Valentine's Day 2011

It's really hard to have a fancy (which usually means expensive) Valentine's Day with your spouse when you have small children. It's hard to get away, and life is chaotic. Plus, the day is special for our kids, and they are our Valentines too :o) So, this is our 2nd Family Valentine's Dinner we've created, planned, and executed. Funnily enough, I don't remember what we did for Valentine's the other years... I don't think we've ever gone out, so maybe it just an ordinary day...? Needless to say, it's nice to enjoy as a family!

During our ice storm the first week in February, Natalie spent an entire afternoon cutting, gluing and writing Valentine hearts to decorate the dining room for our Valentine's Dinner. This past Saturday, Natalie and I made Valentine Sugar Cookie Cut-Outs. We had hoped to plan an all RED meal, but ended up staying more in the red/orange/yellow range to avoid unnatural dyes. We decided on ribeye (which is very red when raw), baby red potatoes (which look more brownish after being cooked), carrots w/ a cream sauce, a mango dish [because I wanted to use them up:o)], and red velvet cupcakes with white chocolate cream cheese frosting. So Monday morning, I made the cupcakes and marinated the ribeye in Luke's Best Ever Beef Marinade from the Downey Cooperative Preschool Cookbook. I also prepped the carrots and diced my 4 leftover mangos (and some crystallized ginger) in the afternoon. For the mango dish, I broiled diced mango, sprinkled with finely diced crystallized ginger and coconut for 15 minutes. Rob was able to leave work early to get the kids to swimming lessons so I could put the finishing touches on the meal. Everything turned out yummy, the table and room were festive, and we all exchanged cards. It was a very nice evening :o)

Feb 2011 Ice Storm

Our excitement for the last two days... kids' schools are closed again today, so being a little cooped up, we had to find something to do :o)

Preschool Graduation

We can't believe our oldest baby graduated from preschool today!! She had 3 wonderful years at Downey Cooperative Preschool. They had a little ceremony today. Dad was able to get off work to come watch Natalie get her diploma while wearing her "graduation cap." Tonight, we are going to CFI (Center for Inquiry) for Spring Fling. Natalie will start kindergarten at CFI August 11th! So within one day, Mom had to graduate her first child from preschool and take her to a kindergarten event the same night. It's bittersweet. I am happy for her. She is thrilled to be starting kindergarten, but for me, it's almost like she's leaving the nest. She'll be gone from 8:50 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day!

Natalie and Ms. Friedly

Natalie and Mrs. Ireland

Natalie and her diploma!

Fall in Woodruff

I was so bummed I forgot my camera when we camped in Versailles State Park for the weekend! Dad was using the billy goat to suck up leaves tonight, so I took pictures of the kids playing in the leaves... it was so beautiful today! Clear and 70- it doesn't get any better than this:)

Daisy's PUPPIES!!!

Daisy is finally a mama! She gave birth to 2 girls and 3 boys on Aug. 11th. Romeo is the proud father:) These AKC registered Golden Retriever puppies will be ready for new homes October 6th! They are $400 for full registration. They've been wormed every 2 weeks, checked by a veterinarian for soundness of health, and will go to their new home with their first set of shots. They will all be lightly golden in color. Mama is OFA certified for her hips. Dad's parents are OFA certified for hips(and Romeo is going through his preliminaries- it will be official when he turns 2). These dogs are excellent with children and very friendly with all people (not a good guard dog). In fact, Romeo's sole ambition in life is to make every living thing his friend! I'll keep adding pictures as these babies grow, so keep checking back!

Natalie's 4th Birthday

This was the first year for a party with school friends! We grilled hamburgers and hot dogs... made a Tinkerbell cake and invited her Frog class and a couple other neighbors that also go to Downey Coop. The kids played soccer and got wet on the waterslide!

House Fire in Woodruff

Somewhere around 11 pm, Rob and I were closing our books- about to turn out our lights for the night. We both looked up and our NW bathroom window was glowing a solid orange. Yikes! Rob called 911. I ran for the back door to see how bad it was. Rob's parents, Don and Loretta, were staying in their motor home in our backyard. Thankfully, it never got too close. The house closest to it never caught on fire. Firefighters put up a great defense once they realized there was no saving the house. Over 70 firefighters participated in this fight. The roof and 3rd floor are gone. They ended up pulling the ladder truck and pumper truck into the alley to put out the fire. Too many large trees in front. Around 2:15 the ladder truck pulled away- leaving us to settle back down and get to sleep!