Getting ready for summer???

Or so I thought after our mini heat wave a couple weeks back. That's why I couldn't complain about that super hot weather, now it's gone, it's June, it was 59 degrees today. I had to put jackets and sweatshirts on the kids when we went out this afternoon!

Before you fly!

Check out these two websites.
The first is farecast It predicts where fares are going. If they are on their way up it says to buy, if they are holding steady with the possibility to save it will tell you to wait. And it even gives you a "confidence" percentage.
The second is kayak it shows you the cheapest place to buy the tickets you are looking for. It will show the price being offered at priceline, expedia, and other discount sites along with how much the airline itself (like Delta) is charging. I love it because now I don't have to run from each of these websites trying to find the best deal. You cannot purchase off kayak, but you can click on the lowest price which will direct you to the website where you can buy it.
Just wanted to share as the summer traveling season approaches.

Holy Moly!

Where did the time go??? Last night Mia and I counted on the calendar how many days were left of school and it's down to 14! How did this happen? I feel like we just dropped her off for the first time a month ago. It has been a WONDERFUL year filled with good memories and lots of new friends. I am so thankful to her teacher and the rest of the Meadow Heights faculty that helped make this year so productive and interesting. I was able to volunteer in the classroom twice a month and it was so awesome to watch the growth throughout the year. I love our public school system and hope Gov. Swartzenegger doesn't mess it up with his horrible education cuts. Sorry I'm getting away from the intent of this post, I just can't imagine having to leave out some of the wonderful things Mia got to experience because the money is no longer there. Time really is going by too fast for me that it almost doesn't seem fair. It reminds me to cherish every painting and backwards letter or number because one day her drawings will be in proportion and all of her letters and numbers will be just right. Then I'll wish for the days of kindergarten chicken scratch and drippy rainbows. Meadow Heights is a wonderful school and I'm already looking forward to her becoming a big 1st grader! I hope I can keep up with her this summer. Here are a few pictures of all the fun things she was able to take part in in her '07/08 year.

HOT, HOT, HOT!

And I'm not complaining. We don't get weather like this here that often, so we're trying to enjoy it and forget about the fact that we're melting :) It was 93 degrees today and 100 degrees yesterday! It's supposed to be in the 80's this weekend and then down to the 70's by next week. We probably won't see weather like this, but maybe 3 more times this summer.
The first warmer than usual day I just got out a few fun, non breakable dishes for them to splash around in. Well the next day was even hotter and I didn't want to be refilling those bowls all day so we went and got a new slip and slide! It was a great way to beat the heat.

Mother's Day

Why is it that on Mother's Day that the kids go out of their minds? Either they're cranky, or fighting with siblings all day? I remember when we were young, my mom sometimes ending up mad at us on Mother's Day because on her special day we were especially rotten. I think instead of making mom's spend the day WITH their families we mothers should spend the day AWAY from our families. Well, it worked for me anyway. I was able to be without my kids for 5 hours yesterday and it was WONDERFUL! It made my Mother's Day that started off rocky, turn into a truly Happy Mother's Day! The only thing that could have made it better was Amanda winning Survivor instead of Parvarti. I was also a little bummed that we forgot to take a single picture, oh well. Just so everyone knows I do actually love being a mother, even though I like my time away, this is a poem/story I really enjoy...

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.

I didn't worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.

I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,

I had never been puked on.

Pooped on.

Chewed on.

Peed on.

I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.

I slept all night..
Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.

I never looked into teary eyes and cried.

I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.

I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put her down.

I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.

I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.

I never knew that I could love someone so much.

I never knew how much I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body.

I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.

I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.

I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.

I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.

I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom.

It's a stampede!

Mia had her first Spring Stampede or as we used to call them, a jog-a-thon. It was so cute watching all the kindergartners and 1st graders running together. They ran for 20 minutes on a track set up around the black top. Mia had a couple of delays she got a cramp after 2 or 3 laps and then in the final lap she lost her shoe and Aaron ran out to help her put her shoe back on, but she got that last tally mark on her card.
I'm not sure how many laps she did. She was supposed to get her "count" this week, but due to having strep throat she's been out of school for 3 days. She says 19, we'll see!

Send us some walking dust!

So, Noah is 15 months today and still isn't walking! I am starting to get really frustrated. I was actually thankful that he couldn't walk at Easter when we took a plane to Arizona, but now 6 weeks later he still isn't even close. He hasn't made much progress since Christmas. He did a couple steps this weekend once at home trying to get to me, and once at our church nursery trying to reach for a bubble. I tried blowing bubbles at home today and nope he just crawled after them. I know I should be grateful because it makes him seem like a "baby" even longer, but it's felt like "any day now" for months.
It's frustrating because he just moved up a size in clothing and brand new pants look like he's been wearing them for a year already, they get so roughed up from crawling. It's also hard not being able to set him down for a second when I go somewhere because I don't want him crawling around at a restaurants dirty floor or on Target's ground or wherever we might be. There are babies 6 months younger than him starting to walk. What's up Noah? Get off your tush and start walking PLEASE!!