"Rougin It" 8-4-2010

After Beau finished taking the bar, he took a week off... as you can see... it was much needed, for all of us.

Beau promised the kids we could go camping... for the first time ever. (our camping trips would consist of a tent in our backyard where Mom would sleep out with the kids, while Dad slept cozy in his bed). So, this is Beau's idea of "roughing" it... a nice two bedroom cabin with all the fixins and river access. Have to admit, it was pretty sweet!
The kids absolutely loved it! Smores were a hit over a real 'campin' fire and not just our grill at home.This is our new family tradition. Smore pancakes! Okay, truth be told... I actually forgot the syrup, so I improvised... turned out amazing (much better than it looks) and now... a new tradition is born.
Brrr! The river was so cold! But felt good once you took the plunge. We had to keep a close eye on the kids... the current was actually pretty strong off a few feet off the dock. They were definitely more adventurous than us with the freezing water. Teagan would freak out about the 'sea weed' as she swam to shore. She hated it touching her legs. It was actually quite hilarious in a cruel kind of way:)

Congrats honey! It was so nice to have a week off after the past few months of stress!

The WASHINGTON BAR IS OVER! 7-29-2010

He could finally see our home in the light of day! No more leaving at the crack of dawn and getting home in the middle of the night... Hallelujah! Welcome home honey!

What an amazing day! I was so excited to get my husband back and the kids, to get their daddy back! It was brutal to have him gone all hours of everday (except a few hours of sleep) studying so hard and so stressed. What a relief to have it done!!! What a huge accomplishment!
But even more so, was on October 15th, even though we were in the middle of our move to Las Vegas, we found out that HE PASSED! WOO HOO!

Unfortunately, now that we are in Las Vegas and he's working at a wonderful firm here, he has to do it all over again with the Nevada bar. But hey, at least he knows what to expect, has some experience under his belt, and some success to draw on!

Hiawatha Trail 7-19-2010

My parents were passing through on their baseball trip along the coast, and I met them at Hiawatha trial in Idaho, just a couple of hours from where we lived. (7-19-2010) IT WAS AMAZING!


From the Hiawatha website...
This portion of the Olympian Hiawatha route has been called one of the most breathtaking scenic stretches of railroad in the country. The "crown jewel" of rail-to-trail mountain bicycle trails is operated by Lookout Pass Ski Area which is located adjacent to I-90 at the Idaho/Montana state line, 12 miles east of historic Wallace, Idaho. The Hiawatha Trail is generally open late May through early October. This year the trail is open daily thru September 26, 2010 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. PDT.

Winding through 10 tunnels and 7 high trestles, this 15-mile route crosses the rugged Bitterroot Mountains between Idaho and Montana. The Route of the Hiawatha is best known for the long, dark St. Paul Pass, or Taft Tunnel, which burrows for 1.66 miles under the Idaho/Montana state line.

With an incredible history beginning in 1906 of construction, hardships and calamities, unprecedented electrification, and of carrying passengers and freight from the Northwest to the Midwest, generations of railroaders kept the Milwaukee Road running until it finally went bankrupt in 1977. The last train west of Butte, Montana passed through in 1980. After that the line was abandoned.

With government funding and private donations, the rails were removed, and the construction of this spectacular wilderness bicycle and hiking trail was undertaken in 1997. The Idaho portion of the trail first opened for public use on May 29, 1998. The St. Paul Pass, or Taft Tunnel, was completed in May of 2001, and is now open for bike riding.

Man, it was breathtaking! This is where I told my parents that their 15th grandchild was on their way! Quite picturesque eh?
My behind was 100% done by the end of the 15 miles. Man, every bump sent a shock through my system. Bike riding is definitely something you have to condition your booty for! My mom and I were happy take the bus at the bottom of the hill after a wonderful ride... my Dad, on the other hand, is a maniac and did the whole 15 miles of uphill back! It was a wonderful day!

2010-7 River Park - Spokane

I couldn't believe that I lived just a couple of minutes from places like this! This was one of the first places that we visited with the ward playgroup when we moved to 5-mile.

The kids were nuts! The water was freezing, but they didn't care... they wanted to be in it the whole time... especially London! She got too daring a couple of times and took a dunk. But yet, she wanted to go right back out!
Some other people there pulled out a huge craw-fish out on the other side of the river! The kids were chasing guppies and digging in the sand/pebbles. We came back here a few times this summer. BEAUTIFUL!

Catching up!

What more could you ask for on your birthday?! How about getting woken up at 6:15 and going for your second eye surgery? Happy Birthday Teagan! Last week was the pool party, so we had to schedule her for her minor eye surgery (just removing a shalayzian- clogged oil gland in her eye-lid) for her birthday. To try to make up for it, we stopped at McDonald's on the way home and I got her a breakfast sandwich and a ice cream sundae for breakfast... it make it feel a little better :)
Teagan wasn't too excited about the whole process. She's been here before (daddy took her last time... I did this one) so it helped and made it worse... let me explain. The first time she didn't know what was going on or what to expect, so although she was a little scared, it was a little easier to convince her. This time around, she understood. So I could talk her through it a little better, but she was still nervous to even get her temperature taken and told me she didn't want to put the gas mask on her face. Poor little sweetie. I remember thinking, as they pushed her away to surgery, that it is amazing how much trust and confidence we have in our health care professionals. To be able to send your five year old little girl to be put to sleep with a gas mask, then to have her eye lid sliced open... wow! It's a scary to think how much could possibly go wrong! But, to be honest, I wasn't that worried! We are blessed to have a wonderful doctor and nurses that put me (maybe not Teagan:) completely at ease. It's amazing! They did a great job and Teagan, just a couple of hours later, is already all dressed up in her 'cheerleader' outfit (swimsuit, tights, skirt and tennis shoes), is having pillow fights with her brother and is asking every 5 minutes when her birthday party is to be able to open her presents. It's going to be a great day!


This is why I am a mom! Notice the top line... let me translate... I (heart) U MOM. I had to take a picture! She did this one all on her own. the next line... I (heart) U BRD. Hmmm. Not quite sure on that one!


The weather has been so nice! It was almost 60 degrees so we had to get to the park! The kids just went crazy! Cabin fever! The first time at the park, although we have been able to be outside a few times in the backyard already. We only had one big snow storm (4 inches) this year. Quite the contrast from the past 2 winters where we were under at least 2 feet of snow for 5 months! (Isn't London so sweet?!)


SWIM PARTY! We had Teagan (5), Pierson (3), and London's (1) birthday party all together at the YMCA. We got to have dinner, eat cake, then we got all the kids their own balls and squirt guns to take into the pool. So fun! Happy Birthday again!

London's official FIRST BIRTHDAY! She loved her birthday cake!

The Valentines that we made for Teagan's class. Teagan's favorite 'treat' is getting her very own water bottle, so wha-la! Water bottle Valentines, paired with ring pops! Perfect!
2-11-10 (Pre-school Valentine's Day Party)

We had to have a big birthday party for the kids while my mom was here visiting. Man, with three birthdays right in a row, we are going to have a lot of parties! I love when my mom comes to visit!

Teagan did the Gonzaga Dancers Day Camp. We were so proud! She was by far the smallest one out there and she rocked it out! She loved it!

Thanksgiving WEEK!

We had such a wonderful Thanksgiving! We decided to stay home here in Spokane and do our own Thanksgiving. Last year we stayed here, but had a few other law families over. I honestly was worried that we would just be bored and it wouldn't feel any different from any other day since I'm always home with the kids. Well, we planned well and had a great week!

Beau had a class on Tuesday morning from 8-9am, then he was ours the rest of the week! He came home and we all went to the gym together and Beau and I did a TRX class together. LOVE IT! We were both so sore! I also took London to her 9 month appointment. She is in the 3% for weight, so she gets to do monthly weight checks just like her brother and sister. Oh well, I know we feed her well and she is healthy. She is also getting her first tooth! so she hasn't been eating quite as much the past couple of days. Other than that she is great! She didn't even cry when they pricked her finger for a blood test... on the other hand she did cry when she got her flu shots, but only for a second.
After her appointment we came home and picked up Daddy and Teagan and Pierson and headed to one of our favorite family outings... Costco! They are accepting food stamps now, so it's even better for law families! Woo hoo! Beau made a ridiculously good Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake that night. Oh yeah! It's his goal to make a great dessert every night. There wasn't a complaint from me!


On Wednesday, we started cooking for our Thanksgiving feast so we wouldn't be so crammed on Thanksgiving day. We made rolls, cranberry relish, prepared the stuffing, and got the turkey ready for the morning. We went to the dollar show and saw Ponyo with the kids... it was absolutely awful. "it's all for the kids, it's all for the kids..." Beau and I kept saying over and over to get through it. The kids loved it. It really was fun to take them. I finished my denim quilt too. My family helped me get it started in the summer, and now it is complete and we love it. I also hemmed up Pierson's curtains in his room. Beau made toffee that night, but since we didn't have a candy thermometer, it didn't get quite hard enough, but was still yummy.

On Thursday, THANKSGIVING! we got up, stuffed the turkey, and put it in before Beau went to play in the turkey bowl with some of his friends. They are so spoiled here. One of our good friends owns the Shock (arena football team here in spokane) so the past couple years they have been able to have their games at their indoor practice facility. As soon as he got home we got to work. We made a pumpkin pie (YUM!), smashed potatoes with garden vegetable cream cheese, butter and garlic (YUM!), and gravy. After the kids got up from their nap, we made 10 big plates full of all of the food we made and took them around to the homeless around Spokane. We said a prayer before we left giving thanks for all of our blessing and asking for help to find those who are in need. The kids were just beaming when they got to hop out and hand plates of food to people who actually live under a bridge in downtown Spokane (were were right with them too). Teagan kept asking "Why don't they have a house to live in?" It was an amazing teaching experience and we felt so blessed to have a wonderful home to go back to. It was awesome.
When we got home we had our own Turkey Bowl in the backyard. Beau and Pierson vs. Mauressa and Teagan. It was hilarious. The kids got quite into it. It was so fun to start more traditions now that the kids are a little older. After teaching how to play, teaching Teagan how to make intimidating game faces at the other team, and teaching Pierson how to spike the ball down and do a victory dance after scoring a touchdown (hands up, and wobbly knees), we only wished we had someone there to take videos. It was so much fun.
We headed inside and got to eat our Thanksgiving feast. Everything was from scratch and everything was so delicious. We went around the table and everyone said something they were thankful for...
Teagan: My family
Pierson: Jesus
Mommy: Nice house to keep us warm from the cold, a hard working Daddy,and my family
Daddy: family,
While daddy cleaned up we made snowflake ornaments with popsicle sticks and yarn. Teagan did great, and Pierson lasted for a whole 4 minutes! Then it was time for movie night. We watched Merry Madagascar that we got in our Thanksgiving package from Grandma and Grandpa Packard. Then, our friends Polly and Nate came over for dessert and games. The kids watched Sleeping Beauty while we played Farkle. So fun. It was a great day! Beau and I felt a big victory that we did it all by ourselves and it was such a perfect day. The only bummer is that we didn't take too many pictures!

Friday we got to just play all together and relax all day. Ahhh.

Saturday, I taught hip hop at the gym (Teagan comes and takes the 6-11 yr old class even though she's only 4) and then we all went swimming at the gym. Our kids are little fish. Beau was taking them down the slide constantly, and I was guarding London on the beach. She was going nuts just crawling around and splashing. She's so adorable. Teagan loves to wear her goggles and practice her swimming she learned in the summer. Pierson is getting more and more daring. This is such a fun age for all of them. We tried to make the toffee again, but this time we cooked it too long and it was too hard... third time will be a charm!

Sunday we went to a friends Eagle Court of Honor. I was so proud when Beau went up and sat in the Eagles Nest because he received his Eagle when he was that age. Did you know that only about 2% of boys that start scouting actually receive their Eagle? I was so impressed. I hadn't thought to much about it before. The kids were great. It will be so fun when Pierson starts scouting. Beau made a great blueberry custard pie. It's a good thing we don't do this dessert thing all the time, or I'd be 300 pounds!

All in all... it was a perfect week!

Swim Lessons and the Zoo

Well, to be honest... Beau and I really are not good at being apart, so this whole California internship has been quite ridiculous. Of course, Beau couldn't even handle to the first 3 week stretch (either could I, but he took the action into his own hands) and after two weeks he surprised us by flying home to Washington the week before we drove down to Utah. So, when June 11th rolled around we were both about to pee our pants with excitement to finally see each other again after another two week absence... what were we thinking!! London and I were so happy to see him (Teagan and Pierson stayed at Grandmas) and we brought him a guitar from us and my parents for his birthday present. Woo hoo! Now he can truly fit in with his long hair, and strumming his guitar (He actually got his hair cut the night before we got there, but still). Happy Birthday Honey!! Now, knowing Beau I knew that we wouldn't be staying at Motel 8 like I would've picked to save money, but even so... imagine my surprise when we pulled up to this place....




Are you kidding me!? The Four Seasons!? As the valet came to pick up our car and they carted off our luggage to deliver our bags to our room Beau reassured me that he got an amazing deal and to not even think about it before I started to hyperventilate. It was absolutely incredible! In all me life I don't think that I will ever stay at a nicer place. I mean look at this!!


We quickly decided that there was no hiding it... we are poor and we weren't going to be able to pretend that it was no big deal to stay at this ridiculous place, so the whole time I was gawking and taking pictures.

This was the view from our balcony. Yup, amazing. I felt like we were in Hawaii or Cancun or something because it was such a dream. It was our way of having a getaway just down the street from where he is working for the summer.



Then, as if the resort wasn't enough, we walk in the door to our suite and a huge vase of Star-gazer Lillies sat on our table with an envelope. Inside was a confirmation for my appointment for a 1 hour 'walk on the beach' massage at 8:30 the next morning. What can I say... my husband loves me!

Even London got her own sweet setup. So cute! I about cried when I saw this.

So after ooh-ing and ahh-ing over everything in site, we changed and went down to the fancy restaurant at the resort for a luxurious dinner that I felt completely under dressed for. We lounged on a puffy couch and fed each other like we were on our honeymoon... except for the fact that London was joining us in her stroller next to us.

We got a couple of crazy appetizers, then these were our entree's... I got the black spaghetti (it was one of the only things that I could pronounce that didn't have sea-food-well kinda) it had chicken and the home-made noodles had just a bit of octopus ink to die them black for a better presentation. Crazy! Aren't they beautiful.

Okay, this had to be in the top 10 best mornings of my life... So our first morning we slept in a bit and then I rushed down to be -the recommended- 20 minutes early to my massage. After arriving I wished I had been at least 30 minutes early. It really was so close to heaven there. They took me back and got me a nice locker with a luxurious bathrobe and slipper. After changing, I had to try out ALL of the amenities. So I sat in the dry sauna for a few minutes, then on to the steam room for a few minutes too. While I was in the steam room, a worker came in and asked if she could spray some eucaliptus in the air for me... ahhh. Minty. After that I lounged for just a minute in the womens lounge and if I had more time I would've used some of the cucumber slices on ice to put on my eyes for the full effect. But, unfortunately it was time for my "Walk of the Beach". I went into the main waiting room (the pictures with all greenery and plum colored couches and sipped on berry infused water. My masseuse came in and escorted me to the room for my massage. The reason why it is called the "walk on the Beach" massage is because they use these big smooth, hot, seashells and then at the end they give your feet at scrub that leaves little bits of grit between your toes as if you just walked on the beach. Needless to say... it was absolutely amazing! The best I have ever had. Afterwards I snuch a few pictures before meeting my massuease outside of the door where she was holding a little tray with ice water and fresh strawberries and a hot rag. Ahhh. This has got to be what heaven feels like. Beau was supposed to meet me after the massage and I saw him as I headed back to the dressing room and told him (eyes all glazed) that I was going to be awhile! I went back and sat in the hot tub for awhile while I ate my chilled strawberries and water. Then I took an extra long shower (for those of you who don't know... my shower time is my very favorite part of the day) and used every scented shampoo, conditioner, body wash, shave cream possible. After my shower I had to use all the amenities in the dressing room... lotions, q-tips, brushes, mouthwash, even razors... weigh myself on the fancy scale, and then after a quick search around and realizing I had experienced everything about this amazing place possible, I finally got dressed and floated back up to our room. Aaah. Then, to my surprise again, Beau had ordered room service and we had a wonderful, relaxing breakfast together. Beau said that the massage was my reward for surviving as a single mom for the past few weeks.

After an nice and relaxing morning, we ventured out to the beach. It was absolutley beautiful. It was a beautiful day, but still a bit chilly for swimming, so we went back and changed and went to a nice mexican restaurant in downtown Carlsbad then to Cold Stone for dessert. We got to watch the sun set over the water.

After having such an amazing experiece with the whole massage experiece we knew that it was a once in a life-time chance for us, so Beau got one the next morning. When he came back from his "Sports" massage he was floating and found that I'd ordered room-service, but after studying the menu, I realized that kids menu was less that half the price, so we dined kids-style... Nemo plates and utinsels and everything. And it turned out to be the perfect portions.

Then after waiting out the rain, we finally got to go the the beach again... this time with our Beach Butler. They drove us down to Ponto Beach where he set up chairs, an umbrella, towels and ice water for us and gave us his card to call when we were finished and ready to come home. Man, this is the way to experience the beach! We are so blessed that London is such a great baby. At three months old, she did so great! She mostly just would eat and sleep and smile at us when we played with her. It was still chilly, we were hesitant to take off our swim suit cover-ups, but we eventually just dove in. It was so much fun!

That night we got all dressed up fancy and went to Vigilucci's Steak and Seafood. Super fancy... again, I couldn't pronounce half of the stuff, but I absolutely loved my Risotto and beef tips. Aren't they so beautiful!