Rag Curls and Egg Hunting

The Saturday before Easter we woke up and went over to Auntie Mick's house for a fun Easter Egg hunt and egg coloring! (my other sister Margaret documented it well on her blog!) She's done it a few years now and this year was just as fabulous as the rest, even though we had to be inside because of the lingering snow. We had fun searching for the many, many eggs that were hidden. Not sure how many she said, but every year I think the eggs multiply! Carl was more entertained by all the eggs and all the toys in the basement so he didn't stop to color eggs, but he let his sister take charge of his allotment of eggs.

While we were at Mick's place, I mentioned to my mom about maybe trying rag curls in Brianna's hair. I wasn't sure how it would go over or if she'd even keep them in, but my mom was game to come over and help me tie them in. It's a process for a little girl to have to sit through but it was worth the shot. I remember having rag curls put in my hair when I was younger and I thought it might be fun to have a cute hairdo for church in the morning.

She sat so patiently (watching the Easter Beagle) while we did her!  Hardly any complaining too! There were a few times where she said she was done and probably really wanted to be done, but I had her sit till we finished. She loved the idea of holding the squirt bottle, so that helped keep her occupied.

We got it all done and I'm not sure she knew what to think. And she really didn't know what to think when she woke up screaming at 10! She was still half sleeping and couldn't communicate what was going on. Finally, after holding her in my arms for a while and as she was falling back to sleep, all she could say was ouch. Both Jon and I started unwinding the rags from her hair. I don't blame her because I remember it being uncomfortable too, trying to sleep with bumps all around your head. She quickly was back to sleep and then quiet all night.

She did wake up with quite the hair though! Not curly but still wavy and a little crazy. We settled on crimping her hair to tone it down, which didn't look quite right either on her, but still cute! Next time we'll try it in the morning and see how it goes!

Mahalo

While we were in Hawaii, my sister had a book that Brianna loved to read, Too Many Mangos by Tammy Paikai, a story about sharing. It is such a cute book and Brianna still loves to read it! My sister sent us home with a copy so that we would remember one of our favorite stories while in Hawaii. I'm so glad she did! One of my favorites, not in this video though, is Brianna saying Mahalo, just awesome!

We miss you Danya, Kat, Laura and John! 

Mommy, Can I Paint?

We have rediscovered our art easel! It's awesome to have but sometimes I just don't know where to keep it - leave it out or put it away every time. I've started just keeping it out and I think Brianna loves that option. She asks me, usually earlier in the morning, "Mommy, can I paint today?" It's so hard to say no. I mean she looks so cute in her get-up! 

We do, however, only paint while Carl is still sleeping. He loves his big sister and wants to do everything she does. Unfortunately for him, he still can't quite keep everything out of his mouth and paint is one of those things I don't want to risk. Poor guy... soon though!

*By Jonah, she means from the bible story. Not sure why he needed a flower, but she was being very sweet!

Hallway and Bouncy Balls

While my mom was on spring break, we went over to to her house to hang out for a little bit. At some point, Brianna got curious and comes walking out of Gammie's office with a bag of bouncy balls. It was certainly the hit of the morning! We had a hard time tearing them away from Carl, he could have stood in the hallway for hours, if only the help didn't get bored of catching and throwing all the bouncy balls!

We also got in some reading. We love reading with Gammie!

Party Over Here!

Back in the end of March, my mom, Jackie, turned 60! My sisters and I held an extravaganza (or so I called it) at our house that... 60 people attended! It was a blast. Everyone was very appreciative that we hosted a party for our mom. I kept saying, "Well, why wouldn't I. She's awesome and has done so much for us, it's the least we can do for her." She has touched so many lives in her years at the public schools and years of serving with the church youth group. She wouldn't ask for anything, so I was glad to be able to give this to her! And I'm pretty sure she had fun too!


Mom - Here's your 60 years and one month blog blessing: You are amazing! You are dedicated. You listen and have taught me to be a good listener. You lift me up when I'm down. Offer advice when it's most needed. Open your house so that I know I can walk in any time of day and it's ok to just hang out, whether it's 5 minutes or all day. I am so grateful for your love of your grandkids and willingness to watch them, even take them with you on trips or simply put them to bed so I can run out. I love your giving spirit, it blesses many. Your understanding and flexibility is so much appreciated. Most of all, I'm blessed that you and Dad are believers and we share a faith and hope in Christ.

I hope your 60th year brings even more love, even more laughter, and many more great times as family! We love you!

* Here's some pictures my sister collected from the day!

Not Convincing Enough

He wanted something... but I thought it would be more humorous to take a video instead of giving in. I don't remember what it was he even wanted. He is who he is and decided to move on. Funny guy! 

Later that day, Eko decided to make himself comfortable - more than once!

Exercises

I've been doing my best to stay fit, and maybe even lose a few pounds, so we've been fairly regular visitors to our local gym. Brianna and Carl enjoy going to the children's area and playing on all of their fun equipment and running around in the gym especially for kids. Every week they have certain programs (music, games, etc.) they do with the kids that want to participate. I think Brianna's favorite is the kids exercises - pilates,  yoga, jumping jacks. I sometimes wish I could have that fun instruction!

One afternoon she decided we needed to exercise so she started showing me her moves. Obviously I'm not in the room when the teacher does it with the kids, but the way Brianna goes through it, you can definitely get a glimpse of the routine. I love her enthusiasm!

Oh! Nothing...

As the days progressed after coming home, and we slowly got back into our rhythm, I noticed the kids just loved being home and together. There were a lot of moments when I realized no sound was being made then to go find B and C starting trouble. Other times they were just relaxing and laying low. This was one of those times! Eko was glad to have us home too!

Not a very efficient way of building a train but it made him happy!

Later that same day, I found Brianna sitting and reading Carl one of his favorite books. They sat there forever. Even though at times Carl couldn't see the pages, he still sat quietly and listened as his sister told the happenings of each page. What beautiful and fun moments they share. I pray they stay this close and connected for as long as possible.

Loving on Cousins

Brianna simply loves her baby cousins! It was so special we were able to be with Baby Kat in her first few weeks, and she certainly loves holding Baby Max now. She loves holding babies so much she still asks Carl if he wants to sit in her lap. His response - No! 

She's so gentle and loving. Pretty sure she'll love to babysit!

And of course, fun with Uncle Hung!

Sharing Stories

After we returned home, we were still one family member short... Eko was still with Grandma and Grandpa! They offered to bring him home and bring dinner too. What a blessing! We ate dinner together and then shared our pictures from our trip. Brianna and Carl loved watching back all the pictures and pointing themselves out. 

Before bed, B and C got baths and then read stories. You can see Carl still had a little extra energy and wasn't quite ready for bed or reading books. Maybe it was the mohawk?

Little Quotes

Things heard here and there:

I overheard Brianna say to Carl this afternoon...

"Carl, Let's be friends forever!"
                      ~ Brianna B.

A Note about Carl and his Travels

Upon arriving home, Carl immediately changed - he became his usual happy self. I noticed this a little on our trip to Hawaii, but didn't put things together until Jon said something during our CA trip and then again once we got home. Carl must really love being at home. Although he is fairly easy going and loves adventures, he just never seemed himself in California, and for that matter Hawaii. Even at Dave and Betsy's house, he seemed more irritable and cranky than he normally is. At one point I think I even said how I wished he would settle down so Dave and Betsy could see how happy of a little boy he really is.

He likes to see what he can see and go where he can go, but when it comes to being and sleeping someplace else, that's just not his style. As Aunt Shelley would say, "I need to know where I'm going to lay my head!" And in Carl's case, that better be home! Can you blame him?

Happy traveling Carl!

Mar. 4, Monday - Dash of Picante

What do you do when you wake up early in a hotel (5:30 am), from the fire alarm going off (seriously!), and you know you have quite a few hours to kill before even leaving for the airport?

Have a dance party and build a blanket fort! We had plenty of extra pillows and blankets from the kids sleeping on the floor, so it was perfectly cozy in our fort. Also, we were lucky to run across a pretty fun local station that at one point commented, "this is jazz, with a dash of picante!" Yes, that is what the man said. Jon follows up with, "If I've ever said what I like in music, it's jazz with a dash of picante!" We had a good laugh!

While we waited in our hotel room we kept close tabs on the weather in MN. The news commented that it was going to be bad as the day rolled on and our flight was scheduled to depart at 2:45 pm San Francisco time - arriving at MSP at 8:25 pm. That's with everything still On-Time. We were a little nervous for what we'd be flying into.

We decided to wrap up our time early in our hotel room, frankly we were quite ready to get out of the room, and head to the airport early to try to catch the earlier flight leaving at 12:45. We were so grateful for our ticketing agent who was able to switch our flight and get us out early. I saw online that in certain situations, like inclement weather, they would modify your flight without a charge, and thankfully once I mentioned that, she managed to do just that. Hooray!

We breezed quickly through security, thanks to another fabulous TSA agent who directed us around and through a short line. We stopped at the gate to check-in and let them know we still needed a seating assignment, then Jon went off to find us some lunch. The terminal we were in only had a handfull of options, which makes it kind of difficult with kids and with sensitivities, but we found some sandwich meats that the kids could enjoy. This was actually the same terminal we came through on our trip to Hawaii and had the one restaurant that accommodated us. I was tempted to do the same thing, but we didn't have as much time.

The kids ate and waited patiently to board our plane home. They had fun watching the action out the big windows!

We boarded and without much hassle were on our way. It was a much shorter wait for take off than when we left Minneapolis for San Francisco. It had been a really fun trip, and we were glad to be heading back to our own beds. Both Brianna and Carl napped on the flight home. It worked out well to be on the plane during nap times. They were both worn out from a long trip and waking up early to a noisy fire alarm.

Once both were awake they situated themselves on one seat and watched a little video on the ipad. We had enough yummy snacks, thanks to pre-planning and Betsy having popcorn, peanuts, and other delicious items, that they were pretty content until we landed. I think every child gets restless on an airplane at some point, so I'm thankful for the restraint both of our kids displayed while on the plane. They weren't perfect, but content!

We landed, disembarked, and had our bags in no time, even for being in the very back of the plane. My dad (thanks again!) was standing by to pick us up and was right there by the time we walked out the door. To our disappointment, the storm really hadn't started yet, but it did give us a smooth ride home. The kids ran around the house for a little bit, then as it was practically bedtime (according to MN clocks), they shuffled off to bed. It worked out much better than if we would have still been on our original flight.

This was our last trip flying with an 'infant in arms' and I can say I will be grateful for an extra seat. Although, our next trip is probably a ways off!

Mar. 3, Sunday - Saying Goodbyes

Before we even arrived, we learned that Cousin Justin was so excited we were coming to visit, and a little bummed we were only staying a few days. We were sad too that it didin't work out to be together longer, but that wasn't going to stop the fun we could have today!

It started with attending church on a Sunday that Dave was scheduled to preach. Pretty neat to hear him speak! I only caught part of it because I went with the kids to the "cry room" for the majority of the service, but I liked what I heard!

When we arrived home... the chickens were out of their yard! Justin set straight to work to get all of them back where they belong. He was quick too, to bad the gate wasn't latching properly and they all got out again. And since Justin was working in the chicken yard, B also bolted out to be part of the action.

The kids had lunch then Jon and Betsy headed to get the adults lunch from the famous Taco Cart. Sadly, no taco cart, but we did enjoy some mexican burritos. While I waited for everyone to get back, I  tucked all three kids in for a nap. Yes, even Justin told me he was tired and needed a nap. I said ok, but was pretty sure I'd be back in there "letting" him out of the room. Sure enough, no sleeping was happening, just two happy cousins quietly playing side by side on the floor. It was sweet, but we did need Brianna to nap. Justin had no problem getting up from the floor. I think he just wanted a couple extra moments with his cousin!

Dave, Betsy, and Justin graciously offered to drive us the full way back into San Francisco instead of us having to take the train again. We were extremely grateful they would do that for us! (Thanks again!) But before we left, we needed a group photo! And a silly one!

Then one last kid picture with the chickens. Carl was not so thrilled about his sister holding him in one spot but...

Finally, we packed up the car and got on the road. The trip went smoothly which we were all happy about. We got to our hotel, the same one we stayed at the first few nights. Remember our room roulette? Here we go again! We checked in and all headed up to our room. We walked in and PHEW, they had sprayed something to cover up something in there because you could hardly breath. It was potent. Room number 4. They even had the patio door open to help air it out. Just not pleasant. Jon called down to the front desk and we all piled out of that room. Overwhelming!

Finally, we got to the next room (Room number 5*) which was clean, it didn't smell, there were no doors falling off, no wet spots on the rug... we could settle in. Oh wait, we promised the kids we could go swimming, plus we needed to get something for dinner. Onward!

We swam for a while then went upstairs to change, eat dinner, then say goodbye. We had so much fun together and really miss our CA family. Can't wait to see you again soon!

Our last night in a hotel. Tomorrow we head for home. All with a threat of a winter storm in MN. A thrilling finish...

*We stayed a total of 5 nights in a hotel and ended up in 5 rooms. We did complain and they took care of us, but... probably not enough to ever want to stay there again. Nice try though. Twitter really works!

Mar. 2, Saturday - Away We Went

Saturday started a little earlier than I would have liked with little ones not sleeping in. However, had they not been restless I would have not see this... 

Another gorgeous morning! We were blessed with beautiful weather practically our whole vacation. Awesome! Saturday morning, we went for hike around a different part of the reservoir and ended up at a playground. We were going to go one direction but a park ranger (mis)guided us a different way because there was a "run" in progress and he didn't want us to collide with the runners. The way he pointed wasn't really a path, but it was enough that they could run off some energy before lunch. The kids were a little more resistant to naps but we adults didn't have to worry about that since we lined up babysitters for the afternoon and whisked away to Murphy's Landing to tour a winery.

We arrived at Ironstone Vineyard a little before the free tour was supposed to start. It ended up being delayed a few minutes, but we were in no real rush! Conrad showed us around the grounds and had many interesting and not so interesting stories to tell. You could tell he enjoyed his job. On the property they have a jewelry store and in that jewelry store is a huge piece of gold that the owner of the vineyard bought for an "undisclosed" amount to keep it in California. It is the "largest Crystalline Gold Leaf specimen in the world, weighing in at 44 pounds." We also got to hear the "famous" door/hinge that was used in the making of the movie, Casper the Friendly Ghost. Thrilling!

Inside the cellar... and out on the extensive grounds...

After the tour, we all decided that a little wine tasting was in order. Our server was so so, but she kept tabs on us. Our tasting got a little sweeter when Conrad (our friendly tour guide) saw us and helped us to a few extra samplings, all thanks to Betsy's perfect questions! We had fun and were grateful for some time as just the adults. Plus the wine tasted good too!

On the way out we just had to get a picture of the four of us to document our adventure. The vines weren't too lovely yet, but it captures the season! Hooray for babysitters!

Breakfast was for dinner - something quick and simple, yet delicious (and something we didn't need to prep too long for because we got back to the house shortly before hunger stuck). Then it was bath times to rinse off the days in the chicken yard so we could smell good for church in the morning. Of course, we enjoyed some books together. But as a special treat...

Cousin Justin decided he could read a book to Brianna to wrap up the evening together. Can I just say he did great, and Brianna was patient and excited to have her cousin read to her. It was so sweet and special! That was a fun family moment!

Thank you Justin! We can't wait for the next story time together.