A trip to the carnival for Faith's 3rd birthday!!

Today Darrian went to his friend Faith's 3rd birthday party, it was a carnival complete with games and prizes, popcorn, and hotdogs! It is fun to think I have known Faith since she was a year old, and to have been there as she has grown from a baby to an adorable little girl! She just became a big sister a couple weeks ago, and I can't wait to see baby J grow as well! Darrian had a really good time at the party, and even got his first tattoo! Here are a BUNCH of pictures of the fun!

Baby J-dub's new skill :)

J enjoying his cuppycake! Darrian gave him a couple hugs good-bye soooo cute!

Cuppycake mustache :)

M trying to figure out how the dum-dum's work :)

L looking SO cute in her niner jersey, and eating cuppy cake.wish I got a picture of her matching puma's, this two year old already puts me to shame fashion wise.

My favorite guy enjoying his cupcake

Birthday girl being wished a Happy Birthday!

C and Darrian were playing together on the hidden toys it was SOO cute to hear them crack each other up, they are only 5 days apart and both turning 2 this week!

The hotdog stand.

a very cool pinata!

the bean bag toss!

Darrian with his "fish" he went fishing for.

so cute the kids threw a pole over the "tank" and caught a bag of fish!

Baby R is getting SO big !

Her brother P.

Faith telling Darrian how to get his first tattoo, she had about 4 so she was the pro. (isn't she SO cute pigtails and all?)

Beach fun........

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This morning we went to order Darrian's cake for his birthday, it always makes me nervous to put the ideas out there and then have to wait and see if it turns out the way I have it envisioned in my head. Last year it was exactly how I wanted it, hoping for the same thing this year. :) After the cake was ordered Mom and I took Darrian on a ride to the Marin Headlands. It was super foggy, but we had fun anyways. I love the fog, it is peaceful to me. We headed back and by the time we got home the sun was out. Here are some pictures I captured....

A special flashback friday..

To my almost two year old son,

From that moment I first met you almost two years ago my life has never been the same. It has grown and expanding in ways I never could have imagined. Even as I sit here thinking about the love I have for you, I struggle to put that into words. I know everyone says you won't know what it feels like to be a Mom until you are a Mom... I find myself in the same space saying the same thing.

This I do know. For me motherhood has never been a burden, it has been hard at times in the past two years running on very little sleep and trying to get things done that need to be done. I never looked at it as I would rather be doing something other than being a Mom in this moment. I don't know if that is because I waited until we were ready, or if it because a Mom is truly something I have always wanted to be. The rewards of you are bountiful. You capture joy in the toughest of times, you have made our lives so much better. Each stage over the past two years has brought new twist and turns, and the smallest of things became the greatest. I looked forward to seeing you walk, watching you run, that laugh, that smile, the excitement you bring in the little things. You are my best accessory, you are more amazing than I ever could have dreamed you would be. I know that this world is yours for the taking, and that you will do great things in this life. I have more grey hairs since the moment you were born, I am thankful for this blessing of you that we have been given. The hardest part of the past two years has been knowing how to keep this love in a way that gives you independence and letting you grow from a baby to a toddler. Although I am amazed you were ever so small, and how far you have come and sad at how fast time is slipping by me, I try to be thankful that I have been able to be there and present to take it all in.

I can not wait to see what the next year will bring us, and the one's after that. I am so proud that you call me Mommy.

Love,

Mom

Darrian's first day of pre-school.....

Darrian's first day of preschool was today. Drop off went really well, he really did not notice that I was leaving and I kind of think he had no clue what was going on. Another classmate was crying when we were lined up to go in and he sort of had this look like, um what am I in for. When we arrived to pick him up, the teacher said there was lots of crying. She said that sort of a chain reaction with the kids. I was hoping Darrian had been ok, but she did say he had a few tears. She thought it was mainly because other kids were crying and that upset him . She said he transitioned well from the activity to activity, and loved the cars and the outside. I don't think he has mastered leaving those things for say circle time. She said all of this is of course normal, and he would get used to it. She said it was good to talk positive about school, and we will see how drop off Thursday goes now that he sort of knows what is going on. :) here are a couple pictures from today.....

What you can't see in this above picture, this kid is SCREAMING his head off, look at D's concerned face lol.

When we were leaving to go to school...

For the first time in two years......

Darrian got his haircut!! eek. I have been saying for about the past three months that I was going to get Darrian's hair cut, but then would change my mind. The truth is I like the long curls, but it is hard work to keep them how I like them and Darrian is getting more and more annoyed with the process.

I decided since he was starting school I would do it. Then the choice of who to take him to... I heard many horrible stories of nightmare haircuts because the toddler can not stand them.. knowing that Darrian would have to have his hair pretty wet, maybe conditioned before cutting.. sounded too much for me to sign up and do. Since Keith cuts hair I decided to let him give it a try. In the sink, with scissors instead of his clippers. I am pleased with the outcome, not sure if I love it more than the long curls but I know it will grow back.

Cars, Cars, Cars.

To say that Darrian loves cars, is an under statement. My Dad collected these little cars, and Mom gave a box of them to me to give to Darrian. I gave him a few and they are his favorite things ever since. He has this favorite one that he eats with, sleeps with, he wakes up asking for it! This morning he woke up and asked for his cars so we gathered them all up, and I took pictures while he played. It is really fun to watch him play with them with his "vroom vroom" noises, and lining them all up in a row. OH yes, his new thing is to puff his cheeks out with air, lol.

A Fallen Hero.......

I know several men and woman who serve for our country in the armed forces, I am always struck by the sacrifice they make. Not only putting their life in danger, but many times moving away from family and friends. Leaving behind spouses, and children, missing milestones ...just to make sure the rest of us don't have to.

This weekend I attended the funeral of a fellow classmate who paid the ultimate price in war. He was killed along with three others in a roadside bombing. His wife and him attended grade school with me for 8 years. He leaves behind his wife, and three young children, one a daughter who is only 5 weeks old. He was deployed right before her birth, and never got to hold her or meet her. There are no words that express that pain. I went to the funeral on Saturday, and really it has haunted me ever since. It seems so unfair, and I hurt for his family, his wife. I am hurt that his children will never get to know what a brave man he was, and that he will not be able to guide them through life. I am sad it leaves his wife a widow before she is even 30, and that she has to do it on her own.

I know times are hard, and I understand if no one can give to the trust fund for his wife and his children. I have attached a address for those who can give, and hope you all can keep this family in your prayers through this impossible time.

http://inmemoryofjohn.chipin.com/the-hallett-family

A weekend away........

(D and Gma)

Last weekend, Mom, Darrian, and I headed to Pammy's house for the weekend. I can't believe it had been already a month and a half since we got back from Mexico. Pammy was nice enough to invite us to come up and stay the night at her Roseville home, for a BBQ and to swim in her lovely pool. Debbie and Heather came down from Folsom (is that down?) with the ever cute Braxton. Braxton just turned two, it took a minute for him and Darrian to get used to each other but by the end of the night they were giving each other hugs with pats on the back. Quite possibly the cutest thing ever. It was a really nice relaxing weekend, and so good to see everyone. Gemma was nice enough to let Ziggy her dog stay the night at Pam's too. Darrian is in LOVE with Ziggy. He would just want to sit on the floor next to Ziggy , and give him hugs and kisses. So sweet. I snapped only a few pictures of the weekend, it was a lot of fun. Hopefully we will make it up that way again soon. Debbie now lives in Apple Hill and I am hoping to make a visit up there this fall to get some pies for Thanksgiving :).

(a non child proof house with lots of drawers = Child's paradise)

(Darrian jumping down the entry way after Braxton)

(running around)

(plotting and mr. ziggy)

mommy..enough with the camera!

I am a liberal...

Last week Ted Kennedy passed away, the last of the Kennedy brothers. I was not around to see the rise of Camelot, and all the twist and turns it took. I learned about it in school, I admired the strength of this family. Even if I was not around to see it happen, I know I feel the affects in my life. Ted Kennedy worked in the senate for 46 years, what a life of service. He helped put into law things for the commen people of the US, including minimum wages, Civil Rights, Family Medical Leave Act, Cobra health care, Woman's sports, lead the first laws on gay rights back in the 80's, and he tried again and again to get Healthcare for all passed. I hope in his absensce it happens right now, and even if he is not there to vote we would have him to thank for laying the ground work for it happen.

I was really struck by how endearing he was, and how he went out of his way to make others feel special. After 9/11 he personally called each of the families from his state who lost loved ones (177) . He did not stop there each year he would personally pen them letters on the anniversary date. He wrote to one widow:

"As you know so well, the passage of time never really heals the tragic memory of such a great loss, but we carry on, because we have to, because our loved ones would want us to, and because there is still light to guide us in the world from the love they gave us. We carry on."

Here is something they replayed that Ted Kennedy said and it really struck a cord with me, and made me very thankful for the time he gave to serve his country, and to be a Liberal.

"During my service in the United States Senate, I have often been called a Liberal, and it usually was not meant as a compliment. But I remember what my brother said about liberalism shortly before he was elected president. He said: “If by a Liberal, they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind… Someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions… Someone who cares about the welfare of the people—their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, their civil liberties…Someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and the suspicion that grips us… If that is what they mean by a Liberal… Then I am proud to say I am a Liberal.”