Finally

Every year I ask. Every year for the last nine, it hasn't happened.

On the tenth, it did!

My mom, Ruben, and kids came to our house for Christmas!

The last time we were all together was five years ago and M wasn't even born.

It was so nice to spend quality time with all of my favorite people.

I feel so blessed to have had this opportunity.

It was a  MERRY CHRISTMAS  indeed

EGGcelent

This has been the scene at Northwest Asthma and Allergy for the last four years.

Every Fall we drive up north to have poor little M poked and prodded only to determine that, Yes, she is still allergic to eggs.

Last week was especially annoying. The office moved to a new location even more north, and it was raining especially hard. I thought we left with enough time, but it turns out that even Seattlites can't handle more than a constant drizzle. About 30 minutes before our scheduled appointment, when I saw the sign reading that Seattle was still 40 minutes away, I decided to give them a call. The receptionist was quick to want to reschedule my appointment because she didn't think I'd make it there even with the 15 minute grace period they allow. I told her that if I didn't make it, there would be no need for me to reschedule because I wouldn't be coming back, but that until then, I'd be hauling ass up I-5.

We made it with one minute to spare. The usual routine followed except that this time around there was no visible sign of allergy! It made the weaving in and out of traffic worth it.

I can't say that her allergy has been a big burden on us. She could eat baked egg and more recently Caesar dressing and mayonnaise, and if anybody tries to feed her "just and egg" she'll tell them where they can shove it. So, see, all our bases are pretty much covered, but it is nice to have that whole ordeal be a thing of the past.

Not that she'll be indulging in omelets anytime soon. She told me that she won't try an egg until she's 8. I have other plans. The doctor wants us to do a taste test and I'm willing to be she won't refuse French toast!

Spring Forward; Fall Back

Each spring and fall, when it's time to change the clocks, I always think of my Nino (my godfather). He is the one that taught me the saying that is my title: Spring Forward; Fall Back.

I don't remember when it was, though I was probably in my teens, but I do remember thinking it was genius. I may have even thought that he made it up, because if anybody could have made it up, it was him. He was genius. He was an amazing, though somewhat odd, man.

I can go on and on about him. But not today. One day I will be ready. Today it just hurts too much. I guess one could say that I think about him frequently. It's usually just a fleeting thought as I go about my day. Today there's been reminders of him all day long. We have a lot of clocks. On my way home from running errands; however, it dawned on my that the anniversary of his death was coming up. NO, was my next thought, it had already come and gone. In October!

How could the day have passed me by without so much as a thought of him? This is a man who was such a big part of my childhood and my life in general. This is a man who up until the end held onto mine and my brother's pictures in spite of the fact that he hadn't seen us in at least sixteen years. This is a man who still had some of my Barbies and maybe even a few of my brother's Matchbox cars; things that we left behind at the house in LA but that he couldn't bear do the same with when he packed up and moved to Mexico because they were the only tangible memories of the son and daughter he never had.  

I idolized this man, I loved and respected him. As with most relationships, it wasn't perfect. In my early-20's he let me down, and I'm pretty sure I returned the favor twofold. But I never stopped loving him. I used to think that one day I'd meet up with him in Mexico and tag along on one of his adventures. Unfortunately that day never came. Time passed us by. And then one day the phone call came. 

Juan Edmundo Tobias

My Nino.

I miss you. I love you. I'm sorry.

The Gotham City Posse

Halloween was pretty low-key this year. Our neighborhood didn't do anything in the way of getting together like we did the last couple of years, which I'm hoping is because Halloween was on a Wednesday.

Really???? I think we should start a petition that designates the last Saturday of October, Halloween.

I mean, if we can celebrate presidents' birthdays on random days, Halloween should be a breeze.

I'll keep you posted on how that works out for me.

Anyway, about a month ago while at Wal-Mart, M spotted a Bat Girl costume and had to have it.

It was adorable, so I splurged the 20 bucks and got it.

 J had mentioned he wanted to be a ninja, and I was resigned to the fact that theme costumes for the kids would no longer be. However, once he realized she was going to be a superhero, he changed his mind and decided he'd go as Batman.
I was thrilled because he already has the costume that was a hand-me-down from Baby Joe. 

But, he changed his mind.
Daddy would be Batman and he would be Robin.

In keeping with the theme, I would go as Catwoman.

Never mind that we didn't go anywhere. We all dressed up.

They walked the neighborhood and I passed out candy.

And here we are:

THE GOTHAM CITY POSSE

Aren't we cool?

Robin thinks so!

And one more of the superheroes together.

Carving Out Some Family Fun

Weekdays are pretty much business around here. We have a routine that we tend to adhere to from Monday through Thursday. The kids' fun is limited to watching a show and maybe playing Legos or Beyblade. Sometimes we get a short board game in before it's time to take showers, brush teeth, and read books.

Tonight was different. I realized yesterday that we hadn't carved the pumpkins M and I picked up last week. If we were going to get it done before Halloween, today was the day to do it.

We started out with having breakfast for dinner. This could be the first time in my almost-ten years of marriage that has happened. D and I are going to Mexico in 11 days and have 

been eating no carbs for about a week.

Omelets were on the menu.

And D makes a mean one!

Then it was time to get our carving on!

It was M's first foray into the pulling-guts business, and she was elbow deep in it. She even donned an apron. 

J picked one named "Pirate Jack" and M's was called "Traditional Happy" which she quickly changed to Princess Jackie. 

We wrapped up the night with homemade caramel apples and caramel/cheese popcorn ~ not homemade, but delicious. 

Both D and I caved and had some.

We suck.

Our night didn't.

Accolades

Last week was conference week. 

The first one of the year for J is always a small party; with his teacher, speech therapist, case manager, the special-ed head honcho, D, me, and M sit around a table and talk all things J.

Expectations are discussed, and so are goals; both academic and social.

This is also where any concerns are addressed. 

For now, J is working in his internal dialog. Basically, keeping his commentary to himself.

I'll never forget that first conference in first-grade when his teacher told us in a hushed voice that he didn't have many friends and that he played by himself most of the time. My heart sank to my stomach and it was all I could do to hold back the tears. I don't even remember what the follow-up question was that D asked, but her answer was that the other kids "tolerate" him. Tolerate him??? 

I could hardly tolerate the overwhelming feeling of nausea that I felt.

Eventually he made a buddy and hooked up with another from the previous year. Today he has one really good friend and a couple others he plays with on the playground. His social advancement is a work in progress that he works on daily. 

So imagine my surprise when at the conclusion of last week's conference his general-ed teacher had a few parting words for us that went something like this:

"J is very charismatic. I would say that if I asked the class who they enjoy being around, J would be one of the top three names on the list."

I believe the word "fun" was also thrown in there somewhere. I could not believe my ears. I was so proud! Charismatic! He called J charismatic. And all over again, I found myself doing all I could to contain my tears at one of these meetings.

We know he's charismatic. We know he's fun. We know he's funny. Could it be that everyone else is starting to see it too?

Next, special-ed head honcho commented on how handsome he is. She said that he is probably the "Most Handsome Boy in the School." 

I'm going to concur.

And then, as icing on the cake, the next day at Kumon, Andrew commented to him what a great job he's doing on focusing. You have to know Andrew to know that praise doesn't come easily from him.

It was a good week!

A couple of days later we went to the pumpkin patch.

Hey, nobody said he followed directions.

BOO???

Before moving to WA we came out on a house-hunting trip. We looked at tons of houses before deciding on the place we now call home. Back then, there was only one house that was occupied; the rest of the neighborhood consisted of homes in various stages of construction and empty lots.

After moving in, we endured a couple of years of noisy mornings, strangers up and down the street, and nails on the street. But little by little, lot after lot, houses started popping up on what was once a pile of dirt and rocks. Lights came one, people waved, and homes were made.

People from all four corners of the country came together in a little neighborhood on Olympia's west side.

Five years later only a couple of homes remain empty. I love our neighborhood. We are surrounded by good people here. Not all of us are friends, but we're all neighborly.

During the summer months, at any given time, there are kids on the street. They vary in age and gender. And just like their parents, not all of them are friends, but there's always room for one more body to join the shenanigans at hand.

Last year someone started BOOing folks during the month of October. Basically a treat is left at the home of a neighbor along with some instructions. You tape your BOO sign on your door and BOO two other people that don't have one on theirs. The kids get a kick out of it.

On Monday I got home to a cool metal cat and a tin full of candy. I set out the next day to get goodies. Today when J got home from school he asked me why we got BOOed again. Well, I have no idea! As I drove through the neighborhood I noticed that many of the houses have multiple signs on their doors.

BOO to not following directions? No way...YAY to our cool rebel neighbors.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Tea-rrific!

The Birthday Girl was up early and asked to listen to

Call Me Maybe on YouTube.

Then it was off to school where a celebration ensued: Oreo Cookies with strawberry filling.

Because no birthday would be complete without a trip to the mall, that's where we went. 

We tried on Ugg Boots 

and hats. 

We had lunch and headed home.

The night before, Daddy asked here where she wanted to go for her birthday dinner. 

Because we were heading to Tacoma anyway, he suggested Buffalo Wild Wings, among other things.

Because she's her daddy's girl, she chose BWW without hesitation.

Because no birthday would be complete without a second trip to the mall,

and because she's her mommy's girl, we went to Nordstrom.

We bought her birthday present ~ some boots.

(She's weird that way...always has been....Toys or Fashion??? Fashion, of course!)

Because I love to take a family picture at every birthday,

and because there was nobody to take it, we took our own:

It's awful quality. And I'm convinced we are all more attractive than the picture shows.

Once at home, there really was somebody more attractive waiting for her:

She's been eyeing this cake every time we go to Safeway.

She was a happy girl.

And a tired one too.

As we speak she is snug in her bed; another birthday under her belt.

Partying can be exhausting, especially when you started five days ago.

Her party was last Saturday. 

All of my attempts at having it at the pumpkin patch were dismissed during the summer when I was ready to book the place.

She wanted a home party.We consulted with Daddy who swore off another after her princess one last year. 

I suggested a small tea party with a few friends. He complied. She was thrilled.

And the preparations began.

We decided early on it would be a Girls-Only event.

It was so much fun....both the planning and the day itself.

We had finger sandwiches and veggies; a story, a game, a photo booth, a candy bar,

and, of course, tea!

The moms had a nice afternoon relaxing and chatting.

It was quiet. Way more quiet than I'm used to at a party.

And then the boys came home. 

I can't believe our little girl is four!

Bribes

That right there was my Facebook status update tonight. It proved to be popular with many likes and a few I love yous.

I felt a little guilty at first, which is probably why I posted it. But as it turns out, Momma knows best. He had some homework to finish up that I knew would become a fight after running three miles. Not to mention the time. Sure enough...it took him a little over an hour to get his thoughts in place and onto paper.

He was adamant about going to practice. I love his work ethic, especially since he's been going nonstop since 7:45 this morning, but something had to give today.The deal was that if he skipped cross country and finished his homework by 7:30, I'd take him out for ice cream. We shook on it and he finished with about 20 minutes to spare.

Okay. Okay...I wasn't really in the mood to drag us out to one of the coldest parks in Olympia and wait for an hour while he ran. But those are just semantics.

Dennis has been gone all week and I'm tired! As we speak, the kids are fast asleep, the homework is done, and their tummies are full -- of the yumminess that is an Oreo McFlurry.

Like I said, Semantics!

Lucky

Lucky. It's a word I've heard thrown around quite a bit lately.

On Saturday, J told us he was SO lucky because just that week on Thursday he had gone to his friend's birthday party. On Friday he went to a picnic where he got to play with a bunch of his friends, and that evening he was going to our neighborhood's block party.

Last week was M's first week of school and J's first full week. It was also the first week for fall sports. We were busy! So busy, in fact,  that M decided to get a nap in before making her soccer debut.

LUCKY!

The picnic that I speak of was the annual HAP picnic. I'm a co-chair this year and had the opportunity to introduce myself to the Kindergarten parents at Curriculum night earlier in the week. In my push to get parents to volunteer, I spoke of the feeling of community that we have at Hansen. I told them how on M's first day of school she was greeted by several of the staff there, of how I feel that they are always safe behind those walls. I love the HAP program. I love that the kids travel together through the years. It's a great fit for somebody like J who is socially-challenged. It presents the opportunity for him to build great friendships without much of an effort on his part. I feel very LUCKY to have gotten in, and I feel lucky that  M got into the preschool program there.

Saturday was our first annual neighborhood block party. There was a great turnout. The adults ate and drank while the kids ran around and planned for a talent show. As we were wrapping things up some of the other neighbors and I were talking about how awesome our neighborhood is and how LUCKY we were to have stumbled upon it. 

As it turns out, the next day my mom ended up in the hospital. She had a sinus infection that went haywire; her blood pressure went sky high, her potassium and sodium levels low, and five days later she's still there.

I don't always feel lucky when these things happen. I stress about not being able to be there with her; get angry over the shabby phone lines that won't go through to her room; annoyed at the nurses that don't seem to be doing much. But, she's lucky to have family and friends there that never let her down. They call and visit and keep her stocked with the things she needs.

 I'm LUCKY to have the best mom in the world still here.

And I'm lucky to have my two beautiful kids....

They keep me busy when I need it most. They keep my body moving, my mind occupied, and my heart full of love.

Sleepover 101

 1. Ask parents if you can have a sleepover with your sibling.

2. Move one mattress to the adjacent room, which just so happens to be brother's.

3. Pull his mattress down.

4. Chat, giggle, laugh.

 5. Repeat #4. Over and over until "lights out."

Hooray for Sleepovers!

It's a Garden Out There!

My black thumb isn't so black after all. Back in May M and I threw a couple of seeds into a planter box. Less than three months later, that up there is what it looks like. So far the lettuce is the only thing we've been able to harvest, and we have lettuce to give away! It's been fun stepping outside our door empty handed and coming back with what's for dinner.

I put the picture below up on Instagram with the caption of "Is that a cucumber, or are you just happy to see me?"

Upon further review, it's not a cucumber. It's squash. Whether or not it's happy to see me is a rhetorical question, but I'm certainly happy to see it! I'll be even more happy if we get some tomatoes.

D had to trim it down yesterday because it's getting unruly. There are all kinds of life forms being one with nature on that little plot. And, frankly, it grosses me out some.

It truly is a jungle garden out there!

Just Sayin'

When our house was being built I asked about air conditioning.

They told me I wouldn't need it.

They lied.

I'm not complaining. I'm just sayin'. 

Summa.....So Far

I've taken some pictures since school got out almost six weeks ago:

BOO for summer being almost over!