Mission Beach 2011

Wednesday afternoon San Diego brought lovely 68 degree weather and we packed up our kids and beach gear and headed just 8 miles west to hit Mission Beach.

Needless to say, the kids loved the sand and immediately dug right in.

Kate ate her share of sand, seaweed, beach drift, whatever she could find. And sucking your thumb while on the beach proves to be problematic.

The water was cold and thankfully our kids were not interested.

Phil and Matthew enjoyed some beach frisbee, Shanna and I were beach toy mediators, water and snack providers and beach towel bundlers when our babes had enough of the wind. I learned that swim diapers do not hold any liquids (duh) as Max demonstrated as soon as we got there by creating his own wet sand. Changing diapers is nigh impossible, don't try to get your kids bums clean of sand and I even briefly considered dipping Kate's little cheeks in the water to rid her of all the sand but as I dipped my toes into the frigid water I quickly and wisely reconsidered.

Bath time when we got home required at least two shampoos with vigorous scrubbing and left a little bucket of sand in the bottom of the tub. We cleaned sand out of ears for almost a week afterwards. The beach was our favorite activity of the trip and we are already wanting to hit it again before school starts up.

One Year Down!

Phil finished his first year of medical school Friday, May 20th. One year. It went so fast and I can only hope the rest of school and training fly by as well. But then that means my kids' lives are going just as fast and that can slow down, thank you very much.

We kicked off the summer by heading out to California Friday evening. We loaded down our Sentra and drove ever so slowly to stop at Stephanie's. 347 miles, 6 hours and 4 weary numb bums later we call it a night. We enjoyed a nice relaxing weekend with Steph's family; the kids played, Phil and Dave golfed and Steph and I talked and shopped. Grocery shopping but still...

Monday afternoon we left the wonderful accommodations of Stephanie and headed into San Diego to meet up with our friends, the Graffs, who were gracious enough to invite us to hang out by the beach and stay in a condo with them. It worked out wonderfully. Shanna and I split meal prep and the kids are about the same age and played relatively well as far as three almost 2-year olds go. It was so nice to have a little apartment style "home" to stay in complete with kitchen, two bedrooms and baths and a dining/living room area. Perfect for two families with little ones so we could still respect the nap and bedtime schedules.

Monday was a travel day and we just settled in, ordered Thai food and after putting the kids down for the night Shanna and I went grocery shopping.

Tuesday morning we visited Seaport Village:

Checking out the Ben and Jerry's cow bench.

Scaring the dickens out of Kate with the giant stuffed lobster.

Walking the waterway.

Poor Kate decided today was a good day to cut molars. She was miserable and I left the Tylenol at the condo. Her shirt was drenched from her drool.

We attempted a family photo.

The smiles didn't come out until the kids experienced freedom. Little turkeys.

Our awesome friends the Graff's.

The only reason Austin is cooperating is because there was a huge truck behind me, hence the distracted look. But hey! We moms will take what we can get!

A Revelation

Summer break is here. Phil is home for three solid months.

We have kept pretty busy with out of town trips, library visits, mornings at the park, our local high school pool, the kiddie pool in the backyard and the like.

But. Why does summer feel harder with Phil home now? Don't get me wrong, I am elated at having another pair of hands around, a fellow comrade in discipline, back-up during bath time, etc. I was lamenting this fact to my friend Julie, a fellow med school wife and she said she was experiencing the same thing. So at least I am not alone. We concluded it is the lack of a regular schedule and the constant need to keep our littles entertained.

Phil is President of SOMA for his class and also the webmaster for SOMA on a national level. As such, one of his current responsibilities is giving their website a face-lift, so he has been busy coding and losing himself in the work he once knew and loved. Which means he has been semi-absent, locked away in our bedroom or in the office, silent and coding.

Tonight I did dinner alone with the kids, got them bathed, lotioned, diapered and dressed. I had a bit of pep in my step as I realized that sometimes I operate better when I know I am the one who has to get the job done; no back-up, no Phil. I have noticed now that he is home I have let some things slip, the house is less tidy (still clean but cluttered), dishes wait until the next morning, laundry is waiting to be folded. We are playing hard and having fun.

My point being that I am glad I had this little epiphany and I know it has served me well this past year and will continue to do so as we forage on through Phil's medical school education, residency and a fellowship. He will be absent much of that time and it is up to me to carry on, do what needs to be done and do so with a cheerful heart*. "Come what may and love it!".

*Don't get me wrong, I have my bad days. Days when my patience is gone and all I want to do is eat ice cream and sit on the internet without my kids needing my constant attention. We all do that, right? Please say yes. And when this new baby makes his debut in 3 short months I know I am going to be knocked on my tail.

AZ Science Center

Early in May we went with our friends David and J'lene to the AZ Science Center. I had heard they had a fun level just for the little people crowd and J'lene had snagged passes from the library. Unfortunately the Body Exhibit was there and it took precedence over the fun things for the kids to do but we still had a good time.

I need to be better at taking photos with our friends here in medical school. We love the Merrill family! They have a daughter just a few months older than Max and Kate. They play well together and J'lene is a wonderful  friend to me and still likes to hang out with us even after she has watched my kids while I work or go to doctor's appointments. 

Mother's Day 2011

Remember how I didn't get an Easter family photo? Well, gosh darn it! I was determined to get a Mother's Day photo with my kids.

I did have to do some smile swapping with me and Kate and forget about Max. That is the best I got, heaven forbid I take my kids outside and expect them to cooperate. Well, this is life at it's finest.

Phil hadn't gotten up to do breakfast or the like so I was already a bit peeved as I got up early with the kids and got us all fed while he continued to slumber (ahem). The gift I ordered myself and my mom and sister hadn't arrived, in fact, the girl "didn't get my order" but she had my money. By this point I was near tears on the way to church since nothing was going according to plan. My plans, the ones in my head that I didn't voice to my husband, you know; card, gift, breakfast, photo, etc. This is understood standard procedure, right? I wanted a do-over.

Church was nice and typical "Rah, rah Moms!". I remembered how it felt to secretly loathe this day and my heart went out to all those who wish to be mothers and have yet to experience it. I subbed in nursery and made myself a card from Max and Kate. I was getting a card one way or another, so I took advantage.

Phil redeemed himself by making dinner and I made some fabulous turtle brownies. He does wonderful things for me everyday, is ever so helpful with the kids especially now that he is home during the summer and I appreciate his efforts.

This reads like such a downer post but it is real and I want to remember life as it happens. Nothing sugar-coated. Phil is a wonderful husband and father, who has so much on his mind with medical school that holidays usually escape him, and I am blessed to have my busy little family. I wouldn't change a thing.

Easter

This post has been sitting in my draft since May 7th, I had good intentions. I can see how easy it is to get behind with one's blog; the myriad of pictures waiting to be sorted, edited and prepared for the web, the words to record, the tired mom who doesn't want to start... So, let's get caught up!

Easter was special this year since Camden's birthday was on the same day. Oh how I miss my boy. Naturally, I was more emotional and sensitive to traditional Easter festivities and more keenly aware of our Savior. How grateful I am that He lives.

We didn't do baskets for the kids but did get them dressed up in their Sunday best. Which is not documented. Blast. Trying to get to church on time delayed the family picture and then when we got home from church the kids were in meltdown mode so my precious photo got nixed. Max was handsome in a navy pinstriped vest with matching pants, shiny black shoes and his hair fixed just so. Kate was splendid in blue and yellow floral topped with a white sweater and a pretty white flower in her hair. Adorable. Blue eyes shining. Take my word for it. I will have to do a redo and post that later.

Our first Easter festivity was the Midwestern Easter shindig. We were 10 minutes late and the egg hunt was completely over. Oh well. So we walked around, snagged some snacks and let the kids play with some balls on the court. They had bounce houses and the Easter Bunny but we knew Max and Kate would get clobbered in the bounce houses with the older kids and we weren't inclined to wait 15+ minutes in line to get a picture with a bunny. So this is all we have.

We did have Easter festivities to attend the following weekend and the kids participated in their first egg hunt. We met Phil's family at the Scottsdale Train Park for a nice picnic dinner and treats. No pictures of the actual hunt since all hands on deck were required to keep them focused.

Candy is king. Once discovered that was all that mattered, who cared if there were more eggs to find?

It was a busy weekend with us running the Warrior Dash Saturday morning, Phil doing physical exams on high school students for Midwestern all afternoon and then meeting at the park. But it was wonderful to spend it with family.