Schroeder or Stevie Wonder?

This morning Joey decided he would have a recital for LUCKY me!   Happy Monday!

Starry Night

Last year I was the Art Mom for Rose's class. This year with time conflicts and lack of baby sitting for Joey, I haven't had that same luxury. I miss it, both the art and connecting with the kids. The other day David came home with his version of Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh. You decide whose is better…. not bad for a 5 year old! ( I think I prefer David’s version... and he didn't even have to cut his ear off) That boy is PURE GENIUS!

Parks and Rec

So we went to the park the other day…..  I sure miss those days. 

Crayons

Thank you to whoever the genius was who invented them.  What would kids ever do without them?  And sometimes Moms too.   

Sock It To Me

Along with Owen and Madeline's birthday, last Friday was the Sock Hop at school. Last year Rose and Joey went, David had no inclination to whatsoever. To my delight, this year David wanted to come too, and DANCE! He even talked all about the friends he would dance with beforehand. So, after whooping it up with the twins for their birthday, we got ready and headed off to the Hop. Besides losing the boys a few times, they all had a GREAT time. Rose danced and danced with all her friends, and David had plenty of his friends to dance with as well, including his teacher, Mrs. Fletcher. There was a bit of a meltdown at the end on David's part when he didn't win any of the giveaways....but our neighbor Tyler saw just how upset he was and gave him a visor he had just won. What an incredibly sweet thing to do. David was so happy he wore that hat ALL night long. I am LOVING this age!

Ain't it Great to be 8?

Happy Birthday to Owen and Madeline.... the best niece and nephew around! I love that you are such a big part of our lives. Life wouldn't be the same without you. I love you both....maybe 1 a little more than the other? You decide!! : )

Have You Seen the Muffler Man?

Going to visit Dad at the hospital in Escondido on and off for the last few months has made me appreciate all the good memories of growing up there. On my trips to and from, I would try to take different routes to see old haunts and trigger memories. The boys and I have stopped to check out Joor... the giant muffler man who has been standing watch at the corner of Juniper St. and Valley Pkwy. since I can remember. (Ok, I just read he has been there since 1967) At Christmas they used to dress Joor up in a Santa Suit. I was disappointed to see they didn't do that this year. (and I just read that he needs a new suit that costs $5K, so they haven't had a new one made and Joor hasn't dressed up for the last 2 years.) I told the boys about the Santa suit and just pulled his picture up on the internet with the suit on. Joey saw the picture and yelled "David, he DOES wear a Santa suit!" And if I recall correctly, he wore a Hawaiian shirt in the summer when I was a kid. The boys really got a kick out of him.

Funny (To Me)

David after seeing a mess on the table:
"Who's responsible for this?" (and for the record, it was Rose)

Upon solving the riddle of why a Wii remote wasn't working:
"Mommy, I know why this isn't functioning"....

Joey:
Childish, I know....but when Joey farts I look at him and say "Oh no, you di-int!" One day he let one rip and before I could say anything, he looked at me and said "Oh yes, I DID!"

Eye-yi-YI!

After all my threats to David to get him to wear his eye patch every day..."Do you want to have your eyes cut open?".... it happened. We went in for a check up about 5 months ago and the doc determined that indeed David should have surgery to correct his eyes from turning.

Long story short, after David found out and was reassured it wouldn't be all that bad, he was fine with it. (According to the doc, David would be up and running around the next day... and he was) We went in for surgery on December 23. The benefit of having surgery so close to Christmas is TOYS! When we checked in, Andy selected a set of lincoln logs, and as we walked out the door, we were given a basketball/ball toss game. SCORE!

It was a long day at Children's Hospital... mostly waiting. By the time David actually went in for surgery, he was asking to get it done and over with. We said goodbye and he walked off with the nurse without even a goodbye or a look back. The doc said he climbed right up on the O.R. bed and was anxious to go. After they put him under, the nurse was admiring his beautiful, long eyelashes. Apparently she even called some of the other nurses in to look at them. The surgery took about 20-25 minutes. They had to detach the muscles of the eyes and reattach them so they won't pull outward. David took a while to wake up after they were done. About 2 hours after surgery and recuperation, we were headed out the door. He had done PERFECTLY! We went back to the doc a few days later and he said David's eyes look really good. We go back in another month for a check up, but the doc thinks he probably won't need any additional surgery as some do, and best of all? NO MORE GLASSES!!! Yahoo-y! In truth, I will miss the glasses. He looked so smart, and so handsome.

In some of these pictures his eyes look black. They never were. They are/were just blood red. He went back to school with red eyes and loads of questions, but he has taken it all in stride. He is a pretty great boy! And FYI, his eyes are getting less red daily. A few more weeks and it should be gone completely. Thank you Dr. Henry O'Halloran!

Christmas 2010

Here's Christmas 2010 in pictures. Dale, Corky and Riley came down from northern Cal, so we got to spend the holiday with a few more than the usual suspects. We spent Christmas Eve at my Dad's house, fresh home from the hospital and rehab over his broken hip. (saga to come soon.) A good time was had by all!! SOmehow I didn't take as many pcitures as I thought. None of anyone other than the kids...