Puddles

We had a torrential rainfall today, and the girls enjoyed every moment, from raindrops falling on their heads, to splashing in the puddles afterwards.

The Birthday

32 has always been a special number for me. So contrary to my last couple of birthdays, I was actually looking forward to this one!
I was happy to spend the day in Cedar city with my sister and mother. I woke up to gray skies and drizzle. Never having had a rainy birthday before, I was at a loss for what to do. Mom and I both looked up and said, "I bet it's not raining in St. George!" (Jinx). So we drove 45 minutes only to discover that it was, indeed raining in St George.
We found a small celebration in a park, and Siena exclaimed, "Mom, we found your birthday!" As it turns out, it was a celebration for Americans with Disabilities. Pretty cool really, complete with a firetruck that the celebrants could climb in and get pictures taken. Needless to say, we didn't stay long (awkward), but Siena was adamant that it was "the best birthday ever!" ONly later did she realize, "But mommy, they forgot your birthday cake!"
Later on, I went to dinner with my sister at the only decent eat in town, Thai Basil. We had a 45-minute wait for drinks (tap water), and watched all of the larger parties that came in after us get served first. It was very busy, with a visible staff of only 2 people. On one of our 2 exchanges with the waiter, he asked if we knew why it was so busy- if there was a convention or something going on in town. I replied, "Well, it's my birthday, but I doubt all these people came to celebrate that." He wrote "Happy Birthday" on our bill. As we got up to leave, they started playing a jazzy "Happy Birthday" song over the sound system. I thought, "Awesome! This almost makes up for the terrible service!" Then a waitress came out with a large plate of Thai donuts with ice cream and a candle in the the middle, walking right towards me. I smiled a huge smile, then watched her continue past me to one of the larger groups that came in 20 minutes after us and got served first. She told one of the girls "Happy Birthday!" I said "Thank You!" and we walked out.
Then we went home, ate a chocolateless :( red velvet cake from Costco, then set off some fireworks. That was awesome, as I have always wanted to light fireworks on my birthday. This was the perfect year to do it since Utah celebrated pioneer day on the 25th, and my birthday is on the 26th. So fun! Overall, a memorable birthday!

Brea and the Beach

The girls and I went to Brea, California this summer to visit my childhood friend Shauna, and to visit the beach. We had the most amazing time, and the best food ever (Shauna is an awesome cook, among other things). Brea is a beautiful area, and it was so good to catch up with Shauna!
The girls loved the beach, and Siena made sand angels. Tessa just wanted to go in the water without being held or even holding my hands. She went under the water briefly twice, but that didn't stop her. I was hoping it would instill a healthy fear of the water so she would use a little caution, but no such luck!
In fact, when I took the girls to an arboretum the next day, Tessa went head first into the duck pond. I fished her out, and she just kept on walking, with a huge smile on her face, completely unphased by the fact that she had nearly drowned 2 seconds earlier. What an adventurous spirit!

Playing Dirty

some pics that cousin Katri took of Tessa playing dirty :)

Baby Abigail

My darling niece was born at home on July 20. She weighed 9 lbs. My sister's recovery has been amazing! I am a little jealous that she got to do a water birth, since that is what I have always wanted, but hey! I am so proud of her! She was amazing! And what a DARLING little baby!

Happy 4th!

This year for the 4th of July, we made the mistake of going to the Freedom Festival parade in Provo. The streets were too crowded, the people very rude, couldn't find a spot to see the floats, and we vowed never to go again. In contrast, the 24th of July parade in Cedar City was totally awesome! Plenty of room for everyone, the people were very friendly, the floats threw out candy, coupons, frisbees, etc. It was so fun!
Regardless, the girls favorite part of the 4th this year was playing at the park after the parade.

Cedar City Spring

In April, I spent a couple days in Cedar City, where my sister's friend took some great pics of the girls and me. I think she is a great photographer!

Best Dinner Everywhere!

Breakfast Conversation this morning:
Siena: "Mommy, this is the best dinner everywhere!"
Mommy: "I'm glad you like it!"
Siena: (burps loudly)
Mommy: "Siena, what do you say?"
Siena: "That's my tummy saying Thank you!"

Blessingway

We had Melissa's Blessingway last night. It is basically is celebration of the expectant mother. Rather than lots of gifts, silly games and lots of fluff at a baby shower, this is a small, intimate expression of love with only the closest of friends. Melissa chose 4 life-long friends to come to participate, and one of them even drove from Seattle! (Thanks, Jen. That means a lot!) We prayed, sang, brushed hair, washed feet, bellydanced, henna'd, wrote meaningful stories, spoke affirmations and exchanged beads, participated in a web of womanhood and closing of the bones. It was a deeply moving and spiritual experience.

got her wheels

Tessa has found her wheels, in almost every sense. She started going up and down starts the day after she learned to walk, running a couple weeks after, and now, all she want to play with is her big sister's trike. She is in such a hurry to grow up, I just want to push pause for awhile. Sigh... But she is always so happy and proud of herself when she climes on and pretends to ride, I can't help but smiling too :)

Potty Training, take 40

So the saga continues... We started down this path about a year ago, but Siena wasn't emotionally ready (physically, she has been ready for over a year). It has become something of a power struggle. But she knew that when she turned 3, all the diapers would go away. Afterall, she is starting preschool in the Fall, and she's got to be potty trained. We are using bigger rewards this time. Every time she goes, she gets a chocolate chip. If she stays dry through her nap time, she gets a sucker. If she can make it through the whole night, she can watch her favorite show, play with her new motorized car that she can ride in (I got it today at a garage sale for $15- sweet!), get a popsicle, basically, you name it. This one hasn't actually happened yet, but she's getting closer ;)
So when she earned her sucker yesterday, it was so sweet to see her share with her little sister. She is so good to Tessa!

Siena is 3!!

We kept Siena's simple and outdoors. We filled up the kiddie pool, pulled out the slip n' slide, put a sprinkler under the trampoline, and called it a party. The kids had a blast! :)

3K

Have you ever ran a marathon? Or wanted to run a marathon? Is it on your bucket list?
It seems like everybody and their dog is running, has run or is planning to run a marathon. Apparently, it's just the thing to do.
I am not one of those people. Running has never been my thing. I don't enjoy it, I don't get a rush, I just get tired and sweaty. I respect those who do enjoy it, I just can't relate to them.
So when my whole school put on a 3K to benefit the art and music programs, and everyone was required to participate, I hesitated. I decided I could do it if I walked the whole way, and I could take my girls with me. And with a record-breaking time (for me, since it was my first and likely only) of 1hr, 8 minutes, I made it all the way to the finish line :)

Garden Goddesses

We are loving the garden this year! Lots of hard work went into this garden, and Siena loved every minute of it! She loved finding bugs, planting seeds, digging with her hand shovel, and most of all, finding worms. She is a freak of nature, er um, I mean, a nature freak. ;)
Tessa's favorite is the dirt. She loves to eat dirt.
It's nice to see that things are starting to grow and all the hard work is starting to pay off.
Thanks mom and dad!

Hiding Place

Siena's favorite game is currently Hide & Seek. We count to 10, and usually before we get a chance to "search" for her, she jumps out of her hiding place and shouts, "Here my am!" As it turns out, Tessa found a special place of her own to hide out.

Slug Stomper and Worm Warrior

It has been raining an awful lot here lately. A ridiculous amount, actually. Since rainy days were getting pretty boring staying in the house all day, we took advantage when the sun came out last weekend. Siena wanted to save all the earthworms that were on the driveway. We also found the biggest worm I have ever seen in my life!
Unfortunately, the rain also unearthed the slugs. I was pretty horrified at how many slugs there were creeping around. Every time we saw one, Siena would say "Mom, step on it!" But she refused to do it herself. Her mission was to save the worms. And she was making up songs about her wormy friends the whole time. We dedicated over 2 hours to stomping slugs and saving worms that day :)