Here it is the LAST day of May -- teasingly close to the first day of summer. It was a nice sunny 70 degree day today.
However, at bed time . . . all that Nicholas could talk about was what we were going to do for Christmas. I kept telling him that Christmas wasn't for another 6 months!
But, that didn't matter. He just kept saying "No, Mama. I want it to be Christmas!"
Ahhh, yes. It starts early doesn't it.
Notice that HE chose to wear his red snowmen jammies tonight.
Back in February, our little branch library had a Princess Party ... so, now that it's the end of spring, they thought they should do something for the little men. So, they created Digger Day!
Although half of the kids attending were girls, Nicholas had a great time. He created some "signs" for his toy area and decorated his hard hat. He did the Dump Truck Relay--
running the truck up the path, putting a rock in the truck, and running it back to unload. There was a small sandcastle building area. And, of course, there were snacks--gummy worms and chocolate pudding (as close to worms and dirt as you could get).
If you didn't already know . . . I really love the television show
Gilmore girls.
Long story short . . .
Last night during our Firkin dinner,
Brenda and I were sharing our "college" stories.
As I told one of mine, I mentioned the dorm I used to live in -- Gilmore Hall (at UC Davis). All of a sudden, I heard myself say it, and I started laughing. I stopped my story, looked straight at Brenda, and said . . . "Oh, Wow! I really WAS a Gilmore girl."
Tonight was Girls Night Out! Brenda started the plan, and I came up with some restaurant ideas (places I hadn't tried yet). We ended up having a great dinner at a new restaurant called the Firkin & Frog. Yes, that's the REAL name. According to their website, they "are always ready to offer you a Firkin Good Time with Good Food, Good Pints and Good Firkin Fun."
The food was delicious--best sweet potato fries I've ever had! I had a Firkin ice cold Fat Tire Amber Ale ... perfect with the fries. Brenda had a drink called the Milky Way
(it was a blend of Bailey's, vodka, banana liqueur, chocolate, ???).
It may sound a bit odd, but Brenda highly recommends it.
We had a great time recounting our college (ahem) adventures! Our 2 and 1/2 hour dinner passed by
so quickly, we were shocked when we looked at our watches!
Thanks Brenda for a Firkin GREAT evening!
My good friend, Beth, and her daughter, Hannah, flew up from California to Oregon for Memorial Day Weekend. They stayed with a woman (Louise) that Beth used to work with. You can bet I jumped at the chance to drive down to see them -- even if it meant braving the holiday traffic, which was only a bit of a challenge on the drive down.
Unfortunately, the weather didn't quite cooperate. We had planned to take the kids to the center of town and let them run in this fabulous park that looks like a giant castle . . . but, this is the Pacific Northwest!
RAIN, RAIN, and more RAIN!!!
It turned out OK. It sure didn't stop our fun. The kids played with Louise's new puppy Lucy, while Beth and I chatted and took pictures. The kids found that by lying on the floor and pretending to be dogs, Lucy took more interest in them (ha, ha).
Then, we headed downtown for lunch at a yummy pizza place -- you have to love a place that serves pizza "by-the-slice." And, I even got a parking space right out front!
After lunch, we went to the Evergreen Aviation Museum. The kids loved running around and trying out all the "old-style" airplane seats (you know the ones with ash trays!) I loved seeing and walking into the body of the Spruce Goose!
We had a wonderful time, and miss our friends!
What's up with the WORD VERIFICATION?
Simply put . . . my comments got spammed 8 times in less than
3 minutes the other night. So, for a little while, I hope that you will still post comments, even if you have one more little step
(word verification) to do. Thanks! :-)
It all began with
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 . . .
8 roses!
They escaped to the living room theater where they sat back in their ultra-leather seats each with its own footrest, ordered dinner, and enjoyed the IRON MAN.
It was a
Happy Anniversary!
I thought it would never come. Nicholas has been asking me . . . for what seems like forever . . . if it was time to drive the "big trucks." Dozer Day is a kid-friendly fair-like event. With a professional, licensed driver at their side, kids have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to drive a big yellow bulldozer, backhoe, loader or other piece of heavy equipment. It’s a dream come true for kids--and tons of FUN!
Of course, today had to be one of the HOTTEST days of the year so far (we topped out around 97 degrees). But, through it all Nicholas just kept on going, and we fell in step right along with him. Nicholas loved having his Papa come along this year.This was a very very busy day. We started off the morning at a birthday party for Nick's friend--Ella. We were greeted by a special message on her front walk that her Grandma made. I thought it was a great idea to identify each of the party-goers!
The kids wished Ella a
Happy 3rd Birthday!
They hunted for alligators.
They ate birthday cupcakes.
And, they enjoyed homemade ice cream!
The afternoon was filled with lots of Garage Sale fun, but . . . WOW! it was really hot today. The only thought that kept me going was the air conditioning we'd get to enjoy later.
After dinner, we took Nicholas up to the high school to see his first play, 
"Your a Good Man Charlie Brown." We sat about 5 rows back from the orchestra pit.
At first, it was a bit too loud for Nicholas. But, by the time intermission came, he was having a great time. He especially liked the folding seats--silly boy!
Left to Right: Charlie Brown, Sally, Linus, Snoopy, & Lucy.
At the end, we told Nicholas that Tessa (Violet), his special babysitter, was in the play.
After the play, the cast greeted the audience as they exited through the hallway. Nicholas gave Tessa a rose. She was very excited that he came to the play.
This was our annual MOMS Club fundraising event. It just so happened that the weather decided to work in our favor this year (aka NO RAIN) and got fairly warm today. They're predicting mid-90's almost all weekend.
Here's some of the fun we had prepping all our donated items for the sale. Casey got into the spirit and created a very attractive ensemble
--great color matching! Even Nick lent a hand.
And, here's what it looked like during the sale over the weekend (everyone is hiding in the shade of the garage it's so HOT). We also participated in the Great American Bake Sale ... I made Cappuccino Chip Brownies--yummm!!!
While Nick showed Daddy how he was "strong" enough to get all the
fir needles out from between the deck boards, I took advantage of
the sunlight and had fun taking more photos of flowers that came into bloom this week.
Several of my photos have inspired me to begin working
on a new set of paintings.
They're still in the conceptual stage, but I draw a lot of inspiration from macro photography. So, stay tuned . . . who knows what the summer
will yield.
This was a very special Mother's Day this year. First, Nick made me a special flower and vase at our MOMS Club meeting this week. Well, he said it was for me when he made it, but has taken to playing with it since we brought it home. He is very curious about the blob of play dough that the "stem" (aka straw) of the flower is stuck into to keep it weighted down.
Our Mother's Day celebration was jointly shared with the birthday celebrations of John's parents--Mom's birthday was the day before and Dad's birthday was the day after. We had a lovely dinner at a new restaurant in town, and then came back to our house for fun and festivities.
Our dining room was transformed from
a quiet little room into "Party Central." There we celebrated 2 birthdays and wished 3 moms Happy Mother's Day.
John and Nick gave me some wonderful gifts, in addition to a few soon-to-be-used gift cards. (*wink, wink*) It was a wonderful day that I won't soon forget.
A little over two weeks ago, I was lamenting over the fact that SPRING had not yet appeared in our neck
of the woods.
Well, I am happy to say that between the rain drops . . . a little sunshine must have found its way through.
Here are a few of my little garden miracles!
