peek--a--boo

   

Sawyer has found a new game to play with Ashlee and I.  It is Peek-a-boo! He hides behind my hand, his sippy cup, his arm, whatever!  Then he pops up and screaches!! I still have not been able to get him to actually say "Boo!" but he still knows the game quite well.  I am not sure why it is so interesting that he plays this but at least it is something!

Image via Wikipedia

This shot is interesting to me too... peekaboo trial in Utah! hmm we should go there!! HA It is not really related to my story other than the tree is playing peekaboo... but it was neat so I added it!

Birthdays!!!

Donny's bday party Emily outdid herself and made this neat car cake! Our gift to Donny was a new toy kitchen! Sure hope he likes it!

This weekend we celebrated Donny's 3rd birthday!  Happy Birthday little guy!The party was the day after we got home from vacation and I could sure tell the kids were still tired. 

Sawyer did not want to go to anyone but Mom or Dad. Grandma Carol and Rich came to the party.  It was good to see them!

Ashlee did some "crafting" she made birthday cards and origami animals for Donny.

Road trip... over 1600 miles of memories!

It is early Saturday morning and we are up and packing the car for the 600 mile trip to California.  It seems like we need to pack everything but the kitchen sink, guess that is what it is like to have little kids and be traveling.  Our plan for the first day is to get out of dodge before 8am and get at least 5 hours before stopping for some lunch.  Kids are up and fed and ready to go, we took the dog to the kennel the night before, car is packed and we are on our way and it is only 730am! nice!

We plan to go to Klamah CA for the first night.  Our turn off of I-5 is at Grants Pass.  After two potty stops and about 5 hours we are there.  We hit the Denny's for lunch...yuck I remember now why I do not eat there.  Finally we are entering into the Redwood forest, the trees as SO magnificent.  Just look at the size of them! wow!  I have to try to get some shots of them as we go by.  Oh and wow the beach and ocean from hwy 101 is amazing, large waves crashing into the rocks with big white spray flying off! gorgeous!   Finally we are at the Trees of mystery, and tell tail sign is the large Paul Bunyan and his blue ox Babe!

Image by ZanderManda via Flickr

We toured through the Trees of Mystery and rode the gondola ride up 750 feet into the top of the trees and from that vantage point there was another great view of the Pacific Ocean! wow! Even the air was so fresh from here.

Image by acaben via Flickr

All this hiking and touring works up an appetite for both Eric and I and the kids so we stop at the Forest Cafe and have some blackberry cobbler with vanilla ice cream, that hit the spot!! After some time at the beach on the way to our hotel, the first day of our road trip is in the bag and Sawyer is already sleeping soundly in his pack 'n play.  So far so good!  Such a good idea to do , thanks Eric!

Image via Wikipedia

The Raven wood hotel in Klamah is clean and a nice place for a stop, but to our surprise the bed is hard and lumpy. It must have gotten a little cold too because Ashlee soon came into our bed at around 3am, and not two hours later Sawyer was up and whining also.  So much for a good nites sleep.  The hotel had a continental breakfast with coffee, oh how we needed coffee.  As we were walking to the breakfast room over on the opposite side of the parking lot there are flag poles with different states and country flags on them, later I learned that they put up each state or country of their guests.  That is cool. Ashlee liked that.

We set out on the road again just before 8am.  Driving along hwy 101 along the coast and through a place called Elk Meadows, correctly named because we had Elk in the road and all over the meadow.  Bulls,

cows, and calves.  It sure was a sight to see, I have never seen that many elk up close and in the wild.

We decided to cut over on CA hwy 299 that would take us back to Redding CA.  Wow I have never been on such a long and windy road, hair pin corners everywhere. I did not think we would ever make it off of that road and 100 miles on that sure did take a long time.  Ashlee made it about halfway and all of the sudden she was screaming.  She had gotten car sick and puked all over her mermaid blanket and clothes.  She was so upset that it made her puke some more. 

Image via Wikipedia

We had to pull off the road and start cleaning up, I tried not to smell it for I was going to be sick myself.  I am glad that I had chosen to drive also, otherwise I think I would have been car sick also.  That was a grueling ride and I do not think we will be taking that road again.  When Lake Shasta appeared off to the right we were so excited! We had made it back to civilization and off of that terrible road.  Not only was it windy, but you were constantly climbing up or down a grade. Ugg!

It was also nice to see that this had been a wet year and the water level of Lake

Image via Wikipedia

Shasta was quite high.  It looked so inviting, unlike this picture of the lower water level. I wanted to stop and jump in the fresh blue water and get refreshed.  Instead we stopped in Redding for some lunch.  I was never so happy to have our TomTom.  That little GPS helped us find our way the whole trip, and also find places for lunch and restrooms.  Quite handy!
So far this trip has been the longest one that Eric and I have taken in a car.  Besides the little car sick mishaps, it was going pretty well.  I am still amazed that Eric suggested it, he is not real fond of long drives.  He says he has trouble staying awake in the car for that long.  So far we were both doing pretty well, there was even conversation.  He told me about the many trips that his family would take to Sacramento each summer.  Some of the places that they stopped at along the way.  It must have made a pretty good impression on him because he wanted to stop at those places along our trip too.  Just outside of Redding in Corning CA with the Olive Pit store.  They have every type of olive you could think of there, pickled garlic, lots of sauces and dips.  I have never seen so many olives!
It was a mere two more hours and we saw the Sacramento skyline.  I did imagine a lot more but it is what it is.  Eric told me he was a little disappointed with the sight himself.  Not four or more miles from Downtown is where his Aunt Tami lives. We had reached our destination for the next few days!  The weather had turned a little warmer for our trip.  The temperature in Sacramento was 102-106 for the three days that we were there.  We toured the downtown area known as Old Town, and we also for a Fun Center and the Sacramento Zoo along with Fairytale Land.  All in all there was a lot to do!

Image via Wikipedia

The next leg of the trip was San Francisco.  Eric and I headed to the big city on the bay alone.  The kids stayed back with Tami and Grandma and we soon learned that Aunt Lisa flew into town to help out also.  We hit the road again about 9am.  We were hoping it would be late enough to miss the traffic, but as it was the traffic on Hwy 80 was slow, it took about 45 minutes to get out of the city.  After that though the road were smooth sailing, no other back ups.  We went through a few towns like Vacaville and Oakland.  As the San Francisco skyline approached so did the toll line on the Bay bridge.  It was a weekday so the fare was $4.00.  After the line there was a stoplight to try to get you

Image via Wikipedia

back into traffic lanes for the bridge.  That is a long bride, the speed is about 35-40 mph because of how it winds around in some sharp corners all the while San Francisco skyline getting nearer and nearer, I could now see the Golden Gate bridge and Alcatraz over in the bay.  Wow how beautiful.  I told Eric of the one time that my mom and brother and sister traveled down hwy 101 to San Luis Obispo to visit my Uncle.  We drove over the Golden Gate bridge but I do not remember allot else about that trip. 

The temperatures were record high and the sky was so clear.  Not a cloud in sight so that sights were that much more clear.  We drove into the city, once again proud of our Tom Tom purchase.  We drove straight to the Parc 55 hotel downtown near the Union Square and Cable car turnaround.
I did not realize the size of the buildings there until we were in the misted of them.  Amazing! We valet the car and head into our suite on the 25th floor with a great view of the city.  After dropping off our bags and getting a sip of water to drink we are on our way to Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39.  I have never rode in a cable car so we get our tickets and set out to ride.  The lines are atrocious, just then a black town car pulls up and says same price as the cable car, he will give us a ride to Pier 39! So we hopped in! 

The drivers voice is so raspy you can sure tell he has had a lot of cigarettes through the years.  Oh my.  He pointed out some of the sights along the way, Lombard street, the crooked street in the city. Coit Tower, the Lady Coit who loved to fight fires but could not legally be a firefighter, so she was a honorary one!  Some seafood houses and places to eat! and then Ghiradeli Chocolate Factory, the Cable car museum and we were at Fisherman's wharf. 
Eric had purchased bay cruise tickets for us on the blue and gold boats, for a tour of the bay and Alcatraz.  So we footed down to Pier 39, along the way checking out the Hooters cafe and all the vendors and shops.

We hopped on the ship for a bay cruise, it was warm so warm that the benches on the upper deck were quite warm, it was hard to sit on them without your butt feeling like it was burning.  I got some great pictures and learned alot from the announcer on the ship about the construction on the Golden Gate bridge and also Angel island and Alcatraz.  It was a great 1 hour tour.  While on the Pier 39 I got a shot of the sea lions basking in the sun, and we had a bite to eat... Chowder of course! from the Chowder House and also a shrimp Louie salad! That hit the spot!
After the tour we went to Ghiradeli Square and bought some chocolate and also saw Sara Cupcakes shop, which was on the Cupcake wars on the Food Network channel a few weeks ago.  I could not eat any cupcakes though, it was just too hot.
Then we finally rode on the cable car, it was HOT and crowded so we only stayed on long enough to see some "Painted Ladies" (the townhouses) and another shot of Lombard street and we got off at the beginning of Chinatown. 

After a few hours of shopping and touring the city my feet were hot and swollen so we headed back to the hotel to get ready for dinner at the Cityhouse grill and our Giants baseball game!  It was our anniversry gift to each other! The San Francisco trip and game night!  It is hard to imagine that Eric and I have been married for 8 years now.  I remember when I told my grandma Molly the date that we had chosen for our wedding.  She replied " that is a great date because your granpa Gerald and I were married on that day too"!  I felt so special to be following in their footsteps! I loved my grandma very much and remembering that day makes me think of her everytime! Love and miss you Grandma! :)

For dinner I had swordfish! wow it was wonderful and so were the drinks! hehe.  we set off in yet another cab to At&t field where the Giants play.  we got great seats along the home plate, and the game was ecxciting.  I have never been to a baseball game that had so much hitting.  There were 4 home runs hit by the Giants and 3 hit by the Cinncinati Reds.  Go Giants!  I tried some cinnamon roasted almonds, I do not like nuts that much but those were to die for! Yum! All in all it was a great evening in San Francisco! yeah! Love you lots Eric!
We had an uneventful trip back to Sacramento.  Stayed there another night and set off for home on Thursday evening.  We wanted to shoot for a long drive home straight through.  So we had dinner with the family and got all packed up and ready to leave around 6pm and set off on our 600 mile journey home.  This time we were going staright through on I-5 no turnoffs.  The TomTom said it would take 9.5 hours.  We stopped three times for potty breaks and gas and made it to our doorstep in 9 hours.  Eric and I were tired and ready to sleep as soon as we hit the pillow.  Everyone was tired and we slept in until 830am or 9am  the next morning!

Road trip had come to an end, after about 1600 miles of fun and about a week worth of vacation!  Thanks to Eric's Aunt Tami and Grandma Porteous for all your hospitality and help with the kids.  And thanks to Lisa too!

SCREACHES!!!!

So my son is now 13 months old and not talking.  He points and grunts and SCREACHES!!! I think I need help!?!  I am not worried about him not talking but the screaming is really starting to hurt my ears, and head!

Image via Wikipedia

What am I to do?  I know that he is doing it to get our attention and it is working, but I want to try to curb that and make him understand that talking is how to be heard.  What are some ideas?  how do I start this task? I did not have this issue with my daughter, Ashlee.  She was talking at 8-9 months and talking in full sentences by the time she was this age.
I am looking for something to try to do so that I can get him to try to say or use words.  He has started some babbling.. like "ga ga  ga", babababa". Any ideas would be great!!!

Summer time fun

The last few weeks have been warm and sunny.  In just the last week I was able to get out the kids pool and fill it over by the garden so that Ashlee and Daisy and I could cool off in the afternoons.  I say that about Ashlee and I because I have tried to have Sawyer out there too but he is a maniac in the water.  He does not want to be in the pool, but on the outside he will splash and dive in until he is soaked just like he went in the pool.  He is hard to hang onto and keep from falling head first into it.  Scary sometimes!

Lunch was over. Sawyer is down for his afternoon nap, Ashlee and I head out to the pool side.  I
have my chair from the deck by the pool, my reading book, and Ashlee little outdoor table and chairs.  We are in the afternoon sun on the side of the yard near the garden.  Ashlee insists on bringing her toys from the sandbox over. She has a bucket some dishes and shovels, even a planter water bucket.  Spongebob innertube for Ashlee to sit and float in... even though the water has been in the pool for three or more hot days it is still pretty cool to the touch. 
I enjoy this time with Ashlee.  We sit in the pool and I read my book and she splashes and plays in the water with her toys and Daisy.  Daisy loves to go in and out, in and out of the water, splashing as she goes.  silly girl!

Image via Wikipedia

With the three (plus)big oak trees in the back yard we usually have sun on the pool for at least 30-45 mintues.  It is the right amount of time to be out in the sun.  I love to soak up some rays and some girl time with Ashlee.  I sure have been able to get caught up on my books this last week or so.  I am on my last Stephen Cannel book and will have to talk with my friend Linda to see if she has any other books to suggest for me to read.

Ashlee found a big bottle of bubbles and has brought them to the pool today.  As she is blowing some with the wand she tips to the table the bottle is sitting on and the whole things goes over into the pool and on the ground.  Good thing bubbles are cheap and just soap! hehe. Once we get all that rinsed off and the sun has finally gone behind the trees, we are sitting in the shade.  Ashlee says "mommy it is time to go inside and watch some tv?! Can we please? "

After sitting here in the house and cooling off.  I start to see how great this really is.  I get to spend the afternoon with my kids in the pool in our own backyard. How great this is?!  I have been off work for about 9 months now and I can really say that I am starting to enjoy my time at home.  My schedule has started to slow or at least adjust to my kids.

one foot in front of the other

Image via Wikipedia

I forget why I started running a year or so ago... I have not been running that much lately, I was going to Bootcamp instead.  It is just not the same and I did not notice that until I finally decided to take a run this morning before the heat with Daisy. 
It started off very rough, the dog pulling me in all directions and crossing over my path. Finally after some yanking and getting into a groove we smoothly move down the road.  The wind in my face, blowing my hair out of the way, darn it I forget to pull it up today. 
It is 730AM and already 65 out.  We head through the neighborhood, it is quiet.  The only thing I hear and see if all of the sprinklers going off.  Everyone must be preparing for the scortcher of a day that is coming.  I get to the end of Vincent and decide to go back through some of the houses off of Central Point.  I have not run for a month or more so I am thinking that a 3 mile start will be good.
By the time I hit the 1 mile mark Daisy has calmed down and stopped pulling me and also we have gotten into a steady pace with each other.  Oh I wish it could always just start off like this. 
We are out of town now and the fields are green with tall grass, and then some cows and horses.  Daisy spots some goats staring at her and she is not quite sure what to think, then they "baa" at her and she jumps a little.  hehe..
Around the loop and back up the hill to start the treck home.  Again we are going through the neighborhood, still quiet, no cars going by yet.  I see lots of signs of yesterdays garage sales, none setting up yet for the last and final day.
Wow I am feeling warm and maybe a little sore now, the whole reason for going is starting to sink in.. I need to get into shape.  I have my 6 mile run coming in a month and I am NOT ready for it yet.  Well I made my 3 miles in pretty good time and I did not need to stop, so that is something!  Will keep going at least 3 times a week,slowly working up the distance.  Lets go RUNNING!!

Squaw Mtn Hiking....

The alarm goes off and I know I need to get up fast and get out of bed before Ashlee hears me.  I had promised her the night before that if did well and went to bed and slept she would be able to go to breakfast and hiking with the girls. 
She was so excited she picked out her clothes for the next morning and was so good at bed, did not wake us up at all.  I felt horrible that I had to go back on my promise to take her, I had misunderstood the type of hike that we were going on.  I thought it was Powell Butte and or one of that caliber.  But I looked more into the Sqaw Mtn , Old Baldy decription and it was at least 5 miles and alot of elevation change. There would be no way a 4 year old could keep up or do that hike on her own.  So I got up and left the house with Daisy without waking up anyone else. 

We were to meet for breakfast before at the Carver Cafe.  I had never been there and was looking forward to trying a new place.  They opened at 7am and I was there before the open light went on.  Kimi was first to arrive, we went in and got a table and ordered up some coffee.  Kali showed up a few minutes later.
We ordered and the waiter asked Kali as she was peroozing through her hiking book, if we were on a "twilight tour?" NO, she told him, "thank god", he said with a chuckle.  Guess they get alot of that since their little cafe was part of the shooting in the first movie, Twilight.  I myself, am not intersted in that series and have not read or seen any of the movies.

Breakfast and the coffee hit the spot.  I told the girls about how upset Ashlee was going to be and we decied to stick with the hike planned and maybe try to take the kids next weekend.  I knew in my heart that she was going to be devistated that I had left without her.  I did feel sorry for Eric having to be there and break the news to her. 

He later told me how she had woke up about 8am and came down stairs all dressed in the outfit that we had picked to wear wondering where Mom was? When he told her that Mom was gone already she started to cry and was very sad that she was left behind.  He felt so bad that they decided to go to McDonalds and get a egg biscuit for breakfast.  I hope I do not have to ever do that to her again. ugg.

After breakfast we headed out to Estacada and the trail head which was about 17 miles outside of Estacada off of Squaw Mtn road.  I tseemed as thowugh we were so far up there with no one around.  As soon as we parked in a wide spot on the road and gathered our packs and I spotted another car just down the rosad. 
Wow It always amazes me how there are so many outdoors poeple in and around Portland.  That is why I love the area so much.  the trailhead was  a nicely wooded area quiet and smelling of the woods.  I love that fresh smell of trees and pine needles and mossy dirt. The first few steps on to the trail and there is a steep hill ahead of us.  I am winded by the time I reach the mid top of the area and I cannot believe that the article had said this was a family friendly hike. My daughter would not be liking me right now if she had come on this.  I love the smell of forest though, clean and crisp. There is a carpet of green clover all over the ground and makes it look as though there is smooth grass growing all over the hill and trees.

We reach a small clearing on a shell rock bank and look the right and just as the fog or mist is starting to clear off the mountain side we see the meadows and springs.  I believe this is called the two springs view.  So gorgeous! It reminds me of a golf course, looks like some of the fairways winding through the trees. Daisy is a complete mainiac running up and down the hills infront and behind us.  She cannot find enough things to explore and sniff.  She is always so excited for hiking and I have to say So well behaved.  She comes back to me when I call and always pays attention to where we are at on the trail, be it behind her or infront.  These hours out here sure do help her make it through those poor days at home when she only gets to go for short walks to the park with me and the kids.  I am also liking the fact that we are getting onto the trails earlier in the day, we are getting started no later than 9am and that is really helping with the traffic on these trails.  We did not see but one other group on this trail.  That is so nice, I hate worrying about Daisy bothering the other hikers and also weather or not we are going fast enough or being slowed down by others on the trail.  Plus even when the hike is a pretty long one we are still done by 1 or 2pm and have the rest of the afternoon to do other things.

I really enjoy hiking with my besties for we not only get in a good workout but we get in our much needed girlfriend time.  We tell stories of college days and even just last week, but it always helps lift the mood and make me remember why having friends is so important. 

Here we are just us three! Go hikers! Today was a great day for hiking! Until the next trip... and as always enjoy the outdoors, ladies! On the way back through Estacada we did have to stop at one of the best drive-thru places for a peanut butter milk shake, to die for ladies!! To die for, once you start sipping you cannot stop till it is gone, not even to breathe !!!

Graduation from obedience class! Daisy!! way to go!!

Way to go Daisy! We made it through your first obedience class and I have to say she is a lot better at most things!
She will "sit" "down" "come" and walk on her leash pretty well.  We still have lots of work to do but there is a light at the end of the tunnel.  I got some great help and ideas on ways to work with behavior training. 
Daisy sure is growing and getting bigger everyday.  We got her spade and finished her shots.  We even put in the micro chip for ID. 

I know that she is now apart of our family for Ashlee just loves playing with her.  Sawyer is excited to see her and really enjoys crawling all over her. HA HA.  Thanks for being such a great dog Daisy! We love you!

Facials, MK is fun!! I had a great week!

I had a great week or maybe a month!  I got to show some of my family and close friends some new color combinations and some great new products!  This was one of my better months in e business since I had my power start!  Maybe I can make this more of a usual instead of a one month streak!

I got to show my mom how the Marykay products have changed over the last 15 years since she sold Marykay, and also how she can try new purples on her eyes.  She loved the eyemakeup remover, they did not have that item when she sold it.

I also got to visit with my good friend Ali from Spokane (when I went to school at SCC) She tried on the new color combos and also the skin care.  She too liked the purples!!  It is so great to show people this and make them feel great!

Matah, from The Dalles, used to also sell Marykay about 6 years ago, she too was impressed with the new products that the company has and the purple colors on her eyes!  Thanks girls it was great!