What??!! My baby is FIVE!!??

Was it really five years ago when I held Holden to my chest for the first time? Little did I know what was in store for me. . . .Such a precious dark curly haired lil guy, Holden has grown to be a handsome, spunky, full of energy boy who is full of love but don't stand in his way . . . or else. . . . (If you've every stood in his way you know exactly what 'or else' means).

Every day is a new adventure . . . sometimes a challenge . . . but the hugs, kisses, and cuddles (and the foot massages) at the end of the day is worth it all.

Last fall Caden and Holden got themselves a kitchen spoon and dug a couple holes to put plant some bulbs in our front yard. They were very delighted today when we found these beautiful lavendar flowers sprouting from the ground after long since forgetting their labor.

Fresh lil' hand made orange juice

Caden Picking Oranges

Holden Juicing Oranges

Mom and Dad Enjoying Oranges!!

Quiet time please . . .

Gotta love boys. They never. . . let me repeat . . . NEVER stop fighting (unless they are asleep). I was trying to take a test for my online logic class tonight and despite separating them to different rooms and trying to convince them that it was past 10 o'clock and indeed bedtime, they did not get the hint. They continued to argue . . .So I instructed them to immediately get a blanket and a pillow and lay in the kitchen floor, while I did my homework at the table. They were not allowed to make a sound. . . 3 minutes later . . .

. . .my house is so peaceful . . . besides my dog snoring and the keyboard clicking I am finally sitting in complete silence . . . who wants to do homework now??

I cannot believe that the time has finally come!

It has been a long, hard road - - - but lots of fun along the way.

Polar Bear Boys

Okay, it is not actually the middle of winter, but that pool is COLD. Caden said, "It is colder than the freezer box!" Holden said," AAHHHHH its freezinger than cold. shiver, shiver" They have been begging to get in the pool for the last week so to curb the crying, I agreed to the madness. Unfortunately, I think I made it worse! After I forced them to get out. Holden cried at the back door until I had to use corporal punishment to stop the fit.
(pics downloaded from end to beginning and I was not about to manually fix it. So you will have to go to the bottom of the pics and scroll up to get them in the right sequence)

the little bunny's cold

yeah, my kids rock!

the cold dance

no, I didn't push him

sputtering cold!

okay. . . I did push him here . . . but he just didn't have the guts to go all the way. . . :)

polar bearing around . . .

oh yeah! its cold!

having trouble getting off the 1st step.

More Anniversary pics

Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad!!

My parents celebrated their 30th Anniversary saturday night (actual anniversary date is the 13th). We had a good time visiting family and friends- most of whom we only get to see on special occassions- and reminising the past 30 years.

Bye-Bye, puppy.

My puppy found a new home on Wednesday. The craigslist ad finally paid off. Now its time to clean up my back yard from all the chewed up toys and sprinkler system.

Anybody want a puppy???

Three weeks ago, on the way back from my parents house in Wasco, I was driving through the country and almost hit a lil' puppy sitting in the middle of the road. At first I thought it was injured since it didn't even attempt to move when I almost plowed into him. I made a U-ee and discovered it was a healthy pup . . . except for the ticks (disgusting!) . . . looked like a lab/pit mix. I searched at all the nearby homes (there were only 3) and nobody would claim him or accept a new dog. I couldn't just leave him there to die, so needless to say, I still have him. I have placed several ads with craiglist and have had no takers. He really is a good puppy, but Caden and I clean up enough dog poop with Mr. Tubbs and Missy we don't need anymore. Any takers out there??