Hey! Look What I Found!

It is a common occurrence in our house for me to "lose" my shoes. This involves a frantic barefoot search around the house that takes place about 2.7 seconds before we are supposed to walk out the door. Once I have searched the dishwasher and the trash can, and I am already scolding Sophie and Clubber for eating my shoes, it dawns on me to look one last place. Lo and behold, Jeff has carelessly and recklessly put them away in the closet. How am I supposed to find things if they are always hiding where they belong?

Up until recently, I thought we had misplaced the pictures from our trip to Buellton last month. I was really bummed because I knew we had gotten some cute shots of Mad with Grandma and Grandpa. After looking in the dishwasher for the missing digital prints, I decided to look in the July, 2009 folder on the computer. They're always in the last place you look.

The fam picking blueberries.

Maddox showing Grandma all three berries that actually ended up in his bucket.

A little sugar for the grandparents...

The Kreil's, the Kreil's, and the Snook's out for Grandma's birthday breakfast.

Pismo Beach

Surf and Sleep

It is a rare (and celebrated) event when Maddox falls asleep in the car. That is, except when coming home from the beach. The sun and surf are the perfect mixture; he ALWAYS falls asleep on the way home from the beach. And when we get home, he always finishes his nap in the lawn. It's the perfect ending to a fun day.

One Last Hurrah

Jeff's summer at home is officially over. He's been back to work for a couple of weeks now, and we really miss him. Just before he went back to the daily grind, he spent a day climbing Mt. Baldy with Jay and Sandy.

Dear Husband,

Thanks for working incredibly long hours and driving an insane number of miles so that I can stay home and eat BonBons in my bare feet. It's been nice knowing you this summer. Keep in touch. See you next summer.

Love, Wife.

Childhood Memories Confirmed

I have always had some sort of vague, nagging memories that Disneyland had other rides besides Buzz Lightyear, Pooh Bear, and the Jungle Cruise. But for the last few years, I have only seen these three rides. It's as if some little two-year-old I know has an insatiable desire to shoot Zurg. Weird.

However, when the Hoggard's came to town a couple weeks ago, my faint childhood memories of Disneyland were confirmed. Aunt Alicia (aka Superwoman) met us and took all the kids home for bedtime, so Mandy, Ted, Jeff and I were able to stay until the park closed! Turns out, Disneyland has all kinds of rides requiring the participants to be over 40 inches tall! Who knew?!

Someday, I hope to once again experience this Disneyland phenomenon. But for now, I am satisfied with Buzz, Pooh and "the backside of water." Especially when I get to ride them over and over again with my little blond Disneyland buddy. Another advantage: I am an expert at Buzz Lightyear Astroblasters. If I don't get 300,000 points, I'm disappointed in myself. I wonder if I can put that on a resume someday.

Hang 10

It's been a long process, but we finally have Maddox's big boy room ready for him to move in!! About 6 months ago, I caught wind of a used bed being sold for $100. The quest to furnish Mad's room on the cheap commenced! Knowing I had plenty of time before the critter needed to upgrade from the crib, I was able to take my time and find some great deals for the room.

A $10 Hawaiian comforter and pillow ... a few surf themed decorations from eBay ... a hand-me-down surfboard from a dear friend ... a hand-made beach step stool from Uncle Ted ... and voila! Mad's beach room is finished.

Now that all of our summer house guests are headed home, we will be transitioning Maddox to his big boy room soon! That should be interesting. I'll keep you posted.