Big Sister's Shoes

Rory adores Sascha.
She likes to have whatever her big sister does.
Right down to her shoes.

Rory has many pairs of her own,
but she seeks out Sascha's and puts them on,
and struts around.





And Sascha doesn't mind,
for now.

My Drama Queen

I found these on my computer,
after Sascha was playing with Photo Booth.
Apparently she was practicing her different moods.

The second one is my favorite.
I'm going to put that one on a loop
for days when people are driving me crazy!

Peace

I woke up this morning,
ate my breakfast with the girlies,
and felt a surge of energy that has been missing lately.

I tackled the girl's messy room,
then the bathroom,
then Rory's room.
Everything organized,
all in its place.

I rested during lunch,
but before I knew it
the surge was back.
I tackled my living room,
the kitchen,
the laundry.
Mostly organized,
almost all in its place.

Today was the first day in a long time
where I felt I didn't need a nap.
I guess the energy surge of trimester two,
and a bit of nesting has kicked in.
Thank goodness!
Mama Bird needed to get stuff done.

Now, I'm snuggled on my couch,
watching a movie with my family,
in our cozy new home.
I feel like I could keep going,
but I've decided to rest
and enjoy the peace
of (mostly) everything in its place.

When it's too Hot to Go Outside

We build.

Miss Moosey McMooserson

Hey Aunt Des,

Would you like to borrow her hat?
;-)

Love,
Me

Our First Overnighter!

Barb is here!
She has ventured all the way down
to Temekeya (as Sascha says)
and is going to spend a few nights in our new digs.

Today we went out to see Oma.

We chatted.


We had chips, and Oma dip.


And admired the cutie patooties.

Succulents

Papa shared his love for Succulents with the girls this weekend.
They are so excited to take care of their new plants!

Couldn't Resist

I know this is all kinds of wrong,
but I couldn't help myself.
First, I saw it at the grocery store,
then at Target,
then at Costco,
and since they offer discounts on their magazines,
I said what the hey!


And, it's August.
AUGUST!

But, oooh I spied some cute felt projects that I must do!

Only 38 days until October. :)

Summer Lunchin'

Had us a blast!

The Park

Reason 2,954,679 I love my new city:
The Sport Park right down the street
makes my girls insanely happy.

Oh Where, Oh Where Can They Be?

My bump is slowly starting to make its grand appearance,
looking less like I've gained some weight and more like
it's okay to ask when I'm due.

I'm still able to fit into quite a few pairs of my shorts,
and finding shirts has yet to be a problem -
hooray for flowy tops and extra long tees!
But, I have been wondering where my maternity clothes have gone.

I spent an hour today in the garage going through tub after tub,
and found not a stitch.
I know I sold a lot of it after Rory,
I also know I didn't sell all of it.
So where is it???

The hunt is on!!!

I Spend All Day

Smooching on these cheeks.

The Grumps, Mama Edition

Today I had The Grumps.

It started in the wee hours of the morning,
when Rory couldn't sleep.
I thought I'd sleep it off,
and wake up refreshed.

Not so much.

I am having a hard time with sleep this pregnancy.
I wake up a lot,
have trouble getting comfortable,
and I'm not even at the halfway point yet.

Thankfully I'm able to indulge in a little treat
called Nap Time.

Maybe The Grumps came because I blew through my box set of
Sookie Stackhouse novels.


Good thing I've got the next two on the way -
hopefully that's my cure!

Dreams of Last Week

First Day Jitters

The jitters to which I refer were mine,
not Hailey's.
Hailey started her first day of FOURTH grade today!
My anxiety was in full force,
all day I puttered around not really doing much,
hoping that she was having a great day.

And she did!

I think one of the hardest parts of being a mom
is coping with
the pieces of your heart
that walk around outside your body.

Hopefully day two through the end of the year
goes just as well!

Food for Thought

This evening I made Black Bean Chili,
my favorite recipe from here.

I've been thinking of Nie all day.

A Pedi for a Princess

Sometimes a Princess needs some pampering.

Tuesday Night Lights

Pics from our trip to see the
Main Street Electrical Parade at CA Adventure!

BACK!

We're back at home.

But my camera is still hanging in Orange County.

Woe is the blogger sans camera!

:(

Home Away From Home

Off to Nana & Papa's for a two day stay!

Looking forward to a night at Disneyland,
a dip in the pool,
a chance to visit some OC shops,
and some QT with the parentals.

3 Sweet Peas

Today some neighbor kids brought cookies to the house.
Oooh they were delicious!
Chocolate chip cookies are one of my top cravings right now,
that and cheeseburgers.
SUPER healthy!!

This is Hailey's last week of summer vacay,
so lots of fun is in store!

Where We Formally Dine

Not!
In the 5 years we lived in our last home
we used the formal dining room twice.
So, this time around we decided to forgo
formality and use it as our
downstairs play area.

No formalities required!

Decked Out

My 3 Summer Lovies

Today we had Oma, Uncle Fred, Uncle Alex,
and my Mom & Dad
over for lunch.
John made lasagna,
Oma made salad,
Mom made cookies,
and I ate.
So delicious!

KA-CHOW!

I finally found the cord to my camera,
so here are the pictures from Rory's birthday dinner.

The birthday girl requested cheeseburgers
and french fries for dinner.







Since Rory is in love with the movie "Cars",
her presents were anything and everything
Lightning McQueen.




For dessert, we had birthday cupcakes
that Hailey and Sascha helped make.
Funfetti white cake and chocolate frosting.


The birthday girl was so pleased!

I still cannot believe she is already 2!

Nothing Left for Her to Do But DANCE!

Sascha started a combo class today
of ballet, tap & jazz.
She was very excited to look
like a real ballerina.

My favorite part of the class,
was when the teacher told the girls that she loved piano music.
Sascha said she liked to sing,
and she could sing her Taylor Swift.
The teacher said, "Really? Go ahead!"
And Sascha gave the class her rendition of Love Story.

I couldn't contain my smile.

Then she told everyone that I taught her the song,
and the teacher asked her if I was a music teacher,
and she replied, "Yes!"

Who knew?
I'll have to add that to my resume.

Pool Party Pics - Part 2

I made some Cowboy Caviar,
and served it with some tortilla chips.
YUM-MY!

Mike pretended to be Shamu.


Allegra thought, "Daaaaaaad."


Me and the Hailey Cat


John, the girls and the hat.

Our Afternoon at The Promenade

I haven't had Rory's picture professionally taken since she was a wee one, so when I came across a coupon for a free 8 x 10 - I made an appointment and today we had them done and explored the mall. Rory was not into being photographed, so Miss Sascha jumped in and helped her with some shots. Here are the proofs from the shoot:

After the shoot we enjoyed some food court pizza, and did some shopping. While in a store, a teenager came up to us and asked, "Aww, are they identical or fraternal?" It caught me off guard for a second - I laughed and told her no, they are two years apart. I got a "No Way!" in response.

Way!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RORY!

Our sweet Meesie is 2 today!!!

How quickly time flies!

We love you Sweet Pea!

BBQ!

We had a great afternoon with our dear friends,
The Dickersons.

Yummy food,
wonderful company,
more pictures to come!

24 Hours To Go

My Hailey has been gone all week.

I cannot wait for her to be home!