I'm Not Dead... My Laptop Is

*Warning: This post is not meant for younger audiences. It contains lots of text and NO pictures. I'll try to make it vaguely interesting for those of you willing to brave a pictureless post.*

Did you know that veteran bloggers tell newbies that you should always leave your readers wanting a little more? That way they come back to visit your blog. Something tells me they didn’t mean to write regular posts for a year and then stop for an entire month. Just an educated guess.

Well, if it helps, I’m not dead. But my laptop *almost* is. So I’ve been babying it along, hoping to keep it functional until we get it fixed. The part arrived today (collective cheer) so I hope to be back to our regular programming soon.

In the meantime, I’ll update you on the last month. I was going to wait until the laptop was fully up and running, but as I called to wish my dad a happy birthday (Happy Birthday Dad!) even he asked what was up with no posts for a month… I get the distinct feeling Sunshine SAHM fans aren’t feeling very sunny.

So, here’s a quick recap – no pictures (they take lots of time and the computer is screeching at me even now).

Four weeks ago…

We were vomiting.

Well, Mark was vomiting. But the rest of us soon followed suit. Robert had to stay home from work to help me, and then he got to stay home so I could help him. The kids did pretty well – especially since the television ran about four times as much as it usually did. Deprogramming them was almost as much fun as having the flu.

 Three weeks ago…

We went to visit Papa and DeeDee, played in the dirt, and made plans for a “purple” birthday party for one cutie pie about to turn three. Everything about the birthday was “purple”. For some reason, “purple cake” was the order of the day, and she must have requested it at least three times a day. She saw some of her presents in the closet, and would say “Gracie’s toys? Gracie’s toys?” Somehow I managed to keep them from being played with until the big day, despite how adorable she was when asking for confirmation that they were indeed for her.

At some point, Mark decided to start in on his terrible two’s… just like his sister, he’s got an early start at eighteen months. Apparently my kids are as impatient as their mother. Mercifully, he has just begun to test the waters. He hasn’t had any full blown tantrums, but the signs are all there. Sigh. This too shall pass. (Right? RIGHT???)

 Two weeks ago…

Daddy was on vacation! We started with a visit from the cousins. We did lots of fun things, including going to a nearby park with a water feature. Mark was timid at first, but once he realized he could run through the water he loved it. Grace was still pretty cautious, even though her cousins were clearly enjoying it. After about ten minutes in the water she headed for the playground. She played there until we decided to pack it in then suddenly decided she really wanted to play in the water again. Surprise. We finished the night with ice cream cones. Mark was so exhausted he couldn’t even finish his. Everyone slept well that night! *grin*

Both of the kids are very verbal now. Of course, Mark isn’t nearly as good at communicating, but he is further along than Grace was at his age. He says things like “bye bye” when he sees a set of keys and “down” when he wants you to pick him up. So, when he pointed at our key holder and said “Bye bye down!” I knew he wanted me to pick him up so he could reach the keys. (Which he promptly took to the back door and tried to “unlock”.)

Yeah, I speak toddler. I’m smart like that.

Grace loves to say “Look at me mama!” as she climbs onto the swing set crossbars or jumps from the top of the toy chest. Lately, she’s been very vocal about wanting to “go bye bye” in “daddy’s big truck”. I tell her we are going in my car, and she screws her face into a disapproving look. She still heads for the back door though.

This week we were playing in the back yard and she ran up to me excitedly saying "Look mama, look!" She grabbed my hand and ran over to the side yard, me in tow. When we stopped, she pointed to the sky and said "Clouds!" 

I love that little girl.

She also loves to point out spiders. There are a number of them that hang out by the back sliding door. She will gaze at them (protected by the glass) and talk about the “ciders”, count them, and generally be fascinated. I’ve tried very hard not to pass on my fear of all things crawly. This week we saw a cricket. While she was very happy to talk about the cricket, she said “I’m scared!” when I tried to bring her close enough for a good look. Maybe some things are just genetic.

The cousins went home on Saturday, but our week had just begun. We went to the zoo, the children’s museum, the playground, on walks, and visited friends. It was an exciting week! All the new experiences resulted in random requests later. As we got in the car to head home from the store, Grace said “I want to go see the animals.” After deciphering the message (it’s much harder to speak toddler when the request is completely out of context from your activity) I told her we couldn’t. Later, she wanted to “playground”. At some point, I made the mistake of telling her we needed to take her to the beach someday. Since then, she has asked at least three times if we could go to the beach. Have I mentioned she’s never been?

Hopefully some zoo and museum pictures will make their way to Sunshine SAHM soon…

On Saturday we had a family birthday party for Grace. She loves all the people and having lots of kids over to play. She was much better at opening gifts this time. Last year, she was a bit miffed that we had her open a gift and then wouldn’t let her play with it. This year, the moment she finished opening one she would look at the table and ask for another gift.

Christmas should be really fun this year.

This week we’ve been attempting to get back to normal and slide into a routine again. Grace found her potty training chair in the garage when daddy was cleaning up from the party. She brought it into the bathroom… and Mark has fallen in love with it. He can play “poo poo” all he wants – this mama’s not ready to try at eighteen months again! Maybe I’ll get up the gumption when his second birthday rolls around.

I might have some new motivation for the potty training however. Grace and Mark lead busy lives, but Daddy and Mommy have lives too. (Sort of.) We’ve been house hunting. Some days I’m so excited I can hardly wait to decorate the kids rooms, get our family pictures onto the walls, and generally be able to make some permanent changes.

Other days, my children vomit on (someone else’s) carpet, slam the door into (someone else’s) drywall, show an interest in potty training (in someone else’s house), and smear the contents of their diaper on (someone else’s) wall… and I begin to wonder if we should wait a little longer before buying.

They say no news is good news. For us, this has been true (with the exception of my poor little laptop being on the fritz). I hope to be bringing you my parenting words of wisdom on a routine basis again soon. Of course, I’ve never imparted any wisdom prior to this, so don’t hold your breath. But keep checking back! (Or, enter your e-mail address into the box on the upper right sidebar. Your address will never be shared, and you get a nifty little e-mail with a preview of my newest posts along with a link to the blog. Easy peasy… and no more constant checking for a new post!)

Another Week Gone...

I've been ignoring my digital life lately. Well, not really ignoring it. I respond to e-mail, comment on Facebook posts, and generally keep in touch with anyone willing to send out an electronic shout. When it comes to ME sending out the electronic love... I've just not been into it. On the upside, my house is getting organized (not CLEAN really, but organized) which is always a good thing.

Robert and I recently started attending a Bible Study group once a week, and we're loving it. I also volunteer one night a week with a community organization, which has helped me stay in touch with the non-mom side of me. I'm loving where we're headed as a family right now, and feel like I'm finally able to do some of the things I dreamt about when I imagined being a SAHM. Of course, I'm also doing things I never would have imagined - but I'm enjoying those things too.

Here is one of those things. Grace loves helping me wash dishes. I swear I only left the room for a minute to check on Mark... and this is what I came back to:

She had been fully clothed moments before.
(The "Good & Clean" washtub keeps it G rated.)

I finally waded through our camping pictures. We had so much fun! We arrived at camp just a few minutes after my sister's family. We set up the tent and camper, and then... it rained. And rained. And rained! The first afternoon was spent in close quarters, but the next day was beautiful, and we really enjoyed ourselves. Here are the highlights:

Step One: Corral the infant. Yes, that's dead brown grass
in the background. California is a desert you know...

Step Two: Allow the younger children to get out their
energy after a long trip by, uh, playing with a fly swatter?

Step Three: Get Dirty. My kids are experts at this part.

Step Four: Find a comfy place to sit and share a snack.

 All of the above pictures were from day one. Even though it rained, we still had plenty of fun.

There was a ton of wildlife - that wasn't so wild - that would wander into camp. We saw lots of deer, quail, rabbits and other fun animals. The kids loved it.

"Look Gracie! A deer!"
The kids were always thrilled when deer wandered into camp.

Grace was determined to pet a deer, and she came very
close to them a number of times!

 The highlight of the trip was the lake. It ended up being a beautiful overcast day, making for pleasant weather and great water temps. We swam, played, and had a nice picnic lunch together.

We're at the lake, so naturally...
my kids play in the dirt.

"What? You thought we'd get in the water??"

Grace did, in fact, get in the water. Even when her lips
began to turn blue, she insisted she didn't want to get out!

Mark doing his best Humphrey Bogart at lunch.

My precious tired boy in Papa's lap. So sweet!

 After the lake, we headed back to camp and made FIRE. (I'm convinced this is the sole reason my husband loves camping - because he can "make fire".) We roasted hot dogs for dinner and enjoyed a classic:

S'more's!!

 We had a wonderful time with family and can't wait to do it all again next year - even if there's rain in the forecast!

"The Girls"
Gracie loves her cousins!

After all this, we also got together with family on the 4th of July, and stayed up late (very late) to watch the fireworks. I thought they might get scared, but Grace and Mark both loved it. Our city puts on a pretty good fireworks show, so this may become a family tradition.

"Look Grace! Pretend the fireworks have started so
mommy can take a picture!"
"Dad? I don't get it."

This week we finally got back into the routine of things, for which I am grateful. When the kids get thrown off schedule, chaos ensues. Of course, the kids are learning and doing new things all the time. Grace's newest thing is saying "What?" in order to get a repeat response from her listener. She thinks it's great fun. I can't wait until she learns... "Why?"

Mark is doing something new too - watching t.v.!!! He's not as mesmerized as Grace was when she first was introduced, but he will now sit for quite some time and watch alongside his sister. I try to limit the television time in the house, but I must confess I'm a bit excited at having a tool to keep both kids occupied (and not fighting) for a short time.

While there are always new things to share, some things never change:

We played in the backyard, and the kids ended up
making mud pies. Again.

"Is there a prize for the dirtiest kid?"

"Yeah! The top two get their very own
bath! Let's try to win!"

Whew! You're all up to date with the Sunshine family. There's a lot of fun going on around here. I hope you're having lots of fun this summer, spending time with family and finding time to do something that is uniquely for you. Until next week...

Yay! You made it to the end!!!

Another Week Gone...

Whoever said "It never rains in California" obviously lives too close to the Southern border.

This is my front porch! Notice the water
has invaded right up to the doorway?!?

Luckily, here at Sunshine SAHM we had a wonderful week! We got to visit friends, we found new ways to entertain ourselves, and... Mark walked!

Yep, he finally decided to take a few steps on Saturday. He was supporting himself with one hand on a box and I guess he really wanted to go see Daddy because he just let go of the box, took a step, and fell down. It was great! I was so glad that Daddy was home, because I was afraid he would do this very thing - decide to take his first steps with no prompting from us at all - and Daddy would be at work.

Unfortunately, mommy missed the very first step - but I saw the next three! Then Mark decided he'd had enough and was done for the night. Since then, he's taken quite a few more steps. I wouldn't say he's "walking" just yet, but he certainly will be soon. Yay for the little man! (No, I have no pictures. I promise to get some when he's a little better at the whole upright movement thing.)

Grace frequently gets bored with the half million toys we've managed to collect around the house. Unfortunately, some of the toys more appropriate for her age are completely inappropriate for Mark. They often fight over the Leap Pad - Grace likes to put the cartridges in and Mark likes to take them out and eat them. We have crafts, but the pieces are too small to risk assembling if Mark is around. Lately the "fun" toys have only come out when Mark goes down for a nap early. But this week... I remembered the play pen.

It's not for Mark. It's for Grace.



Pssst.... Mom, don't tell my friends I
play in a playpen okay?

I threw some rice and red beans into a bin, got some spoons, an egg carton, and some colanders and Grace had a blast! Putting her in the play pen kept the mess contained and kept Mark safe. Grace must have played in there for more than an hour. Fun, fun, fun!



Two kids, both safe, both playing. No one crying,
no one stealing toys, no worries. Happy, happy mamma.

Mark had fun too. He practiced climbing up onto the window seat to watch the world go by:

Hi everybody! This is my new favorite spot!

He also worked on his culinary skills:



I know I'm really good at this, but it
feels like something is missing...

Mommy and Mark stayed home to work on cleaning up the kitchen while Daddy and Grace went on their first "date" Wednesday night. Since it was raining, they went to a nearby mall and played at the indoor playground and shared a chocolate milkshake. When Grace got home, she ran into the house with a huge smile on her face and said "Hi Mommy!". Okay, not exactly earth shattering, but trust me - if you'd seen the look on her face, you'd know what a success date night had been. (The sugar rush from the chocolate milkshake probaby helped her enthusiasm a bit too.) Daddy also showed Grace how to play Angry Birds. Another addict in the making!


Oh no! Those birds sure are angry!
Is that why they always explode at the end?

I hope your week was sunny, even if the weather wasn't cooperating. Daddy's mom and dad flew to Southern California yesterday to meet Baby Aunny, and will come to visit us after a short stay down south. We're looking forward to spending time with them and visiting some new places. Stay tuned...

Another Week Gone...

This week was certainly eventful, as we had Gracie's birthday and a camping trip. If I were to include every fabulously cute picture of my children (and really, aren't they all?) then you would have to schedule your meals around reading the blog because we took (are you ready for this...?) four hundred and seventy pictures.

Yep. The beauty of digital cameras.

The non-beauty is that I have to go through each one of them at some point and save, label, crop, or send them to the round file. But not today. Today I will share with you the highlights of the two events, and maybe at some point in the future post more pictures and pass on the wisdom I learned while camping with a two year old and five month old.

Happy Birthday Two You

Gracie helped make her birthday cupcakes.
Can we eat it now mom?

Of course, they had to be Elmo!

News of her love for Elmo has reached it target audience,
as she was given a lot of Elmo gifts!

She loved having "Happy Birthday" sung to her!

She was fascinated by the candle, and did a
very good job of blowing it out all by herself!

She got a "Hokey Pokey Elmo" and loved it.
She cried when we took it away to give her
another gift to open!

She has gotten much better at opening gifts, although
she quickly got bored of opening and wanted to
play with the ones she'd already gotten!

Gracie had a great birthday party, and loved being the center of attention. I don't think she quite understood what it was all about, but after a week of asking if it was her birthday, we finally got her to say yes. Success!
 
Next Stop...
 

Wow! This outdoors thing is fun!
When can I get down and play in the dirt?

Cousin John pulling Gracie around the lake.

Daddy and Gracie roasted hot dogs for dinner.

Too much fun! Gracie fell asleep on the way back to camp.

Mommy and Gracie playing in the beach sand.
(Yes, mommy is wearing jeans and a sweatshirt,
and Gracie is in shorts and a t-shirt... hmmm.)

Mark showing off daddy's hat.
Mark is so cute, Daddy might not get it back...

What a fun week! All of us are tired out.
Say "Good Night Gracie"...

  Be sure to take your little ones on an outdoor outing, whether it's the park, the pool, or the campground. The weather is already changing, and soon we'll be looking for indoor activities to keep little hands busy!

Bringing You SASS

Apparently Gracie's second birthday wasn't enough excitement for one week, because my husband and I, in all our wisdom, decided this would also be a great time to go camping for a few days.  I've been "unplugged" for the better part of the last three days, and while there is plenty to tell about the party and our camping experiences, I'm pooped. So, today I present my first "SASS" post.

SASS stands for 'Short And Simple, Sunshine'.  It should probably stand for Short and Snarky, or Short and Sneering, or Short and... well, you get the picture. Something tells me if I have to keep a post short, there's a good chance it will be a tad sarcastic. But not always. Hopefully.

Where was I? Oh yes, SASS. Since I've already massacred the Short part, I might as well ruin the Sweet part too. Here is just a little sampling of our camping trip this week:

See the little booger there on the lower right? Yes, we had a squirrel who was determined to get our food. He was quite bold too, as you can see. I wasn't rushing toward him as Robert snapped this picture. In fact, I had shooed him away twice before Robert even got the camera on and ready. As if keeping this little thief out of our hair wasn't enough trouble, as we walked to the lake that afternoon we saw this posted:

The bottom of this notice reads: "If you develop fever, chills, headache, muscle aches, or swollen and tender lymph nodes within seven days of your visit to this area, please inform your doctor that you have been in an area where rodents have plague."

Uh-huh. The camping trip was great. I'll be sure to fill you in with more later. Unless, of course, I get the plague.

Home Sweet Home

The Grand Sierra Resort is familiar to Robert and I, as we have stayed there before. Only then it was known by the quaint name 'Reno Hilton'. Now it has some updated rooms (which we didn't stay in) and abbreviates its name as GSR... which makes me think "Gun Shot Residue" thanks to my husband's addiction to CSI: Las Vegas. But this was Reno, so we're OK. I didn't see any dead bodies. But there were dogs. Lots of dogs.

Apparently GSR is a very dog friendly hotel. Gracie was delighted to see all kinds of "woof-woofs" in the lobby, elevator, hallways and out near the pool. I only got one blurry shot of this phenomenon inside the hotel, even though at various times we shared an elevator with a labrador, corgie, and others throughout the weekend.

Most of our weekend was spent just relaxing and catching up with our friend Eddie. We did find out that the hotel not only offered roll away beds, but also toddler beds and cribs! We got a crib for Gracie, and it worked out great. What did not work out great was having all four of us in one room for the entire night.

Mark is not always a quiet sleeper. And Grace is not always a solid sleeper. Combine these two elements and you end up with an infant crying in the dark at 2 am, and a toddler crying in the light at 2:30 am. Ugh.

Obviously, Robert and I did not sleep well, and I ended up holding Mark a good portion of the night so that everyone else could get some sleep. The next morning we had breakfast and packed it in to leave for home. I was exhausted, but thankful I wouldn't have to drive.

Before we said goodbye, we took some pictures with Eddie:

Nice picture, except the man next to me is not my husband.
And those are not his children.

A better picture, except the man on the left is my husband, and the man next to him is not his wife.
We didn't think to ask Eddie to take a picture of our family... I don't know why.

Gracie had fun playing on the giant horse statue at the front of the hotel:

Um, you're not supposed to pick other noses either sweetie.
Guess we'll have to work on that one.

Finally, it was time to head home. I don't know about you, but at the end of any vacation, when it's time to go home I just want to be home. Poof. No driving, flying, or other delays - just get me to my own bed. I was completely exhausted, having had only about an hour of sleep the night before, and was combatting both a headache and stomachache (probably stemming from the fact we'd only had restaurant food since Saturday morning).

Thankfully, Gracie made it through the mountains just fine on the way home. Unfortunately, Mark did not. He didn't get car sick, but he decided to start screaming at the top of his lungs on the way down the mountain. We can only guess that his ears were bothering him.

Gracie was not impressed.

Once we were back on the valley floor, not only did Mark continue to scream, but as lunchtime approached we found ourselves on the road with the nine million other Californians that live here. Welcome to an hour delay with a screaming infant - just what every parent hopes for:

Ironically, Eddie and I had been talking about something similar just that morning. We were talking about having sleep deprivation, being stuck in a small space, not having enough to eat, and the sounds of a loud, screaming infant in the background.

Only he was talking about torture techniques used on prisoners.

Once we got through traffic we stopped so I could feed Mark, and daddy could take Gracie to the potty (of course). Mark still cried for another 20 minutes until finally, he fell asleep. When we got back home, we made sure to tell everyone how much fun it was, and even that we were considering going back next year.

Without the kids.

Reno was a Gamble

"Bump" was putting it mildly... traveling
with two kids should come with it's own hazard sign!

Two months ago, my husband says to me, "How would you like to go to Reno?"
I looked at my two month old son, who had finally stopped screaming to be fed and was now nursing contentedly. I quickly responded, "Sure. Sounds fun."

Famous last words.

For some reason, when Robert first suggested this, I imagined it would only be the two of us headed to Reno for the weekend. Why I thought I could leave a breastfeeding four month old behind was beyond me. Obviously sleep deprivation was still in full force.

Upon further investigation, I found out that my husband's best friend, Eddie, was going to be at a conference in Reno. Eddie moved to Colorado about four years ago; since Reno is only a few hours away, it seemed like a great idea to meet him there. It was also during this conversation I realized both Crumb Crunchers would be coming with us.

You know what? It still sounded like fun.

As the weekend approached, Rob and I planned very carefully what we would bring and how we would cram it all into the back of the SUV. As is typical, we were allotted half of a small suitcase. The other half of the suitcase and 47 cubic feet of SUV were allotted for the children. We debated on whether or not we would need to rent a U-haul trailer for the two day trip. (Kidding! Sort of...)

Come to find out, we have better packing skills than we thought. We even managed to fit the double stroller inside the vehicle. The car was packed and ready to roll on Friday night, with the exception of all those last minute items you don't want to pack until just before you leave. You know, toothbrushes. Pillows. The kids.

I haven't woken up to an alarm since Mark was born. Certainly this was a momentous occasion, to have the alarm blaring at 4 am. Robert and I were almost giddy with excitement. We haven't been on a road trip since last October, when we went to Monterey for my birthday.

(You know, the one where we were asleep in the hotel room by nine p.m. because I was pregnant and exhausted? Remember? It was the time Robert ended up getting food poisoning from the seafood on the pier... You still don't recall? Oh. Right. I wasn't blogging yet. Trust me. Our last road trip was GREAT.)

Our plan was to be on the road by five. Thirty minutes to shower and do last minute packing, thirty minutes to nurse the baby, and then... we'd be on our way! We hoped to arrive in Reno around nine, just in time for a nice breakfast with Eddie.

We left at six. We arrived in Reno four and a half hours later. I was starving, and Gracie had been saying "poo-poo" since the state line...

We left at six because we took our sweet time getting our rear ends out the door. As excited as we were, we weren't about to start the day griping at each other to hurry, or doling out punishment to Gracie for wanting to dote over her new step stool.

(The minute she saw it that morning, I knew we had made a mistake. We should

have waited until Monday to bring it into the house. Too late now!

No, she couldn't be bothered with putting her pants back on

before trying to reach the faucet.)

After feeding the baby, getting milk and waffles ready, and allowing Grace to sit, stand, and even try to climb inside her new step stool, we finally made it out of the driveway.

The first part of the trip went smashingly. I just knew this was going to be fun!
Mark was asleep before we hit the freeway, and Gracie was gazing out the window, quietly watching the world go by as she worked to wake up. An hour later the foothillls gave way to towering pines, reminding us of the lake we love to visit each summer. Grace had finished her milk and waffle, was quietly playing with her "woof, woof" and reading books. I was snapping pictures and chatting with Robert. All was well with the world, and we were only an hour off schedule.

Just before reaching the top of the mountain, I looked back to ask Gracie how she was doing. She looked fine, but I noticed a small amount of spit up on her shirt... Wait a minute. Mark is the only one in the family who is supposed to spit up.

Five minutes later we found ourselves here:

This is the last rest stop before reaching the Nevada state line. Apparently, I have a child who gets car sick. Or at least should not eat graham crackers, waffles and milk and then read a good book just before heading into the mountains.

Gracie was surprisingly good through the entire ordeal. She whimpered just a bit, as she ended up completely car sick just moments before we pulled off the road. We could only thank the Lord the rest stop and the car sickness coincided as they did, because the next place to stop was over thirty minutes away.

Mommy took care of Gracie in the rest room, while daddy took care of the car seat. And the clothing. And the blankie. And the doggie. And... well, you get the picture:

Right about this time was when Mark decided he needed some attention too, so I nursed him while we waited for Gracie's car seat cover to dry out a little. Gracie had a great time at the rest stop; but soon enough she donned her sunglasses, and was ready to get back on the road:

It actually worked out fine, as we probably would have needed to stop at some point anyway to feed the baby. We strapped Grace back into the car seat sans clothes and car seat cover, figuring this would make it easier to hose her down at the next stop if the need arose. She didn't seem to know that rest stops weren't made for exactly this sort of thing, and was none the worse for wear:

Thankfully, the most excitement we had after this was trying to figure out how to get luggage, strollers, play pens, pillows and all the other gear into an elevator with a labrador retriever. Oh, that story will have to wait until next time.

We arrived in Reno with all the excitement we'd started out with, and only a mild odor coming from the very back of the car.

Now if only the trip home had gone that well...