mama breece

blogger hiatus

2011-11-17T23:56:00.000-08:00

my excuses for not blogging:

+broken camera (oh the horror)

+lack of inspiration

+i discovered pintrest & it consumes all my online time

+and just plain depression.

...maybe i'll come up with something soon

it was a good day

2011-08-25T21:33:00.001-07:00

10 years

2011-08-09T18:33:00.000-07:00

well we made it. 10 whole years of marriage bliss (10 years and 5 days...i'm a little behind) i can honestly say that we've been happily married this whole time and neither of us see that changing any time soon.

but i will say that as the day approached i realized i was deeply disappointed that we weren't going to be able to do anything to celebrate. i was even more disappointing that at the beginning of this year we had over $1000 saved up and a big trip (just the two of us) planned. but with the way this year turned out that money was long gone before summer even started. it was hard. since having kids we have been away over night ONCE. i was looking forward to alone time with my man. i was excited to celebrate.

i guess i just needed to have a pity party today.

happy [late] anniversary, jakers. i love you. vacation or no vacation.

mixed feelings

2011-07-25T16:09:00.000-07:00

i know i need to be there for her

i know i should be nicer about that boy she's dating

i cannot hide my frustration

so she's cutting me out

...seems fair. oh wait, no it doesn't

she wants my honest opinion

it's not going to change

she can't see that he's changed her

the guidelines were breached before they were even set

i hope for the best...but expect the worst.

summer craziness

2011-07-21T14:22:00.000-07:00

it seems like every year i think to myself "once summer starts things will calm down" that NEVER happens. it's calm for the first day or two and then the craziness begins. this year it's mainly just solomons activities like; swimming lessons, vbs & art camp. i am so glad that he gets to do all these things it's just a lot of things to coordinate along with moses in tow, jakes new job & me trying to cram a few work days in there too. so my blog will be even fewer and farther between. so all you get for today is a pretty cool picture of solly at swimming lessons (i caught him just as he came down the slide kinda looks like he's just sitting on the water.

oh i suppose i should mention that we also got not one but TWO puppies. little 8 (almost 9) week old girl puppies. yes i have lost my mind. but look at these faces:

carrots & ramona (don't ask)

so thats that. the breece summer in a nut shell.

Par-Tay time.

2011-07-03T19:37:00.000-07:00

to celebrate moses' birthday we had a nice big family birthday party. with pretty much just our family we had a whopping 25 people in our tiny house. it was crazy. it was hot. it was perfect.

i had found an idea for a cake that was prefect for moses about 7 months ago and i am happy to say that i think it turned out better than the original. i finished it late the night before the party so in the morning moses was very excited to see it. once he saw it he just wanted to stare at it for along time. it was very cute.

moses just lookin' at his cake:

before the party started i let moses put his toys on the cake:

opening his presents:

one last shot of the cake before it was time to eat it:

"happy birthday deeear mooosseess...":

moses doing his "ta-da" pose:

after everyone left the boys played so well together:

and then we went out to dinner as a family and moses just HAD to bring along his new "suit case" full of his new toys (while wearing his new headlight flashlight) he is such a goof ball!!

in this picture he was noticing in his reflection that i had turned off his headlight and was trying to fix that little problem:

it was a pretty great day. full of all my favorite people celebrating my favorite little moses.

4 years

2011-06-30T18:31:00.000-07:00

today my baby turns 4. how is it possible that one day you're holding your sweet new squishy baby and the next day your FOUR year old is telling you that you're "going down to china town, mama"...

moses is proof that God has a sense of humor cause this little boy is created in His image. he had a grumpy start in this world but he has found his joy and knows how to share with others.

if none of these pictures made you smile (or maybe even laugh) then you need help :)

Moses, you will always and forever be MY baby moses, mosey, mojo potato, bubba, baby brudder and MY baby boy. i thank God for you everyday!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOSES!!

up, up and away!!

2011-06-28T14:14:00.000-07:00

i am lucky enough to have a brother that flies cute little airplanes. after about a year of nagging we finally got a chance to go for a ride with him. this was boy solomon & moses' first times EVER flying!!

solly (hold his flat stanley) & mojo

excited & ready to fly!!

mama & mojo ready for takeoff

uncle andy & solly waiting our turn for takeoff

out house is right about dead center in this picture!

deep lake!!

while i was sweating and ready to hurl moses was just chillin out (while yodeling & singing twinkle twinkle christmas star...what a weirdo!)

turns out (despite the smile) solly was feeling green as well

through the tad bit of motion sickness (no one actually hurled) we had a GREAT time!! we got to fly over our house, solly's school/friends house, grammy's house and our whole town!!

THANK YOU uncle andy for the best day of summer vacation so far!!!

praise is all i have today!!!

2011-06-27T14:50:00.000-07:00

something that i have been praying for for five long years finally happened today!! it is amazing to see Gods faithfulness in these 5 years and his plan for my friends.

my heart is overflowing with love for my Savior & my friends today!

goofy guys

2011-06-12T20:57:00.000-07:00

i love these boys.

drive-by's

2011-05-27T23:15:00.000-07:00

here is a selection of today's drive-by photos. enjoy

* * *

today was a bitter sweet day for us. it was jakes last day working for swerve. so i followed him while he dropped off his car and brought him home. this car-in our house is known as the "daddy car" cause that's what it's been for almost 3 years. we're excited and ready for jake to start his new job (with full time hours and benefits!!) but this is what we've known for 3 years so while it's an exciting time it's also a tiny bit scary.

so, here's to swervemobile #22

you were a good 'daddy car' and we will miss you!

jakes b-day

2011-05-27T13:21:00.000-07:00

jake's birthday was this past week and since i knew his dad was getting him the only thing he really wanted (a baseball mitt) i decided that his "office" needed a makeover. he just moved into this room and it was looking a bit "bachelor pad-ish" so i fixed that for him. so on saturday while he was working all day the boys and i gave it a little face lift.

before:

after:

no that big of a difference (although, it would be if i showed all the pictures) but he likes it. now if i could just get him to move the rest of his books in there we'd both be happy

* * *

after his long day at work we met up with him and his parents and had a good ol family dinner (at the most crowded red robin on the planet) but we had a good time!!!

happy birthday to my hunky hubby!! i love you.

family fun (in the sun)

2011-05-27T13:01:00.000-07:00

last week (while the weather was still lovely) moses had his all school picnic up at mud mt. dam. we busted solly out of school and made a family event out of it (plus lucy) it was a pretty fun time!

solomon about to show dad how it's done:

lucy just trying to avoid the sun:

the whole crew:

(minus me. the rest of them are in there somewhere)

solly and lucy (with her cabbage patch face!)

mojo and lu:

we skipped out early (before the hot dogs) and went out for a nice family lunch. it was a good day. i'm hoping for more days like this over the summer

catch-up

2011-05-11T21:42:00.000-07:00

geesh! i've been so busy. so now it's time to catch up on whats been going on in the breece world. in the last week and half if i wasn't at work i was at home with mojo and baby lucy. but i did get to do a few fun things...like:
solomon's class put on a mothers day tea it was really fun and the kids put a lot of work into decorations, books, place mats, picture frames & books all for their loving mamas!

solly and his teacher

(we love her!)

then there was mothers day of course. my boys let me sleep in and get this; i slept until 11:20!!!! i DID NOT think that i could even do that anymore. it was wonderful (until i realized at 2am that i still wasn't tired but forced myself to go to bed anyways) they also got me a candle and a whole gift bag full of candy.

they're such good boys!

(this was a few min. after i woke up...i don't always look like that)

sunday we also went to visit my dad (papa) in the hospital he was having some heart problems but i guess everything is fine now because he's back at work.

moses enjoyed papa's view:

moses watching tv with papa:

tuesday moses came home from school looking like this:

(how cute is he?!?!)

and today solomon came home from AWANA with the "EVANGELIST" award for inviting so many friends this year. what a great kid!!

so proud!

it's been a long and busy week but i'm glad to have some fun mashed up in there too!

SUN-day

2011-05-02T22:00:00.000-07:00

sometime i think that i should just start an album for pictures i've take while i'm driving. i do it ALL the time. some people text and drive...me? i drive and snap pictures. i get so bummed out if i realize i left my camera a home...and then i use my phone. so here are a few picture from our beautiful sunny sunday!

slithers and snips

2011-04-28T23:59:00.000-07:00

my baby moses had a big day today. he had a field trip at school to see the reptile guy. for the most part he was totally FREAKED out. but then comes the 12 foot long snake and suddenly he's happy.

he wants one of his very own to take home now...

then it was time to trim the shaggy dog. he doesn't really like haircuts but it was getting harder and harder for me to comb in the morning. so it just had to go!

before (looking a little worried)

and after looks handsome (and OLD!)

i had a wonderful day with my [not so] little man. it's frightening how fast they grow

p.s. ashley- my spell check just told me i spelled everything right!! woohoo!

silly little game

2011-04-28T15:36:00.000-07:00

alright i thought this would be fun since i actually have an ipod these days and my music selection is so bi-polar. so let's see how this goes.

1. Put your ipod, windows media player, etc. on shuffle.
2. For each Question press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS.

ready, set, go....

1. IF SOMEONE SAYS ARE YOU OKAY YOU SAY? i'm gonna getcha good

2. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF? rolling in the deep

3. WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GIRL/GUY? sh-boom

4. HOW DO YOU FEEL? don't!

5. WHAT IS YOUR LIFE PURPOSE? all i wanna do

6. WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU? f**kin' perfect

7. WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN? picture

8. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BESTFRIEND? nightingale

9. WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY? steve mcqueen

10. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP? rescue is coming

11. WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE? that don't impress me much

13. WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL? take it all

14. WHAT IS YOUR PASSION IN LIFE? dear john

15. WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR? hoedown throwdown

16. WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET? get down

17. WHAT DO YOU WANT RIGHT NOW? i saw the light

18. WHAT DOES YOUR LOVE THINK ABOUT YOU? the story

19. WHAT WILL YOU TITLE THIS NOTE AS? forever and for always

ok, so i must say that numbers 6 & 11 made me giggle.
(and yes i have hannah montana, p!nk, shania twain & david crowder all on the same ipod...i'm pretty sure it might just implode because of that)

that was a fun little way to waste time.

wait...

2011-04-27T20:08:00.000-07:00

...i thought it was almost may! whats that? oh it IS almost may.

coulda fooled me...

sun, soda & squeaks

2011-04-25T23:46:00.000-07:00

saturday was a beautiful day...but i had a lot of house cleaning to do to get ready for easter. so while i was busy in the kitchen my boys we're getting into BIG trouble in the garage. moses found pliers and an old case of root beer and squeezed 5 cans of pop until they burst and in the end there was a lake of root beer in my garage. (oh, this all happened while solomon was sitting RIGHT there) they were BOTH in HUGE trouble.

just part of the mess:

just one of the cans (with some mess in the background)

the only thing that kept me from losing it was the warm sun when we went out to vacuum the car the car thermometer told me it was SEVENTY DEGREES!!! yay for spring

then while finishing my cleaning i found a mini choclate bar behind a chair in the living room (it's pretty much where the boys build forts and hide when they're eating candy that they're not suppose to have) so upon closer inspection i noticed that there were VERY little teeth marks in it...like super duper small...like a MOUSE! gross! i must have some FAT mice in my house. time for some more traps!

* * *

easter turned out to be rainy but we made the best of it. with church and lots of family time. i got the boys little baskets (and then my mom got them HUGE baskets) but i loved these pictures of the boys getting their baskets when the first woke up.

solly's face is so cute & i love their sleepy hair

i love, love, love moses hair. man, he NEEDS a haircut in a bad way!

* * *

i'm getting out of my funk and starting to feel more human again. more like a mom. more like a wife. more like i can take on the world.

thank you for your prayer. God is working on me.

a wise rabbit once said...

2011-04-23T08:53:00.000-07:00

..."If you can't say something nice, don't say nothin' at all"

and that's been my philosophy this week. that's why i haven't blogged. my mind is just too full of frustration and i just don't have anything nice to say.

i need prayer.

* * *

ok, so i have one (or two) nice things to say. the weather (for the most part...beside the few snow flurries) has been fabulous this week!

i know i have a million things to be thankful for and i am. it's just been a challenging week.

eggs!

2011-04-18T12:59:00.000-07:00

yesterday after service our church had an easter egg "hunt" (i think it should've been called an easter egg "dash" there was no need to hunt for these eggs they were just scattered on a field) there were about 3000 eggs for the kids. it was like a mini stampede.

moses running for some eggs:

here's one!:

both the boys finding eggs:

moses with his stash afterwards:

* * *

after church we had our weekly lunch with part of my family and my brother, sister-in-law & baby came too!! so i got to see baby esther again. this time she was WIDE awake.

esther (5 days old):

mojo

2011-04-15T16:40:00.000-07:00

moses has been one funny kid this week!! here is just a tiny window into the shenanigans that make up the life of mojo-potato
he loves to try on other peoples shoes and it's VERY funny when he puts on daddy's HUGE (size 13 4E!) shoes

tying shoe laces (more like knotting them!)

trying to walk!

a few days later he came up with this getup...that's right! shorts with rain boots. he's a true enumclaw boy!

showing off his favorite toys:

SUPER CHEESE!!:

he says and does some of the funniest things these days. i really need to start writing them down more so that i don't ever forget. my baby is growing up too fast, it makes mama sad...

for my favorite bratface

2011-04-15T16:03:00.001-07:00

my bratface (a.k.a. my little sister, rachel) informed me that she didn't like my blogger background...so here is my new look. what do you think?

happy now bratface?!

love you rach

oh thank heaven...

2011-04-12T22:47:00.000-07:00

...for little baby Esther Qubilee.

born today.

i love being an aunt.

back to the grind

2011-04-11T23:03:00.000-07:00

spring break is over and now it's back to "normal" life plus the added chore of reclaiming my house from the disaster it has become.

so don't worry...i will blog again...it just might take a few more days

SUNSHINE!

2011-04-08T17:03:00.000-07:00

today is a glorious sunny day! it feels like it's been MONTHS since the last time i saw the sun (it was like 2 weeks ago) so we made the most of it! i FINALLY got to take my new bike trailer out for a test drive. it's pretty much the best thing ever (and it matches my bike!)

here are some shots of our afternoon in the park:

a couple days away

2011-04-06T16:47:00.000-07:00

i just had a nice couple days away with just my little boys. we left my poor hubby behind...to spend a few days with HIS parents.

i was sicker than a dog the day we left. after all those parties and spreading myself too thin all week i woke up monday morning with a horrible sinus headache and a scratchy throat. but we had plans so off we went.

this car cheered me up while i was waiting for the ferry:

yes, that says: POOP911.com!!

it was such a gloomy day...such a gloomy couple of days...it's been such a gloomy couple of weeks!!

but the weather was fine with me i spend most of my time napping and helping my mother in law with a puzzle.

gloom:

solomon had packed along some of his birthday plunder. and he was very proud that he built his star wars lego set all BY HIMSELF (this is a big deal because i usually always help him)

very proud!:

since it was so gloomy my [wonderful] mother-in-law (a.k.a. "grandma") set up tables for the boys to play/eat at...and they were even pointed at the tv. one table for each of them!

so smart!:

the tables for the boys were also set up because my mother-in-law and i were working on a puzzle (why, yes! i do know that i live the life of an elderly woman with young children) but this puzzle was special because she bought it because it looks almost exactly like moses and her dog, daisy!! it is the worlds hardest puzzle. and i should know. i've done a LOT of puzzles.

HOW CUTE?!!:

we also went and had lunch at my most favorite chinese restaurant...i'm not sure why it's my favorite, it's kind of odd and has terrible service...but the food is all worth it i suppose

yum:

today i woke up feeling like myself again and missing my husband. thank goodness it was time to come home. after working on the puzzle some more and watching the snow fall (that's right! SNOW in april...during spring break!) we headed out on our long journey home. it would've taken only an hour if we didn't have to wait for the ferry.
but we made the most of it by picking our cars on the freeway that we thought might be transformers and then deciding which ones were autobots (good guys) and which ones where decepticons (bad guys). there was one black car that followed us most of the way on the freeway and we were sure it was after us

decepticon? i think YES!

it was a fun getaway. but i'm glad to be home. now, if that hubby of mine would get home everything would be perfect!!

i love lucy

2011-04-04T12:00:00.000-07:00

i just realized that i never officially introduced you (my blog friends) to my beautiful niece, Lucy.

she was born the day before thanksgiving and i had the honor of being right there when she was born. she is the only baby i have witnessed being born (besides my own) and it was pretty much the greatest thing i've ever seen (besides the birth of my own)

she came out just perfect with a full head of hair and she continues to steal the heart of everyone she meets!

Lucy on her birthday:

my boys fell in love INSTANTLY! and then still adore her. she will be well protected by her big cousins when she gets older.

moses and his "baby woucy":

(about 12 hours old)

i think if my sister let him...he'd just keep her:

she is rarely fussy. a dream baby:

(about 3 weeks)

she is so funny!

(about a month & 1/2)

she is so cute

(and her auntie is awesome)

(just over 2 months)

she can pull of sleeping with her mouth hanging open!

(almost 4 months)

and she's even cute with spit-up/drool on her chin!

(4 & 1/2 months)

i get to watch her a few days a week and it's just enough to get my baby fix so that i'm not too tempted to have another one.

thank God for babies!

birthday #3

2011-04-03T19:26:00.000-07:00

we're finally done celebrating solomon's birthday. i guess i should enjoy it pretty soon he'll just want cash and for me to leave him alone on his birthday...but what an exhausting couple of days!

it's nice to see that solomon has a lot of people who love him so much! most of our family came over today and we partied till we [were] pooped!

opening presents:

WOAH! $10 for sweet necessities:

(guess who's taking mama out for some ice cream)

ice cream cake at solomon's request

(hey that's less work for mama)

moses thinks all these cool new thing are his too

luckily solomon is a good big brother & shares!

oh yes, and baby lucy made it to the party today too.

what a good little goose!

i am very ready to be done with birthdays for a while. (don't worry rachel, i'll be ready to party by your bday)

i would like to give a big shout out to everyone who came out to celebrate my baby boy today THANK YOU FOR THE LOVE!!

* * * *

this week is spring break for solomon. i am looking forward to sleeping in & we're going to whidbey island for a few days. the in-laws are wonderful and it's always such a relaxing time!

xoxo

birthday #2

2011-04-02T19:27:00.000-07:00

two down, one to go.
that's right, i survived the swimming party. my mom made it all possible by making cupcakes for me and helping me out!! the only down side to a pool party is: for the parents who sit and watch...it's about 80 degrees in there and VERY humid! we were all sweating pretty good.
but the important part is that the kids had a BLAST!

not too crowded and not to empty:

goofballs enjoying some pizza:

"happy birthday deeaar SOLOmOn..."

i think he enjoyed himself:

and we can't forget the RAD gifts he got!!

all and all i think it was a HUGE success and my favorite part was that it lasted an hour and half and then i got to go home :) pool parties are where it's at!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SOLOMON

birthday #1

2011-04-02T01:09:00.000-07:00

that's right there will be more than one. my little man turns eight tomorrow. EIGHT. how did that happen?!today was the 1st of his THREE parties (what was i thinking? i do not know) he had his class party at school today and at his request i made mini doughnuts. they looked great, and tasted...ok. my doughnut making skills need much improvement.

cute though, right?

jake pouring juice for solly's classmates:

my little boys sharing their doughnuts:

moses brought solly a present at school:

i think it went pretty well:

i love this crazy little boy & i really hope we survive the next two parties.

pray for me.

2011-03-30T23:59:00.000-07:00

i love my mojo

he picked these flowers out just for me

blessed!

2011-03-30T00:05:00.000-07:00

wow! what a birthday. this was quite a day!! it started out like any other day (beside the nonstop text messages starting at 7:45am) i had school parties to attend for both boys, lunch with the hubby, bakery trip and just plain relaxing at home. i got some wonderful gifts from some of my favorite people and then to top it all off my little sister wanted to take me out for dinner. so we made our plans and headed out to the rock and SURPRISE my favorite red head/oldest friend shows up! i love these two crazy ladies!!

my "bucket"...that's a whole lotta drink!

(yes, thats a gold crown & blingin' necklace)

my pretty little sister!!

the three of us!

(i think we should make this a monthly trip!)

when i got home my little boys were giggling in their room and jake tells me to sit down and wait. so out comes my sweet little boys with more gifts!! they got me TETRIS for wii (YAY!) and an ipod (running here i come!)

WOW! what a day!!

thank you everyone who wished me well and contributed to my wonderful day

i am overwhelmed by the love!

thank you Jesus for great friends and family!!

29 on the 29th...

2011-03-29T00:00:00.000-07:00

today is my golden birthday. big ol 29. so begins the final year of my 20's, they were good to me.

let's recap shall we?

20- i had already been married for 7 months when i turned 20. i got pregnant with my solomon & moved back to enumclaw.
21- the day i turned 21 i was 9 months pregnant, solomon arrived 4 days later making me a mommy. the rest of this year was a blissful blurr.
22- i must have been pretty busy with my little solomon this year because i don't remember it much.
23- my hunky husband earned his bachelors and got a job in Selah, WA as a youth pastor, it was quite an adventure!
24-another exciting year my little sister got married and i found out i was expecting moses. we also moved back to enumclaw (again).
25-baby moses arrived this year and changed my life. i love that little boy!
26-the years after my boys were born must have been busy or boring...because i can't remember much from this year either.
27-this was an exciting year for us- we moved out my moms house and got our own little place again.
28-this past year has been good too. i love my hubby more than ever. moses started preschool giving me a whole 4 hours a week to myself. i witnessed the birth of my newest niece (one of the greatest experiences of my life) taught solomon how to ride a bike & a million other wonderful things happened.

20's have been wonderful. this next year i hope to finally lose my "baby" weight and regain that hot mama that's hiding under there...somewhere.

wish me luck!

happy birthday

2011-03-28T17:50:00.000-07:00

tomorrow is my birthday and today i went out and got myself a new camera with some birthday money from the mother-in-law. the camera is nothing special but it's WAY better than my old one. so...as an early birthday present to my baby sister i'm going to start up bloggin again. can't promise it'll be anything too exciting but it will give her something to do while she's at work. i love you rachers!

zoo

2010-10-11T20:20:00.000-07:00

today grammy (my mom) and i took the boys to the zoo. woodland park has always (always) been my favorite and it didn't let me down today!!
we saw all kinds of animals (almost all of them) and to top it all off the weather was B.E.A.utiful!!

* * *

as i was getting ready to take this picture i said "solomon! look over here" and i guy that was walking by stopped and said "you know, solomon is the name of the artist who created this sculpture" we thought that was pretty cool:

my little monkeys at the zoo:

we got to see this elephant do it's business (#1 and #2) moses was thoroughly impressed!!

it was a really great day

*** moses' one liner of the day: while watching the elk eat carrots one elk turned to walk away and when moses saw his "bare" (light colored) bum he said "*gasp* hims butts is gone!! holy smokes!!"

i love that kid!!! ***

a big month

2010-09-15T20:25:00.000-07:00

september is proving to be a BIG month for my little/big man. 1st he learns to ride a bike and today he came home from school looking like this:

that's right! he lost his 1st tooth. it's exciting, but at the same time such a sad thing for this mama...here comes the big goofy permanent teeth....sigh

(i must say, i LOVE this picture!)

i have a plan...

2010-09-14T19:30:00.000-07:00

someday i'm going to run away...if you need me i'll be right here:

(the solomon islands, by the way)

the most exciting thing in the world!!! (to a 7 year old and his mama...)

2010-09-08T12:10:00.000-07:00

the long weekend

2010-09-06T21:17:00.001-07:00

this labor day weekend we had ourselves all kinds 'o' fun here at home. it all started on thursday when i brought home puppies that i had the privilege to babysit for the weekend. they belong to my friend/boss and they are cute enough to EAT!

petey & tink: i am pretty much in love with little petey (the white one) he is extra adorable!!
just look at the way he sleeps!!!:
my little stinky pete!

don't get me wrong, petey's little sister is almost as cute (and much more photogenic)

who couldn't love this face?!:

the boys were so good with the puppies. solly loved playing puppy daddy:
their just like real babies. they eat, poop and sleep (and sleep and sleep and sleep some more)

rose was just as in love as the rest of us:

we also spent some time outside this weekend riding bikes and playing with chalk.

solly and his chalk man:

mojo & his chalk twin:

at the beginning of the weekend jake and i taught solly how to ride a bike...the next day he just would not, could not do it. so today he tried again and this time he GOT IT!! he's really cruising now. he spent about an hour outside today just riding up and down our street. then we took a break and he wanted to ride some more...but it was raining. turns out a little rain can't stop him! we spent another hour out in the rain and both the boys rode the WHOLE TIME!

a nice blurry shot of my little bikers:

such a big boy:

i spent the whole time under my umbrella :)

it was a pretty good weekend. although i could've used a little more time with my hubby. alas, his hours suck right now & when he does work its on the most ridiculous days & times. someday we'll get away again together. meanwhile, if anyone has any ideas on a good FREE getaway that i could take my man on i'd be happy to hear them. thanks!

this 'n that

2010-08-31T20:21:00.000-07:00

a couple weeks ago moses was poopy and solly and i had the following conversation:

solly: "moooooom moses stinks!! change his diaper!!"
mama: "why don't you do it?!"
solly: "REALLY?!!?"
mama: "sure, why not?"
solly: gasp "you're the best mom EVER!!"

and so he changed his diaper (with mama & daddy supervising, of course) they both thought it was the funniest thing ever...but, i'm sure that it won't be happening again:

when the weather was still warm moses enjoyed watching over our street while we had the front door open. he would just sit and sing little songs to himself. it was pretty good:

moses also likes to get a hold of my camera whenever possible. this was one of the better pictures he took:

he insisted that i take his picture in the sandbox and now he LOVES looking at this picture. it's pretty cute!!:

a few weeks ago, i was in the kitchen i heard moses puffing and chuffing in the back yard...so i peeked out to see what he was up to. and this is what i saw:

he thought he was going to ride his bike down the slide....crazy kid.

now that school has started (which i forgot to get a 1st day of 2nd grade picture of solly) i am hoping that life can be somewhat normal again (fingers crossed)

best. summer. ever.

2010-08-16T22:52:00.001-07:00

the fun never ends around here. really.

saturday we went mini golfing with the in-laws (all of them, for a grand total of 11 breeces!)

moses didn't quite get his form right:

solly, on the other hand, played the role of golfer quite nicely:

while gardening on saturday evening i spotted a little lizard running around so i grabbed it, showed the boys and let it lose. they proceeded to follow, name (moses picked "joseph") and chase it into the house and under the couch. so after moving furniture around and retrieving the little guy we put him back in a nice safe place. the boys then sat there and talked to little joesph for quite a while.

they are so cute:

sunday after church & lunch we filled our van with people (us, rose & my parents) and we headed towards the mountains in search of cooler weather! we made it to sunrise and up near mt. rainier and it was a whooping 30 degrees cooler up there. so we went for a little hike!

a few of us on the trail:

moses was quite the trooper:

mama & boys taking a quick break:

today i took my boys to a friends house who just happens to live on a lake!!

this little man loves the water!!:

look! no hands! (he FREAKED out when i let go of him, but he did great!)

they were hard to get IN into the water...but once they were there they were impossible to get out!!

solly in "cannon ball" action!

little stinker would not get out of the water!!

this summer has been so full of unexpected (and barley planned) fun. it's great and exhausting all at the same time. can't wait to see what happens next!

the fun parts of my week...

2010-08-14T09:03:00.000-07:00

this week was long and a bit stressful. but i did manage to have a lot of fun in the process. like on wednesday i went to my kaydees house and we got to hang out with a friend from bible college that we haven't seen in almost 10 years!!

oh yeah...and the "babies" got to play

moses is trying to kiss liam. liam's not having it!

after kaydees house i drove as fast as i could to get back to the claw to pick up solly from art camp (i was 45 min late...) then ran home to make 8 batches of frosting i sat down for 5 min. and then was off to seattle to see one of my oldest friends, kari, on the eve of her birthday!!

the only thing that makes the traffic worth it:

as i was arriving in seattle my sister called and invited us out on the boat. so after kari and i had some drinks and some appetisers (at a very fancy restaurant on lake union) anna and colin pulled up RIGHT where we were sitting and picked us up in the 50 foot sail boat!

my beautiful sister at the wheel:

'white and nerdy' is what comes to mind when i see this picture:

cool flags on the boat:

the view coming back into lake union:

then after another busy day of baking cupcakes i went out to the store for ice cream and got distracted by the moon setting into the sunset!!

wow!:

then friday finally came!! sollys last day of art camp!! his new bff, austin, came home with us for a while and i thought we would just hang out and play legos...until my sister called (again) and invited us to go to the lake with them. i would have pictures from the lake if i hadn't left my purse at home (the perminate home of my camera)

so we'll fast forward to the show that the kids put on at art camp!

group song (solly is the 4th head from the left):

these two are joined at the hip!

doing the skit "chainsaw" very cute!

now we're off to play mini golf with the in-laws. the fun never ends around here!!!

summer

2010-08-10T22:32:00.001-07:00

since i've been on a "blogging hiatus" (a.k.a. too lazy to blog) i thought i'd catch you up on our summer so far...using pictures. so here it goes. *keep in mind that my captions come before the picture...i know i'm backwards, it's just the way my brain works*

june:

we visted jake's parents around fathers day & his brother & his family were able to join us as well for the day. the kids had a blast playing together:

all the breece boys & their children:

moses turned 3!!:

july:

after watching fireworks we recreated a family photo that we took 3 years earlier when moses was just 5 days old...three years makes a big difference!:

ahhh the heat. summer finally arrived sometime after the 4th of july:

my kids know how to enjoy this tiny pool!:

a friend gave us tickets for creation so i braved it one night to take the boys to see david crowder (if you were to zoom in between my forehead & the guy with the hat on head you could see david crowder):

solly had swimming lessons and did GREAT! this is one of my favorite pictures...the elementary back stroke:

the street fair was a big deal this year...so we checked it out for a bit and mojo got to go on his 1st roller coaster ride with his "brudder" (isn't solly the best big brother?!):

then we took a trip to the oregon coast with jakes parents. it was a 1st for both of my boys:

what could be better?!:

the 1st thing moses said when he laid eyes on the beach was "SANDBOX!!!":

i did some research online one night at the hotel and found out there was a cool ship wreck close by. it was one of my favorite parts of the trip:

august:

jakes mom took a week off to spend time with the boys. so i took them up to see her and stayed a few nights and then left solly there for the rest of the week. but, before i left...we hit the beach!

i want this picture on my wall!!:

hummm, i wonder why solly went to bed with a tooth ache tonight...?:

so that is (just part of) our summer...so far. now that i'm caught up i'll try to stay on top of this crazy blog. one of these days i'll take a picture of my camera and write all about it...cause i think everyone would be much more impressed with my pictures if you knew what i was working with.

ah yes, and this is my favorite non-person picture of the summer:

long time no...blog.

2010-08-07T10:50:00.000-07:00

it just took me a minuet to figure out how to post a new blog...that must mean it's been WAY too long since i last posted.

i can't even remember what my last post was...oh yes, something about a possible job in lynden i believe. well here is a recap of our lives since then:

*we will not be moving to lynden.

*i am still working and LOVING it. it's such a blessing to have a good & flexible job!

*there will soon be a new baby in my life...i'm going to be an aunt again! (lucy is due to arrive thanksgiving week)

*i am opening up to the idea of having another baby of my very own but probably not for another year or two.

* we're looking into buying a house.

*moses is now three years old!

*solly has had the best summer ever including: swimming lessons, VBS, a weekend at the beach, art camp & a week at grandmas house on whidbey island

life has been full and wonderful lately! i'm feeling like one lucky mama!

ever changing

2010-06-01T17:19:00.000-07:00

as usual our future is up in the air. it's a normal kinda feeling. jake has applied for a youth pastor position in the small town of Lynden Washington. it's a pretty cute town. we have visited the church, jake went back for an interview and now we wait...

* * *

one look at this street and jake was sold

and they drive tractors down the street so, we'd feel right at home

moses was sick the whole weekend we were there

it's so close to canada that there are canadian flags everywhere...

there is NO telling what (if anything) will come from this. but, the waiting game is nothing new to us.

super nanny

2010-05-18T23:32:00.000-07:00

i've been working a fun little part time job & i am lucky enough to have the most wonderful friend to watch my little mojo while i'm away for about 12 hours a week. they understand each other and are so funny together. it's nice not to have to worry about him while i'm away.

thank you rose!

gone fishin' (and playing)

2010-05-17T21:09:00.000-07:00

today we went to deep lake for fishing and other fun.

rosie & mosie racing down the slide:

daddy & solly "fishing":

mosie & rosie spinning:

some more "fishing":

racing to the playground!:

listening to brother:

(i love this picture!)

listening to his response:

going home with a little "wheels on the bus"

family park trips are the bee's knees (those are suppose to be pretty cool, right?) the fishing wasn't great but solly had fun. it was nice enjoying what might be the end of our sunny streak.

mothers day

2010-05-12T15:44:00.000-07:00

yeah, yeah i'm WAY behind on blogging. so what better place to start.

mothers day was a nice relaxing day & the grandma's were all out of town or busy so we just got to spend time together as a family. my boys made me a wonderful breakfast, then church, lunch, then we just started driving. we headed for the mountains.

mosey had a nice nap:

solly enjoyed his DSi:

we got a somewhat decent family picture...

(if only i was a photo shop wizard!)

but, mosey and i got a great picture:
(i love this little boy)

a friend brought over they're gerbils for us to babysit for 2 weeks while they're out of town. and the boys are IN LOVE! they just sat and watched for a few hours:

along with all my beautiful handmade cards (& a carnation that solly found in the driveway) it was a pretty wonderful day! thanks boys, i love you all!

love, mama

aka

peek-a-boo

2010-04-20T09:58:00.000-07:00

while sitting in the back yard with moses and jake on a beautiful sunday afternoon i noticed two things (one thing i already knew and one thing was brand new information)

1st: my son is ADORABLE!!

see what i mean?

2nd: i can see mt. rainier from my back yard!!!!

(who cares if it's a bit of an odd view!?! it's still beautiful!)

have i ever mentioned how much i love living where i live? cause i love it. sure it's not a perfect dream house...and certainly not a perfect neighborhood. but, it's still pretty great!

p.s. i love my new computer. maybe i'll blog about that next

spring fair...and guess who had a camera?!?!

2010-04-17T21:49:00.000-07:00

yay, i just might be making a comeback into the blogging world!! i went out today and i REMEMBERED MY CAMERA!!!
we went out to the spring fair with the boys and jakes mom and we had some fun...until the rain showed up

moses found a chicken man:

then he rode on the carousel with grandma:

solly really liked the reptiles:

solly & i even rode the roller coaster:

oh yeah, jake was there too....
i love my family...we're a fun bunch of nerds!

i'll be back

2010-04-06T22:15:00.000-07:00

I GOT A NEW COMPUTER TODAY!!!!!
my birthday is offically over. i got my computer that i asked for and i spent my gift card. it was a nice week and a half long birthday.
once i figure this thing out i'll be blogging a whole lot more!
so just hold on to your butts (RACHEL) i'll be back!

i know, i know

2010-03-02T23:42:00.000-08:00

i've been on another blogging hiatus...but not so much by choice. i killed my computer :( i tripped over the cord and sent it sailing across the room and now it takes a good 20 minutes to get it running and even then it doesn't last long. so, i am stuck using jakes work computer.
my birthday is coming up so i'll be asking for cash and i will start saving for a new computer.

so, since the last time i blogged here's whats new:

★ we finally fully moved and are all settled. i'll try to get pictures soon...

★ I'M AN AUNT AGAIN...well sorta. kaydee had her baby & i am in love!! little mr. liam christopher arndt was born (AT HOME! go kaydee!) at 7:54am on january 28th at a whopping 7lbs. 13 oz. & 20" long.
i got to go visit him when he was 6 days old (and again at almost 3 weeks old) he is such a sweet little guy. moses is also in love with his new baby!

★ rose officially lives with us!! she has been with us since monday and it feels totally normal to have her here :) (oh and did i mention she has a BOYFRIEND!?! oh yes, she does!) OH and she's looking for a job (and a SUPER cheep or free car)

★ jake is settling into his new schedule at his new location.

★ i just got all my teeth fixed up today (mostly...they're at least patched together and should last me a few years)

that's all i can think of for now. hopefully i can keep up on my blogging from now on. (no promises)

home sweet home(s)

2010-01-19T20:42:00.000-08:00

*sigh* moving is hard. our move should be easy...moving from one side of a duplex to the other should be a no brainier...especially when the units are a mirror image of each other. but when you want to cut down on clutter & get rid of most of the stuff being stored in the garage that = NO FUN. i'm loving the new place. i just wish i could get rid of about 60% of our "stuff" and i just might. so for now i'm having to run over for this or that. because we don't have everything moved over yet. solomon keeps saying "can we go to the house we used to live in and look for (insert missing toy here)" and moses is still calling are 'new' house "bobs house" (the name of our landlord) it's been inserting so far...and i'm sure it will just keep on getting weirder. if only i could find my camera in this mess....

things i'm thankful for...at 5am

2010-01-15T05:05:00.000-08:00

i can't sleep. my brain will not shut off. but with all the worries...and heart burn, i find myself being thankful for a lot right now. like:

★ my face going back to a normal size...almost completely! (as well as very little pain! yay!)

★ a healthy family

★ good friends

★ sleeping boys (i mean this in a good way!)

★ i'm moving...and only because i want to, not because i have to

★blogs that keep me busy when i can't sleep

★ the fact that i'm starting to feel tired.

alright, so they're not amazing things, but i am thankful for them right now. i suppose i should try to get a few more hours of sleep before i start another long day with all my boys.

a new look...that needs some work.

2010-01-14T22:34:00.000-08:00

my blog and i were ready for a new look. but i just couldn't get things the way i wanted...arrrgg!!! i'll try again when i'm not so frustrated.

a weird week...

2010-01-12T19:16:00.000-08:00

...i woke up monday morning with a half swollen face. after a trip to the dentist i left there knowing (what i already knew) that i had an infection in my gums and prescriptions in hand! and now 36 hours later i'm still waiting for the swelling to go down. i am healing a lot slower than i'd like to.

and then today our landlord called and offered for us to move into the other side of our duplex that he just fixed up (& for the same price we're paying for the dumpier side) so after some deliberation i think we've decided to move...next door. moving next door with either be wonderful or much harder than we think! but, i guess we will see.

wish us luck!

another try

2010-01-10T22:00:00.000-08:00

as you may know, we've been trying to get a somewhat decent family snapshot for quite a while. we actually only have one decent "family" picture and in that picture we're sitting in the back of our van watching fireworks when moses was about 3 or 4 days old (so, you can imagine how wonderful i look....) so we're were at a friends house the other day and it was a beautiful back ground...and we were all there...i just happened to have a camera & there was an extra person there to take a picture.

ta-da!

now, if my camera was just a little more than an ancient piece of garbage, then it might be pretty good. but, it's better that nothing!!
(ps thanks bryn for taking the picture!!!)

oh yes, there was also this picture that we took over the summer...when it was about 90º outside and as you can see jake was "super happy" about taking this picture. although it is good to look back on this picture...because i think we've lost some weight since then!
(ps rose thanks for the effort on this one. but you just can't polish a turd)

i'm baaaack!!!

2010-01-08T21:06:00.000-08:00

alright, brace yourselves, this is going to be a long one. we're going WAY back to december 21st and then all the way back to today. (keep in mind. i put captions above my pictures)

dec. 21st.- the lovey brothers at their best. it might look like solly is squishing moses...but, really moses took brother down!
dec. 23.- we went out and enjoyed the christmas ship festival. it was cold but fun

as you can see. solly had fun:

moses & i just tried to stay warm:

dec. 24th- i grew up always getting stocking on christmas eve (mainly because we didn't believe in santa clause) so i have passed this onto my kids (and hubby).
dec. 25th- a full day of christmas for us! 3 christmas' in one day. starting with a nice quiet family, pj, present opening at home:
and then onto my parents. with about 18 of my family members.
and then we finished up our day with a trip up to jakes parents on whidby island where we spent the night. all in all the boys had an amazing christmas!
dec. 26th- we headed home. the view from the ferry dock:
jan. 1st- moses learned to take pictures of himself!! these are some of my favorite shots of him:

jake also learned how to use the camera :)
jan 2nd- one of my close friends had a baby shower...and of course i made cupcakes!!
the prettiest mama to-be that i know!!
jan. 3rd.-jake and i went to put the boys to bed...and we found them cuddled together in solly's bed reading books together!!
and it just kept getting cuter!
and once they were in bed rose, luke, jake & i played monopoly...i think rose is still confused!:
(we won't talk about who won...again!)
jan. 7th- i went to keep my pretty sister company while she was at work!!! isn't she adorable?!:
jan. 8th- my boys were invited to a friends birthday party today. it was during school so, being the cool mom that i am. i let solly skip. the boys had a GREAT time. it was at a gymnastics place so they got out a LOT of energy!

& they also had a blow up mega slide!!! moses is the blur at the end of the slide:
and there is solly as a blur!:
(i think it's time for a new camera)
poor solly did suffer a minor injury while at the party, there was a rope swing there and he walked right in front of a girl and got kicked in the neck...ouch!
we had a wonderful christmas break! but, i am happy to be a week back into our normal schedule!! and hopefully i can get back to my regular blogging...cause i know you've all missed my "exciting" life.

2010

2010-01-01T01:17:00.000-08:00

so just a few hours ago it was moses half birthday...i kinda forgot :/ i know, i know. it's just a half birthday. but, i have been so diligent about celebrating them this (or last) year. oops.

★ ★ ★ ★

so, here's to 2010. i hate "resolutions" but, here are a few of mine anyways:

★ seek God more. everyday. He's so faithful to me, i just want to be more faithful to Him.

★ be a better friend. i feel like i have become a flaky friend over this past year and i WILL change that this year.

★ be healthier. i have so many things at my disposal to live a healthy life (including a brain that knows eating chocolate at 11 pm is a no, no!)

★ get organized. i used to be so good. but just the thought of the garage & hall closet (or any closet in my house for that matter) makes me nuts.

happy new year blogging world.

warm beach...

2009-12-21T13:04:00.000-08:00

last night we went to the lights of christmas at warm beach with jakes parents...i feel rather lied to...i did not see a beach and it was not warm! but the boys had fun and that's all that matters.

the boys with a giant snowman:

my favorite part of the whole night was when we went into the "joyland café" for some dinner and moses was absolutely sure that this napkin holder was....
...one of his favorite trains; TOBY!!!! (i love my kids!! they're SO funny!!!)
like i said: my kids are FUNNY!!! (and yes, that is a village in a mailbox)
solomon was also sure that there was a piece of bacon in this train...see if you can spot it!

the lights were pretty

and the train was solly and moseys favorite part
good clean (cold/wet) family fun

this was solly's other favorite part and it was pretty impressive!!

the crowds were crazy and we call could've lived without the rain...and the 2 hour drive. but like i said before, the boys had fun and thats all that matters.

p.s. i'm not sure weather or not i'm "back" in the blogging world. but i couldn't resist sharing these pictures (especially the toby picture!!!)

blogging hiatus

2009-12-11T18:16:00.000-08:00

thanks to severe depression due to the holidays and financial ruin (ok, that might be a little bit dramatic...but only a little bit) i'm taking a break. i don't feel like write chipper blogs right now. i don't even feel like writing blah blogs.

so, right now i'm working on having faith. lots and lots of faith.

i hope everyone is able to enjoy the holidays they way that they are meant to be enjoyed.

HELP!!!

2009-12-10T10:39:00.000-08:00

i have the worst time making decisions on my own (seriously, ask my poor husband). so, i am asking for your help. as you've seen i'm sort of making my own little cupcake business. nothing major. just really making cupcakes for friends and stuff. but, i figured if i had cards and a name it might help. so i've been working on some business cards today (free ones from vistaprint.com...i totally recommend them!) so please vote and help me make up my mind!!

★with fake info...for obvious reasons!★

card #1: i added some cute little titles and things to this one because this one just seemed to have more room. i kinda like the brown too...
card #2: pretty and plan. no witty titles. just the plan info...
ALSO! jake put doubt in my mind when he came up with his own name for my cupcakes. i've been calling them BB cupcakes but he liked BB cakes and now i like them both so much i can't decide between the two...HELP!!! so please leave a comment and cast your vote for favorite business card & favorite name. thanks!!!!

rollin with my homies

2009-12-10T09:07:00.000-08:00

on monday i got to do something very rare. i went shopping with my sister, rachel, and my mom...without any kids. it was a strange yet fun experience. we went to the mall (a foreign place to me these days) and then to fred meyer (a little more familiar to me) and then we ate some yummy mexican food together.

me and my little/big

my mama
(who hates having her picture taken)

we had some fun...and i only wish i could get the picture i took on my sisters phone cause it was about the best laugh we had all day long. it's something we should do more often and with about 3 or 4 more hours....

★ ★ ★

then later in the day the boys and i headed over to my moms house to play and do some crafts. (and so we could see her house all decorated for chirstmas) and let me tell you...my mama knows how to have fun with little kids. she just makes a huge mess and sits down right in the middle of it.
i don't any other grammy that gives horsey rides like my mom (at least not on hardwood floor...ouch, i'm not sure i'd even do that)
at the begining of summer we went to republic with jakes parents for a few days and the ground there was littered with beautiful pine cone. my mother-in-law had insisted we pick up a bunch and take them home so we could make crafts out of them for chirstmas. instead of coming over and doing the crafts with us she just bought some supplies and left us to figure out what to do with them. solomon was really interested in the whole process...for about 10 minutes and then i was left by myself. here are a few

our penguin ornament:
(my personal favorite)

& i made a few for my mom to hang in her window:

we have some others but their not quite done. we also have about 10-15 plain ones left that we plan on spreading peanut butter on and the roll in bird seed to make bird feeders (i'm sure those birds are about starving in the freakishly cold weather we've been having)

p.s. sorry it took so long little/big. and sorry it's so short. that's what happens when i wait 3 days to write about something. i forget everything i was going to write...cause i'm old and forgetful.
love you xoxo

nope, not gonna do it

2009-12-08T08:00:00.001-08:00

i know i have been a diligent little blogger for over a week now...but i'm too tired to get up and get my camera...or even come up with anything witty to day. so, i'm simply taking a break today (well sorta...beside this tiny post that is telling you that i'm on a blog strike. for at least a day)

happy freaking tuesday
i feel about tuesdays the way garfield feels about mondays:
i hope you all have a good day. really, i do!

lovey brothers!

2009-12-07T08:00:00.000-08:00

solly discovered the other day that he can now give moses piggy back rides. which is both dangerous and fun! (sometimes moses refuses to let go) but they both love it!!
little mojo has been working to find his favorite place to sit to watch tv now that our living room is rearranged. it's been cute to watch.

trying out the couch:

and then the chair:
(upside down & kicking his feel to make the chair rock)

but, i think he likes having his brother by his side the best. they're so sweet they sat like this and watched a movie for about 20 minutes. i love that they love each other so much.

★ ★ ★

oh, and i forgot to post a picture of my nativity all set up. this is only the 2nd (maybe 3rd) time that i have had a chance to set it up. i love it. it was a gift from my mother-in-law. i wish that i had a bigger space for it to be set up at...but maybe next year (or the next).
and the best part is moses is sure that one of the wise men is his papa (my dad) and every time he looks up there he says "ooo papa!" it's pretty cute!

O Tannenbaum

2009-12-06T08:00:00.000-08:00

the dreaded day is here...christmas tree day. i'm pretty sure if i didn't have my boys i would not have this thing in my house right now, i'd be skipping christmas all together this year. but, alas the show must go on... so off we went today to find a tree.
we ended up going to a lot where an overly helpful girl helped us pick out a tree in 3.5 seconds, so i didn't have time to take pictures of the picking out process. but i did snap a picture before we hit the road (and might i say, it's a miracle that this tree stayed on the roof, jake and i are not what you would call "tie down experts")
i would like to know why i always get stick putting on the lights!?!? oh well, at least it looks fabulous now.

step 1: lights

grandma (jakes mama) was here to help today too!

step 2: candy canes

oh yes, grandpa was also here...although a little less helpful than grandma

step 3: ornaments
(or ottomans as solly keeps calling them)

all done. moses has been fighting every urge to pull everything off the tree (starting with the candy canes, of course) having his train under the tree helps distract him.

step 4: take a nap!

no presents, but we do have our train!

yeah, yeah its smells wonderful and it looks great! but in a few week i'll have to fight everything off the tree and back into boxes and then i'll have a tree carcass to deal with. i promise i really am getting into a chirstmasy mood...

happy birthday

2009-12-05T19:14:00.000-08:00

happy birthday to my dear sweet ashley!!
i love you so much and i hope this next year brings you great things!!

isn't she pretty?!?!

some fun

2009-12-05T08:00:00.001-08:00

it has been a beautiful week here in the 'claw (beautiful but, freeeezzing!!) i wish that i had a better camera so that i could capture some of it a little better.

mt. rainier with the fog rolling in:

the moon was gorgeous this night.
(my camera does NOT do it justice)

the next morning jake and i were doing one of our favorite thing, driving around. we came across a field of elk. it was pretty amazing.

moses does not like the sun in his eyes
(don't let that smirk fool you)

this week i went to the Victorian Country Christmas Festival with my 'sister' and mom. we had lots of fun just wandering around looking at all the christmasy (and some not so christmasy) things.
then i ate my first ever Piroshky. it's russian pastry filled with mean and cheese. it was pretty good...although, it really could've used some sour cream!

mmmm, meaty

and i had a cow chip cookie for the first time in probably 15 years! i was pretty great. and let me tell you, no one was happier than chiara:
it's going to be a fun/busy weekend. parades, christmas tree, in-laws...tons of fun! the weather is even suppose to hold out and keeping being wonderfully cold!

feeling the love.

2009-12-04T13:41:00.000-08:00

a few months ago we started going to a new church. we sorta felt at home in our new church right away. we had go to the same church for pretty much our entire lives and almost never felt at home there. so, this was a great new feeling. this new church acts like, well, a church. they take care of each other. this past week we have experienced some of that first hand.
on friday i got a call from a lady at church and she told me to send jake over to pick something up. when he got there she had a large basket full of thanksgiving-ish food, a turkey and a roasting pan. even though it was already after thanksgiving we were thrilled to have it and it will go to good use!

the basket:
(complete with sparkling cider & candies)

then, i had volunteered to be a shopper for our churches 'angle tree' program. so, the lady in charge called me during the week and told me that there had been a donation and we would be shopping for a little boy who wanted a soccer ball and puzzles. i was so excited! so sunday i met up with her and she gave me all the information and then she says "i have this little kit that they gave me when i got my mammogram..." (i'm not going to lie, at this point i was worried) "...it's for your feet & i can't reach my feet, would you like to have it?" i happily accepted and it turned out to be a pretty cute little package:

so, a few minutes later i was talking to jake outside, juggling moses, 3 cookies and a foot care kit and that same sweet lady walks by, puts something in my hand, smiles a big smile, pats me on the back and keeps walking...so i look in my hand (totally confused) and i see it's money...i assumed a $20, i put it in my pocket and while later when we get in the car to leave i pulled it out...and let's just say it was more than $20. God is so good, and i've come to find that he really likes to use cute little old ladies to help us out. His ways are mysterious...and i LOVE that about Him. He always likes to remind me not to worry, just like one of my favorite verses:

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" -Matthew 6: 25-27

thank you God. the lights at the breece house will be on for another month.

i was feeling brave today...

2009-12-03T17:18:00.000-08:00

if you know me then you know about my "former sisters". if you don't know me...i'll make a long story short: my parents adopted 3 sisters (family friends, who's parents had died) when i was about 13 (?) and then when i was around 22 they "removed" themselves from our family & we have heard almost nothing out of them since.

so, the last time we moved i found a blanket that belonged to one of them, she had made it with her mother before she passed away. i found her on facebook and sent her a message to let her know i had it & told her i'd be happy to get it back to her. she said i could meet up with one of her friend and i was so bothered by the fact that she couldn't take 2 minutes to meet me and get the blanket. so i just ignored her response.

well, i got to thinking today...tomorrow is her birthday. i just happened to be going to covington, where she just happens to work. so i tossed it in the car, and tried to talk myself out of stopping to drop it off. (*things between her and i were rarely good...not to mention i was not look fabulous today*) but, i did not manage to talk myself out of it...so with moses & a paper bag filled with a blanket in tow i marched in there and wouldn't ya know it an old 'friend' is at the front desk. i asked (just to double check) if she still worked there "oh sure" she says "let me go grab her for you" my response: NO!!! i mean... "no, that's fine, i just want to drop this off for her. thanks" and then (as i'm dropping my phone on the floor) i pretty much turn and sprint for the door before she appears from out of no where and i'm forced to have an awkward conversation.

i got out of there as fast as possible. but, i'm glad i got it done. it's something that she should be able to have. i just wish things didn't end up so awful with them...

wish list:

2009-12-03T08:00:00.000-08:00

just in case anyone asks this year i want to be ready. i can always think of a million things i would like to have throughout the day, but as soon as someone asks me my mind is blank so here it goes.

BIG MAMA:
★ grey's anatomy season 4 & 5 on DVD

★ a new DVD player

★ new cupcake pans (that can fit side by side in the oven and still allow the oven door to close)

★ gift certificates are always welcome (no matter how "impersonal" people think they are. i SO enjoy them because i NEVER have money to spend on myself and i love to shop)

★ disney pixar greatest CD (yes, this would be for me more than the boys!!)

★ wii fit plus with balance board

★ a makeover-clothes, shoes & a haircut

★ ★ ★

come to think of it, i go blank when people ask me what my kids want too...so maybe i should work on a list for them too!!! (sorry jake, you're on your own)

SOLOMON:
★ pretty much anything video game related (especially mario)

★ books, books and more books (if it seems like it's about 2 years too advanced for his age...then it's perfect!)

★ giant nerf sword

★ he really wants more stupid bakugan's....but we could really (really) live without anymore of those things in our house!!

★ garfield books: odie unleashed, garfield's guide to everything, in dog years i'd be dead & garfield's book of cat names.

★ star wars collection on DVD

★ legos

MOSES:
★ books

★puzzles

★ any disney pixar DVD (including the short film collection)

★ anything that has anything to do with trains

★ a new wall-e sweatshirt (4T)

★ geotrax radiator springs set from costco

★legos (duplo)

don't worry, i have not forgotten the real meaning of christmas!

wordless wednesday:

2009-12-02T08:00:00.000-08:00

mosey jo

2009-12-01T08:00:00.000-08:00

on friday, while the turkey was in the oven, the family had yet to arrive & jake and solly were at the store, moses and i got to spend some time together playing. we created a pretty great "choo choo" track.

how could anyone resist that look?

check out our great city!

moses loves horse's
(or "kkurrrkkeyyy" as he says)

he was acutally saying "cheese"

"hummm what does this do?"

we had a great time. i am thankful for my sweet baby boys and all the time i get to spend with them.

solly-man

2009-11-30T08:00:00.001-08:00

saturday afternoon (while poor jake was working) i took the boys to my moms house. just to hang out. but, when we got there she remembered that she had gotten a gingerbread house kit for solly. but she realized that she didn't have very much candy to decorate it with. so, after a "quick" (nothing is quick with my mom) trip to the store (or three different stores) we were ready to start

solly's serious face
(notice the cute little house kit)

and the insane pile of candy:
(that's right, all for that one little house)

all constructed and ready for the decorator

"a gumdrop there..."

"...and a pretzel fence here"

moses was very "helpful"...well, someone had to taste all the candy!! (and cram the candy into a toy car...and feed the dog some candy...like i said very "helpful")

the finished house!!

the "kids" waiting to open presents:

"mommy" in her pumpkin garden:
(cause a gingerbread house is not complete without one)

and "daddy" is looking around checking things out:

solly keeps asking if it's time to start eating it. and i keep reminding him that we have about 12lbs. of the candy left over that he could eat...thanks a lot grammy.

thanksgiving round 2: breece style

2009-11-29T17:17:00.000-08:00

the breece thanksgiving was a huge success. jake and are make a pretty good cooking/hostess team (if i do say so myself)

our appetisers
(notice there is NO candy involved)

jake and i had told everyone that the food would be ready by 2. and by 2:02 we were all dished up and chowing down. and the turkey wasn't too bad (we had never cooked a turkey before)

the breece men:

i cheated on dessert and bought my pies. but i also had some leftover cupcakes so we had tons of sugary goodness to serve up.

this is what jake gave his brother for dessert:
jake calls this "the breece special"
1 slice of pumpkin pie, 1 slice of apple pie, cool whip, ice cream, a cupcake & whipped cream
(yes, he ate it ALL)

the kids enjoying their dessert
(if you look closely you can see all 5 of them)

and then it was back to more playing. it was like lego land in the guest room. they all had a blast!
we had a great day. i would totally do thanksgiving at our house again next year!

aaarrrrgggg

2009-11-27T20:37:00.000-08:00

i was all geared up to write a great blog about the breece thanksgiving today. with pictures & all...but, my camera cord has gone AWOL.

so, i will be searching high & low for that tricky little cord. i will find it, i will find it...
i hope.

thanksgiving round 1: swineford style

2009-11-26T20:29:00.000-08:00

we had a thanksgiving feast out at my moms house today. it's been probably 3 or 4 years since we've had a thanksgiving dinner with my family...and now i remember how long & weird it truly can be. but, we did manage to have fun.

this is my moms idea of appetisers:
(notice the candy to vegetable ratio)

my brother had sent our whole family a christmas present while he was in iraq a few years ago. and he had never seen it (he's been home almost a year) so, we busted out the sweet race track & all the boys (both big and small) had a blast with it.
it was all fun and games until grandma (80 years old) walked in and tripped over the track and fell- but, don't worry she seems to be just fine!

"race ya brudder!!"

then it was time to feast (an hour and half later than my mom had told us it would be ready...traditionally)

so there we are all 12 of us
(and we're missing about 6 people)

from the other side:
(still couldn't really get everyone in the same picture)

and then dessert of course:

then it was time for us to come home and start prepping for round 2: breece style

jake busting a move...

...while cutting the cheese!! haha

we're all ready to cram 11 breece's into our little house tomorrow and we're fully prepared to stuff them to the gills. stay tuned for more on that tomorrow.

cake...in a cup!

2009-11-21T22:35:00.000-08:00

they're DONE!! it was really pretty easy (compared to the 300+ i made a few months back) it went so well i felt like maybe something should go wrong. but, all was well.

and here they are!

i was done almost 24 hours before they were to be delivered. i was so happy with how quickly it went. i got my messed all cleaned...
and then i walked into the living room... this is what happens when daddy watches the boys and mama is busy.

all tucked in and ready to go

i even put my logo to use:

it turned out pretty good.

they had LOTS of leftovers. (there were 100 cupcakes and like 30 guests...) so i guess its a good thing thanksgiving is just around the corner so they can feed them to family & friends.
solly helped me deliver them & then we went out for a little date to use his Book-it coupon at Pizza Hut. we had a lot of fun!

♥

after getting home and getting the house all clean we all went to the craft fair in town. it wasn't great, but i did get a great idea for cupcakes...stay tuned for that.
i am spending my last night over at my moms with my grandma tonight. i'm happy to be able to help. but i'll be more happy when i can sleep in my own bed, snuggle up to my man & not use an entire tank of gas in less than a week.

68 years & togther again.

2009-11-19T14:11:00.000-08:00

today was my grandma swineford's memorial service. it was in her home state, arizona, so i was not able to attend. the service was planned for today because it would have been my grandpa "bumpy" and grandma's 68th wedding anniversary. bumpy has been gone for probably 15 (?) years. so, today they get to spend their anniversary together...in heaven (praise the Lord that we know where they are!!)
i have very few memories of them. but, the ones i do have a great, fun ones. they will be missed. one thing that breaks my heart is that she never got to meet my baby moses. but, i am grateful that she did get to meet solly a few years ago & that he has some memories of that time.
weren't they adorable?
my grandmothers obituary from the Arizona Republic:
Swineford, Palmera (Beulah)
90, of Phoenix passed away on November 10, 2009. She was preceded in death by husband Robert and daughter Karen (Don) She is survived by daughters Lois Olson, Karen Rohlf (Robert); son Craig Swineford (Martha); 7 grandchildren, 5 great grandchildren. Memorial Service Thursday, November 19,2009 at 11:30 am at Black Mountain Baptist Church 33955 N. Cave Creek Rd. Cave Creek, AZ

happy anniversary to grandma & bumpy.i love you and miss you!

hippo-birdy!!

2009-11-19T13:43:00.001-08:00

to my bryndalin jacquelin:

on the day that you become an "adult"
i wish you a very happy birthday!!

having starbucks in a freezing QFC with you (while a vampire enjoyed his lunch) was very fun! thanks for sharing a part of you day with me!!

crack-a-lackin'

2009-11-18T14:11:00.000-08:00

i talked to a lady at church a month or two ago and she asked if i could do cupcakes for her daughters bridal shower, she told me the date i gave her my number to call me when the date got closer and then we didn't really see each other much after that...so, i get a call on monday from her saying "hey! can you still do the cupcakes for this saturday?!?" of course i can and i will. i was just a bit caught off guard. so, i am gearing up to do 100 cupcakes for a shower on saturday.
i usually store, carry & transport my cupcakes in plastic cases that i buy from safeway, they're super cheep (75¢ a piece) and if they get left behind it's no big deal. but! the downside is people always say "oh wow, those are beautiful cupcakes! where did you buy them??" *gurrr* so i've come up with a little logo i put on the cupcake cases so that even if people think they're store bought at least they'll know they're NOT from a grocery store and at least think that they are from some fancy bakery :)
so here is what i came up with as my logo. it's not great, it needs work. but, i love the general concept of it.
★★UPDATE: (just for rose!) i am doing 4 different flavors! ★chocolate ★coconut ★strawberry ★white cake with raspberry filling!!★★
i went shopping today and got all my baking supplies as well as a frosting tip that i needed. when i got home i started searching through my kitchen looking for all my tips, bags, papers and other party supplies and i found them all...in 3 different cupboards and a drawer. so, fed up with the hunt i did some thinking and came up with a great way to stay organized!!!
i swiped this sweet "toolbox" from the boys (don't worry it was in the back of a closet with random toys tossed in. it's not like it was a functioning for them...they'll never miss it) (OH and a special THANK YOU to ashley who bought this for solly a few years back! he got a lot of use out of it!! and now so will i)
it has handy compartments for my tips, colors & some random balloons!
the bottom part has enough room for all the bags, papers, candles and other decorations!!
OH! another big thanks to my big sister, anna. she spotted these boxes of cupcake papers at cash & carry a while back and told me about them. i went i picked some up today!! the regular size ones were $3.16 for 500 papers!!! (i normally buy 50 for $1.99 so this is quite a deal!) and then the mini papers were on special for the screamin' deal of $1.98 for 500!!! i won't be buying cupcake papers for a while but when i do i know where to get them!!!

★ ★ ★ ★

in other news. i dropped my parents off at the airport this morning. they're off to arizona for my grandmothers memorial service. so, i am house sitting for them...or, grandma sitting. she doesn't like to be alone at night (and i do not blame her one bit!!) so, the boys (jake too) and i will be back and forth from there and home until sunday. so with cupcakes and house sitting i will be one busy bee until saturday around 1. but, life is good!!

a few of my favorite things.

2009-11-16T23:30:00.000-08:00

moses always wants to help daddy cook and jake found a new way for him to day that. grilled cheese anyone?
awww, this almost never happens anymore and the fact that he's holding a balloon makes it that much better!!
and solly, he knows how to be when it comes to being sick on the couch all day long. the gatorade, saltines, blankie, pillows, books, books and more books. i think it all helped him feel better!
it's been an off week (or two) this week just gets weirder...more to come on that.

"adventure is out there!!"

2009-11-12T23:40:00.000-08:00

i've been watching 'UP' over and over and over again the past 2 days...not by choice (although it is a billion times better than watching "choo, choo"(a.k.a. Thomas & friends) again) i've really been enjoying the scenery (& the music) in the movie...so i did a little googling

"paradise falls" from UP:

angel falls, venezuela:

after doing some googling and looking through the pictures it almost makes me want to travel and visit venezuela (and if you know me...i'm not one that has ever wanted to travel any farther than i have to) but, who knows thanks to a cartoon, maybe i'll branch out a little now. maybe not south america & definitely not anytime soon but it's good to know that "adventure is out there"

a long 2 weeks...

2009-11-12T11:12:00.000-08:00

...jake and i have been sick so there hasn't been much to blog about. but yesterday we forced ourselves off the couch and out of the house for a trip to the park.

doesn't get much better than this:

sweet potato!

mama & mojo:

daddy & mojo:

nice action shot of solly:

we're still a little sick...but i'm pretending not to be. so i'll try to keep up on my blogging now.

i know, i know!

2009-11-10T13:37:00.000-08:00

it's been a very long time since i've posted a blog...my husband is nice enough to remind me of this every couple of days. so, with the sweet sound of him snoring on the couch i decided to get back on the blogging wagon. i've been meaning to check out a site that i saw on a fellow bloggers page (thanks, Melody) it's a lot of fun to learn new blogging ticks and tips check it out here and from that site i found another fun site and made my nifty new signature!

ok, so the signature needs a little work to look good on this background...but it's a start!

pre-halloween madness

2009-10-30T17:46:00.000-07:00

since halloween falls on a saturday this year schools & people are throwing halloween parties today. solly had his class party where he was dressed as a ...

NINJA!

i helped out in his class and i even threw a little costume together (if only you could see my pigtail buns that were my "ears")
my big sister, anna, works at sollys school and she was a baker...isn't she cute (between her shoes & the hat i think she was like 7 feet tall!!!)
and my niece, ellie, dressed as Billie Joe Armstrong the lead singer for green day...an odd choice for an 11 year old girl...but whatevs.
and then anthony & kelsey stopped by on their way to a party to show me their AMAZING costumes!!! (and solly is right in there being a vampire...weird kid)
i can't hardly wait for trick or treating tomorrow...AND rose is coming over!! it should be a lot of fun!

voting ends SOON!!!

2009-10-28T19:20:00.000-07:00

please remember to vote for my friends kitchen...EVERYDAY. the voting ends on saturday (i think) so please, please vote:

click here to vote

thanks!!

pumpkin

2009-10-24T18:51:00.000-07:00

we had thought about going to the pumpkin patch to get our pumpkins this year. and then i remembered that after the kids corral, corn maze, hay ride and pumpkins we could be out $60+ and the last time i was at the grocery store i noticed that they had good sized pumpkins for $3.99 so that's just what we did this afternoon, as a family, we headed out to the good'ol enumclaw QFC

right off the bat solly was impressed with the selection

our pumpkins and my boys!

mama and all 4 pumpkins

carving time!

i love moses face.
he wasn't too sure about the pumpkin guts

solly fake barfing...boys!

i had been given a squash that i didn't really want to eat so i decided to carve it. and the pumpkin with the flower in it (the middle back) moses made in sunday school last weekend and the tiny pumpkins are ones that solly grew in this very own garden. (moses/jake's pumpkin is on the left, mama's squash is in the middle & solly/mama's on the right)

BOO!

we had some good'ol family fun today!! i can't keep moses away from the pumpkins & he squealed with joy when he saw them all lit up!

keep voting!!

2009-10-22T18:07:00.000-07:00

don't forget to keep voting for my friends. right now they're still in the top 5 so keep the votes coming!!!

click here to vote

thanks!!!

wow

2009-10-21T18:04:00.000-07:00

a friend remember that i had been looking for a climber for moses (about a month ago) and this past weekend she spotted one at a garage sale and since she didn't have my number she got the lady's number...but me being an airhead forgot to respond to a facebook post and then yesterday she writes to me again and tells me that she picked it up for me and to call her so that she can give it to me. so, this evening she delivers it to me.

all put together
(and on the patio for now under the umbrella & out of the rain)

moses is totally impressed

solly looks like a giant!

both of them love it!!

sometimes i forget how kind & thoughtful people can be and every once in a while God likes to remind me!

our way to grey

2009-10-16T22:44:00.000-07:00

since we don't have cable of any kind but we are addicted to grey's anatomy we've come up with our own way to watch it every week. i toss a sheet over a tv, hook a projector up to the computer, hook up some speaker and we're good to go. thank goodness for tv shows online.
so while the rest of the country watches grey's on thursday...we have a friday grey's in our house. it might seem like a lot of work for a silly little tv show. but, i don't care! it's fun.

★ ★ ★

don't forget to vote for my friends kitchen...everyday!!

click here to vote

today (for lack of a better title)

2009-10-15T21:47:00.000-07:00

as soon as jake got home from work today we all headed over to the park. for a little family (plus a few big kids) fun. i know that a LOT of my pictures are at the same old park. but, it's across the street...so you'll have to deal with it

big solly...just before he jumped

mr. mojo

and then there is the big kids...bryn & anthony fighting (as usual) gotta love 'em...

my rosie!!!

solly likes to get into baby swings...but we refuse to help him out of the baby swings. so, it's always fun to watch him try to get out but, don't worry he always gets out with no problem (oh, notice all the debris on the ground from out little wind storm earlier this week...it was crazy fun)

peek-a-boo
i cannot get over how stinking cute moses is with his new haircut i love it!

goofy boy #1

goofy boy #2

i love having funny kids. there is never a dull moment around here.
OH, side note: solly's teacher sent home a "chapter" book today and told him that he could read a chapter or two every night (or, whatever he was up for) ...he got home from school and read it in 30 minutes. (p.s. it was kinda a gross book for a 1st grader...'The Halloween Party From The Black Lagoon' the beginning of chapter 2 starts out like this "On the school but, all the kids are excited about their costumes. Eric says he has a beautiful rubber mask. The eyeball is hanging out and there's an ax stuck in the brain. Needless to say, there's lots of fake blood on it." ...really? for a 1st grader? sometimes public school can be very frustrating!!!

a great day!

2009-10-13T20:52:00.000-07:00

my poor little hippy baby finally got a haircut today. i am so happy. i mean, he's cute no matter what...but his hair was getting a little out of hand.

before:

and, yes, he did eat that whole burger...it took most of the day.

after:

doesn't he look so much more happy? (and older!) this was the best picture i could get...i need a much faster camera, he's too fast!

★ ★ ★

also today, my big kids decided to take over my kitchen!! anthony was nice enough to put together a dinner for us in my crock pot (mostly using things i already had around the house) and that kid can cook! (i cannot)

i just sat back and watched

rose was all about the baking today. she made some chocolate chip cookie bars that were goo-ood! then she made brownies (with powdered sugar batman symbols on top) they had a little too much fun. (for a "brother" and "sister" they get along really well)

here is our finished dinner...soooo good.
and we still have LOTS of yummy rose desserts!!! yay for today!!!

★ ★ ★

don't forget to go and vote for my friends kitchen click here to vote thanks!!

please VOTE!

2009-10-13T11:09:00.000-07:00

some old friends from bible college (that met there and got married) have entered their outdated kitchen in home depot makeover contest. one big reason i am really rooting for them to win is partly because of the THREE kids they have, but more because they are expecting TWINS! so in a matter of months that will be a grand total of FIVE kids. a mother of 5 needs a good kitchen. so please take the time to vote for my friends and their ever growing family. (and please don't be shy, vote EVERYDAY!!!)

click here to vote

oh, and if you don't think the kitchen is that bad...then click through the pictures and check out their stove/oven and imagine having a pull out stove top with little kids running around!!

THANKS!!!

drowning

2009-10-11T23:35:00.000-07:00

sometimes i really feel like i am drowning in life. bills are piling up, there is very little food in the house, my tooth is killing (i haven't even paid for the last tooth) & there just doesn't seem to be a solution to any of these problems.

what am i suppose to do?

i am trying to remember that i am important to God and that i should not worry about these kinds of things...but that's a hard thing to do. so i am reading Matthew 6:25-34 over and over...with lots of prayer mixed in there.

²⁵"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?²⁸"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

the gift that keeps on giving.

2009-10-09T20:17:00.000-07:00

my sweet nephew, elijah, gave me a zucchini that he grew in his garden (the kid is 8 and LOVES to garden) so i took his gift and turned into something delicious (not that zucchini's aren't naturally delicious...i just have a tendency to take everything and turn it into dessert)
and let me tell you...it is GOOD!!! i used this recipe with a slight modification that was almost a disaster (i used cocoa & butter rather than unsweetened chocolate but anthony saved the day...with a little oil)
oh, and moses LOVES it!!

poor potato

2009-10-09T09:00:00.000-07:00

last night solly helped himself to the last ice cream cone. mr. mojo potato was NOT happy that there wasn't one left for him. so, solly (being the nice big brother that he is) shared with moses. but, moses (being the 2 year old that he is) wanted to HOLD the ice cream cone. so they would take turns but when it was solomon's turn moses would go into FULL MELTDOWN mode. it was pretty cute! solly was a real sport!

in case you can't tell moses has full tears and snot flowing in this picture.

everyone ended up happy.

moving day

2009-10-08T19:38:00.000-07:00

today i (finally!!!) got a project done that i've been wanting to do for a long time: trading bedrooms with moses and solomon. i've been wanting them to have the bigger bedroom so that they could have lots of room to play. i knew it was going to be a big job to switch rooms...but it was even harder than a thought. thank goodness for rose and all her help!

before:

after:

i wish i could get a better picture to show just home much more room they have. they've already had wrestling matches & solmon had his own private dance party.

moses has his own side of the room.
and solly has his own side. (wow, i just noticed how catty-wampus those letter are!)

★ ★ ★

before #2:

after #2:

nothing fancy. but, i am happy with the outcome. and the boys couldn't be more happy with their new room. moses even took a great nap in there this afternoon.
OH and the only thing i haven't gotten done yet it switching curtains...maybe tomorrow. i'm pooped!

the story behind the watch...

2009-10-06T09:00:00.000-07:00

...jake was annoyed that i didn't bother to mention why solly got his cool new watch (see the last post)
solomon is a bed wetter or i guess i should say "was a bed wetter" but some time towards the end of the summer we ran out of pull-ups so i said "oh well, guess you'll just have to stop wetting the bed" and well...that pretty much what he did. with the exception of the occasional accident. so yesterday we rewarded his success with his choice of a watch from target (i know, we're such big spenders)

p.s. THANKS!!! to everyone who suggested books for me to read. those ideas should keep me busy for a nice long while.