Destination Hearst Castle

Andrew, Nick, Mia, Reade, and myself all headed to Hearst Castle for their basic tour. Reade did not like how loud the introduction movie was so we had to leave five minutes into it. Andrew filled me in on the details.

Destination Hearst Castle:


Reade's first bus ride. I was surprised at how far into the hills the castle really is:


The sculptures were amusing:


I want a fish pond in my courtyard. Strollers aren't allowed on the tour so I left my license as collateral in exchange for a baby carrier:


Pretty fantastic:


I loved touring the castle and I wish I could go on all of the tours. I usually hate sight seeing where mobs of people are, but the castle has some fun history to it. I highly recommend seeing it if you are in the area.

Tomorrow marks the last blog post from our camping trip. I will have to squish the remainder into one post!

Down The Trail To The Beach

Mia on the beach (it was a rocky beach with not-so-soft sand)


Blake watching his daddy in the water. It was windy and cold so he stayed back with me. It is somewhat sad to watch him stand on shore saying quietly, "daddy surf?" Someday Blake, someday:


Nick and Andrew:


Andrew boogie boarding:

Taking It Easy

It was so nice to just relax and hang out with family.

The grandparents soaking up some sun and grandsons:


Life is good with hot cocoa:


Blake can finally hang with the big kids:

All Together

The van made it to the campground! Reade and I got off to a late start so we ended up arriving at the campground around 11:00pm. Just in time to make the bed up in the van and go to sleep.



The Adelizi tent:


We had no idea we would be amongst such entertainment:

Camp On

Blake loves his papa David:


Two silly kids at the amphitheater:


Stake Out:

Back Online

We are back from a week of beach camping at San Simeon State Park in Cambria, CA. This week, I will be showcasing some of our photos and videos for your camping pleasure!

We were all supposed to drive down south together, but there was a slight hiccup regarding the Eurovan (the drum brake seized up on the mechanic) so Andrew went ahead with Blake and I met up with them Monday night. I was sad to have missed Sandy and Paul. At least Blake got to have fun with them.

Marshmallow fun:

Welcome Taliesin Sparrow Racecar Rose Hosein

With permission from her proud mama, I am pleased to introduce Taliesin Sparrow Racecar Rose Hosein. She was born June 17th, at 2:34am , weighing in at 6lbs., 7oz. It is fun that our two children are born on the 17th! I can't believe she is already a month old. She fits into their family so nicely and it seems like she has always been around (old soul with a new twist?): Megana's birth story in her own words: "Birth story: slept, water broke, slept, epidural, slept, woke to baby coming out, pushed, baby." "She was born at 2:34a.m. on her grandmother Korisha's birthday (as you know). Also, the nurse that helped in the delivery was from this small island called Dominica in the Caribbean, and when Jinnah's parents called to wish us congratulations, they were in Dominica, which we didn't know ahead of time. And the nurse's name was Florence, the name of Jinnah's other grandmother. Sparrow is after Trinidadian singer The Mighty Sparrow, btw. Trinidad is where Jinnah's father Everold is from." Just born: So 2010: At home in mama's arms: Proud, happy siblings: Two bunches of love:

My Bad

I guess irons are not made to be knocked over onto a tile floor.

Lame:


While I really want this $100 Rowenta (the "it" iron in the craft world):


I will settle for this $20 Black and Decker rated as a Best Buy in Consumer Reports:




Does anyone have any iron suggestions? Remember to keep in mind I never iron clothes, but iron my sewing and quilting projects.

Nesting Fun

Combing craigslist for a used T-ball stand can be dangerous. I should save money and buy one new at Toys 'R Us because I keep seeing other things on craigslist I just have to have! Today's craigslist adventure led us to a quirky house for some nesting dolls.

International friends:


Baseball teammates for Blake:


Now he can play with a team:


The leprechaun set was what caught my eye originally. I love all things leprechaun and I look forward to using these as decoys for next year's leprechaun trap:


I got all three sets for $11! The baseball bases were a dollar at the Dollar Tree.

The bottom of the nesting dolls say Oriental Trading so I hopped online to find they are only $6/per set. What a great deal. I fell in love with the Nativity Scene and might just have to buy that for Christmas. I love the nativity set my mother handed down to me, but Blake is just too rough with it so maybe this one will be a good learning set.

Two Down...

My second son has outgrown the bassinet. About a week ago, I removed the bumper to give him more room. I decided to return the bassinet to its waiting area in the back of my closet (with hopes we will use it for our third) after finding Reade's face smooshed up against one of the wicker sides during his nap. He is in the small Pack 'N Play for now and will graduate to the crib in Blake's room once we get down to one feeding per night. I am in no hurry since I love falling asleep to his precious baby breathing.

Blake, 17 days old:


Reade, two and a half months old:

Graffiti

On my way to San Francisco I saw this on the freeway:

Mondays Are Great Because...

Husbands go back to work so no one is there to witness...

Pie for breakfast:


Or homemade fudge pops before dinner:


Tuesday is a different story! Back to the grind of being a responsible person.

Perfect Combination

Playmobil & Surfing. Blake thought this was fantastic:

Reade (Two Months)

At 2 months I:
* Smile an ear-to-ear grin
* Coo in sentences
* Am a sweaty baby
* Already love watching my brother
* Love to sleep (3.5 hour stretches at night max.)
* Still don't enjoy stroller rides
* Have eyes with two colors of blue
* Went to the beach for the first time
* Went to Sacramento for the first time
* Threw my daddy a party

Check out my One Month photo.

Men Don't Need Wrists

How does a man check the temperature of a bottle? With a tool of course.

New Additions

We have two, new storytellers in our house now. One that is electronic and one that is made of resin. Both have been keeping us entertained.

Oh, how I love my new gnome:


Oh, how Andrew cannot put down his Nook:


Have we embarked upon a Nook vs. Kindle rivalry? Is one really better than the other? To me, they are all the same.

Days and Nights

Blake transitioned himself to his big boy bed all by himself about two weeks ago. This has been great since I will need the crib soon. He just recently discovered that he doesn't have to stay in his bed if he doesn't want to. It has taken us 45 minutes these past few nights to get him to finally fall asleep in his bed. He has quite a pattern of thumping out of bed, skittering across the room, and knocking at the door before he lets himself out. It was cute the first couple of times, but now I am a bit fed up with the back and forth attention it requires. I love how many excuses a two year old can make for not needing to go to bed (daddy shows downstairs, poo-poo on the potty, playing ball, etc.).

Life is so much more manageable around here so if this is our toughest moment then I have nothing to complain about. I am posting these videos so I can look back and laugh at how silly our morning routine can be:





On a selfish note, there is a contest going on to win a six book set of Elizabeth Pantley's books on raising children. Here is a book I should be reading:


Visit her website: http://www.pantley.com/elizabeth/

Holly In Bloom

The hollyhocks I brought home from Erin's baby shower are blooming. Nothing blooms after I plant it so Holly must be very special.

Blooming:


Reade with cousin Holly:

Happy 30th Andrew

We surprised him! Boy, after months of planning we finally got to surprise Andrew on his birthday weekend. I rented an ocean bungalow in Ocean Beach (San Francsico) and invited friends and family so we could celebrate Andrew turning 30. Thank goodness I can stop saying my husband is still in his twenties.

Happy Birthday to a great man:


Papa David and Blake upstairs in the bungalow:


Aunt Shirley knew just how to make the party fun. She brought: signs, a pinata, and life sized chili cutouts. You can count on her to add the life to the party:


Here we are celebrating with cake:


We celebrated the 4th of July by going out to a nice dinner with Andrew's parents. I wanted to lay the bed down in the back of the Eurovan so we could gaze up at the fireworks like sardines, but we didn't want to fight the crowds.

Of course we went to a brewery:


Happy diners:


David ordered the sand castle dessert:


Guess who helped him enjoy it:


A huge Thank You is in tall order for all of my friends and family who helped me pull this off. I couldn't have done any of this without you and Andrew had a wonderful time. You guys are the best!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANDREW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Meet Elaine and Gary

Andrew just sent me a link to this blog. At first I didn't get it, but then I realized they were making fun of catalog pages like this post:


"Elaine was not amused by Gary’s passive-aggressive response to her request to “garnish the cocktails.”