Everyone left yesterday to drive to Nebraska for Grandma's burial. Zach really wishes he could have gone, but he has to get back to work; he's already taken off two shifts. We decided to stay in LA through the day, to relax a little bit, straighten the house for Vickie, and just unwind from all the emotion before we drove back home.
We took the girls to Seal Beach and they had a blast! Victoria was intrigued by the muddy sand at the water's edge, and a little unsure of the water. Constance, on the other hand, had no fear of the ocean. She would run all the way out to the surf with Zach, cracking up the whole time. It was really nice to have this little outing at the end of our trip.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Grandma English
Sylvia June English
October 22, 1930 - May 14, 2009
October 22, 1930 - May 14, 2009
Zach's Grandma, Sylvia, lost her nine month battle with leukemia last Thursday. Zach was with her, along with Grandpa, his mom Vickie, Aunt Debi, Uncle Brian, and Cousin Gabby with her daughter Sabine.
Grandma was an amazing woman, youthful and vibrant right up to the sudden onset of her illness in August 2008. With Grandpa she raised eight wonderful sons and daughters. She has seventeen grandchildren and three great grandchildren; Constance and Victoria, along with Sabine.
For the past twelve years, Sylvia and Ted have lived with their daughter Christy in Atascadero, where Grandma raised Chickens and kept a flourishing garden. She canned every year, with her strawberry jam and "atomic pickles" being the most coveted jars.
Her funeral in Downey was held Tuesday and was an awesome Celebration of such a faithful servant to the Lord. Sylvia's brother, Charles, read from her bible, which was heavily read, noted in, and depended upon by Grandma. "...his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers." (Psalm 1: 2-3) Such a wonderful verse, and a great description of Grandma. She was strong, faithful, prayerful and loving to her large family, to her many friends, and to strangers in need of her help.
We will miss her so very much.
Grandma was an amazing woman, youthful and vibrant right up to the sudden onset of her illness in August 2008. With Grandpa she raised eight wonderful sons and daughters. She has seventeen grandchildren and three great grandchildren; Constance and Victoria, along with Sabine.
For the past twelve years, Sylvia and Ted have lived with their daughter Christy in Atascadero, where Grandma raised Chickens and kept a flourishing garden. She canned every year, with her strawberry jam and "atomic pickles" being the most coveted jars.
Her funeral in Downey was held Tuesday and was an awesome Celebration of such a faithful servant to the Lord. Sylvia's brother, Charles, read from her bible, which was heavily read, noted in, and depended upon by Grandma. "...his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers." (Psalm 1: 2-3) Such a wonderful verse, and a great description of Grandma. She was strong, faithful, prayerful and loving to her large family, to her many friends, and to strangers in need of her help.
We will miss her so very much.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
First "Scamping" trip
We took our new Scamp trailer out for a test-camp! Stayed with Kirt, Abby and Sarah Creiglow at Coloma Resort in Gold Country. We had a great time, and best of all, the girls loved it! They were so excited to be outside all da; splashing in the river, playing with their friend Sarah, taking walks, eating ice cream and sleeping in the "camping car." I am thrilled that we now have this option for family outings in our trailer. (It is quite the work-in-progress. For more on that excitement, see our new Scamping blog!) Here are some cute pics, as always, more on flickr.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Beep, Beep!
Another LA trip to visit Grandma and Grandpa. Surfing Lessons. Just a few new pics on flickr.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Summer's Coming!
We've had awesome weather the past couple days. The girls have been playing nonstop outside in the backyard, either in the sandbox, the garden, the frog pool, or just running around in their super hero capes. I posted lots of photos on flickr, check them out!
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Happy Easter!
We Smiths hope everyone had a very happy and blessed Easter. We had a wonderful holiday. Had local family over for breakfast, which turned out lovely. The girls were able to visit with Auntie Erin and Uncle Jason, Baby Audrey, Glammie, Guapo, Uncle Joe and Auntie Kris. It was a beautiful day, so the adults all ate outside on the patio while Constance and Victoria gathered eggs in the yard. Then we walked to church. The walk was great, but mass was difficult. Knowing there would be a gazillion people, we got there super early to ensure a seat. This, coupled with Katie being in the processional as a reader, put Constance in a cranky mood. Poor Zach was outside almost the whole time with a very upset Con. We got through it, and made it home and to nap.
For dinner we went to "Glammie and Guapo's" house. Grandmommie and Poppie O'neill were there, and we had a really nice and delicious dinner. The girls were very good and had a fun time. I'm pretty sure they avoided all real food and snuck by with only junk food today, but that's what holidays are for, right?!Happy Easter, Everyone. Christ is risen.
For lots moer pics, click here
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Victoria: Scene 2
When I flipped the display screen around, Victoria could both film and watch herself. She eventually made me hold the camera. At the end, that's Constance in the background saying "More Waffles!" (It was breakfast time)
Victoria the Filmmaker
This morning, Victoria found our little video camera and opened it up. She carried it around for a few minutes, staring at the display screen, and eventually she began recording. Here's her first home movie. Enjoy
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Our Backcountry Adventure
So, I made it home from my first alpine ski touring experience, with only few sore muscles and some nasty shin bruises. It was totally worth it, though. We had a lot of fun and it was absolutely beautiful out there.
The best thing we did was add a day at the front end of our trip and skied a half day at Donner Ranch on Sunday. It was windy and snowing, but the powder was awesome and I got a couple hours one-on-one lesson with Glenn. It's funny how years can go by, with you hardly realizing it. When I actually thought about how long it had been since I had skied, I realized it had been almost 10 years! Yikes. That put me back to the basics of all basics. I needed the lessons, but Glenn is an awesome teacher and by the end of our day, I felt ready to go out. (Too bad my boots weren't ready. I decided to save 50 bucks and not get my boots custom fit. That turned out to be a bad choice.)
We rode the lifts at Sugar Bowl up to the top of Anderson peak, and in crazy wind, headed out of bounds and along the ridge into the backcountry.
This kind of skiing is so much fun. There is a lot of uphill trudging, and some flats, and some downhill. Overall, it's an awesome workout and you're in the most beautiful setting.
We stayed at the Benson Hut, which is kept by the Sierra Club as an emergency shelter, and for private campers for a small fee. It was mostly buried in the snow; we had to enter through the loft window. There is a coleman stove for cooking and a woodburning stove for warmth, a table and six fold-down bunks for sleeping.
The next morning, we ate a little breakfast and put on our boots. My shins screamed with every step. I'm talking 9 out of 10 pain, just walking out of the hut. By the time I got outside, I burst into tears. And I promise you, I am not a wimpy girl! This was at least as bad as my cesarean recovery. So instead of a long day to the next hut, we went back the way we had come, back to Sugar Bowl and down the mountain.
After a good lunch, Edith and I drove back to the girls, while Zach and Glenn went back in to the second hut. They had a great time and came out safely the next day. It was a wonderful trip, and the girls loved staying at Glammie and Guapo's house. I can't wait to do it again. After I get my boots fit, of course!
The best thing we did was add a day at the front end of our trip and skied a half day at Donner Ranch on Sunday. It was windy and snowing, but the powder was awesome and I got a couple hours one-on-one lesson with Glenn. It's funny how years can go by, with you hardly realizing it. When I actually thought about how long it had been since I had skied, I realized it had been almost 10 years! Yikes. That put me back to the basics of all basics. I needed the lessons, but Glenn is an awesome teacher and by the end of our day, I felt ready to go out. (Too bad my boots weren't ready. I decided to save 50 bucks and not get my boots custom fit. That turned out to be a bad choice.)
We rode the lifts at Sugar Bowl up to the top of Anderson peak, and in crazy wind, headed out of bounds and along the ridge into the backcountry.
This kind of skiing is so much fun. There is a lot of uphill trudging, and some flats, and some downhill. Overall, it's an awesome workout and you're in the most beautiful setting.
We stayed at the Benson Hut, which is kept by the Sierra Club as an emergency shelter, and for private campers for a small fee. It was mostly buried in the snow; we had to enter through the loft window. There is a coleman stove for cooking and a woodburning stove for warmth, a table and six fold-down bunks for sleeping.
The next morning, we ate a little breakfast and put on our boots. My shins screamed with every step. I'm talking 9 out of 10 pain, just walking out of the hut. By the time I got outside, I burst into tears. And I promise you, I am not a wimpy girl! This was at least as bad as my cesarean recovery. So instead of a long day to the next hut, we went back the way we had come, back to Sugar Bowl and down the mountain.
After a good lunch, Edith and I drove back to the girls, while Zach and Glenn went back in to the second hut. They had a great time and came out safely the next day. It was a wonderful trip, and the girls loved staying at Glammie and Guapo's house. I can't wait to do it again. After I get my boots fit, of course!
Friday, March 20, 2009
Disneyland
OK, so it is a lot of fun to be in Disneyland on your birthday! Not only do you get in free this year (or you get a $69 card if you already have a pass,) but everyone says happy birthday to you, which feels good and makes everyone happy.
The girls were awesome this time! No injuries, no major tantrums, lots of fun. We rode a few rides, walked around and ate, shopped and the girls even napped in their strollers!! Overall, we had a pretty relaxing day. Relaxing in Disneyland?! Yes; having passes really changes the attitude. We know we'll be back in a couple months, so it's not tragic that we forgot to go on Dumbo.
Remember to check out my flickr stream; there are always more pics!
The girls were awesome this time! No injuries, no major tantrums, lots of fun. We rode a few rides, walked around and ate, shopped and the girls even napped in their strollers!! Overall, we had a pretty relaxing day. Relaxing in Disneyland?! Yes; having passes really changes the attitude. We know we'll be back in a couple months, so it's not tragic that we forgot to go on Dumbo.
Remember to check out my flickr stream; there are always more pics!
Lots of Kids
For St Patrick's day, I offered to make dinner at Vickie's house and have a couple people over to celebrate. We ended up with about 20 adults and 5 kids under 3. I cooked all day: Corned Beef and Cabbage, Colcannon (potatoes with garlic and spinach,) Irish Soda Bread, and Glazed Carrots. Vickie made a Cake and our friend Barb brought cookies. The food was good, a good time was had by all, and I am pretty proud of myself for cooking a meal for that many people!
This picture was the result of someone forgetting that our kids are all toddlers. Seriously, has anyone successfully posed 4 two-year-olds and a one-year-old at 8pm and gotten a great photo? If so, I'd love to see it!
This picture was the result of someone forgetting that our kids are all toddlers. Seriously, has anyone successfully posed 4 two-year-olds and a one-year-old at 8pm and gotten a great photo? If so, I'd love to see it!
Swing
Zach made a swing that we brought down to LA. The girls love it, and I love this picture of Victoria.
Our Drive on 5
We just got back from a wonderful trip to LA, to visit family. The drives, both there and back, were pleasant and uneventful, which is the equivalent to miraculous when you have two, 2-year-old girls! The best thing we have purchased for this purpose is the dual-screen DVD player. It's removable and easy to set up, so we only use it when driving to LA. The girls watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Mickey's Reading and Math Fun and Finding Nemo, and they were almost perfect angels.
We've gotten in the habit of stopping for picnics in random places. Many times it's the rest stop, but sometimes they just don't pop up at the right time, or like this trip, I never got around to packing lunch-worthy food, so we need to buy takeout. Our picnics this trip were outside a Carl's Jr, where the girls ran around a little patch of grass and ate fish-n-chips, and along the side of a hotel, which had a granite boulder to climb on. Usually once the girls have run around a bit, they are ready to sit for another couple hours.
Oh, on the way home, we stopped at the Ghirardelli outlet in Lathrop (south of Stockton.) They have ice cream sundaes and of course, lots of chocolate. Some ok deals, some great; like the ice cream topping we found for $1 a jar! Worth the stop, even if just for the free samples.
We've gotten in the habit of stopping for picnics in random places. Many times it's the rest stop, but sometimes they just don't pop up at the right time, or like this trip, I never got around to packing lunch-worthy food, so we need to buy takeout. Our picnics this trip were outside a Carl's Jr, where the girls ran around a little patch of grass and ate fish-n-chips, and along the side of a hotel, which had a granite boulder to climb on. Usually once the girls have run around a bit, they are ready to sit for another couple hours.
Oh, on the way home, we stopped at the Ghirardelli outlet in Lathrop (south of Stockton.) They have ice cream sundaes and of course, lots of chocolate. Some ok deals, some great; like the ice cream topping we found for $1 a jar! Worth the stop, even if just for the free samples.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
St. Baldrick's
Zach volunteered to shave his head with St. Baldrick's, an organization that raises money for childhood cancer research. The event took place this afternoon at the Roseville Galleria mall. Zach was on duty, so he had arranged for another firefighter to come in for an hour and cover his position. Well, something came up and this guy didn't show. Zach felt awful, especially since we had some friends and family coming to the mall to watch!
The girls and I helped Zach fulfill his commitment to St. Baldricks by stopping by the station with hair clippers! I got to do the deed of shaving him bald, which was way too much fun. Zach raised almost $150.00 for cancer research, thanks to many of our wonderful family and friends. The Roseville event raised almost $100,000!! Thanks so much!
St Patrick's Day Parade
Zach sent me a text at 8:00 this morning: "Saint paddies day parade blue oaks 9:00." He'd just gotten to work and learned that a: there would be a parade today and b: they would be in it on the fire engine. So, of course, I need to bring the girls! Only problem was, they weren't up yet, not to mention fed and dressed. No problem, I said, see you there!
We made it, and had a great time. I even rounded up Glammie, my sister Erin and her husband Jason and 4-week daughter Audrey. We all even wore our green! There was a band, but the girls loved the horses, donkeys, doggies, and llamas -- oops, they were actually alpacas. (The owner made sure to correct me from the parade)
Of course, their favorite part was Daddy and his fire engine. All day Constance has been saying, "Daddy, rade! Daddy, rade!" (She can't say "p" yet)
Another cute thing about this morning: as we were waiting for the parade to begin, I couldn't help but notice all the names that parents were calling out to their kids. I've never seen so many Katies, Bridgets and Erins in one place!
We made it, and had a great time. I even rounded up Glammie, my sister Erin and her husband Jason and 4-week daughter Audrey. We all even wore our green! There was a band, but the girls loved the horses, donkeys, doggies, and llamas -- oops, they were actually alpacas. (The owner made sure to correct me from the parade)
Of course, their favorite part was Daddy and his fire engine. All day Constance has been saying, "Daddy, rade! Daddy, rade!" (She can't say "p" yet)Another cute thing about this morning: as we were waiting for the parade to begin, I couldn't help but notice all the names that parents were calling out to their kids. I've never seen so many Katies, Bridgets and Erins in one place!
Sacramento Zoo
We took the girls to the zoo a couple weeks back. They loved it, especially the monkeys and the lions. Constance and Victoria were so cute, and they rode in their backpacks the whole time, which made for a great workout for Zach and I! I have always loved the giraffes, since the little one was born when I was a kid, and I am excited that they are getting a new space soon. Zach fell in love with the red pandas and wanted to take one home, but the zoo said no.
Oh, and Victoria got really excited to go see the reptile room (she likes to say, "sssssssnake") but Zach was afraid! Just had to put that out there...
Friday, February 13, 2009
Our Disney Adventure -- Finally!
If you are reading this blog, you have probably heard our latest Disneyland story, but just in case you either had not heard, or really wanted to hear it again, here goes:We went to Disneyland on January 4. Wait - that was over a month ago! Why did it take so long to post? Well, it all started as I packed our bags for the trip...
I looked at my beloved Canon Rebel and thought, boy, that camera takes great pictures, but it really is bulky to bring to Disneyland with two toddlers. Why don't I bring my new video camera instead?! It captures stills, too, and it's SO much smaller! Well, when we got to LA and pulled out the new camera, it turned on, then turned off. We charged it. It turned on, then off. It's dead. We don't have a receipt or anything with us, and besides, Zach bought it from Best Buy, the evil store that won't take anything back after 14 days, for any reason. Awesome. Well, I say, memories are more important, so let's just go to Disneyland. There will be many more opportunities for cute pics.
As we approach the bag-check line, Victoria gets squirmy. Majorly squirmy. She starts to pull the "melt to the ground" routine while there are about 100 people in line behind us and Zach is getting the diaper bag rummaged through. "Come on, victoria, up we go," I say, pulling her to her feet. The melt turns into hysterical crying. Nice.
We proceed to the entrance of Disneyland, and Victoria won't stop crying. Weird, because she usually only fits for a minute, then she's fine, especially if you pick her up, which I did. We walk on to the main square and I see Pluto in front of the Firehouse! "Look, Victoria it's Poo-oh!" Nothing. She doesn't care. We try a couple more distractions as we walk down main street, "Wow, a real horse!" Victoria doesn't care, she is still screaming. OK, I realize, something is seriously wrong with her.Zach checks her out, and it is obvious that her arm is really hurting, but there is no way it's broken, he says. Kids don't just break their arm so easily! Nevertheless, I am starting to beat myself up - I BROKE MY CHILD!!! What kind of mother am I!?
We stand outside Snow White and call Kaiser. They direct us to urgent care in Downey. Thankfully, we have annual passes so we decide to all just leave the park. If some of us had stayed in the park, we wouldn't have had much fun, and besides, we only brought one car. Who knew how long the Dr. would take?
We are seen relatively quickly (I think a screaming toddler is like a fast-pass at urgent care) and the Dr says it was most likely a soft tissue injury, which was probably caused by pulling. (I knew it was my fault.) We take Victoria back to Ian and Vickie's and both girls have a really good nap. So good, we decide to go back. It is, after all, Zach's 30th birthday (oh, I didn't mention that?) and the day has been a bust, thus-far.
I also neglected to mention that Zach thought he was "coming down with something," which of course, I brushed off as man-whining. I couldn't have been more wrong! By the time we get back to the park, Zach is feeling and sounding terrible. We eat dinner, he unwraps the one present that security hasn't gotten to, we ride Pirates and leave.
The next day, Zach insists he is feeling somewhat better, so we try again. I can't stand not having a camera, so I buya one-time-use film camera in the park. (Who knew they still made those? I still haven't developed the pics!) Thankfully, our friends Nathan and Mindy meet us there with their kids Caleb and Luke, and Nathan has an awesome camera. He takes lots of pictures and I just got the CD in the mail. Nathan, you ROCK! These pictures totally made my day. I am so thankful to have a reminder of the best 3 hours of our trip.
Only three hours, you say? Well, turns out Zach isn't really better at all. He gets worse and worse, until he is having breathing trouble and can barely walk! It's totally awful. We just call it a visit and get home. The fun isn't over, though. By the end of our 7 hour drive home, both girls are sick and Zach's cold has developed into bronchitis. The fun continues for the next 2 weeks, until finally everyone is well and we can laugh at our Disney horror story.
The rest of Nathan's save-the-day pictures? They're on flickr, if you're interested!
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Birthday Party
Tomorrow Constance and Victoria will be two years old! I really wanted to have a party for them with some of their cutie-pie toddler buddies, but when I totaled our invite list, there were 24 people! My house is WAY too small for 18 adults and 6 toddlers, so we decided to stick with family.Thankfully, Ian and Vickie drove up for the weekend, so they were able to be here. The girls, especially Constance, have been so into drawing lately, I had yards and yards of paper with drawing on it, and I was feeling bad just getting rid of it. So, I made invitations with their artwork on the front, and a picture of them drawing on the inside with the message, "We'll draw and paint with every hue, Constance and Victoria are turning two."
This became an art theme, and I had so much fun at home depot picking out flowers and paint swatches to decorate with! I bought painters' caps for 98 cents each, and put nametags on them with Disney paint swatches. I love how the cake turned out! I had the idea to do an artist's palette, so I googled "artist palette cake" and found a picture that matched my idea exactly! I used it as a guide and it helped a lot.
The girls had lots of fun opening presents; our family friend, Kathleen, made them ballerina skirts! Constance danced and twirled, and Victoria got a kick taking hers off, then putting it on. Again, and again, and again!
As always, many more pics on flickr!
Thursday, February 5, 2009
A Nursery, No Longer
It's official, the girls' room is no longer a nursery. We've graduated to "big girl beds," which aren't nearly as sweet as the matching white cribs seen in this photo. Boo-hoo, shed a tear, move on...With my sister and brother-in-law's baby arriving pretty much at any time, I was able to trade one of my cribs with my mom, or "Glammie," as she's known around here, for a twin-sized bed with a trundle. I figure this serves two purposes: maximizing space, which is at a premium in this house, and minimizing the potential for falling out of the bed. I pull out the trundle almost all the way, but do not pop it up to full height. Toddler beds are cute, but no way am I about to shell out hundreds of dollars for two mini-beds. And I really didn't want to buy bed rails, either. Victoria would have those figured out in 2 seconds.
So far, so good, I suppose. Almost two may seem a little early to transition to the bed, and perhaps Constance could have remained in the crib. Victoria, on the other hand, had mastered the crib escape and was getting far too comfortable balancing on the headboards between the two cribs. It made me nervous. Well, as nervous as I get anyway, which is more like, "hmm, that might not be good."Tonight will be night 4 in the bgb's. Each night has gotten progressively better. The girls love their newfound freedom so they run around their room, pull diapers out, remove all the books from the shelf, giggle and jump, but eventually they both get to sleep. Sometimes they sleep on the floor.
At least there's one plus to transitioning early: they can't open the door!
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