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

  

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