Jade's Favorite Things, #2

Bark.
I love it, love it, love it!
I have discovered it makes everything look good, it is cheap, keeps the weeds down, and I now use it wherever I can. I have planted a native garden on our side yard that never really looked that great. Recently I covered it with bark and now it looks fabulous. I covered all my planting beds with it and our house actually looks like it was landscaped. Don't be shocked if you come over and I have poured bark over the kids messes in our house.

Can you Guess?

Which kid is 21 months and which one is 3, almost4?

Whenever we go hang out with our cousins it always makes me laugh that Sean and his older cousin Miles are pretty much the same size. They seem to have fun together and by their behavior Miles is obviously older. I just hope Sean's behavior catches up to his weight.

Father's Day...A little Late

This year Father's Day just sort of came and went. Tom had been out of town all week and I had taken the kids to my parents for a long weekend of swimming. While Tom's away we are always sure to play.

As a result, not one present was opened and breakfast Father's Day morning was pretty much a wash. Tom had to speak in Sacrament Meeting that morning and I had to be to church a little early. During the day Tom seemed fine with it. He spent a good part of the day downloading a bunch of music from iTunes on my credit card, but it has been eating me up this past week that I didn't do enough. He does so much for me and our family that I couldn't let another day go with out shouting from the roof tops about Tom.

Happy Father's Day Tom. We love you, and love how fun our family is with you leading it. Keep it up and maybe next year, you just might get a real Father's Day present.

Luke Hanaike, For You

For those of you who don't know. Luke is Andrew's 8 year old friend and Sean LOVES him. Sean gets to go spend the day with Luke and his family tomorrow and he can't wait.

Counting Down the Days

This is how Andrew counts down the days to school. When the clothing is gone, school is out. My favorite is the socks tucked into each pair of pants.

Now he is Jumping in Heels

This kids makes me laugh.

Foggy Summers

I woke up to this fog and while getting the kids to school I thought, "summer is here." June and July for us are typically the most foggy. While most of you are pulling out your swimsuits we are still putting on jackets and still going to school. No worries for us though, we will be sure and leave town to get our swimming in, and in a few months, in September, we will get the most gorgeous Indian Summer. Here's to foggy summers and being in school until the 17th of June. I just hope the kids make it another 9 days.

Jade's Favorite Things, #1

I have decided since Oprah can have a "favorite things" list, then so can I. My list will actually be items that are used and put to the test. I have always watched the Oprah's Favorite Things episode and wondered does she really use these things or does the million people on her staff just find things for her?
Please keep in mind that these things are in no particular order and I am not limiting myself to just things. It could be people, places, etc.

First Up....

Kitchen Aide Waffle Maker

I make waffles, lots of waffles. Usually every Sunday night for dinner, and at least one or two more times during the week for breakfast. Up until this last Mother's Day I was using a small single waffle maker and we would have to eat in shifts because it would take so long to get everyone a waffle. This waffle maker makes two at a time. You fill one side, turn it over and fill the second. It has an adjustable timer so you can make them as brown as you want and a memory that remembers your last setting. I LOVE it and it has taken my waffle making to a whole new level. Obviously, if you don't make waffles, this is not for you. If you do, I promise you will LOVE it too.

If you want to give it a sample, swing on in to our place Sunday's around 6 and I will whip you up one.

Sean, Foiled Again

Sean is in a stage where he prefers Tom over me. I think the fact that I wrapped him in foil recently had something to do with it.

I didn't actually wrap him in foil. He pulled out all my foil and was playing in it. I just gave him a big squeeze and then he was trapped.

How Many Cubs Scouts Does it Take to Put a Flag on a Gravesite?

At least 4. One to poke the hole, one to place the flag in the hole, one to count how many are left in the row, and one to hold the extra flags. I am sure we could have been more efficient in our working but they seemed to prefer it this way.

This year Andrew and his cub scout pack were able to place flags on the grave sites at Golden Gate National Cemetery. A large number of scout troops in the area gather every year to do this and this was the first year that Andrew and I participated. I have to admit, next to the Pinewood Derby, this is one of my favorite activities. It was a great reminder of the sacrifices these veterans have made and was a great kick off for the holiday weekend.

It was a early start and a lot of hard work so we finished it off with a quick trip to Crispy Cream for donuts.