Fathers' Day at The Pool

We headed to the pool for swimming and dinner. After only a few visits to the pool, the boys are getting very comfortable in the water. They can stay in there until their lips turn blue.

The place was busy and Jessica visited with one of her friends from middle school. They run in to one another around town and their children know one another. T played with Ryder and was impressed to find they both wear teething beads, although Ryder has an anklet and T wears his around his neck. E and Lily spent their time climbing the tree. Jessica? Well she mostly enjoyed a Mai Tai while the Fathers took the boys in the water.

I got to hold V, she was particularly cute in her swimsuit.

Costco Run

Our cupboards are bare. We have been getting through the end of our busy season depleting our reserves. Our list was getting longer and longer and we made the mad dash today. We got there as it opened and Dave may have snagged the best parking spot, ever. We can tell we're old because we're excited about the parking spot. Funny because we were among all the older couples who were shopping. I told Dave we could come here and feel like the youngun's. He said, yeah, that would work only for a few more years.

We go in with a list and just look for our items. We NEVER wander and see what they have. J asked us to look for a swim vest for T so I suggested we wander in to the middle aisle and see what they have and we found the swim vests and bought two. Now, I should explain the importance of this event. My husband HATES (and I do not think I'm exaggerating when I say that) to shop. He is a hunter. He goes for exactly what he needs, buys it, and leaves as quickly as possible. We get back on task and then as we round that last corner, I say "hey, let's see if there's anything that would be useful for the boys". I'm expecting him to, well, I'll say it kindly, not take this suggestion well.  My husband shocks me and keeps me on my feet by saying, YEAH! We found matching PJs (remember, they LOVE to match) and a pair of shorts for E.

The boys came over this afternoon, we showed them the stuff, and they STRIPPED ON THE SPOT and put on those PJs! They wore them all afternoon and wore them back home. I'm pretty sure they slept in them tonight.

Never mind that T only wanted to put one shoe back on, and that G.Pa put Octonauts on the TV and they didn't want to pose for photos, they are still adorable.

Traditions - Easter

I have been remiss in posting. I've been a little busy wrapping up my terrible, horrible, no good, very bad tax season. Here's a little something until I have the time to post a bit more.....

I make Easter baskets...I've tried to break the habit like a few years ago when we were gone on a ride to SoCal so I wasn't around to deliver a basket. I just can't help myself. Here's a quick photo of the 2013 basket.

There were chocolate bunnies for the boys (or their parents if they're the ones who actually ate them), some gummy bunnies from Trader Joe's, and a complete swim wear set from Land's End. We went all out.....swim trunks, rash shirt (all the rage, SPF etc. and to think we all just wore swimsuits, how did we ever survive?), towels, and goggles. Oh, and I should mention that they match because my boys LOVE to match. Ezra did explain to me that they aren't real twins because they were not born at the same time. Thanks, E. And there is a homemade (of course) card with gift cards inside for the big kids.

We had a fabulous dinner with friends and family. A special shout out to Teresa for the delicious scalloped potatoes, and wine from John, along with the ham from Lucille. The dessert was the only disappointment...should have stuck with my first choice and not been sucked in by the lovely looking (yet dry) cake eggs.

We begin the day with worship because, well, it is Easter. This is the one day where I round up everyone and they attend with me. I would like to say it was for something other than what it really is.....our GREAT egg hunt!!! Seriously. It is FABULOUS. I think the boys believe that's how we worship every week. Oh, and the playground is so wonderful too.

We had a wonderful time celebrating the resurrection of our Lord.

Imitating Jesus

Tuesday night family dinner wouldn't be complete without a bath for the boys. This gives the adults time to chat and brings calming for the wee ones before dessert. The water is filling in the tub and E is ready to jump in. I say "hey, you can't get in the water with your clothes on" and he tells me "Jesus gets in the water with his clothes on". I then have to break it to this sweet child..."yeah, but you're not Jesus, so take your clothes off before you hop in the tub".  He's always good for a chuckle.

We Have A Winner

We continue to have Family Night...aren't you proud of us? We're keeping this up and I 'm having a great time.  I'm enjoying searching the internet to find tasty recipes. My rules are something that can feed a group, is tasty, and I can prepare and get on the table while still being able to visit with everyone. I still need to get some work done during the day too.

Most of my searching is done on Pinterest......hello, my name is Edie and I am a Pinaholic. My Food Boards are very full and I've actually prepared many of them. There's a whole lot of crappy websites, and so many people think they explain things well and they don't. The reason Pioneer Woman has so many followers, well, she is fabulous. Decades ago I found new recipes in the Wednesday edition of the local paper. Things change some, but not that much.

I think I've found a new favorite website to checkout, DeepSouthDish.com. With the cold and dark days, I was looking for comfort food and found a winner......Hamburger Steak with Creamy Onion Gravy. This is fabulous! My SIL told me to double the recipe the next time I prepare this.....this will appear on my table again....and again....(So sorry Jessica that there weren't enough leftovers for your next meal).

Here it is while cooking.....please notice the camera trouble continues. I'm wondering if the mirror is not lifting up quickly enough because it seems like the first photo has the blackness and then the other frame taken right after does not....I think I need to find a camera shop.

Here it is on the table....

and here's my youngest grandchild....now I'm just showing off....

and yes, that is an owie on his forehead.....he face plants in the same spot so much that I think he's rubbing his skin down and bleeding....he'll learn.

After dinner we clean up, have dessert, and then bathe the grandchildren. Honestly, I ask you, does it get any better than this? No it does not!!!!  I'm leaving out the parts where Lucky is dragged in and furniture is rearranged, the boys make a huge mess, balls are hurled down the hall, little hands are dragged along the white walls, snuggles are handed out freely, books are read (and tossed and gnawed on), the lights are turned on and off when the switch can be reached, and so many other activities all crammed in to two plus hours.

Crazy Grandparents

Our two grandsons ( 3 yrs & 16 mos) spent an afternoon with us at our home. It's freezing cold outside so we're stuck inside. What to do?

Yep, bring the toy inside. That's the Harley Big Wheel, with flashing lights, horns, music, and various loud noises.

We got the motorcycle for Ezra, well he was the only one way back then. He is sharing it with Theo now. At least he's learning to share with Theo. First E rode it, then T got on it...until E sat on it too and squished T and I rescued T by lifting him up and off of it, and then T was miffed that his brother did this, and then I had to snuggle T and kiss him repeatedly on his ears and neck while saying sweet Grandma things about how marvelous he is.

Then they moved on to have T follow E and push him along. Oh, and please notice the cute sweaters. As E likes to "match" with his baby. He told me they bought them at Target.

And what is going on with my camera? I thought it was my lens, but now I'm pretty sure it's the camera.

Hair....don't like it when it gets in the eyes...a bit too Bieber if you ask me. Oh, you didn't ask me?

The boys haul down the hallway and they may have crashed in to the door once or twice. Which is completely crazy if you knew how much we paid for the solid wood doors that go perfectly in our home. Oh, and then there were the times that the wheel dragged along the wall as they were racing....no worries, we'll have that painted in the Spring. See? We are crazy grandparents. This would NEVER have happened when we were simply parents.

Another Morning, More Photos

I woke up and looked out the window and what did I see? THE SPRINKLERS WE ON!!!! and you know how much I LOVE that. I quickly grabbed the "good" camera that was on the table and took a shot, without looking at the setting. Then I saw movement.....probably because I had the flash on.....anyway, here's what I saw...pay no attention to the horrible composure...

OOPS....I've reached my storage limit and can't upload.  So now what? Have I reached the end of the internet? I suppose I'll need to do a bit of research.......

More Morning Photos

Here are some more photos looking outside...but with the "good" camera....can you tell a difference?

I don't think I can tell.....just goes to show you that it's the photographer and not the equipment.

Rainy Morning

I woke up and here's what I saw....

Raining buckets through the sunshine.....LOVE it

Late Summer Fun

Our grandchildren dropped by at lunch to play with their toys...when they see the toys, they act like they're new toys.....and I still can't believe Dave allows his garage to be filled with all their toys...good job G.Pa.

We didn't buy them all.....Auntie Donna gets some of the credit.....this is just one of about NINE Tonka Trucks that she donated to their stash.

And please note the totally cool Converse shoes that E is sportin'........

How Did This Happen So Quickly?????

What a difference one year makes.  The big difference for us is that Ezra can barely fit in the Cozy Coupe and Theo has moved in to the driver's seat.....I thought they'd both ride in it and share, but you can see how that's working out....

The bottom right photo was one year ago....just before Theo was born....a bit over one year...amazing.

Bubble Time

One of the very best things about living so close to our grandchildren is that they can drop by for a quick visit...or a long visit.  We get to see our little dudes a couple times a week.  I was asking Dave if they would talk about their crazy G.Ma that's hugging and kissing on them all the time, or if they'd feel really loved.  He wisely answered that they'd feel very loved.  What a wise man I married.  Lucky me.

When we were in Reno, we saw a group of small children playing with bubbles.  Of course we checked it out and paid $10 for a flimsy bubble wand that will last a few days before breaking, if we're lucky.  We readily admit that we NEVER would have made this purchase when we were merely parents.  There's something about "Grand" being attached to parents that makes you nutty.  Really, for us to drop $10 doesn't sound like much.....unless you know us.....it's a whole new us.  Sounds downright silly when I say it out loud, but that's how we once rolled.

End of Summer Swimming

We've been squeezing out every last summer moment at the pool. E.Boy is gaining confidence in the water, making new friends, and LOVING the snack bar. He tells grandma that he's hungry, we walk to the snack bar, he asks to be lifted up to look at the pictures and tell the attendant that he wants candy. He now knows about candy bars. Snickers are his new favorite and he will share with his mama when asked. Although there was that one time he shoved the last big part in his mouth (it barely fit) and looked at her and tried to say there was nothing left. He couldn't really say it because his mouth was full. So full that you could see the bar in his mouth. How do they know to do that before they're three?!

He's made a new friend.  She's really good with E.Boy and plays games with him.  They found this fish squeeze toy that they fill up with water and squirt in each other's face.  Silly, but hey they enjoy it. This little girl spends her day at the pool.  J was shocked to hear this.  There are lifeguards, so I couldn't see the problem.  Especially since this is how J's father spent his summer.....swimming all day at the Club pool.  He has plenty of stories, most I'm sure he's not telling. When E.Boy was corrected by the lifeguard for running and something else, I turned to J and said "your father would be so proud".  She wasn't really seeing the humor.

Baby T was having some fun too.  Why is it so difficult to get both looking spectacular and cute at the same time? Be impressed when you see a photograph where everyone looks good.

Baby T takes a few dunks in the pool (which is tough, have you tried to hold a slippery baby and keep them from drowning lately?), snacks, and pretty much crawls all over with the two of us watching and keeping him out of trouble.....it takes two of us....while watching is big brother too.  Honestly, I have NO idea how we're going to handle THREE.  We will though.

When I Woke Up This Morning

I LOVE sleeping in until the sun has warmed the Earth. I'm married to someone that can barely wait until the sun rises so he can spring out of bed and get the day started. Somehow we make it work. Today I couldn't linger since I had an appointment with the dentist first thing in the morning. I like my dentist (I liked my former dentist too, but he cheated on his taxes and went to prison and now that he's a convicted felon he lost his license, plus it was weird going to a dentist that cheated on his taxes) but I LOVE the hygienist. I liked the other one, but I LOVE this one. I was looking forward to seeing her again and finding out what was going on in her life. I enjoy the feeling of clean teeth too. 

I climbed out of bed and what did I see? Well I saw this lovely sight!

Well I might just consider getting up early just to see something this lovely......I wish I was a better photographer so I could better capture just how beautiful this looks.  I was handicapped since I was still in my nightgown and the crew was down there working which limited my angles...and I was afraid that if I took the time to get dressed, it would all be gone.

I did get to the dentist only to find that someone had come in the night and stolen the compressor (it's outside, like an air conditioning unit).  This was most likely for the copper that lines the interior of the unit.  My dentist moved here about a year ago and his neighbors didn't tell him that this happened to all of them on one night not too long ago so they now bolt and chain their units.  My dentist will be bolting and chaining his new compressor, that's what he told me when we were rescheduling my appointment.

Swim Time

We had the boys for the entire day and it was a warm summer day so we figured the pool would be a perfect activity. As soon as T wakes up from his am nap, we start packing up to go to the pool.  The kids told us we should borrow the double stroller, but we figured we were fine with our umbrella style stroller...little error....T is very heavy!!  Anyway, we're all ready to rock and roll....off we go to walk to the Club pool.  I'm wearing flip flops, big mistake, I had a blister that lasted almost a week after the walk.  That's because our house is about one-half mile from the pool.  And E walked the entire way there!

I'm holding E's hand, while he's walking on the berms, or whatever he can find to explore.  I could tell he was getting a little weary, and it was so far.  I thought I was going to pick him up and then I got the look from Dave.  He told me I can't baby him..... but he is a baby!  Now E is chattering the entire walk and Dave said "if he can talk, he can walk".  E never asked to be picked up, or even slowed down. What a trooper.

Living so close to the Club we keep an "active membership" so we can use the facilities.  Mostly that's the little gym for workouts.  We also have pool privileges and the pool is fabulous.  Dave has a love affair with this place.  He has such fond memories of his youth spent here.  He even said it is a strange sense being at the pool, sort of deja vu.

We staked out an area in the shade.  I sat on the lounge chair with T, big mistake, I sat in a wad of gum.  Why don't people throw their gum in the trash can?  Fortunately I was able to get this off when we got home (LOVE Amway stain remover).  T is such a content little guy.  We put a blanket out and he was happy to sit on it and eat crackers.  Dave and E went straight to the pool.

When you get in the pool, do you jump right in?  Or do you ease in, little by little?  Dave's a jumper and I'm an easer.  The pool was a perfect temperature and I was able to just walk right in. The pool is one huge pool with a separation to make it swim team size.  We kept to the side that starts at 2 feet and works up to 4 feet.  This is perfect for E.  He can stand at the shallow end.  E did get a little cold...isn't he cute in his Spiderman swim trunks?  Thank you Swenson cousin for the hand-me-down.

There's a snack bar at the pool, so we decided to have lunch poolside.  I walked over with E to get something.  They have photos of stuff right by the order window.  So of course E selected a Butterfinger for lunch (Sorry J, I know you're screaming about now).  I suggested "growing food" but he wanted a Butterfinger.  I'm sure he had no idea what a Butterfinger is, since his mama would NEVER allow that.  I'm the grandma, so of course he got a Butterfinger.  He ate half.  Dave and I split a burger and fries, sharing with T.

I lathered up the boys with zinc sunscreen.  They are both pretty white, most especially E.  I see by the photo that I could have done a better job rubbing it in.

I think Dave will be swimming with E for lessons next Spring, it's time....and J has her hands full so it most likely will be Dave.  It is SPECTACULAR living so close to our grandsons..oh, and their parents too.

Patio Time

Dave is in love with his home.....always has been, and most likely always will be.  I knew when I married him that one day I would be living in Castlewood.  The guy is enamored with the place.  I was pretty pleased with our other home....within walking distance of Downtown Pleasanton, good neighbors.  Alas, the move was on.  I feel at home now.  Mostly I'm just really happy that he's really happy.

Just about every afternoon, when he's finished working, he announces that "it's Patio Time" and he walks out back.  He usually has a glass of wine and something to read.  I know if we had lounge chairs he would be fast asleep.  This is particularly funny to me because this is exactly what his dad did when he was alive and living here.

You must admit, this really is like living in a resort.  Can you tell me why we ever leave?

Oh, and Dave is teaching our oldest grandson to call this Castlewood, and not Grandpa & Grandma's.  E.Boy says it so cute too......Castle.WOOD.