Our First Big Family Vacation Recap

About two weeks ago, our entire family of four boarded a plane and flew out to California for a 10 day vacation.  I was pretty nervous about taking Wyatt on a plane and I am happy to report that he did super good on each of our four flights.  Rex did good too though I wasn't so worried about him since he is 4 and a little easier to keep busy and entertained.  We landed in Fresno on Saturday (Oct. 13th) night and promptly headed to the nearest In-N-Out Burger for some dinner.  Words can not even describe how delicious and wonderful it tasted to me.  The next day we spent some time with Rob's family.





We had German sausage and visited and played games and had a great time.  The next day we were due to head over to Morro Bay for a couple days at the coast but Wyatt woke up sick.  Everyone else headed over there in the morning and Wyatt was well enough by the afternoon that we finally headed over there too.  We got there in time to enjoy a little time at the beach and all have dinner together at Lolo's.







As Gramps told the waitress, it was the first time he had gotten to go out to dinner with all four of his grandkids so that was a pretty special dinner for all of us.  AND I finally got the horchata I have been longing for so that was awesome too.  (Side note- I came back with 15 packets of horchata mix in my suitcase.  Oh yeah.)  We spent the rest of the time fishing off the pier (no luck), eating, shopping and playing at the park.  Since Wyatt hated the beach and the park (he hates to be dirty and couldn't deal with all the sand sticking to him), it was kind of tough to find things to do for him but I had a great time and I think Rob and Rex did too.

We headed back to Visalia and that was when Rob pretty much disappeared for the next 4 days.  He was racing at the Trophy Cup race in Tulare and we barely saw him.  We did visit him at the race car shop one day which the boys were loving.  I took the boys all over the place, visiting friends and family and seeing all kinds of things.  I was even lucky enough that Nanette and her daughter were in Visalia for a few days so we got to spend some time with them too.











One highlight of the trip for me was a little reunion of sorts that we had with my city of Fresno co-workers.  I miss everyone from there so much and miss working in planning and it was great to talk to them and catch up and see everyone's kids- we have all been busy!  We all took a picture together too and hopefully it won't be so long before those guys again.  Thanks again to Dawn and Rod for hosting and getting us all together!



We spent the last couple of days back in Fresno with Rob's family and Grandpa Rusty drove down to Fresno to see us too.







It was a long trip and after 10 days, we were ready to head home this past Tuesday.  The flights out there had gone so well but the flights home were not so good.  Everything was fine when we left Fresno until our descent into Denver.  It was probably the most turbulence I have ever experienced and it made me feel pretty queasy.  I knew Rex couldn't be doing well if I wasn't and sure enough, he lost it.  And lost it again.  And a few more times before we got off that plane.  Even Wyatt was fighting it back and telling me "Mommy, it hurts."  Oh, my poor babies.  When we got off the plane, Rob told us that all 3 of us looked awful.  Our next flight ended up being delayed for over 2 hours which was kind of a blessing because the boys got to rest and nap a little before having to get on a plane again.  Rex continued to be sick in the airport and once or twice on the flight from Denver to Des Moines but we made it finally and were very happy to see our own house again.  We had such a great time seeing friends and family and going to the beach and eating our way through the Central Valley.  Thanks to everyone who came to see us and invited us to their home and took care of us while we were there!

First (sort of) Day of Preschool

Rex had his first day of preschool today- sort of.  It was what they call their "Glimpses" day and was more of an orientation day.  We did the whole photo shoot though.

First at home-



Then at school-



You may notice his hand is a little blurry in that photo because he was so excited to get inside and was waving at me to hurry up.  Did I mention he was excited??  Rob stayed home to watch Wyatt so that I could go with Rex (parent attendance required- not just being a total mama bear).  We were there for about 45 minutes and did a little scavenger hunt around the classroom and the school so that he could learn where the bathrooms are, where his backpack goes, where the playground and gym is and things like that.  I followed him around like mommy paparazzi.











He goes to school 4 mornings a week for 3 hours a day- a nice little introduction to school, schedules and the like.  Things we don't have in our daily routine so far.  It is pretty exciting for me too although I am having a hard time with it too (just a little bit).  It is really tough to drop him off somewhere and trust other people with my child.  He's been at home with me nearly every single day of the 4+ years since he was born.  I can't believe it is time for this already!  I know he is going to have a great time making lots of new friends and learning new things.  And I am looking forward to having more one-on-one time with Wyatt and being able to go grocery shopping with just one child again.  So even though I am struggling with it a bit, I think it will be a great thing for all of us.  His first real, full day is on Thursday so I can't wait to see how that goes!

Time for a Vacation

Rob has been out to California twice this year already which has made me a little homesick.  I think Wyatt is getting better at traveling (especially now with the portable DVD players) so... we're coming to California! Yay!!  We will be out there for a little over a week in October.  I don't have the trip planned much at all yet- I'm still trying to decide on the car seat vs. CARES harness for Wyatt on the airplane. (His own car seat weighs a ton, yet it is familiar to him and may, therefore, be a better option.  But we can borrow a car seat when we get to CA and the harness is sooo much easier than dealing with getting the car seat on and off the planes.)  See the picture Rob took while he was out there a few weeks ago?  How could I not get on the next flight possible??

As good as that looks, I really miss all my family and friends and can't wait to see everyone.  We have plans to go to the beach and Rob will go racing but that's about all we know at this point.  Rex is totally excited to go to the beach and build a sandcastle.  He's already made it a point to tell me we have to go buy him a bucket and shovel and bring it with us.  So cute.  Speaking of so cute, check these two out.

We celebrated Rob's birthday last Friday.  He wanted to cook at home so we had a nice steak dinner with baked potatoes and salad and wine.  And instead of cake, he said he would rather have pie so that's what we did.  I have a deal set up with a massage therapist where I wash her sheets in exchange for free massages so I let Rob have my latest one for his birthday.  My battery charger for my camera had been MIA for quite a while so I didn't get any pictures of that day.  He also went to the Knoxville Nationals the next night after his birthday so I think it was a pretty good birthday weekend.

Wyatt has surprised us lately by singing all of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and most of the ABC's (he starts at h or i then goes to the end).  I didn't realize he knew either until he just busted them out the other day.  I tried to get him to sing it on camera but once the camera was rolling, he just wanted to play with it.  Here is what I got of the alphabet-

We were going to try and make it to the Iowa State Fair- I mean, we've been here 5 years now and still haven't been.  We have had small children/babies just about every year though so I guess we have a good excuse.  And now it's not looking good for this year either.  We don't really want to go this weekend because the weather is perfect and there will be a million people there.  Rob couldn't take any time off this week to go so it looks like we will miss it again.  We will have to plan ahead a little better next year so we make sure we get there.

A Sickly July

At least one person has been sick in our house for almost the entire month of July.  Not being dramatic at all here, folks.  These are the facts.  It all started with Rex's 4 year old check-up on July 2nd.  He had a reaction to the shot and had a fever for a day or so then a few days after that, came down with (what I think was) a cold.  He passed it on to Wyatt after a couple days then it got to me.  The boys were sick, but didn't seem all that bad so I didn't take them back to the doctor's office (which was where we picked all this crud up in the first place). When it got to me, I felt awful and went to the doctor to discover I had bronchitis, an ear infection, fever and a sore throat.  The boys were feeling better when I was sick but then I guess I passed it back to them and Rex had a double ear infection and Wyatt had croup.  We were at the doctor's office four times in 9 days between the three of us.  Thank goodness for insurance because between the office visits and all the antibiotics, it has been an expensive month.  And what's up with Wyatt getting croup- I thought that was an old-timey, 1800s disease?!  Crazy.  So the three of us are still coughing but much better and hopefully the cycle ends here.  Rob dodged it all for a long time but it seems he has a cold now.  Everyone stay away from Daddy.

I have more good reasons for being a bad blogger this past month.  My father was here for a visit a week or two ago and the boys had a lot of fun with Grandpa Rusty.

We all had a good visit with Grandpa Rusty.  Unfortunately, the day he got here was the day I started getting sick so that part was a bummer.  Rob had to take on the role of Chief Hostess and he did a great job.  I felt terrible for a couple days there and the medicine made me incredibly sleepy so I was just out of it for a while there.  Between my sickness and the awful heat we've had, we didn't get a chance to get out and do much but I think everyone had a good time despite the circumstances.  He and Rob got in a round of golf and the boys and I took him to the aquatic center twice so we did get some fun stuff in there too.

Before my dad got here, Rob was spending every second he had on our trucker bath.  Let's review again how bad it used to be.

How it looked when we bought the house (love the wood toilet seat- yuck!)-


After our first mini-makeover a few years ago (better, but still not great)-


And now, the beautiful bathroom-

It is still not totally finished but pretty close.  We need a curtain or blinds for the window, a rug, cover up the water hook-ups and put the vent cover on.  I also have a special little project for the interior of the cabinets that I will share as soon as I get to it.  I am so thrilled with the way it came out.  Eventually we will add a shower where the pedestal sink is right now and the sink will be over right next to the wall and doorway (where the shoe tray is right now).  I think I would like some kind of cabinet to go in the sink's eventual location for now but I'm not quite decided on that yet.  It would be nice to have more storage for cleaning and bathroom supplies.  Everything was replaced except the wall cabinets, mirror and light fixtures.  It is so nice in there and I love that I have another bathroom to use now- because I wouldn't even go in there before.  Yeah, it was bad.  But not anymore!

Bathroom Update

Rob's been hard at work on the bathroom lately, putting in the new tile floor and tiling some of the walls too.



He is planning on grouting all the wall tiles tonight and then the tiling will all be done- woohoo!



It looks fantastic already.  He has done such a great job.  I have been teasing him though about the new condition he has developed- I call it "Tiling Tourette's".  He will be in there working away on his tiles and all of a sudden I'll hear a string of bad words come flying out of his mouth.  Luckily, since it is associated with tiling and he is almost done with that, he will be cured soon.  I think we will be able to get the toilet and sink in this weekend.  After that, we can take down the open wire shelves and start painting in there and be done!  I keep waiting for something to go wrong so this project will take longer because it is going too fast (for one of our projects).  I guess this whole thing though is the project gone wrong because originally, the project was only to replace a toilet.  Now we've done brand new tile on the floor and walls, have a new toilet and sink and new paint.  So yeah, looks like the original 1 day toilet switcharoo project already backfired on us and I don't have anything else to worry about!  We do have to pick a color still for the paint.  We were talking about a grayish-blue and now today Rob says green.  Green goes better with the rest of the house (we use it in every room) so I think he is right.  Now to find just the right green...

It is so hot here lately.  Rex and I have been to the pool several times in the last week.  We had to leave early one day though because SOMEONE POOPED IN THE POOL!!  Agh! No joke, not a Baby Ruth prank or anything- it was the real deal. It was in the little toddler pool area and the lifeguards cleared the place out in a hurry and it took a few minutes for me to realize what was going on.  But once I figured it out, we got the heck out of there and came back home.  Nasty.  I guess something slid out of someone's Little Swimmers'.  Thank goodness we were on the other side of the pool.  We'll wait a while before we go back and make sure all the chemicals in the pool have had plenty of time to work their magic.

Here are a few pictures of the boys, just for fun.






So I guess that's about it for us.  Just trying to stay cool and making our bathroom all shiny and pretty and smelling fresh again!

Happy 4th Birthday to Rex!

Rex turned 4 yesterday- woohoo!  He started the day off by going out to breakfast with Daddy and then came home to find the house all decorated with streamers, signs, banners for his special day.  He kept saying "Wow!" over and over and then told me, "Thank you mommy for putting my birthday up" (not a typo- just how he said it) and he told me that again today.  SO cute!!!  I would decorate the house for him everyday if only he knew how that melts my heart.  We all went out to dinner where he had a cheeseburger and chocolate milk (his favorites) and then went back home for cake and ice cream and presents.



He got a new scooter...



But first Daddy had to put it together- with one of his helpful assistants.



We got him a doctor's set and coat since he likes to play doctor on everyone- and some monkeys too.



But the funniest part of the night was when he opened his stomp rocket and thought it was a CPAP machine (for sleep apnea) like Papa uses.  I was laughing so, so, so much.  Like who would get a 4 year old one of those?



He got it figured out eventually though.



So it was a fun day overall and I think Rex really had a good time.  The stomp rocket's future is in jeopardy after he almost took out my right eye with it this morning.  It's been banished to outside and threats have been made if it ever hits me again.  It is a fun toy, we just don't need to shoot it at mommy anymore.  Father's Day was this past Sunday and we had a nice dinner for Rob that night- after he worked all day tiling the bathroom floor.  I don't feel too bad since he was not around for most of Mother's Day and I had to take care of the boys by myself and didn't get any cards or gifts.  I got some belated flowers though which was nice.  Rob got a new DeWalt drill so he can keep making progress on the bathroom remodel.  I also tried to make him a picture like this-

Source: tipjunkie.com via Shelby on Pinterest

But this was all I got with an uncooperative 2 and 4 year old.



Oh well.  I decided to save the signs for two years and we will try again!

Another Simple DIY Project

Rob and I swore that we would be doing no major projects around the house this year.  The family project took a lot out of us and we needed a break.  We recently got a new garage door and that was supposed to be our biggest thing this year- and that's not bad because someone else did ALL the work.  Well, we made it halfway through the year and now we have a big project again.  About two weeks ago we thought we would build a pergola over part of our backyard patio.  After working on that for a while, we decided our half-bath needed attention more than the backyard did.  Despite trying to spruce it up, it has never been an area I have been totally happy with.  Here it is at its best.



Not so bad, I know (be glad you can't smell it though).  Rex is restricted to using the half-bath only and let's just say it was not so fresh in there.  The toilet is original (pretty sure on that) and needed to be replaced anyhow.  We thought there were some flooring issues too that would have to be addressed in the immediate toilet vicinity but still we were not anticipating too much work to be done in there.  We had extra floor tiles and picked up a new toilet at Lowe's and began our project this past Sunday.  As Rob began to peel up the vinyl floor tiles we installed 3.5 years ago, we realized we had a MAJOR problem.  I am trying to be delicate here but I can't find any other way to put it- all the times my darling boy had missed the toilet, the pee went in between those tiles and soaked into the flooring below.  This wasn't a total surprise because I couldn't ever get rid of the pee smell and I suspected that is what was going on.  I just didn't think it would be so bad.  There was only option left.  Get rid of all of it.

So here's what the bathroom looks like today.

The washer and dryer have been removed and put on craigslist since we don't use them anyhow.  The toilet and sink cabinet were both demo'ed and removed.  We probably still have more flooring to remove and we are currently in a debate over what to do about the shelves and cabinets still on the wall.  I say take it all out and start fresh but Rob is worried about all the wall patching he will have to do.  I understand, but I still think they need to go.  We have our floor tile picked out and a sink too.  After a lot of shopping around and discussion, we have decided to go with a pedestal sink in there for easier clean-up.  Same reason for going with tile on the floor now.  And most likely there will be tile on the wall too.  I told Rob, "I want impermeable surfaces in here so this doesn't ever happen again."  I still have another boy to potty-train!  I did however convince Rob we don't need to install a floor drain in the middle of the room so the whole place could just be hosed down.  Funny, but not necessary.

Let's discuss smell neutralization for a moment though.  It was horrible in there and we were worried everything down to, and including, the subfloor was going to have to go.  We sprayed everything down with a white vinegar/water solution then used some ZorbX and the smell is totally gone now, less than 48 hours later.  I don't know what in the heck they use in the ZorbX but that stuff is a miracle in a bottle.  If you have a smelly place and need some help with it, get some of this stuff at Lowe's.

So much for no major projects this year.  This is really just going to be phase 1 of the bathroom overhaul. In a few years we will move the sink over where the washer and dryer used to be (right next to the door) and have a shower in there too.  But that requires a plumber and a lot more work and money that we are not up for right now.  And we don't really need the shower in there at this point anyhow.  Looks like I will have a lot to blog about for home projects again now!

One Month Recap

I can't believe it has been a month since I last blogged.  We have been busy and there has been plenty of material, I just haven't been in the mood.  And to tell you the truth, I'm still not in the mood but here we go.  That's what she said.  (Sorry parents, I just couldn't pass it up.)  Anyhow let's go back to mid-April.  My parents came out for a visit and we spent half the visit at a condo at Lake Okoboji.  Since it was off-season up there, I scored a gorgeous 3 bed/2 bath condo for just $500 for a whole week.  Some restaurants and other places had not yet opened for the summer but there was still plenty to do.  There was an indoor waterpark where we stayed that was open on the weekends and we enjoyed that.  We went to a park one afternoon at Spirit Lake (which connects to Okoboji) and had a good time playing around there by the water.

Here is the condo.  Looks like we've lived there forever, right?  My favorite part was the deck just off the living room.  The building is right next to the lake and the weather was beautiful most of the time we were there.  I spent a lot of time out there relaxing and reading The Hunger Games books.

My parents bought the boys portable dvd players (early birthday presents) which was so, so, so wonderful to have.  My mom and I actually picked 2 of them up on clearance at Target the day we left on our trip.  Since the clearance ones were so much cheaper than what we were expecting, we were able to get them each one of their very own (although we only opened up one for the trip- the second one will come in handy for future airplane trips).  It fit just right in our car and made the 3 hour car ride so much more pleasant than previous car trips.  That was the part of the trip I was kind of dreading and it all went so smoothly.  I also got Wyatt the Joovy Room2 pack and play which is quite a bit larger than the standard pack and play.  I think he appreciated the extra room for sleeping.

The rest of the visit with my parents went great and we all loved having the grandparents around.  Rob and I got out twice for date nights and the boys had a great time playing with Nana and Papa.  It was definitely sad to see them go.  We keep trying to convince them to buy a place out here.  We want everyone to.  And maybe some of you will- looks like a lot of people are leaving California these days.  Anyhow, we had a great visit with them and all our friends, family and In-N-Out should leave California and move here.

A few days after my parents went back home, Rob went out to California to go racing.  He had a lot of fun but it may have been a mistake.  All I hear about now is when the next race is and how he wants to be there so bad.  Oh dear.  I bought paint for the living room thinking I would surprise him and repaint it while he was away.  It turned out that looking after the boys by myself for 4 days was awfully tiring and I just didn't have the energy to paint after I got them to bed at night.  If anyone is wondering, that's what we will be doing this weekend- painting the living room.

This past Saturday was Wyatt's birthday- my baby turned 2 years old!  Wow.  We got him a cozy coupe car and he would not get out of the thing, much to his brother's dismay- Rex was dying to get in and take it for a spin.  Here he is, at the drive-in.

He did take a little break to check out his new workbench and Handy Manny table and chairs and take a spin on the Twirl & Hurl (or Sit & Spin as Playskool calls it).

He liked his "ka-mouse" (aka Mickey Mouse) cake a lot.  

I had the family room all decorated and he kept pointing at different decorations and singing "Happy to you" (he leaves out the word "birthday" for some reason).  It was very cute.  The boys even managed to play together with the car for a bit and they are adorable.

It was a wonderful day with lots of nice presents.  I guess that gets us pretty well caught up for the last month and I promise to not be so long before the next post!