we're off ....

to oregon tomorrow. Not that i've been posting regularly here, but we won't be back for 10 days and will catch you all up when we return.

we've been playing outside non-stop lately. the kids are happy. the weather is good. friends are around. the yard is green & wet and getting some attention this year. potato and carrot tops are coming up. tomatoes, squash and peppers are going in the ground tomorrow morning. we're all healthy. that's all that matters. oh, and to celebrate kai's completion of his first year of pre-school we went to the ice cream store for lunch today. yum.

I do have photos in our camera from this past weekend in lexington, but really i'm too lazy right now to get up and download photos. the one below is from last week when Zaiah insisted on putting on a much-to-big wizard dress and prance around the yard. i love how she is holding up the dress.

happy memorial weekend! hope this summer is very memorable.

say, do you like green eggs and ham?

you do not like them, you say?
try them, try them and you may


this book has been re-discovered in this house. Last week grandpa jewell and grandma ronda came to visit and there was not one car ride that went without grandpa and kai reading this book. repeat. repeat.

so the other night we attempted to make green eggs and ham .... sanz ham! And this is how it turned out .....


I was feeling a little skeptical. Thinking the kids would try them and say .... no thanks. But it turned out really good. We're even having left overs tonight.

Our recipe: ground chicken with tons of green stuff, like spinach and broccoli. Mix it all up and grill. Then fry an egg. Top the chicken burger with the egg. Spread some pesto and avocado on top. Voila! It WAS mighty tasty. And the kids agreed.

getting dirty, or getting spring-y

our first camping trip this year. we went to red river gorge with two other families. the hit was our friend's VW camper. the kids loved it! besides being wet, it was a great way to kick off the camping season.


and earlier in the week the kids and i planted potatoes in our garden. these and some carrot seeds are in the ground ..... hopefully we'll see some green popping up in the near future.


surely one of the fattest worm! i think this season will be very dirty! my floors agree. people, the floors! the grime and the mud that come in these doors. leaving the shoes at the door doesn't seem to work. any secrets would be great appreciated.

april 16th

april 15: the day Kai got his first 2-wheel peddle bike.
april 16: the day Kai learned how to ride it all by himself!

what a milestone. for me, more exciting than when he took his first steps. I think for him too. He rode his bike until almost 9pm last night, and this morning it was the first thing he did when he awoke. and again, right before I took him to school.

he's amazing. the confidence that exudes from him is contagious.
maybe next year a bike ramp??

more birthday day celebrations

oh how i love this photo above! a couple days before zaiah's birthday kai told me he wanted to go to target and pick out something for her birthday. so we went, and he chose to pick out clothes. these two shirts. the one kai put on says 'smile.' i especially love his bed head.



making baked alaska for the birthday cake: brownie topped with mint chocolate chip ice cream and meringue.

Two!

yesterday she turned two. and she understood. all day saying mine and pointing to the birthday banner and balloons and holding up her hand with all 5 fingers. (she would like to be 5!).

i like the light in the background of this photo below. this dress carol had made for her from a vintage sheet. of course, she's adorable in it.


i remember the first year of kai's life went so sloooowwww. and i didn't understand why people always say it goes so fast. now i know. the last two years have flown. and to think about all the things she learned this past year makes it even seem faster. i look forward to seeing what's to come from this sweet little girl this year and especially what she teaches me. but not too fast please !

date

when i was pregnant with zaiah i made a promise to myself that i would take kai on a special date every so often, just me and him. well, it took me almost 2 yrs to do this! actually writing this makes me a little sad that i haven't followed through.

last week i took kai to the play, Go Dog Go. it's based on the book by Dr. Suess. oh so good! kai loved it and i did just as much. afterwards we went to get ice cream at his favorite ice cream shop. a friend the other day mentioned her friend takes her children somewhere special every month on the date they were born, just the two of them. i thought this was a good way to get in the habit. i think i might start doing this with kai. zaiah and i already get a lot of alone time while kai is in school so i'll start something with her once she's in school too.