First day of school

So, summer vacation has officially ended and we are back in the ho-hum routine of school. This includes me constantly asking the girls to get out of bed in the morning, asking them to eat, get dressed, brush their hair, brush their teeth, get shoes on, get in the car...it's never ending in the morning.

Then the nights are no longer lackadaisical, but are filled with more routine and more requests: sit down and do your homework, eat dinner, take a bath, get your pj's on, get into bed...and then, go to sleep girls, no more talking, you are gonna lose play time, tv time, friend time, etc...

And so the routine begins all over again. Will it get easier as the years pass? I'm not wishing them to pass too quickly, but am done with the badgering all morning and all night.

Having said that, the girls were sooo excited to go to school this morning. They got new backpacks, but no new clothes yet as the summer clothes are still good enough for school!

Gracie was so excited to see her BFF Ale at school this morning. They ran to each other and hugged each other like they hadn't seen each other for years, squealing with delight the whole time!

Even though they aren't in the same class this year, they are right next door and found each other at lunch time today!

So happy the girls got good teachers. We were worried about that but lucked out with two good ones! WooHoo!

Next up, Gracie's bday!

Ah, summer

We are full swing into summer and the girls are already asking why it's going by so quickly! Only 4 more weeks until the first day of school....URGH!

The girls have been busy with swim lessons, a trip to Baltimore to visit their aunt, uncle, and cousins, went on Safari, strawberry picking...and the list goes on and on.

 At church today, they helped take care of 3 yr old McKenzie as she went down the slide. And then made sure she got a cookie and drink after church. A few days ago, someone asked me why I go to church. I didn't really have a good answer at the time, so I said I didn't know. But after thinking about it and after hearing how Gracie and Emma helped this little girl down the slide, I came to this conclusion: I go to be Present in Life. It's a peaceful hour where I let go of the past week and let myself live in the present, not worrying about the future.

 Strawberry picking at Swanton's on the coast near Ano Nuevo. Nothing better than eating fresh picked strawberries while sitting on the beach watching the waves crash in.


On Safara at Safari West in Santa Rosa. If you haven't gone, go. It's pretty amazing and fun, too. 

We still have a short trip planned for Lake Tahoe. I've never been in the summer (except to ski) so it'll be a new adventure for all of us. I think bikes will be involved somehow, as will water. Can't wait.

I love spending time with the girls, hearing their laughter and seeing their smiles. Nothing better in the world than that. Recently, I was asked why I don't have a significant other. Those of you that know me know that it's not that I haven't thought about it or tried dating, because I have. But if having a significant other means I spend even less time with my girls, I'm content being on my own.

I want to share a website that I recently found. If you happen to have a look, let me know what you think.

Living life for today

Happy Mom's Day!

I never thought I'd be a mom...heck I didn't want to be a mom for the longest time. There are a lot of reasons why, but I'm glad I didn't listen to my head and instead listened to my heart because now I have two of the most precious gifts a woman could possible have: Emma and Grace.

I didn't have a lot of practice with babies or kids before having these two beautiful girls, but they were easy babies and so easy to love that having experience wasn't really necessary.

They've become great little skiers and willingly follow me down any path whether it's an easy green, hard black, and anything in between. I hope as they get older and face life's ups and downs, that they will still follow my lead and take my advice!



Where you see one, you will inevitably see the other. Sometimes I think they are twins because they are together so much.

My girls have taught me so much about life, love, and being a mother. Without them in my life, I would be truly lost. I am thankful every day I wake up and see their smiles, hear their laughter, and feel their love. So, to my girls...I am so honored to by your mom, mama, your moomoo....Love you to the moon and back again. :)

It's been awhile!

Hi there!

I keep telling myself I need to blog, I need to blog. But something always comes up and I don't get to it and I feel bad. So, here I am blogging, but this blog isn't about Emma and Gracie....

This blog is about Victoria, my babysitter. She is an amazing young girl with a lot of strength and courage for such a young person. We met her last summer just before school started.

As soon as the girls and I met her, we knew she was going to be part of our family. She is 20, a tiny little thing about 5'2'' and full of energy and happiness. (I don't have a picture...will get one!) The girls took to her immediately as did Marc and I. You can't help but like her. 

Victoria is an amazing girl at her age, in this time, and environment. She comes from a troubled family: her mother is an addict who she hasn't seen in years. Her father is not in her life very much with a troubled life of his own. So Victoria and her 17 year old brother, Victor, live with their uncle and his girlfriend. 

Victoria works mornings and afternoons at the community center in Almaden. At 3 pm each day, she picks up Emma and Grace from school. She leaves at 5:30 pm so she can be at night-school by 6pm and stays in classes until 10 pm each night. Weekends are full of more jobs at the community center. I don't know how she does it! Whew...I'm tired just thinking of her schedule.

Even with this hectic schedule, she always has a smile and a kind word. And she takes on the responsibility of her younger brother, supporting him, encouraging him, and trying to set an example for him so that he can do something with his life. Both kids have excellent grades in school. Victor wants to go to Stanford....Victoria has been accepted at every school she has applied to but has decided to go to UC Santa Cruz so she can be close to home to keep an eye on Victor.

She obviously doesn't have a lot of money and is relying heavily on student loans, financial aid, and scholarships. She recently got news that she received a $20,000 scholarship that will help her immensely but won't pay all her tuition for the next two years, or any of her living expenses.

So, I'd like to try and do something to ease some of that financial burden so that she can concentrate on school and being 20! That's where all of you come in! :) I hate asking for money, but in this case, I'm not going to be so shy. She deserves all the help she can get.

If you would like to help, (or think maybe your company could help), please let me know. Anything will do: money, gift cards, a place to stay, even words of encouragement. I know she will truly appreciate it. Thanking you in advance!

Next time I will post about the girls, and hopefully it's not too far in the future. But until then, here is a picture of us skiing at Sierra at Tahoe in February.

Gracie turns 6!

I can hardly believe that Gracie is already 6 years old! Today, I was looking through her 1st-year scrapbook and am amazed at how much she has grown! She still has that cute little face with the big round eyes, but she is as strong-willed as she was the day she was born! But that is our Gracie and we have come to love her for all that she is!

We celebrated her birthday by inviting 6 girls over for a little tea party. Gracie was excited for days and was constantly asking if it was her birthday yet. When the day finally arrived she could barely sit still until the first guest knocked on the door. Both Emma and Gracie squealed with delight and ran to the front door. And thus, the party began.

 Sierra was the first to arrive. She and Gracie were in kindergarten together and are like two peas in a pod!

 The craft was mosaic princess crowns. Each girl got to decorate a crown with little sticky squares. They loved it and wore the crowns the rest of the day.

 They climbed the apple tree even though we told them not to. Sierra and Lea especially liked the tree.

 Gracie was adamant that she wanted a pinata. We looked for a tea pot but couldn't find one. So, the next best thing was a pony because Gracie loves My Little Pony.

 She LOVED batting at that thing...a little too much. LOL!

 This is the second teapot cake we've made for a birthday. Marc got to do this one and it turned out quite well.

 Gracie approved of the cake and couldn't wait to partake of it. We had to keep her away so we could cut it.

 The girls took a little break after the cake. Sierra, Katie, Ashley, Alle, and Emma.

Gracie got lots of presents from her friends. She especially loved the Barbie car that Katie got her. I think they all had a great time. I know Grandma mom and dad had a good time!

The Pumpkin Patch

Every year, the weekend before the Half Moon Bay Pumpkin Festival, Marc and I take the girls to the pumpkin patch at Arata's farm. It has become a family-favorite tradition that now includes my Mom. She flies out every year for Gracie's birthday. (Ah, note to self: must do blog about Gracie's bday party!)

The girls love to search for the best pumpkin. It could be round, tall, squat...doesn't matter, perfect is in the eye of the beholder!

 Arata farm  has a large coliseum built from hay bales. They have jousting with guys dressed as knights. They also have a maze from hay bales but the girls have yet to try that out because they are afraid they will get lost.

 Emma loves to pose for pictures and pumpkin day is no different!

 There is a little playground that the girls love, and it comes with Monkey bars supported by.....you guessed it, Bales of HAY!!!

 There is also a big pile of pumpkins near the monkey bars. We couldn't resist clamouring in for a picture op!

 It was a beautiful fall day with plenty of sunshine, pumpkins, and lots of laughter!

 Marc and the girls pose for a few photos, too. Check out that hair!!

Aren't they cute???? LOL!

It's been a while!

Well, the summer flew by, school started, and now it's fall! I can't believe the girls have been in school for almost two months, have picked out their Halloween costumes (Gracie is going to be Snow White and Emma is a vampire), and are on vacation for a week.

School started on August 16th. It was hot, hot, hot. Who's bright idea was it to start school in the middle of summer and then give the kids a week off the first week of October? Anyway, with school comes homework, even for 1st and 2nd grade. They each have about 30 - 60 minutes every night except Friday. They don't mind doing it, but getting them to start is like pulling teeth. Don't tell them,  but it's the worst part of my night! Oh, my other pet peeve about school is making and packing the lunch boxes. Kids don't want to eat anything you put in there and most of it comes home. I could make some serious money if I could figure out what to pack in a school lunch box that would actually get eaten!

Other than school, we haven't really done much. Marc was in Belgium for a week settling his father's estate, but the girls had school and I had work so we all stayed here. We went on a few hikes, bouncy land, and lots of bike rides. Here are just a few pictures of our hike this morning.

Looking for tadpoles

The pond.

The Lovely Miss Grace

My favorite tree

Miss Emma - she loves to smile!