Visitors, School and Football Games

Hey there! I thought I'd get on here and post something in less than two month's time! Aren't you so very proud (and astonished) with me?! ;) I'm trying to be more consistent. That and I feel like we've been so busy since we've moved here and we're going to be even more busy the next 3 months with birthdays, holidays and visitors. I'll try to keep up with our busy-ness, so I don't end up writing a long rambling monster post three or four months from now! You know what kind of post I'm talking about...the long rambling kind that strike fear (and boredom) in even the bravest of souls!! ;) So here we go!!

August 23 - we picked up Jason's sister, Sarah, from the airport. She flew out from Virginia to go to her marine boyfriend's (Robbie) graduation from some linguistics school about an hour south of us. We had a couple of days with her before he came and picked her up and drove her down to Monterrey to spend a few days with him and his parents. The day he picked her up, I realized that I had met his parents before - Jason's Mom and I used to go to bible study with his Mom in Turkey and his parents both came to Jason's and my wedding! Man - I felt horrible when I said, "Nice to meet you" to his Dad...and his Dad quickly responded, "Oh - we've met before...at your wedding." How embarrassing...but hey! It wasn't my fault! The wedding details were so overwhelming and I was really busy...and embarrassed to have so much attention all at once. When I went outside to say hello to his Mom, I recognized her right away. See! I haven't lost it altogether!! ;)

Katie and Caleb at the hair place where Sarah was getting her hair done. This is where Jason always goes for his haircuts and the kids LOVE it here because the employees give the kids unlimited lolipops! Maybe I should have them pay for all the cavities they're going to need filled! ;)


August 27-29 - Jason went to Baltimore, MD for a weekend conference. His Mom had planned on driving 1.5 hours with a couple of his little sisters from Virginia to visit him for dinner on one of the nights he was there, but Jason's Grandma past away and his Mom had to fly to Florida for the funeral. :( Jason will never say, but I think he was really bummed out that he was so close to his parents' house and didn't get to see anyone. His Grandma had had Alzheimer's and dementia for a few years and all of the sudden her health seemed to deteriorate recently and she finally lost the will/energy to eat anything. Jason and I never had many opportunities to visit with his grandparents too often because we've always lived so far away, but I'm sad that I couldn't have been there for Jason's Mom. I felt so sad for her. :( It's times like these - when I hate living so far away from family. :( I hate not being there to support and encourage family and friends during hard times and I hate not being there to celebrate happy times - like holidays and birthdays or when our someone gets engaged or has a baby. :( It really stinks to miss out on everything! At least we haven't missed any weddings, but still! I hate living so far away from the people I love - because I miss out on everything!!! :(

So anyways, while Jason was gone, I spent the rest of the weekend searching for tailgating gear to use for the upcoming football season at Stanford. I also finished up the rest of the Army Wives seasons on Netflix while Jason was gone (so he wasn't there to witness the hours of my life I wasted away while the kids slept) - I can't wait until the 4th season comes out on DVD because I spent the whole last season getting caught up on the first 3 seasons!

During this time, my cousin Derik came down from Oregon with his daughter, girlfriend Tracey and her son to do some traveling along the Oregon and California coast. They stopped by one day for a couple of hours to say hi, so we could catch up while the kids played together. I can't believe how long it has been since I've seen him! I think the last time I saw him, I had just had Kristin!
We don't make it up to Washington and Oregon very much, so we go years between visits with family - it's horrible! Anyways - it was a great visit! Derik's kid and Tracey's kid were so sweet! I wish we lived closer to them - because I would totally hire her son to babysit my animal children! He was so great with kids! Especially Caleb - who wouldn't let him leave his sight! Sure he was only 12, but he was the most mature 12 year old I'd ever met - especially for a guy! Man - we really need to get out...does anyone know a good babysitter I could borrow? ;)

Avery, Kristin and Katie/Tracey and Derik/Me and Derik/Devon and Caleb


I've also continued my plan to make new recipes...but I think I'm going to switch back to cooking healthier recipes again because ever since I started cooking out of normal unhealthy-type cookbooks, I've gained 3-4 pounds. Coincidence?! I think not!!! ;) Since I'm SO tired of any of my old healthy cookbooks, I underwent a mad search for healthy cookbooks on Amazon until I came across two that looked REALLY good and had amazing reviews! I just received them both, so I'll get started on some of the recipes. If they turn out to be as good as everyone says they are, I'll reveal their titles...if you're looking for a good cookbook with healthier recipes!

Kristin with one of her two favorite recipes so far...Breakfast Bowls and Gumbo



Robbie brought back Sarah after their weekend in Monterrey came to an end and she stayed for another week before heading back to Virginia. Did I mention they also got engaged as well? Yay!! I'm so excited for them! They've set a date for July 2, 2011 - I guess I'll have to start looking up ticket prices! Can anyone recommend a good website for buying tickets and how far out is the best time to buy? I don't ever seem to buy at the right time and I'm SO tired of it!!!

Top: Robbie and Sarah - newly engaged! Bottom: Caleb loved spending time with Robbie!


A few days after their first visit, my cousin Derik and his girlfriend Tracey and each of their kids stopped by again to say hi on their way back up to Oregon. We went out to the closest deli place and bought some lunch (that was way overpriced I might add) and brought it back to our house where we had a picnic across the street at the park. We visited and let the kids play for the next 3 hours or so and then they headed out.

Devon and Caleb (thinking he's all grown up and making guy friends) ;)


Sept 3 - Jason's brother, Mike, came out to visit for the weekend while Sarah was still here. That afternoon, we went out for lunch at our favorite Chinese restaurant, Cafe Yulong. Mmmm...yummy! We've been there quite a few times now since we've moved here. We never did find a favorite Chinese place while we were in San Antonio, so we've been making up for lost time - not that I need the extra calories!!! Eek! ;) That night for dinner - as if we needed any more food, we went out for pizza and Jason couldn't resist getting the largest pizza he could buy...the King Kong size pizza with pepperoni and jalepenos!! It was HUGE!!! And really yummy!!! It was really good - I don't know if it beats the taste of our favorite pizza place in San Antonio, but it's close! Later that night, Jason Uncle Doug (who lives 3 hours south of us) and two of his kids came up to stay a couple of nights, so they could go to the football game with us and also visit with Mike while he was here.

Caleb is reunited with his Uncle Mikey/Mike and Jason with the world's largest pizza box - the pizza place had small, medium, large, x-large...and King Kong...guess which one Jason had to buy... ;)


The next afternoon, we hosted our first tailgating party prior to our first Stanford football game! I bought way too much food...and then Uncle Doug bought even more (I guess he wanted to make sure we didn't run out)! ;) Sarah's fiance was also able to make it back before we left the house - the more the merrier!!

Our first time hosting a tailgating party...Success!! :) L to R Top Row: Mike and Uncle Doug, Jason/Uncle Doug/Mike, Uncle Doug and Mike L to R Middle Row: Jason and Mike, Me and Jason and Robbie/Sarah/Katie L to R Bottom Row: Me and Kristin, Kristin and the twins Jackie and Sophie and Me and Jason


First football game of the season at Stanford!


Caleb and his Uncle Mikey after dancing with the Stanford tree mascot...and some wolf-man-thing


Early the next morning, we took Sarah and Mike to the airport for their flights back home. Uncle Doug and the girls headed back home and I spent the rest of the day cleaning up the house and also visiting next door at the neighbor's birthday party.

Sept 8 - Spent all day cleaning and getting things ready for my parents and Grandma's visit. We also went to a nearby park to let the kids feed giant ducks and play on the playground. As we were leaving the pond, we noticed a huge sign that said, "PLEASE DO NOT FEED WATER FOWL." Oopsies...

At the forbidden duck-feeding pond and playground


We also found this war memorial in the middle of nowhere at the park. It had an emblem and some wording for each branch of the military. I thought it was nice...


Sept 9 - my parents and Grandma arrived for their week-long visit. Not as long as their usual 3-week stay that they used to do when they'd visit us in San Antonio, but that's okay. My Dadroo had to get back to his demanding job. Boo! Oh well - it was a great week and I loved visiting with them! The girls were crushed when they left. Kristin was the most upset over their leaving. She cried and cried...and then cried and cried some more later on. It was so sad. :( Just another reason I hate living so far away from loved ones! Argh!

Caleb spending some quality car-playing time with his Grandpa Neil and having a hard time warming up to Great Grandma...or even Grandma Christie for that matter! I don't know why, but he is much more willing to go to boys than he is to girls...it's as if he knows who really appreciates a good car or ball... It's really funny! By the end of the visit, he had finally warmed up to Grandma Christie and Great Grandma.


We spent most of the week visiting at home and going out to yummy restaurants. Chinese one night, 2 nights of Turkish food and one night of pizza...King Kong-sized of course! My Mom cooked on two other nights - Turkish food one night and teriyaki skewers and watermelon another night. A couple days before they left, we tried a partial tailgating BBQ before a Stanford soccer game, but we ended up leaving halfway through the game because it was so cold out and we forgot extra jackets and blankets. :( We spent the day in San Francisco on one of Jason's day off - where we ate at Bubba Gump's. Mmmm... It's no surprise that I gained 4 pounds during this visit. Ugh. Oh well - it didn't take long to lose it afterward. I'm just not used to eating that much yummy food in one week's time! I'm usually only somewhat bad on the weekends...not the whole week! But when I'm visiting or on vacation - I somehow lose control! Eek!

In San Francisco with my Mom and Dadroo


Watching the soccer game after a little tailgating BBQ


We spent a good chunk of my parents' visit at home and a lot of our visit involved staying up late watching movies or playing games. One of those nights, we played monopoly. One by one people started to either lose or drag themselves off to bed...which left only me and my Dadroo...who of course beat me in the end. I was perplexed...how could I be losing so badly?! How had he become such a monopoly master?! I later figured out that he had been playing monopoly since he was in elementary school! He said he and his friend used to play almost everyday!! I didn't have a chance of winning!!!! By the end of the game, I only had only 4 properties left and no money. Sheesh Daddy-man! You need to go more easy on me next time!! ;) Hahaha!! Oh well - he seemed really excited about having such unbeatable monopoly skills. He's so cute!!

Dadroo - the monopoly master/Caleb spending time with Grandpa Neil


Sept 15 - My parents and Grandma headed back home much to Kristin's disappointment. Poor poor Kristin. I was sad enough as it was to see them go - it only made it worse seeing Kristin so sad!!! :(

Time for some going away pictures (Can you find the picture where my Grandma cut my Dad's head out of the picture? Not because she's crazy mind you - but because the sun was in her eyes and she couldn't see the camera screen.) ;)


After my parents left, I spent the next few days getting back into our normal routine...which included some much-needed gym time, gymnastics and getting ready to start school! :)

Sept 18 - we had our own tailgating party before watching our second football game. It was a little more difficult for Jason and I to set everything up and watch the kids at the same time, but we still had a good time and then enjoyed watching Stanford win another game.

Our little tailgating party before the game


Sept 20 - We finally started school! Yeah - we started almost a month after everyone else in the school district did, but I didn't feel like starting school when I knew we were going to have so many visitors back to back. Even with the late start and holiday breaks, we'll still be finished by mid-May, so I'm not worried about it. I love being able to make our own schedule!! Just one of the many reasons I love home schooling!! :) Sure it's stressful and I don't get time to myself like I would if my kids were away at school, but the pros of home-schooling far outweigh the cons!! Yay for home-schooling!! :)

Me and Kristin/Kristin and Katie (Katie doing pre-K work)/an apple that Kristin gave to me on our first day of school - is she cute or what?!/Me and my little women


We surprisingly started up our schedule of after school activities...so far we've made a pinecone bird feeder (that no bird will even come near - dang blasted ungrateful birds!), I talked Kristin how to thread a needle and stitch (which she loved by the way), she made a birthday card for one of her aunts and we went to the Palo Alto Jr. Museum for our first field trip. By the first day of school, we figured out that in order for us to not go crazy when we're doing school, we'd have to start waking up REALLY early, so Kristin and I can work on school before the younger two wake up. Then by the time they wake up, we'd be done and starting on our daily activity. So...that's what we did the first week. After Jason left for work at either 530am or 6am, I'd stay up and take a shower, read my bible and then Kristin and I would eat breakfast and then we'd start school. I don't know what happened the 2nd week, but for some reason we weren't getting up as early, so we ended up doing a lot of school with Katie and Caleb awake - which makes the whole school day last even longer because of all of the distractions and interruptions. Hence - we didn't have time to do our projects this week, but we plan on getting back on schedule next week, so we can enjoy our school day more and have more time for fun projects afterward.

Defintely wasn't our favorite activity so far - maybe it would have been more worth it...if some flippin' birds actually ate it!!!! Ungrateful birds!! ;)


Kristin also started riding her bike without training wheels a couple weeks ago! It's so sad that she hasn't had the chance to learn sooner! She had a bike in San Antonio, but it was always so hot out that we never really wanted to go out unless it was to a water park or under some shade somewhere, so she just never got around to it. :( Then we got rid of her old bike because it was too small for her and then we only just bought her a new bigger bike about 3 weeks ago. Jason decided it was time to take off the training wheels and off she went! She did it without us even running behind her. She's only fallen (quite gracefully) a couple of times and that's it! She's a natural! It was a lot like potty training. We didn't start early, we just waited until she could understand what we were trying to say to her and she did it within a couple of days! Who cares about meeting big milestones at the same rate as everyone else?! Well...I still do somewhat, but really in the big scheme of things - who cares?! :)

We went to a women's soccer game last weekend - Stanford vs. University of Portland (Jason and his brothers' James and Mike's Alma mater). Much to our surprise - UP lost!! We couldn't believe it! Of course Jason (or traitor as I like to call him) was rooting for Stanford, but I was rooting for UP (I'm no traitor!)! ;) UP has always had such an amazing women's soccer team...I don't know what the heck happened?! :(

So that's it for now. We've just been busy the last couple of weeks with the usual - school, gymnastics, diapers, cooking and cleaning - nothing too exciting... Jason will be out of town again next weekend for another conference - this time in Denver. That same weekend, Uncle Doug and his family are coming down to visit me for a day or two.
And a week after that, Jason's sister, Rachel, will be in town to visit us for a week with my sweet baby niece Charlotte and I can't wait!!! Eeeee!!! Mike may also be coming to visit that weekend, so it should be fun! The day after Rachel leaves, I'm planning on driving up to my parents' house in WA with the kids to visit for a week while Jason endures a rough rotation here (one in which we probably won't see much of him anyways). We have a pretty busy month ahead of us!!
Well - I'm done for now. I'm exhausted and need to get to bed, so I can wake up for church tomorrow! Goodnight!! Zzzz Zzzz

P.S. Oh - one more thing! If you ever happen to be in California...stop at every yellow light! I think the lights here are rigged, so this bankrupt (yet beautiful) state can scrounge up money any way it can! We just paid a HUGE traffic fine for Jason running a red light (one of those lights with the blasted camera on it)! $460 folks!!! $460!!!! Eek!!! Is that crazy or what?!?!?!
Okay - on that not-so-happy note, I'm off to bed! ;)