End of School Time!

My handsome Pre-K graduates 

It has been an especially busy past week with all that has been going on.  I survived my 6 days/6 nights as a single parent while Myke was up at Apple for "office time" and a developers' conference.  Not without a couple "bumps" in the road, but we managed.  The first night he was gone I was shook awake by a medium-size earthquake at 1am.  I'm not sure if it was more the shake or the loud noise that came along with it that woke me up...but that was a bit nerve-wracking!  I somehow fell back asleep....but not without Ella as a bedmate.  The earthquake must of woke her up, too, as she came in my room right afterwards and asked to sleep with me.  To be honest, I was glad to have the company!  I guess she enjoyed the night together as she came in the next night, too!  Then Saturday night was Eli's turn to "have a sleepover with mommy".  How could I say no?  They're not going to want to sleep with their momma forever.  (Right??  That would be a huge issue if they did!).  Then, Sunday night Eli came running down the hall to me and vomited on my rug and then onto my bed.  So that was fun.  It was followed by two days of a stomach bug/fever.  I'm lucky to have such great momma-friends who all helped me get Owen & Chloë to and from school that day so I didn't have to drag Eli out.  He literally stayed in bed ALL day Monday.  Poor guy.  

Myke is back now.  Yay!  He arrived home around bedtime Wednesday night and then took a 1/2 day off on Thursday so we could go to the San Diego Fair.  I hadn't been since I went with Chloë when she was 18 months old.  We went with Thom & Maureen (Myke's parents) and the 4 kids.  We had a great time and all was going well...UNTIL WE LOST OWEN.  Yes, we lost a child.  For the first time ever.  It was terrible.  The 8 of us were walking along and literally one minute I was saying something to Owen about leaving his stuffed animal prize in the stroller and then the next minute we stop to decide to turn into a barn to see animals and Maureen must have done a head count and asks,  "Now who are we missing?"  We quickly notice that Owen isn't with us...literally I think less than a minute from when I was just talking to him.  One of us stayed with the stroller and kids and the other 3 took off different directions looking for him.  After scanning the crowds and walking up and down the "aisle" we were in, I started getting a little more panicked and flagged down a security guard.  Myke had flagged one down the direction he went in, too.  They took me & Maureen to the Admin offices/lost children area and I was told that they just had found a lost boy and that they were going to check if it was him.  They wanted me to start filling out some paperwork...but we were just thinking, just show us the missing boy!!  Where is he?  Is it Owen or not?  Then a woman behind the desk asked if there was a "Sarah"...and I felt a wave of relief wash over me.  Obviously, the little boy had said his mom's name was Sarah.  Just bring me my little boy!  They told us that he was being escorted our way now and to wait there.  Soon enough (but it felt like 20 minutes) 3 security officers escort my scared-looking & teary eyed little boy to me and we just ran and hugged and both started crying.  Owen just kept saying "Mama" in a distressed tone as he clung to me.  It was definitely an emotional one.  Agh.  Apparently, when we had stopped the to decide which way to go next Owen had just kept walking along.  I'm not sure when he realized we were no longer around but he was apparently quite a ways ahead.  He must have started crying and a woman came up to help him and got him to a security officer who took it from there.  Agh. Hope that will the last time we lose a child in a crowded venue.  In all likelihood it probably won't be...and I'm surprised it hadn't happened yet with 4 kids.  I've never been one to use the child-leash.  Maybe I should start now?  :)   Is 5 too old to wear a leash??  ;)

 On a related note--when we arrived at the fair front gate that morning Thom had the idea of taking each child's photo on his phone before we walked in.  That way we could show the photo if the child got lost, it would remind us what clothes they were wearing, etc.  Brilliant idea.  When we were in the admin offices we showed them the photo.  Anyways, so glad that episode is over.

Other than that, the fair was a great time!  Kids had a blast, played games, rode rides and ate junk to their hearts' content.  It was a fun and exhausting day!

A few pics: 

Craziest snow cone creation ever!  Had two lollipops, a fruit roll up and cotton candy all on top!

Bumper cars! (Owen)

Eli milking a fake cow (real white liquid came out!)

The girls!

I had fun, too! (before we lost Owen)

Rides!

The next day, Friday, was Chloë's last day of school!  First grade is over!    She's had a great year and has come a long way with her Spanish, her learning ...and her wiggle-worm tendencies.  Yay, Chloë!  We have a 2nd grader in our house now!  

She was a little emotional to say by to Mrs. Ventzke when I picked her up.

But a stop for strawberry sorbet in a waffle cone helped her to recover: 

I also put together this side-by-side shot of both the first & last day of school and can't BELIEVE how much bigger and older Chloë looks from just the start of the year to now.  She's a big girl now!  Sniff sniff :(

Then this morning was Owen & Eli's school performance and graduation from Pre-K at their preschool.  It was a really cute performance with some little skits and songs followed by a graduation ceremony.  Most of the photos are on my "good camera" but I'll add the ones taken on my phone for the time being: 

Proud of my boys!

Owen the Octopus & Eli the Elephant.

So cute! 

We're having some down time right now after all the business of the past few days.  Then Chloë has requested a BBQ and pool party.  Family only.  I think she wants some family time :)  Sounds good to me!  Adios!  

Friday night: attack-dad-with-pool-noodles fun!  

Flying Solo June 2016

  Embarking on the first evening on my 6 days/nights of flying solo with the kiddos...AGGHHH!!!  I'm A LITTLE nervous...due to the fact that I have NO back up and NO family in the area to help me out...I'll be missing Myke, that's for sure!  On a typical day around here I'm in business mode with parenting/keeping things running.  It's A LOT of work to raise 4 kids!!  It's a lot of work to raise two kids...but with 4 YOUNG ones someone is ALWAYS needing something, it seems.  I've been doing it for SO long that I'm used to it...but it's also wearing on me.  (CAN YOU JUST WIPE YOUR OWN BOTTOM?!  YOU'RE FIVE NOW!!  YOU'RE GOING TO KINDERGARTEN IN 2 MONTHS AND I WON'T BE THERE TO WIPE YOUR BOTTOM!!).  I'm just more than ready for a little more independence in regards to the kids being able to meet their own needs on a more regular basis. We're getting there!  Slowly but surely.  At least we aren't in diapers...and haven't been for a year and a 1/2 !!  That has been amazing!
Usually Myke balances out my business-mode-of-running-the-household with FUN and letting loose.  He swoops in with a bundle of fresh energy and has the kids laughing and playing and dancing within minutes.  I WISH I was more like that...I want to be more like that... but, like he says, I'm in parent-mode the entire day and he just comes in for small bursts.  It's easier to be the fun one when it's more sporadic.  While we're labeling our parenting styles...I'm also more of the push-over.  Sometimes I just get TIRED of repeating things or "putting out fires" or just tired of parenting in general and will just give in or let something slide that I really shouldn't.  Kids are smart.  They know this.  They will nag me and keep asking for something after I've said no.  They do not do this to Myke.  They know better.  So that's a pain...but I guess it's also of my own doing in the end.

Myke has left for business trips before but never for this long.

 I'll start out looking like this: 

And by next Wednesday (or probably by Sunday morning at the latest) 

I'll look like this:

FACT.

Luckily, the first 3 days of Myke's time away are relatively relaxed in that they are Friday, Saturday, Sunday.  Next week is the final week of school so there is really no homework to do.  Both Eli and Chloë are taking piano lessons so there is that challenge of making sure they both get in their daily practice.  They are still at the point that they need one-on-one help with practice time to keep them on task.  There may be an influx in the use of the iPad or Netflix cartoons for the next few days to keep the other occupied so I can help them with practices.  It's also teacher-appreciation week at the boys' preschool next week so that involves little notes, gifts, flowers being sent in each day they go (Mon-Wed-Fri).  I need to figure out end-of-year teacher gifts for Chloë's teacher as well. We have no set plans tomorrow after school but Saturday we have committed to two back-to-back birthday parties 11am-2pm and 3pm-6pm.  Also, Chloë has her basketball game at 9am.  I have a friend taking her to that, though.  Phew!!  Sunday looks pretty open until the afternoon ...in which I'm hosting a kinder playdate for all the incoming kindergarteners at the elementary school that Owen & Eli will attend in the Fall (same one Chloë goes to).  The office manager asked me to run 4 play dates over the summer for incoming kinders to get to know each-other/mingle/play before August.  I scheduled the dates before I knew Myke would be away this weekend!  Agh!  At least it will be held at a local park..NOT at my house!  

I'll be fine.  I can survive this.  I'll keep you posted!  

Date with Eli

Enjoying his chocolate crossaint

 Eli woke me up early (as in BEFORE 5am) this morning because he was scared in his room.  I took him back to his room, put the nightlight on, tucked him in and left.  Before I knew it he was back at my bedside asking "what's that noise?"  I'm not sure what noise he was referring to but I think it was the birds chirping.  They chirp EVERY morning starting at 5am.  It's ever-so-lovely (<---insert sarcastic tone).  I was too lazy to walk him back to his room again so I just pulled him up into our bed and snuggled him.  My little baby...we almost NEVER let the kids sleep in our bed with us.  I can count on one hand how many times we have let a child into the bed to sleep with us and that's including each of the 4 kids.  He must have caught me in a good mood :)   I've been a little extra-sentimental lately with their up-comng Pre-K graduation and then the thought of them going off to kindergarten in late-August.  Imagine how I'll be at high school graduation?  A MESS.  In the past year Chloë has turned into a "big kid".  Her young toddler look and cuteness have slowly melted away and she's just transforming into a more grown-up look.  Still beautiful, as always, but just more grown up.  So I know the boys are headed in that direction, too.  In kindergarten they are still "babies" and "cute"...but after that...it's the land of big-kids.  Not that there is anything wrong with that, per se, and not that Chloë isn't still adorable, it's just a change.  So I'm trying to relish in the moments right now and soak it all up.  Enjoy the last few months before I send them off to "big-kid school".  

So back to this morning- I decided to wake up with Eli and we snuck out of the house for a little mommy-son time.  We opened up the coffee shop near our house, strolled around the shopping center, checked out the koi pond and just spent time together.  The one-on-one time is so nice...and so rare.  I enjoyed every minute of it :)

Vacation...all I ever wanted!

Back home after a really nice 48+ hour getaway with Myke and the kids for their Spring Break.  A Great Wolf Lodge just opened up in the Anaheim, CA area (near Disneyland and a about 60 miles from our house) just 5 weeks ago.  We just stayed 2 nights there but they let you check in and start using the facilities around 1pm on the day of your first night there.  We got there around 12:30pm Sunday and were able to check right in and get our room right away, as well, which was great. From then on I didn't breathe non-indoor-water-park-resort air for over 48 hours.  It wasn't until around 2pm today when I walked out the front lobby into the sunshine that I realized I had been inside for that long.  Maybe that doesn't sound THAT long?!....but for me it definitely is!  The resort is AWESOME and all-encompassing.  There is NO need to leave.  At all!  We all had a blast.  We had enough to do inside.  The hotel room has a Kid Cabin inside it with it's own door and windows and a bunk bed and then single bed inside.  The kids even had their own tv in their cabin.  Then there was a queen bed and a pullout sofa out in the main part of the room.  So that was one of the first PLUSES for this trip:  we ALL fit legally into one room...and (more importantly) comfortably!  Great Wolf Lodge is, for those of you who don't know, a HUGE indoor water park with lazy rivers, slides of all kinds, a wave pool, a huge kiddie area where the water is never over 18 inches deep, etc.   There IS an outdoor pool and water play area but we never even went out there to see it.  The resort also has a mini-pin bowling alley, mini-golf, arcade, kiddie salon, ice-cream parlor, a build-a-bear type store that lets you build and create your own wolf stuffed animal, an interactive movie experience, and six restaurants.  It's a DREAM for kids and families (and probably a nightmare for people with no kids or who get annoyed by big crowds of wild kids).

Peeking out the top of the cabin

Part of the indoor water park

 There was so much to do.  There's even a Dunkin Donuts!!  We don't have those in San Diego so that was a real treat!  In our 3 days there we did a lot.  We spent a bunch of time in the water park, we played video games, the kids did morning yoga, there was a night time pajama dance party and then story time, there was a kid craft area, Ella got her first manicure, we did bowling, we ate Munchkin donuts, the kids enjoyed their first buffet for breakfast today, etc.  What a blast!  The amount of time we spent there was perfect for us.  I think we are all looking forward to going back again sometime!

Arcade time!

All dressed up for her manicure!

getting pink nails

Ella on the stairs (Myke in the background shooting water at unsuspecting kids (not ours))

Water park!

Kiddie zone

Wiley Wolf coming for night time story time

Ice Cream Parlor

morning yoga

silly boys in the morning

intense Checkers match between Chloë & Myke

Story Time

Cleanse Done!

Yes, I finished on Thursday at the end of the day...so Friday was my first day back to "real food" (ironic?) after 3 days of smoothies.  I was pretty nervous to eat at first and ended up starting the day with green tea and then the breakfast smoothie.  I did finally treat myself to a (decaf!) coffee with a  little half n half and then some avocado toast at a favorite local coffee spot.  HowEVER, the toast was not that great AT ALL so I ended up scraping the topping off and ditching the bread.  The topping consisted of avocado, feta, and some cherry tomatoes...all very yummy!  The coffee was pretty tasty, too, and, although I've found I really don't NEED caffeine like I thought I did (I was actually only drinking half-caff and only one cup for the most part pre-cleanse so it wasn't TOO much in the first place).  I'm going to try to just get decaf when I get coffees.  We'll see if I start making decaf here at home (I actually put my coffee pot in the garage during one of my mid-cleanse-rampage-cleaning-sessions when I wanted the counters to look less cluttered) or maybe I'll continue with the green tea and lemon in the mornings.  Maybe I could get used to that??

Avo Toast (and side salad)

The first meal back after 3 days on the dark side 

(or was it light side?)

Okay, enough about the cleanse.  So far, now that we are at Saturday night and I've had 2 full days NOT being on the cleanse, I'm still feeling really good, I have a lot less desire for snacking and I've had smoothies for breakfast both days.  Planning/hoping to stick with the good habits and continuing to be mindful of what goes into my mouth! Okay, enough about the cleanse.  Really this time!

Today: 

Chloë the super-star at basketball 

(YMCA co-ed age 6 & 7 year old team)

She scored 10 points today!  5 baskets!

Cheering Squad on the sidelines!

We are guinea-pig sitting this weekend!

For the school pets at Eli & Owen's preschool.

Chloë & Ella want to hold these guys NON-stop!

Tomorrow Myke's parents arrive back into San Diego after 2 months back at their east coast house in PA.  We're excited to have them back and even more excited that they're bringing Gram (or "GG"), Myke's grandmother, with them for a 2 week visit!  So special that the kids will get to spend time with their great-grandmother.  

Is the time change really happening tonight?!

  

Is Easter really only 2 weeks away!?  

Can we SLOW things DOWN people??!!  Where is the time going?

Day 3 Almost Done

I had intended to blog each day during this cleanse...and I guess, in the end, I only missed yesterday, so only one day... but, to be honest, it's 9:20pm right now and my body & brain are shutting down.  I'm TIRED.  I'm not sure it's necessarily due to the cleanse itself, but I do think it has something to do with it.  When I get tired at night...I'm suddenly TIRED.  Past the point.  Can barely move one more limb.  I'm getting there right now but am forcing myself to at least post a few pics and write a few words.  Overall, I have felt GREAT!  Really!!  The smoothies are pretty good.  I never got light-headed or felt famished.  When I would get hungry it was time for my next smoothie and that would do the trick...and I'd feel great again.  I was a little sluggish at times for sure, usually a 1-2 hours after the previous smoothie.  However, I was so busy (as usual) and I truly believe that helped keep me distracted enough to endure a 3 day cleanse in the first place.  I initially had thought my busy life would make the cleanse hard (no time to prep the veggies, no time for feeling sluggish when I have so much I need to be doing, places I need to go, etc) but actually it was for the better.  Distraction kept me from having too much time to THINK about food.  Though I did think about a breakfast burrito on more than one occasion, which, interestingly enough, I very rarely actually eat.  I never craved anything sweet the entire 3 days, but I did think about salty/savory here and there but usually for fleeting seconds.  Nothing enough to lure me to the dark side and quit.  After all,  three days is just three days.  So, overall, I'd say this was a good cleanse.  No coffee, no artificial sweeteners, no dairy, no gluten and simple carbs...only whole foods and healthy fats.  

One weird side-effect I noticed was that I wanted to constantly be cleaning and organizing...but at the same time my brain was a bit off and I couldn't stay focused long enough to finish one project at time.  I'm like this ANYWAYS as a default...BUT it was definitely exaggerated during the cleanse.  Here are some photos below form yesterday and the crazy messy state the house was in.  I was "cleaning out" the cabinets and drawers.  I'd go to put something back and then end up emptying the entire area, cleaning it out and rearranging it.  So for a good part of the day there was STUFF on almost all counter tops downstairs.  

Day 2 Pics:

Green Machine!

Day 3: 

breakfast on the run

Lunch poolside at a friend's house

AND, just to have a non-cleanse item in this post:

Chloë & Owen on their first day of joint-skateboarding lessons at the YMCA

Owen picked the same deck as his big sis :)

Day One: Complete!

Myke blending my first smoothie

I'm still alive!  Day one was nowhere near as bad as I was expecting.  What was I expecting?  Well, to be honest, I was expecting light-headedness, headache, starvation, irritability.  I experienced none of that.  Maybe that's more second-day symptoms.  Time will tell!  

I followed the plan to a T.  The smoothies were not too bad (breakfast was best).  I felt pretty good all day...tired now, but it's 10:30pm and past my bedtime, so I don't blame the cleanse for that.  Just wanted to post a quick review of Day One before I nod off.  

I'll attempt to update more tomorrow...

Morning green tea with lemon

Lunch: before blending

Lunch: after blending