Life as we know it....

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T11:38:00.000-08:00

I have a fabulous husband and children. I hope your day is wonderful and filled with love......and kisses.........and candy.........and kisses............and flowers...........and kisses.......


This is what I woke up to this morning. I am a lucky girl! ;)

Happy Valentine's Day!

Smow Day?

2010-12-15T14:30:00.000-08:00

My goodness, the weather outside has been frightful for 2 weeks.

It snows. It stops. It flurries.

We have 2 hour school delays.

It snows some more. None of it sticks.

Temps have been hovering in the area of 15-25 for over a week, dropping once to 8 with a windchill of negative 12.......BBBBRRRRRRRR, baby it's cold outside.

I do however keep hoping that it will continue for another week in hopes that the white stuff falls on Christmas Day. Oh how perfect would that be? One can hope right?

So as I sit here, teachers are hoping for a snow day as 1-3 inches are in the forecast but for 2 weeks the forecasts have not been spot on, so we'll see.

Now, back to check in on the short peeps to see how their gingerbread houses are progressing. Will post photos of those soon!

Out of the mouths of babes....

2010-12-14T10:23:00.000-08:00

Conversation with my 8 year old daughter who was on her way home from a gymnastics meet that was 6 hours away.........

Mom: "Hannah, I am not taking you to gymnastics tonight, it's been a long day, the drive was long and I want you to just rest, hang out and relax."

Hannah: "Are you serious mom? I have been sitting on my bum all day and I need some exercise. I am not a couch potato like daddy." And then she proceeds to mock him in the back seat of the car by showing me how he sits on the couch, turns on the tv, puts his head back and commences to snoring!

I almost peed my pants, I was chuckling in the front seat as I was driving..... needless to say that I took her to gymnastics.

Our first SNOW day!

2010-12-05T15:34:00.000-08:00

View from our front door

Mac and Moose exploring the back yard

Mac and Moose looking for treasures

Moose, he was laughing because he just threw a snowball and hit me. :)

Now Hannah taking aim at me

And succeeding!

Foster....hunting for.....a place to pee. :)

I think his face says it all........Mom, I love this SNOW, this is the best day ever!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

2010-11-25T07:56:00.000-08:00

I am so thankful for my friends, my family and those that have touched my life in ways I can't even explain. My life wouldn't be what it is today without the love, support and strength of those bonds. You know who you are.....I LOVE YOU!

May you each have a blessed, joyful and wonderful holiday ........... and may you also have full tummies as well!

XOXOXO
Kimberly and clan

Stuff my mom cooks......

2010-11-23T18:08:00.000-08:00

Alright, I realized that I am not a good personal blogger.....just like the journal that sits beside my bed collecting dust............but I try. What I have realized is that I am passionate about a few things.....photography, anything outdoors, gardening and most of all..........COOKING! I love to cook and I love to be in the kitchen......with my apron on (don't ask me to cook without my apron, it just won't happen).

It is where I go to soothe my sorrows.

It is where I go to express my delight.

It is where I go to just have fun.

My husband and I even have date nights where we send the kids out and we just stay in cooking - although since we have moved to VA, there is no where to send them too......yet. Gotta work on that!

But my kitchen and food is the heart and soul of my home. We gather to talk about the day. We gather to cook meals together. We gather to do projects and so much more.

I finally realized that blogging about something you are passionate about is a lot more fun than just journaling the everyday details (although important) of our lives. I will still continue to blog the family stuff but thanks to my son and my cousin Haley......I started a blog that I can't seem to peel myself away from. I need to pull back long enough to start taking photos of all these delicious meals but it is the beginning.....baby steps!

What is the point to this blog? It really isn't for you, or you, or you. It is so that my children will have a living legacy of all those moments we shared around the kitchen. If you so happen to find a recipe that you like, great. If not, that's fine too. It's all about the moments and I finally found the way I want to capture those.

Stuff My Mom Cooks

Enjoy!

Busy Week!

2010-11-23T09:48:00.000-08:00

Gosh, where does the time go?

I restarted blogging a week ago and missed posting all week! How did that happen, lol?

Oh well. This past week has been so busy between Hannah's gymnastics, Christian's basketball and Xander doing what Xander does. All good and never a dull moment.

Two more days until turkey day. I have my wonderful mother in law coming to visit. It will be a delight to have her here. She just celebrated a birthday yesterday.....Happy Birthday mom. I love her, can you tell?

We are busy getting everything ready. All the shopping has been completed. Pies are in the works. This year will be the first year that each of my children are contributing to the meal.

Xander is making a raspberry swirl cheesecake with chocolate crust....... YUM!

Hannah is taking over the tradition of making the homemade yeast rolls that I have made for the last 15 years. I am excited for her and the rolls are simply divine! Yeast rolls in a hour.....easy too!

And my dear sweet Christian, the moose.....he is making homemade whipped cream to top all the decadent pies and desserts. Xander was about his age when he started making it now Christian has a new job for holiday meals. He is excited and loves to feel needed. I need him.

So as we clean and prep and cook and get ready to share in these splendid moments, I want to take a moment to tell my friends and family just how thankful I am to have each of you in my life. I have a lot to be thankful for this year.

Gotta get back to today's cooking........Drunken Cranberries and Bourbon Margarita Slushies.......are you seeing a pattern with today's recipes???? Oh yea, I am making pies too. I should probably make the pies before I open all the spirits huh?

Have a great day.

Hannah's first Level 4 Gymnastics Meet

2010-11-16T11:42:00.001-08:00

This photo album generated with Smilebox

All photos courtesy of my dear friend and Carly's mom -
Lara Hopkins @ lbhphotography.net

Back on the wagon...

2010-11-16T08:25:00.000-08:00

I simply cannot believe that it has been almost a year since my last post. I sort of went on hiatus. But I cannot recover that time and I certainly don't have the time to sit here and recant the entire year so alas, I will simply pick up from well.....right here, right now. Today. Besides these posts were really only meant to help me remember the moments that we so often forget. And for my family who we don't see near enough. These posts were not meant to be an open window to the world. Right?

This year has been an adventure. We moved from CA to VA and the kids haven't missed a beat. We've been lucky enough to have been visited by friends and some family already but soon we too will need to venture out to visit. When I say soon, I mean after the first of the year.....there's only so much I can squeeze into the last 7 weeks of the year. :)

Realizing that having had bloggers block for the last 9 months, I have so much I want to say yet I cannot find the words to do so. At least not right this moment anyway. Give me an hour. How is it so easy to come up with about 200 characters of things to say on Facebook but so hard to write in a blog? Maybe I'll try writing in the future all the things I posted on FB on here instead. At least it'll keep the blog going, lol! Don't give up on me yet! In the Grove household there is always and adventure, now I just need to keep writing about them. Be back soon with more.... :)

Tuesday already?

2010-01-26T19:14:00.000-08:00

BF and Lucy - my grandparents - not sure of the date

Wow, the days sure do fly fast! I feel like as I get older, the days get shorter and my kids get taller. How does this happen I keep asking myself!?!? It is a busy week as I get ready for my trip with the kids to Georgia this week. We fly out on Thursday night on the red eye (to keep the kids on schedule as best I can) and arrive in HOTlanta on Friday AM. We are headed back East to see my 91 year old grandfather and have a mini family reunion! It has been over 13+ years since I have seen some of my family, including my siblings. I know....sad but true. It will be great to catch up with them all, I am really looking forward to this trip.

Then on Sunday, my darling boy Xander will fly back home to finish up the school semester and final exams while the 2 short peeps and I head even further into the deep south to visit with my mom, family and friends in south Georgia for a few days.

To get ready, I am putting the finishing touches on a gift for my grandfather that I hope he'll like so won't be on here too much unless I get done early. Anyone have an extra wife I can borrow? I sure could use one right about now to feed, bathe the kids and clean my house while I am busy crafting and packing!

I'll blog along the way as I can squeeze in the time and as ya'll know, I will have oodles of photos to post so stay tuned and follow along with me.............the best is yet to be!

Life's Full of Potential....

2010-01-24T13:22:00.000-08:00

Borrowing this post from my Aunt Sandy since it was too wonderful not to share. It is people like this young man who are great reminders that those things we consider life's "problems" are not really problems at all. May we all be so blessed with a life as rich as his!

Enjoy your sunny Sunday my friends!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xwCG0Ey2Mg

Recycled Crafting with Kids

2010-01-22T11:14:00.000-08:00

I was going to post yesterday but I was too busy crafting! Hannah had a friend over so I decided to teach them how to make paper. We made very cute cards with all the recycling from my shredding machine, added seeds in it and they make darling cards that are perfect gifts and can be re-gifted back to the earth after we are done. So the girls made some cards with perennial wildflower seeds and they added in chamomile, vanilla, lavender and other scents to make their cards not only functional but smell good too! I made a stack of 4 cards that each contain seeds to plant a "pizza garden" - a tomato card, basil card, onion card and red pepper card. I stamped the back with some really cute CTMH "handmade" stamps that I ordered long ago from the best scrapper I know, my cousin Haley - check her out here. Now I am going to tie these up with a cute set of gardening gloves, trowel and shovel and give them to someone as a gift.

It was a great day. I even bought a piece of wood, mitered it and made my very own deckle screen frame. This craft is so stinkin' easy that even small kids can do this as well. All you need are recycled paper materials, water, screening material and a lot of creativity! Makes great teacher and neighbor gifts!!! The best part the only costs are the sees and the scents if you decide to add either, otherwise these cards could be made completely for free by using leftovers around your home - dry your flowers and save them too for nice additions of color pop in the cards. You can trim the edges or leave them rough as I have done. The paper is the easy part, what you do with it afterward is up to you. :)

Have fun. What have crafty project have you done lately with your recycling materials?

Windy, wonderful Wednesday

2010-01-20T12:18:00.000-08:00

I say wonderful because we need the rain and because my family is healthy, happy and safe however that is about all the wonderful you get! Otherwise the wind is AMAZING, the rain when it comes on shore is torrential and the weather is the craziest I have seen in the 5 years of living here in sunny, southern California. You see, we are weather wimps here. Yes, we live in weather luxury where our years are a perpetual summer of sunshine, warm balmy temps, little rain and any given day can be a "beach day" almost year round, there are many days that I miss living somewhere that has 4 distict seasons but I certainly have no complaints, it could be worse. So this kind of weather sends our community in a tail spin and turns the town on its head, lol! Good thing these people don't live in the south, they would all run for the hills.

You can check it out here:

http://www.ocregister.com/news/storm-229995-highway-commute.html

So to make the most of the day we are hunkered down in the comfort of home crafting, cooking, catching up on housework and homework and just being happy! For those without home's or the comfort of a safe haven, we send our thoughts, prayers and hopes that you are finding a place to stay dry.

Hoping my darling hubby gets a flight in tonight from Tacoma in between the storms. We are missing him.

Have a great day making the most of your weather no matter where you are!

Christmas Road Trip 2009

2010-01-20T08:29:00.000-08:00

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Where has this month gone?

2010-01-19T19:23:00.000-08:00

Is it Tuesday January 19th, the day after my birthday and I am wondering where in the world these last 19 days have gone already? Whew, it seems like as I get older the days start going faster. I had meant to pist the last few days of our Oregon/No Cal adventures but never got around to it. I am going to post a smilebox (which everyone knows I am addicted to - if you haven't tried it, you should - a great way to send photos in a fun unique way). I'll get that up right in between the loads of laundry that never seem to end this week.

Speaking of which, why is it I have to tell my oldest that I notice each and every time he puts the exact same pair of pants in the dirty laundry that are still (or were still) clean AND STILL FOLDED! Does he really think I think they're dirty? PUH-LEEZ! So back onto his bed they go and the same cycle has repeated itself 3 times over the last week. I told him if I see them one more time, he is doing ALL the laundry for the entire family for the next week! So there!!!! Geez!

Anyway, I need to get to that laundry, get this smilebox made and get my house back in order so I'll sign off for now but post the photos from the trip before I go to bed!

Here's a photo to keep you occupied while I pull the others together! The kids at the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company restaurant at Pier 39 in San Francisco. Run Forrest Run!!!

Night ya'll! XOXOXO

Day 12 - Slip, slidin' and sleddin'!

2009-12-30T20:00:00.000-08:00

Today was so much fun, we all had a blast. We woke up to about 5-8 inches of the white stuff on the ground with a slight dusting coming down. The kids squealed with delight (and so did we :)) and we couldn't get breakfast made fast enough. We ate in the condo this morning. Hannah and I whipped up yummy pancakes, bacon, scrambled eggs, fresh marionberry yogurt and OJ. A great start to a busy day! I have to say that I LOVE staying in a home instead of a hotel. Between the flexibility of being able to prepare meals at "home" instead of always eating out and the availability of a washer and dryer, makes this mama to a family of five, very happy!

Here are some photos of the day (in no particular order). See ya'll tomorrow!!

Day 11 - hmmm, finally posting

2009-12-29T21:12:00.000-08:00

Well, I have been "saving" all the posts in drafts because Bob wanted to add some witty comments however, I believe if I keep waiting on him to add anything, you'll never know where we were, what we did or how our trip is going so here are the posts.

Day 11 - Snow Day!

2009-12-29T20:39:00.000-08:00

Day 10 - Bend Bound....

2009-12-28T20:27:00.000-08:00

After cleaning up the motorhome, wrapping up lose ends and having breakfast we finally made our way over to Bend around noonish. Snow was supposed to be coming in and I didn't want to drive over the Santiam pass in the snow nor did I want to have to deal with chains on the tires if I didn't need to. We timed it perfectly and was able to get over the pass before the inclement weather set in. Made it all the way to Sisters, OR before stopping for gas and a minibreak. Temps went from about 34-40 in Salem to 24-28 in Sisters. Brrrr......lovin' it!

Arrived at the new place and LOVE it! 2-4 inches of snow on the ground and the kids couldn't even get in the door before they started a snowball fight! After we got settled, the kids went back out again fully gloved and clothed properly this time and played once again, made snow angels and just ran around having a grand ol' time!

Time for dinner, I'll catch up more tomorrow.

Day 9 - Ready to head out

2009-12-27T21:21:00.000-08:00

Our last day in the homestead with Shay and Derek. She turned us on to VRBO.com to look for a place to stay in Bend and I think I have found a new love! Vacation rentals by owner is the site and I may never stay in another hotel ever. We found a great 3 BR, 2 bath place completely equiped in Sunriver, OR for the same price as a hotel just about anywhere. The guy who owns the place lives in Portland so we met him halfway and picked up the key and dropped of deposits, etc. I'll be interested to see the place in person tomorrow but the photos look amazing. Very excited about this find. Bob and I will be checking out VRBO for places to stay for the remainder of our trip!

Rain set in today and temps dropped once again, a great day to stay by the fire. Shay and I caught up, swapped photos, recipes and old memories of days gone by. The kids played, we hiked out and about and had a good day! Still no complaints about our trip!

Day 8 - Hanging in Salem with the fam...

2009-12-26T21:15:00.000-08:00

What a LAZY day. The kids are up to their eyeballs playing with their new toys. We are still stuffed from the great meal last night and today is a day to just catch up on old times.

The highlight of our day was heading to Cinebarre (a movie theater where you can eat a sit down meal, drink a beer and catch the latest flick all without ever leaving your seat) - so we watched Sherlock Holmes. It was awesome. I LOVE Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law was equally as good. There was some serious bromance going on, lol. The relationship between Homes and Watson remided me so much of the relationship of House and Wilson in the tv show House. All in all a good movie.

That was about all we could muster for the day! Back again tomorrow folks!

Day 7 - Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T20:30:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas! Today was a wonderful day spent with family and friends. Santa found the stockings we left for him and filled them to the brim. He sure knows how to make those kiddies happy! Granted, it was a small Christmas in terms of gifts but meaningful in terms of spending time with those we love!

We wrapped up the day with a delicious meal of ham, turkey, potatoes, corn casserole, homemade sweet tea and some yummy desserts! What more can you ask for? Life is good and today was exceptionally good!

Day 6 - back to Salem

2009-12-24T20:10:00.000-08:00

Well, we didn't get up to Seattle like we had planned but we have romped, hiked, played and stayed all around the northwest part of Oregon so far and the kids aren't disappointed in the least, so it's been a great trip! Sometimes when you try to plan too many activities it gets to be overwhelming so allowing the kids, weather and whatever the day brings to plan the trip has been refreshing and fun!

Today we finished up our laundry, checked out and headed south. Tillamook Cheese Factory is always a fun stop and once again the kids loved checking out the cheese process and hanging out. This made a nice rest break along the journey. Next we headed to Pacific Beach over to our favorite brew pub - the Pelican. The restaurant is situated right on the beach and about 100 yards off the beach is an absolutely enormous rock monolith that is simply amazing. There are also these great sand hills that my kids love to run up and down and when I say sand hills, I really mean mountains as they are not hills. We got there just as sunset so here are some photos of the monolith and the kids!

We have been checking norad Santa tracking all day and it's time for us to get home, into our new Christmas jammies and ready for the man in the red suit to arrive! Great place, great fun, great chili and beer but time to head out on our journey once again!

Day 5 - OMSI

2009-12-23T19:58:00.000-08:00

Late morning. We have not been on a schedule and have had leisurely days on this entire trip. It's been nice and very relaxing! Breakfast at the Pig N' Pancake (per Shay's recommendation) and it was delish! We've tried to eat out no more than once or twice a day and this was a worthy meal out! The kids thought the hot chocolate was 2 thumbs up!

Headed over the pass into Portland, driving through our first snow, it sure made it feel like Christmas is upon us!

Getting into Portland after lunch made for a short day since it is dark by about 5pm these days. We headed for the OMSI - Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. Since it closes at 5:30 we decided to hit the museum and catch an OMNIMax show on Bugz in the Rain Forest, after seeing the Bugz show (which I fell asleep in), I wish we would have caught the show in the planetarium instead, oh well, the kids had fun. The OMSI is a really neat place and they have so many exhibits and hands on things for you to touch, see and interact with, the kids had a blast!

Knowing that we had an hour drive back to the coast, we didn't get to stay in the city for as long as I had liked. The kids were hungry and tired so home we headed. Tonight we found a great little pizza place off the beaten path, picked up a pie and headed back to our room for dinner and a movie. It was a great day and no rain!

Day 4 - Seaside bound...

2009-12-22T19:45:00.000-08:00

Shay and Derak have to work for the next few days and only have Christmas off so we decided to head over to the coast and then north. First we headed down to Depot Bay - home of the World's Smallest Harbor and famous for whale watching. They have a great restaurant there that is one of our family favs, Gracies Sea Hag and Grog however we were disappointed to find it closed on a Monday, schucks, now where to eat in this tiny town with few options. Thankfully right next door, and open, was the Chowder Bowl which we decided to try. No disappointments there, the chowder was excellent and sure gave Gracies a run for her money.

We headed north to Lincoln City, passed through Pacific Beach, Tillamook and headed up to Seaside. We were lucky and were able to get 2 nights stay at the Shay's timeshare at the WorldMark Resort on the beach in Seaside, north of Cannon beach and south of Astoria (for those keeping up with where we are staying). Beautiful place on the beach.

Today was a lot of driving to get from Salem to the coast and north so we are in for the night and have great plans for tomorrow.

Day 3 - Monday w/ the fam!

2009-12-21T19:36:00.000-08:00

Shay is off today so we decided to catch up on some last minute Christmas shopping for the kids. We grabbed a bite to eat at this wonderful little bistro, the Wild Pear. I had probably the best veggie quiche ever. It was filled to the brim with delicious veggies. I topped it off with a cup of hot chicken and rice soup that made for a perfect meal on a rainy cold day.

It was great hanging with Shay, however shopping was a bust as I couldn't find a few of the things I had in mnd. Oh well, this trip wasn't about big gifts anyway.

Making my famous Paul Prudhomme's chicken and pasta dish tonight for everyone. Now, off to take a mini nap and enjoy listening to the rain.

Day 2 - NW Adventure - Salem, Oregon

2009-12-20T22:44:00.000-08:00

Well, here we are. We are nestled all comfy cozy in the motorhome outside of Shay's house (to give us some privacy) and enjoying catching up with the family. Surviving on only 4-5 hours of sleep the night before we all crashed soon after we arrived last night and enjoyed a blissful night of slumber! After leisurly waking up and getting ready (it was almost noon when we were finally ready, lol), we headed out to the local Public House - a McMenamins Brew Pub - they are famous here in the NW and this one was one of our local hangouts when we lived here. They have the best fish and chips! Once again, the food and grog did not disappoint.

Of course, the rain was here on arrival and is just as we remembered it. Hasn't bothered us a bit and are actually enjoying it. Being able to pull out all our hats and gloves has been great, especially when where we live it is a perpetual summer, 1 season year round with almost no rain.

Today has been a lazy day and we wrapped it all up with a night out with some of Shay's friends for a party they host every year called the Winter Solstice. Everyone brings a dish to share, they build a huge bonfire out back and everyone brings their bongos, drums, guitars and other instruments. At one point, they turned out all the lights, we lit candles and celebrated. It was a fun evening. Hannah and Christian loved being a part of the drum circle and Xander really showed his musical talents on the guitar tonight even impressing the 18 and 19 year old boys that were there playing along side him. We were very proud of him, he did great!

Again, early to bed. Tomorrow I am looking forward to spending some time with Shay shopping and hanging out. Fun times!!

The journey begins....

2009-12-19T21:35:00.000-08:00

Today we begin a 2 week unstructured journey of the Pacific NW. Our plans are to use my cousin Shay's home as our base camp making day and overnight trips everywhere from Bend, Portland, the coast, Seattle, San Juan Islands and more.

Left the house at 7am this morning - decided to change leave time after the horrible traffic heading towards LA late Friday night. Good idea on leaving this morning as we didn't have one traffic problem, yeah for us!

We were going to stop but decided to make the drive straight through since the kids were being so wonderful and the traffic was so good. After 15 hours are driving we finally made it from San Clemente to Salem!!! YEAH.

The most eventful part of the trip was the gorgeous view of Mt Shasta all covered with snow, it was simply amazing.

We'll post more each day, stay tuned!

Manic Monday

2009-12-07T11:29:00.000-08:00

It's raining, it's pouring...... and a perfect day to stay indoors and get many of the things done, I need to get done. You know all that dreaded wrapping - although I love making the presents pretty. Sometimes the package wrapping is better than the gift, lol!

Three quilts to craft this week, 2 for American Girl doll bunkbeds and 1 for Xander, his is long overdue as I was supposed to make it last year. Oh well, I am only one person with so much time. Speaking of time, I am down to the wire. We leave for Orygun as the natives say it (Oregon) next Friday and I couldn't be more excited. My cousin who lives there said that it was 34 yesterday but felt like 25 and rainy. For some of you that may sound like torture but for us, we live in a place where it is summer year round so we are excited about getting out our hats, gloves and rain gear. The weather certainly won't dampen our parade!

Lots to do before the kids get home. We'll be blogging our entire trip. Yes, I know we are intermittent bloggers, lol however you always know we blog on our vacations and with new laptops, life has become easier and more mobile so stay tuned for more updates!

Happy holidays - did you get your Christmas card from us yet? If not, send me your address and I'll send one right out! XOXOXO

Getting ready for the holidays!

2009-12-03T14:33:00.000-08:00

It's official, Christmas cards are out! Albiet a week late for me they are done and out. I am so excited, these are my favorite cards yet.

The days are turning in to a big blur as we get ready for the holidays and ready to leave for our trip to Oregon. Very excited about driving back and looking forward to spending it with old friends and family. Hopefully, we'll get everything done in time.

Hope all is well in your world as you get ready for friends, family and the holidays! Please let us know how you are doing!

Much love. XOXOXO

Pumpkin Patch ~ October 2009

2009-10-26T09:23:00.000-07:00

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Hannah and Vanilla

2009-10-26T07:53:00.001-07:00

Hannah was the 2nd student in the class to bring their mascot home. Vanilla goes home with each child for a week and this was Hannah's week with him. Looks like he had a great time!

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Quote of the Day

2009-08-26T11:31:00.000-07:00

"History will be good to me because I intend to write it" ~ Sir Winston Churchill

May we all be blessed enough to leave a rich and memorable history where yesterday once was!

September Specials and 2 more weeks for DOUBLE HOSTESS DOLLARS!

2009-08-20T10:59:00.001-07:00

It is NOT too late to book a party in August and still be able to receive the awesome benefit of DOUBLE HOSTESS DOLLARS! Get twice as much for free and half price for half the cost. Stock up on Christmas and gift items as well as new decor just for yourself! Let yourself be pampered and this is the month to do it!

If your August is already booked and gone, check out our fabulous September specials. I have the Galveston Memo Board (customer special) and my kids love writing our dinner menu on it as well as little "love notes" to each other night! It is a beautiful piece.

Another fav of mine the Entertaining Bucket and Tray (customer special). There are some items that you must have and this is one of them. Very versatile!

Book a September show with me and I will give you your choice of either of these two customer specials for FREE just for hosting a home or catalog party!

Browse the catalog or place an order online:
www.southernlivingathome.com/kgrove

Call/email me today for more details.

Philmont Backpacking Trip Photos

2009-08-19T21:52:00.001-07:00

Feel free to check out our journey here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/my3happykids

It was an awesome trip that I hope I get to do again sometime in the future!

See ya in 2 weeks!

2009-07-26T10:27:00.000-07:00

Backpack packed, check. House cleaned, check. Groceries in the pantry, check. Kids bathed and ready for the week, check. Calendars printed, schedules arranged, check. Time to leave for two weeks on a grand adventure with my son! Very exciting.

Happy birthday to my baby Christian, turning 5 on 8/2 and my oldest Xander, turning 14 on 8/4 - I love you both! Hannah you take good care of the the boys while I'm gone! I love you. Mwah!

A special happy birthday to my mom who has a birthday on August 6th that I won't be home for as well. I love you and will call you when I return! Have a wonderful day!!!

I'll post again when we get back. Much love to everyone.

Tasty Tuesday - Apple Enchiladas

2009-07-21T22:16:00.000-07:00

Apple Enchiladas
Super easy and DELISH!
A family favorite and I always double or even triple the recipe.

1 21 oz. Can Apple Pie Fruit Filling
6 8 in Tortillas
1 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1/3 cup Butter
½ cup Sugar
½ cup Firmly Pack Brown Sugar
½ Cup Water

1. Spoon fruit filling evenly down center of each tortilla; sprinkle evenly with cinnamon. Roll up, place seam side down in a lightly buttered 2 qt. Baking dish.
2. Bring butter and next 3 ingredients to a boil in a medium saucepan; reduce heat and simmer, stirring constantly for 3 minutes. Pour sauce over enchiladas; let stand for 30 minutes.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
4. Serve hot with vanilla ice cream or fresh whipped cream.

AWESOME DEALS!

2009-07-20T17:08:00.001-07:00

(FB users, click "View Original Post" to see the full article in my blog!)

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Made with love...

2009-07-19T11:51:00.000-07:00

I am so behind in my posting that I totally forgot that I had this one saved in my drafts (since December) and never posted it because I kept forgetting to add the photos, this is a good one, many mom's will understand and quite possibly relate ....

My children have all had a "lovey" to keep them comfy at night or during times of need. As most parents know, when that lovey disappears you will move heaven and Earth to find it. Christian and I went to Michael's shopping this past week and he asked if he could bring his boppy in the car, my first mistake, and I said "sure". We get there and he asks if he can bring it in the store, second mistake, and of course I say "sure" because I am feeling like he will be responsible. Between the time of entering and exiting I have long since lost thought of this beloved blanket from my mind. Fast forward 8 hours to bedtime when it is no where to be found. Michael's was still open so I sent Bob on a wild goose chase to no avail. Not content that he looked "like I would have looked ;)", I proceed to go back to Michael's so that I could be the hero when I found it. Unfortunately, I came home empty handed and felt more like a sap than a hero. So we comforted Christian, got him to sleep and assured him that tomorrow we would tear the house apart and go back to Michael's looking for this boppy.

This boppy is a well loved blanket that was made special for him by our dear friend and old Oregon neighbor, Auntie Diane. She had monogrammed it with his birthdate and name and this boppy never left Christian's side, think Linus from Peanuts. Sometimes this thing got washed more than once a day when he was sick or it had been drug through the dirt and other times I just gave in and let it be this gross, nasty embarrassment of a lovey that I was horrified for any other mother to see although I knew somewhere in their minds they would understand and had been there too. I just couldn't keep up with all the "loving" he gave this thing. So to have lost it meant that Christian lost a piece of his soul.

Notice all the "loving" he gave this thing? He would twirl the corners of the quilt around his fingers until finally the corners are so shredded and it had been washed so many times that all the batting came completely out of the quilt, it is now merely 2 pieces of old, tattered fabric barely held together. He treats it very gingerly these days!

As any mother would I woke up and began the boppy hunt again to no avail long before any of the kids woke up for school. I even stopped homeless people around the shopping complex to look into their carts as someone had told me that they had just seen it at the store on the bench up front (and even described it to me to a T and said that it was "just here"). They also told me that they had also seen a homeless man loitering right outside the store within minutes of seeing it. I was ready with cash in hand to beg, borrow or steal this boppy back from anyone that may have taken it from Michael's. The employees had seen it, other people from the previous shift had seen it and everyone was sure that it was still there. Again to no avail, no one homeless or otherwise had it in their possession.

Now I am mad, crazy woman because my son lost a piece of his soul. I send him on his way to preschool and everyone off to their respective places and make a mad dash to the fabric store. Who knew that you could buy fabric, cut perfect squares and assemble and sew a full quilt in less than 10 hours? That's exactly what I did. There was no way my son was going to bed without a "lovey" that night. I worked in a mad dash to get this completed and mind you I can sew however I have NEVER made a quilt before nor had it ever crossed my mind to make one but I did.

New quilt. Every intersection is hand knotted and it is nice and snuggly. He calls it his "new boppy", not quite the same as his original but he "tried" to love it just as much to make me happy since he knew I made it with lots of "mommy love"!

At 8:30pm when it came time to say prayers, I snipped the last thread, said a prayer when I tied the last quilting knot and already washed and dried it. I handed my babe a fresh warm out of the dryer brand new quilt. Whew, disaster averted!

During all this mayhem, I emailed Auntie Diane to beg her for scraps of the same fabric she had made the first one from however I just couldn't wait the weeks it would take to get it and had to take matters into my own hands. Much to my delight she made him another one that arrived as a surprise a few weeks later. So now he has THREE boppies. The one I made, the replacement on Diane made and lo and behold his original one.

New Auntie Diane quilt! Notice how bright the colors are? Believe it or not, this is the same fabric the original was mde from.

Where was this original boppy? Two days later, Hannah was cleaning out from under her bed and guess what she found? His boppy. The strange thing is, is that Bob and I had both looked under there, the Michael's store manager had personally found it and put it on the bench waiting for the owner to return, other people had spotted it and we could not find it anywhere for 2 days of constant searching. After lots of prayers, I am a believer that no one "person" put that boppy back in our hands, it was a true gift as I am telling you it was NOT under her bed previously!

After all the hooplah of making the quilt, Hannah and Xander decided that they too needed homemade quilts. Here is Hannah's and I have yet to make Xander's but I have all the fabric and Xander has decided that he wants a big X from corner to corner with all the other colors surrounding it. So here is my new claim to fame and I liked making them so much that you too, may find a "Kimberly Quilt" in your mailbox someday as a special gift made with love!

Hannah's new quilt I made for her. Notice the "H" in the center? She picked out the colors and fabrics. I think it turned out nice.

So the countdown begins...

2009-07-18T08:02:00.000-07:00

"We're leavin' on a trai-ain...." instead of a jet plane. Next Sunday Xander and I leave Fullerton on an Amtrak 24 hour train ride headed for Raton, NM where we will then drive another 45 minutes to Cimmaron, NM to "base camp" at Philmont Boy Scout Ranch. Philmont is the pinnacle of scouting excellence and offers great adventures like the 10 day 54 mile trek that we headed on beginning Wed. July 29 after we get checked in, weighed in, the rangers go through our backpacks with a fine tooth comb and we get the green light to go.

http://www.scouting.org/scoutsource/HighAdventure/Philmont/Camping/ExpeditionsandTrekItineraries.aspx

To get to experience Philmont means that a scouting troop has put in an application and your "lottery" gets drawn. Our troops last opportunity to go was in 2004 so when the opportunity presented itself, we jumped on it. I am sure that you are wondering WHY I am going on a boy scout backpacking trip instead of Bob, the dad, the male, the teenage boy's compadre? Well, 2 reasons, Bob cannot take that much time off work and plain and simple, I personally wanted to go! Bob and I have been on 2 10-day backpacking trips to the Grand Tetons in Wyoming (both prior to our 2 additional children) and I wanted to treat myself to an early 40th birthday present that says that life "begins at 40", it doesn't end and I am still capable of such treks! Besides, Xander and I do so much outdoors stuff together that he is excited I am going and I love being around all the other scouts, they are quite funny and like to have a good time. There is one other mom going on our 12 person crew so I won't be the lone female :)!

What is Philmont? Philmont Ranch used to belong to the oil tycoon Waite Phillips (of Phillips Petroleum), here is a link to another scout troop that has great information on where we are going and how the boy scouts actually got the land. http://www.troop6bsa.org/philmont_info.htm

Our trek starts out right at 7k ft and tops out at almost 12k ft before descending again. Check out the map if you want to see where we will be: http://www.scouting.org/filestore/pdf/Itinerary4Map.pdf Every day either along the trek or once we get to our next camp, we will be treated to fun activities. Some of the activities we will experience are: Archery, Black Powder Rifle, Blacksmithing, Campfires, Cantina (unfortunately not stocked with margaritas I am sure), Chuck Wagon Dinner, Fly Fishing, Gold Mining and Panning, Homesteading, Horse Rides, Jicarilla Apache Life, Rock Climbing, Search and rescue, Waite Phillips Lodge Tours, Tooth of Time and more. So you can see, in addition to backpacking, we also have events at every stop along the way. Should be fun if I am not too tired by the time we get to our destinations to fully appreciate it, lol!

So, I am sure some of you are wondering if we have to carry all our own stuff and YES, we have to carry EVERYTHING, tents, sleeping bags, pads, clothing, food, first aid, toiletries, etc. No, there are no bathrooms, we are in the backcountry folks and you gotta use what God put out there for you. No, we don't have to carry our poop out, thank goodness, but we do have to carry everything else out so here's to hoping that I scheduled mother nature appropriately to arrive outside of this trip otherwise I'll be having more fun than a human being should be allowed, yippee skippy! We have to filter and carry our own water and they drop food to use every 3-4 days. I am quite positive that I'll lose more than a few lbs on the backpacking diet of oatmeal, bagged chicken and tuna (yuk - call me a food snob :) but when you are hungry you'll eat anything), crackers and whatever other delightful morsels they send our way. They do cook for us one night so all won't be lost and I hear that the dutch oven peach cobbler they make is the absolute best, I can't wait!

All in all, we are very excited. I won't have any contact with the outside world for about 12-13 days. Bob will be getting GPS coordinate updates that will be sent out from our SPOT (google it - every avid backpacker and outdoor enthusiast should carry one) we will be carrying, I will have him post them here so you can at least look up in the Google maps where we are in the world.

I'll be posting many photos upon our return (and my recovery :)). Stay tuned....

TGIF!

2009-07-17T14:47:00.000-07:00

I tried to find time to update every day this week but alas it is now Friday and I am just "gettin' round to it"! The week was nice, the usual... boy scouts, gymnastic, summer math camp for Hannah and summer sleepovers for the kids with friends. Life is good!

The only hiccup was when I walked into the garage Wednesday morning to discover our doormat all wet. Seems that our hot water heater had been leaking for some time and had finally decided to let us know about it. 24 hours later, new hot water heater installed, all was good again, so again, not too bad and a good week indeed!

Tonight Bob and I are headed out for a long overdue date night. I think we are headed down to the harbor in search of a relaxing ocean view and a nice plate of fresh grilled fish and veggies. Ahhhh, we live a great life, have the best weather in the world and still find time to enjoy each other after almost 13 years!

It's been a great summer so far, here are some random photos from the summer. Tell us all about your summer, we'd love to hear from you! Be sure to leave us a comment.

Sara, Christina, Skyler, Hannah and Emma - June 2009

I LOVE ModPodge - the cute frames that the girls made to commerate their summer backyard "Girls Night Out" campout. They were darling!!

Leave me ALONE! - Kern River Whitewater Rafting Trip June 21, 2009

Now, I am mad!

I'm gonna get you now! ;) See what happens when you make me mad!

A little monkey business at the San Diego Zoo with dad!

Cub Scout Day Camp on Camp Pendleton - June 2009
Wrist Rocket Range

Camp Shcerman Brownie Bites Core Camp

2009-06-18T09:11:00.000-07:00

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

House Party

2009-04-28T15:36:00.000-07:00

I found this website through one of my cooking clubs and couldn't resist signing up. Of course, the first party I applied for, I got! Everyone knows that any excuse to host a party is a good excuse! So anyway, May 19th, I am hosting a party for close friends and neighbors to celebrate the season finale of American Idol sponsored by Ford and Fox. They are sending me a box of goodies, party favors and other stuff as well as a 2010 Ford Fusion for the guests to test drive (not my idea of a great car but many people seem to like it so what the hay)!!

I now need to get caught up on A.I. so that I know who is who and be able to pick my own winner! Very excited about hosting a totally indulgent and fun party on behalf of HouseParty.com. If you live near, come on over, party starts at 7pm. :)

http://www.houseparty.com/

Words of wisdom...

2009-04-23T14:20:00.000-07:00

Maya Angelou was interviewed by Oprah on her 70+ birthday.. Oprah asked her what she thought of growing older. And, there on television, she said it was 'exciting.' Regarding body changes, she said there were many, occurring every day...like her breasts. They seem to be in a race to see which will reach her waist, first. The audience laughed so hard they cried. She is such a simple and honest woman, with so much wisdom in her words!

Maya Angelou said this:
'I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.'
'I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things : a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.'
'I've learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're gone from your life.'
'I've learned that making a 'living' is not the same thing as 'making a life.'
'I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance.'
'I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw some things back..'
'I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision.'
'I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one.'
'I've learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back.'
'I've learned that I still have a lot to learn.'
'I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.'

The Moose says....

2009-04-22T21:42:00.000-07:00

That he is "happiest when he is happy"!

I think that about sums up how simple life should be!

Have a great day.

Girl Scout Garden

2009-04-21T15:41:00.000-07:00

I had the privilige of planting with my daughters girl scout troop today during our meeting. About 3 weeks ago they planted the seeds...today they planted the flowers. Our elementary school allowed them use of a small bed that we will eventually take over as we do more and more planting with the girls. THey were all very excited to show their parents just exactly which ones they had planted. Very cute! Happy Earth Day to everyone tomorrow!

Coolest Chameleon!

2009-04-20T21:30:00.000-07:00

Coolest Chameleon Ever - Watch more Funny Videos

Yes, it's been a while...

2009-04-19T20:44:00.000-07:00

6 months to be precise. Okay, with the addition of FaceBook into my life (it's addicting - I have gotten in touch with SOOOO many old friends and classmates - several of which live right near me in CA), I have had a hard time finding time for both. However after a few conversations this weekend with family members that told me they missed the posts and preferred the blog to facebook posts, I come slinking back to the blog I once gave lots of love. I hope you will have me back and hope that those of you (you know who you are) keep reading daily because some FB stuff may overlap my blog stuff :)!

This weekend was a great weekend. Today high of 96, for us weather wimps out here in sunny socal, we were sweltering AND no A/C either, don't you feel sorry for us???? :) Yesterday I spent my morning at a Master Gardening class learning all about how to start a school gardening program and classroom. I was so surprised at how much really goes into it and also learned that it is possible. I have the full support of the principal at Hannah's Elementary school so I will meet with the staff and custodians to outline what it will take and go from there. I've got big visions for this amazing school garden so you'll get to hear all about that in the months to come!

I am turning in for the night but rest assured, I'll be back tomorrow!

Night all!

Spring Break

2009-04-18T21:03:00.000-07:00

Our beautiful view!

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T07:30:00.000-07:00

Easter Isn't Easy

I heard a funny bunny say,

"I just go nuts on Easter day.

I hide about a zillion eggs

And baskets tangle up my legs.

"I'm tired, my eyes are full of tears

And overflowing to my ears.

If I'm to work more Easter Days

At my age I should change my ways

"I know I must do something rash

So I'll start saving all my cash

Then next year, with a little luck

I'll deliver in my pick up truck."

—Grandpa Tucker

Where have I been for 2 1/2 months?

2008-10-16T10:13:00.000-07:00

I know ya'll think I fell off the face of the planet, lol. Somewhere between blogging and living, I got caught up in the living and less blogging.... The last 2 1/2 months have been a whirlwind of adventure, activities and traveling. Instead of giving you every nitty, gritty detail and trying to "catch up" on posts, I am going to share images of all the time I have not been here posting so that you "see" what we've been up too! I'll share the images in a few posts as there are a LOT! We've been busy, you may have to go to the next page to view all the posts and images.

Remember to leave me comments, I love to hear from you! Know that I check your blogs as well and will be catching up on my comments postings too very soon. :-)

August 10, 2008

Emerald Bay on Catalina Island Camp send-off to work on more Eagle required merit badges!!

Granny Shirl teaching the kids the mastery of sidewalk chalk!

Gorgeous New England Methodist Church in Groton, VT - I LOVE this image.

A little family storyboard!

My beautiful babe - she loved all the "nature", lol! On the west coast we've got lots of palm trees but not much in the way of "nature" as she called it!!!

Having fun at the maple syrup manufacturer in St. Johnsbury, VT

The poh-zers!

West Danville, VT across from Hastings General Store, which houses the post office, the news paper and is the local merchatile.
One of the many covered bridges in New England. This one happens to be a foot bridge that I used to cross over when I was a little girl to get to the school bus to go to school in my 2 room school house, yes, you read that correctly!! This bridge spans over Joe's Pond right near the dam and is that same pond I also learned how to swim in as a young girl.

More of August.... I told you we were busy!

2008-10-15T10:42:00.000-07:00

Xander learning the art of making the perfect blackberry scone that is not too dry and is perfectly blended from Aunt Amanda. They were the most delicious scones I have ever eaten!

A New Hampshire day in the life of....

I am the fire king!

Our last day in New Hampshire, boo hoo!

2008-10-14T10:53:00.000-07:00

Xander has decided that he is going to spend every summer in New England, working, playing, hiking and rock climbing! Aunt Amanda and Granny Shirl, keep the beds made, you might get some company next year..... Our trip to New England was an amazing experience for the kids and one that will stay with them for a lifetime.

Aunt Amanda's beautiful property - over 10 acres!

So you think you've had a bad day...
It was funny when I was hanging laundry out to dry that the kids were amazed I even knew how to do that or why you'd ever want to do that.

The longest covered bridge in the world.

Milk Weed - it was amazingly soft and was commonly used to stuff pillows and beds back in "the day".
Yummmmm, I want my 10,oooth blackberry pleeeez!

First Day of School 9/2/08

2008-10-13T11:11:00.000-07:00

Brownie Troop 2048 will you please come to order?

2008-10-12T11:19:00.000-07:00

Yes, I am a little nutty as you might already know but do you really know??? I decided that since Xander was knee deep in Boy Scouts and I had always been there for him that I should do the same for my daughter so I started a brand new Brownie Troop. TWENTY ONE girls is what I have and it is amazing! EACH and EVERY parent is actively involved and we set it up like a corporation so that provided I did it right, it should run on it's own fairly smoothly. So far, with 3 meetings under our belt, 3 community service projects and a field trip coming up, we are running like a charm! I wouldn't change a thing. Here are a few images from their first meeting.

Be A Hero Be A Donor - Marrow Drive in Mission Viejo

2008-10-12T11:02:00.001-07:00

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Tustin Tiller Days - UnderAged Thinking performs!

2008-10-10T11:36:00.000-07:00

Xander and his bandmates - UnderAged Thinking performs at Tustin Tiller Days which is essentially a town festival and carnival. They performed on the Community Stage and did an amazing job! We are so proud of them.

Top row:

Sabrina (age 10) -vocals and Griffin (age 11) - bass player

Bottom row:

Xander (age 13) - rhythm guitar, Noah (age 12) - drums, Rafael (age 12) - lead guitar

The groupies!!

VW Bus Club - Sept Gathering

2008-10-09T11:28:00.000-07:00

We had over 13 members show up for our first meeting at the new location. Thanks Ciarmuid for opening Molly Bloom's Irish Restaurant and Pub for our club gathering. The food and service was fantastic.

Here are some images that are part of my Stock Photos that I have been selling.

My favorite image of the day. People thought I was a little crazy laying down in the parking lot to hopefully capture the shot I had in my head. I just love the safari windows on the the old buses! I wish we had them on ours, someday...

Destined for greatness....

2008-08-04T00:01:00.000-07:00

Have you ever met someone who was just destined for greatness and no matter what they did they always came out on top? My darling son is one of those people. I know we are all proud of our children and I am no different than any other mom out there however Xander is just a truly great kid with such a beautiful soul. Somewhere deep inside of him is an old soul, he reminds me so much of Arnie that it is scary at times. I feel like he is up in heaven holding his hand and guiding him along the path that he may have taken had he still been alive. He has accomplished so much in his short life and I know that he is only going to continue to grow and become stronger each year. He is compassionate, kind, generous, thoughtful, witty, funny no make that hysterical - he gets that from his dad, smart, determined, green - he is a tree hugger at heart, and so many other adjectives.

On the day that he was born, I was terrified that I wouldn't know what to do or that I would not make a good mother for this child but somehow we have always managed the ups and downs. Life hasn't always been perfect or rosy but it has always been good. I learn something new from him each day. Why am I going on about him? Because today is his 13th birthday and I am proud to know him and to call him my son and my friend. We are embarking on a new journey today as we enter those dreaded teenage years however I think together we will make it through to the other side and if we don't well then all that college money can be used for a good therapist I guess, :-)!

At 3 months old

Happy birthday my darling son, someday when I grow up I want to be just like you! Thank you for teaching me to live life, have fun and to be a good person. I love you with all that I am!

First Grade 9th Birthday in the Bahamas

Surfing San Onofre 2007

Rockin' out with his band - UnderAged Thinking
Joshua Tree 2008

Rock Climbing - Joshua Tree 2008

Love always,
Mom

To be a Christian

2008-08-02T00:34:00.000-07:00

What does it mean to be a Christian? That's a loaded question for many. Here's our story for why we are and how we have a Christian. Pull up a chair and please excuse any typos, it's a long post today my friends, get comfy.

It all stated back in September of 2003. My father in law, Pop-Pop, Charles or Charlie as we called him, was very ill with congestive heart failure, not doing well. We decided to take the family back home from CA to SC to see him. Hannah our youngest, this was only her 2nd time ever meeting her "pop-pop", they connected immediately. A bond was created never to be broken. He was in okay health and the trip was great. In November, he passed away. We decided to move back East to be near his wife, Bob's mom, Joan. We took Xander out of school and made a fun 2 week vacation for the move and decided to see all the sight across the lower US while driving back east. I find out I am pregnant mid trip on our coast to coast drive across the country.

Many days we would find Hannah playing quietly by herself but talking to a "playmate". When we would inquire who, she simply responded "pop-pop". Okay we thought she is keeping him alive in her memories. Little did we know.

In May of 2004, we traveled to Arlington National Cemetery to properly inter the remains of my father in law who proudly served in WWII and would be honored with a full military service. At the service, volunteers make these beautiful cards with a small flower and ribbon as well as scripture and writings on the card. I kept these with the intention of putting them in a scrapbook with photos I had taken during the service. One was in my car. This a very powerful, moving service and was one of the most amazing things I have experienced. The entire family was there, it was beautiful way to honor a great man.

We always knew that our son's middle name would be Charles, after one of the most wonderful men I have ever known. I loved my father in law as if he were my own father and to this day, I have wonderful, usually funny, memories of this great man. It was an easy decision, Charles was always meant to be our impending son's middle name. The first name on the other hand was a running joke. We had unofficially decided on Ethan however Bob tried to talk us all into Angus. I told Bob that look at our other children. Xander was never going to be the tall or large one, Hannah was (and still is) a pixie and none of our children would ever be able to support such a large name like Angus. You've got to exude confidence with that name. Xander HATED that name. So one day while driving, I told Bob (with Xander listening in the back of course) that I decided I liked the name Angus and that we should just go for it and it would be Angus Charles. Oh my goodness, the flurry of words that came from Xander were fast and furious. "Absolutely not, it will be Ethan Charles and that's final" he said. Then in the same breathe he said, "No, it will be Christian Charles". We just laughed and dismissed that notion. Christian was NOT even in our top 100 names on the list, nope Christian would never be his name, how would I break this to my dear son who felt he was naming the new babe???

The next week at the doc, Xander and Hannah were with me as always at each appt, checking out the sonograms, hearing the heartbeat and just chatting up the doc in general. As we were sitting there, Xander proceeds to tell the doc that I named him, his dad named his sister and that HE was naming his new baby brother and that his name would be CHRISTIAN Charles. Oh dear, we are in a pickle now. His heart is going to be forever broken when I eventually tell him that this will in fact not be his name. How to tell the 9 year old this was a great stress for me as I wanted him to feel involved in the process.

We are entering summer break for the kids, I am 31 weeks pregnant and life is great! Xander is going to go to his first ever week long spend the night camp with Clemson University. He has always been an animal lover and was headed on a Monday to spend a week in Awendaw, SC living in the marshy areas, boating and being educated at the university's Marine Sciences camp. He was over the moon. He goes off to camp, we mail letters to make sure he gets something from us every day and again, life is grand! He'll be home on Friday, I am looking forward to hearing all about his trip.

On Thursday, Bob calls me from work to see if Hannah and I would like to come up to Summerville to have lunch with him? It's June, mind you, hot sticky summer days are upon us and traveling 25 miles pregnant with toddler in tow was not my idea of fun. I politely told him thanks but I'll see you when you get home. Ever have the feeling that you just deflated someone? I felt exactly that as he didn't normally call me to meet for lunch so of course, I picked that phone back up almost immediately and told him that we were on our way, see you soon honey!

We had a DVD unit in the ceiling of my SUV which was installed for the coast to coast trip and the kids knew it was never allowed to be used in our around the town trips, it was special for long trips. On the way Hannah asked if she could watch a Disney movie and I was feeling very generous that day so sure, why not? She was happy, life was good. The journey to meet Bob had been uneventful and I called him on my cell to tell him I was exiting the interstate and would be there in about 5 minutes, I was about 3 miles away. Life was good!

I never made it for that lunch.

As I turned onto the surface streets, 2 cars followed me off the interstate and away I drove. I headed around a curve. In SC the roads are not known for being well built or maintained and there are very few shoulders or medians. My back right tire left the road going around the curve, blew out and caused me to roll my SUV 3-4 times. All I could think about was my daughter strapped into her car seat and the only thing that played over and over in my head was, "Oh God NO, please NO". In the blink of an eye the car came to a rest laying on the driver's side in the ditch on the side of the road facing the opposite direction I was traveling. The people behind me rushed to my aide. He immediately went to my daughter and could not get the 5-point harness released so of course, without even looking, I reach behind, release the harness and he pulls her out of the window. No sounds are made. She isn't crying, she isn't yelling, she is completely silent but I know she is alive.

The same gentleman comes to my aid, rolls back the windshield and helps me to walk out the front glass. Much to his amazement, he realizes that I am 7 1/2 months pregnant. I tell him to give me a cell phone as I have no idea where mine is, I need to call my husband. I cannot reach Bob so I leave him a message that I have totaled the car and am on the main highway, come pick us up, I want to go home.

I ask, no tell, the kind gentleman to give me my daughter, who is still not upset in any way, she is completely calm and eerily quite. He says NO and refuses to hand her to me. At this point, not only am I angry I have totaled my car but I am angry because I want my daughter and a complete stranger is not handing her back to me. What is wrong with him? He asks me to look at myself. I do and realize I am covered from head to toe in blood, glass and fear. I feel nothing. I feel no pain, I have adrenaline coursing through my veins and I am near shock.

Within seconds it seems, the ambulance arrives. They are speaking to me gently, telling me that it would be best for me to lie down but not before I put on the neck brace. The strap me to the gurney, Bob arrives. His face speaks volumes, I am now officially scared yet I still feel no pain. I am rushed to the ER where they give me steroids shot directly into where my son is hopefully resting and safe. They want to increase his lung capacity in the event of early delivery. They check to see if the uterine walls have become separated which would mean immediate delivery of my child who is not ready to be born. They monitor heartbeats, mine and his. They whisper. They come in and out only staring in disbelief and apologizing that they have to be so obtrusive. They look at me with sadness in their eyes but yet hopeful that my baby boy will endure the hell I just my body through.

What I didn't know was that my face was the size of a football and about the same color. My head hit that DVD player, that normally would not have been open, every time the car rolled. It was a violent crash. I had major head concussions, cuts, scrapes and bruises. I had broken my back in 2 places. My T2 and T4 were crushed but not in need of surgery. I had glass from head to toe, it was in my ears, hair, pockets, under my nails, it was everywhere as all the glass but the back window had broken out. Hannah had no glass anywhere. She has no cuts, scratches, scrapes or bruises. It was as though she was not in the car. How did this happen? She was there wasn't she? The side where Xander would have been sitting would not have been spared so well. The ending to this story would have been true tragedy. Thank God he was at summer camp. Everything was coming together.

I spend the night in the hospital. It is now Friday, oh dear, I need to be released I tell them, I need to pick up my son from his first week at summer camp. He'll be devastated if I am not there. No, you are not going anywhere Mrs. Grove is their reply. Bob arrives at camp and is immediately greeted with "where's mom?". Bob proceeds to tell him that I was in an accident and his instant response was, "is she dead?". Oh my, how powerful children can be and how much we want to shield them from all the heartache in the world. It was very difficult for Bob and Xander wanted to immediately come to my side. Oh how I needed my boy there. I needed to love on him thankful to be alive. I just didn't want him to see me, how scary for a young boy.

While I was also in the hospital Bob talked with Hannah and he asked her point blank if there was anyone in the car with her during the accident. She immediately responded with, "yes, pop-pop was there holding me". He was carrying her, holding her and comforting her, we honestly believe it. He died to protect his grandchildren and his future namesake. He was there loving us and guiding us to safety. Charlie was our Guardian Angel.

My baby is fine, I should be able to carry him to term but I must not overdo it and I need to "relax" for the remainder of the pregnancy. And oh yeah, you must wear this Minerva brace that keeps your head forward and goes from upper head to lower back for the remainder of your pregnancy. Wearing a very large, cumbersome back brace 24 hours a days in the hot, dog-days of a good southern summer was not only oppressive but I smelled after a while. It was not a pleasant experience for anyone, especially me. But if it meant my babe was going to make it to term and that my back was going to be healed so I could carry, hold and love all my kiddies, then the stinkin' brace I will wear. I now have even greater respect for people with handicaps that are out in public, people are not so nice and the stares are incredibly rude. I used to just look at them an explain that I was in a car accident and that I am going to be alright. The look of relief would come over their face and they would go about their business never glancing my way again. Although it must have been such a sight to see an 8 months pregnant woman with this large contraption on! :-)

About 2-3 days after the accident, Bob and I go back to the crash site to retrieve items that have been tossed out of the car during the rollover. Right in the spot where Hannah had been was one of the Arlington volunteer cards that had been made for the family. We both started welling up with tears in our eyes. Hannah was right, "pop-pop" had been with her and here is the sign from above to prove it. He left us his calling card. He will always be one of my hero's, he gave us the gift of life. About a week after the accident during normal conversations with the family, we again talked about baby names. This time, as I had with all baby names before, I checked the meaning. This was important to us to always know what our children's names mean. Christian of course, means to "Walk with God". If we weren't walking with God the day of that accident, I don't know what we were doing. Xander was right and was wise and profound beyond his years. Something or someone spoke to him to tell us that Christian was meant to be this child's name. It was never a name that had been suggested for this child before and while it had never been in our top 100 list of names, it was certainly at the top of our list now. Christian Charles was officially his name, the name that God had chosen for us to bestow upon him. Christian, to walk with God and Charles, strong and brave and the name of his grandfather, these were the names that he was meant to have.
On the day he was born, the delivery came rather quickly and almost too fast for the doc. She had been with me through the beginning of this arduous journey and wanted to be there no matter what was on her calendar. She wanted to deliver Christian. I took my brace off during the delivery process, much to the ortho docs chagrin, because I just needed the space to be a part of this experience without being confined. As soon as I took it off, he came into this world almost immediately thereafter and we have both never looked back! All of our children are so lucky to have survived this experience. Our family got to see first hand how the world we live in is not under the power of the people that walk this earth but a greater power that guides us and helps us to reach our final destinations, whatever that might be.

Christian Charles' birth story will forever be one that I share as he was put on this earth for something divine and I look forward to watching him grow, learn and become the man he was meant to be!

Happy 4th birthday my darling babe, I love you more than words can ever express!!

First Birthday

It's Friday already?

2008-08-01T08:57:00.001-07:00

Where did the week go? I still have older posts to catch up on, like Hannah losing her first tooth on the 4th of July or our 1st trip to Sea World after school got out. Now I have posts from this week to catch up on well, gosh does it ever end? This whole posting every day thing is hard, lol!

Tomorrow is my darling baby's 4th birthday! We are very excited as is he and to celebrate we are taking him to the San Diego Wild Animal Park. He is my miracle baby and I will be posting the incredible story of his birth and how he earned his very special name, Christian. So tune in tomorrow!

On Wednesday we took all the kiddies to Sea World in San Diego. Here are a few images from the day, I'll add more via a SmileBox later today.

Hannah reaching for a Sea Star in one of the touch tanks. She loves all that kind of icky, gooey, slimy stuff, she is not afraid to pick up any bug, beetle, slug, etc. Now my boys on the other hand.....
My birthday boy standing directly in fron of the "please do not stand here" sign. He is such a POHZER!!!
Journey to Atlantis - all the boys tried to ride it again however as they were seated and ready to launch they were asked to get off. The police had to come retrieve a very intoxicated woman who tried to get off during the middle of the ride. Can you say "not so bright"?? So anyway, here are the boys. Raphael is in Xander's band and Branden and Tyler are Xander's "other brothers"!! The others are friends from school.
From the Shamu ROCKS Show - I could see this show every night. If only I lived closer!
Another Shamu ROCKS breach

Shark Girl

2008-07-31T09:18:00.000-07:00

Because Hannah had art class, she didn't get the sheer joy of going to the dentist with her brothers this week, good thing I guess. While she got a clean bill of health today, she on the other hand has her mama's very small mouth/jaw structure and not enough room for all those teeth. Because of this, they are going to extract 2 baby teeth to allow room for the adults to come in. She won't get the joy of having these babies fall out like all her friends, shoot! However I am quite certain that the tooth fairy will be bringing bonus goods for the double tooth extraction that will happen in a few weeks. At least she had 2 fall out on their own. On top of all that braces will be in her near future as soon as she has 4 perm on top and bottom. They'll need to "expand her palate". I've been through this recently with my own braces, not too bad just a long process.

Why shark girl? Because her mouth is so small her permanent teeth are coming in behind the baby teeth so she has "rows" of teeth. Better to bite her brothers with.....:-)

And darn it, I left my camera on my desk and couldn't take a single picture. You can bet I'll have it for the next appt.

All in all it was a good week of dental appts. Not a single cavity among the kids, they can thank me for that as even to today, not a single cavity here either. That's always a blessing. Let's hope it lasts for them.

As promised, today's photos!

2008-07-29T12:24:00.000-07:00

My boys getting their twice annual check-up!

Look mom, no cavities for either of us! My girl, the artist at Ms. Mary's Studio the Sidestreet Gallery!

Great White - Oil painting on canvas

Hannah, age 6

How appropriate that yesterday was the start of shark week on the Discovery Channel!

Tasty Tuesday....

2008-07-29T10:42:00.000-07:00

There will be a couple of posts today - the boys had dentist appts, Hannah was in art class and I'll have a beautiful painting to share later and then I grow my own herbs and I wanted to share with you my basic pesto recipe as well as a torte recipe that I got from my dear friend Amy Z. when I lived in Charleston! So be sure to check back, there will be pictures galore added!

PESTO
2 Cups firmly packed fresh basil leaves
¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese (fresh)
¾ cup olive oil
2 TBLS pine nuts
4 cloves garlic

Blend all ingredients on medium speed, stopping occasionally to scrape the sides – blend until smooth.

PESTO DIP: Stir in 1 8oz carton of sour cream. Serve w/ fresh veggies or pita chips

PESTO AIOLI: 1 cup mayo, 1-2 tblsp fresh pesto, stir and serve on your favorite grilled sandwiches or paninis!

***Another tip I learned from my Granny Shirl years ago is to make up the pesto minus the parm cheese. Fill each slot in a plastic ice cube tray with the pesto and freeze. Once frozen, empty the trays into a ziploc bag. Now each time you want a little fresh pesto all you have to do is take out a cube or two, thaw, add Parmesan cheese and cook or use as desired. Needless to say I always have fresh pesto around my house, it's a favorite among my kids.

CHEESY PESTO AND SUNDRIED TOMATO TORTE: (this is a beautiful appetizer to bring to parties- gets oooohhhs and aahhhhs every time!)
3-8 oz packages of cream cheese, softened
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 cloves garlic
7 oz of homemade pesto (chilled)
1 jar (8oz) oil packed sun-dried tomatoes-well drained

Blend cream cheese, Parmesan cheese and garlic in blender/processor. Divide into thirds
Line 5-cup mold or loaf pan, 8 ½ x 4 ½ x 2 ½ inches with plastic wrap. Spoon 1/3 of the cheese mixture in bottom of mold; smooth top w/ spatula. Spoon pesto evenly over cheese layer. Spoon one-third of cheese mixture over pesto layer; smooth top w/ spatula. Spoon tomatoes evenly over second cheese layer. Spoon remaining cheese mixture over tomatoes. Strike filled mold on counter to pack down. Cover and refrigerate 1 to 2 days.
When ready to serve, invert mold onto serving platter. Remove plastic wrap and serve w/ baguette slices.

Yields 5 cups of spread

Shameless Plug!

2008-07-28T14:00:00.000-07:00

For all of you near and far, I wanted to share with you new products that I have added to my photography biz. The handbags have been overwhelmingly popular and are selling like hotcakes. Every time I go out I get asked about my bags!! If you are looking for a unique gift or something for yourself, call me to set up a photo shoot for a discount on your products purchase or possibly one item for free!

If you live outside of the Orange County, CA area and still want to purchase, you can send me a high-res jpg and I can get your product ordered right away! If you collect 5 or more orders, considered a group purchase, each person will receive a 10% discount off their purchase!

http://kgrove.photobiz.com/cart/products.cfm

Fun, fun, fun is the only way to describe these items. A great way to show off new grandbabies, children, family members no longer with us, fun events with the family or anything else you desire. The possibilities are endless. Can't decide on just one photo? Ask me how I can create a collage of photos on some of the products, it's super simple! Orders are shipped and returned to the customer within 3-4 weeks.

Brothers from another mother...

2008-07-26T13:59:00.000-07:00

Our old neighbors in Bakersfield keep in touch with us regularly and we try to see each other as often as schedules permit. We are fortunate enough to have their 2 boys, Brandon (11) and Tyler (13), staying here at Camp Grove this week. I met them in Burbank yesterday for the switchoff at Hooters, of course. With all that testosterone around, where else would you take teen boys to eat?? They will be here until Thursday evening when we do the meet-up and pass off again, then they'll return mid month and end of month to visit Casa Grove when they are in town for Tyler's soccer tourneys. We just leave the light on for them!

Xander and Hannah have been so excited for their visit. Xander refers to them as his "brothers from another mother" and Hannah calls them cousins, I guess you can tell how close our friendship is, they are actually extended family for us vagabonds who don't put down roots too often.

I will post some photos of our "sons" this week. They are all out surfing currently and since we have annual passes, I think we are headed to the SD Zoo & Wild Animal Park or Sea World tomorrow, it should be a fun week with lots of pictures to post.

A Friday Funny...

2008-07-25T00:01:00.000-07:00

In honor of my Aunt Sandy who is always posting something funny, I have one to share that my mother in law sent to me. Enjoy~

Ten Thoughts to Ponder for 2008
Number 10
Life is sexually transmitted.

Number 9
Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one
can die.

Number 8
Men have two emotions:
Hungry and Horny. If you see him without an erection, make him a sandwich.

Number 7
Give a person a fish and you feed them for a day,
Teach a person to use the Internet
And they won't bother you for weeks.

Number 6
Some people are like a Slinky .
Not really good for anything, but you still can't help but smile
When you shove them down the stairs.

Number 5
Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday,
Lying in hospitals dying of nothing.

Number 4
All of us could take a lesson from the weather.
It pays no attention to Criticism.

Number 3
Why does a slight tax increase cost you $200.00
And a substantial tax cut saves you $30.00?

Number 2
In the 60's, people took acid to make the world weird.
Now the world is Weird and people take Prozac to make it normal.

And The Number 1 Thought For 2008 :
We know exactly where one cow with Mad-cow-disease is located among millions and millions of cows in America but we haven't got a clue as to where millions of illegal immigrants and terrorists are located. Maybe we should put the Department of Agriculture in charge of Immigration?

' Life is like a jar of Jalapeno peppers. What you do today, might Burn Your Ass Tomorrow'

More fun than a human being should be allowed!

2008-07-24T13:06:00.000-07:00

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/traffic-quesada-rig-2103561-big-slow

This morning I read the news as I always do to get my day started. I read that there was an accident at 5am just south of where I needed to get my scout car pool boys to at Camp Pendleton at the Las Pulgas exit (where the accident occurred) but the SIG Alert would be lifted around 11am. No worries, I think, we'll be a little slow but we'll take our time and not worry about it.

It is 1:07 my time now, I have only been home for about 15 minutes and I never made it to Camp Pendleton to drop off the boys. Traffic on the 5 was gnarly and it took me THREE HOURS to drive just under 6 miles. I finally found one of those median opening that are used by emergency vehicles but illegal for the rest of us and I bolted and it took me 3 minutes to get back to where I started from. There is a 20 mile back up of traffic from this big rig rollover and fire, I feel sorry for all those still out on the road not knowing what they have gotten themselves into.

I did my good deed for today while sitting in the blistering sun and rolling parking lot. A lady next to me rolled down her window and asked if I knew what was going on (people must not know to listen to AM Talk Radio when they are stuck in traffic, wink) , so I told her, she also had her granddaughter with her, and then she asked if I could call her daughter down in San Diego (she left her cell phone at home) to let her know that she would be running late and her granddaughter would not be there in time for her doctors appt. So needless to say, I called the random stranger's daughter to apprise her of the dilemma. Afterwards the world shifted a little as if to say thank for the kind gesture.

Amidst all the frustration of the delay, not getting to camp and having hot and hungry boys with me, it all turned out well. I was proud of the scouts I had with me, there was not a single complaint from one of them and they acted like troopers. I treated my boys to Pedro's Taco's (a local surf spot favorite) and then drove them all back home. Now it is good to be home myself, just wish I had time to sit with a glass of wine and decompress but the life of a mom is never ending and I am headed out the door again soon. Today is one of those days where I have had more fun than any human being should ever be allowed! :-)

Tortilla Tuesday

2008-07-22T12:38:00.000-07:00

I thought I would share a couple recipes that are family favorites around my house. Enjoy~

Tortilla Soup
2 skinned and boned chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
2 cans Mexicorn
1 can white whole kernel corn
1 large onion
2 garlic cloves, pressed
2 cans chicken broth
1 can diced tomatoes (I use the flavored kind)
1 can Rotel diced tomatoes and chilies, undrained
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
1/8 tsp. ground red pepper
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
1 bay leaf
4-5 tortillas (any flavor)
Garnish: (optional) fresh chopped cilantro, chopped red onion, chopped tomato, sour cream, cheese and tortilla crunchies!

Combine ALL ingredients minus tortillas and garnishes into large dutch oven, bring to a boil and simmer over med heat for 30-45 min. Combine ½ cup milk and 2 tbsp. cornstarch, bring soup back to a boil and pour in corn starch mixture and boil until desired thickness is reached. Soup is then ready to serve!

Optional: Place all ingredients in crock pot and cook on HIGH heat for 6 hours. Add cornstarch mixture when ready to serve.

For tortilla crunchies: cut tortillas into ¼ in wide strips, place on baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 5 minutes. Stir strips and bake for 5-7 more minutes until crisp. Serve with soup and garnish as desired. Yields about 10 cups.

And for a delicious dessert, pop this in the oven while you are eating so that it it will piping hot after dinner!
Apple Enchiladas
1-2 cans 21 oz. Can Apple Pie Fruit Filling
6 8-inch Tortillas
1 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1/3 cup Butter
½ cup Sugar
½ cup Firmly Pack Brown Sugar
½ Cup Water

1. Spoon fruit filling evenly down center of each tortilla; sprinkle evenly with cinnamon. Roll up, place seam side down in a lightly buttered 2 qt. Baking dish.
2. Bring butter and next 3 ingredients to a boil in a medium saucepan; reduce heat and simmer, stirring constantly for 3 minutes. Pour sauce over enchiladas; let stand for 30 minutes. If you have any apple pie filling left over, spread it over the top.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
4. Serve hot with vanilla ice cream or fresh whipped cream.

3 kids, 3 camps, 3 locations

2008-07-21T23:11:00.000-07:00

WHAT WAS I THINKING??? Experience a day in my world this week.....

Christian Church Camp 9-12 - In town
Hannah Ocean Institute Camp 9-4 - Dana Point - in the opposite direction NORTH!
Xander Cub Scout Day Camp 10-3 - Camp Pendleton - in the complete opposite direction SOUTH!

So I drive Hannah to her camp in Dana Point, turn around, drop off Christan at his back where we started from, pick up car pool scouts and then head south to Camp Pendleton to drop off the boys at their camp where they are leaders and helping out. Stay for 2 hours myself at the day camp as a parent volunteer before heading back to......

Pick up Christian at noon, hang out with my boy alone for a few hours, head back south to pick up the other boys and car poolers, head back to the church (starting point) to drop off said car poolers, then head back north to the Ocean Institute to pick up my darling daughter!!! WOW.

I thought I would get a little free time having them all in camp at once during the same week, I just never factored into the equation, the locations or times. Bad planning mommy, bad panning! :-) I am road warrior this week.

However at the end of the day when they are sharing their experiences with me and telling me all they did and learned, I snuggle in close, listen intently and thank God for allowing me the time and opportunity to be that road warrior or mom that gets to do this each day. I wouldn't change a thing!!!

Ocean Institute Summer Camp

2008-07-21T12:40:00.000-07:00

My darling daughter's first day of summer camp. This year she was lucky enough to attend the Ocean Institue in Dana Point. They offer phenomenal marine sciences programs for kids of all ages. They even have Tall Ships that the kids get to go on and so much more. She is very excited. It will be a long day as it runs from 9-4 so I am assured that she will sleep well tonight, :-)! My babe is growing up!

Funnel Cakes, caramel apples, kiddie rides and a concert!

2008-07-20T20:47:00.000-07:00

When was the last time you went to a county fair? I have to say for me, it has been years, I cannot remember the last time I went to the fair. I think with my growing annoyance of large crowds I have avoided places like this to save my sanity however with children it is almost a rite of passage and something you must do as a parent. So out we ventured and I have to say, it wasn't all that bad. The kids had a great time, ate waaaay toooooo much "fair food" and are sleeping blissfully at this point. All in all today was a great day. The first ride of the day, Pony Rides. Ain't she a doll?

Xander, Bob and Xander's friend Katin are still there rockin' out to the Dropkick Murphy's, an Irish Punk Band. This was an early birthday gift from us since it is his favorite band of all. We only have birthday parties on milestone years and since this is one for Xander it will be filled with fun and surprises. He doesn't know this but we have decided as a special treat for his 13th bday that we are going to surprise him with 12 small birthday gifts leading up to a big one throughout the next week heading in to the special day. The special day will be filled with fun and laughter as we host a beach bash luau for him over at Doheny State Park. So anyway, this was his first gift of many to come. He was over the moon and has had a smile on his face the entire day today!

My speed demon in the middle of the pack - she is a take no prisoners kind of gal.

Hannah brought her friend Kennedy with us to the fair and we embarked on all the kiddie rides. H & K rode the ferris wheel all alone and after getting stuck at the tippy top for a few minutes while the operator handled other business and changed out riders, they decided that they had had enough and never wanted to see that ride again, once was enough!! They did enjoy all the other rides, their favorite was the bumper cars.

Christian, Kennedy and Hannah respectively

Of course Christian decided I needed to ride with him on a few even though I tried to talk him into taking daddy on the rides. No way, he wanted his mamma! So I squeezed into the toddler seats meant for no person over about 50lbs (I am just a few lbs over 50lbs but that's a topic for another day) and tried to enjoy the 45 seconds that the ride lasted. Again, he was delighted and decided after a couple of rides that he was a big boy now and managed the remainder of the rides with help from no one. Whew disaster averted, I had visions of having to be rescued from one of the rides! He especially loved the swing ride, that was the only one where he threw his hands in the air during the ride and squealed with delight, it was such a joy to experience new fun stuff with my babe who also has a birthday coming up very soon!

Look ma I can pay for the ride and ride the ride all by my self!!!

I am heading off to dream land myself as this week will be super busy as all three kids will be in summer camps at 3 different locations with 3 different starting and stop times!!! I didn't plan that well did I? :-) I will do my best to post regularly this week, I am still working on the past posts, I have a few in drafts and will have those done as well. Keep checking back.

Updated and backdated posts

2008-07-19T23:06:00.000-07:00

As I catch up on the last month, I am going to be backdating some posts back to the dates that they actually occurred on to keep my own journal in chronological order. Over the next few days be sure to keep checking back on the older posts as I will be updating throughout the week.

Lots of love, sorry for the long span of not posting - darn that technology when it doesn't work like you want it too!

XOXOXO
Kimberly

Junior Lifeguard

2008-07-19T21:46:00.000-07:00

My baby did it again! For a 3rd year he has completed the Junior Lifeguard program. This year he switched programs from one state guard to another state guard. He felt the other program offered more in the way of instruction and how to actually be a lifeguard however he felt this program was more fun and he was able to just enjoy himself this year. Which I guess is okay in the grand scheme as he has already been through the program twice and I trust this kid to save my life or that of anyone I know, he is very level headed in an emergency. He's the kind of person you want around when there is trouble. Anyway before I digress too much, in this year's program they offered up extra challenges to those kids that wanted to earn the rank of "Superguard" and the final challenge to earning superguard was completing their version of a beach "Ironman" competition. I am very proud to say that he completed both with flying colors. There were 140 kids in the program, 103 competed in Ironman and Xander finished 33rd overall out of the 103 kids!!! I think that is fantastic and he overcame a few fears to accomplish this goal. One part of the ironman was to swim out about 500 yards in to the ocean around this buoy and back which normally isn't that scary however with all the shark sightings that we've had this year and our proximity to all of them, they actually cancelled one of the challenges to swim out to Seal Rock (hence where seals hang out as well as sharks trying to catch a meal) and replaced it with this buoy swim. Xander almost backed out but decided to persevere and charge forth. He said that was one of the scariest things he has ever done because the water was VERY cold, dark, murky and he felt like shark food out there, especially since with the 2 groups that were swimming, he ended up between them somehow because he was swimming too fast, :-)!
Then after the buoy swim he had to grab a paddle board and paddle out. During this paddle out a couple of frisky dolphins decided to play with the kids and would skim right underneath their paddle boards and then flick their tails at them as they passed over the surface. He was kind of spooked at first to see a dark shadow passing beneath him until he realized it was dolphins. What a cool encounter with some amazing animals, I am sure he will never forget it!

So if you are ever in need of a lifeguard for an event, fly him out and he'll be sure to save you if necessary!

CPR Certified & 1/2 way to Eagle

2008-07-18T19:29:00.000-07:00

How many 12 year olds do you know are CPR Certified card carrying members of the Red Cross? How many of them know what to do and how to provide care in the event that help can't arrive in 30 minutes or more? How many of them know basic first aid? Xander is and knows all of that! They normally recommend you to be 15 or older to be certified but demonstrated great responsibility and allowed him and a few other scouts to take the course and get their official adult and infant certification.

Last weekend Xander and I spent the weekend with the boy scouts and Red Cross going through an intensive 2 day lifesaving certification course. I was renewing my certification and the Xan-man was getting certified for the first time ever as part of his lifesaving requirements for the scouts. He passed with flying colors and was the only scout that did not have to "re-take" the test in order to pass, plus he made a 100% on one of the tests. Since he had already taken the First Aid course and has that merit badge, he stuck around to help out and the other kids used him as the "crash test dummy", oh did I mention that he volunteered to look like the village idiot? Anything for a laugh from that kid....

I get a text message from him during this portion of the class because I was off site saying, "Injured.....again, I need your help" with this darling image. Gotta just love 'em.

In addition to all the above, he also completed all the requirements and has earned First Class Rank. He now has to complete Star and Life Scout ranks which combined will take about a year to complete and then he will spend the next year working on his Eagle rank. His goal, as it stands now, is to have completed the Eagle rank by the time he is in the 9th grade. It is a LOT of hard work but even more fun and again he deserves all the credit in the world. All this and a 3.8 GPA on the Superintendants Honor Roll, we've certainly done something right and so has he!!!

The week of Xander

2008-07-17T22:47:00.000-07:00

It is going to seem like all the posts are about Xander to start with as I catch up and well that is because they are! The first 4 weeks of summer vacation have been spent with Xander in Junior Lifeguards and completing a great deal of Boy Scout work. On June 28 and 29, Xander and I took a mother/son scouting trip whitewater rafting and kayaking on the Kern River in central Cali. We had an absolute blast and I would be in a 2 person kayak with my son any day of the week, he did a great job powering the kayak as I steered and we made it through some nice Class 3 rapids together. We also had to do river rescues where we were forced to flip the kayak and then get back in right before a set of class 3 rapids, after 2 runs down the river already in rafts, it was a bit exhausting but we managed. He also had to cook dinner for his troop and made a glorified home-made version of hamburger helper, it was actually quite tasty and got well-deserved rave reviews from the other scouts, even a few requests for the recipe. The next morning he delighted everyone with his camping specialty of delicious pancakes.

I was also one of only 3 moms on the trip of 27 people so my initiation was to swim across a very cold river into the center sandbar where all the other kids were hanging out. It took me a few minutes to get up the courage to dip into the rather breathtaking cold water but I managed, swam across and got just dry enough on the sand bar that I had to muster up that courage all over again just to go back across the river. We also had major water wars on the rafting and kayaking trips. One boat of boys thought it would be funny to buy these water pump guns and pelt us with very cold water on the duration of the first trip down the river. So between the 1st and 2nd trip, I snuck away and purchased 4 of those water soakers to provide to the others in my boat including the river guide, now it was an even fight! We even got to the point of where we were soaking innocent bystanders along the river's edge "just because", it got really dirty!! The best part was that Xander was in another raft and not mine so he was literally up a river without a paddle, er, um, I mean a water gun because our boat wasn't sharin'!

I wish I would have brought a waterproof camera because none of us were able to capture any photos from the trip but we sure do have some great memories! I can't wait until next year's trip, maybe we'll let Bob come on the next one, maybe!

YES! I promise to post soon!

2008-07-17T21:39:00.000-07:00

I have had major computer problems for the last 3 weeks and have been up to my eyeballs in summer activities with the kids however all seems to be getting back to normal, whatever that is, and I promise to update before the weekend is out. Over a month of not posting, I have LOTS to say and catch up on so be sure to keep checking back for updates, photos and posts.

I've MISSED you all!

Dangerous....

2008-06-08T21:33:00.001-07:00

Enough said! :-)

Abrakadoodle Wednesday

2008-06-04T21:18:00.000-07:00

Thought I'd share some more of Hannah's lovely art work. I am excited that she will be attending the Abrakadoodle canvas summer camp class in August, I can't wait to see what she brings home from that. Bob really loves the watercolor turtle painting below, that's his fav!

Matisse

Watercolor Turtles

Sumi e

The band...

2008-06-01T21:41:00.000-07:00

After being invited to play in the middle school talent show and then being "dismissed" because all the boys in the band didn't not go to the school, they were finally asked back to play to the waiting crowd. It actually worked out better because they got to play more songs to the same crowd and it was in a more relaxed environment. It was fun for them and they did great, all the "band moms" were very proud of our boys.

They are still looking for a singer, Xander wants a girl however we have a boy that they may potentially give the gig to for now. They are also still looking for a bassist. They've had a few inquiries but nothing has worked out yet. I am positive that they will get all they need very soon and be a full bonafide band! Their band coach and guitar teachers have already secured locations for them to play once they have a full band and can entertain a crowd with at least a full set of 10-12 songs. They are really working hard (for as hard as 12 and 13 year olds work, wink) and have set their sights on playing to a full stadium in London..... nice to have lofty aspirations!

Xander and Noah

"UnderAged Thinking"

Noah

Raphael

Oriental Express

2008-05-25T15:23:00.000-07:00

All Aboard!

This is our 3rd neighborhood that we have started a dinner club and our 3rd time starting it with an Oriental Express party theme. So many people are intimidated by the whole Asian cooking idea and shun away from it so we typically take the fear out of it for everyone.

Last night we had 20 people (2 couples couldn't make it) come and at $40 per couple it is the best deal in town. After everyone paid, we supplied appetizers of Sushi, Thai Fish Cakes with a Plum dipping sauce (hot and spicy), Lumpia and a Tandoori Shrimp dish made with coconut milk and yummy spices, all of which Bob fantastically prepared in the wok on our outdoor stove/grill (didn't want to smell up the house IYKWIM). Then the main course, I prepared General Tso's Chicken, Shrimp Red Thai Curry and a veggie stir-fry (all of which I made). For dessert we had Sopapillas and Cream (basically fried wontons covered in cinnamon sugar that sandwich a scoop of homemade vanilla bean ice cream and topped with a chocolate sauce). D-E-L-I-S-H!! Add sake, Japanese beers and plenty of red/white wine and we had a party fit for kings! We put all the food into chafing dishes and had everyone serve themselves.

We had all the food prepped and ready within 2 hours, Asian cuisine is about the easiest in the world to prepare (minus the sushi - we ordered in for that). The nice thing about it is the fact that because everyone pays, it pays for itself and while you have to to do the work, not having to beat the traffic, drive home after drinking or miss small conversations with your friends, priceless! I think that by the fact that every food and beverage was completely consumed and that the last few stragglers left at 2:30am after a nice game of poker and beer pong (ping pong played with cups of beer), the party was a resounding success!

Now it will be another 2 years before we have to host again, yeah! We just get to eat, drink and be merry for all the next parties!! If you have never tried doing a dinner club, you should, they are so much fun and so very easy. If you every want ideas or recipes, I'll be happy to share....I think the next host is planning a "white trash themed party", oooooh, I can't wait for that one, :D!!!

Til next time....

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

2008-05-24T15:10:00.000-07:00

This has been an awesome week for me from a professional standpoint! Remember the post a while back about me doing stock photos for iStock.com, Ihave had 10 purchases so far in the last month. That may not sound like a lot but to me, who only tried my hand at stock photography for fun and only submitted 3 photos, well, I'm darned happy that anyone feels my photos worthy of publishing!

That brings me to my next exciting news......remember my first official press pass I received last weekend? I had my first photos published in an actual newspaper and on their online website. To finally have my passion come to life and be seen by the world, it is an amazing feeling. I am officially a freelance photographer for the local news, woo hoo!

http://www.danapointtimes.com/index.php?mact=News,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=260&cntnt01returnid=51

Now don't think I am going to get too big for my britches, I know I still have a lot to learn. I am enrolling at the local college for fall classes as well as working with other professional photogs to hone this craft, I want to be the best I can be. For look for new stuff to come in the future!

Miracles do happen...

2008-05-21T08:04:00.000-07:00

Our friend Evan Cousineau who, if you ever read our blog, I am sure you have gotten to know. His sister is going through one of the most selfless acts a person can do today, please send up your prayers for Mary and Dominik.

Read the story: http://wcco.com/health/dominik.lawson.transplant.2.728640.html

The Amateur Photographer

2008-05-20T00:21:00.000-07:00

An amateur photographer was invited to dinner with friends, and he took along a few pictures to show to them. The hostess looked at the photos and commented, "These are very good! You must have a good camera."

The photographer didn't make any comment, but as he was leaving to go home, he said, "That was a really delicious meal! You must have some very good pots."

Doheny Blues Festival

2008-05-18T22:25:00.001-07:00

My first official press pass! I had the privilige of being the photographer for our local newspaper and had access to the entire event. Xander was my official assistant of the day taking care of my lenses and equipment so he and I spent 8 hours documenting the event. Below are a few up close and personal images of all the fun we had and people we met!
I'll detail more tomorrow when I am not so tired!!

My trusty assistant wearing his new hat given to him by Barbie of Cactus Hats. She told him that he could "pay it forward" and do something nice for someone else sometime soon!

A view from the stage when 94 year young Pinetop Perkins was playing!
Pinetop Perkins band members and friends - I'll add their names later when I have the playbill in front of me.
Xander and a member of Pinetop Perkins Band - they loved Xander and they had a great time talking with each other. Xander thought they were the coolest guys there that night!
Good 'ol Pinetop Perkins himself - isn't he a sweetheart?!
The infamous Robert Cray

Our personal favorite and Xander's inspiration for playing guitar - Jonny Lang - the 27 year old prodigy who came onto the blues music scene when he was only 15 years old!

Abrakadoodle Wednesdays

2008-05-14T13:57:00.000-07:00

I just want to share with you some of the lovely artwork that Hannah has been bringing home after her fun-filled Wednesday afternoon's painting, coloring and messing up someone else's play space! I have been quite impressed and she is learning so much! You'd better get her autograph now, "artist" and "fashion designer" were her first words! Ask her what she wants to be and that's how she responds. I can't keep that child in paper, crayons, glue or any kind of crafting supplies. Every time I turn around my computer paper is mysteriously all used up even when I haven't printed something in weeks!!!

On canvas - the big blob is my fault. She had made nice little droplets of paint but one was rather large and wet. I didn't want that paint getting all over my car so I tried to blot it with a paper towel - big mistake!!! She was a good sport about mommy ruining her art, :)! Pastels and shading

She also did a Matisse fishbowl which I will post a little later after I take a photo of it!

Happy Mother's Day

2008-05-12T14:55:00.000-07:00

"Mom"

by Hannah Grove, age 6

Happy Mother's Day to all my friends and family that are celebrating this special day dedicated to all you do! Love, Kimberly

What a day to be honored, too bad I had one too many margarita's the night before to really enjoy it.....someone forgot to tell me that as you get older you need considerably less to drink before you get sent right over the edge! Darn those friends of ours that hosted that Cinco de Mayo party on the wrong day! Needless to say, I am still moving a little slow even today. I won't ever make that mistake again.

Anyway, my darling children and my husband made me the most beautiful homemade cards. Hannah even painted a portrait of me, I think it is quite lovely myself and Xander wrote me a poem. Christian made me a card, that opened the wrong way of course, and then told me after I read it that I can't have it, it's his, lol!!! So he took it away and I haven't seen it since, good thing I love my little Indian giver!!! To me, those are the best presents ever! Last year we each got new CARS on the mother's/father's day holidays, so this year I told my family that they simply needed to add a D to the gift this year!!! So CARDS it is and my bank it account is much happier for it, lol!

Tea Parties and Princesses

2008-05-11T14:51:00.000-07:00

Check out the sneak peak of photos I took this weekend of a darling tea party:

http://kimberlygrove.blogspot.com/

Joshua Tree Climbing Adventures

2008-05-06T10:32:00.001-07:00

My handsome babe, 4th from right!

Our future Eagle Scout had an amazing weekend rock climbing in Joshua Tree National Park. Of course with no running water, flushing toilets or anything of the like, water was a precious commodity and could not be wasted on things like showers or wiping down....teeth did get brushed but that was it, lol! In his quest to get totally filthy, he scaled walls, hopped rocks, explored caves, tried to catch BIG lizards, hiked and explored and just had a blast! Sounds like ther perfect boys weekend! He also was in charge of breakfast and made picture perfect pancakes for the troop. We have the same outdoor stove set-up so he knew exactly what to do and impressed the troop. He was VERY proud!!

He came home and decided that rock climbing is the new sport of choice (this week :D)! Actually, boy scouts is right up his alley as he has been sleeping in tents since he was 6 weeks old (a right of passage for all of our children), went on his first backpacking and whitewater rafting trip (class 2 and 3's) in the Tetons when he was 5 and is our regular mountaineering child. He has such an outdoor spirit and sense of adventure. So, I am sure that I will be spending a great deal of time at the indoor and outdoor climbing walls this summer......he has a new passion! We are so proud of him!

Here are a few photos of his weekend - unfortunately we were not able to attend with him but are delighted that someone shared these few with us! Enjoy ~

Xander in the back flipping the flapjacks!!

Hey you, yeah you! Checking me out? I look GOOD in these don't I???

The ascent - look at those gams! He has his daddy's legs!!

The descent - Look out below!!
the wall was more vertical than it appears -
there are other photos that show the angle of what they were climbing. "Man they're slow, do you think we'll get to climb again?"

Biscuits on a stick - yum!
You take canned biscuits, wrap them on a stick and cook 'em up over the fire, the boys love them! Xander waiting his turn.

Hanging out 'round the very meager campfire. Xander entertained the crowds later with his guitar playing and campfire songs.

The motley crew

Win the lottery!!!

2008-05-05T22:42:00.001-07:00

In honor of our dear friend Evan who was diagnosed 1 year ago this past week with ALD (you can Google it) and subsequently passed away in November just hours before his 10th birthdy that he shares with his twin sister Alaina, I am encouraging each and every one of you to think about "saving a life". It's simple and until May 19th, it's free! You can choose to donate more to help others that can't afford it but that is your choice. Please consider being on the bone marrow registry. Here is more information from Gina (Evan's mom) about signing up:

Take 5 minutes and learn how you can save a life... Be A Hero, Become A Donor

During our Cyber BM Drive, between the dates of May 5-19, you can join the registry as part of Evan’s Entourage. Simply email sbaker@nmdp.org with Evan’s Entourage in the subject area, and your name, address and how many kits you would like sent to you in the body of the email. The application and swab kit will be sent immediately to you. It must be dated and placed in the mail by May 19 to qualify.

Tell a friend. Remember, in regards to the fee/donation….the normal cost to join the registry is $52. Always, non-Caucasians are fully funded by the federal government, which includes everyone except Caucasians (those of Middle Eastern descent are considered Caucasians). This is because only 20% of the registry consists of non-Caucasians. When drives are hosted at fire and police stations, these professionals are fully funded, as well as all college students at their schools.

Our Cyber BM Drive is being hosted during the federally funded “Thanks Mom” Campaign and is free however we still ask for a $25 donation payable to the Marrow Foundation, c/o Evan’s Entourage, to help us fund future drives.

More info to help educate your community:***EVERY DAY, OVER 6,000 PEOPLE DESPERATELY SEARCH THE NATIONAL MARROW DONOR REGISTRY IN HOPE OF FINDING A MATCH. ONLY 3 IN 10 PEOPLE FIND THE MATCH THEY NEED TO SAVE THEIR LIFE.

Joining the National Marrow Donor Registry is easy and painless:
1.First you fill out the application, pay the fee/make a donation***, and then take 4 big “Qtips” and swab the inside of your cheeks.
2. Win the Lottery, because the chances of you being called as a donor are that slim.
3. If you are chosen, remember you are the one person in the WORLD that can give this person a chance for a new life. Without you, they have no hope.
4. From this point forward, there is no cost involved. All procedures will take place in a hospital near you. Everyone who crosses your path will treatyou with the utmost respect.
5. Time to donate: Doctors will determine if it will be done through Peripheral Stem Cell collection or Bone Marrow Harvest (done undersedation).
6. Walk out of the hospital the same day as your procedure and know that you were the lucky one, that without your gift of life, this person had NO HOPE.

Demystifying the Myths around becoming a Bone Marrow Donor
1. Ignorance-Probably the number one reason people don’t join the BM Registry. Our goal is to demystify the process so that everyone, when medically able, can’t wait to have the opportunity to “Save a Life” by becoming a bone marrow donor and having their baby’s cord blood donated to the registry.
2. Pain- There is NO PAIN involved in joining the registry. A simple cheek swab will gather your “cells”, which will then be typed for your DNA.
3. Afraid-“I hate needles and I hate pain.” Well to be honest, aren’t we all?? The most painful part of joining the registry is filling out the application. After that, if you are the lucky one, the one person in the world that can save a person’s life, would you not consider a little discomfort to have this opportunity??
4. Commitment/Time/Travel-If you are the lucky one to chosen to be a donor, EVERYTHING will take place at a hospital near your home. For Stem Cell Collection, it is done at a blood donation center near you. For Bone Marrow Aspiration, it will take place in an outpatient setting under sedation. For your little discomfort, you have now given someone the chance for new life!!
5. Cost- The only cost involved is the original “fee” to become a donor. Often people don’t understand why they are being charged to join the registry, but as with all medical tests, the HLA typing is very expensive, in addition to the overhead involved in running the NMDP. And often times there is partial or full funding available to reduce the normal $52 fee. After that, there is no cost to the donor. And the time commitment if you are chosen is simply the time it takes to the medical tests to make sure you are healthy enough to be a donor, and the time, one day, to collect your cells or marrow.
6. Not needed/why me?- “If the chances of me be chosen to be a match is like winning the lottery, why should I do it?” Well, for the 6000 people that search the registry every day, only 3 out of every 10 actually find a donor. And the odds for non-Caucasians to find a match are even worse. (Middle Easterners are considered Caucasian) You can only win the lottery if you play the lottery. Please come play with us!!
7. Involvement-“I just don’t want to get involved!” If you think about it for just a few moments, we can bet you that you know someone either personally or through another, who has needed a transplant or who will need a transplant. We all have a reason to get involved….as this could end up being you, your mother, your father, your brother, your sister, your child, or your friend or neighbor… whose only “hope” for life after a life-threatening diagnosis is a bone marrow or cord blood transplant.
8. If I am chosen, can I choose which method they use? NO, it is up to the doctors to make the decision on whether stem cells or bone marrow is the right treatment for the recipient. If you have any hesitation, it is best that do not register at this. If you are the lucky one in the world, we don’t want your recipient to have HOPE and then find out that you are not willing to go forward with the best course of treatment.

Register here - you never even have to leave your home to do it!!!
http://www.marrow.org/HELP/Events/Thanks_Mom/index.html

RAOK

2008-05-02T22:55:00.000-07:00

Today at the gas station, I happened to be trying to get out of the middle pump that is 3 deep. When, as my husband puts it that I need tug boats to move me in and out of the harbor because my SUV is so large, well, you should know that it can be a challenge sometimes when people crowd you and allow you no space! So anyway....the gentleman in front of me is letting me know how much room I have and that I am all clear, I maneuver my way out then roll down my window to say thank you. Well this dear, darling older man had a truck bed full of flower bouquets that he was taking to the local churches and gave me one just to make my day better. Of course anyone who knows me knows that I will never turn down flowers as I love the smell, the beauty and simplicity of an arrangement sitting somewhere in my house. It brings me sheer joy!

I just wanted everyone to know that Random Acts Of Kindness are still out there and his generosity reminded me how much we should practice at least one act of kindness every day! Go out and do yours today - let me know what you did!!!

Have a great day!

Monkeying Around at the Santa Ana Zoo

2008-05-02T22:51:00.001-07:00

The kindergarten class went on their first field trip to the Santa Ana zoo today. They got to ride on the bus, have a picnic lunch and enjoyed the day. Here are some snapshots of our adventures!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Need a good laugh?

2008-04-30T11:28:00.001-07:00

There is not one dirty word in it, and it is funny.

The Smiths were unable to conceive children and decided to use a surrogate father to start their family. On the day the proxy father was to arrive, Mr. Smith kissed his wife goodbye and said, "Well, I'm off now. The man should be here soon."

Half an hour later, just by chance, a door-to-door baby photographer happened to ring the doorbell, hoping to make a sale.

"Good morning, Ma'am", he said, "I've come to..."

"Oh, no need to explain," Mrs. Smith cut in, embarrassed, "I've been expecting you."

"Have you really?" said the photographer. "Well, that's good. Did you know babies are my specialty?"

"Well that's what my husband and I had hoped. Please come in and have a seat".
After a moment she asked, blushing, "Well, where do we start?"

"Leave everything to me. I usually try two in the bathtub, one on the couch, and perhaps a couple on the bed. And sometimes the living room floor is fun. You can really spread out there."

"Bathtub, living room floor? No wonder it didn't work out for Harry and me!"

"Well, Ma'am, none of us can guarantee a good one every time. But if we try several different positions and I shoot from six or seven angles, I'm sure you'll be pleased with the results."

"My, that's a lot!", gasped Mrs. Smith.

"Ma'am, in my line of work a man has to take his time. I'd love to be In and out in five minutes, but I'm sure you'd be disappointed with that."

"Don't I know it," said Mrs. Smith quietly.

The photographer opened his briefcase and pulled out a portfolio of his baby pictures.

"This was done on the top of a bus," he said.

"Oh, my God!" Mrs. Smith exclaimed, grasping at her throat.

"And these twins turned out exceptionally well - when you consider their mother was so difficult to work with."

"She was difficult?" asked Mrs. Smith.

"Yes, I'm afraid so. I finally had to take her to the park to get the job done right. People were crowding around four and five deep to get a good look"

"Four and five deep?" said Mrs. Smith, her eyes wide with amazement.

"Yes", the photographer replied. "And for more than three hours, too. The mother was constantly squealing and yelling - I could hardly concentrate, and when darkness approached I had to rush my shots.

Finally, when the squirrels began nibbling on my equipment, I just had to pack it all in."

Mrs. Smith leaned forward. "Do you mean they actually chewed on your, uh...equipment?"

"It's true, Ma'am, yes.. Well, if you're ready, I'll set-up my tripod and we can get to work right away."

"Tripod?"

"Oh yes, Ma'am. I need to use a tripod to rest my Canon on. It's much too big to be held in the hand very long."

Mrs. Smith fainted

Reviews and recommendations...

2008-04-21T11:00:00.001-07:00

During the last 2 weeks Bob and I have had the chance to catch up on just hanging out with each other. Her has been so busy at work getting prepared for even more layoffs (he works in the building industry) and I have been busy with the kids, spring break, testing season, being a mom, etc! We decided that we needed to sit down and just "be" as a family! So we rented a few, borrowed a few and bought a few movies and enjoyed each others company. If you have not seen any of these, definitely worth picking up:

All good family movies:
Once
August Rush
The Ultimate Gift - LOVED this movie!
Little Manhattan - we have seen this many times - if you have son 9-10 or older, this is a must see movie, lol!!!
Simon Birch - an old family favorite that I love
The Peaceful Warrior

Books:
The Same Kind of Different as Me - (true story) Xander and I both loved this book. He said that this is his all time favorite book so far, which says a lot since he has read hundreds, if not thousands of books.
Marley and Me - is being made in to a movie - Xander and I laughed, cried and loved this book.
The Christmas Jars
Any of the Sohpie Kinsella Books - "Confessions of a Shopaholic" series - easy fun reads when you don't want to have to think but just enjoy!

We have lots of others but these are a feww good selections for the entire family!

Freedom....

2008-04-21T10:38:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know, I have learned that I am so busy that it is hard for me to blog everyday. I am coming to realize I have a weakness and that is remembering to blog, lol! Actually, April has been such a busy month that I will have to catch up on posts not only for you but so that I'll have something to look back on an remember. SO, bear with me, my momentary lapses in posts and realize that I too, am human and I am trying!!!! :-)

I think the biggest thing to happen to us during April was during spring break. You see, Christian is as tall as some 5 year olds and commonly gets mistaken for being older than he is, especially now that all his beautiful, blonde locks have been shorn. However, I know he is still my adorable boy that is never far from mommy's side, he is whole-heartedly a mamma's boy!!! In his quest to hang and keep up with big brother and all the other "big kids" on the block, he decided that those bicycle training wheels were coming off. SO, I brought out my handy dandy pliers, took those bad boys off and gave him a push. That was all it took. Within 5 minutes he was off and flying!!! He was loving every bit of his new found freedom.......until it came time to stop, start, get on, etc and so forth. As long as he is in motion, all is good in the world however when he is ready to stop, you'd better be there to catch him or he gets sad that no one will help him, lol. He is quickly learning to jump off the bike before it topples on him and big brother is teaching him to use the brakes but for a 3 year old to apply all that he is learning can be a bit frustrating. But anyway, he is doing great and we are very proud of him. He definitely took this big step long before our other 2 kiddos. Where of where is my baby going? Why can't he just stay little for a while longer?????

Here is a day in the life of learning to ride a bike......

Getting a push from Xander, somebody stop me, NOW, thank goodness I am off! Can I get back on now??

It all starts with one....

2008-03-28T11:00:00.000-07:00

http://www.istockphoto.com/file_closeup.php?id=5658419

I had my very first photo accepted into the iStock library (a subsidiary of Getty Images) of stock photos!!!! The “tearful tiki” is mine, that was the photo I took in Dominical at Rio Mar!!! I would love for someone to purchase it however to be perfectly honest I really don’t care! I am so excited that after grueling submission requirements (the photos have to be near perfect in every way from resolution to color to size to everything….) that so far one of my photos was worthy of being accepted. It’s easier to get a passport than it is to get a photo accepted for stock galleries!!!! I was also very selective in deciding who I wanted to submit images to and work with.

After 250 accepted images, you will be eligible to become exclusive and all your images will also be available to Getty Images, the largest stock photo library in the world. Just another thing for me to "dabble" in as I love landscape and scenery photography as well. I am focusing my "paid" work on kids, seniors (of the high school variety) and maternity.

Woo Hoo! :-)

Now back to work on building my empire!! Off to find senior girls for my funky, urban, eclectic “trash the prom dress” sessions…….

I LOVE my job!!!!!

Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T12:06:00.000-07:00

HAPPY EASTER!
"Save me!"

I couldn't resist taking this photo!

Some of the goodies - not too much candy :D!

Warheads! Yum!

"I don't want you near my stuff or in MY picture!!!"

"Mine, all mine!! I LOVE my PEZ!!!"

My new guitar magazine - I got a subscription this year!! Saaweeet!

Generations

2008-03-22T21:24:00.000-07:00

I had the honor and privilege today of photographing an 80th birthday party for my dear friend and neighbor's father. Tom, the honoree and Beth, his wife and classically trained pianist who has played with the Boston Pops were absolutely delightful and the shoot was so much fun!

Here is a sneak peak at some of the photos. There were 24 people I had to pose and keep entertained. 12 adults and 12 children. The kids kept moving not matter where I placed them, lol! It was a challenge, it was also the largest group of people I have ever worked with. I would do it all over again! I will post more after I process them.

My friend Kate is in the bottom right corner in blue, short hair. Her father is the old one in blue in the center back. I told him that since he started this whole mess that he needed to be in the back and center to anchor them all!!! Blown up this is a beautiful image!

This is grandma, grandpa and all 12 of their grandkids. I used screens to soften some of the sun however I didn't have large enough ones and the family only had this time of day to take the photos so I did the best I could with what I had. Some of the catchlights are nice but some I wish weren't there at all. The one kid behind the girl would not listen, behave or smile for anyone. He kept moving to behind someone so this is how he is in almost all the shots, lol! That stinker!!

This is the image that almost made me cry during the shoot. I asked them if I could do this and when I did the stories about hands opened up. This is how I learned about the mom being a concert pianist and performing regularly with the Boston Pops. I then also learned that their youngest son who worked in the World Trade Centers happened to be on his honeymoon that fateful day or else they said there would be one set of hands missing from this photo. It was all I could do not to cry so I cherish the fact that they were up for doing this picture. It also meant a great deal to them. I will never forget that moment, this is why I am a photographer!!!

Strength, wisdom, pain, grief, hard work, compassion, and so much LOVE in this generation of HANDS!

Leprechauns peed in our potty....

2008-03-17T13:03:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patty's Day everyone!

Of course it wouldn't be any fun if those sneakly little leprechauns didn't create a little mischief on a day created just for them. Those darned little creatures somehow got into our house (he must have spoken with Santa on those tricks) and "peed" in our potties...ALL of them! And they created a LOT of pee for such little guys!! You should have heard the exclamations all over the house. "MOM!" "DAD!" "how did they do that?" "COOL!" it was quite the scene.

We are having green milk with lunch because when we woke up it was suddenly green! And oh so many other goodies.....

Hope you are having nearly as much fun as we are on this festive Irish day.

Erin Go Braugh!!!

Capistrano Unified parents lobby against massive school cuts

2008-03-16T20:24:00.000-07:00

I have never been so passionate about a subject as I am the CA state budget that is in shambles right now. We just pink slipped 7 teachers from our school alone and are getting ready to take away the 20 to 1 class size ration for 1st - 3rd grade PLUS add 1 additional student to the already oversized 4th-12th grade classes.

We are also cutting janitors, aides, groundskeepers and so many other much needed positions. Music, arts, and other programs are being removed. For a state that is wealthiest in the nation to become 50th in eduction (as of this coming July should the budget pass) is not only unacceptable, it is embarrassing!!! From a PTA perspective and especially as a parent I am doing everything I can to pass along information, to be heard and to let the state know that the budget is completely unacceptable.

You may or not be interested but if you are, read on:

A delegation meets privately with lawmakers to protest a proposed $4 billion cut to K-12 public education.
By SCOTT MARTINDALE
The Orange County Register
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SACRAMENTO – A delegation of parents from the Capistrano Unified School District traveled to the state Capitol Tuesday to plead with lawmakers not to move forward with a proposed $4 billion cut to public education.
During more than four hours of private meetings with representatives for the governor and key lawmakers, eight parent leaders from the Capistrano Unified Council of PTSAs, along with school board member Duane Stiff, demanded that the state budget deficit not be balanced at the expense of California children.
"We hope that they understand that, for Capistrano Unified and for school districts across the state, the budget is absolutely unacceptable," said Kim Anderson, legislative chair for the Capistrano Unified Council of PTSAs. "We want the governor to come out with an entirely different budget. We want no legislator to support any legislation that suspends Prop. 98."
In January, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed suspending Proposition 98, the California law that provides a guaranteed source of funding to K-12 schools. For Capistrano Unified, the proposed cuts would mean a $27 million shortfall, forcing the 51,000-student South County district to lay off 427 employees, including 266 teachers, and eliminate the 20:1 class-size ratio of students to teachers in the first through third grades.
Across Orange County, more than 1,590 teachers could lose their jobs and an estimated $204 million could be cut from next year's school district budgets.
'SHOUT OUT' RESULTS
Capistrano Unified's district-wide PTSA organized a "shout out" effort Monday encouraging parents to flood the offices of key Sacramento lawmakers and the governor with phone calls protesting the budget cuts.
The office of Sen. Jack Scott, chair of the Senate education committee, reported logging about 1,000 phone calls Monday from Capistrano Unified parents, said spokeswoman Wendy Gordon.
"The phones rang for eight hours nonstop – eight of our staffers answering four lines for eight hours," Gordon said. "While we're glad to hear people are energized, Sen. Scott is very much on top of it and is fighting to maintain education programs and not to make draconian cuts."
The office of Assemblywoman Julia Brownley, chair of the Assembly budget subcommittee for education, reported receiving at least 300 phone calls from Capistrano Unified parents Monday.
"It helps us know that people really are genuinely concerned," spokeswoman Jennifer Mashburn said. "You get a feel for how families are personally affected."
While the Capistrano Unified parents said their voices were being heard, they acknowledged that the news was still grim. Paul Navarro, deputy legislative secretary to the governor, told the Orange County delegates that public education would have to share in the state's fiscal crisis, Anderson said.
"He can almost guarantee there will be a suspension of Prop. 98 because there is no way to avoid that," she said. "The state budget situation is a mess."
Contact the writer: 949-454-7394 or smartindale@ocregister.com