Well, Rowen's birthday is tomorrow. Then my youngest will be three. Hard to believe it's been that long. Life just seems to flash by now. Rowen and I have been having lots of fun with just the two of us. She's so calm and easily persuaded. It's much easier running errands with one kid than with two. To be fair, it's easier to run errands with just Logan than with both of them too.

We're gonna go to breakfast with some kids for Rowen's actual birthday tomorrow. We're not having her party until the 20th so that Aunt Colleen can come. Rowen loves Aunt Colleen and Kevynn. She talks about Kevynn every few days. It's really cute. And she says that Ayden is her best friend in the whole world. It's adorable the way they get so excited when they see each other. And Rowen loves to sing Scooby Doo songs to Asher. I love my little girl.

Well, Erika's here, so I should stop being rude and go hang out with her, I just had already started this post, and so I just wanted to write something.

~Ciao

We went to the Irvine Adventure Playground in August. It was a ton of fun. And since our whole family was free, it was a great value. I highly recommend it for families with kids who like to play in the dirt or get wet, or climb on things. We went with the Bushmans, Wilsons, Ortiz' (I never did understand how to make a plural with last name that ends with a z) and Julie (with her nephew). All the kids had a great time smearing mud all over each other, and at the end, all of the grown ups had a great time smearing mud all over Julie. Here are some of the pictures.

Mud Park

2 more days till school

I've said this a million times, but I can't believe that Logan is going to be starting Kindergarten this week. Tomorrow is his orientation. It's just amazing that over five years have passed since he was born. It just doesn't seem possible. There are so many things I miss that I'll never get back. Holding him at night and rocking him to sleep is the biggest. Being silly and just laughing all the time is the other thing that I miss. It's fun to do things with him and watch him read, knowing that he's this person with his own ideas and his own sense of what he wants to do. It's frustrating and beautiful at the same time. It's as if there's a piece of me that is no longer attached. When you watch things happen to your kids, it feels no different than if it happens to you.

We spent a couple of days at Disneyland last week, because were on the verge of expiring, and I realized I spent so little time looking at the rides around me. All I wanted to see was the fun and joy on Logan's and Rowen's faces. I won't miss Disneyland because it was fun for me, it was, but my happiness was watching the kids have fun. In fact, I don't remember the last time I went on a grown up ride there, several months. I was sad that they didn't reopen Small World before our passes expired.

Anyway, it's time to put Rowen down for a nap, I just felt a little overwhelmed at the combination of joy and sadness that I feel as Logan prepares for school. Another chapter in his life is over. He depends on me just a little less. There's one less string attaching him to me. I'm so grateful for the time I've had with him and that I've been able to be home to watch him grow and learn. And I'm really glad Fullerton doesn't have all day Kindergarten.

Me day!

So, in a few minutes, we're (my mom, my aunt Holly and I) are going to the Glen Ivy day spa for the morning. I've only ever had one pedicure before, and now I'm going for a full hour long foot and calf treatment. Should be interesting. It'll be nice to get away from the kids and messy house for a few hours.

They're here, gotta go.

new background

ok, so i just spent the last hour finding a new template for the blog. i know, i should probably spend more time posting so the blog is actually worth checking out to see what's up with the family. ok, i settled on this one. i wanted a template that was brown, blue and pink, but couldn't find one. this one is subtle, yet with colors i like and not overly distracting. i'm going to stick with it, because everytime i change templates, i lose all my little side lists, like my favorite authors and quotes and links to other blogs.

i need to track the kids down and make them eat lunch. logan has been getting wet at the neighbors for the past three hours. rowen has been putting up with me being on the computer. we had a repairman come look at the washer, and of course, it would have been almost $400 to fix the one we have, which Sears no longer makes, so we are going to go buy a new washer this week. we should have just decided to do that in the first place, then we could have a washer by now. so frustrating. last year, a new computer, this year a new washer, i'm frightened for what's going to spontaneously stop working next year. let's hope it's not a car.

logan started soccer last week. his team is the swamp monsters. he likes to take lots of breaks and forgets to hustle after about 30 seconds, but he's liking it. a friend from preschool, Dominic, is on his team, so that's nice. his mom and i are going to carpool, which will be a nice help. i think his first game is on aug. 30. no goalies, no score keeping, but i hope he enjoys it. rowen has been begging me to let her pick a dance class. i found out about a studio in la habra that's great and a good price. but gas is so expensive i might look around for one closer to home first. the continuing education program has dance classes for kids, but only at the cypress campus, so again, spending $20 a month in gas nearly doubles the cost of the classes. we'll see what we can find.

well, i wasn't going to post very much, i'll add more later this week (ha!), and put some pictures from our trip to the mud park. the kids love it. i might try to take them again one day before the end of the summer season. we'll see.

~jenn

quick note

well, it's after midnight, i should be in bed. my left eye has been red for three days. but it's not pink eye. i think it's too much strain. good thing i'm taking the kids to disneyland tomorrow instead of spending time at home on the computer or reading. ok, so i'm in love with the band The National. i've been listening to them nonstop for the past three days. them and The Swell Season.

Rowen is potty training, so that's pretty exciting. of course, she finally decides to get the hang of it a week after i buy a $40 box of diapers. and she hates wearing diapers instead of pull-ups. actually, she only likes wearing panties, and if i accidentally call them underpants, she gets mad and tells me to call them panties. she only had one half-accident today, and that was right before we were going to put her pajamas on. so yeah, within a month or two, i should be able to stop carrying around a diaper bag. well, i might need to carry around a spare change of clothes for her for awhile.

Logan reads so well it amazes me. and when he reads, he puts feeling into the words. It's so cute, really. sometimes he doesn't want to read, but then once i get him started, he'll read two or three books in a row. his only real problem, is that he memorizes words so easily, that sometimes when he comes across an unfamiliar word, he substitutes a word he knows, or he guesses what the word is instead of trying to sound it out. i guess it's good that he memorizes words after only reading them a couple of times. because he hates to sound words out.

the kids want to do nothing besides watch scooby doo movies and listen to the animaniacs. Rowen is so darn cute about it, though, especially when she starts singing the songs herself when i don't start playing them right away. then she stops half way through the song and tells me that the "songs are really cool, huh?" she's actually managed to go a whole week without getting hurt. i might be able to get the kids pictures taken next week if Logan's eyes look normal.

well, this note ended up being not so quick. bed is calling.
bye.















p.s. i was reorganizing our digital photos and came across this one. it made me laugh and smile, so i thought i'd post it.