Day 209- Must Reads

Since I was 4 years old, I have been obsessed with reading. Even during summer, when my brother and I weren't allowed in the house during the day, I would bring a bunch of books outside and just read all day. My favorite thing to do with my Granddad was to go to the library and check out books. Then we would go to the park with our books and frozen yogurt and read under the big oak trees for hours. I had a pretty hectic and ugly childhood and I think reading was my escape. In books I was no longer the little girl that everyone forgot about in the middle of their chaos, I wasn't hearing my mom and stepdad yelling at each other or my sisters getting busted for whatever they did that day. I could be somewhere else entirely. I could be SOMEONE else entirely. Even now, when my mind seems to run nonstop, a book is the only way to get it to just slow down and focus. I just wish I had more time to read these days. Now that I have found these gorgeous old books in the den, I may just need to make some time.

Day 208- Around the Globe

Another sweet den find...

Day 207- Yellow

I love this thing! I don't know quite what it is...a covered serving dish of some kind. You can see the full thing in the last picture. Anyone care to fill me in? The black and white print looks gorgeous against the yellow. I think I may have to move this out to the dining room. Something so pretty just can't be cooped up in the den.

Day 206- Library

And we are back to the regular camera!

One of the coolest things about this house is the den with the built in shelves. And the books! There are old encylcopedias, tons of books on flying, amazing old travel books and so much more. There are also all kinds of other neat things like plates from Japan and old globes. I even found a poem book that was given to Mike's Great Grandma from a friend and was signed in 1906. When we first moved in, because of all the extra stuff in this house, we used this room as extra storage. But at the end of this week, my Mom and sister are coming to visit so we had to clean it out to use it as a guest room. And I'm so glad we did. I think this week I will be taking pictures of all the cool stuff I discover in our den.

Day 205- Another Lazy Saturday

Samson just does this All. Day. Long. Must be nice.

So, this week I am going to start trying to transition back to my regular camera. I may throw a cell phone pic or two in there but I want to try and get back.

Day 204- Happy Floater

We went swimming in my In-Laws pool today. Well, I should say, Gage and Kylea went swimming. Quinn was terrified of the water. But Gage just happily floated around the pool in his little ring.

Day 203- The Sweet Before the Sick

Today Quinn was just the sweetest little thing. Cuddly and lovey and gentle. I should've known that was leading up to her being sick. We think she has hand-foot-and-mouth disease. And we haven't slept for two night. Maybe going on three now.

Day 202- Mandarin House

Mike and I had lunch with some friends at Mandarin House. They are celebrating their 30th anniversary so they went back to 1980 prices. So, four of us walked out of there full with a bill of $12.90. I knew I loved the 80s.

Day 201- Chalky

Kylea likes to play with sidewalk chalk. I'd like to jump into that drawing and spend some quiet time on her island.

Day 200- Quite a Pair

Quinn BIT Gage today. She BIT him. Hard. And it left a mark. Seriously, I have never felt so horrible sending him home ever. What the hell got into my sweet little girl??? She has acted a couple times like she was going to bite but never actually bit down like this. Not quite sure what to do to nip that in the bud right away. And I will not bite her back. What is with that piece of advice I seem to be getting from every direction???

Day 199- Summer Treat

Quinn had her first strawberries after dinner last night. She liked them. Although, she didn't eat most of them. She took her cold strawberries and rubbed them all over her neck, chest and face. And then she was cool and she smelled fabulous! Smart girl!

Day 198- Night Rainbow

The toy camera app on my phone does super awesome things to a sunset!

Day 197- Baby Mine

Well, it looks like we may have been succesful with the whole crib sleeping thing! Its been about a week and she has gone down without tears and slept through the night (once til 7am!) twice now. I think she is actually getting it this time. I'm so glad. I don't mind her sleeping with me but its so important to me that she is comfortable in her own room and in her own bed. Only because I SO wasn't as a kid. I had so much fear of everything and I don't want that for her. I want her to feel safe and loved. I think we've done that.

Day 196- Not Geico, It's Gecko

Today I was brave and took all three kiddos to the Santa Barbara Zoo. It went surprisingly well and everyone was happy. As much as having these three kids around is a lot of work, this may just be turning out to be one of the most funs summers I've had.

Day 195- Smoosh Face

Day 194- Holy Smokes

So, California needs some therapy or something. She's just so TOUCHY. A little rain and cars are crashing. A tiny earthquake and we have breaking news. And one hot day, ONE, and we have fires. Sheesh. Dramatic much, Cali??

This fire was actually a little too close to our house for comfort. We took a short drive to see where it actually was and how it was moving so I could calm my nerves a bit. The brown smoke looked amazing against the blue sky. And we are safe tonight.

Day 193- Sunburst

A little burst of light on my little burst of light...

Day 192- Parting Elizabeth

The year I was born my Dad bought a yellow Jeep and he named it Elizabeth. I pretty much grew up in this Jeep. I have been to mountains and deserts and beaches, California, Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Arizona and more. All in this little yellow Jeep. My Dad built Elizabeth up so she was louder than any other Jeep of her size and age. More powerful too. And able to go anywhere in any terrain. This Jeep pulled two full sized pickup trucks out of the sand in Pismo Beach. My casted broken wrist was once duct taped to the roll bar of this little Jeep (another story entirely!). Elizabeth was the very first vehicle I ever drove. And my Dad named the handle bar in the front seat the Audie Bar, because I would go anywhere with him and even if it was rough I would hold on tight to that bar and be okay. And now, my Dad has moved on. He bought a Rubicon and suddenly little, yellow Elizabeth is no longer necessary. My Dad is making a very decent amount of money parting her out. And every time I walk into his garage and see the pile that she has become, I feel sad remembering all the places we've been together. I will miss you, Elizabeth. Maybe I can keep the Audie Bar.

Day 191- Carsyn at the Carnival

So the camera on my phone is fairly decent but for the last few months it wasn't working. I have been either too busy or too lazy to get down to the TMobile store to get it fixed. I finally got down there on Friday and it was a simple fix and now I have a camera again. I downloaded some cool new camera apps too. So I think I may do some of these for my 365 photos.

I love this one! We have a street fair in my town every year. Today we met some family over there. Carsyn got this crazy fuzzy bunny hat and obsessively played carnival games until she looked like a crazy person with her crazy hat and armfuls of stuffed animals. The toy camera app looks super cool with the bright colors here.

Day 190- Quiet Friday Night

Tonight Quinn actually went down to bed. In her crib. Quietly. I had a private little celebration in my head. I sat and watched The Soup while Mike worked in the garage.

Day 189- Sexy Sammy

What a handsome cat he is. Now if he just stopped peeing on stuff I would stop wanting to get rid of him.

Day 188- Three Years

Ummmm...whoops. Totally forgot to take a pic today. But this is newly edited, so that counts right? This is the whole meaning behind this day anyway. Oooohhh...that hubby of mine is cuuuuute! And look how skinny I was! What a happy picture.

Day 187- Dress by Grandma

When we were in Pahrump last, I showed my mom these pillowcase dresses I liked for Quinn on Etsy. So my mom, in all her awesomeness, made 3 for her and sent them to us. Quinn looks so darn cute in them, like a little marshmallow. Now I just have to figure out how to stop her from untying the ribbons.

Day 186- Not Our Typical July

Seriously. It's July 5th and we haven't even gotten out of the 60s yet. Strange. When the babies nap, Kylea and I snuggle up in our blankets and watch Law & Order. She says its her favorite part of the day.

Day 185- The 4th

Ooooohh...a collage! I think I will be doing more of these!

Day 184- Feeling Fruity

Day 183- Broke in the New Shoes

I have been searching everywhere for a good pair of sandals for Quinn. I finally found them at the Stride Rite outlet. And we got a smokin' deal! She loves them so much. She bends down and points them out to everyone who hasn't yet seen them. The first day she wore them she ran around like a crazy person. When we were getting her ready for bed she was passed out. Slept through getting jammies on and everything.

Day 182- Grrrrrr

Day 181- Crab Grass

Day 180- Family Chairs

These chairs were in our house when we moved in and I L O V E them. The color is freakin fabulous.

Day 179- Playing in the Drawers

Someone has learned not only to open the drawers but to get inside of them. I see us having quite a bit of babyproofing in the days ahead.

Day 178- Cascade

Our backyard has a big hill in the back and Chloe likes her and I to hike up there and look at the view. These flowers are on a big wooden wall up in the drainage ditch. I love this picture. I know it is totally weird aperture but I think it rocks. Not to toot my own horn or anything.


*toot*

Day 177- Skittle Toes

A few years ago, before my sister became a manicurist, we always painted our toenails like this. And we called them skittle toes. Since she became a manicurist we have become much more serious and sophisticated in our pedicure style. It was nice to get back to our roots. Rainbows are pretty much my favorite thing ever and every time I see my skittle toes, I smile.

Day 176- Hilltop View

So here I am being a slacker on the blog again...Here goes with the catching up...