It’s the new look for Fall.At least at our house.
xoxo, Erin
Ellie and Addison
09.25.09
Pregnant
It’s the new look for Fall. It’s the new look for Fall.
Ellie
09.23.09
A good reminder
Last Saturday we were driving home from a pool party and Kenny and I started a conversation that often comes up about our “someday” house and our “someday” yard. We were going on and on about how great it will be to someday have a bigger yard, a swimming pool, a huge area for entertaining, oh…and wouldn’t one of those Costco swing sets for the kids be fun? Wouldn’t it be fabulous if our house included a theatre room for Kenny, an exercise and scrapbook room for me, plenty of room for all of our kids, and how about a HUGE playroom? If only …someday. Ellie stopped us mid-conversation and asked what we were talking about. Kenny answered, “wouldn’t you love to live in a big house someday with a swimming pool?”
“NO, I don’t EVER want to leave our house!”
“Not even for a swimming pool?”
“But dad, we already have a swimming pool!”
You’re right Ellie. We do already have a swimming pool. We get a new pool each summer. A great pool. Thanks for reminding your parents that life is all about being content with what you have. And thanks to you, my wise five year old, what we have is more than enough.
xoxo, Erin
Ramblings
09.21.09
Dear Chargers,
Hi team. My name is Erin and I am a fan. My husband’s name is Kenny and he is a MAJOR fan. You may remember us from the Christmas card we sent you all a couple of years ago…dedicated to you. Did I mention we were Charger fans? Well, we are.
Just wanted to send you a quick note to let you know that you need to step it up a bit this year. I know you won the first game you played, but just BARELY and it was against the Raiders. The Raiders? Way too close for comfort. And today. A loss against the Ravens? What happened?
You see, when you win and are doing well, my husband (who is a MAJOR Charger fan) gets giddy like a kid on Christmas. He lives for this all year long. Nothing can compare to the happiness that emanates from him when football is going and the Chargers are winning. In fact, he gets in such a good mood that I tend to benefit immensely. It’s during these winning streaks that I choose to discuss extremely important issues with my husband, like how I MAY have spent a little more than planned on the girls’ Halloween costumes, how the dishwasher MAY need to be fixed, or how I MAY have run another red light with a camera earlier that day. I might choose a winning game day to casually show him the new dress I bought, to mention that the girls and I would love another weekend at Disneyland, or to even discuss our Christmas budget for the upcoming holidays. Now normally these topics might not make his day, in fact, in the off season, they might even cause a fight. BUT… if football is on, and the Chargers are winning…everything is wonderful! “Overspent on Halloween? What’s new! Dishwasher? Call someone tomorrow! Red light? My babe and her crazy driving! (said with a smile and a ruffle to the hair) New dress? You look great! Disneyland? Name the day! Christmas budget? What budget??!!”
So Chargers, as you can see, I’m in desperate need of a few wins this season. I’ve got a “honey do” list a mile long and several items of business that need discussing. Think you can pull it off? After all, I am a Charger fan. And my husband, Kenny, is a MAJOR Charger fan. Did I mention the Christmas card? Made in your honor?
Yours truly,
Erin
xoxo, Erin
Ellie and Addison
09.18.09
TGIF
Hope you have a fantastic weekend…
hanging out…
and laughing…
with those you love the most.
hanging out…and laughing…
with those you love the most.xoxo, Erin
Ramblings
09.17.09
Annoying
I’m usually not the type of person to get annoyed easily, but it seems with this pregnancy I’ve had a heightened sense of annoyance. I’m particularly annoyed with how annoyed I feel all the time. Maybe if I can get these annoyances off of my chest I’ll feel, well…less annoyed.
Here they are…in no particular order –
1) How quickly Kenny falls asleep every night. Way too fast. Like before I even brush my teeth fast. Before I even make it up the stairs fast. Or before I even turn off the lights fast. Does it not take a minute to unwind from the day? To find a great sleeping position? To think about what needs to be done tomorrow? To realize that you are never going to fall asleep with that tick tick ticking of the clock…
2) The tick tick ticking of the clock.
3) My all time favorite turkey isn’t tasting good to me lately. This is a tragedy above all tragedies. I’m at a complete loss as to what to eat for lunch.
4) A few spots on my walls need paint touch ups. It’s something that I know will take minutes to do but for some reason, I just keep walking by thinking how annoying those spots are. It’s annoying me right now that in the time it has taken me to write about those spots I could have painted them and been done with it.
5) Dust on hangers
6) Spending $200 at Costco (or any other grocery store for that matter) and coming home with nothing to fix for dinner.
7) Home Depot. I’ll spare you the details, but just know that I could dedicate an entire post to the annoyance that is Home Depot.
8) Speed Limits (and speed bumps for that matter)
9) The fact that Kenny still has Survivor on our fall line-up.
10) Fruit Stickers (previously mentioned)
11) Several wall hangings in my room are slightly crooked, too high, or too low.
12) Kenny’s attitude about fixing my wall hangings that are slightly crooked, too high, or too low.
13) The fact that Easter candy isn’t sold all year long. I’m really needing a Cadbury Egg right now. They are my “go to” for pregnancy (previously mentioned). Who am I kidding. They are my “go to” for all the time. I just feel more justified calling them my “go to” when pregnant.
14) “Obama 08 Yes We Can” bumper stickers. You can. You did. Get over it already.
15) Ever since I told the girls about the baby Ellie has stopped calling her stuffed animals “friends” and now calls them her babies. They refer to her as “mother.” They refer to me as “grandma.”
There. I feel a little better. Glad I got that off my chest. I’m off to bed now. Kenny’s already asleep and I have a date with a certain clock…
xoxo, Erin
Ellie and Addison
09.16.09
Quotable Quotes
Ever attempted a photo shoot with your kids that didn’t turn out quite as planned?
These two were clearly NOT in the mood to sit still and smile…
Ready for my personal favorite?
at least the shoes were cooperating. Now here’s the latest from my two little monkeys…
These two were clearly NOT in the mood to sit still and smile…
Ready for my personal favorite?
Lookin’ good girls. :)
at least the shoes were cooperating. Now here’s the latest from my two little monkeys…
Ellie’s latest: (May-August 2009-age 5)
Addison was screaming: “Ad, remember…we like flowers more than screaming.”
On our way to Boulder Mountain…”mom…are those cows real?”
Me: “Ellie, what time is it?” “It’s 8 E L mom!” (looked at the digital alarm clock which read 8:37)
“Ad, if you want to be a spy girl you have to wear fancy shoes”
“Mom, after we go to the gym today, can we go to China?”
“Let’s pretend we’re a family of deer and Addison is the owner who takes care of us.”
To the lady at Costco handing out samples: “My daddy’s eating everything in here!”
“Grandma…will you paint our nails?”
“if it’s ok with your mom.”
“our mom let’s us do whatever we want.”
Watching ducks in a pond – “if I was a duck I wouldn’t eat that yucky green stuff.”
Me: “What would you eat?”
“Oreos”
“Ad, we’re going to a different world. Let’s check the schedule.”
Me: “Time for bed Ellie.”
“Mom, after I go to bed are you going to stay up later?”
“No, I’m going to bed too.”
“C’mon mom. It’s important to tell the truth.”
“I am Ellie – I’m finishing this laundry and then going to bed.”
“It’s ok mom. Nobody’s perfect.”
Addison’s latest: (May-August 2009-age 3)
“Addison, I’m so proud of you going to pre-school and not crying…you’re such a big girl!”
“and I’m so proud of you mommy for taking care of Ellie while I was gone.”
“Do you want a pancake Addison?” “No, I don’t like the peelings.”
“mom, you’re a good mommy to take care of us and you’re polite in your manners.”
“mommy! you’re interrupting my talk!”
“You know what would be scary mommy?”
“What?”
“Falling in the potty”
“Mommy, you’re the best mommy in the family.”
“My dress is inside out and I can’t get it outside in!”
“Mom let’s just stay home.”
“Addie – you’re my little homebody”
“No mom…I’m not a homebody, I’m a human.”
xoxo, Erin
Family
09.14.09
Girls Weekend!
I spent the weekend in Salt Lake City with my sister. Our highly anticipated girls trip had finally arrived! Car and I played (just the two of us) all day Friday and then my mom and Dayna drove up Saturday and Sunday to finish the weekend off with us. A good time was had by all!
We took great care planning out our weekend.
On the Agenda:
-Pedicures (a must for an all girl weekend)
-Shopping at Gateway
-Farmers Market
– Shopping at Fashion Place
*finally check out the new Nordstroms
*buy new fall boots from Shawn, Carly’s husband who sells shoes at the new Nordstroms (I’m all about supporting your family)
-Time with my niece, Claire…without interruptions from my two peanuts
-A little more shopping at none other than Tarjey
-Scenic walks… around Car’s beautiful neighborhood and a scenic walk at Silver Lake at the Brighton ski resort. Salt Lake is so gorgeous right now!
-Shopping at Trolley Square-Ride on Carly’s Vespa
-Eat out for every meal
-Raid Car’s closet and try on all of her old maternity clothes (needed sooner than usual since we ate out for every meal)
Pretty stressful agenda right? I’m happy to say that we accomplished everything on our list except that we didn’t make it on a Vespa ride – ran out of time. And we didn’t make it to Trolley Square – ran out of money. Great excuse to go back soon!
Randomness from the trip:
My sister loves me and knows me well. She had all my favorite candy waiting on my bed for me upon arrival. :)
When pregnant it’s time to shift your shopping focus. It becomes all about the accessories – scarfs, make-up, hand bags, and shoes shoes shoes.
Speaking of shopping… Claire is finally old enough to enter our “young shopper in training program.” She is a natural and passed with flying colors.
Late night Target runs are the best. Especially when Target has giant chicken costumes for sell…and you have someone willing to model one for you. Wish I had a picture of that one.
It’s good to get away from your little ones for a few days and it’s good to leave your husband with full responsibility for your little ones for a few of days. Then husbands are forced to do things like go grocery shopping, load the dishwasher, pack a lunch and do hair. Sounds like while I was gone “daddy pony tails” were invented which according to my girls are VERY different from mommy pony tails. (No one tell me what my girls looked like at school Friday and at church Sunday – I don’t want to know)
Thanks for such a fun weekend Car!!!
Girl trips are simply the best. In fact, we had so much fun we already have our next one planned…Christmas shopping in VEGAS BABY!!!
I’ll wait until Kenny’s made a full recovery from this weekend before I mention that one to him…
xoxo, Erin
San Diego fun
09.10.09
Got our city back
{First let me just say THANK YOU SO MUCH for all of the sweet comments from my last post. I have had such a fun couple of days hearing from all of you. I have read your comments and e-mails over and over. I read them while I was feeling queasy, read them while I was eating pickles and Starbursts, read them while Ellie and Addison were fighting and I was having a panic attack over the reality of one more, and read them and had an “It’s a Wonderful Life” moment realizing how lucky I am to have so many great people in my life. I love you all!}
Now on to last weekend. My Addison has been obsessed with this hairdo which she calls her “Jasmine hair.”
So it was especially fun for her to meet this princess at Disneyland:
Yes – school has started, summer is over and we now have our city back! Theme parks and the beach have mellowed out and locals can rule once again. So that is exactly what we did over Labor Day weekend – hit Disneyland and the beach.
A few weekend highlights:-Seeing Mary Poppins, (I just love Mary Poppins)
– The drive to Disneyland. Ellie is always very curious about what cities we are driving through when we travel. She asked us “what land are we in now?” and Kenny broke out into song singing “This Land is Your Land.” I found their whole conversation rather amusing.
– And the main highlight was that my brother and his cute wife came to visit. We had a great time shopping, eating at Cheesecake Factory, hangin’ at the beach, and of course watching a little football (tis the season).
xoxo, Erin
Mom Adventures
09.08.09
Some News
9 weeks along
8 serious discussions about whether or not we can commit to buying a minivan (yes, it’s the smartest solution…no, we just can’t do it. We have to, it’s so practical for 3…no, we just can’t do it. You’re a soccer mom, let’s embrace the stage of life we’re in…technically the girls don’t play soccer…)
7 times I’ve cried for no apparent reason and then suddenly felt enraged over something like Kenny putting down a Coke Zero can with no coaster
6 Claussen pickles I ate for lunch yesterday…followed by 6 Starburts for dessert
5 weeks of being sick and tired of being so sick… and tired
4 different shirts I tried on before finding something to wear to dinner with friends the other night
3 years of convincing Kenny that this is a good idea
2 very excited soon-to-be big sisters
all because…
1 baby is on the way
I’m pregnant. Kenny caved. I’m good at that – getting Kenny to cave. It’s the reason we live on the West Coast instead of the East, the reason we own season passes to Disneyland, and the reason the majority of our money goes to home decor and matching clothes for the girls. It’s also now the reason we will have 3 kids instead of 2. Really though, now that I’m pregnant and it is real, Kenny is thrilled. The girls are thrilled. And as for me, well…while I’m not excited to look like this again:
{May 2006 – the night before I delivered Addison. Watermelon is coming to mind. Short people so get the crappy end of the pregnancy stick}
I am VERY excited for this:
And this:
And this:
Due April 10th. Lots to look forward to. :)xoxo, Erin
home decor 2
09.03.09
A little space for me…
Ever since Addison moved out of the nursery and into her “big girl bed” with Ellie I’ve been slowly taking over her room…one drawer at a time.
Now even though it is still part nursery, it is also a little space for me. Finally some room to scrapbook! I’ve dreamed of having my own scrapbooking room my whole life and while this isn’t exactly the dream room I have designed in my head, it will definitely do for now. So for the few hours on the few days a week that Addison is in pre-school, this is where you will find me.
Frantically, but happily trying to catch up on our books. This space is way too clean. I can’t wait to jump in and mess it up!xoxo, Erin
Ellie
09.01.09
Kindergarten
{OPEN HOUSE}
Friday we went to Ellie’s class to meet her new Kindergarten teacher and see her classroom. She was so excited and nervous. So was mom. :) Her teachers (she has two who are sharing a contract this year) were SO nice and the room was darling. Ellie felt right at home and I have to admit it made me miss teaching! Getting the room ready and starting a new school year is such a fun time. I can’t wait to volunteer and help out in her class.
{FIRST DAY}
Yesterday was her first day of Kindergarten! Our house was a buzz of excitement as we all got ready to take Ellie to school. The whole family went!
Not quite sure what was up with their arms in these pictures. They were excited and acting silly – as usual. 
Walking to the school…parking was crazy the first day!
This was the last look Ellie gave me before she walked into her classroom and just after I took the picture she started to cry. :( I got her settled in her desk, told her I’d pick her up after lunch, gave her a kiss and left. At the end of the day her teacher told me she only cried for a minute. Whew! Much harder on me than on her I’m sure. When I picked her up she was happy and excited to tell me about her day. Here are a few things she told me:
-they have star charts (but different than our star charts) and get a prize when they get all of their stars
-one girl in the class wasn’t minding and didn’t put away the toys when she was supposed to
-her teachers did a really silly dance that made her laugh
-they played a duck and chick game and she got a turn being the chick
-at snack time she got confused and ate some of her lunch at snack and then ate her snack at lunch
-there were only two recesses and they listened to the teacher six times (not fair)
-they had a meeting (I’m assuming this was an assembly) and a man talked and said NO GUM in school
-she likes her teachers and thinks Kindergarten will be fun, just not as fun as Kindergarten camp and pre-school
Give it time baby! We are all so proud of you Ellie. You were the cutest little Kindergartner ever.
{SECOND DAY}
Today was day two. She wore her monkey shirt and was one happy little gal. Kenny took her on his way to work and said she didn’t cry a bit. :)
xoxo, Erin
Birthdays
08.31.09
Happy B-day Babe
A few things we and our friends have figured out. We know how to eat. We know how to laugh. We know how to party. Friday, August 28th was Kenny’s birthday and we celebrated with a bang! Thank you so much to all of our great friends who made the day so much fun.
We love you all so much and look forward to Kenny’s 90th b-day when we’re all sitting around the dinner table laughing even harder. (LOL! ;)
And to Kenny – last year when you turned 33 I made a list of 33 things I love about you. Let me just say “ditto” to all of that, and since you’re 34 I’ll add one more: I love that you are such a fun dining companion. Thanks for making me laugh every day since I’ve known you (even though most of the time it’s at my expense). Happy Birthday Babe! Love you the most. p.s. Thanks again Shari for making that delicious banana cake…he hasn’t stopped raving about it! :)
xoxo, Erin