After a big day.....

There is no keeping Thomas from falling asleep!

"Thomas! Thomas! are you still awake?" No reply. He was exhausted! Even though his favorite Speedracer DVD was playing and firetruck still in hand....he was out, there was no keeping him awake.

We have been on the go since 6:30am this morning....yikes!

It started like most Monday mornings, were no one wants to wake up. We all would have been happy to stay in bed for a few extra hours this morning!

With Harry off to school on the bus (wearing power ranger underpants and in a great mood!) It was time to get Thomas and myself ready for the day.

First we were off to get mommy her coffee...agh! Then off to a friends place to help with some gardening. Jill's bub is due in a month so it was great to meet up with friends and pull weeds and spread manure, it takes a true friend to carry someones S%#T....hahaha!

Then it was off to preschool for Thomas.

I met up with Teresa at Vince's coffee shop to catch up and do some PTA stuff.

Then it was off to meet the boys at the bus stop. We then headed up to the park to meet another friend, Veronica who also lives in LR. It was great catching up and letting the kids play, even though briefly as Harry needed to go potty....badly! (Mental note, take kids potty after school and before park play....Ha!) This will not only save me from having to do extra laundry but will save me from having to clean out the car too.....grrr!

Its been a big day and we are all looking forward to an early night, its 6pm and already bed sounds good!

Life's a beach!

Sunshine, crabs, a cool sea breeze and two happy boys....

Come on boys, lets go on an adventure (my way of saying I have no idea what we are doing, lets just go and see where we end up....ha!)

Another day of just me and the boys, what to do? Its a beautiful Sunny Sunday, the weather is absolutely too perfect to stay indoors. Harry suggests we go to the beach! Great idea Harry, but lets not do the swimming part, its a little too cold now for that.

So off we set, no agenda and really no idea where we are going. After 30mins of driving we ended up in West Seattle via Seattle center? Yeah I know, not exactly the beach. Lets keep driving to see what is over on the Puget sound, Fauntleroy area down near the ferries.

We came to a great little community park, we practically had the place to ourselves.

But wouldn't you know it, just as we pull up and find this pretty little beach to play at, Thomas falls asleep in the car, literally the second we pull up.....agh!

What do you do, so I wrapped him up in a blanket and he snuggled, asleep on my lap for a while. Harry was so content playing with the rocks on the shore line, exploring for shells and crabs in tiny rock pools. It was just beautiful and so relaxing.

Thomas eventually woke up and was fortunate to be in a great mood! The boys played together on the beach and had a great time catching crabs and collecting white rocks.

My happy boys, they loved showing each other the cool things they could see....

Flash Back.....our first blog!

I found our first family blog. This blog was started in 2006, the boys are so little.
Thomas is just a baby and Harry is about 3yrs the same as Thomas is now. Gosh how that time has flown.....Crazy!
Here is the link, check it out -

http://rulefamily.blogspot.com/

Look at those cutie boys...were they ever that small?

Mommy goes back to school....
Volunteering in Harry's Class!

As it was Harry's birthday yesterday I asked his teacher if it would be ok to volunteer in his class for the afternoon. After Thomas left for school I headed over to Bryn Mawr Elementary, what a great look of excitement on Harry's face as I opened the classroom door!

OK, so I am sure he was more excited about the tray of power ranger cupcakes I brought for his birthday, but I am sure he was still excited to see me too.

This was the first time I had volunteered in Harry's Kinder class, what a wonderful experience!

It was great to see Harry actively participating in class and having fun....phew, my fears were put to ease, he really does have fun at school! I enjoyed watching him interact with his teacher and friends, playing games I had only heard stories about.

I got to see where his desk is, who he sits next to, where he builds with blocks, where his art is proudly displayed on the wall, who his friends are, where he sits for circle time...etc. Its a very stimulating, organized and fun kindergarden environement, Mrs Wilson has done a great job of putting her brightly colored room together.

I think the most gratifying thing to see was how well he did in class. Harry followed the teachers direction well, he listened, he sat with his legs crossed, he raised his hand when he wanted to speak, he even sat quietly and paid attention to the story with out being distracted. I was so proud!

Today was gym day, I had the chance to see what they do in P.E. They played some relay games and were asked to pick teams, the captains were selected and then the teams were chosen.
Harry was picked first in gym today, what a proud mommy moment....hahaha!

His teacher Mrs. Wilson has a full day class of 24 kids...yikes! She handles it so beautifully and for only knowing the kids a few weeks you could feel the protectiveness and joy she has for her students already. You can really tell she loves what she does, what a sweet and fun class to be in!

Happy 6th Birthday Harrison!

Power Rangers, Cupcakes and School....But mom it's my birthday I don't want to go to school - Harry.

The excitement on his face when he woke up this morning and said, "mommy its my birthday!" just beautiful.

The look on his face when I handed him his gifts, gosh even more excitement.

Realizing it was power ranger stuff....WOW totally priceless!

Seeing mommy show up at school with a tray full of power ranger birthday cupcakes...could the day get any better? Yeah, the teacher gave him a birthday crown and sticker too, what a great birthday!

Lights Camera Action....

A photo class and one snap happy mama!

This morning one of my friends (who is pro and the most amazing photographer I know) offered to do a photography class for the moms group. Gosh it was good to get out with other want to be photog's....hahaha! I forgot how much fun it is to learn about something you are passionate about. Learning something I have always wanted to learn, I love taking photo's but more from a creative side, so it was good to learn some technical stuff. As a result I have not been able to put my camera down all day. Trying out some of the many things we were taught today. Thank god there was a handout, or this mommy brain would have forgotten everything by now!

The boys were having fun out the front this afternoon, in the sunshine, riding bikes, digging in the garden.

A day in the life of Us!

Today is Saturday so this is not like a normal weekday, nor is it like a normal weekend as Dave is in Cali on business.

So honey this is for you, to see all the fun things we are up to today (I'm just trying to stay optimistic for our day....hahaha!)

6:30am - Its still relatively dark, as well as grey and rainy! BANG! BANG! BANG! Thomas is already up for the day and banging on his door...don't you know its a weekend? Sleep in!
I bring Thomas into my bed and he falls back to sleep, yay! Although I spend the next 10mins digging match box cars out from under me, total count 15! how did he carry that many into my bed with him, I'll never know!

7:30am - "Morning Mommy!" Harry comes running into my room and jumps on the bed, so happy and awake, wish I could say the same for me....lol! I get him to crawl under the covers too. So now I have both boys in bed, fingers crossed they sleep a little longer. prayers answered!

8:30am - we finally get out of bed! Head down stairs for breakfast. After making a bowl of oatmeal, mini wheat's and peanut butter toast....grrr nothing eaten! Come on boys EAT! its a battle every morning. Anyone have a trick to get them to eat, I'm about to resort to bribery or let them eat chicken nuggets, I know they will get eaten! Washing on, dishwasher stacked, kitchen clean and the lounge room, well we won't go there!

9:30am - Getting dressed. Ha another battle in this mommies life! Harry insisting on wearing his power ranger costume to the shops today, while chasing Thomas around with a diaper trying to change a stinky bottom....oh the fun! OK, so they are dressed and it went relatively smoothly =)

10:00am - Out the door, time to do the groceries! Fred Meyer here we come! OK so its 10:23 and we are still here. Anyone seen my car keys....ha! Harry get your shoes on, come on lets go! This is one of those times when wish I could wiggle my nose and magically have everyone ready and out the door.

3:00pm - Home again. We hit Fred Meyers for groceries, Thomas played in the kids club while Harry was my helper. We then stopped in at Target for some storage boxes. Also picked up Harry's birthday presents and few extra things, Halloween is just around the corner after all. Time to get organizing...knock on wood! Boys please play so mommy can get some work done....hahaha!
The groceries are away and dinner is planned for tonight. Harry has been asking for meatballs, so we are going to make some meatballs and pasta for dinner....yum!

Everyone ate dinner tonight...huge WOW! That is a rare thing in this house, I will have to make meatballs again, what a hit!

The boys are now in bed, teeth brushed with their new power ranger tooth brushes, books read and lights out. Now its time for some mommy time, why is it that all I can think about is the hundred things that need doing, feeling so overwhelmed that I don't do any of them and go to be instead....lol!

Is 7:30pm to early for bed on a Saturday night? so sad! I think I might tackle a home improvement project tonight, second thoughts maybe I will clean my bedroom instead.....but bed is sounding so good on this wet and rainy night!

Well that is our day today, nothing too exciting but all in all fun! I love my guys and having time with them is always (mostly) a fun adventure!
Honey I hope you are doing well in Burbank, we miss you =)

I can breathe again!

Tonight was curriculum night at Hillcrest Preschool. My first official school night as PTA President as well as my first official presentation to the staff and parents....agh!

All I can say is, thank god that its over! I have not slept well these last few nights....Its funny, its not really that big of a deal, I have addressed larger and more influential crowds before. Honestly, I think it's more because its school....lol! Brings back all those horrible memories of presenting homework to the class or standing up at assembly.

Anyway, I fell like the night went really well. We had a number of parents take membership forms and sign up for PTA and I had the chance to meet a lot of new parents, yay!

I am excited for the school year and all the opportunities it will bring!

First ride on the school bus!

Thomas loves seeing the school bus go by in the morning. His two favorite toys at the moment are yellow school buses and he loves singing wheels on the bus, he's not obsessed but he does have a love for them!

The look on his face when he got to climb aboard today was priceless!

We saw the bus approaching from the top of the hill "school bus mommy! school bus mommy!" he would scream while jumping up and down, seriously! The excitement was so high pitched.

The doors opened and he looked at me, you could tell from the look that came to his face, he so badly wanted to go on but wasn't sure. "Go on, climb up" I said to him. He lifted his little leg, it just reached the first step, its so high off the ground. He reached the top of the stairs and looks around...."Harry? Harry?" He called "Where are you?" Thomas thought we where getting Harry from the bus. I continued to tell him that it is his school bus and it was going to take him to see teacher Becky, he just could not wait to sit down.

A little worried I said good bye, he looked a little worried too. As if to say "aren't you coming with me mommy?"

Off goes my big boy on his little yellow bus.

School Photo's.....

Time for Haircuts!

First week of school and already its school photo time. We took the boys off to our favorite little hairdresser.....man they look cute!

What handsome little guys...

One down...
We survived the first full week of school....Phew!

What a HUGE week!
Its Friday and man are we all looking forward to the weekend!
Early starts and long days are really taking a bit of getting used too.
But here are some of the boys funnies and highlights from this week....

Harry reminding me every morning that he is finished with school because he has learnt everything! Really Harry? and off he goes for the day...

Thomas calling one of his teachers at school "Teacher Chicky" Its hilarious!!! Her name is Jackie and he can not say it correctly and it comes out as Chicky.

Harry's addiction with Power Rangers is growing more and more...agh! HELP!!! From the minute he wakes up to the time he goes to bed, if he's not at school he is wearing his blue Power Ranger costume. "Mommy am I a real Power Ranger?" He's totally convinced he is...lol!

Thomas calls the girls at the gym....Gym! Hi Gym, he says to the kids club coordinator's. Apparently he would go up to them and ask them for something and address them as "Gym" such a goose! Thomas is having such a funny week with names.

Thomas has two new phrases this week....
"AGHHH Its Scary!" He says that to just about everything! with his hands over his face, he must have seen someone else do that.
And the other one, we know he picked up from his brother is "What the?" I know what your thinking, and no we do not encourage this one, but it does make Dave and I laugh (quietly) Harry picked this one up from school and Thomas picked it up, luckily not the complete version of it though!

But who will help me bake the bread?

OK, so I won't bake it but I sure know where to buy it from.

The Franz Factory outlet in Tukwila is amazing....check out the cart!

That whole cart cost just under $15...crazy!

To buy this bread "retail" its at least $4 a loaf. I bought 10 loaves of bread as well as muffins, bagels, cookies and ginger snaps...yum! They have this great deal where you buy 5 loaves for $5 and you get 5 free, how unreal is that!

So I guess my real question is, Who will help me eat the bread?.....lol! There is not enough room in my freezer.....Help!

Now that Harry is taking lunch to school each day, I also make a lunch for Thomas too to have when we are out and about together. When you throw in toast for breakfast and lunch for Dave we are going through quite the number of slices a day....hmmm peanut butter sandwiches, yum!

Anyone know of a good recipe that uses bread?

What a crazy busy week!

Between Kindergarten, Preschool, School buses, working out, PTA, Moms Group, Friends, Soccer, Karate.....my head is spinning!


But amongst all the chaos there is the "eye of the hurricane" that small window of time that I get to myself with out the whirlwind of craziness and demands. Four afternoons a week I get the freedom and flexibility to do anything (well almost anything...lol!) for three hours.


Soon my free time in the afternoons will be taken up with volunteering at the boys schools and doing PTA stuff. But in the meantime I have been enjoying strolls through local nurseries, time in my garden, even had a date with Dave...OMG!

Dave worked from home on Tuesday, the boys were both off to school, it was time for Dave to take a break surely.....what to do? So we went out for coffee at Vince's my favorite local coffee shop, no chocolate milk or toy cars, no interruptions or distractions, instead adult conversation and coffee! Love it!! We are going to try and do this once a month, sooooo special! We talked about what we want to do together, funny memories of our dating life, trips we want to take, the kids! And so much more. It was a wonderful way to spend a sunny, kid free afternoon.

Presenting Harry's finished desk....

What a big moment in this little guys life (or should I say power rangers life!)

It seems as if he grew 5yrs in the time it took to bring the desk up the stairs, to when I saw him sitting, working at his desk for the first time....What a big school boy!

He loves it and could not wait to work at it.

"Mommy is the sun setting?"

"No, there is still a few hours of sunlight today, why?" I replied

"I want to do my work and you only work at night" said Harry. I have no idea where he got that idea from, but when I told him he could work at it anytime he wanted too, you should have seen the uncontrollable smile on the face....so excited to do homework. I will be reminding him of this moment when he is in middle school and hating it...lol!

My Kindergarten Photo.....

Thornleigh West Public School, I can not remember my teachers name, isn't that terrible!

I guess it was over 25yrs ago in 1982. I am first girl standing on the left. What a bunch of 80's cuties...

Its quiet....

Harry's at school and Thomas is asleep!

What a morning. Harry had a late start today due to the weekly Friday late start for the Renton School district. Ahhh a sleep in! We all needed it after such a big week...He didn't need to be there until 10am. We enjoyed a long breakfast and some morning cartoons.

I took Harry to school, he's still so excited to go. After dropping him off Thomas and I did our customary stop at Sips on the way home for quad shot fat free iced mocha and a tootsie pop for T. That should get us both going, caffeine for mom and sugar for the little man....whoo hoo!

Later that day it was time for Thomas to nap, I gave him the 5min warning and he came over and said "goodnight" gave me a kiss and took himself off to bed! WOW! Even typing this I can't believe he did that, what no tears, no fighting nap time! He must be exhausted.

I went up 5mins later to check on him and he was sound asleep in bed with baby George. What a great little guy.

What a great opportunity to do some laundry and catch up on house work. Not more than 5mins later....BUMP! THUMP! CRASH! DRIP, DRIP, DRIP! oh no what is going on upstairs?

I ran up to my master bathroom, there is Thomas washing my makeup case full of makeup!!! AGHHH! This was after he had covered his face in black eyeshadow!!! So I turned off the tap, saved my makeup and grabbed the camera....

Thomas you little monster! (OK mom I know you are getting a real kick out of this, please send me the photo from when I was this age covered in your makeup....hahaha!)

One Big Week for Two Big Boys!

What a huge week for both boys! Harry having full days at Elementary and Thomas missing his afternoon naps to attend preschool....

I think this pic sums up how the boys feel after their first week at school. We were still in the car park at preschool when I took this. Thomas was so tired he fell asleep while I buckled him in.

Harry's New Desk!
We bought a banged up, pre-loved, old wooden desk from the local thrift store...

I really wanted Harry to have a space where he could work and not be distracted. So Dave and I decided to buy him a big boy desk for his bedroom.

He can work, in peace and quiet. He can close the door and have his own space away from toys, tv and one distracting little brother....fingers crossed my optimism for homework being done pays off!

We sanded the top down and painted the bottom part and draws, BLUE...Harry's choice! It is going to look great in his room. Harry is taking so much pride in his stuff especially when he helps make/fix it! I will upload more pics of it in his room when its dry.

Harry and Daddy working together!

One Happy School Boy!