August in Review

#1 Graffiti PSA

(sorry for the bad language.)
Don't get me wrong graffiti is ugly &
totally against the law,
but I also think it's kind of cool &
in this case funny & it makes a point.
***
I found this little gem down at the
Vta. point, doubt it's still there, but
you never know...

#2-Camping

As a kid, my parents took us camping @ Refugio
State Beach every summer. We always went with
a dozen families from our ward including Keely's family.
Fast forward 15 years and we're back @ Refugio again,
but this time we're the parents with kids in tow!
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There's only one problem with Refugio- No Surf.
Luckily Kent and Lorne were willing to humor us
(this year). Here are the boys longing for some
decent waves and wishing we'd gone to San Elijo.
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So what did this family of 4 and 1/2 do
to pass the time (without surf)?
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Jack and Kent took a kayak out on the water.
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Jillian decided she loved the sand.
She was happy for hours digging,
building, and rubbing sand all over herself.
Unfortunately, after a while head-to-toe
sand gets uncomfortable (as you
can tell by the look on Jill's face).
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Jack caved into peer pressure and
zinced his nose a smurf shade of blue.
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Here's Refugio's blue nose gang.
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digging in the sand
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making new friends
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The kids attended a Batman birthday party
right in the campsite.
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Apparently this is what you do with a broken pinata.
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search for fallen candy
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bike riding (in a cape)
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And finally goofing off in the tent.

#3-Las Vegas Cousins
Two days after our Refugio trip we repacked our
bags and headed to Las Vegas.
Kent had a business trip and we decided
it would be fun to visit our cousins.
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Our cute Vegas cousins Lydia, Liza, and Lindy

Playing at McDonald's
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For Jack's birthday he was given this
cool pool. Sadly, Ventura was
cold and overcast most the summer,so
Vegas was the first time we opened the box.

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The kids had a blast sliding, jumping,
falling into the various pools



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While we were visiting Aunt Laura made us
her famous cream cheese crust pizza.
It's seriously my favorite homemade pizza.
The kids loved helping make it.


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Jill climbed up on the counter while we weren't
watching and got into the cream cheese-yum!

***
Thanks again guys for hosting all the fun!
We really enjoyed our stay!
We love you a bushel & a peck.

#4-Sprinkler Run

Cool water was just too much temptation on
this August day. The whole play group ended up
in the sprinklers.
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Cadence, Jackson, Kai, Nico, Jillian, Dax, and Randy
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Kai & Nico are two of Jack's favorite people.
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I wasn't thrilled when these two got drenched,
but who can get mad at these faces?

#5-The Mighty Blue Jays
***
This was the first year Jack was
old enough to play soccer.
And like good loving parents,
we completely forgot to sign him up!
Why weren't we thinking?
This boy needs an energy outlet!
So we put him on AYSO's waiting list and
about a week later they called to blackmail us.
***
The actual phone call went a little something like this:
AYSO: "Mr. Howe we might have an opening on a
soccer team for your son Jackson."
Kent: "That's great news; can we sign him up?"
AYSO: "Well Mr. Howe that depends on you.
We need a coach for this team; if you can be that
coach, Jackson can be on this team."
Kent: "{sigh} Sounds like you've got yourselves a coach."
***
And with that Jack had a team & Kent had
a new hobby after work!


Jack & Kent's first soccer practice.
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Doesn't Jack look like he knows what he's doing?
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After the teams first game.
Top Lt. to Rt.- Reed, Marcus,Nicoli, Nathan
Bottom Lt. to Rt.- Jackson, Jacob, Logan
Not Pictured-Bernot

PS-Doesn't our mighty blue jay
look like a road runner?
Just sayin'...

#6-Scootin'

Jack loves to ride his scooter to the park up the street.
In August he mustered up all his courage
to "bomb" the biggest hill at the park.
He was so very proud of himself!

#7-The Ventura County Fair
August equals Fair (or at least it does here
in Ventura. Our fair highlights this year included:


1. Waiting for & riding the school bus to the fairgrounds.
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2. Checking out all the farm animals.


3. Riding "crazy cars".
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Jack was pleased he could ride alone.
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4. Rooting for our favorite Alaskan pig in the races.

Sittin' on hay bails waiting for the races to start.
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The pigs in their race boxes rearing to go.
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charging down the raceway.
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Leaping fences. The pig racing really was
fun to watch. So fun, that Jack still brings it up
months later.

5. And riding the mini Farris Wheel.

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This was the picture we took before
getting on the farris wheel.
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After Kent snapped this photo we went
up the ramp, through the gate, sat down on the
on a bench, and as the operator was trying to
buckle our harness around my big belly;
he looked over at me and asked if
I was pregnant. I smiled and said yes.
That when he got an embarrassed look on
his face and told me that ladies like me weren't allowed
to ride. I just had to laugh because I wasn't
hiding anything @ 30 weeks pregnant!

#8-Jack big puffy hearts Star Wars!

Star Wars + Legos = SUPER BIG SMILE!

July In Review

#1 old friends

Me, Rebecca, and Susanna
Catching up with Rebecca (Spendy).
Rebs I bet I never told yo this, but you
were one of my all time favorite roommates in college and
I'm not just saying that because of all the free math tutoring!
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Me, Tara, Andy, & Kate

Andy's Bachelorette Party

Buena High School Friends
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Sarah, Susanna, & I
Park Day with the kiddos
Friends since beehives
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Liz, Andy, & I
Andy's June wedding
friends since grade school
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This has been a summer of friends.
I've hung out with so many old friends that
I haven't seen in ages. It's been so
nice to catch-up and reconnect.
I've definitely missed these girls.
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insert cheesy friend quote here:
"The better part of one's life consists of his friendships."
- Abraham Lincoln
***
Thanks Ladies for the new memories.
Let's not wait so long before we meet up again.

#2 swim lessons
This year was Jack's first year of swim lessons.
He was in the Level 1 class (Red Cross Certified).
Here we are on the 1st day.

Jack loved classes. He really enjoyed his teacher
Nick, but then again who doesn't like a man in Ray-Bans?

Jack also loved the fact that 2 of his favorite
friends took the class with him-Mason (in the photo above)
and Hannah (the cutie in back of Jack).
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Jack did really well in his classes. He
had no problems doing what Nick asked of him
and showing off his skills.
Jack enjoyed practicing ice cream scoop arms,
swimming to Nick with just his
kicking legs, and learning to float.
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Jill and I took a Mommy and Me class
during Jack's classes. Jill wasn't quite as enthusiastic
of a swimmer as Jack. But that doesn't mean
we didn't have a good time. She loved all the
songs/games and enjoyed the toys she was
supposed to be swimming after.
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Here's Kent enjoying a little Mommy and Me time too.

#3 lip gloss
Jill loves all things girly. So I guess it's only
(2 year old )logical to find her like this...
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Me: "Jilley, don't your lips look pretty!"
Jill: "He he," with shoulders raised
& eyes batting, "tank you Mama."
Me:"You're welcome Jilley. Now can I
please have my lip gloss back?"

June in Review

#1 Andy and Mike's Temple Wedding
Andy is one of my all time favorite friends
from childhood. We spent 1,000s of hours as
kids laughing, playing, shopping, talking about
boys, going to the beach, swimming, riding our
bikes to school, etc. etc. etc.
***
Liz, Andy, and I were such great friends growing up
and was so much fun celebrating all of Andy's
engagement/wedding moments together.
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So imagine my delight when she asked me
to be a bride's maid for her
June 5th wedding.
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Andy and Mike chose to be sealed for
time and all eternity
in the San Diego Temple. Unfortunately,
the San Diego Temple decided to undergo
major renovations during this
Summer's busy wedding season.
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But this didn't dissuade Andy and Mike.
This is were Mike proposed and this is where they
wanted to be sealed.
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I was honored and humbled to be
Andy's Escort for the sealing.
I got to help her into her wedding dress
and hold the wedding rings & wedding license.
I've never been such a big part of someone else's big day
and it was so amazing to share in Andy and Mike's sealing.

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#2 Jack finishes his 1st year of preschool
Here's Jack with his two preschool teachers:
Mrs. Kam & Ms. Lucken
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Jack has officially finished his first year of preschool!
He's graduating from the Butterfly Room and is moving
on to the Rainbow Room next fall.
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Here's the gift I made for Jack's teachers.
I'd be lying if I said I wasn't pleased with how they
turned out. I found these cute Lemonade pitchers
and put lemons, a small bag of sugar, and a
wooden spoon inside. Then I wrapped them with
bright ribbons and made lemon cards with
special notes for each teacher.

#3 Father's Day Ties

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This year for Father's Day, I was given the task
of overseeing the Father's Day gifts for our little
Ventura 2nd Ward Primary. It turned out to be a
bigger task than I originally thought.
I gathered 80 0r so ties and the embellishments, took
pictures of each primary kid, printed and laminated each
photo and set up the project, so that each kid
had a memorable gift to give to Dad.
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The ties turned out amazing and the kids
had a great time personalizing a tie for their Dad.
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Each Dad (and in our case Papa too) was asked to wear
their gifts to church. My favorite part was that Dads
with multiple primary kids were expected to wear
multiple ties to church! Kent and Papa dutifully
wore their ties and the kids beamed with pride.

#4 Picking blueberries
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On June 28th we went to Somis to pick blueberries.
We were enticed by the $1.99 a pound price tag. And
I thought, "What a great experience. &
How hard could picking blueberries be?"
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Well, after a morning of searching, bending, picking,
and "Mom, are you done yets?" I think I'm qualified
to say-It's really hard work! I now have a very
healthy respect/admiration for all migrant field workers.
At the end of the day my fingers were blue, my pants
were dusty, my kids were beyond bored, and I felt
like I'd done my exercise for the day!
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I'm pretty sure that Jack & Jill picked about
50 berries combined and the rest of our
2.38 lbs. was all my doing.
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Thankfully, we went with friends and while
I picked, and picked, and picked, they
were busy running up and down the isles of bushes
with this sweet girl.
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Here we are with holding the "fruits of our labors."

#5 Bubble Wrap, one of life's simple pleasures

I love that my kids are constantly reteaching me that
life is beautiful and simple things can make you happy!

May in Review

May has come and gone,

but our adventures are still fresh on our minds.
Here's a run down of our fun.

#1 Lizard Leashes!Papa showed Jack how to make a "leash"
for backyard lizards. Jack loved petting his new friend.
And FYI, no lizards were harmed at any point of our fun.
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Howe to catch your own lizard:
Simply make a slip knot at the end of a pliable reed,
vine, or in our case a palm frond. Quickly and quietly
slip it over an unsuspecting lizard's head, and when he tries to
run away the slip knot will tighten and you'll be able to walk your
new friend!

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#2 Claw footed baths
The kids have been taking a lot of baths in my Mom's
claw footed tub and I happen to love this picture.
Boom, it's on the blog.
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#3 Vegas Birthday
In honor of my 30th birthday Kent surprised me
with a 3 day getaway to Las Vegas for a little R&R.
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We stayed sans kiddos at the Lexor.
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We stayed on the 37th floor, just 3 floors from the tippy top.
The interior of the Lexor is very open and it was
pretty crazy to look up from the lobby to try to spy our room.
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our cool slanting room
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We spent our days exploring the strip.

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Posing on choppers. enjoying fountains, gazing upon
1000's of M&Ms, avoiding timeshare scams...

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Appreciating gardens, admiring art, and generally
enjoying a lot of free time (what did we do
before we filled every waking
moment with kids?)
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But the real reason we went to Vegas was
to see Phantom of the Opera. I've been
a fan of Phantom since the 6th grade,
I can sing all the songs, own the DVD, but had never
seen the pop opera. It was amazing!
Worth the 15+ year wait.
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Here I am in my new birthday/Phantom
outfit. Love that shirt.
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And while we were painting the town red
the kids stayed with their Vegas cousins.
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Jack and Jill had a blast.
******
...though there was "an incident" with a
princess dress I doubt Jack will ever live down.
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Ringing in 30 years. For my actual birthday I got this
cool wooden calendar (thanks Mack) and the flu!
Good thing we celebrated early...
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#4 Jillian turns 2

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On May 28th Jilley turned 2. She dined on pizza,
picked out her own batch of birthday balloons (her
favorite gift), and blew her candles out over and over
again because she was definitely Queen for the day!
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Jill is a sweet girl with a sassy streak.
We enjoy her impromptu dances and
hugs. She loves all things girl, but also enjoys
playing pirates with Jack and has been known to
hum the Star Wars theme song around the house!
She is definitely a daddy's girl and has
won over all of our hearts! We love you honey!

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#5 Andy's 1st Trip through the Temple
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And finally the last Saturday of the month
I had the privilege to escort my
life long friend Andy through the Temple
for the first time. Here she is with her
now husband Mike. Andy, thank you for allowing
me to be a part of your special day.
I couldn't be happier for the two of you!
***
(More monthly updates to follow.)

stuck in the middle

18 weeks and running out of comfy clothes...

In case you don't have facebook...

We'd like to announce that skinny jeans are overrated,
elastic waistbands rule, two kids aren't loud
enough for us, and we are in fact expecting again!
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(just a little guy @ 16 weeks)
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Baby is happy, healthy, and has
"outdoor plumbing" as the
ultrasound tech pointed out!
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(proof he's a boy)
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Late October (around the 22nd)
Griffin Duke Howe
will turn our "quiet" little family of 4
into a "we can't believe the kids
out number us" party of 5.
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We can't wait!

Happy Mother's Day

my precious jewels

I have literally copied and pasted this poem
from a friend's blog.Please give her all the credit for
its impeccable timing and brilliance.
***
The Girl I Used to Be
Author Unknown
She came tonight as I sat alone,

the girl I used to be,

And she gazed at me with her earnest eyes,

and questioned reproachfully,

Have you forgotten the many plans,

and hopes I had for you?

The great career,

the splendid fame,

all the wonderful things to do?

Where is the mansion of stately height,

with all of its gardens rare?

The silken robes that I dreamed for you,

and the shining jewels in your hair?

And as she spoke,
I was very sad,

for I wanted her pleased with me,

This slender girl from the shadowy past,

the girl I used to be.
So gently rising,

I took her hand and guided her up the stairs,

Where peacefully sleeping,

my babies lay, innocent, sweet and fair,

And I told her that these are my only gems,

and precious they are to me,

That silken robe is my motherhood,

of costly simplicity,

And my mansion of stately height is love,

and the only career I know,

Is serving each day in these sheltered walls,

for the dear ones who come and go,

And as I spoke to my shadowy guest,

she smiled through her tears at me,

And I saw the woman that I am now,

pleased the girl that I used to be!

Happy Spring!

An optimist is the human personification of spring.

-Susan J Bissonette