Date Night

Bryce and I had a great night last night. We started out at the Seabright Brewery for dinner. They have great calamari! I had fettuccine with an incredibly delicious cilantro and pesto sauce. Then we went for a walk on the beach and ended up at the harbor watching the sailboats come in at sunset. The next vehicle that Bryce wants is a sailboat. He lived on one for several years during his teen years and he really misses it. After that we were a bit chilled so we went to a little coffee shop called Fins. We got hot cocoa, of course, which was only to be found on the kids menu. I thought that was kinda funny! We sat, sipped, played backgammon and listened to a live band. It was great. We got home at 10:30 and the boys were still up and having a blast playing a plastic bottle war!

Austin's T-Ball pics

Here is Austin's official T-Ball pictures. He looks so good in his individual shot and so goofy in the team shoot! (That's him front row, 5th one over). At his game on Saturday he made a play to first, from the pitchers mound, and made an out, He was SO excited! It was great, as a mom, to see him succeed!

So Quiet

Both boys are down for a nap and it is so quiet! Even the kitty is taking a nap. Maybe I should take a hint?
Yesterday we were at the park again (it is where I pick Austin up from the bus so we are there a lot) and this time I took my real camera. Of course I couldn't resist snapping more shots of the boys, even though they are not wearing what I would have picked out for a photo shoot! Regardless, I love the way they came out and can't wait to do family shoots there. Austin wanted to take some pictures so I was brave and let him hold my camera. The pics he took of me are a little blurry but I do love them!

Here are some of our new little home improvements:
I had Bryce put up some towels rods in my Scrap closet to put all my punches on. I love being able to see them all, no more digging through a drawer!
Bryce also put in a new light and fan in our bedroom, and right in time for the heat wave that hit early this week. Isn't it pretty!
We also got a hammock. I love relaxing in it and watching the boys play.

I raked, shoveled and smoothed all the dirt under the hammock. Before, there was a big pit underneath it!

It Was Just a Good Day Today

Today was a good day, a productive day. This morning we dropped off the truck for servicing, picked up the dry cleaning (Bryce's uniforms - I tend to own things that don't require dry cleaning or ironing for that matter) and then picked up some flowers and gardening supplies. After we got back home I walked down to pick up Austin from the bus (a 2 mile total walk so it also completed my exercise portion of the day!). We had lunch down at the creek and then he got to float his boat down the creek and he had a blast with that! He loves anything that has to do with water!
Once upon a time they used to dam the creek in the summer to make a swimming hole. All of the walls and stairs are from that era. As they have aged they have developed a really cool patina. I have decided that our next family photos will be taken here. I snapped a couple of shots to remind me of where I want to take them. They turned out so well that I am going to have to take my real camera back to take them again!

After we got home it was my afternoon off. This week instead of deciding to take off I opted to stay home and do the laundry, the dishes and help Austin get his homework done and believe it or not it was a really nice afternoon! Maybe it was just the fact that I did not have to do those things that made me want to do them. Maybe it is because now they are done and off my mind, less stress for me tomorrow. I even got to sneak in an hour of reading while Austin was at tball and Danny was asleep! When they got back Bryce grilled up some chicken and asparagus for dinner - so yummy and 2 less dishes to wash! The rest of the evening the boys played together nicely in their room, so nicely in fact I let them stay up an hour later than normal! Bryce and I just relaxed as today was the last day of his vacation. He is back to work tomorrow, and on the day shift! What a switch that will be for us!
Just a side note - We had Bryce's partner, Brad, and Brad's girlfriend, Crystal, over for dinner last night. After dinner we played a game of Farkel (thanks Heidi!). Crystal has played a game similar to Farkel called Zilch, so she was very familiar with it. And I am sad to say that I am no longer the reigning Farkel Queen as there is a little thing called a rebuttal role and Crystal beat me by 200 points! Oh well, it was still a fun night!

The Memorial

Yesterday was the memorial for my Grandpa. It was very nice and not very long, which is great when you have the number of little ones we had there. Afterward we went back to my Grandma's house for a BBQ with the family. My Grandma's backyard is so beautiful, green and shady and it made for a lovely afternoon. It was really nice to get the chance to sit and talk to family that I haven't had the chance to see much over the years!

Tanya and Maysie - doesn't she look so sweet in that hat!

Another sweet shot of Maysie Lou
Just a pic I snapped of my beautiful baby sis, Jenessa
My Uncle Herk, my Grandma's friend Ruth and my Grandma, enjoy one anothers company.
My sister (in law) Tanya works for a vet and she had to work this morning. Well that morning someone had brought in an abandoned kitty. My brother, Mark has a fondness for orange kitties so Danner (named after the boots, of course) has now joined their family!
Taska and Tyler playing on the hillside in the backyard.
My cousin Amber, her littlest boy Bodie, and Grandma. Amber lives in Hawaii and we haven't had the chance to see each other for at least 7 years. It was so nice to see her again!
Yesterday was also my mom's birthday so we got her a cake and had ice cream sundaes. Here we are singing Happy Birthday to her.

My mom and Tyler who couldn't wait to taste the cake!
Bryce and Danny cuddling up. Danny was so grumpy and tired!

Austin, with lemons from the tree, and Grandma.

I Challange You . . .

If you are wanting to lose weight, get fit and healthy then I challenge you to join my baby sis Nessa and I at the Self Magazine Challenge!
Nessa and I used to be workout partners back before I moved down here. Now that we are 3 hours apart it isn't very practical! We still wanted to support each other so Nessa came up with a great idea of helping each other out by finding exercises and ideas, sharing them online and working on them together. As she was looking into it she came across the Self Challenge and it has everything already put together for us, weekly workouts (slides and videos), recipes, food counter, workout counter and more! Best of all it's free! We just started yesterday so join us! If you do join, you can search for me as Saridee and add me as a friend so we can help each other along :)

Here is my Inspiration Page that have posted on my fridge. When I reach my goal weight then Bryce has agreed to take me on a cruise to Mexico! It is something I have wanted to do for a long time but there is no way I would go now, feeling the way I do about myself. I am determined to do this and get my body back to a healthy and happy place!

Easter

Today was Easter Sunday. We were able to make it through sacrament meeting and then headed home as both of the boys are really sick. Danny is feeling so bad that I was worried that he wouldn't even want to hunt for his basket and eggs. But despite that he still had fun. After he found his basket he had his chocolate bunny open in record time! Austin picked me some flowers to put on the table, I believe they are Forget Me Nots. We had Bryce's dad over for dinner and grilled up some hamburgers and hotdogs, a super easy dinner since we got home last night and didn't have all the fixing for a traditional dinner. Austin and I were going to dye eggs but I didn't have any vinegar to set the dye. He decided to color the eggs with markers instead and they turned out quite cute if a bit smeared!

Fun in Oregon!

The weather was beautiful but a bit cold, it was snowing when we arrived early, very, very, very early in the morning. For being there only 2 days were sure crammed in a lot of fun! The kids played outside a lot and loved it (and so did us parents)!
Sidewalk chalk fun!
Danny and Gracie had a love/hate relationship. They spent a lot of time screaming at each other and then making up! Bryce and Gabe added onto the fort in the backyard so the kids could play on top. Bethany, Gabe, Bryce and I had a double date night. We put the kids downstairs with a movie. Bethany and Gabe introduced us to a game called Farkle, which was so fun! Of course it helped that I won both games :)
The girls also enjoyed a little spa night while the boys were out. I loved how Myah and Lyndie washed Bethany's feet, so sweet! Lyndie must have put a quarter inch of powder on her face while she and Myah played beauty shop. Gracie just kept putting on chapstick the whole entire time!
We went out to a ranch where Gabe's friend boards his horses and cows. The boys got to ride quads out to track down the horses. One of the horses, Velocity, had just had a little filly and needed to be brought in to a closer pasture. They are both paints and so beautiful!
Being out with the horses made me wish so bad to be in a place where we could have horses. I was just a little older than Austin when I got my first pony! A family in the ward has offered to let us come over and ride some of their horses and I am really hoping that we will be able to!
We are home again and it feels so good, even if it is just for a little bit til we are off again!

Fun in Idaho

We have spent the week with Bryce's mom Teri, brothers Steven and Michael & sister Erica, near Couer D'Alene, Idaho. He has one other sister, Maura, who is currently in Germany where her husband is stationed with the Army.

The boys are having a blast with their uncles and aunt and are loving the snow on the ground. The weather has been beautiful and sunny so we have been enjoying a lot of outside time. Bryce and his brothers had a blast messing around in wheelchairs. Why this was so fun is a mystery to me.Celebrating Bryce's birthday with carrot cake and ice cream.

We went to the city park, an amazing, big park, right next to the lake. I wanted to take some family pictures while we were there. I didn't realize that there would be so many people there (we must have never gone on a weekend before) or that after there has been snow on the ground the grass isn't very green (what can I say, I am a California girl and out here the places it snows don't normally have grass). So it was a little harder to get the pictures that I wanted. But I am very happy with the way they turned out. Thank you Erica for taking them!
After that we went down to the lake shore and I wanted to get some pictures of Bryce and I. Normally when I get a picture of me that is not flattering or embarrassing, I hit delete before anyone else has a chance to see it. But this picture was so funny I had to keep it! It still makes me giggle. (Bryce and I were standing on top of a wall at the top of the beach and the poor little fellow was walking along the shore)And here is one that turned out as hoped:

Danny was fascinated with the water and I knew he was going to get wet so I stripped him down and let him play. I didn't think he would last more than 5 minutes as the water is icy cold. He loved it, played for at least a half an hour and screamed when it was time to go!We have one more day here and then we will be headed down to Klamath Falls to visit with my sister Bethany and her family for a day and then home in time for Easter!

Date Night

Bryce and I got to go on a date last night! We went to Sonic because I had never been there but have always wanted to. It was fun but not as good as In and Out!

After that we went to Cabela's, another first! What an amazing store! This is where Bryce spent his birthday money, (no surprise there!)

Here is Bryce, in heaven, browsing the gun counter :)

We ended the night at the movies, watching Fast & Furious, and eating ice cream at Cold Stone (cake batter with butterfinger - the yummiest ever!)

Sunday Morning

I love General Conference Sunday mornings. There is no rush to get up and get dressed as we enjoy being cuddled together on the couch in our pjs. Bryce's mom makes conference cake, a yummy version of coffee cake which I need to get the recipe for! This morning Austin did really well at listening and sitting, mostly, still. I had him color in ties to match the speakers and gave him a list of words to listen for. Each time he heard the word he would put an x next to it. Each x earned him an m&m. He earned 21!
I really enjoyed Elder Holland's talk about the time surrounding Christ's crucifixion. It was so powerful. In President's Monson's talk, the story of the Prussian mother, her journey, having to bury her 4 children, really hit me hard and touched me in a way I needed. As some of you may or may not know I had a miscarriage in December, and it has been very hard for me dealing with the loss of that little spirit on its way to us. And while I am still hopeful that we will soon have another chance to raise that little one, it may not happen and that everything will be okay. I have two very beautiful and healthy boys that I have been blessed with and I treasure getting to be their mommy.
I loved President Monson's closing remarks " . . . my beloved brothers and sisters, fear not and be of good cheer. The future is as bright as your faith."
Have a bright and beautiful weekend.

In Memory of my Grandpa, Robert E. Warner

June 2008 at Danny's first birthday party

My Grandpa Warner passed away on Friday night. His health has not been great for awhile, and had gone downhill quickly in the last months, so it was not unexpected. It was quietly and in his sleep which I am thankful for. Although he is technically a step grandparent, I have known him as my "Grumpa" my whole life. I have some great memories as a child of camping trips with them in their RV and going out on the lake in their fishing boat. He was an Idaho cowboy and was always in his cowboy shirt and boots. He was in the Navy and served his country. I always thought it was the sweetest thing that he would give their bird, Robbie, a shower. Bryce always enjoyed talking with him and his sense of humor and his generosity. I am grateful to him for the years he had with my Grandma, for loving her and taking care of her. We will miss you Grumpa.

And to my beautiful Grandma, I love you. You are in my heart and prayers. I wish I was home so I could drive up and give you a hug. We will see you soon.