOMMY! They're GOOOONE!!!!" - it was sad and funny at the same time.

She got so used to having her little playmates at home with her all day and everywhere we went that she just didn't know WHAT to do with herself once we were alone. By day two she was warming right up to it though, don't worry. She has discovered that there is no one to boss her around, no one to say she can't play Pollies, and no one to warn mom when she has POOP. We're all going need some time to adjust ;-)

Bout this time last year I had this ... itch. I can't really expain it, I just get this NEED to go out on my own. To take a trip or get out of the house with the girl(s) and just take some time out to be ME. It gives me a chance to just break out and do a little bonding with the girl(s), take some time out to just be myself and be a mom to my girl(s), stuff I had time for when I was single but not so much anymore. So every once in awhile it feels good to just get OUT.

One of my oldest friends lives up the coast about oooooh 7-8 hours from here in just the most BEAUTIFUL area of this state. I had so much fun visiting her last year that when I was talking to her one Wednesday last week I thought to myself "Hmmmm ... I think I'll go up tomorrow :-D" or something like that. So I talked to DH and though the thought of missin me for like 3-4 days was UNBAREABLE LOL he knew how great it would be for me :-D Probably because I kept saying "BUT THINK OF HOW GREAT IT WOULD BE FOR ME!!!!!" about fortyhundred times.

So Friday morning I loaded up the car, loaded up the snacks, loaded up the baby (the girls were on a trip with their dad) and we were ON OUR WAY! I actually didn't think it would take as long as it did, but the drive itself was SOOOO PRETTY! I went out through the bay area and decided to take the 101 up through the Napa Valley and O.M.G. you guys ... it's absolutely stunning. Um...I would have pictures, but everytime I even LOOKED at the gorgeous countryside I started AHEM vearing off the road. But we made it! Without pictures, but we made it :-D

And I was welcomed with open bottles - I MEAN - arms! Oh it was so nice after that LONG afternoon of driving to relax! She and her fiance made a great dinner and after Lil Miss was tucked in to bed we ventured outside for a bondfire.

There place is awesome. The house opens up in the back to a FREAKIN FOREST, I kid you not, a forest of redwoods! It's something right out of a scary movie I swear! We sat in camping chairs around the fire for HOURS just talking, laughing and getting soaking WET! That's the thing about the north coast, it's FOGGY! The fog was so thick that night that it made this mist that wasn't exactly cold, just wet. It reminded me so much of where I grew up, to me that's home :-D That's what the beach is SUPPOSED to feel like, to me anyway ;-)

The kids had a great time too. They have a little one that's almost one year old and Lil Miss had a GREAT time being the older kid ;-)

Saturday morning after a HUGE breakfast we headed out for the Hippy Market - I MEAN - Farmers Market!

It's held in a city just up the road from them in the heart of the downtown area. It's in a beautiful town square covered in grass and trees. But seriously ... HIPPY CENTRAL. I WISH I could have taken pictures of the stuff I saw you guys ... here's just a snippet ...

• A train of 20something GUYS walking through the square silently holding signs that said "FREE HUGS"
• A hippy chick with the LONGEST dreads I have EVER seen, holding a half naked toddler, and a blue tooth in her ear
• The guy walking with a rooster (hehehe) on a leash and one under his arm
• The hippy guy and gal dancing with a hankerchief in the middle of the grass while trippin on SOMETHIN

So that's just a little snippet for ya ;-) GREAT place for people watchin though! We picked up some great produce for beach snacks and dinner that night and then we were on our way to the beach!

Moonstone Beach is soooo pretty! It was a beautiful day for some beach time.

So my friend and I popped a bottle of a great french white wine I brought with me. Lil Miss had jet lag or something and wanted nothin to do with ANYthing so she laid down.

Her little friend wasn't havin it though LOL

I sat down to enjoy the sun and salty sea air and she came up and laid down in my lap. She actually fell asleep for about an hour! Again ... the beach related narcolepsy that pleagues my children.

For dinner we went to a local pizza place and brought back the BEST chicken, white sauce, bacon something 'r other pizza and OHHHH BABY it was good. We stayed up late again talking and giggling like little girls do and I don't know, there's just something theraputic about it. It reminds me of being a girl and doing girly stuff and just laughing like we hadn't a care in the world. Good stuff.

The next day was a little more cloudy and iffy so we first went to walk through the zoo. The kids had a great time and its just the cutest little zoo ever! It's donation based and surrounded by HUGE sequoias. It's just so pretty and RIGHT in the middle of town!

Then we walked through the flower garden next door and let the kids run around, the place was in full bloom and soooo pretty. There's a beautiful gazebo that my friend and I (or maybe it was just me) decided she and her fiance should get married there :-D hint hint winky winky

After the zoo we ran to the store and got some picnic supplies. Then we went to a spot about 5 minutes from her house. It was so awesome there. There wasn't really any wind, just overcast and a slight chill to the air. It felt so great though cause back home it was supposedly 100*ish. So she and her baby and me and mine sat and enjoyed the afternoon listening to the waves and playing in the sand.

And ... yeah ... thanks Lil Miss ...

We went home and had dinner, put the kids to bed and went back outside for one last bondfire. We were up way to late again, but Lil Miss slept in the next morning anyway so that was ok.

After breakfast, I loaded up the car and got ready to hit the road. I had a hell of a journey ahead of me but I was kind of excited to be heading home.

I decided to take my time and really enjoy the ride since I had only Lil Miss with me I wasn't in too much of a hurry. She fell asleep and I was FINALLY alone. I listened to some Colby Caliat and Norah Jones and was in awe of the beauty I was witness to. Sounds lame, I know. But look at that!

I had the best time on my little road trip. It was nice to have time to just be a silly girl and have fun with my silly girlfriend :-D It was good for me to have some time to myself too and some time alone with Lil Miss, we don't get a whole lot of that.

She enjoyed it too ;-)

WOW. I just realized how FREAKIN MANY pictures I took in July! There was just so much going on and so many people to see and so many great memories. After my BFF left on a Saturday, DH and had plans for dinner in Old Sac. It's QUITE a ways from here but it's usually a lot of fun and it got us outta the house ;-)

We aimed to be there around 7 so we decided to have his mom come to the house to watch Lil Miss (can't call her Terrible Two anymore since she's 3 ;-) so we could leave at about 4ish - thinking that would mean we ACTUALLY left around 5. Well the weirdest thing happened ... we were READY and OUT of the house by 4! Who'da thunk it?

So we got there a bit early, bout 6, but we figure the more time we have OUT of the house the better! So we just walked around Old Sac, went into the shops, took a bit to sit by the river on the doc and just enjoy our time alone. And of course took pics ;-)

We got to the restaurant a little early so we took a seat in the bar and ordered a cocktail. Their Mangotini's are the FREAKIN BEST! They're made with that Mango Puree drink stuff and OOOOH boy were they good :-D

We had a GREAT time sitting there and talking and laughing, just like we always do. The food was pretty great too! We left a little late and didn't end up getting home until almost 12! But we had fun together so it was worth it :-D

The following Monday I met my BFF and her sister at the beach for a little beach fun before she left for New Mexico. The girls had fun ... diggin a hole

And eating sandy cucumber (note to self: NOT the wisest snack for a beach trip)

Then it was time to torture our children by dragging them kicking and screaming into the frigid water against their will for a photo op ;-) LOL j/k girl

The kids had a great time even though it was a TAD windy and overcast.

LOLOL OH MAN this pic cracks me up. Where ever we go, my BFF and I and her sis are ALWAYS snap-snapin away trying to get the best pics we can. So I did my best to really capture the moment when she tried to get her kids together for a pretty beach photo ... I think I did pretty good ;-)

She then did the same for me. And what you DON'T see here are the eleventy hundred pictures before this one that had Lil Miss CRYING and actin a fool, and featuring BOOBZILLA (aka ME leaning forward and unaware of my tanktop issues). THIS was the BEST ONE...SIGH

For some reason the beach makes my children and I mildly narcoleptic...
Hehehe Lil Miss doesn't like to be used as a pillow...
But doesn't mind using ME for one...

Like I said, it wasn't the BEST weather, but we all had fun.
Me and Tween
Me and The Boy
Me and Princess
Me and Lil Miss

The next weekend we had all the kids which doesn't happen very often anymore so we decided to do something fun on our last Saturday all together. Not to far from here is a cute little old mining town with a population of like FOUR on a little river. It has a lot of 'old time' stuff including the cutest little ice cream parlor! The people there were so cool too. As a special treat we took the kids for ice cream FIRST! The ladies behind the counter let them get sprinkles at no charge, and the next customers through the door didn't have enough cash on them (this place is old school and didn't take cards) so they just let them get whatever they wanted and pay what they could ... WHERE do you hear of THAT these days?!?! So much fun...

After dessert we went down to the river to BBQ for dinner. While the ice cream settled and the coals heated up we played in the water.

DH taught Tween and Boy how to skip rocks and Princess and Lil Miss took the opportunity to SOAKING wet and locate, catalog, and showcase EVERY ROCK on the shore.

It was awesome though. We just relaxed and played and had so much fun all together.

LITERALLY soaked from head to toe...

I don't know what it is about BBQing and eating outdoors but it just makes food taste better! Even something simple like hot dogs and green beans tastes awesome :-D Maybe it was pure exhaustion from keeping 4 kids from drownding in the river ... that could be it too ;-)

Since we had all the kids that weekend, the following weekend it was just us and the baby. DH had to finish up some work in the bay area so we decided to go with him. He worked, we went and played at a near by park, and then we headed into the city! - OH and Lil Miss REALLY likes choclate ;-)

Since we really had no plans or any idea what the HELL we were doing, we finally took that exit off the bay bridge that says "Treasure Island". It's one of those things you always see and say 'One time I wanna see where that road goes...' but then you never go. Well, we went to Treasure Island ... and all I got was the crumby photo ;-) It was ok, the was just this road that kinda wound around and dead ended at a naval base ;-) So we got out and took a pic of the lovely view of the city and went on our way.

The first thing we did (after selling our soul for a parking space) was walk down Fisherman's Wharf. They had never seen the Rainforest Cafe so we popped in there for a snack. I love this place. If you're never seen it, it's really worth finding one. They have anamatronic jungle animals throughout the place and close to our table was a bunch of HUGE gorillas that would put on quite the show every few minutes. Lil Miss LOVED IT, I thought it would scare her but she kept asking for more! At one point she decided they were just cranky and said "Mommy, monkey needs a HUG" - LOL




This has to be the cutest picture of the 3 of us *I* have ever taken. All 3 looking at the camera, all 3 smiling, all 3 looking good! I am STILL stunned.

After a great time playing in the city we went to our fav place for dinner, the Rogue Brewery. We always stop here whenever we're in town. We had a beer, awesome dinner and hung out for awhile...

She had a great time too ;-)

Last but not least, July 31st was the anniversary of our first date :-D Yeah, we celebrate little stuff like that, keeps us reminded of what it was that brought us together in the first place and helps us to maintain our couplehood in the midst of the chaos that is our big ol family ;-)

Well, this year we didn't have the opportunity to get out of the house to celebrate since he worked late and we didn't really have a sitter. So he brought home dinner and we opened up a special bottle of wine we'd been saving. The baby went to bed so we were alone and decided to have dinner outside on the porch. We had just settled in and started talking when I noticed a cat just off the porch by our open door. DH got up to close the door and the cat got scared and ran off. A few seconds later I heard something that sounded like a tiny little mouse ...

I looked over the railing and that's when I saw Bessie :-D The cat had within an hour had given birth to this tiny little kitty! We left her there crying for a bit and went inside, hoping the cat would come back, but she didn't. And the Bessie cried and cried! So finally my uterus could take it no more and we brought her inside.

She was so tiny and needed food so we tried to feed her with the turkey injector ;-) We knew she couldn't drink cows milk so DH took off - at 9:00 at night - to find a place that had kitty formula. While he was gone I cuddled the baby to keep her warm, took ten hundred pictures, fielded calls from his mother (a known cat hoarder), decided she was a girl and since she looked like a little miniature cow her name was Bessie, and loved just fell in love with her :-D

He couldn't find any formula so we were starting to get worried! His mom ended up having a cat who had recently givin birth (imagine that!) and was nursing her liter so he took her over there hoping the mama cat would adopt her. Her kittens were older so I guess they don't nurse as often so she had plenty of time and attention for this little one. All accounts are that she is doing GREAT and thriving!

So we decided ... we will be keeping Bessie ... provided of course that she is not an asshole by the time we get her back. And since his mom is raising her, it could go either way. Cross your fingers for us, I kinda miss Bessie ;-)