more holiday fun: 2014

 

the next day, the sisters and cousins all hit the roller rink!
we had such fond memories from our last outing, i thought it would be a
fun activity for all of us!

i think it's safe to say everyone had a great time and the boys {all of them}
have improved so much.  finn felt so confident,  that he decided to race!
i was a little worried as he isn't known for being a speed skate, but the
auntie sat on the edge of the rink cheering him on. {though he didn't win, he
did fantastic}

leslie and i must have been having flashbacks from our middle school years because,
after watching finn, we were inspired to compete in the adult 18+ race.
i was a teensy bit nervous as i hadn't raced in 20 + years, but more importantly,
i wanted to show finn that it's ok to put yourself out there...that's what life is all about.
i was lucky, racing came back to me.  leslie and i did very well *wink*

such fun memories.  so much that I think this will become one of our 'things'
when we have sister reunions. 

~ in the last hour of skating, ander found himself a cozy nook and
went to sleep. i didn't snap a photo as i was fearful i'd wake him but
he was Adorable. 

holiday fun: 2015

this holiday season was full of family and fun and
though it went quickly, i have the memories of photos
to reflect and smile on.

aunt jen flew in from austin, and aunt leslie and her clan
drove all the way down from northern California so we had
a full house.  the double bunk beds came in handy as the boys
all slept in the bed/playroom and leslie set up a pack n play
for little aria in the guestroom. i did my best to make a cozy bed
for aunt jen who slept on an air mattress in the library.

us aunties spent time loving on our new niece,
and happy to learn that she is easy going. 
she let us all hold and love on her, and the grin she gave us
made us fall even more in love with her.

the first day of leslie's visit was spent just catching up and eating.
early that morning, a big pancake breakfast was prepared - with fresh
fruit, whipping creme, powered sugar, etc.   we tried to replicate
cute pancake christmas figures {santa, snowman, etc.}, but ours didn't quite
turn out as pretty as the ones from pinterest.  no one seemed to care.
the boys had fun and more importantly, they were yummy.

 
 
 
 

 

christmas 2015

as promised, the boys DID manage to stay in their rooms until 7am,
but came bounding into our bedroom seconds after yelling
"it's time, it's time and jumping on our bed".
{their enthusiasm could have waken the dead}.

i am usually a morning person,
one of those annoying people that almost jump out of bed ready to start their day. 
because i was up so late, i was exhausted.

i asked that the boys wait 15 minutes so i could get a few minutes more of rest
and wash my face before the christmas morning festivities began. 
they groaned and said i was torturing them {they had been up since just before 6am,
but they went back to their room.

i staggered to the living room, called them in and had my camera in hand.
the boys came running in tearing around the tree, looking for presents with
their name or initial on it. {santa uses letter tags as muchas he can these days}
one present was obvious as it was a little bigger than the rest.

it was a mountain bike.
santa brought scoutie a new bike since he had outgrown his.
this one has gears which will help him bike around around our hilly
neighborhood more easily. finn still needs gears, but he has a birthday just
around the corner so we'll see.  santa brought finn lots of space related books,
and he brought both boys some star wars legos sets.  

for 2 years i've been wanting a way to get all our bikes to the beach/bay easily
since biking there isn't really an easy option since we are farther away.
santa brought me a tow bar to have welded on my prius so I can put a bike rack on.
it's not a glamorous gift by any means, but it's exactly what i had been wanting. 
{it ties into something the boys hear me say all the time....things aren't important,
experiences and people are}. a trip or event is always my preference over things.

my new tow bar and bike rack will bring me together with the people i love,
AND will bring us lots of new and fun experiences together.

auntie jen flew in christmas eve so she was able to witness the festivities
{and gets auntie awards for waking up at the crack of dawn every year to see her nephews
experience christmas morning}.  we were glad to have her.

auntie leslie and her family arrived around midnight for the next several days.
more to come.



christmas eve 2014

christmas eve was spent in our traditional way -
with chili in the crockpot, the boys getting their new pjs,
the family around the tv watching a christmas movie and the boys
tracking santa! how do they 'track' santa you wonder.

they go to NORAD, a website created for this very purpose.
this wasn't around when us gen x and ys were young,
but it's here for the z generation and my boys are lucky,
along with thousands of other kids, who benefit from it.

with a 10 year old suspicious of everything and extremely logical,
NORAD offers detailed scientific data about santa's whereabouts in the world,
how many presents he has delivered {down to the second}, reports and locations
of 'santa sightings', and when he is expected to arrive at your home.

finn reminded me that on christmas eve, all those countries that have a military
give 'space clearance' to santa because it's a special night. *grin*
that's SO finn oliver...thinking about the logistics of it all. 
the boys spent the evening going back to their computer checking on santa's
whereabouts and telling us all how excited they were.  oh to be a child on christmas eve. 

before they turned in, we left out a few of the cookies that we had made a few
days earlier, a cup of milk, carrots for the reindeer, and before I turned in, i did what
mommies around the world do to help make their children's christmas magical. 

i crawled in bed before midnight, hoping santa wouldn't pass us up, and hoping that the
morning didn't come too early. *sigh* 

{i made it clear the boys couldn't leave their bedroom before 7am christmas day}.

tracking santa - finn {10] and scout {7}

christmas cookies

my dear girlfriend melissa contacted me a week before christmas
asking if i was taking some off work before the big day and if the boys might be
interested in baking {actually decorating} sugar cookies with her two kiddos. 

of course i responded, crossing my fingers the boys hadn't outgrown decorating cookies.
since i have a little more room in my kitchen, i offered to host the baking play date!

melissa arrived on monday bearing cookie dough, extra pans, sprinkles and icing.
i pulled out all the christmas sprinkles i'd had stored away and the bin of cookie cutters
i have collected over the last 15+ years....half being acquired when i was in the
big brother/big sister program back in our college days. c tried to get me to donate
them but i refused. i knew they'd come in hand someday.

the kiddos had a blast...the little ones more than the big one. 
finn is on the cusp of the "i'm too cool for cookie decorating phase", but he was a trooper.
kennedy, at 3 now, absolutely loved it and is in the stage where she wants to do everything
by herself, and i mean everything. the psychedelic looking cookies are a results of her
newfound independence and willpower.

we had a wonderful morning...and it was a real treat to have a little girl in our home!

top: logan {6}, scout {7}, kennedy {3}, finn {10}

 

~ to entertain kennedy while the bookies baked,  I dug out the treasure chest
full of loot from scoutie's 5th birthday.  kennedy adorned herself in every necklace
she could find in it and went home with a few jewels on her fingers. *wink* 

parade day

one of our family traditions is watching the pacific beach parade in our
little beach community.  for years we lived within walking distance
to the beach and the pb parade.  we'd walk 4 blocks to garnet avenue
and find a curb to sit on along the parade route.

now that we are a few more blocks away, we drive to an adjacent street,
and park close by.  this is what we did this past saturday morning after
we grabbed take out from taco surf.  we were lucky to run into a family
we met recently with 2 similar aged boys, so we sat with them the entire time. 

the pb parade isn't anything fancy AT ALL. there might be a total of 2 floats in the
entire thing. it's mostly made up of kids from local schools, churches, and community
clubs and organizations from the neighborhood. it's perfect.

this year, scout was asked to participate with the pacific youth soccer league.
he would have to suit up in one of his past soccer uniforms and walk.
i was excited for him, but when i told him, he said he'd much rather watch
the parade. he confessed he wanted to get candy that is handed or thrown to him.
{like the 15 lbs. he has in his halloween bag isn't enough i thought}.

i didn't push it as there will be hopefully be lots of opportunities for him to be in
the parade in years to come.  so we sat and watched runners pass before the parade
started {there was a 'fun run'}, and then came the real parade.  we saw SO many kids
and families we've known from all aspects of  our lives -
from preschool days, play dates, explorer, soccer and birthdays.
this is truly one of the joys of living in a community!

one sweet surprise was seeing the eichorn twins, kai and katherine!
they were riding in the back of their dad's electric smart car waving.
their dad stopped, we all chatted and learned that there's an electric car
club in pacific beach {of course there is}. we are a beach community.

some snapshots of neighborhood kids, friends and santa on a firetruck:
{left to right}: katherine and kai, the asher siblings,
santa on a firetruck, cara and robert {our neighbors}

it was such a fun day. we will definitely be back next year!

~ we crammed 2 holiday parties in this weekend - my company's party was
friday night and held here and saturday's c's company's party was held here. 
i'm not bias at all, but my company's party was WAY better!  *wink*

all about scout

been meaning to get this posted for 2 weeks now,
but it's been go, go, go.

every week a child is selected to be the 'explorer' kid of the week. 
scout was selected a few weeks ago and was so thrilled.
he loved filling out the poster sized sheet of paper he was given to bring
home, and i was happy to help dig out photos for him to cut and tape in.
here's the finished piece:



scout gerber, age 7, 2nd grade



i'm officially done christmas shopping and was thrilled i didn't have to set a single foot in

the mall {thanks to Amazon}.  now i can relax a bit, watch more christmas movies, get to the gym a few

nights a week to burn calories from all the sweets that i've been eating. i've been SO naughty!

 



'tis the season

he puzzled and puzzed till his puzzler was sore.
then the grinch thought of something he hadn't before.
maybe christmas, he thought... doesn't come from a store.
maybe christmas, perhaps... means a little bit more!
~ the grinch

oh where to begin??

auntie jen was in town the first weekend of december for her
company's holiday party as they are based here in san diego.
{a nice little treat}.  one evening we all gathered around the tv to
watch our first holiday movie of the season. jen suggested the grinch.

it had been 2 years or so since i had see this movie and i had forgotten
how much I enjoyed it - it's SO much fun! jim carey is amazing as the grinch,
i love the hairstyles of the whos, but the best part to me is the movie's message.

i absolutely love this season!
i love putting up a christmas tree, giving the boys their special ornament,
the beautiful lights, the music, the treats, and the traditions we've started at home.
all those things make me smile.  

the commercialism however, weighs on me.
this is my least favorite part of the holiday season.

though there is a 3 present limit from santa,
i still find myself struggling not to over indulge with presents from the parents
{even if it's just with books}.  c is much more disciplined than i am and reminds me
that kids don't need 'things'. they need US - our time and our guidance. so very true.

as the boys get older they are becoming more aware of people - of those that have,
and those that do not.  they are starting to recognize they have a lot...more than they need.
finn brought home a paper from school that listed what he is thankful for.
as he shared it with me, he said "i really do have a lot of privileges". i agreed.
i was touched that he had the maturity and ability to see this and verbalize it.
with all that we are blessed with, this season reminds me that giving is so
much better than receiving. and there is so many in need.

so as big day approaches, the boys are pulling money out of  their 'to give' container,
and thinking about how to share the money they've put in their all year. while they do
this, i vow to keep the grinch's famous line in my head, that christmas doesn't come from
a store, that christmas...means a little bit more.

~ as for santa, gosh we haven't really talked about they guy at all this season
{except for when the boys made him a list}. it's something parents do less and less
of as our kids get older. it's very purposeful.

though scout is still young, finn is 10, and by 4th and 5th grade, there are only a
handful of kids and parents {like me} who are hoping to experience one more year of magic.
we're looking forward to auntie jen coming back to san diego for christmas and auntie
leslie and her family.  i see lots of FUN ahead!

holiday head party: 2014

we didn't let another holiday season go by without meeting
for our annual 'head' party. {we almost had the whole gang together}

sidnee and lee were lovely hosts - so much good good and drink!
as always, the gift exchange was lots of fun and we got a good chuckle
when we learned michael and christopher were each other secret santas
and purchased the EXACT same gift for each other....a giftcard to MakerPlace. 

it must be an architect or and engineer thing. *grin*

it's located just 10 minutes away from our neighborhood and perfect
for people who like to make things. they have every tool imaginable,
3-d printers, and even classes for things you might want to make. 
{finn and scout are excited about joining c for his next project}

~ on our way home, finn and scout asked how long we'd known
this group of friends. gosh, long before they were twinkles in our eyes.
{a few since 1992 from our arizona days, and the rest since 1997}.
we're looking forward to lots more celebrations with these folks.

thanksgiving 2014 (cont.)

i'm so far behind on posts and before any more times passes,
i had to share a few highlights of our time in utah.

the utah gerbers are active and kept us and the kids moving which we love.
{i told c they are one of the few families we could do adventure vacations with}.
we have similar lifestyles and with kids the same age, it works out well.

when we weren't eating or watching the wildcats, we were playing ping pong,
tennis or hiking. the boys were outside almost from morning to dusk on turkey
day exploring and playing with the dozens of kids that live in the neighborhood.

i grew up in a neighborhood full of kids, but nothing like this neighborhood.
kids were everywhere and they played outside all day it seemed - it was fabulous!
shannon reminded me that there are lots of mormons in utah and many still have
large families, so it's no uncommon for her neighbors to have 4 kids.

with every street being a cul-de-sac and no thru-traffic, parents felt safe to let their kids
roam and play. i forgot to mention the huge park with trees and lots of open area, tennis courts
and bikes trails a short walk away. I can see why they moved here.  c and i let our boys go and
didn't call them in until it was time to eat.

it was refreshing to see these types of neighborhoods still exist, and to know there are
still parents around today who are comfortable letting their kids out of their sight to play.
kids need an opportunity to put all that teaching they've been given since they were toddlers to practice.
it fosters growth, confidence and helps 'em  prepare for the world. 
shannon and trevor fully understand this.

one morning, we all went hiking to a place trevor's family calls the 'vortex'.
the drive get to the park was gorgeous but once we parked, the real fun began.
the boys ran and explored red rock mountains, boulders and trails until we came upon
the 'vortex' which is literally a giant hole in the earth that one can hike down into.
the kids were in heaven! {and it was the perfect amount of physical and mental challenge}

the vortex

 
 
 
 












the afternoon before we got on the road, i did a little photo shoot of maya and her bestie callie.
the girls were so excited, it made me excited {no bribing them like i have to do with my two}.
i drove the girls to two great locales that maya had picked out and the girls spent an hour being
my models.  oh it's so much fun to have a niece! 



















~ i'm missing the utah gerbers already and beautiful st. george. 
the red rock there is truly spectacular. fortunately, we will get to see this sweet
family again in the spring.  trevor is planning to do this ironman,
and the san diego gerbers will be on the sidelines to cheer him on!

thankgiving 2014

silent gratitude isn't very much to anyone.
- gertrude

the boys and I returned to san diego with our hearts full of
gratitude for the utah gerbers and for all the blessings that we have.

i love that thanksgiving allows me to reflect on the life i've been given and
the people who share my world.  years ago, my parents started a tradition during
this holiday where each guest shared what they were thankful for. 
it's such a simple thing but it carries so much meaning.

since getting married, the tradition continues and i've found over the years many
families have the same tradition.  those who don't are always happy to as expressing
gratitude is what the holiday is about. my eyes lite up when my brother in law suggested
we do the same before our meal.

i was so touched listening to everyone's words of gratitude.

i hope to post more about our time in utah,
but for now, i'll just share a photo of the lovely thanksgiving table.
my sweet niece, maya created the gratitude centerpiece. so cute!

utah bound

it's been a whirlwind  week and weekend but i wanted to spend 5 minutes to post
before i hit the sack.

i'm up late tonight washing clothes and packing for our trip to st. george  tomorrow.
the boys and i are super excited for some down time and to spend thanksgiving with
the utah gerbers!

i've got wine for the host/hostess, 2 new audiobooks downloaded to my phone,
a few books on my kindle and the boys have paper books stuffed into their backpacks.
we've also got 4 tennis racquet and cans of balls in the backseat of the car
and a few bottles of wine are wrapped in towels at the bottom of my suitcase. *wink*
i think i'm officially ready.

by 1pm tomorrow afternoon, this is what the boys and i will be seeing from our front
windshield - lots of beautiful red rock.

scout's first book club

two weeks ago, we  received an email from scout's teacher informing us
and a small group of parents that our children had been selected to be
in a 'special' book club. i loved the sound of this immediately.

this book club was special, because it would be lead by the director of explorer.
scout was one of four 2nd graders selected and he was beyond excited!

he came home not knowing that his teacher had already sent an email to the
parents to share the news, so i didn't let on when he ran to greet me at my car door
when i arrived home from work.  with a huge grin on his face, he told me all about
it and informed me that his best friend spencer was selected as well.

he told me the are currently reading the award winning book, the one and only ivan. 
i had heard wonderful things about this book and actually had it saved in my amazon
cart for christmas. 

it warmed my heart to see genuine support from finn. 
when i commented on how great this club sounded,
finn chimed in with "it is mom, it's a BIG deal that scout got selected".
(scout beamed as he really loves big brother's approval)

we are so proud of our ravenous little reader!
books have given him so much knowledge about so many things,
they've helped with his writing and spelling
{give his almost any word and he'll spell it for you}.
last, he's gained so much confidence in himself through reading.

here's our little reader with his buddies awaiting the director to arrive.



 2nd grade book group
left to right: spencer, josie and scout

~ while scout's been reading this book at school,
at home he's been reading the harry potter series all over again
he finished the final book {#7} on monday night. 
he was literally beaming afterwards.
it was as if he had just finished a delectable desert.

months back i inquired as to why he was reading the series again
since he read them all in 1st grade last year.
and because there were lots of book in our library he hadn't read yet.
he emphatically said because the harry potter books are THE BEST EVER!!! 

i smiled and said i totally get it.  i've read books and watched movies over too.

books - they are so wonderful and oh so important. 
a momma friend shared this article with me yesterday.
it made me smile and reminded me reading matters...ALOT.

movember

movember is in FULL swing and friends and family members
are participating by growing mustaches of all kinds.  my b-i-ls
shared photos with me today and i almost fell out of my chair.
they looked like 80s porn stars and well, my husband does too.

i'm not like my girlfriend who finds staches 'sexy',
in fact, i'm not a fan of facial hair on men in general,
but this is for a great cause, and the brothers are having so much
fun with this.  it's also cool to know my husband has the guts to
do this because he isn't a fan of facial hair on himself either. hehe   

there's lots of styles out there right now, and i kinda like this image
i pulled off google.  i think c's sporting the 'porn star' mustache,
though he insists it's more like the 'major'.   honestly don't look at
it too closely. regardless, it's ridiculous and i have to live with it until
the end of the month.  i'm practically countin' down the days.

a fab friday

don'tcha just LOVE fridays?!

me too. *wink*
it means the work week is almost over,
and we get more time to do the things we can't squeeze in during the week.
for me, that thing is spending more time with my 3.

we seem to be spending more and more time at the club these days.
the whole family is enjoying tennis, but the little guys are the ones improving
the most of all. c's in a men's league and i'm considering joining the woman's league.
i want to be able to keep up with finn and scout....at least for a few more years.

last night c sent me this photo. the boys were eating dinner {there is a café there},
and watching a match.  i was still at work but this made me smile. 
scout looks completely focused on the match and finn just looks plain exhausted.
he had seacamp that day.
    

scout, age 7 - evening at the sdtrc

seacamp is a BIG deal to 5th graders in san diego.
it's something they look forward to since the beginning of the school year.
the kids take a research boat out in the open ocean ALL day and even get to snorkel.

i was just thinking that a lot of kids around the country are preparing for snow and
so cal kids can still swim and snorkel in november. they have it pretty darn good.

~ i was hoping to join, but learned about a month ago that no parents were needed
or could tag along. the boats were full between the kids, teachers and researchers.
bummer!  it would have been a fun field trip.  i promised finn i'd join a future trip.

enjoy your friday and weekend!! 

go green: fall soccer 2014

scout's soccer season is coming to an end and i can
hardly believe i haven't posted about it.

it came and went very fast this year, and seemed shorter than
usual because of the 3 games scout missed due to his stitches.
despite it being short, it's been a really great season!

scoutie has spent the majority of the games playing defense...
his favorite position as he enjoys keeping the ball from getting
anywhere close to his team's goal.  when asked by the coach is he
wanted to try playing goalie for half a game, he declined. 

i think this has been his best team yet....the coaches are wonderful
{both played at college level and on a men's team after college}.
the boys are all sweeties and their parents are pretty cool too.

a few photos i snapped this season of scoutabout.

 

 

i almost forgot, the best soccer move we've seen all
year from scout occurred at last saturday's game.
the goalie from the other team kicked the ball to a teammate
and scout jumped up and headed it back towards the goalie. 

it was his first header in a game and awesome. 
{sure wish it had been recorded}. 
we all cheered and the scout sported one of the biggest grins
we'd ever seen from him. 

green lightning's last game is saturday.
we are REALLY looking forward to it and the end of the season party. 

you and me...everyday

so it's not gonna be easy.
it's going to be really hard; we're gonna have to work at this everyday,
but I want to do that because i want you. i want all of you, forever, everyday.
you and me... everyday.”
- nicholas sparks, the notebook 





ahh, i just love this quote and yes, this movie.
i'm sure i've posted that i adore this movie sometime in the past in the life of this blog.
it's a favorite of many females - it's got gorgeous ryan gosling and a beautiful love
story. even though i've seen it a few times, i still get goosebumps.





when i watch this movie, i think of both young and older love,
my parents marriage and of course, mine, and all those newlyweds out there.
i think love at any age is exciting, but i think it's more hopeful when we are young.


young love is eager, adaptable, honest and so full of promise. 
it's quite beautiful and why i gush {like so many others} at weddings.
i've been asked a few times over my married life if I'd marry young
again and my answer is always the same, YES. 


sure it hasn't always been easy, and we had to live in college apartments for
years, but that was all part of the fun...saving up together and working to
save for a condo and then later a house. 


gush at when i think about marrying young, i have never regretted it.
would i want my boys to marry at 21. no, I'd prefer they wait until after col

  

home in time for halloween

the boys and I had a wonderful time in beautiful minneapolis and
i can hardly wait to sit down sometime this weekend to
look through the photos we took and to post about our time there.
our days were filled to the rim with activities and family.
more to come....

while we were away, the boys missed a few halloween parties and were
very concerned we wouldn't arrive home in time to go trick or treating.
i assured them we would be.

the boys are more than ready - been counting down the days since we've
been home.  they have their costumes hung neatly in their closet and have
tried them on a few times just to be sure they are ready to go.   

this year finn and scout decided they wanted to be astronauts.
but didn't want to wear the traditional white spacesuits
{a good thing for finn as he basically disappears in white because he's so fair}.
instead, they wanted to wear orange flight suits which are cool too.
i couldn't find them locally, so i ordered them online.

once they chose their costumes, they asked me to dress to their theme.
i love to dress up, so no arm twisting was needed. did they want me to wear a flight suit? 
of course not.  finn had another suggestion for both c and me. 
{scout too, but I didn't have time to pull that one off}

finn's idea is much easier...and i think c and can both pull it off.
we just need to pick up a few more items.  i hope to sneak off to a goodwill store
during the boys afternoon piano lesson tomorrow.

i'll close with a photo of these adorable donuts from krispy kreme.
would love to pick up for the boys and a dozen for my coworkers
tomorrow but i need to be in the office early...very early.

it's probably for the best. 
more sugar will be the last thing any of us need after tomorrow night.

have a happy halloween!

xo

~ a coworker and mom friend of mine told me the 'candy fairy' comes to
their home and takes her daughter's halloween candy and leaves a really
cool toy in exchange.  a novel concept for sure, though i'm not sure it would work on older kids, or my two. mine enjoy their candy....even if it takes scout a year to eat it all. 

minnesota trip: part 3

the day after the wedding, we drove to dave and bonnie's home.
the boys loved hearing how it was the home c grew up in during
his teen years. i remember meeting c's mom, trevor and troy in that very house
years ago when c and i were just dating. we had driven there together from florida
one summer.  so many fun memories of that roadtrip. those were the carefree days...

bonnie showed me around her yard and wow - she is a fantastic gardener! 
she can grow anything it seems- from gorgeous flowers to all types of food.
i am truly in awe at how knowledgeable she is and the variety of things she grows
right there in her yard.  {i told myself someday i will give gardening a try}.
the boys and i enjoyed eating some canned fruit bonnie shared with us. delish!!
i think finn almost ate an entire jar of pears and cherries. 

here's the gang on a beautiful october day.

from here we went to c's brother jason's home.
he and his wife shelly live out in the country on 10 acres of land.
it was amazing!  they had hens that lived in the cutest hen house that
jason built.  aunt shell left the daily eggs in the roosting house so the boys
could collect them when we arrived.  she is so thoughtful to think of that.
the boys really enjoyed this. 

they spent the rest of the afternoon riding their quad and riding lawnmower
all over their property.  they must have ridden those things for hours - literally.
they rode together, alone and i even got a ride by scout. what a wonderful day!

c and i spent the whole afternoon catching up with family and enjoying a wonderful
meal while the boys were enjoying a day far different from their days back home.



finn {10} rides the quad



scout {7} giving me a ride on lawnmower

 

minnesota trip: part 2

 

sandy and luke's wedding took place on saturday night,
the 2nd day of our trip.

it was a simple and lovely wedding held in the small town of becker.
the high school sweethearts tied the knot under a beautiful birch
arch that was built by my craftsman b-i-l jason for the bride and groom.
{a heart with sandy and luke's initials was carved into it}.

the wedding was very sweet and held in the small town of becker.
the gerber clan was out in full force - i caught up with auntie and uncles
i hadn't seen in years.  we made plans to visit some in arizona when they
head south this winter to get out of the cold. 

as we watched the wedding party come down the aisle,
i thought how fast time goes. luke was just a kid when i met him all those
years ago...now he's a married man.  someday i'll be like my s-i-l, shedding
happy tears for my sons as they walk down the aisle to marry their sweetheart.

there was a special musical number sang by my f-i-l john and his identical twin jim.
they sang this beautiful song, and i'm pretty sure there were lots of glistening eyes
afterwards.  {i didn't realize the song was originally by elvis}.

when the professional wedding photos are posted, i'll ask my nephew if i can post
one or two here but in the meantime, here's one i have of scout with the lovely bride.

scout dancing with the bride, sandy



 

weddings are such a happy occasion...

and a reminder that love is not a feeling we have about someone,

but rather a choice we make, and a commitment to another human being.

that promise is pretty awesome.

 

last, here are a few photos of the boys playing in golden colored

leaves in a park just around the corner from where their dad grew up.  

gathering piles of leaves and jumping into them kept them entertained

for quite some time.

 

more to come...i've got to head over to the boys' school now.
they are having their bi-annual movie night fundraiser. 
tonight's feature: the lego movie, a favorite of theirs.
 

 

 

minnesota trip: part 1

autumn....the year's last, loveliest smile.
- william cullen bryant


we arrived in minnesota hoping to see some fall weather and fall colors,
and we got lucky!  thought it wasn't the peak fall season {early october is best},
the weather was crisp but not cold and there were some leaves hanging on to trees. 
ahhh - so gorgeous!  i can see why peeps from the midwest love the change of seasons.

we spent the first day visiting of our trip seeing some of the city and parks.
c wanted to show the boys the mississippi river and how the damn works. 
I think they spent 2 hours watching a boat come in and go through the locks.

from there we headed over to the science museum of minnesota,
an amazing multi-level facility that kept the boy busy for 5 hours.
i faded around hour 4 so i made my way to the 1st floor, and parked myself
on a comfy couch with a coffee and book in hand. 
{i learned years ago to carry a book in my car and in my purse....always}

from there, we went to grandpa and grandmas house for dinner and to meet
the boys' cousin, anoka for our first time ever. oh she is a beauty!  new parents,
greg and heidi are naturals....it's like they've been doing this parent thing for years.

finn was the first of us to get to hold anoka.
he was so gentle with his baby cousin.  it was very sweet to watch. 
we miss her already.

anoka {2 months} and finn oliver {10}

 

 

 

 

more to come....

   

midwest here we come

ahhh, we're half way through the week
but today was actually our families last day of work and school this week.

we are flying out to the midwest tomorrow, specifically to the beautiful
city of minneapolis. it's been so long since i've been.  i'm way overdue!

via

this is the city c grew up in.
actually, he grew up in a surburb outside of the city,
but it's easier to say he's from minneapolis.

we are staying at a hotel in the burbs near grams and gramps
for most of the trip, but decided to treat ourselves to one night downtown.
we hear there's no shortage of great restaurants to chose from in the city,
which makes me happy. {i think c and i would be total foodies if we didn't
have kids taking every last penny we earn}. *grin*

the main purpose of this trip is to attend my nephew's luke's wedding!

luke is c's oldest brother's son. he's 24, and the very first nephew on both sides
of our families to get married!  he's marrying his college sweetheart, sandy.
it's a happy time and yet one more reminder that time is flying.
{i met luke when i was the age he is now}

finn and scouter announced they are all ready to go.
they packed their backpacks with books and snacks, and even their own
suitcases. i just asked that they leave them open so i could take a
peek in them. they've forgotten non-essentials in the past.
ya know...underwear and toothbrushes. 

i was informed they remembered their 'james bond' clothes.
they were referring to their new black suits {which they think are so cool}.

normally, i'd be much too practical to buy suits for young boys,
but i was lucky and found some priced so low, it just made sense.
i figured finn can wear again to his 5th grade graduation this spring,
and both boys can wear at their next piano recital. when finn outgrows his,
it will be handed down to scout so one will get a lot of mileage.

i'm so looking forward to time together with my 3,
and time with all those gerbers...and there are ALOT of them.
{for several years i wished they'd wear nametags at events}

i'm keeping my fingers crossed the weather stays nice and the remaining leaves
hang on to trees for a few more days so us california kids get a little taste of what
real fall weather is like.

on being ten

i've found myself observing my firstborn more closely lately.
i discretely tune into a discussion he might be having with a buddy or scout,
or i observe him as he reads or draws in his notebook.
he's growing up so fast. i can hardly get my head around that he's 10
{but he quickly reminds me if i forget}.

finn, here are my observations of you at this age.

"i'm not a baby".
you say this when we offer you the smallest bit of advice.
we know you're not a baby...we know it all too well because we remember the
exact moment you were born, even though it was ten years ago.

ten...it's the most frustrating and exhilarating mix of little-boy-big kid.
you happily play along with scout and his younger friends when they want to do
jedi training, and other times you want to be sit quietly alone somewhere reading
about the international space station or colonizing mars.

you'll remind me that you can use the bathroom in public spaces alone,
and can take scout whenever he has to go, that you can use the stove,
and that you are only 3 years away from being a teenager which means you can
get your own cell phone.  still, you think girls are gross.

you download your homework and work independently, email your buddies and auntie jen,
fearlessly grab a surfboard and head straight into the ocean, yet you still hug and kiss
your dad and me openly and ask for a backrub every night before bed.

when our family dog-sits brooklyn, you wake up every morning on your own and take her
for a walk and even pick up her poop.  the same day, you'll play with army men on your
bedroom floor and later wonder how santa can live so long. is he immortal you ask?

you can explain the big bang theory without missing a beat and get annoyed because we
won't let you be stay home alone yet, you cried tears when you missed the firework
show on the 4th of july. {we watched sea world's up-close the following night}

life is full of contradictions.

we can hardly believe you are ten years old,
that you've been with us for a whole decade,
and that our lives existed before you at all.

and the irony is our time with you is really about preparing you to leave us,
so you can step into the adult world confidentially and contribute to this beautiful
place we call home. oh how we love you finn oliver.

a weekend with gerber brother #4 and his family

this past weekend, we had c's brother troy {#4 in the line-up}, and his sweet
family visit from arizona.  after years of living in minnesota and battling
cold winters, they decided to move west for year round warm weather.

we are thrilled. we now have all but one of the 5 gerber brothers living in
the west now {the oldest, is still in mn and probably there for good}.

we had a nice visit with them. i got to catch up with my s-i-l andrea,
c with his brother, and finn and scout with their cousin noah,
who turns 10 in 2 weeks!

some highlights of the weekend:
- a visit to the children's pool in la jolla to see the seals
- la jolla cove to see the sea caves and swim {i almost lost my camera}
- a few hours at tourmaline beach
- troy and andrea celebrated their 17th year anniversary
with an evening out together
- a mini piano recital by the boys
- an outdoor movie night with scout's 2nd grade buddies and cousin.
per aunt jen's recommendation, we watched the neverending story.
it was a hit and since it's from the 1980s, none of the kids had seen it
{gracias auntie jen...you rock!}

i don't have all the photos handy, just this one from my phone of the
gerblets at dinnertime.  it makes me smile.



scout {7}, noah, {9}, finn {10}





andrea, noah and troy

 

~ scout's stitches have finally been removed,and he's been cleared to swim, play soccer and do
all those things little boys love to do.
this mother is so glad...it's been a very long 3 weeks
for all of us...but especially for him.

 













mourning a mother

early wednesday morning c and i  received an email from the director
of explorer letting us know a mother, whom they didn't name out of respect,
was killed in a tragic accident.

i learned late yesterday afternoon who the mother was.
she was melissa, a wonderful mother of 3 beautiful children.
this mother did it all - was heavily involved in the school, her community
and successful and respected in her workplace.     

though i didn't know her well, i had met her and 2 of her children.
finn was her son's 'reading buddy' last year and i picture his sweet face
right now.

the whole explorer community is heartbroken - teachers, parents, friends
and students...all of our hearts are pouring out to this family.

this article shares a teensy bit of melissa's life,
but doesn't come close to sharing the whole of this beautiful person.

as i sat on the edge of the boys' bed last night and kissed them goodnight,
i held them a little longer than usual.

with tears in my eyes, i felt a strange mix of gratitude that my children were
safe with me.  yet, i felt a horrible sadness and emptiness for the 3 young children
who weren't being held by their mother.

life is fragile.....so very fragile.

mad about mid-century modern

back in the day, when c and i were young newlyweds and living
in tucson, i received my first introduction to architecture

i remember lots of flashcards to help c study and that's when i got a brief
overview on the many types on architectural styles: from adobe,  mission, and
arts & crafts, to gothic, victorian and colonial achitecture. 

i remember i would call modern architecture, contemporary and visa versa,
and in the world architecture and design, that is a major faux pas. 
i simply didn't know the differences. 

finally after years of living with an architect, working for architects,
and having close friends who are architects, i can say I no longer get the two
mixed up.  *wink*

though c and i don't agree on everything, mid-century modern architecture is something
we both agree on.  we both love this style of home - the post and beam ceiling, open floor plans,
and floor to ceiling glass walls that are a feature in the 'true' mid-century modern style homes
{eichler homes being one of the most popular architects of this era}.

we really wanted to own one of these styled homes. {us and thousands of other designer type peeps},
but real estate in california is tough....and even tougher when a home you want is unique or in higher demand.  it's near impossible for a regular peeps of modest incomes to compete.   c and i looked at a few homes mid-century homes that came on the market over the last several years in san diego,
but we were outbid by far every single time.  *sigh*. 

we had fun walking through them and at least and dreaming for a while.  
though we didn't end up with a mid-century modern home,
we did end up with mid-century home {early 1960s} that was fairly easy to
duplicate some of the things we wanted in our home:

• a single level home with lots of openness
• lots of light
• easy transitioning between indoor and outdoor spaces
• lots of white walls with pops of color coming from cushions and prints

we still have a long way to go, but we are having fun with it {him probably more than me}.
he likes the whole process...i just like the finished product. 

i found these fun midcentury living rooms in one of our favorite magazines and had to post.
if i had tons of money, my house would be SUPER cool, but alas, i'm not.

 
 
 
 
 
 

birthday girl in texas

today i'm thinking and celebrating of someone living in texas.

{that someone is my little sis jen}.

 

this is the first birthday in many years that she hasn't been
here in san diego.  it's a little strange to think about...probably for her too.

she is loved and missed.

Auntie Jen - we're sending lots of b-day wishes your way!!! XO

  

via

 





he shoots, he breaks a tv

i'm so far behind on posting so i've decided to record
two things that this day will be remembered for:

1. our company's 2nd annual ping pong tournament
2. a broken tv set


our company employs a nice amount of young engineers,
and many of them have been enjoying the ping pong table that we have
up in the office for employees during breaks or lunchtime.

last year two of our guys were given permission to host a ping pong tourney
for employees and colleagues and since it was a big success, exp continued
the tradition this year.  while the boys {and very few woman played}, my coworker
tina and i got folks registered, helped with scoring/and of course taking photos.

while we were having all this fun, my three were home having their own tournament
- a soccer tournament IN the living room.  i learned later the biggest boy of all
actually instigated it.

i come home late that evening to c squeezed between finn and scout on a twin
bed.  he was reading a shel silverstein book to them and i quietly kissed them
and was on my way out the door when c stops reading and calls me back to them.

he said, i have some bad news and before he could get it out, scout eagerly
shared that DAD kicked the soccer ball into our 1 year old tv and BROKE it!
he seemed almost excited to tell {maybe he thought dad was going to get in trouble}.
finn quickly said, but we already bought a new one.

*sigh*

this wasn't fun to hear.
c and i must tell the boys every other day to stop kicking the ball in the house,
and this time my husband was kicking the ball in the house WITH them.
{the same man who is usually disciplined and makes good decisions}. =/

i was frustrated and let out a deep sigh.
before i could say anything though, c said the boys and i will NEVER
play soccer in the house again.  the boys agreed immediately and since I was
was exhausted, i responded good and left it at that. 

what more was there to say.

hundreds of dollars later, we now have a new slightly larger tv than before.
with an older home, we sure could have used that money for so many things:
a new front door, garage door, landscaping, the list goes on and on.

life with boys....it's always exciting, however this isn't the kind of excitement
that i was hoping to come home to that evening. 

~ we did enjoy watching the movie boyhood on our tv that very weekend.
oh it was wonderful....and so different from anything hollywood has done to date.
they filmed a boy over 12 years and the audience watches him grown and struggle
with so many things that boys go through.  it feels like a documentary but it's not.
regardless, c and i thoroughly enjoyed this heartfelt movie that is extremely well
acted.  i think i've recommended the movie now to every parent of boys i know.

check out the trailer for a glimpse: 

bye bye birthmark

so much has been happening but i'll just record
the bigger events from the past week and a half.

after lots of research, discussion and two consultations
with medical professionals, scout, c and i decided to
have scout's birthmark removed...the dark brown raised
nevus on the back of his left shoulder. 

his surgery was scheduled for last wednesday,
a half day at school, so he didn't miss anything.
we arrived a radys early leaving us plenty of time
before the surgery to catch up on our reading.   

scout did wonderful throughout it all,
and it helped that his nurses were nurturing and
shared a binder with him that walked him through
the steps of his stay, from registration to dismissal.

here are the only photos i snapped with my phone
last week.  {photo taking was very low priority}

he enjoyed the popsicle they gave him afterwards
{big brother got one too} and he especially loved the
stuffed kangaroo they gave him which he's named bouncer.

he left the hospital with several internal stitches that will dissolve
on their own, and a few external stitches that will be removed in a week.

in the meantime, he had to sit out of soccer practice and one game
{and was really bummed about this}. fortunately, he was given the 'ok'
to play this weekend and he couldn't be happier.
his team, green lightning, is 4 and 0!

i mentioned to c it's going to be very strange to see scout from behind without
'god's kiss' on his shoulder. when he was a toddler, this is what i told him.
he was content with that until he was about 4 and then he wanted more explanation. 
according to his plastic surgeon, he should heal up nicely over the next few weeks,
and in the end be left with a very thin line about 3" long. i told him he could
make up crazy battle/survival story to share with new friends he meets.

and if this wasn't enough, he's heading to an ENT in two weeks to have
his nose cauterized.  he gets nosebleeds often and this will take care of that.
we learned scoutie takes after c who also had this done around the same
age.  they aren't painful, they are just a hassle and get in the way of his activities.
it will be nice to not have to deal with them anymore.