I guess it was a bad hair day. I didn't know.

Tonight as we were saying our final "good nights" to all the kiddos, I walked into Brett's room and sat down on his bed. He put his hand on my arm and gently said, "Mom, I hope tomorrow is a better hair day for you!" :) Didn't know it was a bad hair day. I wish he had told me a little earlier!

Yes, I was driving and yes, I took the picture!

So when was the last time you were able to hit 120 mph and actually had your camera ready to prove it? I'd say it was a pretty good day for me! :) Yes, I was driving when I took this picture. Yes, it was last week! We were late for scouts!
What do you think? My boys LOVED it!

Now, to explain. (Just don't tell the police . . . ) My speedometer has been a little fritzy lately. Often times, when it's early and cold outside and we are racing down the freeway late to church, my speedometer would read 20 mph, my car would be going about 70 mph ( i think!) and my heart would be racing 100 mph. We were completely out of sync. I think my car was trying to tell me something. :)

During a leisurely drive on a warm afternoon, my speedometer clocked in at 120. Ca-ching. I was hoping I'd hit 120!! The funny thing was that my heart rate was much slower! What was up?

I've come to a rather profound conclusion. And no, it's not because my awesome-retired-police-detective-father-in-law got me out of a ticket a few months ago! My speedometer was working then! Life wants us to slow down. I actually like not knowing how fast everyone else is going. I find myself driving UNDER the speed limit which is not normal for me! Why is that? It's funny. I think I'm enjoying things a little more and am not so prone to race around. I still have a million places to go and get all the kids to, but the "getting there" seems to be more fun.

I'm sure we'll fix it soon, but for now, I'm enjoying the slow lane . . . Try it sometime! Just cover your speedometer for a quick trip to the grocery store. (Although I'll deny that I ever recommended it!) Let me know how it goes . . .

The first mow of the season! Wahoo!

Brett is usually our "mow-to" guy when it comes to the front and backyard. Gracie wanted to help out so Matt and Gracie performed the first mow of the season. Wahoo! Could it be getting warmer?

As I watched Gracie push the mower around the yard with Matt, it quickly reminded me of a Saturday around Father's Day when I was in junior high school. Being the oldest, my Dad taught me to mow the lawn, and it was much better than pulling weeds, so I liked it. Julie and I were out in the yard arguing over who was going to pull the weeds, as I was mowing the lawn. This was supposed to be a Father's Day gift for Dad. What a laugh. I ended up mowing off every sprinkler head and my Dad spent the whole day digging up the lawn and repairing my mess. He never asked me to mow the lawn again. :)

When was the last time you hit Lombard Street?

When was the last time you hit Lombard Street? Forget the curvy road, I have a new reason for you to go!

It's been a while since we've hit San Fran and boy are we glad we did! We left the babes at home and thanks to Dad's planning, we celebrated Mom's completion of chemo! We had to wait a few weeks because she was so wiped out and sick from it all - but it was worth the wait.

This one is a keeper! Wow. Deelish. Fantastic. Yum. Mouth watering. A definite do over. Can you tell I like to eat? Crab and mussels that my kids would devour. That's why we didn't take them! :)

Are they smiling because the kids are home with a babysitter or because the food is so good? Thanks, Dad, for planning such a fun night and creating a great memory. Love you!

Is spring really here?

All of our fruit trees are blooming!! Yeah!
Could winter (pleeeeze) be over??

Like Mother, Like Daughter

I have a very clear memory of sitting back in the dental chair as a kid and sobbing. I had so many tears streaming down my face that my ears filled up! Not great when your Dad is the dentist. Fast forward to today. I felt like I was reliving it all over again.

Both boys zipped in and out, got their teeth cleaned and. . . . dum dum dum . . . no cavities!!! A huge feat for our family! Last up was Gracie, and things weren't quite as smooth. As Matt walked out to get her, she looked up at him and announced she wasn't getting her teeth cleaned and then clenched her mouth shut. Nice. Tears, more tears, (no bribery though!) and then finally my Dad walked over and asked if HE could see her teeth. She opened right up. I wish I could have captured the victorious smile my Dad gave Matt! :)

We survived.

Brik is ready to go!

Ben wants muscles!

We celebrated Mom's birthday this last weekend at one of our favorite restaurants, Maggiano's. One word - YUM.

Mom has 4 more weeks of radiation and we are all counting down!

Ben has been into his muscles lately. He likes to check them out in the mirror. One of the appetizers at the restaurant happened to be mussels. For some reason I think Ben connected muscles with mussels and managed to put down 50 of them! Thankfully it is family style eating and they bring out as much as you'd like. By the 3rd bowl, the waiter just put it in front of Ben. He's looking stronger to me already.

Gracie liked the pasta and the dessert was my favorite. Their apple crostata is just to die for.

Happy birthday Mom. Love you.

I said I'd never do it again. I lied.

After a particularly rough visit to the grocery store, I vowed I'd never go again with all four kiddos. Too many bodies, too many "Mom, can we get this?," and just hard for me to think. (My brain is slowly shrinking, so it seems to take more energy for me to focus . . . )

Last week we were totally out of food, so I loaded everyone up and away we went. I was desperate. We overfilled the cart so full that I actually had to hold Brik and fill the baby seat with the last few items. I'm sure you get a great visual of that one.

When we got home, I stood in the kitchen emptying bags while the kids unloaded the car. Suddenly I started finding random items that I did NOT put in our cart. Uh oh! Maybe I ended up with some other person's food?? No such luck. Gracie comes waltzing in with her princess dress on and says, "Oh, there's my food."

Great. Somehow, Gracie was able to sneak in 5 rather large items in the shopping cart. I had NO clue. Shows how aware I am of my kids. When was the last time you bought Cheeseburger Macaroni Hamburger Helper???? I think it's the first time in our 15 years of marriage that I've bought one. Yuck! (If you honestly like the stuff - I'm sorry!)

The boys think she's a great shopper and are loving the extra snacks she added. She is a true girl. Loves to shop no matter where we are. I have a feeling this won't be the first time she introduces me to "new" things.

My Joke.

How do you make a tissue dance?

You put a little boogie in it! :)

Tell this one to your kiddos they will love it.