Miss Molly

A few current shots of our little princess. She is quite the poser right now!

The Dog

As some of you know, Mike jokes around about being done having a dog. Dakota has had a bunch of lumps and he likes to think they are cancer and going to due her in. A couple of weeks ago one of her lumps got huge and starting bugging her. I took her in as she had made the spot raw. The vet informed us that there was a major infection and the lumps "didn't seem benign". So she sent us on our way with some meds and said she would check back later and take a sample. Well the infection got worse. The good news is that time has done wonders. The infection is better, the wound is healing, the lumps are not cancer, and Mike is back to his old wishes :) Dakota does have another week or so of the lovely cone on her head. The kids have been great about giving her lots of extra love. Thanks for everyone that has asked about her. She'll still be here to great you next time you come visit :)

Catching up . . . again

Okay, so life has been a little busy. Sorry the blog has been a little neglected. I will attempt to do some catching up as the kids are cooperating nicely right now.

The last time the sun was out Heather and I (mom of Isabelle and Athena) decided to do a QUICK trip to the beach. We found bonus time at my parents timeshare in seaside, loaded up the kids and hit the road. Remind you it was 80+ degrees here. The forecast for the beach was sunny and 74 . . . perfect, right??? I forgot this was Oregon. We arrive to this

that is 51 and foggy for those that can't tell. And this is what the kids were dressed like

sundresses, shorts, and sandals. Fortunately we had a sweatshirt for everyone, but the was about the extent of it. Regardless, the kids had a FANTASTIC time and were really well behaved. We were able to spend time on the beach, time in the 98 degree pool, and our accommodations were of course great.

On the way home we watched the thermometer steadily rise and we were finally able to enjoy the sundresses and shorts when we arrived home.

Here are a couple more snapshots.

New Stage of Parenting

I have again entered a new stage of parenting. I am now a "Soccer Mom". So far I am okay with the title. We'll see what it develops into :)

Gavin has joined Eastside United Soccer League. He is on a 5&Under team. Gavin had his first practice last night. We were so proud of him. He love trying to make a goal and get the ball from the other kids. We are hoping the weather gets a little warmer soon. The kids were so cold out there last night. It was quite cute trying to get the little ones to understand about not touching the ball with their hands. His games will start in a few weeks so we have a little time to work on that.

Molly was wishing she was on the team, but did a good job of being a little cheerleader from the sidelines.

Mommy's morning off

What does a mommy do when her husband has gone fishing and the kids are at the grandparents?

Go to the coffee shop and read of course. And maybe a little shopping.

Saturday morning I had the luxury of waking up on my own time. I headed to downtown Portland to check out the changed (and not for the better) Sip & Kranz. The coffee is still delicious, the decor and atmosphere is lacking. I ordered my favorite coconut soy latte and a scone, and read, and read, and read . . . for almost three hours. It was great. I got well into the book, which I had been meaning to pick up for at least three weeks. My book club gals will be happy I can participate in the discussion. After my reading time I hit a few stores that I prefer to visit without the kids. It was a great day.

Good thing because since then I have been dealing with vomit, diarrhea, coughing, fever, and headache, from three out of four family members . . . poor Mike.

Surprise

Molly knows how to navigate the computer. I knew this to a certain extent. She has been watching home movies on the computer. I get them set up for her and she can push stop and play on them as she wishes. She plays on Starfall.com and pbskids.com all the time. Today she asked for help getting to her games. We have an account for the kids so they don't bother the desktop files and settings on the laptop. I told her it would be a minute until I was done folding laundry. I walked over to her. Don't worry. She had logged out of my account and logged into the kid account and started playing Roller Monkey (A Curious George game). Wow. 2 years 7 months. What is next? I'm not sure I want to know!

Listening in

I am working on processing pictures at the computer. Molly is napping. Gavin is having some imaginative play time. He has a two dolls and his beloved puppy. Puppy runs away.
Doll A to Doll B: My puppy ran away. I am sooooooo sad.
Doll B to A: I'll help you find it.
Doll A to B: We can't find it anywhere
Doll B: Maybe you can buy a new one.
Doll A: Puppies are very expensive. I will have to save a lot of money.
Doll B: Maybe you can just put it on your birthday list.
Doll A: Then I have to wait a long, long time. We should look some more.
They find puppy.
Doll A: Oh puppy. I love you. Don't ever run away. I don't want to wait a long, long time for another puppy.

Guess he is learning about money, saving, and waiting. All good lessons for a four year old.