My heater just kicked on!

Ok, so this post is more for my family in the midwest to laugh at, but my heater just kicked on at 9:45am Dec 3rd!

I set it during a "cold spell" in late October for 65 dgrees. The way my heater works is it has to be 63 dgrees for it to kick on and bring it to 65. For a few days I've awoken to 64 degrees in the morning... thinking we are getting close. Oh, and when kids start climbing into bed with you because "they're cold" is a good indicator too!

So I guess winter has officially set-in here at Paso... though it was 72 in the house just Sunday!

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to all! We stayed home this year and I cooked for our little family. We had turkey (just did a turkey breast), green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, scalloped potatoes, corn, rolls, apple crisp and pumpkin pie!

Cameron tried a little of everything and liked most of it! Carolyn, our usual "good eater" is turning into an "I don't like that" before I try it kind of 3 year old! :) They just have very different motivations. Cameron is souly motivated by dessert! Carolyn likes a sweet here and there, but not enough to try cranberry sauce! But when either of them find something they like... they'll usually have 3 helpings of it - especially Car!

While I cooked dinner this morning (we ate at 1pm) Brett took the kids to a friend/church member's house out in the country where there was a friendly game of mud football going on. I heard it was very muddy! The kids even got some sugar cookies from our friends who live next farm over (Brett and the kids were out looking at the cows and needed to go "potty" - the kids, not Brett!).

Then later in the day, we took a drive in the country. It has been raining the last couple of days so it was pretty to see the fresh country. Now back home for left-overs and pajamas... and then bed! Cameron is excited that Thanksgiving is over because "next is Christmas". They are the right age to "get it" this year. I am just as excited!

Brotherly Love

So I came downstairs after working and find Brett and Cameron in the living room, so I say to Cameron, "where's Carolyn"? He says "she sleeping" and runs me into the family room to this pile of blankets and pillows. He then procedes to tenderly pull the covers up on her - even further over her face and tells me "shhhh".

So I ask Brett if he's seen Carolyn sleeping and he says, "yes, I covered her"... to which I replied, "with all this"? We both smiled at what a sweet boy we have. Cameron spared no expense by covering/placing the arm chair covers, wooden pumpkins & pears, and her drink cup all around her!

School Pictures

Carolyn and Cameron attend a "Mommy and Me" class through a local unified school district. They go once a week for 2 1/2 hours with Mommy or Daddy and it is technically a parent education course. They love to go and paint, do crafts, etc. These are their school photos, taken exactly a week after they turned 3 years old.

Carolyn usually smiles with her teeth, but was so shy on this day. I like the closed mouth shot, she is as sweet as she looks in the picture. And Cameron was sooooo shy too... he never gave up one of his "light up the room" smiles, but it is cute to see the shyness in the photo!

Happy Veteran's Day

This is another one of my favorite holidays... Veteran's Day. Where we can thank and honor all our service men and women. So I thought it fitting to put a picture of Brett's Dad, Reiford, of when he was in the Navy. The kids are getting a kick out of seeing "Daddy's Daddy" - because they've never had the priveledge of knowing him.

Today I took the kids to our local cemetery for a Veteran's Day Ceremony. It was beautifully decorated with flags and uniformed men and women. It started off with a fly-by by our local Estrella Warbird Museum - some WWI & II airplanes - and then a very nice ceremony. We only made through 45 minutes of it... better luck next year!

Mickey & Minnie for Halloween

Carolyn & Cameron were Minnie & Mickey for Halloween this year. We had a "twins club" party, a carnival at our "Mommy & Me" class, and then we went our church's Halloween party. (Not all in the same day!) We had a great time getting dressed 3 times!

Aunt Kali made the costumes! She had them finished and mailed by mid-October... enough time for me to finish the hemming (nothing compared to all the work she did!) But we did laugh, she made Mickey's pant's waist as small as possible... and I still had to take it in about 3 inches! (Wish I had Cameron's waist!) Thanks Kali for making a great holiday!

27 cents

I made 27 cents today doing laundry! The most I ever made was $52.00 and it happened near the beginning of our marriage. Needless to say I never scored that big again, but I did get $27 and $16 at other times! I've gotten smaller change here and there... and any of my own doesn't count!

Thanks Brett, I'll try not to spend it all in one place... what does a postcard stamp even cost these days?!

Last Watermelon of the Year

We got our last watermelon for the season from the town's farmers market. We sure ate a lot of melon this summer!

Sleeping

So once the babes have gone to sleep, we never know quite how or where we might find them. Some people have asked me if I separate them sleeping... I did for their naps (notice I used the past tense), but always had them in the same room at night (at 6 months... and Carolyn kicking Cam in the head was when we moved them from the same crib to separate cribs). But even when they napped in separate rooms they "chirped" to each other. (Chirp in my book is defined as "a high pitched sound produced for the purpose of 'echo' locating and communication". Carolyn still does it!

Occasionally we might find them in each other's bed, but on this night they were together. One time when Car was having a difficult time going to sleep... and much crying, the crying abruptly stopped and I was curious... after I thought it was safe to investigate, I found Cameron in her bed with her, both asleep, and he had his arm around her. They are best friends and I love them so much!

But this picture pretty much sums up "the womb"! I knew Cameron was a boy inside me because he poked me with his elbows all the time... just like someone else I know (Brett!) This is exactly how Brett sleeps... the hands behind the head and the elbows out. Oh, the elbows.

Tonight when I put the kids to bed, I was getting them "roasty toasty" in their covers and I moved Carolyn's legs, turning her away from facing Cameron's bed. She immediately flipped back and said, "Mom, I need to lay this way so I can see Cameron". Did I mention how much I love being their mom!

Pioneer Day Parade

Saturday, October 11th was Pioneer Day in Paso Robles. It is an exciting event here in our town and they have a parade (2 hours!) and a free bean feed at the end. It originated 77 years ago and the bean feed is a tradition. We enjoyed it so much last year that we invited my parents up this year.

We got some good seats and were right up to the street. We brought our blankets (it was chilly!) and our flags. This is my little cowgirl and cowboy!

Cameron absolutely loved the parade and waved at everyone and everything for the whole 2 hours. He was so excited to wear his cowboy boots and hat!

I told Grandma to come dressed in her cowgirl outfit... but she said she "forgot it at home".

Grandpa, however, did bring his western attire and fit right in... though he "forgot his hat at home"... and he really did!

Cameron and Carolyn were just so excited to have Grandma & Grandpa visit. They loved having them there and knowing that they were staying in the guest room. We are glad they came up to visit us too.

At the Lake

A few weeks ago we went to the lake (Lake Nacimiento) with the Richards family and rode sea doos. Cameron and Carolyn each went out with Daddy for a little ride. Neither liked it at first, but got over it quickly. Carolyn went out twice and had a great time with Daddy while Mommy was on the other one!

They spent most of the day throwing rocks into the lake... and you can see there were tons to throw! We have a rule that you can only throw rocks in Rivers, Lakes, and Oceans... so they had a lot of rock throwing couped up in them! :) It was a beautiful day and we spent it with great friends... it can't get any better than that!

Annie's Bone

So the other day when Brett went to work with Cir, I gave Annie a brand new rawhide bone. She carried it around all day and hid it places like the kid's toy box, under a pillow, in the corner. The kids would sometimes find it and throw it to her. She never chewed it, just carried it around.

Well, then Cir came home... and soon there was none. Actually he was finishing the last part of it late one evening and Annie looked so sad, so Brett gave her a brand new one. She immediately took it upstairs. She was gone a few minutes and then came back down without the bone.

I found it a little while later when I went to tuck the kids in one last time before going to bed. She placed it right next to Cameron in his bed! I guess she thought it was safe there... safe from Cir! The next morning I told Car & Cam about it and they thought Annie was so silly!

Cooking

I love to cook or bake something fun on Sunday afternoon with the kids. Carolyn likes to come, make a mess, eat something, and leave. Cameron loves to hang out the whole time and help! When they see me put my apron on... the run to get theirs! It is a fun tradition and they often help during the week preparing dinner.

This was us making butterscotch birds nests. We put the "potty training" jelly beans on the chow mein noodles and they turned out very cute. I remember these from when I was young and had been wanting to make them... I finally had all the ingredients (a whole 3!)... we eat a lot of nuts around here!

Last Sunday we made monkey bread -- oh, so fun! Rolling the dough in sugar, Cameron was so good and clean. Carolyn, well, I already said she likes to make messes... needless to say she didn't get to help a lot! (Actually, she was on to playing with something else.)

Aviation Day in Paso

A few weeks ago our town had it's annual Aviation Day at the airport. The kids really enjoyed it and there were lots of planes to see. Cameron wanted a ride in one in the worst way! Maybe next year! There were little remote control airplanes that could do incredible stunts.. one of the planes cost $20,000! Now that's a hobby!

The CHP was there with their helicopter and the kids enjoyed it all!

Cam & Car turn "3"!

I can hardly believe it - they're 3! Time sure flies! We had a birthday party for the kids on Saturday, September 27 (the day after their birthday)... and we had a bounce house. They've been asking to have a bounce house for about 8 months now!

We had so many friends over and had an orange cake and blue cupcakes! It was a very warm day and there were a lot of little red/flushed faces running around! Grandma and Aunt Molly came up to visit. Grandpa was in Chicago giving a speach about the history of a cemetery that O'Hare airport and the City of Chicago are trying to take/move.

Kite Flying

A few weeks ago we went to the beach and I bought the kids both a kite to fly, but there wasn't any wind. When we got home it was breezy enough to get it up a couple of times. Cameron really wanted to fly the kite and he did a couple of times. Carolyn helped get it when it fell and we all managed to get tangled in it a few times! I am sure will get some more kite flying in as it will start to get windier in the evenings as we go into the Fall!

Primary Olympics

Today the kids participated in the Primary Olympics and they had a great time! It was nice that the Nursery kids were invited and Cam & Car fit right in with all the older kids who do a good job looking out for the younger kids! The first event was a steed race... Cameron was hilarious... he would stop every bit and knock the horse into each pole as he passed it... not quite sure what he was doing, but he was very serious about the race. Carolyn got the job done!

I thought this was a great shot of the kids playing the ball/volleyball. It was so hot today (over 100) so we were lathered in sunscreen and hats. Cameron wears his so low, it's a wonder he can see anything.

Carolyn is a little under the weather (she has my cold... sorry, Car) and she was content to hang out with me most the time. Cameron on the other hand... he is all about the sports. He ran the 50 yard dash about 6 times... and that was after a few times with his "steed"! He was having so much fun and trying his hardest to run, it was so fun to watch him! Boy do I love these little kids!!!

Here are all the Gold Winners! They were happy to be eating Otter Pops!

Story of the Tabernacle

So this summer while we were in Utah we went to Temple Square. I was hoping to get a peek into the Tabernacle so I tried one of the many doors. Carolyn tried too but it was locked. So she proceded to knock on the next, say like 7 doors... and one opened! We were able to come into the "crying room" and see through the glass the empty Tabernacle. The Sister Missionaries told us that in 20 minutes there would be an organ recitle.

We decided that 20 minutes was soon enough so we took some seats and looked around in amazement. We also wondered if two - two year olds could sit for a half hour recitle. Just as it began, our nephew called to say that he and his family were at Temple Square... so after the first incredible song they allow people to leave. Much to Cam & Car's dismay we started leaving. They take you out through the crying room and Cam just kept calling "the music, the music". So I told Brett to go on ahead of me and I'll stay there with him.

So we sat in the crying room for the next song and it wasn't nearly as good... you couldn't "feel" the music and it wasn't nearly as loud. Cam kept saying, "I can't see the lady, I can't see the lady." So I tried the door back to the Tabernacle. It was locked. So we sat barely hearing the music but Cameron wouldn't leave. Then after the 2nd song the door opened and when a few people came out, I asked the kind Missionary if we could come back in. With a smile, she agreed. (She has no idea how much she made Cameron's day!)

We took our seat and Cameron proceeded to listen to the rest of the recitle, enjoying every minute of it. The best song was at the end when it was so loud it reverberated in our chest, seat & floor. Cameron LOVED it! After the recitle, he insisted on meeting "the lady". So down we went and he shook her hand and said thank you.

Cameron has such a love for music and I am happy for him! Both he and Carolyn say their favorite instrument is drums (no bias there...) but some days it is piano. I was sad find out Carolyn was so sad she missed the recitle!

Kittens, kittens, kittens

Does it look like these kids are having fun!? How about the kittens! One of the women I visit for church knew I was bringing the kids over so she had them all ready to go in the house for us to "play with"! She also kept telling me to take 1 or 2 home (they have 12 kittens on their farm!) but as I told her, it couldn't be just one - it'd have to be 2... and I don't know if they'd last all the "lovin' " they would get. (Besides the fact that our 2 big dogs might want to eat them!)

So we just played tons and scared the kittens for a while then left. The next time we went over to her house, the kids kept asking for kittens... they are now outside and can get away... but my friend had another plan and we picked apricots! We have so much fun up here in the country!!!

Swimming at the Castle

Brett took us swimming in the Neptune Pool at Hearst Castle. The water was suprisingly warm, though it helped to jump in... get out... get back in and feel the warmth! It is deep except for the little area that I hung around in with the kids, it is past my waist.

We had a great time and every once in a while the kids will ask to go again! Maybe next year!

The beach

This summer we all went to Newport Beach and spent time with our friends at their beach house. We had a great time and the kids still talk about it.

This is one of my favorite pictures. It was later in the day and the kids were finished swimming and pretty content to watch Daddy boogy-board. That is Brett on the right coming in!

My little "petunnias"!

These are my 2 "little petunnias" and we have so much together. They are very kind (usually) to each other and like to play together. Brett took this picture on our first night at the fair (more pics to follow!) and it was just before we left... we were all a little tired!

Cattle Drive

So last week I took the kids to watch our local "Cattle Drive" that kicked off the Mid-State Fair! They loved it! First I took them by the staging area where everyone was getting ready and the steer were "caged"... in the GMC truck lot, no less! I watched a young steer look at itself in the tailgate of one of the trucks, then got spooked and "bumbed" it with his horn. Only in Paso!

We met up with some of our friends and watched the drive... we were in no real danger as there were more horses than steer... and they were pretty well kept together! Carolyn loved the stage coach that carried the princesses!

I guess this is my way of making up to my kids that we don't live on a farm/ranch... though Cir could pass as a small horse at times!

Daddy's Kids

We had a great trip to Utah in June and here are two of my favorite photos. This is Cameron and me at the This is the Place Monument park which depicts the arrival of the Pioneers at the Salt Lake valley on July 24th, 1847. It was a gorgeous day and the monument is set up in foothills coming out of the canyon the pioneers traveled upon entering the valley.

Carolyn is definitely Daddy's girl. Here we are at my brother Marty's condo complex. The common areas are beautiful with several streams running throughout the property. The kids had a great time feeding the ducks.

Some of our summer fun!

Boy, tons of stuff has been happening and we've been having a great summer and have been going, going, going!

Here's some of the things we've been up to!

A King Family party, with Aunts, Uncles, Cousins!

A quick visit to Grandma, who is going through chemo... YOU ROCK MOM!

One of my new favorite pictures, Carolyn with her Aunt Kali & with Grandma in the background. During our quick visit to Grandma's, we got to see Aunt Kali & Devor who were there from PA helping out Grandma.

Happy 4th of July!

Today has been a great day! This is one of my favorite holidays! This morning the kids and I went to a flag raising ceremony at our stake center, followed by a pancake breakfast. Cameron came running into my room this morning with his American flag and announced it was time to go "hear the trumpet" at the flag ceremony! It was time indeed... we had to hurry!

Well, there wasn't a trumpet, but there was a snare drum! And the man in charge of the closing song asked Cameron to come up and wave his flag (that he brought with him!) and help lead the music. Carolyn joined them up there on the knoll just under the flag pole. --- And, of course, in all my haste, I left my camera (which is usually in my purse) at home!!! :(

Then we left the stake center and were heading home, I called Brett (who was working because I made him take an OT shift) and told him what a great time we were having and he suggested going to the Templeton 4th of July Parade! (Small town Templeton of maybe 3,000 population - felt like what I grew up with!) So, we went there too and got a great seat in the shade and had an awesome time! The best for the kids was probably towards the end of the parade, a man in a red corvette threw them a bag of Jelly Belly Jelly Beans!!!! They were in heaven.... you see, we are potty training and if "you go pee pee potty you get a jelly bean"! They got a whole handful without even having to go potty!!!

And, we have swings in our big Oak tree out front. We got them put in last night and enjoyed a great evening last night and a whole afternoon today. Our neighbors came over and sat under the tree too while the kids were swinging and we ate watermelon I had cut-up and chilled. Could this day be any better?! (Well, I am really wishing Brett had been around for this all -- feeling pretty guilty!)

Happy Independence Day! Thanks to all those whose served, are serving, and plan to serve for our great country and for my freedom!!!