Our Happy Crazy Family Life

Max's Birthday

2009-10-15T08:36:00.001-07:00

Here is my baby and he is not a baby anymore. I can't believe that he is already 11. Well actually he will be 11 tomorrow but I have to go out of town so we had his party over the weekend. It was just a small sleepover party with a few friends. They played video games all night and had lots of fun.

Middle School Max

2009-08-20T12:21:00.000-07:00

Wow, it has been so long since I blogged that I forgot the way to upload pictures. So you are getting the pictures out of order in this post. Oh well. You understand right?

So summer is over and both of the kids are back in school. Krista started high school and Max started middle school. Here are some pictures of Max as I drove him to school and dropped him off.

Both of the kids really like their new schools. They were excited to get back because they are going to new schools. We did have a good summer though. After Comic-Con I had almost two weeks off so we got a hotel at the beach again and stayed down there for awhile. It was fun and nice to get away. We had some friends stop by and hang out and we built a fire near the water which was nice.
After we got back from the beach I helped the kids clean and organize their rooms so they would be ready to start the school year right. For Max's room we bought him a new little couch that makes into a bed. He needed something for his room the made it more fun to hang out in. He hasn't left his room since we got it. We also bought Krista a new rug for her room which is really cute.
Both of the kids also got new phones. Krista got the nice fancy one and Max just got the basic one. Now Krista texts all day if I let her. Of course she got her phone taken away the very first day of school and didn't get it back until the end of the week. I said 'don't get your phone taken away', but she didn't listen. Now she knows.
Max is still playing basketball. He has three games left and then I am going to make him take a season off. His hair keeps growing and growing. I ask him if he wants to cut it but he says NO. I don't care either way.
This is a picture of the wart that refuses to got away. I tried to use compound w on it but it just got bigger. I guess he'll have to go to the doctor and get it burned off.
I love the freckles and dark brown eyes.
How was your summer?

AWAY

2009-07-15T14:08:00.000-07:00

Due to the fact that Comic-Con is next week I am very busy. I will not be posting again until August! Until then, take care!

Playing in the Mud!

2009-07-02T11:16:00.000-07:00

Max has the best imagination. He loves to play and pretend. Here he is in a big mud puddle. He is making potions. What better way to spend a nice summer day?

See his homemade potion kit? He likes to stash away tiny bottles and save them in his potion kit.

Flower Kids

2009-07-01T09:39:00.000-07:00

Here are a bunch more pictures of our walk. We tried to take pictures in front of flowers.

Max acting goofy again. This is his favorite face to make.
At least he usually gives me one good shot too.
He is always wearing a hat or a beanie.

Walking with Kids

2009-06-30T21:08:00.000-07:00

I have to tell you that walking with your kids is one of the best things that you could ever do as a parent. If you go for a walk with your kids on a regular basis it is the time that you will find out all the things that you really should know. They just seem to open up on a walk. Things they tell you they would not if they were at home in front of the TV. If you want to know what is going on at school, go for a walk. If you want to know what is wrong, go for a walk. They will open up to you. They want to tell you if you are willing to listen. A walk is the perfect time to be a sounding board for them. Even better if you just take one but this time I took two. Here are our pictures...

If it is just me and one of the kids our conversation are sometimes profound. With both together they don't open up as much. Either way it's all top secret you know?

You should walk with your child. Trust.

Team Party?

2009-06-30T13:17:00.000-07:00

Well they tried to have a team party. Krista went. Too bad only two other girls showed up. Once again it wasn't very organized. I guess that is what happens when no one wants to be in charge. Anyway I'm glad softball is over. Now I guess it's on to water polo? Right now Krista is at High School camp. They are spending the night in the mountains.

Krista at Work

2009-06-26T11:18:00.000-07:00

With the show quickly approaching and summer in full swing, Krista can come help at work every once in awhile. Here are a couple of pictures of her as she helps me file away paperwork.

She has been very helpful with keeping my files organized! And she likes it!
Thanks Krista for all your help!

wizard 101 -By Max

2009-06-25T10:42:00.000-07:00

Hi, right now i am on 2 computers at the same time. I am playing wizard 101, it is a fun game if you like wizard games. I am a myth student. I am lvl 8. I made this account last night. I also went to alpine yesterday. They are re-doing the houses walls in the outside. In the wizard game i am battling with my friends. They are pvp battles.

Maxwell @ Lido's Again!

2009-06-25T10:31:00.000-07:00

We always go to Lido's. It's nice to go somewhere that everyone know who you are and the food is good. I don't know how many pictures of Maxwell at Lido's that you want to see but here are two more from the other day. The picture below is a quick shot in between funny faces. Max loves to make funny faces at the camera.

For instance, here is some proof.
He also loves their soup and haves it every single time. He is so predictable!

Krista's 8th Grade Promotion

2009-06-24T10:44:00.000-07:00

Here is my beautiful daughter on her 8th grade promotion day. See her in the white dress?

Her Nana made that dress for her also (like the masquerade ball dress). Isn't it pretty?

Sean and Dawn Dee showed up along with Jennifer and Chole.
Eric was there of course.
and Max and Grammy and Popie.
and Nana.
The boys keep changing seats and running around.
Here is Krista getting ready to get her certificate.

Below is Krista's principal. She hates him. She thinks he is creepy. He kinda is.
Walking back to the quad.
Krista and Grammy.
Below are a bunch of pictures of Krista with her friends.

She is totally blushing in this picture below.
I can't believe that she is in High School now! I got her a digital camera for a gift and she has been taking pictures of herself ever since.

Max's 5th Grade Promotion Ceremony

2009-06-23T14:50:00.000-07:00

Maxwell was promoted from elementary school to middle school. I now no longer have a child in elementary school which makes me sad. Below are some pictures of his ceremony and a video of him accepting his certificate.

Goodbye Vista La Mesa Elementary parking lot.
Goodbye Vista La Mesa School and random dude.
There he is getting ready to walk in with his class.
Up closer. He carefully planned out the wearing of purple pants on this day.
Walking in.

He are Mrs. Fabio and Mrs. Granquist. Both good teachers. Max has had them both.
Mr. Heath. The principal.
Yeah!!
Max with Mrs. Fabio.
Max and Devlin.
Devlin, Sterling and Max. Partners in all things mischievous.

With Brian. Watch video below of him accepting his award.

Asparagus Salad

2009-06-17T13:26:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile since we made the chocolate pretzels and to be truthful this is really a more realistic view of what we are eating now. Asparagus salad with mint, parmesan, pine nuts and lemon. Oh the joys of summer and fresh veggies.

and bathing suit season...

Chocolate Covered Pretzels

2009-06-17T13:20:00.000-07:00

A little while ago the kids and I made these chocolate covered pretzels. We have made them before but this time we went all out and added toppings. They are super easy to make and really good! Everyone loves them. We crumbled butterfingers on some and on others we put heath bar, oreos, reese's peices, white chocolate crunch and milk chocolate crunch. We dipped the pretzels in high quality dark chocolate, milk chocolate and white chocolate.

Then on top of all that we drizzled more chocolate. They look yummy huh? You should really click on the picture for the extreme yumminess of these bad boys.

Max in Glasses

2009-06-13T09:24:00.000-07:00

I totally love this picture of Max. He looks like a geek but one of the reasons he is so cool is that he wears whatever he wants and he knows what he wants to wear. He wore these glasses for a few days to school and then he moved on to something else.

You might remember these glasses from Krista and the trip to the Wild Animal Park.

The wet hair and the mouth full of food really adds to the overall geek effect, don't you think?

Krista Self Portrait

2009-06-13T09:18:00.000-07:00

I found this picture in my camera when I was going through it the other day. I think that it is really cute.

I guess I need to buy her a new rug. We had to get rid of the old one because it was stained. I'll put it on my list because this one has been costing me a lot of money lately.

Krista's Masquerade Ball

2009-06-09T08:55:00.000-07:00

Krista went to her 8th grade Masquerade Ball on Friday night. She had sooo much fun. She was really happy when she got home. Here are some pictures of her before she went. Her Nana made her dress for her. She did a really nice job. Krista looked really pretty. Krista looks short in this picture.

She went and got her nails done before she went. They looked very nice. and we went shopping for shoes on Thursday. Between shoe shopping I took her to the doctor to make sure her finger isn't broken from softball. The school nurse told her it was broken. I didn't think it was and we had it in a splint but after the nurse said that it was broken I wanted to go and make sure. It is not. So anyway she found these shoes and loves them. They looked cute with the dress.

She wanted me to paint her mask zebra. So it did. I used black fingernail polish.
She went with her friend who lives down the street.
They look cute huh?
I can't believe that she is almost done with middle school. It's hard to believe that she is a high schooler next. Where does all the time go?

Later today I will have her post her experience from the dance. She had a great time! Up next, 8th grade graduation!

Okay... this is Krista. The friend i took is Brittany and the other friend is Jasmine. The school dance otherwise known as LGMS 1st annual Masquerade Ball. ASB redecorated the gym. It looked really good. The colors were green, black, purple and gold. They had a dance floor (i helped with it), a dj, live music, and it was catered by the restaurant from down the street. The first thirty minutes nobody was dancing and by the end everybody was dancing... We were eating lasagna, salad and green beans. and for desert we had cake, chocolate strawberries and marshmallows. There were tables and fancy cups... we had Mountain Dew and Diet Pepsi. I met my friends and i was in charge of having people sign a black cardboard paper thing saying 'class of 2009'. i had fun... a lot of fun

Over and Out Baseball and Softball!

2009-06-03T10:14:00.000-07:00

There are no more baseball or softball games to go to. At least until next year. Max's team came in third place. They just barely lost their last game. They were down one run with bases loaded and bottom of the last inning with two outs and Andrew got up to bat and had an awesome hit. It went all the way out to the fence. But then the outfielder jumped up and caught the ball and the game was over. Tough luck. We'll get them next year. (Max is #16 in the pictures below.)

Krista also lost her last game. She also got hurt and now has a swollen finger. I didn't get any pictures because I had to work the snack bar. I could still see the game from the snack bar. They actually held their own until the last inning when they got beat by 10 runs. Still they have improved since the beginning of the year and they all had fun, which is the most important part, right?
Next up is basketball, again.

Laying in Bed with Kids!

2009-05-28T09:19:00.000-07:00

I love hanging out with Chloe. She fits right in to our family. Which makes perfect sense since she is family, duh! I just love how she makes herself right at home. If I'm laying in bed in my PJ's she will come right in and climb into bed and snuggle with me. She is so snuggable.

When we got out together I like to pretend she is mine and that I have three kids. I should have had a third but it's too late now. If I did have a third child I could totally imagine one just like Chloe. Of course that is not to say that these kids get along all the time. In fact most of the time they are fighting. But they do get along once in awhile as these pictures show. (It's also not to suggests that she minds me either cause she doesn't!)
Anyway I love hanging out in my bed with my whole family, two dogs and two cats. It gets crowded but it's love baby!

A Girl Has Got To Look Pretty!

2009-05-28T09:17:00.000-07:00

Even when you're at the beach or even if you're going nowhere you still put on makeup to look pretty! Because you're a teenager and that's what teenagers do!

And no she is not drinking beer in that picture. That's Eric's beer. I'm not sure why he is drinking Modelo. Is it any good? I have no clue. See I moved the beer out of the other pictures.
She is braceface. Or metal mouth. And look how dark her hair is. It use to be light. Isn't it weird how hair can change color?
We mess up any room we go into apparently.
Krista is happy that her dad bought her more minutes for her phone. And she is not too old to still use her stuffed elephant backpack.

The Beach

2009-05-28T09:04:00.000-07:00

For Memorial Day weekend we went down to the beach. It was also my birthday. It was lovely down there. Not too hot but still sunny.

It wasn't even crowded which was really nice. I guess it's because they have banned alcohol and smoking on beaches in California. Now people go other places to party.
Max had fun digging in the sand. He had a new Hurley bathing suit that had white stitching that turned purple when it got wet. He thought that was pretty cool.
Krista laid out and worked on her tan and read her new Teen Vogue magazine.
We bought these awesome two people towels. They are huge!
We also took the dogs. They loved it of course. Say Hi to Chewy!
Eric still drank beer even though he wasn't suppose to. Luckily the hotel was close so he could refill his cup.
Here we are on the ocean side but we spent most of the time on the jetty side which was even more deserted. We're sitting here because Max wanted to boogie board but he couldn't stop digging long enough to go do it. Trust me when I say that walking across all that sand to get to the other side is a good workout for your calves!
See he is holding his orange cup?

Coming Soon!

2009-05-24T17:23:00.000-07:00

So I guess when you check into a hotel that has free wi fi it doesn't mean that you can upload your pictures. So even though I have some great vacation pictures from our beach vacation I guess it will have to wait until I get home before I can show you how much fun we are having. It's been a great few days! I wish Brian and Barbara were here with their kids or Nathan and Jennifer but besides that I really could not ask for anything more! I will post vacation pictures when I get home. Thanks for visiting my blog. I will have a better post soon. Until then Happy Birthday to Me!!

Max in Motion

2009-05-17T10:56:00.000-07:00

I love the pictures of Max in motion. Here is the latest series that we took the other day.

It's kinda hard to get the shot because of the delay. I guess I should read my camera manuel.
He usually has to jump over and over until I get a shot I like. This one isn't it.
This one is okay but still not it. He's not really in motion.
This one I like. Not my best but it will do.

He's flying!

Water Balloon Fight

2009-05-14T11:49:00.000-07:00

Do you remember how much fun it is to have a water balloon fight? My kids had one on Mother's Day at Nathan and Jennifer's house.

Nathan filled up the bucket with a bunch of water balloons and handed them out to the kids. He even threw some himself.
Here is Max being Elastic Man. He can stretch his arms to reach anything!
Being a baseball player helps in water balloon fights! Love his shadow!
There is Krista! She has her new purple bikini bottoms on.
Nathan hit her with a balloon. Good times were had although next time we are going to get more balloons!

Friends

2009-05-13T09:36:00.000-07:00

Brian and Barbara and their kids, Jaxson and Eden, came into town from Boston. It was great to see them. We really wish that they lived nearby and hopefully they will soon. They stayed at Fabby and Tal's house. Below is a cute picture of Tal, Brian, Eric and Brian. I like this picture. It turned out cute. (Eric looks extra, super tan in this picture).

Here are the girls, Leigha, Barbara, Fabby and Christine.
They have a cute house with a pool and a great view.
Here is Fabby with a dog that she rescued.

Hanging out...
The kids watch a movie...
And play video games...

Krista loves to swim. Max was at Sterling's birthday party.
It was good to hang out with old friends.

Disneyland

2009-05-12T11:22:00.000-07:00

Max went to Disneyland with Brian, Barbara, Jaxson and Eden yesterday. They had a lot of fun! Max loved it. He was so tired when he got home he walked in and went straight to bed. Here is a picture that Brian emailed me of the kids eating ice cream.

Mother's Day 2009 - Fuji Japanese Steakhouse

2009-05-11T10:43:00.000-07:00

For Mother's Day we went to Fuji Japanese Steakhouse with Brian and Barbara and their family because they are in town so we have been hanging out with them. I have some pictures that I will post later. Here is a picture of Eric and I.

Our chief. See Krista and Brian in the background?

There is Brian and Barbara.
Max and Jaxson. Jaxson is Brian's son. They get along good. Jaxson spent the night one night and they played wii together.
Here is our table. The food was good.
Here are the kids looking cute together.
Eden is laughing at Max while Mia looks on. Max isn't falling he's just acting goofy.
Here is Kai and Jaxson. Kai is Fabby and Tal's son. Fabby is Barbara's sister. Aren't they cute?
They had a Koi pond. Kai and I touched the fish.
We went to Old Navy after lunch and Krista got her new purple bikini she has been wanting. Then driving home, look who it is...
It's Patty! Hi Patty!! Happy Mother's Day! and tell your family I'm not crazy!

Cinco de Mayo

2009-05-07T10:50:00.000-07:00

Neil and Emma had a Cinco de Mayo party on Tuesday. So we went over there for some mexican food and the kids got to swim in their pool.

Cinco de Mayo for Americans is just another excuse to get together with friends to eat and drink. Unless you are the designated driver and then you can't really drink.

(Why am I ALWAYS the designated driver when we go to Neil and Emma's? Because Eric refuses to be.)

I wonder if in Mexico they celebrate the 4th of July.

So once again we all did what we do best. Hang out with friends and BBQ.

The pool was warm and ready for summer.

Chewy on the Treadmill!

2009-05-05T10:29:00.000-07:00

Okay, you may not think this photo is funny but trust me it was funny! We were all laughing so hard at chewy on the treadmill.

They Did It!!!

2009-05-05T09:42:00.000-07:00

They did it! They beat the undefeated Hurricanes! Everyone has been trying to beat this team and we really wanted to and they did it! Everyone was so excited! Click on the picture to see how happy coach is!

Max plays catcher and he's good at it. He likes it! His team is in second place right now. The Hurricanes are in first place.
That's Max with the blue skull cap on.
Here he is high fiveing his sister. And to think I almost didn't go to this game. Now everyone is on there way to celebrate at Woodstock's Pizza.
For these boys it all about the game. Any game will do...
The coaches are happy! They are great coaches!
Krista is happy!

This is always the first face I get.
And this is the second face. He's a goof. A cute goof.
Go Seminoles!

Softball and a Sticky Lens

2009-05-04T10:47:00.000-07:00

Below is my view into the softball dugout at Krista's game. That's Eric with the sunglasses on. I like that you can see Krista and Eric both. They lost this game but really they are getting better with each game.

Max rode around on his scooter.
Until he made the mistake of licking my camera's lens with his bubblegum tongue. He got sent to the car for that and he had to write 'I won't lick my mom's camera lens' 100 times.

Eric's Birthday

2009-05-01T09:38:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday it was Eric's birthday. It was his big 37th birthday. So of course we celebrated the way we usually do and had a backyard dinner with family and friends. Eric's parents came over and Jennifer and Nathan and the kids. Neil and Emma came with there kids and so did Leif and Casey and Dawn and Dawn Dee.

Max and I got the backyard ready while Krista stayed after school and worked on the play she is going to be in. Eric got home from work around 6:30, just about the time everyone started coming over.
We made mexican food and had a fire. Emma brought s'mores for the kids...
and tequila for the adults. She's a bad influence like that...
I think that everybody had a good time!

My Garden is Growing!

2009-04-28T09:25:00.000-07:00

Remember this picture of Eric watering our new garden? The plants were little and freshly planted.

Well here is my garden today. It's growing! Look how good it is doing! I'm so proud of my little garden and it makes me really happy. This is plot one and it has three rows. In the back row it is eggplant (yuck but Krista and Eric like it), yellow crookneck squash, zucchini and tomatoes. The middle row has brussel sprouts, green beans, broccoli, sugar snap peas and cauliflower. The front row is tomatoes, leeks, chili peppers, japanese cucumbers, poblano peppers and slicing cucumbers. There are also red and yellow onions here and there. It's going to be crowded once it's fully grown but this is my first real garden so give me a break.
This is plot 2. It's got tomatoes (Mr. Stripey), butternut squash (not sure if this guy is going to make it), straight neck squash and lemon cucumber in the back row and in the front row there is red and yellow bell peppers, broccoli and/or cauliflower and scalloped squash.
Here is our artichoke plant (yumm!)
Below is plot 3. Most of the watermelon that was originally in this little garden had to be pulled because they died during the extreme heat a few weeks ago. Now in the back row there is yellow watermelon (iffy at best), red watermelon, scalloped squash, swiss chard and mint. In the second row is scalloped squash, green beans, tomatoes, cantaloupe (probably will die), and pumpkin. The front row is all strawberries (some burnt from the heat).
Here is a little strawberry plant that is doing okay.
Hey! Get out of my garden! He is always following me around.
See the cute little yellow crookneck squash growing?
And the tomatoes are growing on one plant and the rest have flowers.
Look at the baby broccoli. Isn't it cute?
The first sugar snap pea has arrived!
And the cucumber plant has lots of little babies on it.
Look how big the bell peppers are getting! And who is the laying there in the background?

Krista and Middle School

2009-04-27T10:57:00.000-07:00

This is what it looks like when I pick up Krista from school. I think she's spotted me hence the turned down head. I know what she is thinking... 'Dang, she's taking my picture again. In front of all my friends.'

Backseat Drivers and a Random Chewy Pic

2009-04-27T10:51:00.000-07:00

Goodness, aren't they cute? And loud? I know you can't hear them but they are, loud I mean. Here they are after Sean's dance recital (I still need to post those pictures). I'm not sure why they all sat in the backseat leaving me alone in the front. So I took their picture.

Oh and look... it's Chewy! I love that little black wet nose.

Cletus - Mad Scientist

2009-04-27T10:44:00.000-07:00

It's the return of Cletus. Here he plays the role of the mad scientist.

Krista

2009-04-24T10:00:00.000-07:00

Oh the joy of being young and skipping through the parking lot at the mall.

Tonsils

2009-04-24T09:57:00.000-07:00

Meet Tonsils. This is the cat that I got for Krista when she was getting her tonsils out in February 2000. Hence the name Tonsils. He was the best kitty. He lay with her as she recovered from her first surgery. Little did we know how many more surgeries were to come.

I got Tonsils from Patty. She brought over a bunch of kittens for me to choose from. She brought them over in a big basket. Eric said it was okay to get a kitten he just didn't want a black one or a black and white one and he didn't want a boy (male).

So I played with all the kittens and they were so cute. There were two darling little grey ones and other different colored ones that were girls (female, whatever). And then there was this little black and white boy. He was out of the running, first because he was a boy and second of all because he was black and white. We had already had many, many black cats and a few black and white cats. We wanted something different.

So I watched the kittens run around. They scampered to and fro across the living room. Some went under the couch but this little black and white kitten just crawled up into my lap and laid down. I put him back down on the floor and he crawled up onto my lap again and laid down again and he stayed there. It was like HE was choosing ME. He wasn't the one that I was suppose to pick. I resisted picking him, I really did. But I could tell that he wanted me to pick him. I knew he was picking me.

So we ended up with a new kitty that was black and white and a boy. And he's been the best kitty ever. And Krista still has her Tonsils, even if she doesn't.

Thanks Patty for the Awesome cat.

Meet The Frog

2009-04-23T10:48:00.000-07:00

Max and Nathan caught a frog while we were up in Alpine. So of course I had to take some pictures of it. I love the picture of it jumping onto the table. It was pretty big. Does that mean it is really a toad? I don't know, do you? They, of course, put it back where they found it once they were done looking at it.

Crazy Kids

2009-04-23T10:44:00.000-07:00

Sometimes taking regular pictures just gets boring. Especially for my crazy kids.

My Dad's Maze Books

2009-04-22T09:42:00.000-07:00

My dad use to write and Illustrate maze books. He did quite a few and they are sold in many different countries. When my dad passed away I inherited the original books that he made. Every now and then we stop into the book store to see if they are still on the shelves. They sell them in the children's section.

Max and I went there the other day because Max needed the new Spiderwick book. While there I went to see Dad's books. It's nice to see that they are still selling them.

I Love this Picture!

2009-04-22T09:34:00.000-07:00

Butterflies

2009-04-21T08:48:00.000-07:00

The weather here is sooo hot. It is really doing a number on my newest plants. I don't think they will survive the heat wave. It makes me sad. Yesterday it was 101 degrees where I live. It was a record breaker. So anyway here are some pictures of the butterflies at the Wild Animal Park.

Would You Wear This?

2009-04-21T08:40:00.000-07:00

At least he has a job right?

My Garden

2009-04-19T10:00:00.000-07:00

I am really super in love with my new garden. We put in two more little plots. One with two rows and another with three rows. I guess that these aren't the best pictures in the whole world but they give you an idea of what is going on. Plus these were taken about 2 weeks ago so things have grown up more. I also planted a row of sunflowers along the fence and they are doing great! Krista and I planted them from seed and they have already sprouted. The black plastic (Hi Patty!) is to keep the weeds from growing but it still let's the water in. We have planted every different veggie we could find. They are all doing great except the watermelon and one of the cucumber plants. Yesterday we started buying some flowers. I am also going to try and do some starter plants from seed and see how that works.

San Diego Wild Animal Park

2009-04-14T14:43:00.000-07:00

Yeah! We finally made it to the Wild Animal Park. We went to go and see the butterflies. It was during Spring Break so we had to wait in line for awhile but it was worth it once we finally got in. I will post more butterfly pictures later because I took a few. I think my camera had a smudge on the lens the whole time so the pictures didn't turn out as good as I had hoped. Above the kids take their picture by the Wild Animal Park sign.
Krista decided to wear these glasses with no lenses, not to mention oversized! I don't think Nana liked them too much. Funny thing, other girls there had the same look going on. I guess it's in style so get ready moms for the 'no lens' look. It's fashion!
I got a bunch of cute shots of Chloe. Here are a couple. The kids still pose for pictures but I think the adults are pretty much over all the picture taking.
Max is always ready to goof off and this ear statue make for a great shot of Max.
We saw the baby cheetah in the nursery.
Here is one of my butterfly photos. After the butterflies came the birds.

Then we walked down and saw the lions. Honestly we really didn't see too many wild animals. I guess you have to do the safari for that. The lines were long though and we didn't want to wait in line. So after lunch we just went home to get ready for our weekend in Alpine.
Can you tell where the smudge is? Bummer.

Coming Soon!

2009-04-13T11:15:00.000-07:00

I will be posting Easter pictures soon. I also have more gardening pictures (I know, I know, please contain your excitement) and pictures from the Wild Animal Park. But for now enjoy this picture of Max with a baby horny toad. Click on the picture for a better view!

spring break

2009-04-06T10:54:00.000-07:00

i am on spring break... o this is krista. i HAVE to blog. im bored. yesterday, karina went to see hollywood undead. that is her favorite band. im hungry. i want take out or something. i am watching tv.... okay well good bye

Yay, spring brake

2009-04-06T10:47:00.000-07:00

Hi, this is Max. Yesterday Devlin came over and we played tell about 9:30. Have i told you I am on spring brake. I am having fun. It will go for 2 weeks. Devlin might come over later this week or next week or I might go over there. My weeks will be fun. Krista's too.

Kid's in Flowers

2009-04-03T13:41:00.000-07:00

I love these kids in flowers posts.

Isn't she pretty?

Someday I am going to force him to stop wearing the yellow shirt everyday (at least it's clean).

Lido's Italian Food

2009-04-03T13:39:00.000-07:00

This is the local family restaurant that we go to all the time. I made everyone sit outside so I could take their picture.

Max loves the soup and gets it every time we come.
Eric and I both had the roast beef sandwich.
Krista had the meatball sandwich.

Sitting in Front of Lido's

2009-04-03T13:35:00.000-07:00

I know most of these videos are too short to even watch but I am having fun posting them anyways.

Max is Funny

2009-04-03T13:33:00.000-07:00

These pictures represent Max refusing to give me the picture that I want. I think they are pretty funny so I am posting them here together. He is a clown.

Science Fair 2009

2009-04-03T13:02:00.000-07:00

It's time for me, I mean Max, to do our, I mean his, science fair project again. We learned that Miracle-Gro is not all that it's hyped up to be. Someone else tried distilled water and their plant grew big! It might get pricey to buy distilled water for your whole garden though.

It's Only About A Second Long...

2009-04-03T12:51:00.000-07:00

Watch it...

Fun in the Sun Team Party

2009-04-03T12:34:00.000-07:00

It's team party time. Team Manager Charles had the kids over after the game for some team bonding. We had a really good time. They have a great house that is very kid friendly.

They have a basketball court...

The cutest dog that looks like a big chewy...
An awesome pool...
These are the cream cheese stuffed jalapenos wrapped in bacon that I brought. Don't they look like lobsters? I wish...
Here is Charles and some of the other parents...
A nice view...
Once it got dark we had a fire in the fire pit. To the left there is a pitching mound and a small putting area...
I wish we had a pool. Have I told anyone that lately?
Or a hot tub....
Fun times were had by all....

Krista Has A Meltdown

2009-04-02T12:04:00.000-07:00

Has one of your kids ever had a complete meltdown? I'm sure if you have kids then your answer is yes. Well our Krista had a meltdown the other day. She was trying to find her softball socks. She had only been looking for about 30 seconds before she completely lost it. She was screaming and throwing stuff. It was pretty ridiculous. So of course I has to take some pictures. That didn't help thus the towel over her head. So I went and looked for her socks and found them in less than a minute and then the meltdown was over and she was in a good mood again. I love you Krista!

They Won!

2009-04-01T11:55:00.000-07:00

The Bad News Bears, I mean the Golden Bears, won their first softball game! Yeah! They won 14-11. Krista was so excited and screaming so much she practically lost her voice. Good times, good times.

Cupcakes

2009-03-30T11:48:00.000-07:00

So I decided that I just had to make these cupcakes that I saw on BettyCrocker.com so we went to the store and got all the stuff to make them. We actually had to go to two stores to get everything we needed. Then we went home and created the cupcakes below. What do you think? They are our Spring cupcakes.

Max's First Pitching For Seminoles

2009-03-29T17:22:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty excited to present you with another video.

This is video of Max's first pitching for the Seminoles. It's pretty cool to see him pitch.

I guess it works better to upload my videos from my camera and not my flip video.

Max Batting or OMG I Got A Video To Upload!!

2009-03-29T12:10:00.000-07:00

Wow! I was finally able to get a video to upload. I'm so happy. Watch this video of Max batting. It's not very long but it's cute. Go Max!

Don Gave My Kid A Smackdown

2009-03-29T11:54:00.000-07:00

"We had a plan to attack Don but something went tragically wrong."

-Max

Really Cute Chloe Pictures

2009-03-28T08:24:00.000-07:00

The painting behind her Krista painted when she was little.

Rock Band

2009-03-27T12:58:00.000-07:00

Have you ever played Rock Band? We like to play Rock Band in the garage. It's especially fun if it's the weekend and you have been drinking. Not that the kids have been drinking, mind you, well maybe milk. Milk does a body good you know. Wine does a parent good for Rock Band. Now I'm not saying we sound good but we can score high on easy. Maybe we should up the level to medium.

Chewy likes Rock Band.
The kids are rocking out man.
Don't judge, just ignore the mess. Oh look there is Kassidy.

Hi Lisa Simpson! She came from Hollywood Video. Dawn Dee is rocking out. and no, Max is never going to take that uniform off. He likes to wear the same outfit all weekend. This weekend it happens to be his uniform and I don't care. I just let him.
Eric and Don don't like to play Rock Band and come to think of it they probably don't like to listen to it either. But they do like to drink beer. in the backyard. by the fire.

Max in Flowers

2009-03-26T10:00:00.000-07:00

The Bad News Bears

2009-03-26T09:54:00.000-07:00

Really they are called the California Bears but they might as well be called the Bad News Bears because they are that good. I'm not saying that to be mean it's just the truth. Even they call themselves that. On this day they lost 0-14. It was pretty sad. Not to mention that the game started an hour late and it was freezing outside (at least cold for San Diego).

You see, a lot of the girls that are on the team have never played before and now here they are playing girls who have played since they were little. So it goes without saying that there is going to be a learning curve. But if these girls hadn't have signed up then there would not have been a team at all.
Still it seams like they are having a good time.
I know Krista is.
This is a darling picture. Don't they look like they get along? I'm not even going to mention that Chloe chewed on her sleeves until they were really wet. Ewww. Then she put her sleeves under the water from the sink so she could chew and drink water from her sleeves. Extra ewwwww. I love her.
Ma, Ma. That is what Kassidy calls Max. It sounds like ba ba as in a sheep call and not ma ma as in mommy. Got it?

The picture below is funny. It is Krista screaming "Mother" at me because I was sneaking a picture of her by putting my camera up over the fence. The fence was covered so I couldn't see in. It was the only way to get the shot.
She played second base.
Eric had to step up and help coach. At least when he can. Too bad he has to work on most Saturdays. He had this Saturday off.
She tries to bunt.
The end.

In the Car

2009-03-25T18:28:00.000-07:00

Okay. It might sound stupid but I am going to do posts that are just pictures taken in the backseat of the car. I have a lot already and they are cute and they show how much they have grown and continue to grow. I like these two pictures. The last one is especially cute because it reminds me of their personalities.

Daffodils

2009-03-25T12:30:00.000-07:00

It must be spring because the daffodils are only 1.25 a bunch at Trader Joe's. They look so pretty!

OAMC

2009-03-25T12:06:00.000-07:00

I made a lot of dinners last weekend. I cooked for about 5 1/2 hours and made 12 dinners to freeze. I made rigatoni w/cheese, mac & cheese, red shredded pork enchiladas, green chicken enchiladas, Shepard's pie and chicken pot pie. I made 2 of each. The next morning I made an entire box of pancakes so they would be in the fridge for morning.

OAMC stands for once a month cooking. I did half of that. You can also do OAWC which is once a week cooking.

It has been nice because when we get home from baseball/softball then we just throw dinner in the over and sit down at the table and eat it together. and clean up has been a breeze.
Below is what my kitchen looked like after cooking for 5 1/2 hours. Not bad considering it looks that way after cooking dinner once on a regular night. We cleaned it up and so far the kitchen has been clean all week because we have been using paper plates because after being on the go all day no one really wants to do dishes.

Mosaic

2009-03-24T15:26:00.000-07:00

Below are some of the mosaics that we have done at out house. We still need to touch up that one spot on the fireplace. I don't know why we didn't do that spot when we did the rest of it. I love to mosaic things and I think they look good.

This is the backdrop above the kitchen sink. I measured it out and created it on the floor in the garage. Then I put packing tape over the tiles and just picked the whole thing up and slapped it on the wall.
This is the counter we made after we cut out the wall that was there when we first moved in.
Look there are my kids in the background. Is Krista dancing? I hope so. Also, look, there is my most favorite printer in the whole world. "Have I told you lately that I love you?" (*hugs*). On the left there is my cone. Care to vacuum my love?

Playing Darts

2009-03-23T14:41:00.000-07:00

Eric gave Nathan his dart board because we never use it. So we played darts over there for awhile. It was a school night so we couldn't stay all night. But we had fun.
Here everyone is sitting on the front porch.

Below is Violet kissing Ruby.

Have You Walked Your Dogs Lately?

2009-03-23T14:37:00.000-07:00

Max and I took the dogs for a walk the other night. Max took his skateboard. It was a nice night.

Runescape

2009-03-19T18:07:00.000-07:00

So I guess if you really want to know my son you need to see him this way. Because this is the way that I see him a lot. He LOVES Runescape. He is what we would say, obsessed. Here he is feeding his obsession... Opps, he realised that I am there, once again, taking pictures. So I got a smile. I always get a smile and he is always on Runescape.

Homework

2009-03-19T11:27:00.000-07:00

Once again Krista finds herself sitting and doing homework. Lots and lots of homework. I probably should not have taken her to San Francisco because she really fell behind. So now she just has to tough it out I guess and work, work, work.

Signs

2009-03-19T11:22:00.000-07:00

These are some of the signs that hang at our house.

Straight to the Point

2009-03-19T11:20:00.000-07:00

Max did his hair today.

Krista Plays Softball

2009-03-19T11:14:00.000-07:00

Well Krista finally had her first softball game. She is pretty happy about that because she has been waiting and waiting for them to figure it out. They are short of girls who signed up so it's taken them awhile to make a team.

They didn't win but they did well. Krista stole home and scored a run.

I like this picture. It shows how cute she is.

Goodbye Molly

2009-03-19T11:12:00.000-07:00

St. Patrick's Day Dinner

2009-03-19T10:52:00.000-07:00

We went to Eric's parents house for corned beef and cabbage. It wasn't really on St. Patrick's day but it was close. Here is the menu.

Eric talking to his dad. They are pouring black and tans for everyone.
My kids in Nana's kitchen.

Eric, Ed and Tricia.
The table before glasses and food.
Here are the kids arguing about where to put the name tags. They always change them from where Nana had them. And they always fight about it too.
Peace...
Max and Kassidy.
Jennifer and Kassidy.
The girls are dancing to Momma Mia.
Max is fixing the skateboard that Neil rode into the pool last summer.

Nathan is checking out the Big 5 ad.
Yeah I got this picture on the first shot. It's cute huh?
"I want to look at the camera too auntie"...
Outside on the rocks.
It's time to head home.

Krista Does a Jig

2009-03-19T10:49:00.000-07:00

Krista loves to listen to her i-pod. She has the red one. She got it for Christmas.

Here she is doing a little jig.

Building a Skateboard Ramp

2009-03-19T10:45:00.000-07:00

So Max decided to build himself a skateboard ramp. He he is working on it. He likes to build stuff so he had fun making it. He has been using it a lot ever since then.

Let's Plant a Veggie Garden

2009-03-18T18:50:00.000-07:00

So we are going to plant our veggie garden so we went to Home Depot to get some more stuff that we needed. Eric came with us. Really he is going to do most of the work so he knows what he needs. I know that I needed cages for my tomatoes, sugar snap peas and green bean. Below is Max in his new retro polo shirt.

Eric deciding what he needs. It could be awhile.

Let's take it home and plant it before we go to Nana and Popies for Saint Patrick's Day Dinner.

Our Bounty...

Eric's is getting his workout.

The final product of our labor. We planted tomatoes, eggplant, zucchini, squash, broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, sugar snap peas, green beans, cucumbers and chilis. We also have in pots, bell peppers, lots of herbs and strawberries. Eric is going to plant an artichoke plant on his day off but we did not have room in the new garden.

It's Our Backyard!

2009-03-18T18:14:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of our backyard. Right now it looks alright because it's green, at least as green as it's likely to get before summer. Once summer arrives it will be hard to keep green. San Diego summers are too hot for lawn. Here is T-Rex. She found the brown spot and sat right in the middle. She is a killer cat (get it?).

Popcorn's popping on the apricot tree.

Our orange tree and lemon tree really don't do that well. Nothing like my moms' trees

Eric loves picking up the dog doo doo. Can't you tell?

Flashback Las Rocas

2009-03-18T10:54:00.000-07:00

Let's go back in time a few years okay? The year is 2003 and the place is Rosarito, Mexico. We are staying at the beautiful Las Rocas hotel with two pools and three Jacuzzis overlooking the ocean. This was before you needed a passport to go down there. This was the view from our room.

This is my little Maxwell when he was obsessed with dinosaurs. REALLY obsessed! Dinosaurs were all he talked or thought about. He could name every dinosaur there is and owned a million (still does - he's a packrat) plus tons of dinosaur books, dinosaur clothes, dinosaur TV specials and more. I took him to the dinosaur museum for his 5th birthday.
Isn't he cute?
Here he is in his car seat. I can barely remember when he use to have to sit in a car seat. I miss this little boy. He was so sweet. He still is, just bigger.

Oh here they are, brother and sister. Hanging out together in Mexico. If I remember correctly, this was right after Max had left the room and was hiding in the hallway almost giving me a heart attack. You do not want your children to go missing in a foreign country. I think that Krista kinda looks like Chloe in the top photo. And look at how light her hair is compared to now. Max is four in this picture and Krista is seven.

"Look Ma we found dinosaurs!"
Oh, he feel down and scraped his lip. Poor baby. Let me take a picture of it, that will make it feel better.
I love this picture of Eric holding Max's hand. "Hey Krista, wait up..."
We are shopping. Max took this picture.
I don't know why this picture came in sideways but I'm leaving it in because I like it.
Goodbye Las Rocas! It's been good knowing you. We will return to you three more times before passports and a wave of violence stops us from coming back but perhaps we will meet again in the future.

It's Time to Plant a Garden

2009-03-14T14:24:00.000-07:00

Here are my kids. We are going to buy veggies for our garden. I hope I have a nice veggie garden this year since I have decided to eat less meat.
I really love that in these pictures it looks like they get along. And really, the truth is, that sometimes they actually do. Which is really nice. Sometimes it happens when no one is really looking and that is okay with me.

This is Why Max's Manager is Cool

2009-03-14T14:18:00.000-07:00

This is just one of the reasons I like his manager this year. Here is Max being show how to bat by one of San Diego's high school coaches. This place is cool and this isn't even a regular practice. It's an optional practice his manager provided. Plus he is nice.

My Kids Like to Take Pictures of Pictures

2009-03-14T14:09:00.000-07:00

Here is some proof of that...

He hasn't really changed has he?
Here is Krista when we lived downtown. She has heart shaped sunglasses on. We lived downtown in a loft when she was born and we lived there until she was three. We moved when I got pregnant with Max. Eric and I spent many happy years living downtown before Krista was born but by the time I was preggers with Max we figured it was time to get a house near a good school and with a nice backyard. Something to own rather than rent. I always loved this picture of Krista, my mom, not so much.

Picking California Citrus

2009-03-14T13:48:00.000-07:00

The oranges in California are the best oranges. I'm sorry Florida but it is true. And these oranges are the best California oranges. They are yummy. I use to have to pick them but now it is my kids turn.

Besides oranges I grew up with fresh tangerines and grapefruits and lemons too.

I have been trying to grow them in my own yard but so far they don't really even compare to these.

This is Where I Grew Up

2009-03-14T13:29:00.000-07:00

This is the house I grew up in. This is a view of from the back yard looking at the living room windows. The pool wasn't there when I grew up. I have never lived anywhere with a pool. I really want to have a pool someday.

This is the backyard. The netting is where the garden grew while my dad was still alive. Now it isn't really a garden and it was never there while I lived there. There is an awesome view from the backyard. The kids were taking the pictures. they didn't really get a good picture of the view but it overlooks the whole valley and mountains.
This is the pond my dad built when I was a kid. It has a waterfall also (see it? to the side of pic). When I was young it was clean and we use to play in it. It's big enough to fit about 4 or 5 kids. Try to picture it nice and clean with the waterfall going, it was fun.

It's got yucky water now and has now for years. The frogs like it and other various wildlife.

This is my mom in the kitchen.

Flashback

2009-03-14T13:27:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of me and my brothers. It was back in the 70's. My mom made that skirt that I am wearing.

See, I told you that my kids like to take pictures of pictures.

The Corners of My Office

2009-03-13T14:51:00.000-07:00

I can hear you. You are judging. Do not judge. So my office is not the most organized place on earth. I still know where everything is. I still get all my work done on time. Just because my office is not perfect doesn't mean Krista inherited her messiness from me. Or does it? Hhmmm...

Yes I do have a hat collection. And No I am never going to wear any of them. Do you want to make something of it????

Wow I think I am now caught up with the pictures on my computer. Now on to the camera...

It's Jennifer's Birthday

2009-03-13T14:25:00.000-07:00

The presents...

OMG It's the braces club...
Maxwell...
Max in motion... He's dancing for me...
Here is Krista with her Nana and Kassidy...
Chloe's room is almost as messy as Krista's... but not quite...Nathan and Jennifer...
Mommy and Kassidy...
Here is Max with Ruby. They are watching Jennifer open her presents...
Eric with Kassidy. It's hard to get a good picture of Kassidy because she always turns her head. She wasn't feeling well on this day...

We got Jennifer a saki set when we were in Chinatown with some saki to go with it. I hope she liked it...
She is turning 31. She is still young. She has been drinking tequila. Nana made the cake. It was angel food with whipped cream frosting. There is Rena in the background. Don't you love the wallpaper? Jennifer does. It's her favorite...
"Happy Birthday to you, you live in a zoo..." (I kid, I kid)...
How many people can you fit in your kitchen?

Flashback Krista

2009-03-13T09:12:00.000-07:00

I love this picture of Krista. It is so cute. I'm pretty sure that it is from pre-school. Her Nana handmade the dress she is wearing it has little stars and moons on it. Blue was her favorite color then.

Flashback Max

2009-03-13T09:04:00.000-07:00

Here are some flashback pictures of Max. These were taken at Cecilee's wedding. Max was the ring bearer. He looks pretty cute in his suit. The bottom picture is my favorite. I have a copy hanging in my office at work.

Dawn Dee Made a Hat

2009-03-09T17:03:00.000-07:00

And Don made steaks...
Sean with his trophies...
Sherri's old ceiling (it's gone now. This was it's last night)...

Rusty is sleeping on Don's pillow again.

The Beat Goes On

2009-03-09T17:00:00.000-07:00

It's been a long day. Let us relax with a soothing game of Guess Who?

We keep going and going... Music all around.....

Max in Motion

2009-03-09T16:58:00.000-07:00

It's Kylan's Birthday!

2009-03-09T16:42:00.000-07:00

Kylan turned one this week. We had to go to his birthday party. So after the basketball game we made our way over to his birthday party at the park.

Quyen and Eleanor (or Ellie) were there with Torin. Isn't she cute?
Dawn Dee and Don and Sean were there too.
Kylan's daddy is Leif (that's his brother in the background).
The boys from behind.
The sun and wind is in their eyes.
Opening presents. I thought I got a picture of Casey too but I guess I did not.
Eric showed up on his lunch break. Here he is with his son.

Max's Last Basketball Game

2009-03-09T16:21:00.000-07:00

Today is Max's last basketball game of the season.

Here is Max and his friend Ben. They get along good and have become friends through basketball. I like basketball so much more than baseball. It is much more fun to watch.

We had to buy him a headband to keep the hair out of his eyes. He doesn't want to cut his hair.
Krista is still reading her book. We went to Helix orientation on Thursday night. She starts high school next year.

They lost in the last 30 seconds when someone from the other team threw a 3 point shot. It was a good, close game.

Here is Coach Anthony giving his last talk to the players. He was/is a nice coach.
We will sign Max up for basketball again soon.

Max's Baseball Game

2009-03-09T14:28:00.000-07:00

Here is Max. He is up to bat.

Now he is rounding the bases. Check it out. First...
Second...
Third...
Home!

Krista is reading her new book instead of watching the game.

Max as catcher.

Max scored the winning run when he stole home base to end the game. They won 6-5.

Yeah!!! One down and about a hundred more to go...

Our Happy Crazy Family Life

Max's Birthday

Middle School Max

AWAY

Playing in the Mud!

Flower Kids

Walking with Kids

Team Party?

Krista at Work

wizard 101 -By Max

Maxwell @ Lido's Again!

Krista's 8th Grade Promotion

Max's 5th Grade Promotion Ceremony

Asparagus Salad

Chocolate Covered Pretzels

Max in Glasses

Krista Self Portrait

Krista's Masquerade Ball

Over and Out Baseball and Softball!

Laying in Bed with Kids!

A Girl Has Got To Look Pretty!

The Beach

Coming Soon!

Max in Motion

Water Balloon Fight

Friends

Disneyland

Mother's Day 2009 - Fuji Japanese Steakhouse

Cinco de Mayo

Chewy on the Treadmill!

They Did It!!!

Softball and a Sticky Lens

Eric's Birthday

My Garden is Growing!

Krista and Middle School

Backseat Drivers and a Random Chewy Pic

Cletus - Mad Scientist

Krista

Tonsils

Meet The Frog

Crazy Kids

My Dad's Maze Books

I Love this Picture!

Butterflies

Would You Wear This?

My Garden

San Diego Wild Animal Park

Coming Soon!

spring break

Yay, spring brake

Kid's in Flowers

Lido's Italian Food

Sitting in Front of Lido's

Max is Funny

Science Fair 2009

It's Only About A Second Long...

Fun in the Sun *Team Party*

Krista Has A Meltdown

They Won!

Cupcakes

Max's First Pitching For Seminoles

Max Batting or OMG I Got A Video To Upload!!

Don Gave My Kid A Smackdown

Really Cute Chloe Pictures

Rock Band

Max in Flowers

The Bad News Bears

In the Car

Daffodils

OAMC

Mosaic

Playing Darts

Have You Walked Your Dogs Lately?

Runescape

Homework

Signs

Straight to the Point

Krista Plays Softball

Goodbye Molly

St. Patrick's Day Dinner

Fun in the Sun Team Party