A new way to roll

Riley taught herself how to ride a scooter this afternoon. She has been watching her older cousins zoom around on them and figured she could do it too!

I took this picture of Riley and Makena this morning and thought it was so sweet. These two really have a bond.

Best $1.99 I ever spent

I found these bug catching kits in the $1.99 toy bin at Target and included them in the girl's Easter baskets. It comes with a pair of plastic tweezers, a plastic container with a lid, and a net. We haven't used them to catch any bugs, but the toys have been useful for playing with rocks and dirt. The girls have gotten lots of entertainment by filling up their nets and plastic containers with stuff in the backyard. Gotta love cheap entertainment!

Easter 2008

We survived Easter weekend! Riley was still not feeling good and was pretty clingy and just not herself. Makena and Alyssa had a great time running around with the big kids on Easter Sunday and they were able to hang out in the jumpy house with their older cousins. It was funny to see them take off and leave mommy to go play while barely looking back....makes me proud and a little sad all at the same time!

We saw the Easter bunny out at the neighborhood egg hunt on Saturday afternoon and the experience reminds me of why we don't haul the kids down to the mall and fork out $40 bucks for a picture....

Lissy, clearly, was not a fan!

Lissy did make her mama happy and agreed to wear her bunny ears for the egg hunt at BF Jess's house.

Makena is pondering the meaning of life over a piece of Dove's dark chocolate in mid-egghunt.

This is how Riley spent most of her Easter.....in my arms.

Easter hopefuls

Keeping our fingers crossed that all 3 of my girls will see the Easter bunny this year and give a couple of egg hunts their best shot. All of us have battled a cold over the last week and poor Riley has had a fever for the last 3 days. She hasn't been herself and wants to be held all day long. We have a community Easter egg hunt tomorrow afternoon in our neighborhood, which just happens to be right in the middle of our usual nap time, but we still might try to swing it if Riley is feeling better. On Sunday, we are headed out to Semas ranch for more Easter fun.

I'll leave you with a picture of Riley showing her "cheese" face.

LPGA here they come

Weekend pics

The weekend started out with the threat of rain, but we were going outside on Friday afternoon anyway unless it started pouring on us. The light sprinkles didn't faze the girls. Not sure if daddy is ever going to be able to plant something in the planter box he built because the girls love playing in the dirt. The only way I was able to get them to look up at me was by saying the word "cookie." (note to mommy: those jackets are too small for the girls).

This is what it looks like when we aren't outside! BORING! At least they all had their hands and feet to themselves.

On Saturday morning, we were back outside again to get some energy out before lunch. The girls got lost in the overgrown weeds that daddy needs to pull out. If they don't get pulled out by summer this would be the perfect hiding spot for snakes. As the girls were running around in the grass Riley would yell out "snakes" every once in awhile. I guess she has heard us talking about them.

Sunday afternoon was spent celebrating Calum's (a.k.a. the boy next door) birthday. The girls totally understand now that "birthday" and "party" mean that cake is in the near future. They were looking forward to it all day long.

Riley and Makena enjoying their first jumpy house.

Slam dunk

What's with the long faces kiddos? (They may have just gotten word that there might be an arranged marriage in their future). Alani and Calum are only 6 weeks apart in age. My best friends Jess and Ly are the proud mamas of these 2 cuties.

On Sunday night the girls kept themselves busy by loading their wagon up with books and then climbing in and reading for awhile.

We will have another activity filled weekend coming up with Easter celebrations!!!

My new favorite picture

Steve and I took the girls out to a lake by our house last weekend and I am in love with this picture I took. I think it is one of those pictures that I will look back on and cherish when my girls are all grown up. I enlarged this picture and framed it as a birthday gift for Steve's mom. I imagine as a mother, there must be something really special about seeing your child with their own children. The moments that are captured in pictures truly are priceless.

Wordless Wednesday-Clever girl

Fun Friday

Friends

I have had this post in my head for awhile and I know I won't have the right words to truly say what I want to, but I wanted to acknowledge some special people in my life. Today was my birthday and I was able to spend it with my two best friends. As usual when it comes to birthday celebrations, we managed to plan our day around a massage, lunch and shopping.

I have truly been blessed with two of the most loyal friends a girl could ask for. Jessica and I met in 7th grade and have been two peas in a pod ever since then. Since graduating high school, Jess has moved all over the country (L.A., New York, Canada, England) but we always kept in touch and our friendship has been one of the greatest gifts in my life. So imagine my happiness when we managed to buy homes right next door to each other 2 years ago. Jessica and I met Ly when we were freshman in high school. Ly is one of those people who you feel like you've known forever after about 5 minutes. She is the most generous and caring person and will do anything to help her friends. The three of us have shared alot of experiences together, both happy and sad. The best part of it all is that our children are growing up together and I hope that my children will be blessed with the kind of frienship that I have with Jess and Ly. I love you sistas! And I finally talked Jessica into starting her own blog, so go visit her and show her some love.

We must have been about 24 years old in this picture. Jessica was home from grad school and we always hung out as much as possible.

One of my favorite pictures. Taking a break from a hike in Lake Tahoe.

2½ years...what's new

My babies are growing up. It seems like all of a sudden they have turned into little people with opinions and they now have the words to voice them! Everyday I look at the girls and think that they can't possibly get any cuter and my love for them can't possibly get any bigger, but they keep getting cuter and I love them more each day.

-------------------------------------------------

We are starting to wean you from your binkies and they now stay in your cribs. I'm hoping by your 3rd birthday, the binkies will be gone! You all enjoy "cooking" and each meal usually ends with you spitting your milk or water onto your plate and you pretend to cook whatever food is left. "My cooking" is what you will tell me. One of our regular weekend routines is going to Costco and then treating the girls to a Jamba Juice. What surprises us the most is how tall you are all getting. We forget that we need to push things way back from the edge of the counter so that your curious little hands don't find them.

Miss Makena

You took a brief vacation from your crib and slept with mommy for about 10 days, but you are now back in your crib. You are definitely mommy's girl and I love watching your little face light up when I come home from work everyday. You love to help mommy or daddy feed the cat and dogs and we often use that to our advantage when we need to distract you when you are upset. You love it when mommy gives you Eskimo kisses and butterfly kisses.

Miss Lissy-bear

You are such a character. Before bed, you pack up all your belongings and carry them up to your crib....my little baglady! You have started to call me "mom" and it makes you sound like such a big girl. Your sisters often call you "Sissy-bear" which makes me smile. You are a thoughtful little girl and will often bring things to us when you hear us ask for it. You'll try to wipe your sister's noses and are very concerned if someone gets hurt.

Miss Riley

You learned how to ride your tricycle using the peddles and you ride around the kitchen like a rockstar....so proud of yourself. You are talking so much and surprise me with some of the things you come up with. You love to look at the moon at night and yell "Coming out the moon." You ask for hugs and kisses repeatedly when I put you to bed at night. When I close the door to your room I can still hear you saying "hug--kiss" You have started to count which is usually in this order "1,2,3,4,6,5,7,8,9,10"

I can't wait to see how much you grow and change in the next 6 months!