I've Been Tagged

A. Attached or Single? Attached
B. Best Friend(s)? Troy, Cyndi & Ashli
C. Cake or Pie? Pie - Dutch Apple. Mmmmmm. Maybe I better go to Marie Calendars today
D. Day of choice? Monday. I know, sounds stupid, but I'm so productive on Mondays
E. Essential Item? My computer. Could not live/think without it
F. Favorite Color? Turquoise
G. Gummy Bears or Worms? Bears - the orange ones
H. Hometown? Kerman, CA
I. Indulgence? Just one? I guess Dyer's Mint Chocolate chip ice cream
J. January or July? July. Love the summer
K. Kids? Natalie (12), Allyson (8), Amanda (5) & Camille (1)
L. Life is not complete without? family
M. Marriage Date? August 16, 1991
N. Number of brothers & sisters? 2 sisters & 1 brother
O. Oranges or Apples? oranges
P. Phobias? Failure
Q. Quotes? You're never fully dressed without a smile
R. Reasons to Smile? Giggling babies, naptime, First day of summer
S. Season of Choice? Fall
T. Tag someone: Mary S. (that's you, Mom)
U. Unknown Fact about Me? I dye my hair
V. Vegetable? sauteed zucchini
W. Worst Habits? Sleeping in
X. X-Ray or Ultrasound? Ultrasound
Y. Your Favorite Food? Peanutbutter chocolate chip cookies
Z. Zodiac Sign? Leo

Finished Project

A friend of mine asked if I would donate an item to the school silent auction. What a fun project for me!! So here are a couple of the pages from the 16-page album I put together. (School - The Fugman Marlins)

These 2 are CRAZY

It never fails - Allyson & Amanda always end up doing something that makes us laugh.

We've Started Building

Look at that beautiful framework! This is our new allergy clinic, Scribner Allergy. What a year we've had to get to this point. It's quite exciting and hopefully we'll be ready to open the doors to the public before 2008 comes to an end.

Birthday Party Pressure

With everything going on in our household this month, I was determined to keep Natalie' s 12th birthday party simple (and easy for me). I suggested that we invite a few of her friends and go to the paint-your-own-pottery place then over to Johnny Rockets for a snack and a milkshake. Natalie was so excited by that plan but then added "But my friends will be so disappointed." What? I didn't understand. "Well, Mom. My friends love our birthday parties because we always do something creative and unique and they can't wait to see what we've got planned for this year." AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! You've got to be kidding me. 11-year olds with creativity expectations? What have we done???

So, we rose to the challenges (one challenge to be creative and the other challenge to not stress out this mother). When the kids arrived we gathered in the family room and explained that they would be making a movie. I gave instructions to everyone on how to operate our video camera. Then I told them there would be different scenes, each printed on slips of paper. They would choose a slip of paper, have 5 minutes to prepare the scene and then have to film it and grab a new slip of paper. The stoyline: Our star, Natalie, is going on an adventure by taking a trip around the world. Scene 1: Natalie says goodbye to her family and friends. GO!



These girls went wild and they were incredible. Other scenes were:

* Natalie visits Africa and goes on a safari. The guides help her track wild animals.
* Natalie goes on a boat ride and gets caught in a horrible storm. She and the others on board have to swim to safety.
* Natalie visits Paris and shops for fashion in their luxury stores.
* Natalie visits the Austrian Alps and learns how to ski
* Natalie visits Hawaii and the natives teach her how to hula and surf
* Natalie visits Transylvania and meets Dracula
* Natalie meets a real live fairy and is granted 3 wishes


After filming, we had pizza and cake then the girls sat down and watched their movie. We all laughed at how clever they were. You should've seen the costumes they wore (we pulled out the dress-up bin). We're now burning DVD's of the movie for all the kids.


Whew - another year down!

OCD????

"Oh, Mom! What is this?"

"It's furniture polish"

"Oh, can I please use it? Please?"

Anyone need a house maid? This kid can CLEAN and she loves to do it, too!!!

Mom thinks she's so smart

Hi - Camille, here. Yesterday my mom decided that I was old enough to write on my little chalkboard with chalk and after watching my mom make one little mark, I knew exactly what to do. I was a pro! I could make lots and lots of marks all by myself. So my mom thought I would be entertained enough that she could blow dry her hair. Well, I was entertained, and though the picture is blurry, you can see that I think chalk TASTES really good. Mom, I need another piece!

Curly doos

We are not a typical sponge roller family but Amanda and Allyson decided that they would like a little curl in their hair. Here are the before and after pictures.

JUMP, Baby, jump!

While at the doctor's office getting Natalie's diagnosis of migraine headaches (poor kid), Camille learned how to jump (as well as a 13 month can).

More changes

Ok, the real reason these last 2 entries are reflections is because I haven't downloaded all the new pictures off my camera yet and it's almost midnight and I couldn't sleep so I thought I would blog but I'm too lazy to walk to the other end of my tiny house to get my camera. So, enjoy this photo from 2003. I can't believe who quickly they grow up. All 3 are in school now.

Life One Year Ago

They grow up quickly. Camille is now practically running around our home, pointing at objects, carrying on conversations in her own language and figuring out how to make us laugh. She looks like she had more hair at 1 month than she does at 13 months. HA!

Sleep Issues??? ME????

I came home this afternoon and the babysitter looked at me worried and said "I didn't know if you wanted me to put Camille down for a nap but she was kind of crying and she took my hand and walked me to her bedroom and wanted to be put in her crib. So I did and she laid down and went to sleep."

WHAT???????? I had to check to make sure it was really MY kid in the crib.

(Check out those thighs! She's not a little baby anymore.)

Precious Time with Grandpa Boyd

I adore my grandfather. He's one of my favorite people (right along side Myrna). I don't know how much longer he's going to be with us. Even though he is healthy and active, he is 91 years old. So after the kids came home from school we went to Grandpa's house with a roast & veggies that had been simmering all day and a freshly baked loaf of bread. The kids swam, Camille explored, and we were able to just sit and visit before feasting on dinner outside. It was a beautiful evening. One day my kids will realize how incredibly blessed they are that they had a close relationship with their great-grandfather.

A New Look

For whatever reason, Camille constantly has her tongue sticking out. Honestly, she looks like this picture most of the time. Perhaps she's practicing to look like Michael Jordan (she does like to play with balls). It is kind of funny but she's still not perfectly stable while walking and the kid has 6 teeth!!

Ahhhhhhhhhhhh, peace at last

They made it back....9:46pm. She's in bed....and Troy's still smiling. As stubborn as our children are, their father is worse. He always wins.

One of THOSE nights

Troy left the house 30 minutes ago (at 9:00pm) with Camille in tow. You see, she didn't want to go to sleep. And we live in a very small house. And it's a school night. We would have to put a screaming child in the garage in order to spare everyone in the house from the noise....and, well, that wasn't an option (at least tonight). So even though this baby is over 1, we are resorting to the lull of the carseat in order to obtain some peace and get her to sleep. Like I said, that was over 30 minutes ago. We were blessed with stubborn children. They get it from their father.