Bowls Bowls oh Beautiful Bowls

Lunch today was some popcorn and an orange. Doesn't food taste better when it looks pretty? Well, I decided to put my orange in this beautiful green bowl. Wow, what a beauty.
These bowls were an impulse buy at Starbucks this week. I have seen these lil ice cream bowls (4 palm-sized bowls in red, blue, green and yellow) over and over again and they are selling out fast. I am thinking they are a summer item and once gone, they will not be back! So I had to get 'em! Even better, they came with Starbucks FREE quart of ice cream coupon, whoohoo Java Chip for me, I'll be getting that this weekend.
There is just something about bowls, maybe because they are so functional, I like functional in every meaning of the word.

Never Leave Her Alone with Pens and Markers!

Natalie decided to write on herself today. She was clever enough to write the letter "A" on her arm, but managed to write on her cheeks too. We have the last Tracy Dance class tonight, I guess I'll just have to take her lookin' like this!

She then proceeded to color her arms with a blue (washable thank goodness) marker. Mind you, this is after we took the photo above.
We cleaned up, no biggie, "don't sweat the small stuff" Steve Irwin always said to Terri.

Jelly Belly Factory

Well, we couldn't take photos inside the tour, so here are the photos I took before we got in. As soon as we walked into the building, the dude told us to go to the back of the line and WHEW that line was long. We waited about 1.5 hours and the kids actually did great waiting, that can be hard on 4 year olds.

The tour...well it was ok, but we just didn't see any jelly beans. LOL We were laughing about that. There were all of these conveyer-belts and no candy, and prob about 3 people down there. We went in a circle, watched videos on how things work, and then given free candy. WHoohoo for the free candy, but it was kidna sad that there was really nothing going on in the factory. :) Overall, a good trip with great company, just not sure if I would go back! Alan and Natalie had a good time, but they always do, even if they are playing with a paper bag together!

Spice Throw - Done!

Check this out! I finished my first full-size throw. I am totally proud of myself, it turned out great. I am totally hooked on crochet. LOL! This is called the Spice Throw from a wonderful book called Hooked Throws by Margaret Hubert. There is a Sunflower Throw in there too, I think that is my next one!

Natalie's First Dance Recital

"Get Your Head in the Game" This is the hip-hop dance portion of Natalie's first dance recital. This was the coolest thing I have ever done in all of my life. We were blessed to have Auntie Char come down from Sac too! That is her there in the middle!



She LOVES that hat!

COACH Sunglasses Came Today

I won these last week, eBay, and they arrived today, whohohoO!! Cute eh?

UPDATED: Ok, I took them back to the store, they were not feeling right on my face and kept sliding down..so I got these! They are different than what I usually get, they are a lighter, or blonde, tortoise, so I really like them and they feel right!

Another Blanket

Ok, I finished another blanket, it is Natalie's size, just for her. It turned out pretty good, so now on to another blanket, or maybe a scarf. I am waiting for my Jo Ann shipment to arrive with all of the yarn I need to make a Spice Throw too.

Dance Pics!

Here are a couple of Natalie's Dance Camp pictures. Next week she is doing her show for us! We are really excited about it because they have been working on those dance routines for 3 weeks now.

Natalie and her teacher, Sara

I love this pic of my Mom and Dad, it captures a little silliness and a lot of love!

This is my aunt Char and I, she is the coolest Auntie ever! People say that we look like mother and daughter, good stuff!

My horoscope today...

I'm a CANCER.....
In order to persevere during this potentially tumultuous day, you are going to have to take a bit of a 'so what?' attitude to all the goings-on. Sure, things are not running smoothly, but do you really want them to? How boring would your life be if everything happened on schedule and according to plan? You have to realize that conflict and confusion are great places to find ideas and inspiration. Don't let obstacles get you down. Let them inspire you!

**I'll be posting some dance photos tomorrow**

*whew* I finished it...finally!

I have been working all week on this blanket. It turned out great! Of course there are things that I notice that I will do differently the next time, but overall, not bad for my first baby blanket. I followed the Seija Set pattern from The Happy Hooker book. Next on to the hat...but I am glad I did this it is cool and great practice.

Oh, it has a horizontal hole in the top 3rd of the blanket because it is made to go on the car seat cuz the buckle fits through it. Really cool.

On to the hat!!!

Lots going on!!!

Natalie went to a princess party - here she is all dressed up!
I picked up my platter I did at the Day Art Studio in Pleasanton, it turned out great!!

Another goodie!

We did an OldNavy photoshoot, she was old navy from head to toe, so I wanted to take some pictures, but it is tough to get in there, so we will see.

Vegas Baby!

Well, Sunday night, or should I say Monday morning, we got back from Vegas. Tony's sister Tammy got married. It was a great trip and I think Natalie really enjoyed herself.
This is her eating her waffle at the Paris hotel buffet!!! Yumerooo! Best buffet in Vegas!

And of course, sitting by the pool. Although she didn't do much sitting, she was in the pool for hours!

M&M World! Natalie got to make her own special bag of M&M's. She picked the colors and I filled the bag. Oh and Mom, do you notice what is on her back? She took that cat backpack everywhere with her.



And here she is, the Flower Girl. She did a great job as flower girl, she was given direction on what to do and she executed with grace and perfection. Well, she is MY daughter!

Good stuff!

June 13th and Swim Lessons!

June 13th we took Natalie to Chilis for her b-day. She wanted them to sing, but when they did she said she wanted to hide. :( It was kinda funny! Plus, she would not take off her goggles, so it was all a hilarious night.

Another celebration = Tony got his braces off!!! Alright Tony! After 4 years and finally getting braces to fix his teeth, they are beautiful!

Swim Lessons started again and Natalie is the bad girl of the group! She hangs out by the edge of the pool and pulls in all the toys. She really likes the kickboards, gotta get her some for Uncle Sean's pool! It is also a struggle when there are cry babies in the class and the moms sit right at the side of the pool for the kids to cry to, so the instructor's focus is on them more than the comfortable kids. But it is great for her to get in the water and learn more stuff!

All the parents think she is so cute in her towel, she instantly becomes a princess.

Natalie's 4th B-day Party

We had a great time at Natalie's Party. So, I asked Natalie what she thought of the party?

Um, it was great,
and I blowed out the candles,
and some of these (littlest pet shop characters) came and
some Shrek buddies.

Then she started talking about Disneyland, so overall, she had a good time!

I Finally Did It

Upgraded my camera that is. I like Tony's Nikon D100, but an SLR can be bulky and I like to carry a camera in my purse. So here it is. I upgraded from the Canon SD200 to the SD900 and *whew* it is NICE. 10 mp really makes a difference when I am printing the 4x6s out.
Here are a few goodies I took tonight!

I tell her every day that she is tremendous!

Just Some New Pics

Fiddling with the camera these past few days. Just a few goodies!

Natalie's Last Day of School

Well, Natalie's last day of school was this past Thursday. They celebrated Summer Birthdays and since Natalie's is June 13th, she was celebrated. So sad I wasn't able to be there all year long, the moms seem really great! I would have loved to get to know them.

Natalie the Birthday Girl at School

Natalie and her buddy Michael! Yes, the Michael that all the girls talk about!

Natalie and her teacher MaryAnne singing "Happy Birthday to Natalie"

Bethany & Natalie Dancing at Disneyland

This is too funny, check it out!! Give it a second or two to buffer.

Natalie Playing on Her Laptop

She knows how to open the laptop, log in and start her own games. Wow, that is pretty cool. Life is good!

Been Busy

Wow, been busy, these weeks just fly by! Trying to get things ready for Natalie's b-day party too, so we will see. Going to Vegas for sis-in-law's wedding so I am looking forward to that too! So much to do, so little time.

Some inspiration...(excerpt from Ali Edwards' blog)

Ten Thoughts on Whole Living

1. Your home is more than the sum of its walls. Make it a sacred space.
2. Creativity is a lifestyle, not simply an activity. Let it expand you.
3. True forgiveness springs from love, not regret.
4. Learn something new. Emphasize the trying, not the succeeding.
5. Spend some time in the dirt. You'll be amazed at what nature can inspire.
6. You don't have to have a perfect body to feel great in it.
7. Define yourself by who you are, not the roles you play.
8. Find rejuvination in five minutes of silence.
9. Contribute to abundance. If you no longer need something, pass it on.
10. Find direction in your life by looking where you want to go, not where you don't.