Since we moved here, we noticed a property surrounded by lots of trees and a white fence. It was a large property and there were no signs. We tried to figure out if it was a business or residence. Well, my hubby found out from work that it is the compound...I mean property of the inventor of the baby carrot.
Here is a USA Today article I found on the internet about carrots and baby carrots.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
I think someone has a crush on Olivia
I met a mom from Olivia's preschool last week who happens to live in our neighborhood. Her little boy is so cute, he told his mom "that's the one (pointing to Olivia), that's the one I want to have over" very excitedly trying to catch his breath!
This morning, Olivia greeted this same little boy, M, and he told her "you can come over to my house, my mom said it's okay" at which point Olivia told him matter of factly "and you can come over to my house...but it's not ready yet". I saw their teacher chuckle at this and told her we were getting ready to paint our house.
This morning, Olivia greeted this same little boy, M, and he told her "you can come over to my house, my mom said it's okay" at which point Olivia told him matter of factly "and you can come over to my house...but it's not ready yet". I saw their teacher chuckle at this and told her we were getting ready to paint our house.
Keeping the kids busy
So I signed Olivia up for YMCA soccer for 4-5 year olds. I'm excited for her to try something new. She's shown some interest in soccer, probably from watching Dora. Anyway, as I was signing her up, I was having flashbacks when I did YMCA soccer when I was young, I must have been about 7 or 8. I remember the name of our team was the Red Devils and we were the worst team on the league...I think I was the worst player, too! At the end of the season, they gave out trophies and I got the trophy for being the 'little lady' of the team. I think this is because my mother took me to get my hair done before a game and told me not to mess up my hair so didn't play too much!
Last week, I took Claire to try out a music class with Harmony Road Music school, it didn't go over so well. I thought it was a really cute class, but I just don't think she has the attention for it right now. So, this morning I took her to try a My Gym class and she absolutely loved it. It reminded me of the Gymboree classes I did with Olivia before Claire came along. And I was surprised she wasn't clingy at all like she normally is in new situations, she was enthusiastic about trying new things and I think she enjoyed interacting with other kids close to her age. She had such a great time, I signed her up, so we will be going every Wednesday morning after I drop Olivia off at preschool.
Last week, I took Claire to try out a music class with Harmony Road Music school, it didn't go over so well. I thought it was a really cute class, but I just don't think she has the attention for it right now. So, this morning I took her to try a My Gym class and she absolutely loved it. It reminded me of the Gymboree classes I did with Olivia before Claire came along. And I was surprised she wasn't clingy at all like she normally is in new situations, she was enthusiastic about trying new things and I think she enjoyed interacting with other kids close to her age. She had such a great time, I signed her up, so we will be going every Wednesday morning after I drop Olivia off at preschool.
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Row, row, row your boat...
Here is Claire pretending that she is in a boat, she cracks me up sometimes!
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Colors
We have a 'colorful' house, in fact we named several parts of the house by color. There's the aweful mismatched bright yellow entry and hallway, the dark maroon walls in the breakfast nook, the avocado green bathroom, bright boy blue bedroom (actually Olivia's room which we will eventually paint pink), yellow bedroom which is okay to live with for now(Claire's room), the aweful bright red wall in our bathroom and the rest of the house which is neutral with a light mauve tint to it. Blech!
Here are some 'before' pictures, keep in mind the color is alot different in person!
Yellow entry (it's really bright, trust me):
Maroon kitchen:
light mauve living room (this color is throughout house):
Blue room (trust me it is a really bright blue):
Green bathroom:
Yellow room:
Infamous red wall:
Colors we were testing, we are going with the bottom color, it's called Lulled Beige.
We are thinking of painting the kitchen a Banana Cream color to lighten it up. And then we may paint 2 walls at the end of the dining room a deep rich red. Olivia's room (a.k.a. blue room) will be painted a faint pink. We will leave the yellow bedroom alone for now and we are still deciding about the green bathroom. We will paint our room and bathroom the beige. So the beige color will be like the base paint for the house and then we will add small touches of color.
Here are some 'before' pictures, keep in mind the color is alot different in person!
Yellow entry (it's really bright, trust me):
Maroon kitchen:
light mauve living room (this color is throughout house):
Blue room (trust me it is a really bright blue):
Green bathroom:
Yellow room:
Infamous red wall:
Colors we were testing, we are going with the bottom color, it's called Lulled Beige.
We are thinking of painting the kitchen a Banana Cream color to lighten it up. And then we may paint 2 walls at the end of the dining room a deep rich red. Olivia's room (a.k.a. blue room) will be painted a faint pink. We will leave the yellow bedroom alone for now and we are still deciding about the green bathroom. We will paint our room and bathroom the beige. So the beige color will be like the base paint for the house and then we will add small touches of color.
Friday, August 25, 2006
"Wash, wash, wash your hands"
(to the tune of 'Row, row, row your boat')
So I started potty training Claire as everytime I get her on the potty, she goes. Here is a picture of her washing her hands. She has always loved to play with the water, ever since she could figure out how to climb the stool and turn the faucet.
On another note, notice the avocado green bathroom! It's just not my style, we WILL be painting that in the future. We are actually trying to pick out a neutral color to paint most of the house. Do you know how many beige and cream colors there are? It's mind boggling and it's overwhelming to have to pick a color.
So I started potty training Claire as everytime I get her on the potty, she goes. Here is a picture of her washing her hands. She has always loved to play with the water, ever since she could figure out how to climb the stool and turn the faucet.
On another note, notice the avocado green bathroom! It's just not my style, we WILL be painting that in the future. We are actually trying to pick out a neutral color to paint most of the house. Do you know how many beige and cream colors there are? It's mind boggling and it's overwhelming to have to pick a color.
Maybe I don't want to meet my neighbors
One neighbor has been described by another neighbor as "the neighborhood drug kingpin"...uh, this is 2 doors down from us! Ahhhh! Apparently, the swat team accompanied by helicopters came upon this neighbor's house searching for the husband some time in the spring. I get the feeling the neighbors around here have been afraid of these particular neighbors. I guess I've discovered why no one comes out of their house!
When we bought our house, the previous owner did hint at some troubles with speeding by the teenager friends of this family and that the couple was going through a 'nasty divorce'. At the time, their house was also on the market, we heard they had a potential buyer, but I just learned that the sale fell through and the family (actually the wife) just refinanced their mortgage. We were all hoping they would sell the house to a family with young kids. I'll keep you posted on any developments!
When we bought our house, the previous owner did hint at some troubles with speeding by the teenager friends of this family and that the couple was going through a 'nasty divorce'. At the time, their house was also on the market, we heard they had a potential buyer, but I just learned that the sale fell through and the family (actually the wife) just refinanced their mortgage. We were all hoping they would sell the house to a family with young kids. I'll keep you posted on any developments!
Olivia's first day of Preschool 2006
Wah, this is her last year of preschool, she is growing up so fast! 
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
My neighbors calll it 'backyard living'
And I don't like it! When we moved here, we noticed people don't come out in the neighborhood. It makes me miss Texas where kids ride their bikes on the sidewalk, play in the front yard, kids play at the neighborhood parks, neighbors chat over the fence (actually people did this too where we lived in the Bay area). I just don't feel a sense of community here. I was really gung-ho about exploring our new town, especially with everyone commenting how friendly everyone is here. Why don't people come out of their houses? Yes, I know it gets HOT, into the tripe digits (sometimes 110+), but what about on the nice days when it is only in the 80's? I guess everyone is enjoying their pool, but I'm anxious to see what it's like when the weather really cools off. I think I'm going to attempt to start a neighborhood playgroup. I'll let you know how it goes...
Monday, August 21, 2006
The longest birthday party ever...
A week ago, Olivia went to a birthday party for one of her classmates who was turning 4. I was eager for an opportunity to meet other moms, especially SAHMs (Stay At Home Moms) since I haven't met any since we have moved here. So the party starts at 4, so I think it will last until 6...birthday parties are normally about 2 hours, right??? You would think... We left this party close to 8pm and it was still going on.
It was a swim/princess party so the kids swam for almost an hour and a half before they served food. Luckily they had a couple of teenagers to help watch the kids in the pool. I wouldn't take my eyes off Olivia, it was crazy, there were so many kids jumping in, it was hard to keep an eye on them. Lucky for me, she grew tired of swimming and decided to come out and play on the swingset. I took this opportunity to 'work the crowd' so to speak. I asked around for good pediatricians, asked about moms groups, asked about the area. I gave out my number to a couple of people who, as of yet, I have not heard from.
When they finally brought the dinner, they brought out a ton of food...salmon, chicken, beef, sandwiches and they had a bar going for the adults, too. After dinner, the kids worked on breaking a pinata, then they got princess tattoos. It was about this time (7:30pm) that another mom and I tried to leave with our girls, but then the birthday girl's mom started to bring out the fabulous cakes. So, of course, we had to try some cake. We literally had 2 or 3 bites before we had to coax our girls away from the party, it was close to 8pm which is Olivia's bedtime. It really was a great party and the mom gave out some terrific goody baskets with tons of princess stuff.
It was a swim/princess party so the kids swam for almost an hour and a half before they served food. Luckily they had a couple of teenagers to help watch the kids in the pool. I wouldn't take my eyes off Olivia, it was crazy, there were so many kids jumping in, it was hard to keep an eye on them. Lucky for me, she grew tired of swimming and decided to come out and play on the swingset. I took this opportunity to 'work the crowd' so to speak. I asked around for good pediatricians, asked about moms groups, asked about the area. I gave out my number to a couple of people who, as of yet, I have not heard from.
When they finally brought the dinner, they brought out a ton of food...salmon, chicken, beef, sandwiches and they had a bar going for the adults, too. After dinner, the kids worked on breaking a pinata, then they got princess tattoos. It was about this time (7:30pm) that another mom and I tried to leave with our girls, but then the birthday girl's mom started to bring out the fabulous cakes. So, of course, we had to try some cake. We literally had 2 or 3 bites before we had to coax our girls away from the party, it was close to 8pm which is Olivia's bedtime. It really was a great party and the mom gave out some terrific goody baskets with tons of princess stuff.
church shopping, continued
So I'm still looking for a church. I tried out the Lutheran church, it's really close to our house, but it seemed a little big. And it just didn't feel diverse, I enjoyed it though.
Yesterday, I tried out the Presbyterian church downtown. I really liked it, it's more what I'm used to. It reminded me of visiting my grandmother and going to church with her...she was Presbyterian. It's a traditional church and they seem to have lots of young families. They have a great sunday school program and the teacher even called me to get our address because she wanted to send a card to Olivia.
I went to what they call the "blended service" which has a mix of praise music and traditional hymns. This type of service seems to be popular out here, I've noticed lots of churches around here have "blended services". I liked the pastor's sermon/message which is important. I actually felt at 'home' there, but the downside is that it is located downtown (it's probably only 15 minutes from our house, though).
There's another church I've heard about, but it's a 'Bible church'. What exactly does that mean? I'm used to going to mainstream Protestant chuches with traditional services, not sure I'm ready for a 'Bible church'. They also have a "blended service", too, so maybe I should give it a try. We'll see...
Yesterday, I tried out the Presbyterian church downtown. I really liked it, it's more what I'm used to. It reminded me of visiting my grandmother and going to church with her...she was Presbyterian. It's a traditional church and they seem to have lots of young families. They have a great sunday school program and the teacher even called me to get our address because she wanted to send a card to Olivia.
I went to what they call the "blended service" which has a mix of praise music and traditional hymns. This type of service seems to be popular out here, I've noticed lots of churches around here have "blended services". I liked the pastor's sermon/message which is important. I actually felt at 'home' there, but the downside is that it is located downtown (it's probably only 15 minutes from our house, though).
There's another church I've heard about, but it's a 'Bible church'. What exactly does that mean? I'm used to going to mainstream Protestant chuches with traditional services, not sure I'm ready for a 'Bible church'. They also have a "blended service", too, so maybe I should give it a try. We'll see...
Saturday, August 19, 2006
Japanese farewell party
These were taken the night (about a week and a half ago) of the Japanese students' 'Sayonara Party'. My girls are wearing these cute outfits that Sachie brought from Japan. You can see Olivia didn't look too happy, I had to coerce her into wearing it. If it's anything other than a dress or skirt, it takes some talking to get her to wear it!
Here is the group of students from Japan. They prepared a whole evening of entertaining, from origami, to singing, to a magic show. It was potluck, so all the families brought food to share only by the time my hubby and I made it to the table, there were only salads and desserts left. I had already gotten food for my girls, though so at least they got to eat good!
Here is the group of students from Japan. They prepared a whole evening of entertaining, from origami, to singing, to a magic show. It was potluck, so all the families brought food to share only by the time my hubby and I made it to the table, there were only salads and desserts left. I had already gotten food for my girls, though so at least they got to eat good!
Monday, August 14, 2006
The Big Slide
This is from about a week and a half ago. Olivia decided to tackle the big slide. Sachie (our Japanese exchange student) was at the bottom ready to catch her since she can't swim yet. She only did it a few times and then got scared.
"I want Sopie"
Here is Claire with her new lovie. 
You may recall a few weeks ago when we went to Santa Barbara and stayed one night in a hotel. We had forgotten the girls' lovies so we had to buy substitutes at the Santa Barbara zoo. The girls picked out an animal each and they stuffed it right there. This is Claire's "Sopie" (Sophie). We let her pick it out and she went for the pinkest, girliest animal she could find! Now, she has to have her to sleep along with Gertie (the original lovie). I'm really not thrilled because I'm afraid to wash Sophie, she might fall apart. Gertie is washable,and although Grandma has had to fix some 'boo boos', Gertie is really hearty.
You may recall a few weeks ago when we went to Santa Barbara and stayed one night in a hotel. We had forgotten the girls' lovies so we had to buy substitutes at the Santa Barbara zoo. The girls picked out an animal each and they stuffed it right there. This is Claire's "Sopie" (Sophie). We let her pick it out and she went for the pinkest, girliest animal she could find! Now, she has to have her to sleep along with Gertie (the original lovie). I'm really not thrilled because I'm afraid to wash Sophie, she might fall apart. Gertie is washable,and although Grandma has had to fix some 'boo boos', Gertie is really hearty.
Monday, August 07, 2006
Cowboys
I'm talkin' 'bout the Dallas Cowboys! We stopped by their training camp on Friday, my hubby was excited...he is a HUGE fan! Of course, he would have rather gone sans wife and kids and stay longer, but at least he got to see a little bit of the training.
They had a huge 'training' (play) area for the kids. Olivia had lots of fun on the inflatable slide and structures. We were all disappointed we wouldn't be able to get autographs...you have to get there really early.
They had a huge 'training' (play) area for the kids. Olivia had lots of fun on the inflatable slide and structures. We were all disappointed we wouldn't be able to get autographs...you have to get there really early.
Fog
This is what we saw on our way down to Los Angeles over the weekend:
Just thought it looked kinda cool covering the mountains!
Just thought it looked kinda cool covering the mountains!
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
More pictures from Santa Barbara
Here are some pics from the zoo and one from the beach. I just couldn't get the pictures I wanted uploaded...blogger is just so difficult sometimes.
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