School is in session...

I started back to work the day after my birthday. We had a couple of teacher days and then the kids came back. It was nice going back to the same school I was at last year. I hope that I can be there next year.

I am working in 7th grade with my same students from last year. It is great working with them again. I got to know them well last year so it is nice to continue to build that relationship with them and their families. I got to see a few of my parents (of students) on Back to School night and they were so happy to see that I was back. It felt like they were happy with the job I did last year and truly happy to have me helping their kids.

I am working with a great team of teachers and feel like I am part of that team. It feels good and I am happy to be back.

I start back to CSUS on August 30 for my Level 2 credential and my Master's. I took a placement test on Monday and I hope I scored well enough that I don't have to take an extra course. Please hope and pray with me. I am excited about going back but scared about the amount of work and time it will need from me on top of my full time job. I know that I can do and that I have a great support system at home so that helps. I will be done in a year, I can do anything for a year.

Everything else is going good. The girls transitioned back to daycare full time very well and are enjoying it. Tomorrow is Pajama day and they are happy about that. Evelyn is funny and a talker. Camille is learning more words and we are pushing her to say more words. She is hilarious and loves to dance. She is also loving the bath and will just lay in their on her back with the water surrounding her. It is great.

Last Saturday, we walked over to the park behind our house and went to Saturday in the Park. It was amazing! The girls LOVED the bounce houses and music. I saw a lot of students, teachers, my principal and even my superintendent. Richard got to meet them all as well. It was a really great family night and I am glad that we are close enough to walk to it.

Pictures to come.

Happy 3rd Birthday Evelyn!

Today my oldest daughter turned 3. I can't believe it has been 3 years already. She has changed so much and continues impressing and amazing us everyday.

This has been a year of laughter, making new friends, expressing feeling and having preferences. Her favorite food is chicken, her favorite color is purple, her favorite animal is the tiger (these all from her mouth).

She has been a blessing in our lives and we are so happy that God gave her to us.

To celebrate her 3 wonderful years of life, we had a party for her on Saturday with friends and family. It was quite the turn out with even neighbors coming over. It was a great time. We ate, we talked and we ate some more. We sang happy birthday and had cake and ice cream. She loved having friends over. The kids ran up and down the house for a good portion of the party.

She got some great things from people and we are starting to play with them all. So far we have colored with crayons and markers, played dress up, played tea party, took pictures, wore her new dress, read all the new books and played the games she got. Tinkerbell and the My Little Ponies have also come out to be played with and the giant 10ft alphabet puzzle we put together the first night. It has been fun.

Today we had breakfast together and then had lunch with Daddy at work. We played and played. Tonight we had her favorite dinner (Chicken) and ate the last of the birthday cake after singing and blowing out candles again. She also got to talk to Yaya and Papa. To end the night we read books and she and Richard went for a walk. What a great day.

Here are some pictures from the party. She did great for not having a nap. She went until about 8:30 and then crashed HARD. She had a wonderful time and was happy to have people celebrate with her.

Happy Birthday my sweet girl.

Evelyn's Birthday Party!

Gearing Up and Winding Down...

Gearing up for the new school year and winding down from summer fun. I cannot believe school starts in 2 weeks and I have to be back 2 days before that. At least we have some fun festivities to end the summer. Evelyn's birthday party is this weekend and we cannot wait. We are going to have fun seeing family and friends and celebrating our little girl turning 3. I will for sure take pictures and post them ASAP.

We have been having fun around here. Evelyn had her 3 year checkup yesterday with Dr.Brandle. She weighs 26.3lbs and is 38 1/4 inches tall. She met all her milestones and did great with the dr. She did everything he asked her too and even told him about her birthday and new shoes. She didn't have to get any shots which told us about for the rest of the day.

After the doctors we went to William Land Park and had a picnic (the girls and I) and then went to the zoo. We had a great time. Evelyn really liked the Chimpanzees this time and didn't want to leave the exhibit. We walked around for a while, shared and pretzel and rode the train before heading back to the car for naps on the way home. It was a great day with the girls. Everyone was happy and there was no crying!

Evelyn has been taking nightly walks with Richard, which she LOVES. It started when we were having problems with bedtime. It has been working (hopefully didn't jinx myself) but they talk about the moon, stars, our owl in the Oak Tree and the flowers along the street. She tells me the owl says, "hoo hoo, where's the mice?" It is too cute. They truly enjoy the time together. We have even made the neighbor boy jealous and now he is "Dying to go for walks at night."

In other news, the house is still getting better but has slowed down a little as we try to spend time with the girls. They have enjoyed playing with their water table in the front yard and that sometimes lets us work out there but sometimes we sit and watch. They are growing so fast.

Camille is talking more and more and we can understand more and more. She LOVES to dance and you will turn around and she is rocking out with or without music. It is HILARIOUS! She is getting bigger and bigger and I am waiting for the day she passes Evelyn in height (already did in weight). When she is happy the whole world lights up. She has this aura about her that is amazing. She loves Evelyn (lala) and is the first place she wants to go in the morning. I look forward to seeing their relationship in the coming years.

Not much else to report.Haha. I will post pictures from the birthday. Hopefully she and everyone else will have a great time.

More Pictures!

Fun Times!

We have been busy. We are finishing up stuff around the house and Richard had been fixing and replacing a bunch of stuff. The house is really coming together. We are VERY happy here and with our choice to move to the house and area.

I start work in a couple of weeks so I am trying to get everything done in the house before I go back. The girls go to daycare 2 times a week so that gives me some time to work without them here. I feel guilty but know it is good for all of us.

Evelyn's birthday party is in about a week so I am trying to get everything ready for that as well. We are looking forward to celebrate Evelyn turning 3 with all of our friends and family.

Enjoy the pictures!

Week in Photos

Here are pictures of things we have done this week. We are going to some friends house tomorrow for some swimming and dinner and then on Saturday having some friends over to our house for a BBQ.

Enjoy the pictures!

Girls

Brownie Making with the girls.

Catching Up!

To say a lot has happened since the last post is a MAJOR understatement. We have moved into the new house and are settling in nicely. We are getting things unpacked and put where we want them. It is coming along slowly but I am looking forward to being done unpacking. We LOVE the house! It is a great house in an even great neighborhood. I think we will be happy here for a very long time. The girls are settling in nicely and have adjusted better than I anticipated they would. We are making changes all over the house and it looks 10 times better already. There is so much potential with this house, I can't wait to tackle some projects.

The girls and I surprised my dad for Father's Day. He had no idea and it was perfect. We spent a week down there while Richard worked on the house. The girls did great on the flight and the whole time we were there. The following weekend we went to Havasu to spend the week with my parents, Richard and Lavon. We played in the water a ton (the girls LOVED it), went on boat rides, seadoo rides and just played. We had a great time. No one got sunburned which was nice. We had a great time seeing friends and family during the week.

We are all doing great. Camille had a language explosion these past couple of weeks and is talking/babbling a ton. Evelyn has the amazing language. She told me the other day, "Mommy, I was hot, so I went in the water with Yaya and cooled off." OMG. She is amazing.

The other really big news is that I have a job next year and it is at Rolling Hills again. So I get my old job back which is great because I loved being there. I am looking forward to seeing my students again and really figuring out how to help them.

I should write more but I am tired and have some things to do, so I will leave you with some pictures. Enjoy!

Lake Havasu 2010

Moving!!!!

Moving day is tomorrow! I can't believe that it is finally here. We are no longer owners of the Byrd house. It is a bittersweet feeling as this is where I brought the girls home from the hospital, where we came when we got married and where we got Sandy. It is has some wonderful memories that I will always cherish and look forward to sharing with the girls. I do know that we are moving on to something bigger and better, located in good schools. I am looking forward to the possibilities at the new house.

Moving day is tomorrow and we are not ready but will make it work. We have a very slim chance of closing our new house by tomorrow but we did sign papers last night and will give our down today. We can hope, otherwise it will probably be Tuesday because of the holiday. We can't wait.

I'm sorry I have neglected my duties of the blogging world. I promise to return someday (hopefully soon) with pictures of our new house and memories already created there. In the meantime, pray we have a safe move and that the girls adjust well.

More Pics....

Pigtails and girls

Happy Mother's Day!

Hope everyone had a great Mother's Day! Here are some pictures from our day at the San Fransisco Zoo. We had a blast and the girls LOVED it.

Mother's Day '10

In other news, we are about 12 days from closing on our current house and are not sure when the other one closes. We are trying to figure out what to do during the in between time. I know that it will work out. I am looking forward to moving into the new place and enjoying the houses and areas new features.

Will write more soon (hopefully).

New House Pictures!

New House Pictures

Catching Up!

Things are crazy around here. We are in escrow and are having the home inspection this week. Hopefully we will also have the appraisal done this week so we know for sure that it will appraise for asking.

We have been looking at houses and are hoping we find and get something we love and can live in for a long time. I will let you know when that happens.

Camille is having a hard time readjusting back to daycare. Last Monday she cried and/or screamed the entire day. How sad is that? Hopefully she will be back to her happy self soon. She now has all four molars popped through. That could contribute to the crankiness as well. She is saying "papa" now. She understands far more than we think and she is VERY into testing boundaries. She really loves to laugh at you when you tell her "No thank you!" It is hard to keep a straight face but this one we will need to.

Evelyn is doing good. She now knows how to spell her name, what street she lives on and what her birthday is. It is pretty amazing. She talks so much now and has really taken a liking to our Realtor. She has come over a few times with all this house stuff and Evelyn warms right up for her which is unusual. The other night after looking at houses with our Realtor, Evelyn was sad that she couldn't see her anymore and didn't want to leave. It was cute. We came home and she drew a picture for her. Gotta love the girl.

This past weekend was BEAUTIFUL!!!! We spent most of it at the park and the zoo. We had a fabulous time. We were able to see friend and family both this weekend which is a real treat and something that doesn't happen often. We went to the zoo with Evelyn and Camille's cousins and Grandma Lavon. The girls had a blast.

I will keep everyone updated as I know more about jobs, houses and life. Enjoy the pictures for now. Love you all!

Girls April 2010

Fish - Belly and Button

Spring Break/Easter

I am off for two weeks (now less than one left), so we have been a little busy. The girls are still going to daycare 2 days a week so that the routine can stay the same as much as possible. Last week we were supposed to go to Tahoe but the weather was bad so we decided to stay home. On Thursday we went to the Folsom Zoo (which is more of a rescue zoo) as was lucky enough to have Richard join us. He had never been there so it was something new for him as well. Camille loved it as did Evelyn. At one point, Camille sat down and just stared/watched the baby chicks that we showed her. It was adorable.

Friday we went to the Sacramento Zoo for a little bit. It was raining so we didn't stay long. After the zoo, we went to Ikea and walked around before having lunch. By then my parents were in town so we headed over to the KOA to see them. Of course the girls fell asleep on the way over so we let them sleep a little while we got to catch up with my parents. Can I just say that I LOVE my parents. They are so much fun! I love seeing them and having them come up to see us.

Saturday, we took Madison to Petsmart (she was stinky) to get a bath and while we were there decided to get Evelyn and Camille a fish tank. After upgrading from a $5 bowl, we found the one we wanted and my mom found the colorful decorations for inside the tank. We were bummed to find out we couldn't get fish that day since the water had to be regulated. We will be getting them tomorrow probably. I will post a picture once we get fish in it. The girls love it already and like to look at it with the light on because it is all neon colors. It is pretty cool. I never had fish growing up so this will be fun.

Sunday was Easter and Richard's birthday so it was a busy day. We had breakfast at our house with my parents (Thanks mom for cooking!) . The girls got their Easter baskets from Uncle Scott and Aunt Nicole (Thank You!) and my parents. We gave them each a book about Jesus or Easter and then 100 Bible songs. After the girls took their naps, we went over to Lavon's for an Easter egg hunt, dinner and then to celebrate Richard's birthday. It was a nice day and the girls looked adorable in their dresses from my parents.

I think that is all for now. The girls are doing good. Camille had another molar come in this past weekend so we wasn't too happy but is better now. I will have to take some video of the girls for everyone to see how much they have changed. It is amazing!

Easter Pictures

Here are some pictures. I will post more later. I wanted you to see pictures of the girls in their adorable dresses.

Easter/Richard's Birthday

Slacking

I am sorry it has been so long... I feel that this is how I start many a posts but life as we all know can be crazy. The only reason I am on now is that I am on spring break (2 weeks) and the girls are at daycare today. You would think my day would be filled with naps and reading but it sadly isn't. I have already been to two car dealerships to get both vehicles oils changed and now I am back at home doing laundry and when done with this clean the house. Speaking of the house, we have not sold it and no one has looked at it in over 2 weeks. Please pray someone looks soon and likes it enough to buy.

The girls are doing good. Camille had her 15 month checkup yesterday. She weighs in at 26.5 lbs (95%) and she is 32 3/4 inches long (95%). She is about 2 1/2 inches taller than Evelyn was at the same age. She also officially weighs more than Evelyn by a pound. She met all her milestones and is doing well on all fronts. She had 3 shots and has to go back and get one more in the next day or so. She did good with the shots. She cried during them (who wouldn't) but stopped as soon as I picked her up. She crashed on the way home and slept for 2 1/2 hours, took another 45 minute nap in the early afternoon, went to bed at her normal time and then slept all night (this is a first in about a week). Hopefully she keeps that up. Camille is talking and communicating more and more these days. She loves dogs and points at any that she sees. She is saying please, dada, mama, sister, dog, and can say what a cow says. When she is happy it is amazing to watch her explore and enjoy playing with her sister.

Evelyn is also doing well. She is talking more and more and is expressing herself more often. The other day I accidentally ran into her and she fell over, she looked up at me and with the most stern face said, "Mommy, you knock me down." It is nice to hear her stand up for herself because she was getting picked on at daycare a little so she is learning to have a voice and I think that is great. She also knows that her birthday is August 2nd if you ask. She can tell you what street she lives on but we are still working on the numbers.

Last night while sitting at dinner with Richard, Camille and Yaya Lavon; Evelyn started spelling her name. She was sitting on Lavon's lap saying E-V-E-L-Y-N. It was so cute and we were all so proud of her. I think these are all important things to know. She is excited for Easter and we have been reading out of her Bible that Yaya Yvonne and Papa Fred bought her (she tells us this every time). She enjoys it and really likes Noah. She has socks that have Santa Claus on them but she calls them her Noah socks. Sweet!

Evelyn had her first sleepover on Saturday night. She invited her cousins over to sleep in a tent in the backyard. All the girls loved it. We ate ice cream, watched a movie and then they slept outside with Richard. The next morning we got bagels. We had a great time and Evelyn was sad that they had to go. It was cute to see them all together.

Other than that, things are status quot. My job is still up in the air but I am trying not to worry about it because there is not much that I can do. My marathon is about a month a way and I have not bee good about training for it but hope that I can still do it. Easter and Richard's birthday are both on Sunday and we are looking forward to seeing my family and having a nice time. I will post pictures soon from Easter. For now enjoy some other pictures we have taken recently.

Playing Around!

Girlie Girls!

Backyard Fun!

It's been a while...

Things have been crazy and exhausting, which is why I haven't posted.

We have officially put our house on the market. We had a few people look at it but we were their second choice and not the first. Oh well, when the right person comes along, they will buy it.

The girls are doing great and enjoying life. They both love daycare and going to see their friends. I am hoping that I have a job so that they can continue to thrive in that environment. Evelyn is sleeping in her bed most nights, which is nice. She is talking like crazy and comes up with the funniest sentences. She loves to help Camille and likes to talk for her as well. She is amazing.

Camille is teething, her molars are coming in which is no fun for anyone. She is doing ok other than that. She is started talking more. She can say milk, please, some form of thank you. She is following directions that you give her. It is impressive. She is still our stubborn and difficult one. Sometimes it feels like nothing I can do will make her happy. Maybe it is the teething. She is running all over the place and wants to do whatever Evelyn does. It is really cute to watch her dance also. Daycare has a music lady come in and Camille is one of the few in toddlers that actually dances.

My job is up in the air right now. We will know more about May 15th. It sucks the way that it works. If they cut elementary p.e., than I could potentially not have a job because a P.E. teacher holds a special education credential. She hasn't done special ed. in a while (10-15 years) but is still able to take my job from me. I don't understand how that is benefiting students. We shall see. So my job is up in the air and so is where we move to. Lots of whatifs right now.

Here are pictures. Enjoy!

New Pics

Getting there...

Well we are getting there with the house and will hopefully get it on the market in the next couple of weeks. We are having some work done this week and then a paint job and we should be good to go. I can't wait. The hardest part will be keeping the house clean with 2 young kids, a dog and both of us working full time.

This past weekend, Richard helped Elaine move and the girls and I went to a birthday party for a friend of ours who's little boy turned 3. The girls had fun and Evelyn devoured an entire cupcake. She actually wanted more but I said no. Other than that we got together with some other family and got our girl scout cookies and some good quality time together.

On another note: I am finding that with working full time I am letting some of my friendships slip away from me a little. I think of them often but do not make the time to call them or see how they are doing. For this, I feel like a bad friend. I have several friends that are having a hard time and I didn't know and wasn't there for them. It is hard when you are exhausted at the end of the day but they are my friends who have been there for me and I am not doing a good job being there for them during their hard times. To all my friends I love you and am here for you. If you need me call. I will call you back.

Craziness surrounds us

Who knew that preparing a house to be sold would be so much work? Well I guess anyone out there that has sold a house knows. It takes a lot of work and time (neither of which we have) to make a house ready to sell. Nonetheless, we are plugging away in hopes (my hopes) of listing before the end of February. I think it still can be done but we have some big stuff to do before than.

I do not have school tomorrow so Richard took the day off so we could work around the house without the kids (going to daycare). It was going to be prefect: able to get things done around the house, painting, lawn mowing, etc. until Evelyn came down with hives on Friday night. She has been on antibiotics for an ear infection and after a week on them she developed hives, so tomorrow I have to take her to the dr. to get her ear looked at and make sure that it is healed and she doesn't need any other antibiotics. We are planning on taking Camille still so hopefully some work will get done.

Some updates:

Evelyn: Other than the hives and not liking her bed, is doing well. She just helped me make some brownies for tonight. She remembers so much it is amazing. She remembers where things are better than we do. She is a happy and healthy (mostly) child and for that I am grateful.

I did have a bad mommy moment today. I was spinning her around in the yard for a little bit and when I put her down she threw up a little bit. She was fine after that but was sad looking when she did it. Bad mommy!


Love her smile on this one... so pure.

Camille: Camille can identify her head, belly, feet, ears and hands. It is adorable when she shows off her belly. She also started giving high fives which I can't wait to see my brothers because they will get a kick out it. She is doing well and learning more everyday. She follows directions we ask her. Simple ones like sit down, find your shoes, or let's go change your diaper. She amazes us. I try to relish in her curiosity and exploration, as our last child I want to take in every moment that I can.


She wanted her PJs on but also her shoes. She was VERY happy running around like this.

Richard and I are doing well. Trying to get the house ready and dreaming of the possibilities of a new house in our future excites us. We aren't looking for anything extravagant but something that we can grow as a family in and still have some space. We are looking in areas with good school districts and are safe. Wish us luck in selling our house and finding one we can grow as a family in.

Trying to sell...

Well we are going to be trying to sell our house in the next few weeks. Hopefully it will sell quickly at a good price. It is a nice house and is pretty clean and updated. We are hoping to sell here and find something up the hill that will meet the needs we have now.

We haven't taken pictures lately and for that I am sorry. We have been so busy that we forget about the pictures. I did get video of Evelyn singing and Camille dancing. It was really cute. I will post (hopefully) some day in the near future.

Not much is happening (other than trying to sell the house). Evelyn WILL NOT sleep in her bed. She will sleep on the floor, couch, her tiny chair in her but NOT the bed. We even bought a sleeping bag for her and that didn't work. I am hoping that it is just a phase and that it doesn't last long. We don't know if she had a bad dream that makes her not want her bed or what. It has been this way for 2 weeks now and we are at a loss. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Camille is doing well. She is cutting her first molar, so she is a little unhappy but overall doing well. They are about to move her into the toddler room at daycare and I think that will be good for her. The hardest part is she only takes one nap but is still tired so she falls asleep on the way home and then doesn't want to go to bed and bedtime. MAN! This parenting thing is hard.

I love the girls and Richard. I probably don't tell him enough but he is great with them, me, the dog and the house. That doesn't take into account everything else he does. He is amazing and I don't give him enough credit.

***As a side note, you definitely have to watch what you say around Evelyn. This morning I said, "What the h..l!" 2 seconds later she said it. So then I had to explain that we shouldn't say that and mommy was wrong. I haven't heard it since so I am keeping my fingers crossed.

It has been a while...

Sorry it has been a while since I last updated the blog. Things have been crazy to say the least. This year has proven to be a busy one so far.

Camille: She is doing great. She is understanding more everyday. She now knows how to throw away her own diaper, put the washcloths in the bath tub and helps feed Sandy dinner. It is amazing what she understands. She can point to her head, belly and feet. We are working on other body but it can be hard with Evelyn around because she points to them before Camille gets the chance.

Camille is talking and babbling up a storm. It is adorable. She gives hugs and they are the best (well equal to Evelyn). She hugs you so tight it is great. She started doing just after Christmas when she was sick and I cannot get enough.

She is doing well at daycare still and is going to be moving into the toddler room soon. She is still taking 2 naps a day most days so that is what is holding her back.

Evelyn: Blows us away with the things she says. She started watching T.V. while on vacation and everyone was sick so she wants to do that a lot now. We still limit it to once a week but I think she would like it a lot more than that. What else is she doing? Singing. She loves singing "5 little monkey" and "twinkle twinkle." One of the things that she is obsessed with is birthday and presents. She has finally figured out their meanings a little. She always brings us birthday cake made out of lego and anything else she can piece together. If she sees any package, she says "its for my birthday."

She is doing well at daycare and they love her. We are teaching her how to spell her name. She has the LYN part but forgets the beginning. She also knows her middle and last name. Not bad for a 2 1/2 year old. She doesn't like loud noises and covers her ears in bathrooms because of the toilets and blow dryers. It cute and sad at the same time.

Richard: Working hard and developing things for his company like crazy. We just went to his company party in the bay this past weekend. It was great, people came up to him asking him for a hug for the work that he has done. He has done a great job making his name known and doing things for people that make their job easier.

Me: Working! I feel like that is the story of my life. Even on days like today, when I have no school I am working and the girls are at daycare. I am going to make sure that my next day off is with them.

I applied for my level 2 credential and master's and waiting to hear if I got in. I signed up for a 1/2 marathon on May 1st. Looking forward to training for that.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For the first time in 2 1/2 years Richard and I went away for the night and my parents watched Evelyn and Camille. We went to San Jose for Richard's company party. It was great. It was what we needed as a couple. We got to hold hands and just be us without kids hanging on. We got to sleep all night (though we woke up a bunch). On the way home we even went and saw a movie. The first one together in 2 years. We saw Avatar in IMAX 3D. It was amazing, beautiful and sad. It was great. The girls were great for my parents and I think it was good for all of them to have that time without mommy and daddy there. You can bet we will be doing that again. See what happens when you volunteer to watch the girls. Thank you very much.

Here is one of my favorite pictures from Palm Springs. My mom took it but it shows Camille hugs.

LOTS of Pictures

I told you I would upload and I followed through. Enjoy!

Some are old but still cute.

2009_10_25

Christmas Eve/Christmas

The Living Desert

Palm Springs