we went out to the bay today for just a little while...good to get out & smell some salty sea air...the kids love to look for shells, crabs, little fish...all kinds of smelly stuff!

this is eli's hermit crab in a shell. double-housing. i just LOVE tan little hands & fingers.

the story behind the picture of hunter is this: he was absolutely going nuts over the dog across the tide pool (you can barely see him--a black lab right by his owner) anyways...he was wimpering, wiggling, barking, just giddy & wanting so badly to go & introduce himself. so, tim took him over & they met. :)

tim chillin'...

bo, too....

here are the kids being all creative & paintin' some pails for their teachers. they are so cute--oh--& the pails, too. :)

the blue one is eli's...

the last two are zach's...

so...i'm hooked. addicted. even a little obsessed. not with drugs, friends, but with the farm chicks. if you haven't seen this blog/website, you MUST visit it. traci is responsible for this craziness that has taken over me. or maybe for re-awakening it...i used to be a thrifter, a garage sale & 2nd hand antique junkie. but different houses require different dressings--& we have finally moved back to a home that i can "dress" in some fun vintage stuff. i am excited. what a perfect time of year to start searching--with a garage sale on every corner this summer?! these are just a few of my fun finds that i discovered at the 2nd chance thrift store. aren't these strawberry cups cute? and i just got the better homes & gardens cookbook this last week, still filled with someone's recipes... i found the other one a few weeks ago. these pillow cases i've put up in my kitchen. of course, if you know me at all, this is all subject to change at a moment's notice. i tend to be a little fickle in the decorating department. furniture may be rearranged, things taken out & put in different rooms...it's crazy, but SO FUN!! if any of you want to go thrifting with me or catch some garage sales this summer, call me up!

look, ma, i lost my fwont toof! this little guy's lisp just got a little lispier. & cuter. :) this tooth has been just waitin' to come out, hanging about an 1/8" lower than his other front tooth for a good week or two now. he yanked it out in bed. oh, which reminds me, the tooth fairy better get her fairy butt in gear.
peace out.

we've started on the yard...& the kids were so gung-ho to help!

this is a "before"...as all the pictures will be...i haven't taken any "after" ones yet. my arms & fingers are so sore from all of the manual labor...haha!!

yes, we wear nice cardigan sweaters when we trim bushes. our future martha.

eli's first time with the "sawz-all"--he LOVED it.

awww...how cute is that?! that's some male-bonding right there, folks, with a power tool & everything.

then we went to the skil saw...

...and got the job done. goodbye posts.

to be continued...it's lookin' a little sad here, but good things are to come. :) i'll take some more pictures next week...

a visit to the park a couple of weekends ago...dad & bo were gone, so mom took the 3 kids to DQ for icecream, then to the park. they said it was the best day ever. they're so easy to please. :)

little monkeys...

looking for their handprints...

zach found his...

hand has gotten a little bigger since then...

this is a boy & his dog. they look all lovey-dovey in this picture. but what you don't see is how dirty zach's shirt & shorts are all down on one side. they are dirty because they (along with his body) were drug along the grass & dirt at top speeds by this dog at bender fields today. zach had hunter on the leash, with the loop around his wrist. "don't let go, zach, " i said, when he asked to take the dog for a walk. however, hunter sees another dog over yonder & breaks into a mad dash, with zach trying his darndest to keep up. the dog goes faster & faster, & zach, (leash still looped around the wrist) sorta starts lifting up off the ground, kind of like those parachute-behind-the-boat kind of rides...(but not near as fun). the dog keeps going, & zach is now bumping along, turning & twisting along the ground, now looking like a stunt man being drug behind a horse in a good 'ole fashion western. of course this all happens in about 8-10 seconds, but was all in such slow motion. anyways...poor little guy, he got a little banged up, & was more scared more than anything. mr. ellens said too bad we didn't have a video of it--we'd have won the $10,000 prize. & maybe a trip to disneyland. :)

happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday, dear mom, happy birthday to you! yes, this is my mom. my beautiful mom whose birthday was yesterday, may 15. (note the block calendar at grandiflora.)

we, (my sisters & i) took mom to lunch at on rice, opened some fun presents, then...

we ventured over to the "garden spot" & tip-toe'd thru the gorgeous plants, & trees, & shrubs & a million gorgeous clay pots in tons of sizes & colors, tons of windchimes, little & BIG garden statues, hanging baskets, baskets with mossy liners, more pots, more flowers, garden pergola thingys made of iron...wow, i'm tellin' ya, there's A LOT. a little overwhelming for the beginner gardener, which is me. however, for my sisters & mother, gardening is definitely their "thing". it is a great place to visit on a sunny day & the help is very helpful. plus, you even get a cute little wagon to tow all of your green garden treasures in.

& if you're really lucky, you'll maybe even bump into one of your best friends, like my mom did. one of her best friends, carol, happened to be there, filling her little wagon! how fun is that??!

here's macki on the hunt for some fun ground cover.

this is my garden spot purchase: a cute little houseplant & a cute little pot to put it in. and for an extra .50 you can go out back & pot your own plant, which is nice, 'cuz who knows how long that plant would have stayed in the green plastic container it came in.

this was a very cool iron bench we saw.

and these were some beautiful pink hydrangeas that were there. after the garden spot, we high-tailed it back to lynden & visited one of our favorite shopping stops: grandiflora. it was a wonderful day spent with some awesome women. thanks girls for the fun day & happy birthday, mom. i love you!

this was such a cool kick/shot--look! i even got him in mid-air!
he does so good & just LOVES soccer!

pretty happy soccer boy!

eli & fellow team mate easton

one yellow in a sea of blue...& i've noticed that the "tongue out" seems to be soccer concentration thing with eli. funny. it's so fun to watch--i'm a crazy soccer mom. seriously. i'm the one screaming my bloody-fool head off & parents around me kinda turn their heads to see who in the heck can't keep themselves together. that would be me. oh well. if i know your kid's name, i'm gonna yell for them. plain & simple. :) GO YELLOW!!!!

this is the stance of a true ball player. i think. it looks good to me, anyway! zach loves softball!

swiiiinnnnnnnnnnnggggggggg......

and it's a hit!!!! yahoooooo!!!

this is sweet bailee who looks like she's about 15. or is it just me??? amy had us girls: nana, macki, me & bailee over for a mother's day tea. it was absolutely wonderful. she did a fabulous job making us mothers feel so special!!

sorry this picture is crooked, but look at the beautiful table!

mom & macki