Randomness from my world

Soccer

2009-11-09T21:45:00.000-08:00

Another season of soccer has come and gone. Mom is glad to have our Saturdays open up for a few months, but we'll miss this great group of girls!

Fall

2009-10-30T15:42:00.000-07:00

Just some recent pictures of some of our fall adventures

Mommy Brag

2009-10-20T09:58:00.000-07:00

Melanie got a Student of the Month Award this morning! I am so proud of how well she always does in school. Her teacher awarded her this for,

"her overall outstanding behavior and work ethics. Melanie makes sure she is always listening and ready for the next assignment. By doing so, she has earned 100% on almost all of her sasignments and tests this year. Melanie doesn't stop there though because she also loves to help others understand their work too. Thanks you Melanie for your great attitude in school."

Wondering where this "great attitude" is at home some days *LOL* but overall so proud of who Miss Melanie Grace is becoming :o) This is when Melanie first saw me and was probably wondering why I was there. She didn't know that she was getting an award.

School Picture time

2009-10-19T17:08:00.000-07:00

Trying out a new location for headshot pictures...getting ready for ya Uncle Jim ;o) and I decided that the kiddos needed some updated school pics. I'm tired of waiting for the ones that the school took, and my kids usually have goofy faces in those anyway. So Brooklyn was the first willing Watson. I didn't think our session was going to go well because I kept getting these faces...

and finally got this

Then Brandon stepped up to bat

and Melanie insisted that her picture was taken with these star stickers on her face.

Luckily she let me take a few more without the stickers

and after some MAJOR candy bribery I even got this one

So excited about the one of all three! I think the last picture I have of all three smiling was when Brooklyn was one. Now I just need to get these printed out and make my rounds to the fam ;o) If I knew that all three kids were going to be so cooperative, I definitely would have changed them in to better coordinating outfits and maybe styled their hair...but I'm sure if I had done all of that none of them would have smiled at all *LOL*

Disneyland

2009-10-14T13:46:00.000-07:00

This year we decided to head to Disneyland for Brandon and Brooklyn's birthdays. We headed in to Anaheim on Saturday and went to dinner at Rain Forest Cafe. We also got to check out the lego store and walk around downtown disney while we waited! Then we headed back to the hotel to watch fireworks. The next morning we woke up early and headed back over to Disneyland! We met Nona at the gates and headed in. Since Auntie April's Baby Girls wanted to be able to attend future Disneyland trips with Nona and Brando, they decided that this would also be their birthday!! Nona left to welcome them in to the world and we stayed at Disneyland with Grammy and Grandpa to finish off Brandon and Brooklyn's birthday celebration. Here are some of my favorite pics from the day :o)

Birthday Buddies

2009-10-14T13:16:00.001-07:00

These two little guys (not so little anymore) were born on the same exact day in 2003! They met in preschool a few years ago and have been best buds ever since! We met up with them the other night to celebrate the boy's birthdays. It was a fun...and crazy time ;o) These boys just get so silly when they are together! Thanks for a great night friends!

Can't forget Baseball

2009-10-14T12:39:00.000-07:00

Well, I posted about soccer, so I had better follow it with some baseball pics too. Brandon was in t-ball last year and this season he moved up to coach pitch. I got to take him to a practice a few weeks ago and Brian stayed home with the girls. It was nice because I'm usually chasing them around and don't get to watch much of the game. Brandon is a GREAT hitter...

but still doesn't like fielding much...

I absolutely LOVE how his tongue pops out when he is running the bases...

and of course it melts my heart when he stops to give his momma a wave!

Not a Daisy anymore...

2009-09-29T09:53:00.000-07:00

Melanie's Daisy Girl Scout troop bridged over to Brownies! We had a little bridging ceremony and all of the girls got their new patches for their new lovely brown uniforms. Melanie really enjoys girls scouts and I like helping out at her troop meetings too :o)

Soccer

2009-09-29T09:21:00.000-07:00

Soccer season is here again and Melanie is doing great! Daddy is her coach again this season and I think he is having fun too. Here are a few pictures from one of her games. This girl has a mean throw-in

And I think she's a pretty good goalie too

But her favorite thing may be the goodies at the end of the game *LOL*

Another tooth...

2009-08-13T16:33:00.000-07:00

Melanie was SO excited to lose her tooth at school today! She got special treatment since it came out during class. A friend got to walk her to the nurse's office and she got a special container to put her tooth in. What a great way to start the year!!

First day of school

2009-08-13T16:28:00.000-07:00

Everything went well on the first day of school! Melanie is now in 2nd grade and Brandon just started kindergarten. Brandon was a little nervous, but as soon as we got there he got right in line and seemed ready to go. These years are flying by so fast!!

Family

2009-08-10T16:23:00.000-07:00

Brian is out of work so we decided to join my sister and her family on a weekend trip up to Sacramento. We really enjoyed seeing my grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. It was a nice reminder that no matter how crazy life seems to get, God has blessed us with an AMAZING family!

Apples

2009-08-10T16:12:00.000-07:00

Had to follow up on this post to show you our apples!!
I am really excited to try them, but I don't think they're ready yet. Brian pulled one off last week and said it didn't taste good. Hoping they just need more time on the tree.

I also learned how to make jam with Brian's mom! It was great to use all the nectarines that came off our tree rather than just throwing them away. They all get ripe at once and even after giving a bunch away, we still had way too many to eat ourselves. I had a cool picture of all the jam jars, but it seems to have disappeared so you will have to use your imagination ;o)

Summer

2009-07-14T14:28:00.000-07:00

Haven't posted in a while and thought I would just post some pics to sum up what we have been up to this summer! I can't believe that in just a few weeks we will be gearing up to go back to school. Until then we are going to try and enjoy every second of our summer freedom!!

Park Days with KidsLife

The Beach

more park...

more of the beach...

I also got to shoot at my first wedding last weekend and have a bunch of photo sessions this weekend, so keep and eye on my photo blog ;o)

Happy Birthday to my Baby Girl

2009-06-30T00:22:00.000-07:00

I am not quite sure why, but 7 sounds so much older than 6 to me! I spent most of the weekend watching home videos from when Melanie was a baby up until she was about three. She had the sweetest little voice and cheeks you just want to kiss. Now she's looking so much like a girl and not a baby. As more teeth come out and her chubby cheeks go away, it makes me sad. But it's great to see what an AMAZING girl she's becoming. Today we went to the store to use a gift card that she got from Nana for her birthday. Melanie decided on her own that she was also buying each of her siblings a present with it as well. Then when we got home she served us all a plate of snacks...such a random girl! I'm excited to see what this year holds and trying to hold on to each moment that she's still a little girl!

This bridge is at a park we've been to a few times this summer and I just love it! Melanie struck a pose for me when we went on thursday.

What woman wouldn't...

2009-06-17T15:03:00.000-07:00

die for these lashes! Since the day he was born, Brandon has had the longest. thickest lashes I have ever seen! People are constantly commenting on them wherever we go. Of course Mr. Shy absolutely hates it when people say anything. I'm sure he will appreciate them when all of the girls are after him in high school because of those eyes!

I've always wanted to try to get a picture of his lashes, but he just doesn't coorperate with me these days. So last night I waited until he fell asleep and snapped away. I also got a fun new toy for my camera, so I needed a willing subject. Sad that willing=asleep in my house LOL! To see just how long and thick they are, click on the pic and see it full size...ridiculous!!

Graduation & Awards Night

2009-06-12T18:43:00.000-07:00

This week was full of fun activities as school was winding down and so were lots of the kids activities! Brandon had his graduation from junior kindergarten on wednesday. I am sad because I really enjoyed the school that he's been at the last two years and we are both going to miss all the great people there! He is sad because his bestest bud in the entire world is going to a different school than him next year!

I didn't get a great diploma shot as I had Brooklyn in one hand, the video camera in the other and the camera resting on my arm...it looked pretty interesting to say the least. But I did manage to catch the shot right before he smiled LOL!
Later that afternoon we had the kids awards night for AWANAS. AWANAS is a program at our church where the kids get to go each week and play games, hear stories from the Bible and recite their Bible verses that they've been memorizing throughout the week. I didn't realize the capacity to memorize scripture at such a young age, but both Brandon and Melanie finished their entire book!! I even found myself memorizing the verses right along with them. It was such a blessing for all of us. This is their group leader and the certificates they got for completing the year!

One Season under His belt

2009-06-06T07:52:00.000-07:00

Brandon's season lasted about a month longer than Melanie's softball season. He played 22 games. He LOVED being up at bat, and did NOT love being in the outfield. For the first half of the season he would go to his position and plant himself there like a statue. He did not go for the ball unless it went right to him LOL. Towards the end of the season he was actually running to get the ball and throw it to first! Brian helped coach his team and had a blast! I love watching the kids play and having their Dad out there coaching. These are some pictures from the end of the season pizza party. This may have been Brandon's favorite thing about the season too ;o)

Here is a quick slideshow that our AWESOME Team Mom put together :o

Women's Retreat

2009-06-04T13:41:00.000-07:00

What an AWESOME weekend for me! I was so blessed to have Brian at home with the kids so that I could sneak away for some much needed down time. I was missing the kids by Saturday morning, but it was so nice to take off my mom hat and just worry about myself! I was encouraged by all of the women who spoke, had a blast hanging out with women from church who I usually don't get to spend time with and loved getting to know people I didn't know before. When the weekend was over, I was encouraged to focus more on God rather than trying to manipulate just about everything in my life by myself! I also came away from the weekend with closer friendships and excitement! Here are some of my favorite pics from the weekend...a few are scenic and a couple are from our crazy photo scavenger hunt

!

Camping

2009-05-27T10:57:00.001-07:00

We had such a great time camping over Memorial Day weekend! The first thing the kids did was help Dad make a fire pit. Then we did most of the usual camping stuff...set-up the tent (which we didn't sleep in *LOL*), and got everything situated at our campsite. The kids spent the first two days riding bikes. When they weren't riding the motorcycles they were riding their pedal bikes. Melanie was already off of the training wheels, but this was Brandon's first weekend without them on his dirt bike.

Brian brought the BBQ and we ate better out there then we do at home. The kids roasted marshmellows, went on a flashlight adventure and even saw a baby sidewinder rattlesnake. Daddy relocated the rattlesnake...but everyone was still a bit scared so we decided between that and the wind, we were sleeping in the trailer *LOL*

My favorite part of the trip was the first morning when my wonderful husband made fried eggs, bacon and even coffee and we got to sit down, watch the sunrise and eat a peaceful breakfast. All of the kids were still sleeping, we actually had to wake them up around 8am because their Grammy, Grandpa and Nephew were headed out to join us.

I'm excited to do this again in the future and have a bunch of fun memories for our kids! I wish I had gotten more pictures, but it was so dusty that I was nervous dust would get in to my camera. Next time I am going to bring my point and shoot so I'm not as worried.

A little reality

2009-05-19T23:01:00.000-07:00

In most of my pictures and posts my kids are smiling because that is definitely what I want to remember and cherish for years to come. But most every day is filled with some of this...
a little bit of that...
and a TON of this... And yes, I really did take out my camera and take a picture when they were all this pissed off *LOL* I think it made all of them madder and definitely made my husband wonder what the heck I was doing! I think that this is payback for all the trouble I gave my mom growing up ;o)

One season under her belt

2009-05-19T22:41:00.000-07:00

Melanie finished up softball and had a great season. She is really good at hitting the ball and didn't really use the tee much at all! She is going to play soccer again in the fall and then do softball next spring I think. As crazy as weekends can get with sports, I love watching the kids grow in their skills and have such a great time. These are pics from our end of the season pizza party!

How do you like them apples

2009-05-19T22:36:00.000-07:00

Oh yes, our apple tree actually blossomed this year. It has grown like crazy, but we have never had blossoms on it. I am so excited that we may have apples this year!!

Facebook and 3 year olds

2009-05-14T09:52:00.000-07:00

"But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." - Isaiah 40:31

I LOVE this verse!! My 3 year old has given me a very challenging & exhausting week. I feel like I don't know what else to do to get her behavior under control! I know that God is right there with me as I'm struggling to handle her, but I never know what I'm supposed to actually do in that moment! Far too often I resort to yelling and I know that's not the right thing either.

When I got online and checked out facebook, I saw this verse and it definitely made my day! I'm so thankful that God can even use facebook to speak to me :o)

Way too many Jog-a-thon pics

2009-05-04T13:54:00.000-07:00

Brandon's school had a jog-a-thon last week and he had so much fun! Brooklyn wanted to come along too and I'm so glad that his school always welcomes her! She even ran a couple laps with him. As soon as she was done, Brandon took off with his best friend Zachary and ended up running 19 laps...I couldn't believe how long he ran for! The kids all had a break for oranges and water about half way through and were rewarded with popsicles at the end. Thank you to all our jog-a-thon donors!!