Glowing Greens

Henry had no school today, so we decided to have a date. We decided to go an indoor mini-golf course....that is in the dark....and pirate themed. Argh. We were both VERY happy that Frances wasn't on the date as she would have been petrified. That said, it was really funny and Henry was in heaven. He did a mean pirate impersonation on top of sinking some balls. Maggie didn't know what to think about it...but attempted to get snot on a skeleton and grab Henry's hair whenever it was within reach.

Power Girls Weekend in Manzanita

Our lovely friend Erin was in town from Alameda and we had a girls night at the beach.....plus Maggie.The drive alone was a blast, having time to catch up with my friend Sheri.  It was an awesome night/day with some incredible women. We ate, drank, and a laughed (requirement of all girls weekends...right?). Today was surreal in terms of the weather at the beach and our morning runs were filled sunlight and incredible views along the coast......I also got hit my a frisbee....seriously, my luck.I love girlfriends.  Maggie made sure to put on a good show so that she can continue to go with me places -- she was all smiles all weekend and everyone got their baby fix in for the weekend.

Cinco de Maggie

 Hello drool......

Miss Maggie Moo is five months old. This has been a big month. She is sitting, drooling, teething (she has her first two teeth), and creating a lot of snot. I call it the "No...Sleep...For Mama" stage (hope Beastie Boys is playing in the back of your head right now, as that is what I chant it too). Thankfully she is a joyful baby during the day and as cute as a button, balancing it all out and keeping me head over heels in love with her. She continues to be VERY verbal and loves her birdie mobile -- she and the birds have had some serious girl talk. I can't wait until her babble is converted to words and I understand what they have been talking about all this time. 


Henry at five months:


Francie at 5 Months:

Lantern Walk

Frances's school has an annual tradition of the "Lantern Walk" through the Arboretum to celebrate the beginning of Winter. The kids make the lanterns, learn a song about "light", and you hike through the Arboretum in the dark night. Usually, it is really neat because in the thick darkness all you can see are the scattered lights of the lanterns, each representing a wonderful person in their school.


This year it rained.


We were  not prepared for rain.


Three wet kids in the rain = happy times.


Attached are pictures taken...before the rain. The little girl is one of Francie's favorite friends at school.

Halloween 2011

We had a great Halloween....but kind of sucked on the picture front. Henry continued to amaze me with letting me put make up on....if you had told me when he was two years old that he would let me get him "messy" like that, I would have called you a liar. Frances was a bubbly, exuberant lady bug girl and Miss Maggie was a perfect pig. 

Lovely Lilly

In the Arboretum, next to Henry and Frances's school,  there is wonderful tree that Henry's class used to hike to. They named her Lilly. They studied her. They drew her. The loved her.

A couple of weeks ago I hiked up there with Maggie and some homeless teens had vandalized her (spray painted horrible, hateful things) and all the other trees in the area. Beer bottles and trash was everywhere -- in this beautiful, idyllic spot. I was so angry. 

Today, Frances's class hiked up there. When I asked her about Lilly she said "They cut down Lilly". I literally got a HUGE lump in my throat. I asked the teacher and she said it was true. They did a bunch of work to recreate the area so more people will hike there and less vandalism will happen.

I told Henry today on the way home and when I looked back in the car, he had huge tears streaming down his face, which then made me cry.

Amazing how connected you can be to a tree. I honestly feel heart broken.  Above are some pictures taken under the shade of wonderful Lilly.

Big Blue

We are skeptical that Miss Maggie's eyes can actually stay blue given our genetics, 

but for now we are enjoying them immensely!

Last Soccer Game of the Season on a Blissful Fall Day

Today was one of those perfect fall days....slightly crisp, blue skies, the trees are reaching their peak. Henry had his last soccer game of the Fall season and they did awesome. It has been really neat to see how much the boys have progressed from looking like a swarm of bees around the ball to actually spreading out across the field and passing. It is impossible to not be joyful watching Henry play the soccer - the kid is so intense and so into it. Frances and Maggie have been troopers -- every Saturday going to his games, rain or shine - to support their brother. Today, Frances even tried to join the game and help out his team.... hee hee.

The World Through Henry's Eyes

Last night Henry started plotting what he was going to do with all his candy......and it was not about eating it. He need to count and sort it and THEN...he needed to create a bracket and have an imaginary playoff of the candy. No joke.


This is the first thing he did this morning.


He counted each candy.


Then he created the bracket.


He is currently playing the game that is Snickers vs. Milky Way.

KPFF Halloween Party

Let the Halloween festivities begin! Mark's work had their party today and the kids were very excited to go. Henry wanted to be vampire. I feel bad for the kid...he obviously doesn't realize his mom can NOT do make-up....but I gave it my best shot. Frances was Ladybug Girl. Maggie wore the pig outfit that both Henry and Frances wore for their first Halloween.....tradition....or me being cheap.