One Last Hoorah

Yeadon took this past weekend off and it's been great! He needed the break and we all needed some family fun. Yead and I decided to go to Tahoe for our one and only visit of the season. The girls were soooo excited. We stopped at a local corner market store where all the summer accoutrements were 90% off... Yep, I got sand toys, water noodles, and squirt guns for just pennies. The snacks cost more than the toys! Anyway, we made the trip up the mountain and within an hour were looking at the beautiful scene of Lake Tahoe. We drove to the beach where we needed to pay for parking. I was smart. Got cash at the market.... However, the money taker person was not available to break our $20 in order for us to have change for the $8 fee... so we had to "donate" the extra $12 to "Keep Tahoe Blue." Yep, not so smart on my part. Whatever. We loaded up all of our gear and got to the beach. Kaelin, my oh-so-fearless child, ran right to the water without taking off her clothes. Luckily, we reached her in time before she dove head first in the water. The water was not nearly as cold as I thought it would be, which I was very thankful for. We decided to walk out as far as the girls could go, just to see how deep the water was. Not too deep, but deep enough that we made sure that our daredevil wouldn't go walking out by herself. We played in the sand, tried to catch the little fish that were everywhere, and tried to chase the squirrels whom Kealin named "Tika" (for those of you who don't watch Dora the Explorer, this is the name of one of the characters on the show.) Overall, it was a FABULOUS time and we loved every second of it. Maybe next year we won't wait until the end of the season to enjoy the wonderfulness of Tahoe!

You may be wondering why Yead's wearing his shirt while in the water?? Because he's a VERY WHITE man and he would not have been happy with the burn he probably would have gotten.

FYI: If you would like to see a video of our time at the beach, check out this link.

Woven and Spun

We love all things homemade and handmade in our home. I have been SO very productive in that capacity since having my surgery a month and a half ago. Quilt tops, clothes for the girls, gifts for other little girls... It's been a sewing extravaganza in this home. I've loved it! That's one of the reasons the blog side of things has been so quiet... I've been creating!
Auntie Nikki made this pillowcase dress for Kaelin's birthday. She loves it! Whenever she puts it on she says "Aunti Nikki dress." :) I made this dress for Kayden out of a vintage looking skirt of mine. It never fit me the right way, so I thought I'd repurpose it and this is the result. Love it. I used a pattern and had the lining material on hand so it didn't cost a penny to make. Love it when THAT happens.
This is one of my new favorite hairstyles for Kaden. It's a ponytail, turned inside itself, then seperated into three parts. These parts are then braided into three braids and the three braids are then braided together. Soooooo pretty!

Good Morning World!

This was the view at the kitchen table this morning... Fun times, fun times!

Yep, that's Kaelin's elephant towel draped on the back of the chair and on her head. Have a great day!

Riding the Rails

Yeadon and I took the girls up the road to Virginia City a few weeks ago. Virginia City is our local piece of history. It was originally the capital of Nevada during the gold rush years. It is now a quaint little town, resplendent with one of the oldest schools still standing in the US and the "Bucket of Blood Saloon." Fun stuff, fun stuff! Anyway, we decided to ride the steam train on it's 30 minute tour of Virginia City. The girls had fun and so did Mama and Daddy. We just found out that the train will now run from Virginia City to Carson City... Won't that be a fun day trip for the fam??

My Loves

God has so richly blessed my life and I just had to share some picts of my loves...

Changes are Coming...

This is a month of changes for our family. I can just feel it! I had to get another epidural last week and I'm just praying that this one lasts forever. If not, one a year isn't too bad, right? Yeadon had Lasik done last week, too. The running joke between us is "Hey, you can see now, huh?" to which Yeadon replies, "I can see! I can see!" Mind you, he always wore glasses or contacts, but without either he was truly vision impaired. And lastly, I will be having a surgery at the end of the month that will hopefully change my life forever. It's pretty personal for details on the web, and if I haven't already explained it to you, well, give me a call and then I'll give you the details. But suffice it to say... Our God is big and His plans for our lives are always amazing.

As for the new do... Well, I got my hair cut a few weeks ago and I just wasn't pleased with the way it was growing out. So, I made an impulse call to my stylist and this is what came of the visit. I LOVE it! So much fun and I feel sexy.... Hey, a mom of a three year old and a two year needs to get her perks somewhere, right??

She's only two, but....

Sometimes I wonder about God's sense of humor. Kaelin turned two last month (pictures coming.) How is it that my sweet little girl has turned into a terror? I love her, I really do, but GOODNIGHT! She was energetic, yes. Smart, no doubt. Headstrong, I'll give you that. But... A total transformation has come over this child and I don't know what to do. Example: Yeadon and I were going to go out to eat the other night to a new restaurant. We had to LEAVE the establishment because of embarassament over our child! She was literally climbing on EVERYTHING! ::Sigh:: Such is life with a two year old AND a three year old... This too shall pass, yes??

On to happier things... Belated 2nd birthday pictures!

Since we were unable to give Kaelin a birthday party last year due to my back, we kinda splurged this year. We went to pizza at our favorite pizza place and I got Kaelin a very fancy birthday cake from a VERY yummy bakery. We had friends and family join us, and it was a delightful time.

Yeadon made Kaelin this birthday hat. He felt that since I made Kayden a birthday crown, he needed to make Kaelin something. I think it is just fabulous.

We also decided to convert Kaelin's crib into a "big girl" bed. She loved climbing in it and playing in it; however, the sleeping part didn't come so easily. We still have to lay with her until she gets close to falling asleep. The first few nights she would play in the girls' room until she crashed somewhere on the floor. One night I found her curled up in the corner of the room with her blanket and pillow, and she was sleeping on the feet of the rocking chair. My poor girl. We're getting there, we're getting there...