Friday, July 25, 2008

Highly Recommended

If you are in need of a vacation destination, 4/5 of the S Family strongly recommends the San Luis Valley . We are home and we had an absolutely wonderful time. As you can see, my friend Wendy's home is lovely, this picture does not do it justice, as are the 8 acres surrounding it. Many additional pictures below but allow me to first share with you some highlights of the trip.
















The boys were utterly blown away by the wide open space and their ability to walk out any door without asking permission or being told to watch for cars. Shortly after we arrived I told them to go out and play. They went outside, came back in, went out again, came back in again and with very puzzled expressions inquired as to the location of the backyard. We all laughed and told them outside was all backyard and they were more than free to explore. I did not see them again for 3 hours. When they returned they were as filthy and as happy as I have ever seen them.

Later that evening Wendy's husband Tom built the kids a huge bonfire. Supervised by Wendy's college aged sons, the kids roasted hotdogs and marshmellows over the fire while Wendy, my friend Danille, who also brought her 3 and 5 year old kids, and I chatted in the house. Later that evening the door opened quietly, Nathan slipped up beside Wendy, wrapped his arms around her, gave her his best puppy dog eyes and in his sweetest voice asked, "Ms. Wendy, where do you keep the gasoline?"

On our final evening the boys, assisted again by Wendy's sons, went fishing, caught 4 trout, cleaned and roasted them for their dinner. Isaac loves fish but he hesitated after observing the removal of the bones. Isaac's fish usually arrives deboned, plated and garnished with parsley and lemon. I removed all trace of skin, fins, etc and convinced him to taste it. Poised next to an open trash can, with a cup of water in his hand he timidly placed a small bite in his mouth. After a moment of thoughtful chewing his eyes opened wide and he said in amazement, "This is good! But...it would be better with ketchup."







The view.



























































Morning girls!














Throwing rocks in the Rio Grande.




































































































Sand Dunes




































Saturday, July 19, 2008

Take me Out to the Ball Game

Friday evening the boys attended their first major league baseball game and a roaring good time was had by all. Well...by everyone except Esther who generously volunteered to take care of Anna so Jesse and I could attend with the boys. Anna was less than cooperative regarding bed time. Our sincere apologies Etu.

Anyhoo, we had a blast at the game despite a rainy start. The game opened with a parade of many, many little league teams. The boys were excited about the opportunity to see the actual field, though I personally think the team dads were even more enamored with the privilege. They tried to keep themselves in check, but the huge grins gave them away.

Pictures below. I am bummed that the speed of my camera did not allow me to get a clearer picture of Isaac on the field. Perhaps it is time to upgrade...hint hint. I am also bummed that some curly haired blond lady's head is in the middle of one of my pictures, but oh well.

Additional notes from recent days:

Whilst singing along with a particularly groovy CAKE tune, I quipped, "You go Anna!" Anna responded by looking directly at me and stating firmly, "I NOT go mamma!"

Whist attending a showing of WALL-E, Nathan noted the image below, turned to Jesse and loudly inquired, "Daddy, is that a boob cover?"
















My boys, I assume typically, like to house various creepy crawlies in their numerous bug houses. Currently we have several spiders in residence. One recent evening, Esther and Jesse caught a smaller spider and decided a rousing backyard spider brawl was in order. They won't let me post the first picture I snapped while sneaking up behind them, but they did agree to allow photographic evidence of their very worthwhile activities when taken from an alternative angle.













I will not be crowned mother of the year anytime soon as, exhausted from a night of making tortillas for Esther and Jesse while simultaneously being subjected to a viewing of the WORST movie ever made, I pulled Anna into bed with me the following morning in the hopes of catching another few minutes of sleep. Apparently I slept a little too deeply because at some point she crawled out of bed, obtained a bottle of Children's Ibuprofen, sweetly asked her big brother to help her get the top off and then consumed an unknown amount. She is ok but her digestive system is paying for this indiscretion in a bad way. I had to leave a restaurant and run into a department store to buy her a new outfit after a particularly nasty diaper failure this afternoon. Ah yes and she also found a pair of the boys' art project scissors and cut her own hair.

SIGH
















Love to all! The kids and I head out for another road trip on Tuesday morning. I should have some fun pictures to share next week!

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Road Trip!

Hello all! After a lovely July 4th celebration the S Family hit the road and spent a week exploring more of our states natural beauty. Loads of pictures below. Most of them are self explanatory so I will keep the comments to a minimum.

Please do note the following: Anna's 4th of July outfit and bows are courtesy of Nana's Boutique. Anna was LIVID with Rachael and Esther or taking her on that elephant. It was snowing on the top of Pike's Peak. The boys were terribly impressed with snow in July.

Back to work tomorrow. Well...Jesse is going back to work. The kids and I have a week of swimming lessons and baseball games before we hit the road for another trip.

Just my boys, Anna and I. Alone. On a road trip. Just the 4 of us. Alone.

If you are so inclined, you might say a prayer for us. We are looking forward to our trip, but I will admit to having a few nerves regarding the 10 hour round trip.

Love to all!

























Princess Persnikety















Tuesday, July 1, 2008

All American Girl

Right down to the scrape on her knee.

Love to all!

PS Is it just me or is there a somewhat startling similarity between Anna and Drew Barrymore in her 1984 role as Firestarter in that last photo? You be the judge. She does have the temper..... http://listverse.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/wp1024firestarter02.jpg