Speed Racer

Noah decided his Radio Flyer scooter was way too slow. He couldn't stand the fact that he couldn't speed down the sidewalk on it. So, he has moved on to the Razor about two years too early. The kid has a serious need for speed. 

Still figuring out his balance, but I'm certain he'll be flying by us in no time!

Noah's First Day of Preschool!!

It's been a busy week in the Youngberg family. I had my first day of school on Monday, followed by Sophie's on Wednesday, and now Noah's today! Add that to Tim's playoffs, Sophie's Back-to-School night, and two weddings in the next two days and we are exhausted with a capital E! But, today was Noah's day and he could not contain his excitement. You could see it in his eyes, in the extra hop in his step, and the permanent smile he had on his face. Emotions hit me hard this time when I left the classroom. Between the fact that he's my baby and the fact that I am physically spent, I had a nice cry on the way in to work this morning. Everything was all well when I picked him up and shared in his excitement as he told me all about his day. I treated him to a Happy Meal for lunch and we shared how exciting all the new experiences of preschool will be! We are so proud of you Noah! We love you!

All ready to go! Cars backpack and a nice big smile!

Sophie being the supportive sister!

Look at my name tag! I'm a big boy!

One proud Mommy

Daddy and his mini-me

1st Grade!

Sophie had her first day of 1st grade today! She was a little nervous in the morning and was not so sure about being in a new class with a new teacher and lots of new kids. She even saw her friends on the playground when we got there and they ran up to her and asked her to put her bag down and come play. She politely declined and then tried to disappear behind me. We had a good talk about her nerves and butterflies, and I let her know it was okay to feel that way. She was trying so hard to be a brave little girl and kept telling me that she was fine and that we could go on our way. It was probably the longest ten minutes of my life as we were waiting for the bell to ring so she could get started with her day! The anxiety was spilling over onto Tim as he kept whispering to me, "What's going on? Is everything okay? Is there something I need to know?" I'm certain he asked about 20 more questions, but I pretty much zoned him out by then. Finally, the bell rang and Sophie's teacher came out to greet her new class. Ms. Crawford had a huge smile on her face and I knew instantly Sophie would soak in her warmth. She lined up, marched inside, took her seat and was ready to start her day.

I was fully prepared to cry like a baby and be overwhelmed with sadness. But, the moment I sensed Sophie's worry and apprehension, I quickly remembered it wasn't about me. We try so hard to make these moments perfect and do everything we can to minimize hurt, sadness, and fear in our kids. We assume it's okay that we take it on for them and try to make the fear about us. Today, my fears went out the window and my sadness about letting go and watching my baby enter first grade disappeared instantly. I took in the precious moments with my daughter and realized that these experiences are hers. Not mine. Not Daddy's. But Sophie's. And today, she needed my reassurance and hugs, and understanding and compassion. She needed to work through her fear and deal in her own way. She needed to express worry and take her time before jumping in. And she did. She did it all and owned it all. And I couldn't be prouder.

The end of the school day arrived and Sophie shared with us that she had the BEST day. She said her butterflies went away really fast. She had so much fun, made a new friend named Andrea who she ate lunch with and played with at recess. She fell in love with her teacher and can't wait to do it all again tomorrow. I'm keeping the faith that 1st grade will be a year to remember.

Sophie and Noah

Here is her confident sassy pose, before the butterflies arrived.

Outside her classroom! 

Daddy and the crew

Whew! One of her friends, Lauren, is in the class too. Butterflies are easing up on her!

Here she goes....the first day of 1st grade! Congratulations, Sophie!

Oops

I know all of you have been worried about my whereabouts since it's been awhile since I've blogged. HA! Don't worry, I don't care what you've been doing either. Anyway, in the little time I haven't blogged, I've managed to forget to document two very important days:

August 17th: Our 8th anniversary! Wow, can't believe it's been that long. Tim and I have been together for almost 15 years. How is that possible when I feel like I'm only 24 years old? Well, maybe my body doesn't feel that way, but if you checked my DVR and iPod, you would probably guess I wasn't a day over 17. Whatever...I digress. Happy Anniversary Tim! Being with you, creating a family with you, navigating this life with you.....I couldn't ask for a better partner in crime. I love you.

August 18th: Sierra's birthday! She was born the day after we married and she was our first real responsibility as a married couple. Sierra celebrated her big day by running all around Daddy's new golf course. Needless to say, she loved it and is so excited to get to know all the new people at Mira Vista!

 Here she is on her first day of work the other day! She didn't care much for the view, but she loved everything else about the new place!

Happy Birthday Grammy!

We hope you have a wonderful day! Make sure to do something very special for yourself today! We love you and can't wait to see you soon!

Weekend Getaway

We enjoyed a fun weekend in Reno/Tahoe the past few days. We were able to get in some beach time, see a ton of classic cars for Hot August Nights, and soaked in the last couple of days before I had to head back to work. All in all, it was a fabulous time! I wish I took more pictures, but I was only able to capture our beach day to Tahoe....oh well, you can't complain about pictures of Tahoe!

Sophie easing her way into the ice cold lake!

Sophie and Noah had a ton of fun burying Daddy in the sand!

Noah getting ready to dive in.....or not.

Noah decided it was much more fun to just chill on the shore with Mommy.

Fastest. Summer. Ever.

I can't believe my summer break is over. I am so not prepared for a regular work week and I feel like I've done absolutely nothing to prepare for this back-to-school event. Scratch that, I definitely haven't done anything to prepare! I have, although, fretted over the fact that my daughter will be entering the 1st grade and going to school for an ENTIRE day.....lunch and all! And the fact that my little Noah will be starting pre-school this fall (which is another issue that will throw me into therapy). I'm taking a lot of deep breaths and focusing on all the joy these new experiences will bring. After all, it isn't supposed to be about me....right?

I think this summer has been a great one for all of us. Fun trips, Disneyland, lots of pool time, and Tim's new career adventure.....I'm feeling very thankful and lucky to be able to tuck away another summer's worth of wonderful memories. Now, even though I have not fully prepared for going back to work...I will admit I am feeling rejuvenated and refreshed. Here goes nothing.....let's do this!

Happy Birthday Goppie!

We hope you have a great day today! Sophie and Noah are going to have some ice cream tonight to help you celebrate! We love you!

A New Chapter

We are so proud of Tim and his new job opportunity. He accepted an offer from Mira Vista Golf and Country Club, a private course that has been around since 1920 and is located in the Berkeley hills. The best part about this place are the views they have to offer; you truly feel like you're on top of the world with scenes all across the bay. From the Golden Gate Bridge and beyond, you can see it all from his course. I can't wait to get my camera out there and take some photos! Congratulations Tim! We love you!

 Copyright © miravista

Here is a taste of the type of view from one of the holes....absolutely beautiful and this picture doesn't even do it justice.

 Copyright © miravista

I just might have a shot at keeping the ball in the fairway....we will have to see!

On your mark....get set....GO!

Remember when you would look at a big grassy hill and think about how fun it would be to roll down it? And then you actually did it and it kinda hurt and you got up feeling dizzy? And then you started to feel itchy too? Maybe it was just me. Nonetheless, Sophie and Noah seemed to not have the same side effects I did....here they are doing what they do best on Daddy's golf course...running around like crazy, and in this case, racing down the hillsides!

Post-Vacation Blues

I am good at going on vacation. I'm not good at being on vacation and staying home. I like to go places, experience new things, get the heck out of town....you get the picture. When I plan, I like to plan way ahead. I enjoy making packing lists and I'm notorious for visiting the $1 travel toiletry aisle in Target and purchasing way too many items that I know I don't need. When we have reached our destination, I try to enjoy each and every moment and not worry about having to pack up again to leave. I'm rarely that person that says, "Okay, it's been great but I'm ready to go home and get back to a routine." Nope, I'm typically the person that cries and tries to figure out how we can possibly extend our trip. I drag my feet and pout. I let out big sighs and annoy people around me.

I wish I could say it ends there, but for me, it can last weeks after a vacation. I'll look at the time and say to myself, "This time last week we were enjoying dinner outside / at the beach / watching a parade, etc." And then I start to feel sad and immediately start planning our next trip, even if it's an entire year away. Some of my favorite memories from childhood were the many vacations we took as a family. This year, we initially kept our trip to Disneyland a secret from the kids. We tricked ourselves and said we wanted to surprise them. But, I soon realized it wasn't really about surprising them (although I love to do that too). Deep down, I didn't want to deal with them nagging me and asking me millions of questions about the trip, "When do we leave again?" "How long will we be there?" "Does the hotel have a pool?" "Can we leave NOW?"

I recalled my childhood and remembered the excitement in just being able to look forward to a trip. I remember daydreaming about all the fun things we would get to do. I remember making lists at a very young age of the items I needed to bring with me. I remember staying up with my sister talking about our upcoming vacation. And I realized I didn't want to rob my children of having those same feelings of excitement and anticipation. So, we shared with them. And they jumped up and down, and had tons of questions, and couldn't contain their excitement when we talked about it.

I love the memories we create with each trip we take and I hope their memories of our journeys will be as treasured as mine are. It makes the post-vacation blues and exhaustion sooooo worth it.