My 30th Year

I'm looking at the clock, finally acknowledging the fact that I will officially say good-bye to my 20's in roughly 55 minutes. Ask me ten years ago and I would have never thought I'd be excited to turn 30. New adventures, new experiences, a little more grounded. Everyone keeps telling me your 30's are a blast....I'm counting on them being right!! Here we go!!!!

Is it Bedtime Yet?

It's been a while since I've been this tired. After working until 8:30 pm twice this week and having an all day conference in the city, I was wiped out. I'm not kidding when I say I had the kids fed and bathed by 5:30 for the last three nights. Not only that, but I had them both in bed by 8 and I was down for the count no later than 9:30 this whole weekend. Typically, I function somewhat normally on 6 hours, but working more than 40 hours this week was too much to handle!!

With this new schedule as of late, Tim has no idea what is going on. The last few nights I've even showered before 7pm and tonight I asked Tim why he was showering so early. He said, "I don't know. I thought we had to shower before the sun went down." I desperately need to go back to a normal work week where I'm home by 3:30. I'm not cut out for this overtime crap!

I Do Not Heart Fantasy Football

First, the preface. I am most definitely a big Buckeye fan and cheer them on with great pride every single Saturday during football season. Also a fan of Buckeye basketball as well. I don't even mind sporting a little red on Saturdays too. No problem; triple enjoy it.

Why, however, has the NFL and other outlets (cbssportsline, I'm talking to you) decided to throw in Fantasy Football as well? And why does everyone I know out there belong to a league? Tim is involved in a league with his buddies in Ohio, his co-workers here, and God knows who else. And then there's the league at my school that I am not involved with, but yet every single male on campus is. I remember when football was limited to Sundays. And then there was the one Monday night football game. Now, football (whether college or pro) pretty much begins on Thursday and doesn't end until Tuesday. I need to identify the geniuses behind this money-making scheme. It's not about cheering on a team anymore; it's about making sure your kicker gets a certain amount of field goals and making sure your quarterback throws to this receiver for this many yards so that you can earn so many points.

All I know is Sophie and I are sick of football season already....she's boycotted her Buckeye jersey. She tells her Daddy adamantly, "No more football!!" It's no longer about going to Sportscenter to get the highlights on the games. Now it's about earning points for every play, every down, during every quarter. Uggghhhh! Maybe I don't understand the addiction or maybe I just don't care. Maybe I just want to watch a football game to just enjoy a football game? How about that? Whatever the case, I loathe Fantasy Football.

Happy 3rd Birthday!

Today is Sophie's 3rd birthday. I thought it would never arrive since we've been celebrating it all week! This week we took a trip to Superfranks (similar to Chuck E. Cheese), had a birthday party at her school, had another party with family yesterday, and capped off the night with fireworks at the park! Now that today is her actual birthday, I think I'm ready for a nap! It's hard to believe Sophie has been in our lives for 3 years already. She has amazed us on a daily basis with her developing personality. She is shy at first around others, but in a matter of moments, she opens up and is the life of the party. She has flourished at pre-school and is learning to make wonderful connections with others. Her relationship with her brother so far is breathtaking to watch. She is kind, caring, and thoughtful. She may be timid at trying new things at first, but after one try, she is hooked and gets more and more fearless. In three years, she has taught Tim and I so much as parents. She is my sun on rainy days, she is my spark on tired days, she is my comfort on tough days. I'm praying for yet another blessed and adventurous year with my little Sophie!

Happy Birthday Sophie!!! This is her first of two outfits she decided to wear at her party!

Her princess cake fit for a princess.

Showing off one of her many gifts!

Life-size Dora. I think Dora must make an appearance at every toddler party!

Mama and Papa made it out for the big event!

Sophie's Birthday Party

Sophie celebrated her birthday at school yesterday (her actual birthday is not until Sunday, the 16th). They do so many special things for the children on their birthday and I was glad I could be there to capture some of it!! She absolutely loved being in the spotlight and even wore her tiara to school (I was totally unaware until I showed up to her classroom). The teachers thought it was the cutest thing and I just kept thinking, "My goodness, this is so my child."

Sophie had a Winnie the Pooh cookie cake for snack. Here's some of the kiddies enjoying the sugar!

Here's Sophie with one of her new friends, Catherine. The kids in the class are so darn cute; I swear, I could have taken all of them home!!

What's Happened to My Ohio Boy???

I am thinking the weather in California has spoiled Tim to the point of no return. Today, Tim and I were talking on the phone while we were at work and he mentioned how he had some work to do in the backyard. I had a few errands to run after school and he asked me to hurry home so he could go outside and work. I kinda wondered why he couldn't just take Sophie and Noah outside with him while he worked since that is what he usually does if I'm not home yet or if I'm cooking dinner. And then he responded, "It's really cold out there today. I don't think Sophie and Noah should be out in this weather." Huh? Is there a hurricane outside and I just didn't notice? Maybe there's a lightning storm? Who knows, but apparently I missed the memo or newscast that advised everyone to stay indoors. Tim proceeds to tell me the temperature outside hasn't reached higher than 62 degrees and says it is really COLD outside. Granted, we dealt with high 90s heat last week so I could see how 60 degrees could seem relatively cold, but to shelter the children over it?

What happens if we ever move to a place where we have to experience an actual winter? At this rate, I think we might be hibernating as a family if the temperature drops below 60!

Twin Peaks

After taking the kids to the park, we went for a drive around the city to kill some time. We ended up going to Twin Peaks and getting a couple of great pictures of the city. As usual, it was pretty foggy and chilly, but we enjoyed the brisk weather because it actually started to feel like fall!

These pictures really do not do it justice. It was an amazing view from the top of the world. You could see the city and whole bay from one angle and the bridge and ocean from another.

Visit to Koret's

This weekend, we decided to take Sophie and Noah to a new park in the city, Koret Children's Quarter. We heard it was this amazing multi-million dollar remodeled playground at Golden Gate Park. We had a great time and will definitely have to go back again.

Here's Tim and Sophie going down a long, steep slide. Sophie loved it and wanted to go down by herself. Her overprotective mommy made Tim go down with her! My favorite part of the picture is definitely the little boy with long dreads behind them. You know you're in SF!!!

Peek-a-boo!!!

A giant spider web that even adults were trying their hand at. If you look closely, Sophie is dangling from the top. If you look even closer, you'll notice how gullible you are. I was afraid to send her down a steep slide, do you think I'd let her climb that thing like a trapeze artist? Thank goodness the contraption didn't even interest her.

Noah had a great time as well! Sophie was great with him and even a little overprotective!

Here's Noah absolutely loving the swing. He couldn't get enough of it.

Off to A Bad Start

Sophie, so far, has absolutely loved pre-school. She is always excited to go in the morning and she has spent many hours sharing everything she has learned. It's a fun and exciting time in our household.....except for the fact that I can't get my head together! You would think someone who works in a school would understand deadlines, stay informed of my child's progress, and actually look through her little backpack regularly. She's been to school 3 times so far and I've missed the mark, oh, twice already. First, I did not fill out the emergency plan form. Great, now every kid that has a plan is saved but my daughter who has a flake for a mom must fend for herself in an emergency. Second, I ordered Sophie a sweatshirt and shirt from the school (ya know, so she can be proud and show a little school spirit!) and I missed the deadline to pay. So, now I must make the pitiful call to the school and ask if I can drop off a check tomorrow morning. I don't even have an excuse, unless flakiness is an acceptable explanation. Thankfully, they forgive me, but I guarantee I've already been labeled (I know it's a church and they are probably more forgiving, but I won't hold my breath).

Anyway, I am totally going to be on the ball now! Just give me some time to figure all of this out and I will get it together! This morning, I was so late to work because of Sophie and Noah (and hitting the snooze button two too many times) I literally had to look down at my outfit as I was walking into my office to make sure I had my shirt on correctly, matching shoes on, no spit-up on me, etc. That was my "wow" moment of the day when I realized I need to get back on track!!!

Weekend in Reno

We went to Reno for the long weekend and had a great time. My best friend, Jen, was in town from St. Louis and finally had the chance to meet her godson. He instantly attached to her as you can tell in this picture! Jen is doing fantastic. She may be moving out west for a fellowship opportunity in Sacramento. I can't believe she's almost done with her residency and I haven't had a chance to visit her in St. Louis! Anyway, we are incredibly proud of her and were so happy to spend time with her this weekend.
Here's a picture of Auntie Michelle with Noah and Sophie. Noah is becoming quite the ham when the camera is on him. I no longer have to tell him to smile....he knows exactly what to do when he sees a big lens aiming right at him! Noah and Sophie were very happy to spend the day at Auntie Michelle's pool. They soaked up the 100 degree weather! On our way home, we decided to take a detour through Tahoe and had an incredible time. We spent some time at the beach and Sophie went chest deep in the frigid water!!! All in all, it was a fun and relaxing weekend.