Day Six—Time to go home!

I must say that this morning when I woke up I was kind of sad knowing that it was time for Thomas and I to pack our suitcase and say good bye to Troy, Julie and Tyler.  I had such a great time with Tyler and Thomas.  It was a lot of hard work but it was well worth it.  Spending time with Tyler and Thomas was priceless.  They had such a good time playing together.  Thomas loved being able to take care of “baby Tyler” and I loved taking care of both of them. Thomas was ready to come home.  Yesterday he must have told me 20 times that he missed his Mommy and wanted to know when he was going to go home.  

I am so lucky to have siblings that trust me enough to take care of their children. Kelly, Dave, Julie and Troy have given me opportunities I wouldn’t have been able to experience on my own and have allowed me to do it in my own way.  They have never criticized or questioned anything that I have done with their children and I have been able to treat them as my own.  I can’t find words to express how much I love Thomas, Noelle and Tyler.  I can only hope that they know how grateful I am to them for giving me the opportunities to spend quality time with their children.

Thank You Troy and Kelly for giving me opportunities that I will never forget.  I had a great time and can’t wait till the next time I get to do it again!!!

 

Day Five in San Diego

Day five, Monday, was our day to go to Sea World.  There’s not much to say other than the kids had a BLAST.  We got there when the park opened and left at around 5:30.  I can say that taking two small kids by myself was really really hard and I was totally tired by the time I got home but seeing the smiles on Tyler and Thomas faces made it well worth it!!!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Day Four in San Diego

After three days of going and going and going I decided that we needed a day to rest.  I was pooped and I thought the kids were to.  I had planned to go to Sea World on Monday so I needed to get the house cleaned up and the laundry done before then because we were leaving Tuesday morning.  So, we stayed in our PJ’s the majority of the day and played, cleaned, did some crafts, did some laundry, watched Ratatouille and cleaned some more.  Thomas was such a big help that I thought he deserved a little reward.  I decided on a pizza party.  I called up Round Table and ordered Thomas and I our own small pizzas, a can of root beer and ranch.  When the delivery guy showed up the look on his face was priceless!  He was so excited about his pizza party. 

It’s all about the small things in life.  In the end we didn’t end up eating much of the pizza

and Thomas doesn’t EVER drink soda so he took one sip and was done with his root beer.

Tyler ate the crust of the pizza and we had a fun time sitting in the living room around the coffee table to eat dinner. 

  

 

 

Day Three in San Diego

Day three, Saturday.  I decided that we would go to the San Diego Zoo today.  I decided to wait until Tyler to get up from his morning nap before going.  That was my first mistake.  By the time we left the house it was 12:30 and we didn’t get to the Zoo until a little after 1:00.  The parking lot that I found was free however there wasn’t a parking spot in the whole place.  Cars were driving up and down every aisle trying to find someone leaving.  After 37 minutes I finally got a spot.  Troy and Julie have season passes so I didn’t have to worry about waiting in line to get in.  I didn’t have a stroller for both of the kids so I rented one.  That was my best decision of the day.  The kids loved the Zoo and the weather was perfect.

Make a Smilebox slideshow' target=_blank>

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Day Two in San Diego

When Troy and Julie called and first asked me if I would come and watch Tyler while they were in Cabo, I immediately thought this would be a perfect opportunity to have my picture professionally taken with Tyler. When Thomas was little I did the same thing with him and to this day that is one of my favorite pictures.  Then I got to thinking how fun it would be to take Thomas along with me to take care of Tyler.  Of course Julie and Troy said that was fine (Thanks Troy for buying his ticket!). I was really excited that I would be able to take my picture with both of my nephews! I went and found perfect green and blue shirts for the boys and I had a great green sweater. 

Kelly and I had been with Julie twice before with Julie to JcPenny's to have all the kids pictures taken when we were in San Diego and the girls that took the pictures both times did such a great job that I wanted to make sure and go to the same store.  So, I looked at an old envelope of pictures and found the store number and called JcPenny’s and found out what store it was and made my appointment. Anyone that has taken kids to get their pictures taken knows that it’s really important to pick a time when the kids are the happiest.  Since I don’t know when Tyler is the happiest I had to take a guess at the time.  I picked 12:30.   

Friday morning we woke up, had breakfast, played a little and then I put Tyler down for a nap.  I got ready then got Thomas ready and then woke Tyler up.  He was in a GREAT mood.  At this point I think I scored!!!  We got out the door at 12:10.  I drive to where I thought I remembered going with Julie (and where Kelly thought too) and found out that I remembered WRONG! I was in the wrong shopping center and I had no idea where JcPenny’s was.  So I called information and reached a girl in the portrait studio who proceeded to tell me that they didn’t have an appointment for me!!!  I kind of freaked out however she said they had something at 1:40.  I got the directions and headed over there.  Hoping that the kids were going to still be in good moods.  I didn’t plan well with the outfits because it was really HOT and the boys had long sleeves and I had a sweater on.  We got to JcPenny’s at 1:00 and had to wait for about 30 minutes.  The kids were PERFECT! The girl taking our pictures was EXTERMELY energetic and engaging.  Tyler and Thomas were laughing and had a great time.  I couldn’t have asked for a better experience!!  I loved all of the pictures.  Even the ones with me in them and I hardly ever like the way I look in a picture!! I ordered a ton.  I have no idea what I am going to do with all of them.   The girls there loved the boys, which turned out great for me!  I ended up with a few things free and my pictures shipped to my house! 

After pictures we went to my favorite yogurt shop and went home and played in the backyard.  Day #2 was over and again a success.  

  

San Diego-- Day #1-- Park Pictures

Day #1 in San Diego included having fun at the park. Here are some snapshots.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Day One in San Diego

Kelly was kind enough to let Thomas come along to help me take care off Tyler. Thomas missed her 30th birthday today. He made her a cute video to let her know that he was thinking of her.




This morning when I woke up I had great ideas on what we would do. Things didn't go quite as I had planned but we had a great day. We had pancakes for breakfast. Then Thomas and I played outside while Tyler took his morning nap. After Tyler woke up, we packed up and ran our errands. You would think that while your on vacation that you wouldn't do your "everyday" things but of course I couldn't miss a week without heading to Target. I forgot Thomas' crayons and his paper to paint so we picked up those things and a few necessities and were on our way. We then hit the grocerey store and picked up a few things. Then finally we got to go play at the park. (I've posted a slideshow of those pictures). After I went to my favorite thing in San Diego, the yogurt shop down the street. They didn't have my favorite strawberry but they did have my other favorite cookies n' cream. The real adventure started when we left the yogurt shop. When we got to the car, I told Thomas to stand by the back drivers side tire, while I put Tyler in his carseat. After I got Tyler in his seat, I looked over for Thomas and he was GONE. My heart skipped a beat and I started yelling his name. I looked behind the car, the side of the car and started looking around the parking lot. I immediately thought someone took him. There were a few cars in the parking lot but nobody was around. By this time I was crying and still yelling his name. When I turned around again towards the car, he was just standing there. He saw me crying and said "Auntie why are you crying". I told him to come with me and get in the car. I needed a minute to compose myself. Right when I got in the car, my cell phone rang, it was Julie. I knew I had to answer and tried to compose myself the best I could so I wouldn't scare her. She could hear in my voice I was upset so I explained the story to her. Once I got off the phone, I talked to Thomas about what happened and why I was so sad. He thought he was playing hide-n-seek and didn't think was doing anything wrong but he knew by the time we were done. He appoligized about 20 times by the time the evening was over. He really knew he SCARED ME! We got home and played in the backyard some more while Tyler took his afternoon nap and then made dinner. Overall, we had a good day and are looking forward to Friday!

Off to San Diego

Kelly, Dave and Noelle dropped Thomas and Me off at the airport on Wednesday afternoon. Thomas was really excited about getting to go on the plane and helping me to take care of Tyler while Troy and Julie go to Cabo. I'm really excited just to be able to spend time with the both of them. I have lots of plans but we will have to wait and see what we actually get to do.

Racing for Autism

My Mom was kind enough to watch Noelle while my Dad and I went to the grand opening of the  Stockton 99 speedway.  I had only been there once before with my friend, Donna B., a couple of years ago.  I had a lot of fun then and couldn’t wait for a chance to go back.  We had great weather and great entertainment.  As many of you know I work with people with developmental disabilities and I was excited when they introduced Carlos Vieira who is donating all of his winnings this season to Autism Research. 

I looked at Carlos Vieira’s website this afternoon and I was pretty impressed.  If you want more information about Autism you can look at his website or the  Autism Speaks website. 

Every girl needs a candy necklace

Yesterday when Noelle and I went grocery shopping she saw these necklaces and wanted one.  She didn’t know they were candy but she new that she wanted one.  Kelly and I have been telling her that she is “pretty” and when she repeats it, it sounds really cute.  So, of course I had to buy her a candy necklace so she could be pretty.  It was a perfect gift because Noelle loves to eat!!!!

This one is for you Auntie Julie

I decided to make spaghetti for dinner tonight.  The last time I took pictures of Noelle eating spaghetti, Julie decided that she as going to wait until Tyler was a lot older before trying that. 

Well Julie, it was a much cleaner experience this time.  

On the weekends that I have Noelle I always try and find some kind of activity to do with her so after all of the chores we had to do today, I decided to make cookies with her.  I kind of cheated and bought the already made cookie dough but we put them on the cookie sheet and she thought that was great.

Kelly and Mom, did you notice anything in this picture???? Once again Noelle is just like her Auntie and is wearing one sock.  What can I say…. she wants to be just like her Auntie.

 

We played in the bath while the cookies were baking.

Then after a long day, it was time to eat our cookies and hit the hay.  Let’s hope that without the bribery that she sleeps all night!!!!!

Strawberry Jam

I saw a lady selling Strawberries on the side of the road the other day. I have been out of my VERY FAVORITE strawberry jam for months now so I decided to make some today.  Noelle and I made the jam before she took her nap. I hope that it turns out great!

Bribery, is it all that bad?

I was totally right when I thought Noelle would wake up at the butt crack of dawn! 

Last night I did something that I have NEVER done before.  I totally  bribed Noelle into sleeping all night.  I told her that if she was good and slept all night I would buy her a new baby today.  I really thought that she would forget and I really didn’t think she would sleep all night because she hasn’t the last three nights.  But low and behold she totally did.  She still got up early but I got a whole nights sleep without getting woke up two and three times to her SCREAMING at the top of her lungs.  When I went in to pick her up this morning she said “baby” and she totally remembered that bribed her and she slept all night.  I put her in bed with me and Indy hoping that she would go back to sleep but no such luck.  So, I went on with my plan of hitting the grocery store while everyone else was sleeping.  We had breakfast and were out the door by 7:30am.  I was right no one was at the store.  We took our time at the store, came home, unpacked and put away the grocery’s and realized that i had forgot to buy the stuff I wanted to make dinner with tonight.  So I packed up Noelle and off to the store we went.  Noelle had remembered that she was supposed to get a new baby and had reminded me several times.  We were passing Toys R Us so I decided to stop.  We picked out her a new baby (that’s a whole other story) and got Thomas some new Army guys to take on our vacation.  Then off to the grocery store we were.  I got what I wanted and we made it home by 11:30. 

Some of you may remember that when Thomas was about Noelle’s age he had a terrible behavior of pulling his pants down when he was mad.  Well I was putting the grocery’s away (the 2nd time) and Noelle comes around the corner with her pants down.  Oh how I hope this isn’t going to be a recurrent event!!!

 

Hard Work…

We had another really nice day yesterday so I decided to come home after work and mow the lawns instead of going to the grocery store.  I actually thought since Noelle hadn’t slept very well the last few days and would be up at the butt crack of dawn this morning I could go to the grocery store early in the morning when people that have children that sleep would still be sleeping.  It’s a lot easier to take Noelle to the grocery store then trying to mow the lawns and keep an eye on her.  My plan was to get off a little early on Friday afternoon but that didn’t happen.  So, I stopped at McDonalds on my way home from work (I didn’t get a chance to eat lunch).  Went home, ate real quick, edged and mowed the front and back lawns, played with Indy and took a shower all before Kelly and Dave dropped off Noelle at 6:30!  I was pretty proud of myself.  Here is a little video of Indy playing with the kids ball.  I think she is totally cute when she’s running after the ball. 

The love of grass

The weather was perfect on Wednesday so I took the kids out to play for a little bit before taking their baths.  They enjoyed it for the most part but by the end of the evening they were both crying and ready for bed.  Their both have seasonal allergies and the grass gives Thomas the worst rash!  They both love playing outside so it’s hard to keep them inside when the weather is so nice.  Thank goodness for Benadryl and Claritin.

   

Thomas’ Day

We have always joked with Thomas that St. Patrick’s Day is his day because his middle name is Patrick.  So in honor of Thomas’ Day, I thought I would make a list of some of my favorite things about him.

1. His smile and space between his two front teeth.    

 

2.  His sense of humor. 

3.  His caring/loving nature. When he looks at me and you can see the wheels turning in his head trying to come up with something nice to say like 

• Ummm Auntie, I love your blue toilet water.
• Ummm Auntie, I love your shirt today.
• Ummm Auntie I love your couch.
• Ummm Auntie, I love your shoes today.
• Ummm Auntie, I love your dog, today.

4. When he grabs my checks and says “Auntie your a “cutie pie”.

5.  When he sits in his little chair and plays his “people walking game” with no idea what he is really doing.

6. When he runs to my front door from the car yelling the entire way “Aunnnntie” and the minute I open the door he says “I missed you today”.

7.  The smile on his face when he goes to Sunday School or Preschool.

8.  When he gets protective over his little sister and says I love “Joelle” or “I love my baby sister” or “that’s MY baby sister” or “be nice to my baby sister”. Always with that very serious look and tone.

9.  When it’s mine turn to play the video game and he says “Ummm Auntie don’t you want to watch me play.” or “Ummm Auntie how about I play today and you play tomorrow”.

10.  When he sings a loud as he can in the car and then says turn it up I can’t hear.

11.  When he plays nicely with his sister… enough said

12.  When he tries his hardest to help with a chore and the excitement on his face when he is done.

13. When he plays hide and go seek and he hides in the SAME PLACE EVERY TIME!!!

14. When he makes up a story to tell just to have something to say.

15.  When he gets excited about making hot chocolate in the morning.

16.  When he can tell that anyone is sad, he tries to make them feel better.

17. When he calls me at work to tell me what he has done that day.  

I’ll end with 17 in honor of  St. Patrick’s Day 

Next week Thomas and I are going to San Diego and babysit Tyler while Troy and Julie get to go on a well deserved vacation for a week.  I’m really excited to spend time with both of them.  I’m sure it’s going to be an adventure.  The plan is to go to the Zoo, Wild Animal Park and Sea World.  We will have to see what we actually get done.  I’m not sure how smart it is to take a 4 year old and 11 month old baby to amusement parks by myself.  Wish me luck.  I’ll post when I get back.

Lessons learned

Learning to trust your gut is a lesson that is priceless and I think I have finally learned that. Actually, I think I learned that a long time ago when I made some poor choices but this time I remembered to follow my gut even though I didn’t want to. The added bonus this time… I was right! It didn’t feel good to be right, but I’m glad that I was strong enough to make the right decision.

I have also recently learned that if you give people enough time they REALLY will show their true colors.  It isn’t always easy to make good decisions and sometimes it really sucks to have to do the right thing but eventually it will payoff and make sense. I really have had to live and learn!!!

Happy 30th Birthday, KELLY!!!

I can’t believe Kelly is going to be 30 years old!

Her birthday isn’t until March 26th but we had to celebrate this weekend because Thomas and I will be in San Diego babysitting Tyler on her birthday.  She asked for a cheesecake for dessert so I decided to try and make my first cheesecake.  I found a recipe for a Golden Lemon Cheesecake in my Taste of Home baking cookbook.  I love to bake so I thought it would be fun to try something I have never done before. 

I made my own graham cracker crust. 

I think it turned out pretty good for my first time.  This afternoon I added the lemon glaze on the top.

Then after a fabulous dinner at BJ’s (thanks DAD) we went home to open her gifts, play the Wii and of course try the lemon cheesecake. 

The cheesecake part was perfect.  I loved the freshness of the lemon.  The crust on the other hand either cooked to long or it got to cold in the refrigerator.  It was a little hard but the flavor was good and the longer it sat out the softer it became. 

So, Kelly I hope you had a good birthday, that you enjoyed all of your gifts and are ready for your new beginning.  Happy Birthday, I love You!!!