Blowin' bubbles

While Justin was at softball last night, the girls and I had some quality bubble time on the back porch.


The bubble blowers from Gymboree are the best! So simple to use, too!


An attempt at a group shot of girl time. I took about 20 of these and one of the girls is looking away or down in every one of them!


Doesn't she look like she's playing a trumpet?


And this would be why Paige doesn't get to be outside much. That IS a chunk of granite she's putting in her mouth. She was much more interested in doing that than playing with bubbles. *sigh*


Lauren would have done this for hours, if Mommy could stand it. I just loved this shot with the bubble stuck on her hair!


In an effort to get Paige to play with the bubbles, Lauren blew some right into her face. Hard. At least she looks concerned about it!


Paige was no worse for the wear! Look at all those teeth! Yikes! She cut her seventh one (top right) on the 20th and the eighth is not far behind. Another week and she is eleven months old!!!

So yesterday I tested out my craftiness, and it turns out I am not completely un-crafty! My girls have SO much hair, we have accumulated a multitude of clippies and other hair accessories (not to mention my OBSESSION with them!). But I am never able to find the clip I am looking for, even though we have these little drawers to put them in, and a basket for the big bows and hairbands. Every time I am in a kid's boutique I see "bow holders" and drool over them. Wednesday was one such day. I loved the idea of hanging something on the wall that would hold the bows in plain sight - BUT I was not thrilled at the idea of spend $25+ on said ribbon attached to a giant flower.

Then, while perusing the clearance end caps at Target (which I highly recommend), I found this little princess wall plaque for five bucks. It's missing one of the sequins - but I decided that was well worth the 50% off. I must have been channeling Martha Stewart (er, maybe her slightly less crafty younger sister... Molly Stewart?) because I suddenly had a vision of this:


I already had my ribbon at home, purchased long ago on a whim that I would find ways to be crafty with it. Turned out pretty good for five bucks and ten minutes of my time! Maybe there is something to this crafty thing after all, it feels quite rewarding! Side note - my girls have waaaaaay too many bows and clips. I mean they each only have one head! Three ribbons were required?!? Those $25 things only had ONE. Maybe I should start making my own bows. Maybe not...

Well, if you read all of that, you deserve at least one shot of a cute kiddo. So here's Miss Paige helping Mommy sort through the bow basket:


Never mind that she is surrounded by twenty headbands that Lauren won't leave on for more than fifteen minutes. I am hopeful that Paige will be my headband girl!

Pumpkin Patch

Yesterday we took our annual trip to the pumpkin patch. In an effort to track down some fall weather, we drove to Chino Valley. It was quite the blustery day - but we made the best of it! It was such a bright day that the girls were looking down in almost every picture. Grr!

Lauren and Daddy checking out the Game and Fish exhibit. They actually released a rehabilitated red-tail hawk (in the top left corner) that afternoon.

Paige and Mommy lost in the HUGE corn maze.

They had "Mammoth Donkeys" that were very interested in nibbling whatever was in reach.

Sleepy Paige - she did really great considering we planned our day with no regard to her schedule! ;o)

The girls with our chosen pumpkin - don't they look happy? That darn sun!

My punkin' in the pumpkins.

Lauren's choice of pose with the pumpkin. Very ladylike! You wouldn't hear me complaining, she smiled for the camera!!!

Paige and Daddy having a sweet moment.

Her very first pumpkin... it means the holidays are upon us!

Just a little tinkering

In an effort to work on my Photoshop layering skills, which are seriously lacking... I spent a little "me time" playing around. Tell me what you think:


The original image with some slight editing (my usual tactic).


A bit of color boost.


More color, high contrast, softening...


My typical b&w conversion with slight contrast boost...


High contrast and softening.

You can see my personal favorite on my frame-a-day!

San Diego

We were able to go to San Diego this past weekend to see some of my extended family and celebrate my cousin Brian getting engaged! We had a nice time visiting with everyone and even got away to the beach one afternoon. It was a nice escape from the heat - and the unpacking! Yes, almost three weeks and I am still nowhere near being done with the house. Maybe by the time our lease is up...

Anyway - on to the pictures! Our time at the beach was at noon, so the shadows are HARSH - sorry! And for some reason, my camera didn't make it out all that often for the rest of the trip. GASP! So, here are a few that we do have to share!


Paige is our little beach bum! She loved the sand, the water, the waves - all of it! It was more of a challenge to keep her in one place this time.


Lauren, on the other hand, was a bit moody this day. She wanted to just play in the sand, and only went in the water if someone was holding her. She liked all of it just fine, but seemed to think the waves were going to wash her away!


See? I really DO exist! ;o)


Lauren and her Great-Uncle Mike in Aunt Dona's kitchen. This is a perfect example of her expression every time someone would come up and say hi to her! All the family really enjoyed seeing her - even though she tends to be a little shy and takes hours to warm up to someone!


Pretty little Paige... she cut her fourth tooth on the 18th, and her fifth one TODAY! She tries to stand on her own (letting go for a few seconds before sitting down), jabbers ALL day long, still has some stranger anxiety (and to Paige, if she hasn't seen you in three days, you are again a stranger), and loves to dance! She bops up and down and wobbles her head - all the while smiling and laughing. She has mastered waving hello and bye-bye, and will gladly shake her head no... even when the answer is yes! We are amazed every day that she has gotten so big already - she will be a toddler before we know it. *shudder*

To tide you over...

Just a few random shots of the girls over the past few days of unpacking and blowing noses. :oP Mommy has been less than inspired to take any decent pictures lately. But, I wanted to make sure you all knew we were still alive and kicking!


My first-born organizing her dress-up shoes. LOL!


Sick little Paige enjoying her lunch. She is great at feeding herself these days and insists on eating EVERYTHING she sees us eating!


Lauren having a phone conversation with Grandma Linda. She was cracking me up with the fluffy shoes and nightgown, hand on her hip, walking back and forth, chatting like a big girl!


Paige in the playroom - while I wish it wasn't the first room people see when they come to the house, I do LOVE having a place to put the plethora of toys instead of them being scattered all over the place!


Lauren finally came down with Paige and Mommy's cold yesterday. We have spent a lot of time laying on the couch drinking fluids and watching cartoons. Poor girl!

I hope to have the house clean enough to take pictures by tomorrow so you all can see the new digs!

M.I.A.

Just in case some of you are beginning to wonder if our fam fell off the face of the earth... not literally, but we might as well have. :0)

We have no Internet at the new house - thank you, Cox Communications. We have been playing this round-and-round game with them for four days and don't even know if someone has come out to the house or not. No straight answers allowed, ma'am.

I digress... we love the new house so far, even though it has added 15 minutes to Justin's commute. Lauren is always talking about how great the new house is, and even with ALL the boxes, we have more than enough space! I just can't post any pictures since I am blogging via my I-phone (and yes, I love it, I just can't type forever on it like a keyboard).

We hope to be back up and blogging on here and the frame-a-day really soon!

Love you all!!!