Spring Break in Utah

During our first week of spring break we hit the road for a fun filled trip to Utah. We really enjoyed the time we spend with our family there and also loved (kind of) the snowy weather. Here are a few highlights from our week. We enjoyed a couple of days of skiing. Good job Emma on your first time skiing!

Our kids probably enjoyed the day on Boots and Jean's farm in Heber the most of all of our activites this week. Our host Jean gave Abbie her first driving lesson. All the kids got in on the horse brushing action.

Emma loved exploring the hayloft... when she wasn't collecting eggs, caring for cats, playing with bunnies, brushing goats, and riding horses and donkeys.

Riding in the Model A Ford with Grandma and Grandpa was a hoot.

Emma could get used to farm life.

Abbie took Matthew out for his first ride on a horse.

As a little side trip, we hit the Valley of Fire outside of Las Vegas for some Petroglyph hunting. We found tons on a small mile hike that we took. We like to break up the long drive to Utah by seeing some of the sights along the way.

Zonked

I just had to take a picture for posterity's sake. Matthew is taking his afternoon nap. There is nothing special about that, he has taken a three hour afternoon nap since he was a small baby. But, he is sleeping in a BIG BOY BED for the first time!!! Way to go Matthew!! My little guy is growing up. **sniff**

Festive...

Or totally disgusting??? This morning that pesky leprechaun had a little bit o'fun at my family's expense. The cushions on our couch were all in disarray, the milk was green, etc. He also turned our hashbrowns greenish. I thought it was kind of cute--that silly little guy, but not everyone in my family had the same feeling about the matter. Delicious hashbrowned potatoes, cooked in a combination of butter and olive oil, lightly salted and covered in a sprinkling of paprika , pepper and a little green magic.

Matthew chose to focus on the bucket full o'treats rather than even try any of his breakfast.

Emma began eating her's until she finally stopped and said that she just couldn't eat any more because "they SICK ME OUT!!!"

*

Better luck next time Mr. Leprechaun.

Some of my Favorites

The weekend has been busy. With the kids home from school, a Valentine's Party for an excited group of girls, Disneyland, family in town, and the beach to keep me from home, today I have been trying to catch up on all of the less exciting parts of motherhood. But as I have been walking from room to room, with laundry and a spray bottle in hand, I have noticed that today my home is full of some of my favorite things.

Light pink tulips on my kitchen table
New rug in the living room
Sand in the bathtub (not one of my favs June-September)
Laundry folded
Open windows
Warm breeze blowing in
Something good for dinner
Son napping

Sometimes it's nice to reflect on the little things that enrich my life and to take a minute to write them down. It's now time to get back to my laundry and spray bottle, but I can do it with a smile on my face as I anticipate my favorite gals knocking on the door, all hot and sweaty from walking home from school--another of my favorite things!

Mark Birthday Surprise

This year Mark's birthday surprise didn't come the usual way wrapped in a box with a big beautiful bow. Nope, this year it came on Southwest flight 438 from Sacramento. Eric and Kristin came and surprised Mark by meeting us at the same restaurant that we (together with the Price's) have celebrated their birthdays for years up in Sacramento. Mark was stunned when we walked into the restaurant and saw them sitting at the kitchen table waiting for us. We spent the weekend together at the beach, eating out, going to the temple, eating out, going to the movies, boogie boarding (not Kristin and I), whale watching and eating out.

A nice shot of Eric and Kristin--I love the beautiful background.

Aboard the whale watching boat.Not the boat we were on, but one can dream.

If You Don't Believe Me...

...Count the candles! The love of my life turned 40 this month, though no one believes it. So here's the proof for all of you who agree with me that Mark looks better than ever!! Happy Birthday Love!!

Memory Lane

Each time a eat a Lindor truffle the same floodgate of memories opens wide. It was probably 19 years ago, the summer after my high school graduation, that my family (meaning my parents and the younger three kids) went on a two week, six country, whirlwind trip to Europe. We had a lot of fun, and definitely expanded our horizons--but I remember eating a lot of spaghetti (no matter what country we were in) because it was familiar. But what the chocolates always bring to mind is when we were in a train station waiting for our next sleeper car and my dad disappeared and resurfaced again with a bag full of pretty, shiny, red balls wrapped in cellophane. The first one I popped in my mouth was like heaven. I loved the silky chocolate center. They were rich and satisfying. My dad rationed them, so we only got one every once in a while, but that didn't matter because I knew he had more. They were the perfect companion to travel the rails with.

I didn't see them in the states for many years after that, and now they have become kind of ordinary. But for me, they will always represent train rides through beautiful countrysides, and time spent with my family. Ahhhh. I think I will go have another.

They Did It!!!!!!

Congratulations to Abbie and Emma for completing the CANDY DEAL!! They were able to abstain from eating ANY candy for 12 whole months. The girls were amazingly diligent, never cheated or complained, and Abbie is even thinking about doing it again this year! Wahooo, Look what you can do when you set your mind to it!

New Year's Eve

We spent New Year's Eve with the Madsen Family. It was a beautiful day so we ventured off to Torry Pines Reserve to enjoy some hiking and panoramic views. Later that night we celebrated with Starwars and homemade donuts. Yumm!

Christmas Hightlights---Get Comfortable

Merry Christmas!! In the spirit of thorough documentation, I have compiled some photos from our Christmas celebration. We really enjoyed our time together over the past few weeks. Christmas dinner wouldn't be complete without the crowns and jokes from inside the tradional Christmas Crackers--a tradtion I brought home from my mission to England.

Matthew was in train heaven.

Emma got a new set of wheels!

In the middle of all the action on Christmas Eve!! We have such a good time when we get together as a family (minus Sarah and Jake).

One Sunday night in December we got together with friends to act out the Christmas Story from Luke chapter 2. Emma and her friend were sweet (and funny) little angels.

He's no pirate! He's a shepherd, of course.

Our narator and our super WISE man.

We spent one night looking at the Christmas lights at the Temple. My kids loved walking around.

Last year we came upon a living nativity in Rancho Santa Fe and we knew it would become a tradition. The kids loved the camel rides again this year.

Here we are with our new friends, the Curtis family. The Roman soldiers are keeping us in line.

Abbie and Emma sang in a Children's Christmas Choir this year as part of a Choir Concert put on by our stake. I have never seen such a beautifully done choir concert--ever.

Christmas Dilemma

For many people the Christmas season is made special by their family traditions. Families bake cookies together, exchange gifts, carol, give service--the list is practically endless. For my family making Sedgwick English Toffee tops our list. It is a tradition that has lasted decades, beginning when my mother wooed my father with it, sealing the deal with his wedding proposal. The toffee is THAT good. (OK, the toffee is really that good, even though the story may or may not be true).
So what could possibly be the dilemma then? The problem is that I am on the "Candy Deal" which is another, more recent Sedgwick family tradition where the participants go without eating candy for an entire year. Do you see where I am headed? How can one blast Karen Carpenter singing, "I'll be home fore Christmas" and stand at the stove top for 30-45 minutes (times MANY batches) and make English Toffee if I can't EAT any of it. A couple of my sisters have made exceptions for English Toffee in the Candy Deal. I mean really, can you trust a candy maker's toffee if they refuse to eat it themselves? We have said that we can eat it as an ice cream topping--but that's not working really well. Do I really have to eat a WHOLE BOWL full ice cream when all I really want to do is make sure that the toffee is good enough to give away?? And here is another problem--today when I took a picture of the toffee, I accidentally knocked some off of the table and it fell to the floor. As I cleaned it up I absentmindedly popped a piece into my mouth. What did I discover? It stuck to my teeth!!!!! I made that batch several days ago and hadn't gotten around to giving it all away, and the toffee that was left was not up to par. I know, this is getting serious.
So, I am a in a full dilemma. I don't know what to do. If I make an exception for the toffee, I will feel like I have to justify eating a little toffee after abstaining from candy for 11 1/2 months. If I don't eat the toffee, I might end up giving someone sticky or burned toffee AND end up eating too much ice cream. What would you do??

Thankful for Grandparents

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving break which was made even better by a long awaited visit from Grandma and Grandpa Rowen. We loved spending time together. They hadn't been to San Diego in a long time, so we were determined to show them a good time. We went to the beach, hot tubbing and to Coronado Island. We watched movies, shopped, ate mexican food and played at the park. It was perfect. We can't wait for them to come back!

A Work in Progess

Hey there. Sorry for the messed up blog layout. I am trying to learn how to make a banner (without photoshop or any other cool tool) and will likely fall asleep in my chair before I get it figured out. We took this photo this morning and I want to add it to my banner. So, until it works, my blog might look a little jumbled.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We sure did. So much to be grateful for. I'll post pictures soon.

My Sweet Son

Last night I went to bed feeling gross. This morning I woke up (if you can call it that since I was awake most of the night) feeling worse. Mark was sweet and got the kids off to school as I sat on the couch--I was sick of my bed by then. After he left I was worried how I was going to handle the morning with my active little guy (see below post). Well, I learned that he is considerate beyond his years. All morning he let me sit on that couch as he watched Thomas the Tank Engine over and over again. Occassionally he brought me some crackers that I had set out on the table. What a sweetie. Thank you, thank you.

Within Minutes

Right now this little guy is resting quietly in his crib. Every day, for at least 2 hours, he takes a really good nap. And it's no wonder, when you take into account how much mischief he gets into in a given period of time. For example, let me just recount the last few days around here. Two days ago, while making dinner Emma came into the kitchen to tell me that Matthew had made a big mess in the playroom. What did I find? Soft, squishy, old top ramen noodles ground into the carpet. Fifteen minutes after cleaning that up, Emma found me again...this time he had gotten into the chocolate chips and had eaten/smirred them all over himself and scattered them all over the couch. The funny thing was that while I was cleaning them up, he was still trying to shove as many in his mouth as possible. My last example: yesterday he wanted to watch a movie so I took the opportuntiy to take a quick shower. When I came down stairs he was still seated on the couch, but with the box of fishy crackers (that he found) in his lap. I figured that I could let that slide since I had a nice shower without interruption. However, I then discovered that he not only got into the crackers, but also into all of the vitamins (thank goodness for child locks). He managed to slide a chair over to the counter, climb on, open the cabinets, then find and open one container and shake them all over the countertop. Of course I had to see if he had eaten, any so I stuck one in my mouth. I had a hard time biting through it and when I did, I was sorry. I was rinsing and spitting for a good long time. Disgusting. Needless to say, I felt safe that he hadn't swallowed or eaten anything harmful. But really, what is he going to get into next? And why don't I supervise my child? It all happens too fast, within minutes.

Halloween

What a fun day! Halloween is always a lot of fun around here. Did some one say, "that's because you are a candy addict--or at least used to be?" Did someone say that?? I thought I heard someone say that. Hum. Anyway, I wasn't sure if Halloween this year was going to be as much fun since the girls and I are on the "candy deal" (NO CANDY for one year). But the day was full of fun activities, a party and trick or treating. NO one missed eating the candy (OK, the girls didn't miss eating the candy--I am still cryin inside). Abbie and Emma while sorting out the goods.

The family gathered for a picture while our pre-trick-or-treating party got underway.

" Spooky Soups" with our neighbors and friends was a fun way to kick start the night. I've already got a plan for next time. How's this...a "Hallo Wiener Roast"

Pumpkin carving is such a mess. But worth it, not only for the cute jack o lanterns, but also for the Parmesan roasted pumpkin seeds that Mark made.

Disneyland

After a two and a half year long break, we finally made it back to Disneyland! What a great place. We had a wonderful time, the kids were in heaven, no one begged for treats and souvenirs, the weather was nice, Mark was with us...perfect days. Our one and only family picture at Disneyland.

Dia de los muertos was being celbrated while we were there.

I know I look frightening, but this picture tells a great story. Here we are in line for our very first ride. Matthew spotted the rockets and HAD to jump aboard. Thank goodness the line was short because, as you can see, he is very excited. It took all of my strength to keep him from climbing over the railing.

So sweet.

More Fall Break

Our school district has a funny schedule. We have a shortened summer (only 8 weeks) and a couple of longer breaks throughout the school year. Modified Traditional. Apparently, during the fall break (this one) is when we are supposed to go to Hawaii along with the rest of the families in our elementary school. Being new to the school, we didn't get the memo in time and had to enjoy our break closer to home.

Mark took a few days off of work so we could all enjoy some time together. We went to Newport Beach for a few days. Though we did spend a lot of time in the MAgic Kingdom, we also enjoyed swimming, the beach and Balboa. The beach pictured above is in Corona Del Mar off of Poppy and PCH. It was beautiful--a great place for tide pools and to watch the sun set over Catalina.

We strolled along the water front on Balboa Island. The little (and not so little) houses on our path were decked out for Halloween.

Matthew and Emma enjoying a quiet moment at the dock.

Show cones the SIZE OF YOUR HEAD!!

It has been such a long time since I have been to Balboa--years. I used to go all of the time in my teens. Things have really changed. But, thank goodness one thing has not--Balboa Bars!! They are still ice cream, chocolate and nut heaven on a stick. Though only Emma and Abbie are pictured here, I am sure you can use your imagination to see me scarffing down my ice cream bar on the other end of the camera.