2 Wheels

It's official, Ashley Marie, our 4-year-old (5 in 2 months) can ride her bike without training wheels!  It is a BIG day for her!  A month ago she tested it out with Daddy, but didn't master it.  Today is the day!  She just beams when she rides and I love love love her bravery and excitement!!!  Picture to come soon...

Mother's Day 2012

Today is a day to celebrate the love for moms.

I love being a mom  :) 

I love my mom.

I love gathering with our Race for the Cure friends.

I love how Abby calls Chad her boyfriend.

I love how much my best friend loves her two children.

Happy Mother's Day to all moms!  

We celebrate the survivors of breast cancer: Joey's girlfriend, Laura, my Grandma Liz, and Grandma Sally.

We fondly remember Charlotte Berg, my best friend's mother who lost her life to breast cancer 15 years ago.

Thank you Ashley for the card you made me in school (fill in the blanks):

*My mom likes to eat "salads."

*My mom is "10" years old.

*My mom is good at "making dinner."

*My mom weighs "a billion" pounds.

*My mom's favorite TV show is "not really anything."

*If I could give my mom anything in the world I would give her "a card."

Thank you Abigail for the project you made me in school (in your exact words):

*"My mom has blue eyes."

*"My mom eats green beens.  And she drinks diet mouton doo and milk."'

*"My mom lives at home, and outside."

*"My mom sings songs to me when I go to bed."

*"My mom is funny, and prity.  She is nice too!"

HAWAII

This is a part of Maui... gorgeous Hawaii!

So, Seth and I traveled to Hawaii (Oahu and Maui) on behalf of him earning the trip for being in the top 6% of sales in 2011 for his job with Marriott.  We were ecstatic to learn in December that we were going to Hawaii, just the two of us, with great perks from Marriott!  Way to go Seth!  We were gone for 11 days, the first few days having an agenda of meals, activities, awards with Marriott and other employees, and then the remainder of the trip being on our own.  Thank you Marriott (and Seth) for everything!  We have to say that Ko'Olina and Maui were our favorites, being absolutely beautiful.  Paradise  :)

In Oahu... just about to board the Atlantis Submarine!

Let me tell you, the first day in Hawaii we decided to take our first surfing lesson.  I never knew there was such an art to surfing.  It's not just a "pick a good wave and stand up and look cool" type deal.  Seth's fun ended abruptly when he cut his foot on some reef.  The beach first aid rinsed his heel and wrapped it up.  After worrying about his wound for 2 days (and re-bandaging as good as we could) we stopped at a clinic.  They cleaned it out (still found sand and a tiny piece of seaweed in his heel), stocked us up with antibiotic cream & bandages, checked infection off the list for now(whew!), and advised to stay out of the water (ocean & pool) because of bacteria.  Bummer to hear this at the beginning of our vacation, but it could have been worse.  Honestly, I'm better at helping deliver babies and not cleaning out wounds!  Oh yeah, I sampled the ocean water for both of us a few days later  :)

Waimoku Falls... a gorgeous waterfall that we finally saw at the end of a 2 hour hike.  Hiking back was much quicker without all the picture-taking!  The vegetation and waterfalls were so worth seeing.  Anna & Scott - we were thinking of you, knowing how you love to hike!

OUR WEDDING VOW RENEWAL...  (April 29, 2012)

It all started with Seth telling me has a surprise for me in Hawaii (before we even left home).  Ooooh, I love Seth's surprises, but I do admit that I get really nervous!  I seriously thought it was a helicopter ride, but kept telling him how scared I was and how I didn't want to go on one!  He would just grin that grin of his and say he's not telling.  Then, 5 days into our trip, he told me I would be getting my surprise on that very day.  We arrived to the JW Ihilani beach resort in Ko'Olina, Hawaii (a gorgeous place - paradise) and I asked him if we should make dinner reservations at their restaurant and when he replied, "I already made them for 7:00" my wheels started turning.  I knew it was not a helicopter ride... whew!  While getting ready for our supposed dinner Seth had laid out my clothes... this beautiful white dress and sandals (2 of each in different sizes just in case!).  He had shopped with all 3 kids on a Saturday while I was at work and bought our white attire all by himself!  And, the girls even had to keep it a secret... amazingly they did (a 7 and 4 year old)!  Of course I immediately got teary and knew exactly what my surprise was  :)  We will be celebrating our 10 year wedding anniversary this September 14 and Seth arranged for us to renew our beloved wedding vows on the beach in Hawaii (and have a photographer use our camera as well).  We walked out to this beach known as "Secret Beach" and there was a priest waiting for us.  It was a gorgeous view and a most beautiful occasion.  After the blessings from the priest we were able to share words with each other separately, or shall I say we choked on our words with tears, both of us.  It was such an incredible moment in time.  (Helicopter ride or wedding vow renewal in the lovely land of Hawaii?  I should have known he'd be so creative).  He is absolutely amazing.  I love him to pieces.  Thank you, my dear Seth.

Secret Beach

The Road to Hana

The Road after Hana... check out the narrow road (for 2 lanes), horrible patchwork bumps, desert-like with the beautiful blue ocean water nearby, yet so beautiful

Makena Beach

A beautiful rainbow out our balcony. We saw a few rainbows daily!

Lahaina

My view while suntanning!

Thank you hubby for a fabulous vacation!  Thank you to Gramma Barb, Great-Auntie Leslie, Grampy Randy & Grammy Pam for taking such good care of our Abby, Ashley, & Carson.  

Hawaii... here we come!

We sure are going to miss them!  A few recent pics of our litter...

As we are headed to Hawaii at this very moment... my hubby and I are ready to vacation together for 11 days... taking in the beauty of Hawaii for the first time, each other, and to celebrate the career success Seth had last year!  We are ever so grateful for the caretakers of our children while we enjoy this time (thanks Grandma Barb, Auntie Leslie, Grampy Randy & Grammy Pam).

His Nukie

Our baby boy really loves his Nukie. He calls it a "Guk." It's pretty darn cute. We say, "Carson, do you want to go to bed?" (even when it's not bedtime).  He says, "Yes, Guk!" Ha, it's his only chance to suck on this thing. It's limited to his crib only, but sometimes he sneaks it out and this is what he does... he sucks on it likes it's heavenly candy and he rubs his eyelashes, while cuddling with his blankie. It's the cutest thing I've ever seen :) His Nukie days are numbered though...

Happy Easter!

Smooch to Grammy!!!

Our sweet little bunnies on Easter! Thank you, Grammy Pam, for their Easter outfits! You have remarkable talent!

Last week...

I have to share this... Starting last Sunday night my little Abby got sick at 2:00 a.m., vomiting right on her bedroom floor. She felt so bad for not making it to the toilet. For two days she was couch-ridden, had a fever, diarrhea, no appetite, and was very quiet (whoah!). On the 3rd day she improved and finally went back to school on the 4th day. Ha, on Wednesday night Ashley got sick at 1:45 a.m., vomiting in her hands and leaving a trail from her bedroom to the bathroom. She also felt so bad for not making it to the toilet! Exactly 5 minutes later Carson got sick, vomiting in his crib. Placing Carson side-by-side with Ashley on the bathroom floor, I panicked a little, trying to decide what to do... because Seth was on a business trip and I was all alone! Seriously, I don't really complain when my husband is gone, but this... all 3 kids being sick at the same time! Ahhhh! I had to be tough and show my kids that I could handle this! Ashley was couch-ridden for 2 days, but she didn't have the nasty diarrhea like Abby did (until days later); she puked about every hour all day long (poor thing). The next night Carson woke up at 1:00 a.m. calling "mama, dada, mama, dada, home." Did he miss Daddy? Mommy sure did! Then, poor Ashley woke up at 2, 3, 4, and 5:00 a.m. vomiting. Needless to say, I had to call into work that day saying "ill childREN" and prayed I wouldn't get it. Seth came home the next day, thank God. He managed to miss most of the fun! It's now Sunday, one week later, and I still haven't had it. Sure hope I'm in the clear. All the kids have barely eaten all week (really easy at meal times!), Ashley still has a fever on and off, and I just couldn't wait to get out of the house to work this weekend! I have cleaned, washed, sanitized, done all that I possibly can to clear these nasty stomach bug germs from our house...

I can see clearly now!

All I have to say is... LASIK! I did it! On March 15, I ditched my contacts and glasses and underwent Lasik at LasikPlus. I started wearing glasses when I was 11 years old and now that I'm 32 and no longer have to worry about vision correction, I'm thrilled! I was extremely nervous, thinking all the "what-ifs" with Lasik, but now that it's in my past, I am so happy! Today is my last day to use all my drops so I pray that my eyes continue to heal and my vision stays as good as it is!

All by myself

Sierra Nevada Mountains

Lake Tahoe (1)

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It's true, I've never done this before... My hubby invited me along to Reno, Nevada on his business trip. I debated over going, and well, we left yesterday and return home tomorrow already. This is my first time joining my hubby while he's on business. Seth pre-warned me that he has a lot of work time to put in and I'll be on my own for most of the trip. Whoa, what? Alone time?! I'll take it! So, let me tell you how I've spent this ALONE time... I've finished a book I started 2 months ago, I started another book, I watched a movie, I've toured this Peppermill hotel, I've worked out, and I've ventured out on a 6-hour road trip navigating myself around Lake Tahoe!!! Woohoo! What a gorgeous place this is. Lake Tahoe is something I've never seen before and would love to come back during the summer months, but with my family :). Driving on the curvy mountain roads, sometimes with no guard rail, and taking 175 pictures of the beautiful mountains and lake views, I have thoroughly enjoyed my own quiet time. Peace, beauty, and serenity all in one. Thanks to Grampy Randy for taking such good care of my little darlings at home!

I posted my favorite pictures... which one is your favorite? Mmmmm, I could just sit and stare and dream of the wonderful waters...

Thanks honey for bringing me on your business trip! I enjoyed being with you (the little bit we got to share!) and being all by myself (only because it's an obvious rarity!).