East Coast Visit

The house I grew up in (from third grade on...)

Beautiful fall colors at the entrance to my parent's neighborhood...of course the photo doesn't do it justice!

The girls' trip to the east coast has come to an end!  Chloë, Ella and myself are back in San Diego now. Back with the boys.  We've actually been back a week already...not sure how that happened??!  I still have one suitcase left to unpack.  We had a really nice trip.  It was so nice to go home...especially this time of year.  The weather was just beautiful and autumn-like every single day.  Crisp, fresh-air, leaves falling all around us.  My parents neighborhood is SO full of trees that (at certain times of year) you can barely see openings of sky when you look up.  That makes for A LOT of work when it comes to raking leaves.  The top photo of my parent's house was taken the day AFTER we had raked the entire front lawn.  It was completely covered again within a matter of a few hours.   The good thing was that Chloë was so excited about raking leaves.  She wanted to rake leaves every day.  So we did.  She loved helping to make a big pile to run and jump in.  She also loved using the leaf blower to help Grandpa blow the driveway and parts of the yard.  Growing up, I cursed the fact that we had to many trees and so many leaves.  We were constantly raking and raking in the fall (at least that's how I remember it!).  I even remember stating that I when I grew up I would NOT live in a house that had a yard full of trees.  I guess that plan came true (you can see a previous post photo of the amount of raking we have to do hear in Encinitas).  

Using the leaf blower

Gramma & Chloë

The girls in the leaf pile

Other highlights of our visit:

Visiting Grandpa on the set of his play.  He was the producer for the play his theater group put on.  This is the main reason for our trip back east.   

Tea Party with my old Beanie Babies (so glad I kept them)

ice cream!

We were also excited that Myke's sister drove down from the DC-area to come visit us for an afternoon with her kids.  So great for the cousins to get some time together!  Everyone had fun jumping in the leaves and playing with all of Gramma's toys (and she has a lot!).

Trent & Ella (the youngest cousins)

Wish Owen & Eli could have been there!

jumping in the leaves!

Trent & Declan

Ella & Mira

We also got a visit from my bestie-since-third-grade, Crickett, and her family.

Katelin (10), Chloë (4.5), Megan (6)

Here are two other photos of the girls together.

On the left is Fall '09 trip to VA and on the right is from their San Diego visit this past Summer.

Crickett - Love this girl :) 

Friends since we turned 8!  So for 10 years!  (haha)

(or maybe 26 years?!)

 (and you, too, JT!- Somehow I didn't get a photo with you in it :*(  )

The next day I got to see 2 of my college friends, too.

Vanessa & Chandra.  Good times!  

It was so great to see everyone and do all that we did!  The trip went fast.  It always does and I always wish I had more time there.  It's never long enough.  There are always people I want to see that I don't get to see and things I want to do that I don't get to do.  I need to make a month-long visit next time.  Haha, my parents might keel over if I did that!

River City Diner 

Grandpa & Chloë 

All of us

Making gingerbread cookies with Gramma

Ella 

Saying Goodbye to Grandpa 

(it started snowing!!!! as we loaded the car to head to the airport!)

On the plane home!

Meanwhile, back on the ranch:

Playing in the box forts (at least Mom-Mom was?!  Are there any kids in there?)  :)

On the iPad with Pop

Snuggles with Pop 

I love this photo!

Thanks to Thom & Maureen (aka Pop & Mom-Mom) for taking such great care of my boys while we were away!  I know they had so much fun with you guys.  It's great knowing they were left in such wonderful loving and competent hands while I was gone!  

A few leftover Halloween photos:

Ella-Bella looking so cute in her ruffle buns

The boys preschool Halloween party -

stuffing their faces!

Who is this guy?!

The boys first trick-or-treating!

The boys with their class for the costume parade.

Neither would put on their costume!  

At least they had festive shirts :)

A side-by-side (photoshopped) of Chloë's first Halloween (left) and Ella (right) wearing the same costume.   The Ella side looks pretty weird...might have to try another photoshop attempt.

Celebrating Maureen's birthday at Casa de Bandini

Halloween

Hey, Look!  We have autumn leaves!

Not too much to report here.  We have been busy, as usual.  I feel like I'm starting off every single blog with that line.  I just know it's about to get even busier as we have guests coming into town, and I am usually less attentive to updating my blog when we have people visiting.  So I thought I should at least post some photos and give a little Hines update.

We are doing well.  Chloe, Owen & Eli continue to enjoy preschool.  To avoid spending my "free days" (which are Monday and Fridays from 8am-12pm...and include Ella) shopping, shopping, shopping, I have signed up for a music class with Ella.  So Friday mornings at 9am we now attend a "Music Together" class.  It helps (forces) me to actually spend time WITH Ella and not just drag her around shopping and running errands (we can do that on Mondays).  She's my last baby and I want to enjoy every minute of her baby-hood.  She's just the sweetest baby you could ever ask for!  So we did a trial class last Friday.  At first I wasn't too sure about the class.  She was the youngest child in the room.  The teacher kept pulling out different instruments and hands-on things (scarves, little toys, etc) and would have the kids come up, get one, and then return to their space on the circle rug to play with it.  Then, two minutes later when that song was over it was time to "clean up" the object and go put it back in the bucket by the teacher.  Well, Ella can't walk.  She's the only non-walker in the class. So, every single time we got something new or put it back, I had to get off my behind and get the item.  I'm too old for that up & down.  Plus, it got tiring fighting the 18-month-olds for the best drum or triangle!   However, Ella really seemed to love the class and the stimulation.  She "danced", clapped, and cooed the entire time....which was enough to have this mama writing a check and securing my baby a spot for the next month of music classes.

Halloween is tomorrow!  Yay!  I'm more excited than anyone else in the fam.  Not a surprise.  However, Chloë is really into Halloween this year.  She is GETTING it more.  So that makes it extra fun.  The boys are still not as verbal...so I'm not always sure WHAT they get when it comes to a variety of topics.  I ended up buying them both Thomas Train costumes to wear.  I didn't ask what they wanted to be or let them have any say...because at that point I don't think they would have been able to communicate what they wanted...if they understood the whole concept at all.  They're only 2, afterall.  We did a trial trick-or-treat session the other night where we got out their costumes and had them put them on, ring the doorbell (to our own house) and I gave out a couple candy corns.  Eli refused to put on his Thomas Train costume.  Even for a candy.  Owen & Chloe were all about it though. So we'l see how tomorrow pans out.  Eli may dress as himself.  Or a ladybug....   Today he told me he wanted to be a ladybug instead of Thomas Train.  The boys' verbal skills are WAY better than they were a month ago when I purchased their costumes.  So he may wear ladybug wings.  We'll see.  (The same wings you saw in a previous blog post about Eli in the ER).   So I have a daughter who will be a ninja and a son who will be a ladybug.  I'm fine with that :)

It's getting late...and Ella pulled a 2-feeding-night last night...so I better get some rest in case she does that again.

Owen & Ella

Halloween Baby!

Washing the car with dad

Date night!

pumpkin painting with friends

Owen

Elijah

Heading to "Red Toes":

A couple weeks ago the boys and I were taking a walk down our street when we came across a house with a bunch of Halloween decorations in their yard.  They have tombstones, a skeleton coming out of the ground, a huge spider on their house, various ghouls hanging from the garage, and a severed head and foot hanging from a tree.  I let the boys check it out (and prayed they wouldn't have nightmares for months on end).  They were really excited to see everything, OOOOing and AAAAAHHHing at all the decorations.  Then they saw the severed foot and just kind of stared at it.  The foot is hanging from a chain and has fake blood dripping down the ankle  I think it was Eli who pointed to it and said "red toes!".  So, anyways, we now have to go on a walk to see "Red Toes" at least 3-4 nights a week.  They get so excited to go see this yard...it's funny :)

Heading down to "Red Toes"

Looking up at "Red Toes"

Chloe lifting Eli to touch "Red Toes"

And two more photos from today:  

brotherly love

Ella-bella

We like velcro shoes here...

Let's see..what is going on with us?  Well, the dog has a UTI.  That's a lot of fun.  Poor Kyla.  Aren't you glad I started with that news?  We have 4 kids!  Now we have to be giving our dog anti-biotics and make sure she gets out to the bathroom like 8 times a day on top of that.  Like I said, poor Kyla!  She's our first baby.  I'm constantly feeling guilty that I don't give her enough attention/exercise...and that's on top of the constant "mom-guilt" that I have about not having enough quality time with each of my human children.

Anyways, Chloë started T-ball through the YMCA.  She had her first game this past Saturday.  It's really an hour long event and consists of 30 minutes of practice and a 30 minute game.  It's a 3 & 4 year-old team so they're all really just learning what to do.  She is one of two girls on the team.  The whole thing is cute to watch.  She seems to like it so far, so that's a relief.

Ella-bella (as we lovingly call her) turned 8 months this past weekend.  She's hungrier than ever and demanding 3 meals of solids per day lately....and making me pay for it if we give her any less -by waking up at 4am wanting to eat - just when I was getting used to the 6 or 7am wake-ups.  I was getting spoiled for a bit there!  She's an awesome baby.  I could not ask for an easier, more-relaxed, chill little baby.  Yes, I think it's partially due to being the youngest of four...but I more-so believe it's her inborn temperament.  She has been like that from day one.  In the hospital.  BEFORE she even know she was the youngest of four...:)  Before she knew what was about to hit her!  

Some of Chloë:

I need to get some more photos of the boys...with the good camera.  It's on my to-do list.  So are a lot of things.  We're starting to get swamped here.  The laundry pile on the couch is out of control.  It's insane the amount of folding and putting away of clothes we have to do.  It's non-stop.  If I could splurge and pay someone to come in and just do all the laundry stuff, I totally would do that. 

Some photos:  

Chloë and I headed to a wedding on Saturday afternoon.

Chloë in a dress!!  A rare sight!

At the wedding

Beautiful couple :)

Chloë & Kristy

When I first moved here I worked as a nanny for just under 2 years for this little girl (and eventually her baby brother).  She turned 1 when I first started as her nanny and she's 12 now!  

And literally as tall as me!  

Bath in the sink

It's a family affair

Aren't your sink baths?

Do we look alike or what? 

At least in this pic?

We all know Owen looks like Myke.