Merry Christmas!

We decided to go totally Griswald this year and coordinate Christmas sweaters for out photo! I think it turned out pretty cute... cheesy, but cute!
I'm putting the finishing touches on packing this evening, and tomorrow we head east to have a "real" Christmas! You know - the kind with snow (hopefully), hats, mittens, icy roads.... what it should be like at Christmastime. We take to the skies for the 4th time this year with the kids, but the dread still persists. We are praying up, though, and can't wait to land at Nonna and Pappy's house.

This will probably be my last post until we return unless something really blogworthy happens while we are there so I'll get in my Merry Christmas post now.

I heard a story at church that I think bears repeating... if you've heard it before, bear with me - I have a point.
There once was a prince of marrying age who just couldn't seem to find the right match out of all the fair royal maidens in his kingdom. The time was coming soon that he should choose a bride, but he dispaired, for he did not find the one he loved. Then one day, on an errand for his father, the king, he passed through a poor village. His eyes fell upon a beautiful, but very poor maiden, and he was immediately smitten. The prince would often make up errands to run, just so he could see her or maybe even talk to her. But his heart was saddened - due to their difference in social class, she could never be his bride. The prince even thought, "I am royalty - I could approach her and demand that she be my wife." But he knew that she could never love him if she was forced to marry him.
The prince finally came to a decision... "I will be one of them. I will live among them, like them, know them, and woo her to become my bride." This is what he did, and the bride became his.
This is exactly what Jesus did for us. He came here as a poor baby to a cold world who didn't even know it needed Him. Jesus came as a human to live among us, talk to us, and know us so that he could woo us to become His bride. With this comes eternal life in His kingdom of heaven. What an awesome gift from the King of Kings.
With this, we say, "Happy Birthday, Jesus" and "Merry Christmas to all."

Christmas Program

Today, Santa Fe Christian Preschool put on their Christmas Program, "A Child is Born." Bella played a lamb (as in "...the ox and lamb kept time..."). Her Bearcub class, the youngest of those at the Early Childhood Education Center, sang "Little Drummer Boy" and recited Luke 2:10. Watch the videos (don't forget to pause the music player on the left of the blog page) - Bella was pretty proud of herself, and I was proud of her, too!

Keeping it Simple

As some may know, we have nicknamed our youngest child, Luca, "Destructor."
This is why, to my sad dismay, that we had to keep the Christmas decorating simple this year. Rather than our 2 trees, we decided to do one - the smallest one. We also put it on carpet rather than our hard floor, just in case one of the bulbs "fell" or landed there.
It turned out to be a good decision. Although Luca was very excited and curious about the tree, he obeyed pretty well when we told him not to touch it. However, during one busy moment, I failed to notice him taking off one of the bulbs. I heard a crash and realized that he threw (yes, threw) one of my oldest ornaments against the hearth. He must have thought that that Pitt Ornament that was given to me before I ever even studied at the University of Pittsburgh was a ball. I cleaned up the glass, called Keith, and cried.
Now all I have left of it is in this picture, and I am now very diligent about watching the two little lovelies like a hawk when they are near our very modest, very homey and cherished little tree.

We've also heard that here on the west coast, some homes with children that will be traveling east for Christmas will be getting a visit from Santa this weekend. We'll keep you posted!

Bella's Before and After

As promised, here are the before and after pictures of Bella's room. After seeing Jilli's, I figured I'd better get on the ball and post these.
Her crib transitioned very nicely into a full-size bed, and she's doing great in it!
The decor is way less "me" and way more "Bella!" We love that she now has a place to show off all of her art from preschool.

Happy Birthday, Chad!

Luca's Before and After

Well, after Bella's room was finished, we realized what a "baby room" our little boy Luca had. Before I knew it, this project was underway. It was much simpler than Bella's room - no furniture to change. We just wanted to give him more of a "boy" room than a nursery.
Ahh... done just in time to start decorating for Christmas!!

Argh!

"Argh" just happens to be one of the only things Luca says, so I just went with it and dressed them up as pirates this year!

They both are very into pirates, thanks to The Backyardigans and Little Bill - so it was fun for them to get to actually BE pirates themselves! Keith was on Trick or Treat duty this year, as this is a huge thing in our neighborhood. I told him, "only 7 or 8 houses", and an hour and a half later they showed up with an impressive booty. (Way too much candy in pirate lingo.) Now I have to figure out what to do with all of it, because it surely isn't going into their little bodies! Okay, maybe some of it will.

Marathon Dad

Congratulations, Dad, on running - and finishing the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC yesterday!!!
After training for what seems to my mom like an eternity, Dad and a few running buddies made the trip to DC on Saturday morning. The marathon, refered to as "The People's Marathon" began at 8 am on Sunday.
We don't know how he does it, but at the age of 57, we sure are proud of him - and hope that he will take a break now!
Great job, DAD - you did it!!
Oh, and sorry for the tiny pic - I swiped it from the marathon website, and this is as big as it gets... he looks good, though!

Fire Map

http://www.sdcountyemergency.com/newsreleases/102320077_1800hrsA_Evac_FirePerem.pdf

The above is a link to the most recent fire map, released at 6 pm this evening. This is the best news we've had all day, because we live in the green- the re-opened area.

To us, this means that we are out of danger... that tonight, we can go to sleep and not have to get up to look out the window to make sure the orange glow hasn't crept any closer to us. It means that we can sleep, not having to worry that the phone may ring, telling us that we have to get out in the middle of the night. It means that I can now stop thinking about which posessions mean the most to me, and making sure I have them ready to go at a moment's notice. It means that now I can stop thinking, planning, thinking, wondering, thinking, and doing.
This means that the chaos is almost over - for us at least.
For me, the stress is subsiding, and I can start to breathe a little easier - thanks in part to the wind clearing our air!
But as I can now take the focus off of myself and my family, I am starting to grieve. I not only grieve for what we just went through - the not knowing - the wondering what would happen and where we would go if it did. I grieve for all those who just weren't as fortunate as we were. Those who will go back home, only to realize that their home isn't there. I grieve for the families in the stadium and evacuation centers... for the little kids who are still sleeping on floors and stadium seats with only the clothes on their backs. I grieve for those who have lost more than I could ever imagine.
Please pray with us for those who are still displaced, for those who have lost their homes, and for those still in the fire's path of destruction - for their comfort, courage, and strength to face what is to come.

The next morning...

I took these pictures from our bedroom balcony at 8:00 am on Monday, Oct. 22, 2007.
After a long night of relentless winds, we woke up to this. It proceeded to get worse throughout the day, just like the fires. By the end of the night, our air quality was terrible. It was raining smoke and ash, and we were under voluntary evacuation.
Today, the fires aren't much better. The one closest to us in Rancho Santa Fe is still out of control. The winds have shifted, however, and our sky is a bit clearer, but the air outside the house is still unbreathable. The beach just to the south of us is under mandatory evacuation, so we know it's a possibility that we will be forced to leave, however, we are staying put for now.
Why? For the most part, it's because there's nowhere to go! Basically everything is on fire, or covered in smoke and ash. Hotel rooms are booked well into Orange County, and if we go east, we will have to go WAY east to get away from the fires.
Today will be pivotal, depending on what the winds do, and if they can get the Witch fire under any control. Our local authorities called today very "volitile and crucial."
I am hoping that we can stay here in our home, even though the air quality is very bad, and will be for the next few days. The kids are comfortable here, and even though we're getting stir crazy because we can hardly open the doors - we don't want to have to go to a hotel somewhere or to an evacuation center with two toddlers.
I just wanted to post an update, and will do it again tomorrow - hopefully with good news!

Fall Sunday

We're trying hard to pretend it's fall here, but the truth it's hot, dry, and windy - thanks to the Santa Ana winds.

I thought today would be a good day for the whole family to get into the Steeler spirit, too. We all dressed the part, but the look on Luca's face pretty much sums up how we felt after the debacle we watched happen in Denver. We can only hope that next week, they'll give us something to smile about!

On another note, we are all coxsackie free and feeling much better now. We found out that another little girl from our church got it, too, so it was probably picked up by Luca in the nursery.

We missed 2 weeks of church, 1 week of preschool, and are glad to again be back into the swing of things!

1st Night...

... in her "big-girl bed."

After much reluctance to allow my baby Bella to transition from her crib to a bed, Keith and I caved when she started to insist that she was "too big for her red bed now."

Her feet did actually touch the end of the crib - when she tried - so we decided to go ahead and convert her crib to the full-size bed.

It really wasn't that simple, though. With a new bed comes new sheets and bedspread. With new sheets and bedspread comes new curtains. With new curtains comes new wall hangings, and on and on.

Her new room isn't totally done yet, but we really wanted to get the bed part overwith. I'll post before and after pics when it's done, and fill you in on her first night in her "big-girl bed!"

Pumpkins!

Today, we visited Stu Miller's Pumpkin Patch in Encinitas. The kids were glad to get out of the house - since Luca was diagnosed with the coxsackie virus (a.k.a. "hand, foot, and mouth disease"), we've been stuck at home. The little guy was miserable for a couple of days, but bounced back pretty quickly. Since it's so contagious (thanks, My Gym), we missed church this weekend - his pediatrician told me to keep him away from all kids. We did manage to go out to dinner for my 32nd birthday on the 6th, so it wasn't a total bust.
Since we drove by the Pumpkin Patch last week, Bella hasn't stopped talking about it. Keith was off today, so when she got up this morning, it was the first thing on her mind. It wasn't until we got there that I realized that it was Bella now that wasn't feeling very well. She had a runny nose and glassy eyes, and then I saw them. The dreaded sores on her tongue! AAHHH!
We cut our visit a bit short and when we got home (after driving through KFC for mashed potatoes for lunch) I realized that she had a pretty high fever. It was off to bed - without resistance - for a nap.
So, this virus really stinks. The kids don't want to eat anything because their mouth is so sore. I'm now all stocked up with Jello, Pudding, Yogurt, Ice Cream, and potatoes to mash for the next few days. No preschool, no My Gym, no small group, just homebound - again!
We did manage to grant Bella her pumpkin patch wish, though, and got some pretty cute pictures, too!

Flower Girl Show

On Friday, September 14th, we celebrated the marriage of my cousin Eric to his beautiful Jessie. This event was otherwise known to Bella and Jilli as "The Flower Girl Show." The two of them were quite cute and did a great job scattering petals before a breathtaking Jessie came down the aisle.

The wedding concluded our trip to PA, and now we are all partied out and back home. The kids made it through the plane trip (again) without too much havoc, and now we all are recovering from the time zone change!

It's like we left in the summer and came back to fall, and it's awesome - considering this is my favorite time of year.

I love the smell in the air (moreso in PA, but there's a bit of "fall smell" mixed in with the ocean air here, too) - I love hitting the trails and not sweating like a pig, I love mums, and I love football!!!

Go Steelers!

Hooray for Kennywood!!

Kennywood was no let down for Bella, Luca, Noah and Jilli! This was the first time there for our two, and they really had a good time. Despite the 99% humidity and tiny little rain shower, my Mom, Dad, Jaime, Jason, Keith and I had fun, too!
Of course, Bella's favorite ride was the Jackrabbit... she rode it 3 times. (For anyone who's never been to Kennywood in Pittsburgh, its a great old amusement park with TONS of rides and real rollercoasters. The Jackrabbit is a rollercoaster that opened in 1921, and is such a blast!) I rode it, too for the first time in about 10 years, and laughed until tears streamed down my face! It was nice to be there again, considering I have so many childhood memories from there. Much of the time was spent reminiscing and telling stories about "Kennywood Days" from the past.
Keith rode LOTS - even in Kiddieland, as you can see. It was his first time riding the Phantom's Revenge and the Thunderbolt, which shook him up a bit.
Who could leave out the food? MY favorite part was getting Potato Patch fries and strawberries & cream!
All in all it was a hot, humid, but great day for all of us... especially Bella.

Oh, scroll to the bottom of the blog page and check out this awesome video ~

1st Day of School - again

Today was the first day of preschool for Fort Byrd Preschool here in Brownsville, and Bella was in attendance with Jilli!

Since we wanted to keep her in the routine, we decided to enroll her here, too. Now she'll be able to go when we're visiting, and spend more time with her best friend.

It was an adjustment for her because it was quite different from her 5 hour school day in Encinitas, but she warmed up to the 2.5 hours of singing, play and lessons after the first 2 days!

So Happy Together

You know you're in Fayette county when -- you've owned your own ATV since you were 2!

Well, we're back east, and Bella and Luca couldn't be happier to be back together with their cousins! So far they've spent most of their time in the pool - Bella has been practicing "without her swimmies," and she's been making good progress. It helps that Jilli has already mastered the feat, and it gives her some motivation.

Tomorrow, we look forward to taking them to Kennywood for the first time - Keith's first time, too! Since she had such a blast at Legoland, we figured she'd really get a kick out of all of the roller coasters here.

I'll post more after tomorrow... we're just hoping it doesn't rain!

1st Day of School

Today, Bella went to her first day of preschool at Santa Fe Christian Academy. She is in the Bear Cub class (3-4 year olds), and her teacher is Miss Sujey!

As expected, I was a bit of a wreck, but Bella did great! She gave me a hug and headed straight for the kids on the playground. Holding it together was harder than I though it would be, but it was comforting to know that Bella was so excited. She will be going 2 half days a week, which I know will be good for her.

Luca also, will get the benefits of having Mommy all to himself - something that he hasn't had until now!

I will have more time to post to the blog now - the house seems so quiet with just Luca here!

I'll make sure to give an update after I pick her up today!

Beach Bums

For living so close, we actually don't go to the beach very often, but we decided to give Luca a test run a few weeks ago. I wasn't sure if he would like it - the last time he had been there he was 4 months old!
As it turned out, he loved it! So now we're making it something we do whenever we get the chance. The weather here has been HOT (82 degree-ish) and sunny, and the beach gives us a nice breeze. The water is nice and warm, too (for here - about 70 degrees).
Bella and Luca both love to chase waves and then run from them! It's really a lot of fun to watch. I won't ever be able to get used to watching Luca eat sand, though! Yuck! What is it with this child? His favorite snacks are snails, dirt and sand. I guess you could say that he's definitely all boy!

Whee!

It's been quite a while since I've posted anything, and that's due in part to the fact that we lost our camera! We broke down and bought a new one, because Nonna and Pappy were in town and we didn't want to miss anything!
This is a picture of Bella on her very first roller coaster ride. It was the Coastersaurus at Legoland, and obviously, she LOVED it! Of all the attractions at the park that day, this was her favorite, so we waited in the long line for her to ride it again before we left.
We had a great time watching her have so much fun. No, she may not remember this in 15 years, but we will!

Buddies

Well, we are now back at home in Encinitas, and getting back into the swing of things. It was a
great time for all of us... nobody got sick (except for me - a little cold), and the kids got along really well together (most of the time).
I felt very bad the morning we were leaving when Bella said, "Nona, I don't want to go home," but I'm glad to know that we'll be back again in September for my cousin Eric's wedding!
We are thankful that Luca is doing much better on the plane (with a little Benedryl and a lot of prayer!) and won't dread the next flight as much!

Growing Up

Well, these two sure have been keeping us busy.

Bella outgrew the seat adjustment on her bike, so she and daddy "fixed it." Now her knees won't hit her chest anymore when she pedals (no, not really.)

Little Luca has an obsession with the telephone. If you've ever tried to have a conversation with me while he's awake, you know what I mean.

However, I found the most awesome toy phone today. I don't know why it took a genius to figure out that even toddlers know that real phones don't come in primary colors, have huge buttons, and bear the likes of Elmo, Strawberry Shortcake, or Shimmer from Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends (to name a few that we have tried to fool him with) on them.

This one looks just like Keith's cell phone - it's gray, has working buttons and a screen with display! I was so excited that I bought two. Hopefully, this great find at Gepetto's will help to make the big plane trip on Saturday a little more bearable.

Yes, we're headed back east again to visit home and swim with Jilli and Noah!

Zoo Fun

Keith was off on Wednesday, so we decided to put off getting their 1 and 3 year portraits to go to the zoo! It ended up being an atypical day here in San Diego - HOT! Despite the heat, the kids had fun petting the animals, playing on fake gorillas, and seeing the "big animals." The favorites were the elephants and giraffes. It was a lazy day for the two of them as they relaxed in their double stroller as mommy and daddy pushed them up and down the hills!

I Insist!

These days, Luca insists on feeding himself - which always ends up in a picture like this...
In other news, he's getting his 8th tooth, and has two speeds: sleep and full speed ahead. This child literally RUNS everywhere and all of the time. It's his only means of transportation right now and this need for speed really keeps us on our toes!

Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

R & R

This is how Luca spent much of Memorial Day... we hope yours was full of rest and relaxation, too!
I've been slacking on the blog... sorry. There will much more to come on what's been keeping us so busy!
Have a great week - it's a short one!

New Look

Ever since spring sprung this year, we've been going crazy with house projects... one of which was having the exterior painted.
The white had become somewhat "dingy" and all of our fence was showing damage from the moisture - mainly the marine layer that hangs out here in the morning.
So here's what we did. We wanted to make it appear "warmer." Also, we changed all of the exterior light fixtures, but you can't see them too well on the photo.
On the interior, Keith changed all of the hinges and door knobs while we were visiting my parents. What a saint!
We are proud of what we've done so far (and except for the paint, we did it ourselves!)
We're just about done with projects - for now. I'm sure it won't be long before we find something else to keep us busy!

A couple of firsts

We came back from visiting my parents last Sunday, and after getting over a horrific plane trip and 3 colds, we are getting back into the swing of things here at home in Encinitas!

The kids really had a nice visit with our family - at least until they got sick (which seems to happen every visit!)

Luca had a very tranquilizing first tractor ride with pappy. Cutting your own grass (more than .1 acre) is something we take for granted here!

After hearing that Jilli had her tooth fixed by pappy, Bella was chomping (get it?) at the bit to go the the dentist, too! She had her first cleaning (yes, the recommended age is 1 year, not 3... she gets good dental care at home) by Sherri, and Uncle Chad did her exam. She was a GREAT patient. I didn't even go in with her... I only snuck in at the end to get a picture. She was very cooperative, agreeable and had no cavities! Thank goodness.

1st Haircut

Luca had his first ever haircut yesterday!
He was so well behaved... the face you see in the picture was how he looked the whole time!
I was really afraid to cut it, because his has
these beautiful curls that I didn't want to lose. However, the curls are here to stay, because even after the cut, they remain and are adorable.
I don't think Luca will ever have a "short" cut - maybe living near the beach in southern California has something to do with it. On the other hand, it seems a shame to let those little curls go to waste!
On a different note we will be leaving tomorrow morning for Nonna and Pappy's, and Bella is ecstatic. We pray for a smooth and uncomplicated trip, as we are making it without Keith this time. My cousin, Nicholas, has been here for a few days (and even got his hair cut with Luca). He will help me get us there!
The next post will probably be when we get back!