October 2017

When I put together a blog post at work, I feel guilty because I should be working.  But, each time I look back on these posts, I am never regretful that I didn't spend that work morning billing Client A or maybe Client B.  Instead, I pour over the older posts, wondering how time is scooting by so quickly, and I laugh at all the silly things my boys do and I wonder at how Luke and I are maneuvering this parenting thing.  So, while I know I should be working at this very moment, I feel confident that spending the next 15 minutes on this blog post is worth it.  If I don't do this now, I'll forget these precious memories, and they're too fun to have float away into nothing!

So far, October has been a pretty good month.  The weather here in Colusa is so much more mild (in the 80s).  Compared to this year's summer with over 45 days of 100 degree weather, October has been paradise!  We were able to get away to Palm Springs for a week to visit with Cindy and Leo.  Spending a few days together provides such quality time that you can't get otherwise.  We spent the 4 days pretty much swimming or relaxing.  Each morning, Cindy made a delicious breakfast, and from there we got to pick the fun activity for the day.  One day, Cindy and I took the boys to the zoo.  Clay and Ryan loved it! We saw giraffes, hyenas, cheetahs, warthogs, and many other African animals.   It was pretty exciting.  Another day, we went to the La Quinta Resort for tennis and then swimming at the fun pool there.  The boys loved it.

One of my favorite parts of the vacation was seeing the boys interact with their grandparents.  Clay played like crazy with both of them.  In the pool, reading books, playing games - Clay was pretty spoiled.  Ryan is a pretty independent guy who likes to walk around an explore.  That weekend, however, he was particularly interested in Leo.  Leo was pretty much the best guy around, and Ryan reached for Leo first thing in the morning when he saw him.  In fact, I thought Leo must be giving Ryan m&m's or some other treat, because Ryan was so infatuated with his grandpa! It was very cute.

Luke and I are not strict with Ryan and sweets, but that weekend we were becoming more aware that Ryan was getting more than his toddler share of sweets.  One night, Cindy was giving the boys ice cream, and so Luke thought he would outsmart Ryan and give him a healthier dessert than maybe what Ryan expected.  Cindy was scooping vanilla ice cream into a cone for Clay, and Luke told Cindy to just give Ryan a cone without ice cream.  Luke figured Ryan wouldn't know the difference.  When Ryan grabbed the cone, the first thing he did was look inside of the cone.  He looked back at Cindy with a confused look.  Then he looked back at the cone and put his fingers inside of the cone, breaking off side of the cone to find the ice cream (there wasn't any).  Then he gave the cone back to Cindy and said, "more?"  It looks like Luke and Cindy weren't able to trick Ryan! 

The rest of October has been spent gearing up for fall.  We flattened out some of the dirt in front of our house to hopefully prepare the ground for some walkways and plantings.  Oh, and we also got a new Green Mountain smoker/grill thing through Luke's rotary group, along with 200 lbs of pork.  Luke won a raffle, and so we've been up to our ears in pork!  

Just last night, Luke came home from a day at the UC Davis Baseball Golf Tournament.  Each time Luke comes home from these fundraisers, Clay and I are excited to see what he brought home for us.  Usually, there are silent auction items, and Luke tries to bid on items to donate money.  Last night, Luke came home with some baseball gear, and this beautiful, hard covered baseball book which was written by a UC Davis Alum named Clay Sigg.  Clay has been very interested in baseball, and so he was excited about the book.  Luke and I pointed to the author of the book because we thought it would be neat for him to see the person has the same name as him.  We told Clay, "Look! Look who wrote the book!" Clay looked at the person's name, and was a bit confused.  He said, "Me?"  Luke and I laughed so hard, and explained to Clay that he didn't write the book, it was Dad's friend who wrote the book, who happened to have the same name as Clay.  Ah! 4 year olds are so funny!!!

There are so many other stories, like when Luke was playing baseball with Clay, and Clay hit the wiffle ball over our fence.  To our surprise, Clay yelled, "That's what I'm talking 'bout!"  Where does he get his funny material!?

Story time before bedtime in Colusa.  Dinosaur pjs!!

Clay has been really interested in tennis lately, and so La Quinta was the perfect place to be!

Clay has also been having fun with golf.  Here, we went to the resort to play on the practice putting greens. 

This is how we spent most of our time: in the pool, watching Clay and Ryan fill buckets with water. It was very important business. 

Future GQ model!

Future silly man!

Here is Ryan with his Grandma Cindy

The boys loved the train display at the zoo!

Clay was a bit shy at the petting zoo, but Ryan went right in to brush the goats. 

We told Clay to hold onto Ryan for this photo, and Clay took his responsibility very seriously. 

Clay was VERY excited to go on the merry go round - Ryan looks less than thrilled.

Luke and I snuck away during one afternoon to go play on a golf course! After some delicious deli sandwiches, here we are on the Mountain Golf Course hitting a bucket of balls.  After not playing for about a year, I had a hard time making contact - but I sure look professional!

Luke is pointing at how far his ball went. 

Clay is such a great swimmer!

Here are both boys at the resort trying to plug up these water fountains. 

September 2017

September is flying by!

September started with a really fun Labor Day weekend in Lake Tahoe with just our family.  I've realized that we don't spend many of our vacations with just our family of four, and I found that we're a delightful bunch to hang out with! We arrived in Tahoe Thursday night and made it a long weekend through Tuesday morning.  It was pretty crowded in Tahoe, and so we tried to simplify our weekend by sticking to the Homewood area.  We went to Chambers/Meeks Bay in the morning, home for lunch, and then Chambers/Meeks Bay in the afternoon.  We stayed home for most of our dinners, with one night out at Sunnyside.  So fun! The kids were actually really good - Luke and I had a blast with our margaritas and gourmet burger/salad.  Clay loved playing in the water.  He's a master rock thrower.  Ryan is really good and sitting on the towel in our shade tent and keeping me company.  The weather was perfect and I can't wait to go back next summer.

We went to Marin one weekend to have dinner with Grandpa Jerry and allllll of my siblings/parents.  It was a crowd of us on the deck at Rancho Nicasio! The grandkids all seemed to have fun and played on a tree overhanging the deck / crossed the street to play in the baseball diamond nearby.

9/23 weekend, we went to Davis to support Eric's team's Pro-Am Fundraiser. Luke and Leo did pretty well, and Clay and Ryan loved watching those guys give it their best!

Clay is growing! We went to a birthday party this past weekend, and Clay was the tallest kid there!  Ryan is learning more and more words.  Recently, he learned the word "me" and has started shaking his head emphatically to say "no".  

Finally, we cut Ryan's hair! It was a team effort between Luke, Clay and I. I was able to schedule one family portrait session by Sam Sorbello to capture Ryan's long shaggy hair, and I'm so glad I did! Ryan looks like a different little person with his short hair - Clay's twin!

37 Never Looked So Good!

37!!!

Luke is 37! And, what a stud at 37.  We do birthdays big here in Colusa, and so for Luke's 37th birthday, we spent the weekend doing fun things for Luke.  On Saturday, we ventured into SF to go to Luke's cousin, Jenny's, housewarming party in the Castro. It was a fun excuse to get out of town.  Luke and I especially like getting our coffees on the go, and so we stopped to get a Peet's Coffee and then hit up the Tiburon Ferry to SF.  Oh, right, before that, of course, we headed over to the Urgent Care clinic in Terra Linda because Ryan had an infected, red, and swollen finger.  It seems that our little boy pricked his finger on something while he was crawling, and the cut just got infected! He ended up being fine, and going to urgent care was probably overkill.  But, it allowed us to enjoy the rest of the weekend without worrying it was something really serious.

I grabbed us some baked goods at Rustic Bakery so that we could nibble on the boat.  Clay, of course, loved the boat and ran up and down the stairs between different levels.  Ryan crawled, and then walked, and then crawled around the ship as well.  The ferry could have been the main event! Once in SF, we explored the ferry building, and then ventured down Market Street to get closer to Jenny's house.  We lasted 2 miles, before we decided we needed to take muni the rest of the way.  Boy, was that exciting as well! Clay just loves public transportation.  

Jenny and Sasha's house is amazing, and we had a fun time visiting with family there for a good three hours!  Longest party attendance yet.  Then, we backtracked our steps to make our way back to Tiburon for the long drive home.  It was a VERY long day, but we had fun together every step of they way.

The next day, for Luke's birthday, we made Luke bacon and eggs, and then enjoyed the morning with coffee.  That afternoon, Cindy, Leo, Anna, Em and Chloe came over to a birthday party, full of swimming, burgers, more cake and ice cream.  I got Luke a paperwhite e-reader, Clay got Luke flip flops and Ryan got Luke white undershirts.  Ryan is so thoughtful.

We are looking forward to seeing what 37 brings Luke!

Say cheese!

Cindy brought over some delicious appetizers: guac and chips, with triscuits and cheese (Luke's favorite!) 

It's the dad cake!

Here's Clay folding his arms defiantly.  I'm not sure why.  Which reminds me: I had Clay with me when I picked up Luke's birthday flip flops from Yuba City.  I told Clay is was a very special present for his Dad's birthday, and to keep it a secret.  When we got home and saw Luke, Clay couldn't contain himself and told me, "I'm just going to say one word to Dad."  I told Clay that was fine, not really thinking what that meant.  Then, Clay went up to Luke and whispered, "Flip Flops."  

Happy Birthday Luke! We love you!

1 year old and 4 year old monsters

Birthday Boys!

Clay was SO excited for his birthday!

 Finally! The birthday month is here! After what felt like months and months of anticipation, the boys' birthday is here.  Clay has been counting down to his birthday forever.  We've been discussing his cake design and flavor, birthday party theme ideas, birthday party attendees and birthday party gift ideas for months. I hope the day of celebration did not disappoint!  

We started the birthday weekend with cupcakes at school.  I made Ninja Turtle cupcakes for Clay (pinterest fail?) and white/blue sprinkle cupcakes for Ryan.  It was also Ryan's last day at Jodi's daycare, and so we were a little sentimental about having him move on.  Jodi took care of Ryan when Ryan was so little and hard (6 mo. - 12 months) and we appreciate all her love and care to Ryan during those months!  Ryan ate his very first cupcake and Jodi's. And, from the pictures, I can see that he LOVED it! Although, I'm not surprised.

That weekend, we went to Butte Meadows to celebrate a very special 70th birthday for Grandma Cindy.  It was a fun weekend with all of Luke's siblings and all cousins!  Uncle Eric held a tennis clinic for the cousins, and the cousins all listened to their coach.  Kyrstin made a gourmet bbq shrimp and steak dinner Friday night, and this was after all the grandkids lined up to say their favorite thing about Grandma.  It was so cute.  Clay said, "I like making cookies with Grandma."  

Here are the kids reciting what they love to do with their Grandma Cindy.

All of the kids here are participating in Uncle Eric's tennis clinic.  Clay is here in the front walking around the ball in his hand, as instructed. 

The next morning, Luke made pancakes for the boys' birthday morning, and then at lunch we did birthday cake and ice cream celebrations.  I made two homemade funfetti birthday cakes for the boys.  Clay was definitely not disappointed with this birthday cake choice - he especially approved of the colorful sprinkles.  

I cannot believe I have a 1 year old and a 4 year old.  Ryan started walking two weeks after he turned 1.  He is such a funny little kid.  He loves little cars and drives them all over our living room.  He also loves animals, and squeals when he sees dogs in public.  He is such a fun little kid.  Clay is the best 4 year old! He is so curious, and is such a good talker!  Clay is still so interested in baseball, and asks his dad to play every day after he gets home from day care.  Clay also looooves swimming in our pool and is becoming a better and better swimmer as the hot summer continues.  We are having so much fun with these little guys.  As they get older, they continue to become more interested in each other.  When Clay finds what he is doing makes Ryan laugh, Clay will do it again and again and again (tickling Ryan's neck? making a weird noise? Clay will do anything to make Ryan laugh!).  
  

Ryan's birthday presents!

Grandpa Leo helps Clay open up his present, along with allll the other cousins.

Do you like the cake Ryan?

Yes! You do!

Luke got Clay this present here.  Luke carefully wrapped the golf club in paper.  Clay apparently had no idea what the present was until he got to the verrrrry bottom. 

Clay was very slow in unwrapping this.

Still don't know what it is, Clay?

Ryan got whiffle golf balls. (For Clay's golf club, but he didn't know that).

Ryan and his cake with one candle.

 

Hey you big boy!

This picture is unrelated to birthday weekend festivities.  A few days before his birthday, I walked into the kitchen and found that Ryan had busted into a bag of rice and sprayed it all over the kitchen.  He was pretty happy with himself.

Our Sweet Baptized Boy

Here is Ryan in his baptism outfit - complete with lace frilled socks and a bonnet.  I couldn't help myself!

  Ryan was baptized July 30th at the St. Anselm's Church in Ross, California.  This church has special significance to my family.  It's where my grandparents, my parents, my sister, and Luke and I got married, and it's recently where we had the funeral mass for my Grandma Erin.  My brother has also had a couple of his kids baptized here, and so we thought it was a fitting place for Ryan to be baptized!  It's such a beautiful church - it's fun for us to come back and visit.

Maile and Eric are Ryan's godparents, and it was fun to share the occasion with the two of them and their families.  After mass, the priest gathered our family towards the front of the church.  Although it was a small ceremony, with both Luke and my family there, there were around 14 kids!  The priest did a great job - he included all of the kids in Ryan's baptism and asked the kids to bless the holy water.  

After the ceremony, we hopped over to the St. Anselm's hall for a chinese chicken salad and chicken okasan lunch (yay! Comforts!).  It was fun having everyone there!  

Plus, we had birthday cake to celebrate the Birthday Buddies (Maile, Clay & Ryan) on 8/5 and also Cindy's birthday on 8/4.  

Ryan actually loved his fancy outfit, as you can see.

Here's the holy team!

Even with our small family gathering, we fill up the first three pews.

Cousins!

Here are the cousin's participating in Ryan's ceremony.

My mom made this delicious carrot cake for the birthday celebrations.

And, I made this delicious chocolate cake for the baptism!

Grandpa Tim and Katherine, who also happen to share birthdays (11/7).  Our family has a thing with shared birthdays.

Grandma Beth and Uncle Jack getting ready for the birthday candles. 

Everyone loves the birthday song!

Ryan went a little crazy after the party. No nap. No shirt. Wet diaper. Dirty/snotty face.  But still crawling and happy!