Pictures...

Holy smokes...I'm actually crossing things off my list tonight!

A few of the scrapbook pages I made over the weekend:

Martin and the girls had some fun with Auntie Katie while I was gone too...

This and That

Well since I haven't posted in a while- and I haven't taken any pictures in longer I thought I would share just a bit about what we've been up to.


I had a long lovely weekend away at a cabin on the beach on Whidbey Island. It was with some friends scrapbooking all weekend. I really needed a little getaway and I made some good progress on my scrapbooks. Lily's first year is very nearly complete- probably only two pages to go. I also worked on a mini Christmas album and got organized to finish the album of Lily's 4th year. I was going to take pictures last night but I was so tired I fell asleep before I got anything done. The problem with scrapbooking is life happens too fast and I'll never ever catch up...at least I guess I'll never run out of material!

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Three girls, two bathroom mirrors. We're apparently going to have to make a morning schedule. Oy. Or get another mirror...

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Lily has lost several more teeth recently. She's currently missing 3 of the 4 front teeth on the top row and 1 on the bottom front. Apparently now one of her molars is loose. The poor thing is having trouble eating some of her favorites like garlic bread and carrots..too crunchy!

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Kendra's birthday is coming right up on April 14th. We're planning to go to Lynnwood pool with a couple of her friends from school. I made her invitations last week- they are pretty cute so I'll try to post a picture of that one as well. We have kind of a Hawaiian theme going on since we'll be going swimming.

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I'm really excited for the produce stand to open again this weekend. Fruits and veges are so expensive at the grocery store. We'll eat healthier and have more variety going to the fruit stand. When we did the juice diet in the Fall we were able to get a cart full of local fruits and vegetables for a fraction of the cost...hoping we can start making juice again as well and get back on track with dare I say it...exercising???

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I'm still battling an ear infection that started last month. What a pain! So far I've almost completely lost hearing on my right side. Supposedly it should come back when the infection is cleared. Everyone is getting tired of me not being able to hear though. Lily gets so frustrated when I have to ask her to repeat herself especially when we are driving in the car. I can't hear a thing they say from the back seat. So...here's hoping.


I know there is more I just can't think of it at the moment. Hope everyone is doing well : )

We had some fun too

Heritage night at the Elementary School

Making Milegros

Paper Cranes

 Happy Birthday Martin...the big 3-7! Wahoo!

Crazy Kids...

This is just terrifying...so I had to share the terror, of course.

Dusting off this shelf

I can't believe it is weeks since I posted. The truth is we've had so much going on day to day there hasn't been any way for me to fit it all in. But that's not the whole truth. More than just the day to day, I've struggled to put into words how I feel about all that is happening with me, around me etc. I lay in bed at night putting thoughts together- attempting some sort of coherency. Trying to tell our story without telling the WHOLE story. There's been a rocky under current through these last weeks that makes posting about the things we're doing even tougher.

I haven't been patient enough with the girls. I feel anger bubbling too close beneath the surface when they bicker between themselves for the umpteenth time in a day. Part of me says this is how "sisters" act- completely normal behavior- the other part of me will do anything the put an end to it. Anything to put a stop to the tattling, whining, bad attitude, fit throwing cacophony that is our home.

My younger brother John and I used to play together. Despite a 3 year age difference we quite often found something to do that entertained us both. One of my favorite memories is the "Betro World we made out if Legos. It started with a lego bus/vehicle of some sort which turned into a fleet. To us it was like the metro bus fleet only a bunch of the legos had the letter "B" printed on them so we called it the Betro. We took pictures of everything we made and were very proud of what we had built and done together.

We fought too. I remember being so pissed at him for something when we were teenagers that I slapped him right across the back. I can still feel the burn and shame of that slap on my palm. I hated myself for doing. I'm not sure I ever apologized. To this day I hate that I resorted to hitting him even when I clearly knew better.

I know having both girls here with us will teach them a lot and hopefully keep them close as they grow. I want them to treat each other as sisters and nothing short of that. I hate hearing them fight. I see each of them feed off of the other's weakness for their own gain. It hurts and angers me to the point that at the time I can't be a truly effective parent. I don't think I come off as a very loving or accepting parent though I feel just the opposite - so much pain when they are not loving or accepting of each other. It gets complicated and sticky.

It's this balance I keep coming back to. Finding it somewhere in the midst of it all. This complicated web of feeling and doubt, justice and pain. There has to be a balance of sisterly interaction versus politeness and empathy. A balance of interception on my part and correcting versus shaming. A balance of open arms and discipline.

I'm always walking these fine lines. I see it as some gigantic web we're all weaving, walking, and attempting to mend along the way. A balance of careful navigation on what's just ahead, what's far ahead and looking back to were we've come from and oh so much more.

I think I've gone on long enough for the evening though I feel like I've barely scratched the surface of all the thoughts shaping themselves in my head. I hope to post more about this stuff soon.

I really do have some fun stuff to share too. We've been playing and having fun too believe it or not.