May Highlights

Stanford Kids Carnival

Snow leopards

Ryan loved this little white goat, in the petting zoo, but would NOT let go of my hand.

I woke up to this the one day. Dressed and reading together on a pillow.

Curt's Birthday--dinner, Stanford Softball game, Wall-E and cookies and ice cream. I was trying to figure out a way of telling our server that it was his birthday without Curt knowing, but Isaac excitedly told him instead. So he got sung to, and a pretty cool sombrero!

I know this isn't a cake--I did try to stack the cookies--but this is what he requested!!

Cady comes to Visit

We rode one of two remaining steam trains in the country!

Our conductor on the left

Isaac and the Engineer--Ryan wouldn't go near the front of the train.

Santa Cruz Pier--sea life

This pelican was letting us get SO close. Ryan kept getting closer--he wanted to see "Scoop" (the name of his Beanie baby from Uncle Vaughn) up close. I had to stop him, and the bird still didn't seem nervous. It was pretty cool be so near and really get a good look.

We watched our good friends' kids for the weekend, and tried to take 6 kids under 7 to the beach. Not sure we would do it again--the beach that is--, but I think they all had fun!! One of us watched the kids at the water, the other one of us the landlubbers. You can see all six kids (the one in the red shirt isn't part of our group) in the picture below . . .

Nicole's author celebration at school. She wrote a book about bears.

Happy Mother's Day . . . well . . . for most of us.

Grandma, Sabrina, Gary, Grace and Claire come to visit!!
lots of dress up . . .

several trips to the beach . . .

boy are we going to miss the beach!!

reading scriptures . . . do you think anyone is listening?

Grandma dispensing the Pez dispensers

lots of reading time . . .

lots of car time . . .

Dennis the Menace Playground --Monterey

Monterey Bay Aquarium
Leafy Sea Dragon--one of my favorites!

Our little pearls

Looking at the Nemo exhibit--we let kids watch "Finding Nemo" on the drive there, after watching this exhibit for a minute Claire says "Look! Nemo's Mommy didn't die!"--there were two larger clown fish.

Grace blending into her surroundings . . . can you find her?

We spend lots of time at our playground

and more dress up!

Notable events of the week:

• 30+ minutes of 5 kids singing at the top of their lungs in the van "I've been workin' on the railroad, all the single day--or singin' day---I know that's not how it really goes, but that's what they were singing, and it was only the first line that they sang. We were laughing so much, we couldn't ask them to stop. Claire taught us this song and "Who's afraid of the Big, Bad, Wolf!"
• Issac and Claire sitting at the table. Isaac says, "I'm going to love you and play with you until I die."
  
• We let the kids sleep all together one night. It's been suprisingly quiet after the first initial craziness, so we assume they are sleeping. 20 minues later we go to check on them and they are all sitting under a blanket with a flashlight talking telling stories.
• No matter how hard we tried or how often we moved the airmattress--we couldn't keep 'em off!

May Highlights Continued . . .

"Baby Ryan" (what Claire called Ryan) and "Twaire" (what Ryan called Claire)

Nicole and Grace the Mermaid

Isaac and Uncle Gary

Muir Woods
If you ask Ryan--he would tell you we were on a bear hunt

Root climbing

Gary, Sabrina, Grace and Claire

4 inch + Banana Slug

Hiking

Mom putting her new hip to use!

Funny Sleepers

April Highlights

Ran my first ever pregnant 5k with friends!!

EASTER


Face Painting

A fighter jet, of course . . .

Ryan wouldn't go near the face painting or the Easter bunny. He sat in one spot asking you to open his eggs for him (see below) and eating his candy.

Stanford Easter egg hunt

While the bus driver's away, the monkey's will play . . .

Easter Sunday

Grandpa Salisbury comes to visit

Before . . .

helping?

after!!

destroying Mater!!

March Highlights

Nicole's first Science Fair

Curt training for 2012 Olympics--Shot put

I LOVE WHAT YOU DO FOR ME--TOYOTA!!--We finally bought a van to make room for baby number 4. Red, 2006 Toyota Sienna. A few days later Isaac says--"Mom if we have too many more kids, we're going to need to buy a limo."

What Nicole can talk the boys into on a rainy day--they must have thought they had singlets on because after a little dancing it turned to wrestling.

Spring Break in AZ--visit Peterson cousins for a week, then go to Uncle Eric Salisbury's wedding.--Too many pictures to post--on other families blogs anyway. Had more fun than we could handle!!

Self Portrait

In my freshman art class in college, I had to draw a self portrait. It didn't remotely resembly me. I remember contemplating how difficult it is to draw someone you see so often. I have also discovered over the years that drawings of people with strange facial features are quite easy to make look realistic. A couple of days ago, I saw a profile photo of me and declared "hey, that is a view of myself I rarely see - and I look like a troll - I bet I could draw my profile much better than I could draw myself facing forward." So, I sat down and did it in Microsoft Paint during conference. What do you think?