Happy Days

COOKIES FOR SALE!

2012-01-30T17:33:00.010-08:00

It seems like we just got done doing this, but here we are again -- selling Girl Scout Cookies!

The sales officially started at 9am Sunday morning and we were out there knocking on doors at 9:01. The cookies are loaded in the wagon and the girls are ready to go.....

Cameron went along and helped with the wagon......

Well, he sorta helped with the wagon.....

Back at home -- Rena's troop has a Daisy troop back East that they are pen pals with so we took a few pictures of Rena to include with her letter. Rena the Brownie...... :)

Luckily we sold most of the cookies so that I didn't have to have them around the house calling my name to eat them -- I did buy the last two boxes, though, so I do HAVE to eat a few! :)

SUNDAY MORNING BREAKFAST

2012-01-29T20:16:00.004-08:00

Sunday morning Maleah was a big helper for breakfast. She made everyone a pancake -- the rest of us got Mickey Mouse pancakes, but she made herself this huge flower pancake. I just thought it was cute and funny......and very creative......that I had to take a picture! :).....

The pancakes tasted as good as they looked -- good cookin' Maleah!

MADE BY STACY

2012-01-22T08:48:00.008-08:00

The past couple of holidays have brought me some pretty cool presents made by Stacy.

The first one started on mine and Jeff's anniversary. When we got married in Hawaii the hotel that we got married at created stepping stones that were suppose to line the path to the gazebo FOREVER. Ok, maybe the contract didn't say "forever", but when we went back to Hawaii this past summer and it wasn't there we were pretty disappointed. So, Stacy made us one!

This was the original one in Hawaii 11 years ago......

And this is the new one made by Stacy in our backyard today.....

Didn't she do a great job? It's actually been sitting in our living room for the past few months waiting for our backyard project to get done. Now that it's done the stepping stone has been moved right outside the back door. It is a "stepping" stone, but I really don't want anyone to step on it so it's where we can see it, but not hurt it! :) There it is -- right there to the right of the door.......

The next cool gift made by Stacy was for Christmas. She made this magnetic board with a "family" saying and pictures on it. I love the saying and I love the pictures that she picked to put on it.....

I had a hard time deciding where to hang this one because it's the same color as most of our walls and just kind of blended right in. For now it's in the guest room downstairs -- where I have a lot of family pictures. We are actually in this room quite often because it has a desk in it that we use and it also provides a second bathroom downstairs. So, I do get to really enjoy it there -- every time I go to use that bathroom I stop and look!

I love my gifts by Stacy and am happy to finally have them out and up and be able to enjoy them! Thanks Stacy.......keep 'em coming! :)

PINCH ME!

2012-01-22T08:42:00.001-08:00

This is a silly story that actually happened a couple of months ago, but every time I look at this note I get a good little laugh so I decided to share......

One morning we were all getting ready to go and Jeff had a new shirt that he took a sticker tag off of and stuck to my back (which he thought was so funny). When I walked downstairs I took it off and told Rena that "dad stuck this to me and thinks he's funny". So Rena decided to make a note to stick to Jeff. When he came downstairs she stuck this note on his back......

He knew it was there and we all got a good little laugh while we were pinching him at home. BUT then we left the house and Jeff still had the note on his back!

We stopped at Starbucks for coffee to go and Jeff ran in by himself to get it. We were parked right outside the door and when he got in line I started laughing so hard that I could hardly tell the kids what I was laughing about. When I finally got it out we were all laughing so hard that we were crying.

No one pinched him, but a couple of people did get in line behind him and we did see a couple of other people looking at it. When he came back out of the store we all tried to be serious and one of the kids asked "dad, did anyone pinch you?" and we all broke out laughing! It took him a minute, but then he realized what we were talking and laughing about.

So, yes -- it is a silly story, but I have the note on the counter by my computer and I laugh every time I see it!

(Really -- can't you just picture Jeff in line at Starbucks trying to look all cool with a neon pink note on his back saying "pinch me"?!!?) :)

80's DAY

2012-01-22T08:36:00.003-08:00

Friday was 80's day at the kids school. The girls had fun dressing up. Cameron decided to skip this one - said there was nothing to dress up as!

Rena, Gabby and Maleah.....

Rena and her friend Ashlyn.....

Don't they look "totally awesome"?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEFF!

2012-01-17T21:14:00.009-08:00

Yesterday was Jeff's birthday and we had a full day of decorating and celebrating. Luckily the kids did not have school because they spent A LOT of time decorating and planning.

Here's what Jeff saw on the garage door before walking in to the house.....

Once inside he saw this sign made by Cameron and these streamers.....

LOTS of decorations on the stairs.....

The kids created a little scavenger hunt for Jeff to go on to find his gifts. They each had 5 different clues with 2 gifts hidden somewhere within the clues.

Rena's first clue -- "go where you sleep".....

One by Maleah - "go where I keep my dirty clothes".....

Another one by Maleah - "go where you get clean"......

The last one, by Cameron - "go where you cook - hint: the short word is b_q"......

Happy 39th Birthday Jeff!

ICE SKATING

2012-01-08T09:03:00.010-08:00

It doesn't feel much like winter around here outside so we decided that we needed an indoor cold activity! The kids and I went with our neighbors - Jason, Hale, Greyson and Decklen - and Jacinda for some ice-skating!

Greyson, Jacinda, Maleah, Cameron & Rena.....

Some "action" shots.....

All of the kids liked using these things to help you learn . They didn't need them to stand up, they just wanted them so that they could go faster without falling......it worked!.....

Uh-0h.....Cameron had a wipeout!.....

I just loved this -- Jacinda helping Maleah figure it all out.....

It was a fun couple of hours and when we walked outside we were back in the sun with 70 degree weather!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2012-01-01T18:56:00.014-08:00

Our last day of 2011 was a good one!

It started with Jeff & dad doing some yard work (which might be the reason dad decided to head home the next day!).....

Jeff did let dad relax a little bit while he was rotissering a couple of chickens for dinner......

After dinner we went to the neighbors for a little while.....

Everyone was hoping to stay awake until midnight, but Rena was the only one that made it. Maleah fell asleep first, then Cameron and here's Rena hanging out with us.....

Happy New Year! First picture of 2012!.....

BALBOA PARK

2011-12-31T13:25:00.006-08:00

On Friday we went to Balboa Park to check out the sites and enjoy another beautiful day!

We started at one of the Art Museums (the free one!) and then moved onto a botanical garden. Here's Cameron inbetween the two still having fun....

After the Botanical Garden we stopped to watch this street magician. This guy was so annoying - first he gathered everyone together then he spent about 5 minutes talking to dad and Jeff about why they were being rude and not moving forward to watch the show. Once he finally started the show he needed a couple of volunteers and Rena was more than willing and happy to be chosen.....

After the show we did some more exploring. The fountain is always an attraction to check out......

After the fountain we grabbed a bite to eat and then moved onto a little shopping area. It's the Spanish Village Art Center and had a lot of different shops to look in with handmade things. It also had a very bright, colorful, fun floor. Jeff and the kids made a game out of it.....

After the shops we walked through the Desert Garden and the Rose Garden before ending at The Model Railroad Museum......

Cameron and the Holiday Lego Train Exhibit.....

YES - another fun day! :)

MOONLIGHT BEACH

2011-12-31T12:10:00.003-08:00

On Thursday we spent a few hours at the beach doing what we do best -- hunting for sea shells, digging holes, throwing a football and relaxing in the sun! :)

The kids started with a run.....

Rena, Maleah and Bonnie searching for sea shells.....

Time to dig - I think this was the deepest hole yet!.....

Once the hole attracted a bunch of other kids on the beach Cameron moved on to some football with Jeff.....

On our way out of the parking lot we ran into this poor little lost seal. Another woman was trying to get it back down to the beach, but it got scared and hid under this car. We stayed and watched until the lifeguards captured it. According to the lifeguards the next stop for this seal was going to be SeaWorld to make sure he was healthy enough to be released back into the ocean....

Another fun day in the sun!

SAN DIEGO ZOO SAFARI PARK

2011-12-31T09:53:00.012-08:00

On Tuesday we spent the day at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. It was a beautiful day and we had fun just walking around seeing the animals and plants.

Here we are eating lunch right when we got there -- before we ever made it into to park. WHY did we take a break so soon? That would be because Jeff left all of the tickets in the car and we rode the tram from the parking lot to the front gate before he realized it. So while Jeff was riding the tram back to the car to get the tickets we decided to have a snack! (Sorry Jeff - I might still be reminding you about this in 20 years!)

Inside the park.....

Inside the petting area......

Do you think Cameron is ready to go?

Back outside waiting for the tram to go back to the car.

Like Maleah's outfit? All new clothes with pieces from different people, but she put them all together and came up with this.....isn't she cute??? :) .....

We also did see some animals while we were there.....

This is a momma gorilla holding her baby.....

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

2011-12-30T08:12:00.030-08:00

We had a great Christmas day and Santa was definitely very (very, very, very) good to all of us!

The day started at 5:30 am when we woke up to the kids playing around in the girls room (where they all slept). They came in to get Jeff & I at about 5:45 and being the mean parents that we are we told them they had to wait 15 more minutes. At exactly 5:55 (we gave in 5 minutes!) we headed downstairs.....

While the girls were waking up Grandma and Grandpa (we warned them the night before that it would be 6am) Cameron checked out his stocking.....

Once everyone was up and the adults had their coffee in hand it was time to open......

Cameron was eyeing this present under the tree for the past week and was all prepared to open this one first.......

He was definitely NOT disappointed when he opened it and found a new ripstik from Grandma and Grandpa Keyes......

Maleah got this cute unicorn stuffed animal/blanket from Peggy......

Rena got this awesome hat from The McCullough's -- they know what Rena likes! :) ......

Rena in-action opening new black Converse hightops......

More action opening.......

New rollerblades that fit......

Gotta wear a helmet with those rollerblades!......

Cameron with a new Star Wars book.......

......and a new football......

Even the adults got presents!......

Once all of the opening was done it was time to play!

Maleah and Rena both got these walking dogs from Grandma Lynne and Grandpa Joel. It barks and walks and it's the closest thing to a dog that my kids are probably ever going to get!......

Cameron got some laser fighter remote control trucks -- should provide hours of entertainment for both Cameron and Jeff.....

Rena got a new guitar......

Jeff, Maleah and Rena decided to put on a show outside with the guitar and new microphones that the girls got......

Jeff wasn't very good so we kicked him off the stage......

Yeah! The rollerblades fit!.....

We moved indoors and decided to work on some puzzles. Maleah started hers and grandpa joined in to help......

Time for dinner! Jeff used the new barbeque and rotisseried our prime rib -- it was delicious!!!!

We had a really great day and feel very thankful that dad and Bonnie were able to be here and spend it with us. We all also got so many great gifts that we are very thankful for all of our family and all that we have!

CHRISTMAS EVE

2011-12-29T21:30:00.005-08:00

We had a nice relaxing Christmas Eve. We went to Church in the afternoon and then out to dinner in the evening. Yummy Chinese food (and best of all -- NO cooking or cleaning!)......

The kids were each allowed to open one present before bedtime. I got to chose which one (because I knew what they all were). The girls are ready......

And so is Cameron.....

New pj's for everyone! Grandma Lynne made the girls and bought Cameron's. So fun to have new pj's on Christmas Eve......

Just hanging out.....

Cameron & his Christmas tree (I guess he claimed it as his because he put the lights on it!).....

Ready for Santa......

We ended the night reading The Night Before Christmas. The kids were so excited they could hardly settle down. Cameron even ended up sleeping on the floor in the girls room because he wasn't ready to go to bed. They finally did end up falling asleep and getting a few hours of sleep before they were up and moving again and ready to see what Santa brought them!

CHRISTMAS COOKIES

2011-12-28T20:42:00.004-08:00

We love making cookies....and decorating cookies......and eating cookies!

Cameron and Jacinda made the dough and then everyone took turns doing the rolling and cutting out. Maleah and I only did a few before we had to leave, but luckily for me Grandma Bonnie was here to take over (and clean up!). :)

Cameron really did not want his cookies to stick so he made sure he used plenty of flour.....

When we got back Grandma Bonnie helped Maleah with her decorating......

YUMMY!! Don't these look good? They sure did taste good!..... :)

The front tray is Cameron & Jacinda's army of gingerbread men!

(Maleah and I had to leave because Maleah had to go to the hospital for her yearly tests for her kidney reflux. Good news -- it's gone! No more medicine and no more yearly tests!)

VISITING SANTA

2011-12-24T09:26:00.005-08:00

We went and saw Santa last week so that the kids could tell him all the things that they want.....and tell him how good they've been and how much they deserve it all! They had their letters written and ready to read when it was our turn.....

Luckily all 3 kids made the "nice" list this year! :)

THE NUTCRACKER

2011-12-20T21:53:00.007-08:00

Last Saturday the girls and I spent the day in downtown San Diego shopping, eating and most importantly watching The Nutcracker at the San Diego Civic Theatre.

We started out downtown looking in some little shops and deciding where to eat.....

We ended up eating lunch at the Old Spaghetti Factory......

After lunch we headed back to the theatre. The girls were so funny walking back -- they were dancing and playing games -- just having a great time......

We made it back to theatre with plenty of time to spare -- patiently waiting for the show.....

After the show the performers were out in the lobby. We took a picture with each of them and even got their autographs in their program.....

We all three had a great day and are looking forward to many more "girl days" in the future! :)

(The boys had a pretty good day on their own also -- they made it to the beach to fly a kite and throw a football, went out for lunch, watched a movie and ate popcorn & soda and just hung out together!)

A fun weekend for everyone!

1ST GRADE HOLIDAY PARTY

2011-12-19T21:43:00.006-08:00

Maleah's class celebrated the holidays by decorating gingerbread houses. The room mom was super organized so it made things really fun (and easy for the volunteers). She had the little milk cartoons already glued onto the plates and all of the supplies set-up. The kids had a great time decorating!

Maleah was very focused on making sure her walls and decorations were on just right.....

Maleah with her friend Julia.....

All done!.....

3RD GRADE HOLIDAY PARTY

2011-12-19T21:37:00.001-08:00

Last Thursday Cameron's class had their holiday party in class. I was in-charge of the snack table and it took these boys about 30 seconds to eat their chocolate muffins and drink their orange juice......

So, what to do with them for the other 14-1/2 minutes that they were at my "station"??? Some field time sounded like a good idea -- they ran off some energy.....

Adam & Cameron.....

The party included a book exchange -- here's Cameron and his group checking out their new books.....

GINGERBREAD HOUSES & CRAFTS

2011-12-17T21:23:00.009-08:00

Last weekend we spent most of our Sunday working on Gingerbread houses and some other holiday crafts. We started by mixing the frosting to hold the houses together......

Time to put together......

The finished houses.....

After gingerbread houses we moved onto sparkly Christmas ornaments and painted wooden snowmen.....

It was a fun few hours -- which produced quiet a mess -- but well worth it!

CAMERON'S BIG PERFORMANCE

2011-12-17T21:13:00.004-08:00

The kids elementary school does a fund raiser each year at Barnes & Nobles and during the evening about 5 or 6 classrooms put on some sort of performance. This year Cameron's class did a reading of The Polar Express. His class was a last minute fill in so only 5 kids could make it, but the five that were there did a great job......

Cameron did really good! He didn't look up much, but we could atleast hear him!.....

Big excitement -- the Grinch showed up......

COOKIES AND SINGING

2011-12-17T20:57:00.011-08:00

A couple of weeks ago Maleah's girl scouts group got together and made cut-out cookies to take to a local nursing home. Friday night they did the cookie baking and decorating..... (oh, and it was crazy hair day at school that day so they decorated themselves with ribbon!).....

Rena is not in Maleah's troop, but because Maleah's troop is half Daisies and half Brownies Rena is friends (and in class) with a few of the girls so she is always invited (and happy) to join in.....

Rena with one of her good friends that is in Maleah's troop.....(it's either Emma or Katie, but they are twins and I can't tell them apart!) :) .....

On Saturday morning the girls delivered the cookies to the nursing home. They also took each resident a flashlight that they bought with the money that they earned at the recycling center. They decided on flashlights because of the recent power outage that we had. The girls sang a few songs and then handed out cookies and punch and talked a bit with the residents.....

Rena with Katie and Emma (again, not sure which is which!) :)

Troop #4613 (and Rena right in the middle).....

TORREY PINES STATE RESERVE

2011-12-12T21:35:00.016-08:00

Last week Cameron's class took a field trip to Torrey Pines State Reserve. They learned about Spanish explorers, the first California residents, the land, plants, animals and insects that are all in the area. I was one of the lucky ones that got to go -- and even got to ride the bus -- (didn't feel so lucky on that one!) :)

The field trip started out with a whole group presentation -- Cameron was one of the volunteers.....

It was a great day for a nice little hike......

Adam and Cameron.....

Cameron, Adam and Grey.....

Cam and his mom! :).....

Our group......

Isn't it beautiful???.....

After the "learning" part of the field trip we got to eat lunch on the beach and play.....

LEGOLAND

2011-12-10T08:23:00.008-08:00

Last weekend we spent a day (a FULL day) at Legoland......

We went straight to this ride when we got there -- every other time we have gone the line for this ride is so long that we skip it. This time we actually got to ride it - without having to wait for an hour! It was fun, but definitely not worth an hours wait.....

Next, we headed to the kids favorite ride -- the cars.....

Then, we just walked around awhile.....

And went through the Adventurer's Club.....

We checked out the Christmas decorations.....

Rena was so excited --- she was tall enough to go on the canoe by herself!.....

We went to a special Christmas show - "let it snow". The girls liked the fairy princess.....

Cameron liked the show, but was much more excited about this.....

A few more rides.....

Cameron and Rena went on these little rides......

......while Maleah went on the big roller coasters with Jeff. We spent the day calling Maleah "roller coaster girl" because she wanted to go on all of them -- and really liked them!.....

One last stop to see Santa on our way out.....

To end the day we went through the SeaLife Aquarium.....

A fun, fun, fun day! And everyone was tired, tired, tired! :)

RECYCLE!

2011-12-09T09:09:00.010-08:00

Last week Maleah's girl scouts visited the local recycling facility to learn about recycling and to raise a little bit of money. They had a good time and we all learned a lot.

Her whole group........

The girls started collecting bottles and cans at home a few weeks ago and they all brought some with them to the recycling center. First, they had to separate everything into these garbage cans......

Then, it was time to weigh it all and collect our money! The girls got a total of $41.76!

After weighing the important stuff (the stuff that earned money!), the girls decided to weigh themselves......

10 first and second graders weighed in at 529.8 pounds!.....

After all of the outdoor fun we moved inside for a lesson on recycling.....and the girls got to see the big garbage trucks come in after collecting recycling all day.

We all learned a lot about the do's and don'ts of recycling and are excited to do even more at home!

THE TREE AND KIDS

2011-12-04T20:31:00.003-08:00

A few photos after a full (and fun) day of decorating the house to celebrate the holidays.....

CHRISTMAS TREE DECORATING

2011-12-04T20:19:00.010-08:00

After our big outing to The Home Depot it was time to bring the tree home and decorate it.

First, the big reveal -- what will it look like unwrapped???

YIPPEE -- no big holes -- it'll be the perfect tree once it's decorated.....

The girls were GREAT decorators. Cameron helped a bit, but lost interest pretty fast.....

The end result -- our perfect Christmas tree.....

We actually have two decorated Christmas trees in our living room now -- while the girls and I were decorating the "real" Christmas tree Jeff & Cameron decided to decorate the palm tree in the living room with red lights! It looks nice and adds a little "California" to our decorations! :)

CHRISTMAS TREE SHOPPING

2011-12-04T20:14:00.000-08:00

This weekend we went on our annual hunt for our perfect Christmas tree. This year, however, we did things a little bit differently -- instead of finding a tree farm that we would have to drive an hour to, have to cut down our own tree and have to pay a fortune for, we drove five minutes away to our local Home Depot and picked out our tree in about 3 minutes!

Look at how much much fun we all still had......

We didn't even unwrap it at the store -- we decided to "risk it" once we found the height that we wanted......

Rena was so cold that she didn't really care which tree we got.....

Look at all of this excitement that we got in The Home Depot parking lot -- they even had Christmas photo opportunities -- only thing missing was some free hot cocoa!.....

"YOU LOOK SO PRETTY WHEN....."

2011-12-03T22:23:00.009-08:00

When I was growing up, whenever Stacy or I would make a silly face or make a face because we were mad or for whatever reason it was my mom would always say "you look so pretty when you don't make that face!". Well, I couldn't help but think the same thing when I saw these pictures of Maleah. Cameron actually took the pictures so I didn't even know they were there until I downloaded them onto my computer.

Really, you have to agree -- doesn't she look pretty???.....

And now???.....

I still did have to laugh at the pictures, though, because this is so Maleah's personality!! :)

MORE VISITORS

2011-12-03T22:20:00.002-08:00

About 6 hours after Jim & Gail left from Thanksgiving vacation my Aunt Peggy and Cousin Gimi arrived for a visit. We didn't do a whole lot, but we got lots of visiting and shopping done -- (those are the important things, right?!!?!!)

I did really bad on pictures and didn't get any of Gimi before she had to head home. I did get these before taking Peggy to the airport, tho......

I love that Gimi only lives about 3 hours from us and that I get to see her and Peggy everytime Peggy comes for a visit!

THE KEYES

2011-12-03T22:10:00.006-08:00

Of course, before Grandpa Jim & Grandma Gail left for home we had to take some pictures.....

This is just us -- Keyes Family.....

It was really a fun week and we are hoping that they do not wait a whole year before coming to visit us again!!!

THE BEACH

2011-12-03T21:55:00.014-08:00

We had some beautiful weather during the week of Thanksgiving break so we decided to head to the beach one day.

Jeff & Cameron playing football.....

Rena digging......

Jeff relaxing.....

Jeff, Cameron & Jim.....

Time for water -- fill those buckets......

Goofy Maleah....

More football -- it's Jeff & Rena against Cameron & Grandpa Jim.....

HEY Jeff & Jim -- gettin' a little rough!......

Grandma Gail went shell hunting with the girls (& they found some pretty cool things!).....

I love that view -- and these silly kids too!......

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

2011-12-01T19:11:00.005-08:00

We had a great Thanksgiving holiday!! Jim & Gail were here visiting for the week so on Thanksgiving day we had a nice relaxing day hanging around the house getting ready to eat a good traditional turkey meal. Everyone pitched in and helped with the preparations.

Rena was in-charge of the table -- she even used a little "cheat-sheet" from Barbie to help her place all of the silverware and napkins correctly.....

All 3 kids helped make the turkey place markers, Rena made the pumpkin center piece and Maleah went out and picked the flowers.....

A womans work is never done..... :) .....

This is scary.....REALLY scary......

Almost everyone helped -- this is Cameron trying to wake up from a nap before dinner is served. He had a few early mornings with Grandpa Jim and needed a little snooze on this day to keep his attitude "happy".....

Time to eat.....

After dinner things got a little goofy -- it started out ok.....

But then turned really goofy.....

Family pic -- time to be serious FOR JUST ONE PICTURE, PLEASE.....

Back to goofiness -- I believe I was thinking "is this really my family???" and it looks like Rena is thinking the same thing!..... :)

We watched some t.v. and played some games then it was time for desert -- YEAH!! -- we started with chocolate cupcakes that were like ding dongs -- they were so good!! Grandma Gail brought them for the kids to make so Rena & Maleah whipped them up that afternoon.....they were chocolate cupcakes with a vanilla filling -- just like ding dongs -- yummy!!.......

Then, we had pumpkin pie. Maleah is the only kid that likes it, but Jim, Gail, Jeff & I definitely enjoyed it......

Such a great day! AND another year for us with A LOT to be thankful for!!

CAMERON'S ROOM MAKEOVER

2011-11-23T10:49:00.028-08:00

During the summer while Megan & Alex were here we did some re-decorating of the kids rooms. All of the kids helped in someway, but Megan and I did most of the painting......(because I had no patience with the painting part and got stressed out every time someone else picked up a brush or roller!)

So, we started Cameron's room back in July and finally it is now complete (for the most part). He keeps adding more posters as he finds them and is still looking for a Kung Fu Panda II poster to add to the wall. For now, though, we are complete.

Here's the "work in progress" back in July.....

Getting rid of the chalkboard that we painted on the wall.....

Hmmm......which color of brown to chose???.....

The finished room -- the door signs -- the middle one says......"DO NOT COME IN!!! If you're Frank, Grey, Adam or Jacinda come in. If you're not four of these names Knock. If I do not answer don't go in. Thank you."......

Try not to notice the DIRTY windows.....

The bathroom got a make-over also.....

Another room complete -- for now. Cameron is very happy and very comfortable! We also got him a queen size bed so that lots of people can come visit -- Cameron will be getting kicked out of his room if anyone needs a bed!!! :)

THANKSGIVING FEAST

2011-11-21T22:02:00.010-08:00

Last week both Rena and Cameron celebrated the holiday with a Thanksgiving Feast in their classrooms.

Rena's was on Tuesday and was just with her class. We set-up the food inside and then ate outside......

Cameron's feast was on Wednesday and was fun, but a little crazy. His class had their feast in the cafeteria with 4 other 3rd grade classrooms. There was a ton of food and A LOT of people there to eat it.

Before food -- Adam & Cameron "we're so hungry".....

Ahhh.....finally we made it through the line and are happy again.....

Now, the kids are out on Thanksgiving break. They have the whole week off of school. We have no big plans other than to hang around the house and relax with Grandma and Grandpa Keyes!

RANDOM PICS

2011-11-06T20:59:00.015-08:00

As I was going through my phone and camera the other day I came across a few random pictures from the last month or so --

One Saturday night both Rena and Maleah went to a birthday party so Jeff & I took Cameron over to K-1 Sports to do some racing. Unfortunately they do the adults and kids in separate races so we didn't get to race with him, but he had a great time.....

Maleah is a little monkey.....

Cameron went to a birthday party at a pumpkin patch so Maleah and I played around when we went to pick him up.....

Adam, Liam and Cameron.....

Liam, Cameron, Davis (the birthday boy) and Adam.....

Maleah after her last soccer game. She really gave it her all that day -- her face was still bright red 20 minutes after the game to prove it.....

Silly Maleah with her funny glasses that she got from treasure box at school......

Rena with her black cat ears on Halloween.....

This is one of Rena's art projects at school. I like how her monster likes to fly her to Washington.....

THE SAN DIEGO ZOO

2011-11-02T20:02:00.012-07:00

On Tuesday I got to go with Rena's class on a field trip to the San Diego Zoo. I was in-charge of these four girls -- Rena, Katie, Ashlyn and Emma.....

Rena and Ashlyn.....

In the petting zoo -- Rena LOVED this spot.....

Katie, Emma and Rena.....

Rena riding on top of the double-decker bus. I kept trying to take a picture of her with animals behind, but she kept posing and blocking the animals! :)

Me and part of my group (and part of another group).....

And after this......it was back to the bus for a fun (not really) ride home! :) It was a fun day, though!

TRICK OR TREAT

2011-11-02T19:51:00.008-07:00

After all of the fun at school, we came home and got cleaned up and ready for trick-or-treating.

This year we had a Ninja, a witch and a black cat......

We went over to our neighbor's house, Jason & Hale's, for a pre-trick-or-treating dinner and some treats (before going out for more treats).

Time to trick-or-treat!!!

Jacinda, Maleah and Gabby......

Rena and Jacinda......

Cameron and Greyson......

The group trick-or-treating at our house --

After we hit all the houses in our neighborhood we came back home to count our treasures! Rena ended up with 128 pieces, Cameron with 106 and Maleah with 103. Not too bad! BUT, tell me how out of all of that candy no one got junior mints??? NOT one box of junior mints......and I even checked Greyson's, Jacinda's and Gabby's bags before they left! Very disappointing (for me, no one else cared!) :)

Just what Rena needed right before bed -- pure sugar poured from a pixie stik right down her throat! :) I guess it was a good way to end the night!

HALLOWEEN PARTIES

2011-11-02T19:42:00.010-07:00

On Monday afternoon all three kids had Halloween celebrations in their classrooms. Since I couldn't divide myself into three I had to choose one classroom to go to.............

and I chose...........(drum roll please)...........

Rena's second grade class!!

I was second guessing my decision on classrooms once I got there and found out what I was in-charge of.......ice-cream.......but not just serving ice-cream -- making ice-cream. Sounded like a lot of work and really messy!!

It ended up being fun......and the ice-cream was pretty good!

Here's how we made it -- we put ice and rock salt in a big Ziploc bag, then in a smaller Ziploc bag we put milk, sugar, vanilla and green food coloring (because it wasn't really ice-cream -- it was monster blood for Halloween). Then we put the little Ziploc bag in the big Ziploc bag and we shook......and shook......and shook.......and shook some more.......then we tested it.......then we shook again.......and shook some more......(you get it, right? We had to shake A LOT!)

Here's Rena shaking her bag......

And here she is enjoying her ice-cream -- well worth all of the shaking!......

After I walked around to some of the other "stations" I was feeling pretty lucky to be on ice-cream duty........the other stations were MESSY! I don't even know what they were making here, but the kids were having fun while making a mess!.....

I did sneak away from Rena's classroom just long enough to see Maleah as a mummy......

Rena's classroom also had one non-messy station -- drawing a picture of a witch. Here's Rena's work-in-progress.....

AND her completed masterpiece......

PUMPKIN CARVING

2011-10-30T21:34:00.008-07:00

Time to carve the pumpkins!!

All 3 kids were really into carving this year and did really good with most of it on their own. Cameron wasn't thrilled about scooping out the guts and Rena & Maleah needed a little bit of help handling a knife, but other than that they were pretty good on their own. The pumpkins turned out great and everyone still had 10 fingers when we were done.....

The pumpkins at night.....

PUMPKIN PATCH

2011-10-30T21:03:00.010-07:00

We headed out to Bates Nut Farm today after Cameron's baseball game for some pumpkin patch fun. We went to this same place last year and really had a good time so we decided to go back again this year.

The tractor ride......

They don't have a corn maze to go through and get lost in, but they do have this little maze set up with hay bales. The kids all start with a piece of paper with 8 boxes on it. Their goal is to find 8 different mailboxes and stamp their paper with the stamp in each one. Cameron & Maleah worked together, but Rena roamed around by herself. They all ended up finding the 8 stamps and had fun while doing it......

We saw and fed some animals.....

Picture opportunities......

Pumpkin time!!!!......

Maleah was the first to find hers.....

Then Cameron......

And finally Rena......

Time to head home to do some carving.........

END OF SEASON

2011-10-30T20:58:00.009-07:00

The girls had their last soccer games this past Saturday. It was a fun season and they both did really good!

Maleah and The Bluebirds......

Rena and The Pink Dolphins.....

They both were awarded trophies for playing. They got them on different days and at different times yet they both ended up looking like this......

YES, they both dropped them (Rena in a friend's garage and Maleah in ours) before they ever made it in the house.

Luckily, we have super glue and they are now both back in one piece.....

Good job on a great season girls! We are proud of you for your hard work!

OUR HALLOWEEN PARTY

2011-10-30T20:41:00.009-07:00

Last Friday night we had a Halloween party with a few friends. The kids had a great time playing with their friends and Jeff & I had a good time visiting with the adults.

The kids had a Halloween craft to do.
Maleah, Jacinda, Cameron, Greyson, Decklen and Hale'......

Makayla, Rena and Olivia......

Cameron & Greyson.....

After the Halloween craft it was time for Halloween cookie decorating. Peyton, Maleah, Jacinda and Jeff.....

Cameron (with a decorated cookie).....

After the craft and the cookies we all got comfy to watch Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman.....

After all of the planned Halloween festivities, the kids were back to playing.
Jacinda, Jackson and Cameron were first up on Just Dance 2......

Rena, Makayla and Olivia's turn......and Peyton.....

WAY TO GO CAMERON & RENA!

2011-10-30T20:14:00.001-07:00

Cameron & Rena were both chosen as "Student of the Month" this month. They were called up last Friday at Flag Salute for an award.

Cameron in the red shirt......

Rena with the black and green Halloween shirt on and (of course) her sparkly silver hat......

WAY TO GO CAMERON AND RENA! WE ARE PROUD OF YOU!

LCM HALLOWEEN CARNIVAL

2011-10-16T22:23:00.010-07:00

The annual La Costa Meadows Halloween Carnival was this past weekend and, like always, it was a big hit!!

The fun started on Friday morning at flag salute when all of the classes got to show off their scarecrows that they made. Cameron was pretty excited because he and his friend, Liam, got to be in the scarecrow parade with Mrs. Bloody.......

On Saturday morning we headed over to the school for some fun. First, we stopped to say "HI" to Mrs. Bloody! :)

SNO-CONES!!!! We LOVE sno-cones.....

Maleah loved the swings.....

Cameron loved the bumper cars.....

And Rena loved the motorcycles (with her friend Ashlyn).....

Rena and Maleah rode on this little train and then Cameron and I went on the big California Wave slide.....

The kids really are not big fans of rides so we headed back up to the blacktop to play some games and get some food.

Cameron got hurt on the big slide so our first stop was at the aches and brakes booth to get it bandaged up -- atleast that was the story we came up with -- although the story changed (and got better and bigger) quite a few times throughout the day .....

We went in search of this booth -- candy necklaces! I kept telling the kids we could go find the booth, but to not be disappointed when we got there and it was really sand and not candy. Well, I was the one who was disappointed when we found it because sure enough it was colored sugar that the kids used to fill the necklaces. How great is that? They, of course, thought it was fantastic.....

Rena walked in the Webkinz walk and won 2 out of the 3 times she walked. It was pretty exciting! She is now the proud owner of a furry black dog that she named Christina and a pretty white cat that she named Charlie.....

Maleah chose to spend some of her tickets having a feather put in her hair -- pretty blue and green.....

Farmers Maleah and Cameron.....

Done for another year! :)

GIRL SCOUTS....AGAIN!

2011-10-14T12:18:00.007-07:00

On Monday afternoon Rena had a Girl Scouts meeting in the park. They had some volunteers from the San Diego Search and Resue Team come talk to the girls. For the next meeting the girls are going on a hike so the leaders thought it would be a good idea to have someone talk to them about safety precautions to take and also about what to do if they are to get hurt or lost while hiking.

The search dog was a big hit.....

Girl Scouts Troop 4443.....

The brothers from Girl Scouts Troop 4443.....

AND, the one sister -- atleast it was at the park and Maleah kept herself entertained by playing and climbing (she is a little monkey) on the big toy. And she made a new friend to play with for the day that was there with her mom playing.....

PICNIC IN THE PARK

2011-10-13T12:34:00.003-07:00

Last weekend our HOA hosted a "picnic in the park" for the neighborhood. It was a beautiful day so we headed over after Cameron's baseball game. We munched on some hamburgers, hot dogs, baked beans, salads, lemonade and YUMMY cotton candy.....

After eating the kids wanted to get their faces painted and get balloon animals. After standing in line for a little while Cameron decided he'd rather be playing football with his friends, but the girls stuck it out. Here's Maleah at the front of the line with Benjamin, Jacinda, 2 kids who I have no idea who they are (but was told by Rena & Maleah that they cut in line), Rena and then Gabby.....

Maleah ended up with a pretty balloon flower......

And Rena got a mouse.....after MUCH debate about whether she should get something painted or get a balloon animal -- it was a tough choice, but she was happy at the end......

GIRL SCOUTS

2011-10-12T12:33:00.000-07:00

Last Friday we got to have Maleah's girl scouts meeting at our house. We had the 12 girls from her troop, a few siblings and a few moms at the house for about two hours.

Time to start -- circle time......

The activity -- pumpkin carving! We didn't really "carve" the pumpkins -- the girls just got to scoop out the guts and take the seeds home with them to roast -- they had fun, though.....

We tried to stick with a pumpkin theme and served pumpkin pie and pumpkin seeds for snack, but not everyone liked that (including all 3 Keyes kids) so we also pulled out the goldfish, pretzels and watermelon! :)

The meeting officially ended with another circle time......

And then the kids just played......

Rena is still a crazy hula-hopper......

NOT MUCH TO REPORT ON

2011-10-05T09:35:00.020-07:00

I haven't done much blogging lately because we haven't really been doing anything too exciting. We have been staying busy with school, soccer, baseball and just everyday "life".

Here are a few things happening with us right now though --

Cameron is still playing baseball. He plays every Sunday and seems to be enjoying himself.....

The girls do their best to stay busy and entertained while Cameron is playing baseball. Luckily the field that he plays at has a park and a big toy to help keep them happy.....

Thanks to Stacy I got to "Do the Puyallup" without ever leaving my kitchen! Yummy scones and taffy arrived in the mail and did not last long.....

We started a backyard project a couple of months ago and this is our finished project! OK, it's not really finished, but unfortunately this is how it's been for quite some time. We hired a guy to dig out the hill, build the retaining wall, put in a counter top with a built-in barbeque, put in a firepit, lay new pavers and make it all look nice and be useable. Well, this is how far the guy got before we decided to part ways.....(long story).....so now we are searching for someone to finish it for us. Someday again (hopefully soon) we will be out there barbequing......

Maleah and I being silly......

This is how I keep Cameron happy at the mall -- we shop, then we play chess. We shop, then we play checkers. It works out well for all of us!

Maleah loves to take pictures and to be in pictures! And she likes to take pictures of herself!......

Peggy, Stacy, Gimi, Tami and Kari sent me these beautiful flowers for passing my last state test for my schooling.......

One of Jeff's fish committed suicide -- I walked out of the kitchen and there he was - laying on the floor.......I, of course, had to do a little bit of teasing with Jeff about how he treats his fish and why they are jumping out of the tank! Poor little fish! :)

Jeff trying to stay happy during our garage sale last weekend.......

AND the BIG excitement around here today -- it's suppose to rain! YIKES!

That's about it for now. I warned you -- nothing too exciting -- just our everyday lives in progress!!

MALEAH'S NEW RIDE

2011-09-12T08:56:00.002-07:00

Yesterday was a pretty exciting day for Maleah -- she got a new bike!!

We were really trying to hold out for Christmas to get her one, but her other one was just so little for her. The kids ride their bikes out front and down at the cul-de-sac all the time and Maleah could hardly keep up on her little bike. I also started feeling really bad watching her try to keep up -- her little legs would be going so fast pedaling that I thought she was going to explode.

She chose a beach cruiser like Rena's, but in blue......

BLACKOUT

2011-09-11T20:45:00.006-07:00

Last Thursday night we were one of the 4 million people that lost power for the night. It happened at about 3:45 - just as I was getting ready to make sno-cones for the kids after school. It was big excitement around here.....the kids ran around the house checking to see if everything had gone off and then they went over to Jacinda's and Gabby's and did the same thing. They thought it was pretty cool - except for the fact that we couldn't make sno-cones!

Once we started hearing reports that it could be off for quite sometime we started getting prepared -- lots of candles and flashlights. And as it started to get dark we decided we should make the most of it and have a party around the fire!! Good friends, food and drinks makes for a pretty good last-minute party......

Maleah got a little tired and fell asleep on Jacinda.....

Benjamin also fell asleep and had to be carried home......

Rena was the last one up so she was assigned the duty of blowing out all of the candles......

Our power ended up coming back on at about 10:30pm. Luckily the schools had already been cancelled for the next day so the late-night wasn't a problem for the kiddos.

GO CARDINALS!

2011-09-11T20:38:00.003-07:00

Cameron has started another season of baseball and is a Cardinal this time. Along with a new name and team is a whole new set of rules for him to learn. He is no loner in the "Pinto" league, but is now a "Mustang". The main differences between the two leagues is that in the Mustang league the kids pitch (no pitching machine), they can steal and they can slide. This is all new to Cameron, but luckily it is new to quite a few of the boys and they are having fun learning.

Time to bat......

Time to catch.....

GO CARDINALS!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CAMERON!

2011-09-07T22:43:00.003-07:00

One Friday night (back in August) Cameron celebrated his birthday with a few friends - Max, Adam & Liam came home with us after school for movie night and a sleepover. Jacinda, Gabby and Benjamin also came over for movie night, but no sleepover for the girls!

This is after the kids were all outside running around playing cops and robbers -- Does Cameron look hot and sweaty??? Everyone was more than happy to take a break from the game for cake and ice-cream.....

Movie time! Cameron choose Rio for the movie.....

Took a quick break from the movie to open some presents......

Bed time! Max couldn't stay the night, but Liam and Adam both slept over.....

Breakfast in the morning.....

Cameron had a great time with his friends and is now done celebrating Birthday #9! :)

BLUEBIRDS VS. PINK DOLPHINS

2011-08-28T22:02:00.007-07:00

This weekend both Rena & Maleah had their first soccer games.......and just happen to be playing against each other......

Rena as goalie.....

Maleah.....

Rena is the front pink dolphin running (2nd pink dolphin from the left), Maleah is the 3rd Bluebird from the left.....

Time to rest.....

The game was a lot of fun and both girls did great.

I have to say, though, I am glad that one is over.....I must have looked a little crazy out there yelling for the bluebirds, then for the dolphins, then for Rena, then for Maleah, then for the girls friends on both teams. Whew -- it was exhausting! When I first found out the girls were playing against each other I asked one of my friends......"which side will I sit on? Who will I cheer for?" And she said "that's easy -- just sit and cheer for the one you love most"! Ha, ha, ha!! :)

Everything turned out great -- the bluebirds (Maleah's team) ended up winning, but Rena scored her first goal ever so she will still pretty happy -- and we were proud of both of them!

BACK TO SCHOOL

2011-08-25T08:28:00.000-07:00

The kids headed back to school yesterday. The summer went by really fast, but they were ready to go. Well, Rena was REALLY excited, Maleah was kinda excited and Cameron actually wanted vacation to last a little bit longer.

Cameron - 3rd grade.....

Rena - 2nd grade.....

Maleah - 1st grade.....

On our way.....

We checked out Rena's class first. She was very excited about her teacher, Mrs. Mone, and the friends that are in her class.....

Next was Maleah -- she has Mrs. Embree this year and was excited to find her name tag and seat.....

Cameron has Mrs. Wells and was also excited that he has a few of his close friends in his class.....

Once the bell rang it was time to line up and head in (without parents) :) ..........

They all three had a great first day and are excited for the year (Rena more so than Cameron!)! :)

HOW HOT CAN IT GET?

2011-08-23T20:25:00.004-07:00

So, it got a little bit hot while we were on our vacation......which means collecting money for the kids and losing money for Jeff. And on this trip the kids were definitely collecting!

It's always a little game that we play in the car when we are headed somewhere hot. It starts out that Jeff tells the kids "if it hits 100 then you each get a buck". So the kids watch the temp in the van and if it hits 100 they go wild and start negotiating for what they get when it hits 101.

This time it started at a buck for 100, then when it started getting really hot it jumped to a buck for 105, then 110, then one day it was a couple of bucks for 115, then a couple of more for 116, and more for 117, 118 and 119.......the kids kept upping it and Jeff kept agreeing because he was SURE that it wasn't going to get that hot. Well, by the time it hit 119, this game had been going on for a few days already and Jeff owed each one of the kids 19 dollars! After that Jeff wasn't having much fun and ended the game!

It's so funny to watch and listen to the kids as they watch the temp. Sometimes it will jump up a degree only for a few seconds and then go back down. When there is money on the line, though, the kids sit and stare at it and when it changes (no matter how quickly) they know.....and they make sure we know too!

Here's how Jeff lost all of his money.....

Not only did Jeff lose money because of this HOT weather, but he also had to deal with the hot weather.....and it was HOT and uncomfortable at times!

PALM SPRINGS AERIAL TRAMWAY

2011-08-23T11:07:00.030-07:00

On Thursday we rode the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway - it is the worlds largest rotating tramway. It starts at 2,643 feet and goes up the cliffs of Chino Canyon to 8,516 feet. It takes about 10 minutes to get to the top and drops about 30 degrees.

Getting ready to board the tram -- Rena was NOT at all excited to be going up the mountain, but she managed to put on a smile for us.....

The view from the tram looking up to where we are going.....

The view from the tram looking down at where we just were....

In the tram.....

At the top.....

Walking down to the Long Valley Discovery Trail.....

Fun on the trail.....

"Meet Jeff!" -- That's what the sign says -- Meet Jeff, the tree!

Time to go -- back in the tram going down -- Rena was excited this time and actually had fun on the tram.....

Here are some pictures of the awesome views:

From the top......

From the top, but in the tram going down.....

Another tram coming up.....

Back on the ground looking up.....

HAPPY 9TH BIRTHDAY CAMERON

2011-08-23T10:57:00.012-07:00

We celebrated Cameron's 9th birthday while we were in Indio. First thing in the morning he opened some presents. His main gift was new roller blades, but he also got some new goggles, squirt guns, torpedo blasters, a lego watch, a game, a new movie & an Angry Birds t-shirt......

He chose pancakes for his birthday breakfast so Jeff decided to barbeque them. They turned out pretty good.......

I had a candle, but no way to light it -- I tried the stove and thought about sticking my hand in the bbq, but decided that we should play-it-safe for breakfast and just act like it was lit. Cameron wasn't as willing to play along and wouldn't fake blow it out......

We spent the day up top Mt. San Jacinto (details on another post!) and then we went out for dinner and ice-cream. When we asked Cameron where he wanted to go for his birthday dinner he chose Target for hot dogs and icee's. Luckily we were able to convince him orange chicken and ice-cream would be better -- and not something that we always go out for. So, we ended up at the City Wok Chinese Restaurant and then at Cold Stone for ice-cream......

Can't believe he his 9 years old already -- how fast time goes by! We had a good day celebrating Cameron!

WORLDMARK INDIO

2011-08-23T10:47:00.020-07:00

On the road again to the Worldmark Resort in Indio, CA. The girls had the back seat together this time......

We really like the Worldmark Resort because of the swimming pools and lazy river. This is the view from our balcony......Cameron, Maleah and Jeff getting ready for the lazy river.....

Jeff, Maleah and Cameron floating by in the lazy river......

The kids in the lazy river.....

When we weren't being lazy in the river we were playing in the pools.....

The resort also has a fun rec center. We spent some time in there in the middle of the afternoon when it was the hottest outside and we needed some AC. Rena is ready to play.....

Hmmmm......what are we waiting for???.....

.....WATER!!!! One of the pools has this fun splash pad area -- it's actually only fun, though, when the sun is out -- otherwise it's COLD!!!.....

FAMILY PICS

2011-08-21T22:47:00.003-07:00

We spent 3 nights in Arizona before re-loading the mini and driving 4 hours back to Indio, California for the rest of our vacation.

A few family photos before leaving.....

CATS AND BIRDS

2011-08-21T22:20:00.002-07:00

The kids also had a great time with Grandma Lynne's cats and birds. She has 3 birds and 3 cats and I'm pretty sure all 6 animals were very happy when we left!

The poor cats liked to hide under the bed, but the kids managed to find them.....

PLAYING IN THE POOL

2011-08-21T19:56:00.003-07:00

Lynne's new house in Arizona has a great backyard with a pool that the kids LOVED. They were up early in the morning and out there swimming as soon as Jeff would let them -- and before I even got up!

They had a great time jumping in -- they made up new jumps and even named a few of them (like the one named "Cameron" where you jumped with your hand down your pants!) :)

I think this was the "Ninja" jump......

This is Rena jumping into her tube. She spent most of her time either jumping into the tube or onto the air mattress. While jumping, though, she had to yell "haaaaaa......chaaaaaaa" to get the most distance.....

Another favorite thing of the kids to do was to dive for money. Of course that meant that we had to have the coins to throw in -- and by the time our visit was over we were actually throwing dollar bills in (from Grandpa Joel).....

Grandma Lynne also had the outside freezer stocked with otter pops for the kids.....

ROAD TRIP

2011-08-21T19:25:00.007-07:00

Last Sunday we hit the road for one last get-away before the kids head back to school.

We were in the car on the move at 6am for our 6-hour drive to Mesa, Arizona to visit Jeff's mom who has recently moved there.

The kids have always been GREAT travellers and were again on this trip. They kept themselves busy many different ways including napping and playing Angry Birds and Tap Zoo on Jeff's phone.....

They did also read books, watch a movie, and eat and drink some junk to keep them happy! :)

RENA IS A BROWNIE

2011-08-11T09:51:00.008-07:00

On Sunday afternoon Rena graduated from a Daisy to a Brownie. Her troop had a bridging ceremony at a local park where the girls official became Brownies!

Rena and Hadley - still a Daisy......

Ready for the ceremony -- Rena was first......

Time to give away the Daisy vest......

And get the Brownie vest.....

Part of the troop (a few couldn't make it) - Hadley, Rena, Makalia, Makalia, Audrey and Lauren.....

The troop with their leaders - Erin, Sue and Shannon.....

There were some great snacks (including brownies) for after the ceremony. Rena and Hadley as Brownies.....

We all got to enjoy the snacks.....

Rena is now ready for a fun year as a Brownie!

MY LIGHTHOUSE

2011-08-06T23:24:00.003-07:00

This is not my typical blog entry (no pictures of kids & a little more sappy than I usually am!), but I did post it once before and decided I wanted to share it again.......

Tomorrow marks the 12-year anniversary of my mom's death. Even after 12 years, it is a hard day to get through. On my mom's birthday I am able to remember happy times and to celebrate her life, during the holidays I have Jeff & the kids and new traditions that make me happy, and on ordinary days when I think of her it's usually something happy or funny that I'm thinking about. BUT, tomorrow, just brings back memories of a very sad day and time in my life.

I like to read and share this article, though, because it tells a little bit of who my mom was. I luckily have met and made new friends throughout the years, but they unfortunately never had the privilege of meeting my mom. They hear me talk about her and my family, but not like this. This article tells a little bit more about her and the type of person she was.

So, for everyone that didn't know my mom, but hears me talk about her, I hope you'll feel like you know a little bit more about who she was and where I'm coming from. For all of you that did know her, love her and miss her, I hope you'll take a minute to remember her and how special she was!

The article was written and published in the Puyallup Herald by a good friend of my mom's shortly after her death......

Friend passes quietly........by Rick Roff
Rena-Jean Schrader was a lighthouse that shines no more.

She was my greatest fan.
But that's only a tiny beginning to this story about Rena-Jean Schrader, who passed away two weeks ago.
Rena was my greatest fan because she always read my columns in the Herald and thought they were wonderful -- no matter how bad they were. But my greatest fan also knew I was my own worst critic, and I think she found this as a way of balancing the equation for me.
As much as I appreciated my greatest fan, I always knew Rena was many greater things to me, and to far many more people.
Rena was not a president's daughter or a Hollywood movie star. She was not a professional athlete or a rock musician. She did not flaunt herself before cameras or in courtrooms. Rena did not seek the limelight, have blue hair, wear rings in her nose or tattoos on her arms. She did not appear on the front pages of newspapers, on CNN or MTV.
Heaven forbid Rena would have done these things, because we most likely would not have known her or been supported by her; we would not have had a chance to benefit from her love, or love her in return. And what a waste that would have been. What a travesty. What a tremendous loss.
Lucky for us, Rena was a wife, mother, grandmother, sister, relative and best friend to those who were closest to her. She also was a teacher and protector of children, a Christian and a person who cherished the life she led, knowing all the time there were few greater things in the world than her devoted husband and family.
Who knows how many lives Rena influenced, through her teaching or her everyday life? Children become parents, who have children, who have more children.
People like Rena leave a mark on others that travels on forever, a mark that traces through generations. That's why people like Rena are so valuable when they are here, so missed when they are not.
For those who did not know her well, or who had never heard of her, you will marvel in Rena, because she was really something to behold.
Rena-Jean Schrader was a light-house.
Everyone has a lighthouse in their lives. Everyone has had someone to lean on and who lit the way when things seemed darkest. That was Rena.
If you had a chance to know her, you were fortunate, because you likely benefited from her guiding light, her optimism, her vitality and her smile.
And, if you knew her, you surely gained from the love she had with her husband. One day their cherished relationship was inseparable in mind, spirit and body, and the next day, life reminded us how tragic and fragile -- how absolutely precious -- such a relationship can be.
My ... how dark it seems right now without this lighthouse.
The heavens cried these enormous tears the day she said goodbye. But as sad as it was, the world of those who knew Rena took the time to stop for a moment.
Everything became a little more precious. Trees and clouds seemed as though they were painted in the sky. Appearances of children and people were breathtaking. Things so important in our lives suddenly paled. Life, as Rena and we knew it, came to a screeching halt, as if commemorating the moment.
As her best friend took her hand, Rena took her final breath. She was with those who loved her when she left us -- the way it should be. But as it always is when someone dies, there was so much that couldn't be said, that shouldn't be true ... so much living to be done, so many things to be shared.
We all, at some point in our lives, experience the loss of someone close, and when it happens, the holes that remain are enormous. Time makes things a little more bearable, as it heals the wounds of those who are left behind.
There are a lot of holes today that require filling -- as attested to the more than 400 people who attended the memorial in Puyallup last week.
There are many, many wounds that need healing. These things will happen, but in the meantime, the world will mourn for the bright lighthouse that was Rena-Jean Schrader.
This is why, late at night with my wife -- Rena's best friend -- we stare into the blackness wishing for the light we know will never come.

Unfortunately Rick Roff, the friend that wrote this article, passed away suddenly a little over five years ago. I like thinking about the two of them together, in heaven, looking over all of us. My own angels!

My mom.....

11th ANNIVERSARY

2011-08-06T09:18:00.005-07:00

We celebrated our 11th Anniversary this past Thursday on August 4th. We really celebrated, though, the weekend before when we were able to get out by ourselves.

First, we went to BJ's Brewhouse for food and drinks.....

Then we went to K1 Speed to do some indoor go-kart racing......

We ended the night with some frozen yogurt. It was a good celebration for 11 years!

ROOM MAKEOVER

2011-08-06T08:34:00.009-07:00

While Megan was here visiting I took her up on her offer to help me re-do the girls bedroom.

Here's the before......

When I originally painted the stripes this was Cameron's room. The stripes took me forever to paint and I was a little sad to be painting over them already. But, the red, blue and tan didn't really fit for the girls.

I think when Megan offered to help she didn't know what she was getting herself into. Here she is applying the third coat of primer......

All smiles once we actually got to start painting a color.....

Maleah and Rena really wanted to help. They did a great job during their 30 seconds that I let them paint before they started dripping......

After 3 coats of primer and 2 coats of paint we were finally done!

Here's the after.....

Megan had the idea for these cute stars. We bought just metal stars and then covered them in different pieces of scrapbook paper. They turned out really cute......

The girls room is done! We also painted Cameron's new room while Megan was here, but that one is still a work-in-progress so it might be a while for pictures! Megan definitely helped to make the painting process of the make-overs more fun......thanks Meg! :)

THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS

2011-08-04T22:32:00.018-07:00

We didn't do too much on the last few days of Megan and Alex's visit, but we still managed to stay busy and have fun.

The boys dumped out almost all of the Lego's and built some cool things.....

Megan was nice enough to let Maleah use her laptop so that the girls didn't have to fight over mine -- and actually they don't usually even use mine, but they were searching for books so I gave in.....

I couldn't resist this picture of Maleah with her birthday bear after a busy fun day.....

We spent some more time at the pool swimming and relaxing.....

Cameron did a lot of relaxing this day taking a little nap.....

We spent some more time at the cul-de-sac......

We took the heavy-duty wagon so that we could take Cameron's skate ramps this time. Rena was giving wagon rides while we were there......

Maleah was taking pictures......

She likes to take "crazy" pictures...... :)

We spent some more time snuggling while watching movies......

Of course, we spent some more time with Jacinda, Gabby and Benjamin.....

One last swim before heading to the airport.....

And, unfortunately, we had to go to the airport......

We had a fun visit with Megan and Alex and can't believe it's over already. They've only been gone a day, but it's definitely time to start planning our next get-together! :)

A DAY AT THE BEACH

2011-08-02T22:22:00.019-07:00

On Monday we had a beach day -- at two different beaches. We started out by driving to the La Jolla Cove about a half hour away from us. We didn't do any swimming or sandcastle building in La Jolla, but we did walk and shop and enjoy the scenery!

The La Jolla Cove.....

It was really busy at the cove and we didn't get the best parking spot so by the time we got hungry and were done at the beach the car was parked clear down at the other end of the beach. Soooooo, I walked back, got the car and we ended up eating lunch in the car. Luckily the kids were fine with it.....

After lunch we went to the "Sunny Jim Cave" at the cove. You have to walk down (and then back up) a tunnel with 145 steps to get to the cave.

In the cave.....

Headed back up to dry land.....

Because the beach in La Jolla was busy and because I didn't want to carry all of our stuff down to the beach in La Jolla (way too much work!), we headed back towards home and stopped at Ponto Beach in Carlsbad to play in the sand and surf......

Sandcastle building.....

Time to rest.....

Time to play -- the girls (Megan, Rena and Maleah) spent a little bit of time chasing each other with buckets of water.

Whose going to get wet first????

Rena gets Megan......

Then Megan gets Rena.....

Then Rena gets Megan again.....

Then Megan gets Rena AND Maleah (and Cameron thinks it's funny!).....

Enough with the water fights time to get buried in the sand.......

HELP! Maleah can't get out......

Rena's turn -- LOOK! NO legs!.....

Finally, time to play in the ocean.....

A FORT

2011-08-01T00:07:00.005-07:00

The kids have had fun this summer coming up with things to do to keep them busy and entertained.

One of the many things that they came up with transformed our entire living room into a fort. They had fun with it and even slept in it for 3 nights......

They only got to sleep in it for 3 nights because after that the mess was driving me nuts and they had to turn our living room back into a living room! :)

THE CUL-DE-SAC

2011-07-31T23:50:00.006-07:00

We've been doing a lot of playing this summer in the cul-de-sac just around the corner from us. Usually it's all of our kids, the neighbors Jacinda, Gabby and Benjamin, friends Greyson and Decklyn, another little girl down the street, Sarah, and a few others here and there.

Here's a group of the kids one night......

Sometimes they even do more than just ride bikes.....

LEGOLAND

2011-07-28T09:15:00.033-07:00

On Tuesday we spent a day at Legoland. We got there bright and early and were ready to have some fun!

Here we go.....

A cool lego statue on the canoe ride.....

Miniland had a lot of different buildings, statues and full cities....

This one is for you, dad......they know what to include in Vegas.....

Miniland also had Star Wars!

Cameron had the camera for this part --

After Miniland we headed to the rides. Maleah and I were the only ones that wanted to ride this one,the Aquazone Wave Racer.....

Next, it was on to the Bionicle Blaster (basically teacups that go in circles and make you sick and dizzy).....

Then, we all went to the Land of Adventure and rode the Cargo Ace.....

Alex, Cameron, Megan and Maleah also rode the Beetle Bounce.....

We worked up an appetitie and had to take a break for lunch.....

After lunch the kids went to the Volvo Driving School to get their driver's license.....

Does Megan look 13??? Hmmmm.......that was the max age for the ride......might explain why she looks too BIG for her car..... :)

YIKES -- It's a shark at the skipper school......

We spent some time in the "build and test" building. Here are the kids building and testing.....

Megan didn't build and test, but had a great time watching our things for us.....

After a few (many) hours in the Legoland park we headed over to the Legoland Waterpark....

Hmmmmm.......this looked like fun, but what does it do???

OH, it squirts water!!.....

Alex, Cameron, Megan and Maleah had a great time on this water ride. Rena didn't want to try it so she and I waited at the bottom of the slide for the perfect picture (and this is it!).....

Legoland was fun, but almost 10 hours was definitely enough! :)

U.S. OPEN SANDCASTLE COMPETITION

2011-07-28T08:20:00.015-07:00

Last weekend we drove down to Imperial Beach to see the U.S. Open Sandcastle Competition. It was really busy, but it was fun to see the sandcastles and how they are built.

Here we are.....

Here are some of the sandcastles that we saw.....

After leaving the beach Jeff decided that we should go to Mexico. Imperial Beach is the "most southwesterly city in the continental United States" so Jeff got back on the freeway heading South and got us to Mexico in less than 5 minutes. It was a funny joke until he almost missed the last U.S. exit and seriously almost took us all in to Mexico.

Here we are still in the United States looking at Mexico......

Whew -- we are still in California.......

BALBOA PARK

2011-07-25T23:52:00.002-07:00

Last week we spent one fun day at Balboa Park. There is a lot to do at the park, including lots of museums to chose from, but we just did all of the free things!

We started at the actual park and did some playing......

Then we checked out the pond and the botanical building.....

We moved back outside and cooled off by (and in) the fountain......

We spent some time in the cactus garden -- climbing trees that weren't prickly..... :)

We moved on to the rose garden -- Rena and Maleah had the camera at this point. Not the best camera, but I thought they got some pretty pictures. The orange ones are my favorite.....

On the way back to the car the kids stopped to cool off again......

AND Megan stopped to climb a tree -- just long enough for Cameron to get stung by a bee -- luckily he was fine and was feeling better than perfect once we stopped at 7-11 and he got a slurpee and bag of chips for the ride home! :) ......

SAN DIEGO ZOO

2011-07-16T21:52:00.008-07:00

On Wednesday last week the kids and I spent the afternoon at the San Diego Zoo. It was fun, for the most part! :)

We planned to leave the house at 9:00 -- finally at 10:00 we hit the road. We had to make one stop at a friends house and then finally arrived at the zoo at 10:45. Rena didn't feel good by the time we got there (she was fine when we left the house) and Maleah was upset about something (still don't know what) by the time we got to the front gate. So, here we are taking a picture (with Maleah upset & not even looking up for the pic) before heading indoors. BUT -- Oops, once we finally got everyone and everything organized and made it to the front gate.......I left the tickets in the car!!!

Outside the front gates.....

Once we actually made it through the front gate we had a good time.......

The Elephant Odyssey......

Not really sure what this was for, but Megan, Rena and Maleah stopped for a picture.......

Lunch time......

At Polar Rim in the polar bear plunge.....

Giraffe's in the Urban Jungle......

We really did have a fun day and got to see almost everything that we wanted to see. We even rode the Skyfari (which Rena did NOT want to ride) at the end of the day to get the overhead view. We did have to skip the Hippo Trail at the end, though, because we were all out of energy! Next time we'll start there!

WATER ROCKET

2011-07-13T21:49:00.003-07:00

Last weekend Jeff, Cameron and Alex decided they should build a water rocket launcher. I think it was Jeff that came up with the idea but both Cameron and Alex were ready to help. After a couple of trips to home depot and a couple of hours this is what they ended up with.....

They had fun building it and have already gotten hours worth of fun out of it!

OLD TOWN SAN DIEGO

2011-07-13T21:44:00.011-07:00

On the way to taking Bonnie and Kate to the airport on Wednesday afternoon we stopped in Old Town San Diego to take a look around. It's another fun touristy spot because there is lots to see and fun shops and restaurants.....

This was our first purchase of the day -- Cameron (somehow) managed to get into the car without any shoes on and didn't realize it until we got all the way to Old Town. So, Grandpa gave him a piggyback ride until we found these lovely flip flops for him. I guess it's (somewhat) understandable as to how this happened since we do spend most of our time in either bare feet or with only flip flops, but still, really Cameron???...... :)

Pictures around Old Town.....

Last picture before heading to the airport.....

MISSION BEACH

2011-07-13T21:41:00.004-07:00

On Tuesday afternoon we all headed to Mission Beach for Bonnie and Kate's last full day in San Diego. It's a fun beach to go to because there are a lot of touristy things to do -- a carnival area, lots of shops & places to eat, and, of course, the beach and ocean!

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY

2011-07-12T21:36:00.004-07:00

After swimming at the pool we went home, got cleaned up and then headed to our neighbor's house, Hale' and Jason's, to make smores and watch fireworks.....

The boys also had fun on the skate ramp while the girls had fun watching.....

HAPPY 4th OF JULY!

POOL TIME......AGAIN

2011-07-12T21:29:00.003-07:00

We spent another nice afternoon up at our pool!

Kate, Maleah and Bonnie.....

Megan and Jeff.....

Rena, Cameron and Alex.....

Megan, Jeff and Cameron.....

Jeff and Megan playing......

Jeff and Kate playing......

Megan and Maleah resting......

Rena sleeping -- she got really tired and slept there at the pool for a couple of hours.......

GOOD-BYE STACY

2011-07-12T21:20:00.006-07:00

Monday morning came too quick and Stacy had to head home. We had a great visit with her and wish she could have stayed longer.

Everyone saying their good-bye's in the driveway.....

MORE good-bye's at the airport......

We were sorry that Stacy had to leave and hope that she can come back soon! We are glad, though, that she left Megan and Alex with us!!! :)

ON THE PIER

2011-07-12T20:54:00.015-07:00

On Sunday afternoon we all decided to go to the Oceanside Pier for lunch and some fun.

On the pier......

Lunch at Ruby's at the end of the pier.....

After eating we decided we should work off our lunch! We rented two different 6-person bikes and spent an hour riding up and down the beach.......and racing each other! I was lucky enough to be part of the winning team -- and the losing team once! It was really funny when we were trying to pass each other. Rena, however, did not think it was very funny and after Stacy swerved into traffic to pass us Rena wanted nothing more to do with the bikes.......that is a bit of an exaggeration......if you ask Rena she is very dramatic about it -- Stacy did not actually swerve into traffic, but that's how Rena describes it.......

Cameron & Megan picking the best bike for us......

Kate & Alex were so excited that they had to wear helmets......

The losing team..... :)

The winning team -- most of the time......

We all needed a rest after that bike ride......

ONE MORE SURPRISE FOR MALEAH

2011-07-12T20:47:00.012-07:00

On Saturday, after the parade, Maleah got to go to the Build-a-Bear Workshop to get one final birthday present. The McCullough's let Maleah chose what she wanted for her birthday and after a lot of thought she chose a Build-a-Bear. I think the reason she may have chosen the bear is because Cameron has 1, Rena has at least 3 and Maleah had ZERO!

Here she is picking out which bear she wants.....

Giving it a hug after she stuffed it - and making sure it is stuffed just right ......

Which heart to chose?......

Time to give it a bath.....

Stacy must have put on at least 10 different outfits (including shoes) on this bear before Maleah decided which one she wanted......

AND finally -- the newest member of our family -- FLUFFY......

OCEANSIDE INDEPENDENCE DAY PARADE

2011-07-11T23:34:00.013-07:00

On Saturday morning Rena and Maleah were in the Oceanside Independence Day Parade with their Cheer Team, The CYSU All Stars - (California Youth Spirits Corp.).

They had to be there at 9 o'clock (an hour before the parade) so Megan & I took the girls and then met everyone else there to watch. We had to first stop at Walmart that morning before heading to the parade, though, because as I was reading through the information from their captain the day before I realized they needed white shoes.....and, of course, neither of the girls own a pair of plain white shoes. So, after making a few phone calls and sending text messages to friends to try to borrow shoes we ended up at Walmart bright and early before the parade.

Luckily, we found them!! AND they were only 3 bucks......how lucky was that??? Had I started looking for them earlier I probably would have ended up spending 30 bucks on each of them. AND, even luckier, the Walmart shoes didn't even give the girls blisters during the parade.....

Here they are at the parade, with their team, ready to march.....

After dropping the girls off with their team Megan and I met up with the rest of our group to find a spot to watch the parade and wait for the girls. Bonnie, Kate, Jeff, Me, Megan, Dad, Cameron and Alex.....

Bonnie, Stacy, Kate and Jeff.....

Me and my favorite niece, Megan.....

Megan, Dad, Cameron and Alex.....

Here they come!!! They are in the row closest to us, Rena is the 3rd one back with her pom poms down and Maleah is behind her (with a really large gap between them) with both of her pom poms up in the air......

Here's Maleah -- first one in the row closest to us.....

After the parade the girls got specials cheerleading medals......

They both did a great job and had a lot of fun!

MALEAH'S LAST BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION

2011-07-11T21:48:00.005-07:00

After swimming we all went back to our place and had a birthday celebration for Maleah.

Here's Maleah sitting with Kate patiently waiting for cupcakes and presents.....

Time for cupcakes.....

Time for presents......

Everyone enjoying cupcakes while Maleah opens her gifts -- Rena, Megan, Jeff, Dad, Me, Cameron.....

Another fun celebration for Maleah. Here she is with her new headbands from Grandma Lynne, her new coat from Grandma and Grandpa Schrader and her cupcake (unfrosted because she does NOT like frosting!).....

Happy Birthday (again) Maleah!

WE HAVE VISITORS

2011-07-11T21:00:00.009-07:00

Our first visitors arrived at about midnight on Thursday night, the 30th. Stacy and Alex flew into Burbank on Wednesday, spent Wednesday and Thursday in LA and at Disneyland and then drove our direction late Thursday night.

Our next group of visitors arrived on Friday night. My dad, Bonnie, Megan and Bonnie's granddaughter, Kate all met us up at the pool at about 6 o'clock Friday night. They had all been vacationing in Solvang, CA since the past Sunday and then drove back to our house on Friday.

Our Friday night barbeque at the pool with everyone was a lot of fun.....

We put Stacy to work right away.....

Our group sitting around chatting -- Maleah, Kate, Jeff, our neighbor Gabriel, Stacy, Megan, Dad and Bonnie (the rest of our group was still in the pool having fun!).....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MALEAH!

2011-07-10T22:35:00.015-07:00

Since we were in Hawaii on Maleah's birthday she had to wait until we got home to have her friends birthday party. She chose to have her party at a pottery place called Clay 'n Latte. She invited 4 friends from school - Alyssa, Ashley, Sidney and Olivia. She also invited her good friends from next door - Jacinda, Gabby and Benjamin. And, of course, she invited Cameron and Rena!

Busy painting......

Time for cake and presents......

The whole party -- Olivia, Sydney, Rena, Maleah, Alyssa, Jacinda, Benjamin, Gabby, Cameron and Ashley.....

Maleah had a great time at her party and even needed a little rest on the way home.....

WEDDING STEPPING STONE

2011-07-09T08:33:00.000-07:00

When Jeff & I got married at The Royal Lahaina on Maui on August 4, 2000 the hotel created a stone with our names on it to line the path to the gazebo. It was fun to see it 11 years ago and we were excited to be going back to see it again -- 11 years later.

Here was the stone on August 5, 2000 - the day after Jeff & I were married.....

Here we are also 11 years ago (wow, don't we look young???) -- we are standing at the gazebo and you can see all of the stones from people that have gotten married there.....

That's the gazebo and stone path behind us (and a pretty planter area perfect for pictures).....

And here it is today........

We were so disappointed when we got there and this is what we found! They didn't even replace it with anything. We asked why the stones, gazebo and pretty planter area were taken out and no one could give us a reason. They just said that the stones broke when they were pulled out so they all got thrown away. I was really quite sad.......we were telling the kids all about it before we got there and then this is what we got to show them! Oh well, at least we have pictures and memories! :) (I'm still upset about it, though!) :)

SHERATON MAUI RESORT & SPA

2011-07-08T07:33:00.005-07:00

For our last night in Maui we moved over to the Sheraton Maui Resort and Spa.

This is the view from the lobby.....

The best part about the hotel and one of the main reasons we decided to stay there was because of the great pool......

We all had a fun time ordering smoothies and lunch pool-side.....

We also chose to stay at The Sheraton because of the great beach and snorkeling right outside of the hotel. We were able to walk right out of the pool and down to the beach to snorkel around Black Rock......

For our last night we went back down to Front Street and ate dinner at Cheeseburger in Paradise.....

And we had our last Hawaiian Shaved Iced for dessert......

A beautiful sunset.....

Breakfast on the patio.....

One last swim.....

The grounds at The Sheraton (& pretty much everywhere in Hawaii) were filled with beautiful plants, flowers and waterfalls. This was our final walk and picture before heading to the airport :( .....

We had a GREAT 10 days and can not wait to go back again -- maybe even next summer! :)

NIGHT TIME SWIM

2011-07-07T07:20:00.004-07:00

Friday night was our last night at The Papakea Resort. We stayed at the resort and did some night time swimming.....

Here's Jeff, Maleah and Rena doing a "cottonball" into the pool.

Funny Maleah thought that a "cannonball" was called a "cottonball". Now everytime she jumps into the pool she yells "COT-TON-BALL!" as she's jumping.....

Saturday morning we packed up at The Papakea and moved over to The Sheraton for our last night in Maui. Good bye Papakea......

ATLANTIS SUBMARINE

2011-07-07T07:07:00.022-07:00

On Friday morning we started the day with a submarine ride.

We rode on a boat out to the submarine.....

Here we are on the submarine and ready to go down......

Some of the fish we saw.....

We went down 131 feet......

We saw a sunken ship and a scuba diver.....

All of the kids (including Jeff) thought it was great.....

Here I am -- not having fun! I actually did have an o.k. time, but it wasn't my favorite thing we did. I would have much rather been out in the water scuba diving with the diver that we saw.....

The color change as you get deeper and deeper was fun to watch. We were watching Maleah's flower to compare the colors. This is 100 feet down......

This is almost back up on the top of the water.....

The kids with our driver as we were getting off.....

This is the sub we were on. We watched it go back down once we were back on the boat to go to shore.....

On our way back to land.....

Another successful outing!

DRUMS OF THE PACIFIC LUAU

2011-07-06T23:04:00.022-07:00

On Thursday night we went over to the Hyatt for the Drums of the Pacific Luau.

Waiting to go in.....

We got front row seats.....

The girls LOVED the hula dancing! Rena now says she wants to move to Hawaii and be a hula dancer. This was some of the pre-show and dinner entertainment.....

Anxiously waiting for the show.....

Time for dinner.....

Time to learn how to hula -- the girls and I up on stage.....

Ready for the show.....

Parts of the show.....

Cameron LOVED the fire show. It really was quite amazing.....

Despite the fact that the show was loud, fun and entertaining and despite the fact that we had front row seats, Maleah fell asleep.....

Cameron & Rena got to meet some of the performers after the show.....

Cameron asked the fire guy if the fire hurt when he was performing -- he said "YES! The fire on the tongue really hurts!". But said that the feet no longer hurt.....

ANOTHER great night!