There's No Place LIke Torrey Pines

 When it was decided that we'd be moving to Modesto, CA in only 3 short weeks, I had to get myself here as much as possible.  I just knew how much I'd miss it!  It was the best escape, it felt like paradise every time I went there.  Everywhere I turned the view was just breathtaking!  It was a wonderful workout too because it was a scenic hike that ended at the beach.

 I loved sharing these last precious hikes with my two little boys.  I don't know if they'll remember them, but I'll never forget them.  This day we had to run back to the car because it started raining on us.  It was like what you see in the movies; it came instantly and poured down hard!  Gotta love it!

 No wonder the beaches were so empty!  I guess people actually have reason to check the weather forecast, even in San Diego.

 That's a view of the highway from a little way up the hillside at the beginning of our hike.

 Cielito Lindo

Last Days in San Diego

We didn't know it at the time, but these were our last photo shots of our lives in San Diego.
Above Ian sorted his crayons.  I love how the dog figurine made its way into the scene.

Here is one of Ian's last little sport classes.  We loved Coach Curry!  She was great at teaching our little tykes the basics of a variety of classic sports.  Unfortunately, Ian will forever remember this day as the time that A.J., the instructors very athletic son, "hit me in the privates." A.J. hit a line drive and Ian was right in the path of the ball (not pictured here).  I still can't convince Ian that it was really a mistake!

Here is our big boy looking so grown up in his rugby shirt!

Here Jack is holding steady to his big brother to get a better view of the computer.  I love how his left hand is placed on Ian's shoulder. So cute these two little guys!

This was the last visit to us in San Diego that these two lovely ladies made.  I think they were down to see Brooklyn and Ian's Primary program at church.

Here are some freshly cooked summer peaches or apricots before they became baby food.  I was loving the sweet smell that lingered in the kitchen after boiling these.

My tough guy

Memories from Warmer Days

 These photos were skipped over in my excitement to post about the Aspen Grove trip this summer.  Pictured above is my first batch of home-made baby food, sweet potatoes and apricots.  I felt very domestic using our new blender to puree stuff like this while Stephen became the smoothie king by creating all frosty smoothies for the adult pallet.  Below is a snack of which even Cindy might approve.

 This brought a smile to my face: my two older kids cooperatively creating this, which they named a "Hooper Dumper Dinker House."  I thought even the name was clever.

 Our good friends the Kochs came for a visit.  Ian and Charlie coincidentally had matching swim trunks!

 Brooklyn once had a swimsuit just like June's!

 The happy bunch splashin' up some fun in the summer sun!

 The two babies shared a pac 'n' play and played with a brush.

 A creative way to use old Mardi Gras beads!

 A yummy and colorful stir-fry dinner.

 quick photo op, blurry much?

Finally the Pictures!

 There's no place like our new (rented) home for the holidays.  Here is Stephen and the kids ready for a walk while I finish the Butternut Squash soup that everyone LOVED (wink, wink).

 Stephen is thrilled to see that Brooklyn's bike is leaning up against his car right here.  oops!

 Ian on his new bike.  He's been rockin' the 2-wheeler for almost a year now.  No training wheels needed thanks to the balance bike.

 The dining room and kitchen area

 kitchen again

 living room, to the right of the kitchen, very open
we like it

 the front room
usually bare without the deco's, still working on filling the white spaces
this is what you see on your left when you first enter the house

 this is what you see straight ahead and to the right when you first walk in the doorway

 Brooklyn's room

 Ian's room/craft storage

This started off as the craft room, but ended up as Ian's bedroom, with a craft wall still in place.
Of course, now that we've moved Ian out of B's room, he prefers to sleep on the floor in her room anyway, not much different than when his bed used to be in there.  Can you see how Ian uses little links from our learning time materials to suspend his superhero action figures from the wire shelves?  Gotta love it.

We feel so blessed to have nearly doubled our living space.  Modesto isn't the picturesque paradise of San Diego, but we love having a place of our own.  Stephen's new job isn't a bad gig either.  Thanks for being assertive Honey Badger!  ;)

Family Photos at Balboa Park

 I am the WORST at getting family photos taken.  I avoid them at all costs because they are expensive and take some effort to coordinate.  Also, there are so many beautiful scenic places in San Diego, it's hard to nail down to just one spot that would work without the crowds or funky lighting (like the beaches mostly)!  So finally when family calendar time came around and beginning of the school year projects required family photos, I decided that enough was enough!  The Aspen Grove picture of the 5 of us where I'm sportin' the huge sunglasses was NOT going to cut it!  So here was my best cheapskate attempt...Laugh as you may, we sure did...Well there was some crying too as you'll see.

 First of all, we used a tripod and our own camera.  The first 3 shots show the comedy that ensued when we realized the timer on the camera was taking multiple shots at once.  HillARIOUS!  So here you see my real laugh, real smile, and it's certainly not a something we will print or frame but it was funny nonetheless... Anyway!  On to the next ones, a bit more posed.

 The problem with not using a REAL photographer is that the baby is pretty much NEVER looking at the camera, except when it flashed about 7 times in a row and Stephen was out of the picture on shots two through six.

 Here's the best one of all of us except of course Jack.  Let me think, mostly it was Jack's naptime and he was not having any part of these posed smiles for a black flashing box.

 Brooklyn on the other hand, went to the Rosalia school of modeling/camera loving... She completely set this one up on her own... I had to laugh

 Hate to point this out, but I didn't realize 'till we were done that Ian's shirt was only partially buttoned...just chalkin' up the comedy points!

 Look at that mischievous grin!  So fitting!

 Now there's the smile we all know and love!

 Jack thought that my necklace was just a toy I brought along for him.

 Here are some candid shots.  I liked capturing the moving water on camera.

 and of course the natural expressions

 Here are some more photos that tell a story...We're all trying to get Jack to smile and look at the camera, can you tell?

 Watch Ian's tongue in these next two...I remember seeing the same look on his sister when she tried squeezing Ian tightly a few years back.  What am I thinking?  She still does all kinds of sneaky unneccessary roughness to this day!

 Jack's and Ian's face here are too funny.  Brookie's got the spooky Halloween eyes though....oooaaahhh-ah-ah!

 Extra CHEESE anyone??

 Here's the silly part of me that thought I could be a better photographer than Stephen and get everyone to smile perfectly at the camera....THAT worked out well!

 Or not

 A couple of last-ditch efforts with a new background

 I liked the geometric background on this one.

 Well there you have it folks, all the reasons why it IS worth the money to hire a photographer!