Strange, Windy Incident

The kids and I joined my sister-in-law and and several other friends at their health club today. The kids played in the care center while Kristyn and I took a Pilates class. I wish I could join the club just for that class. It was awesome! But I don't want another monthly payment, so for now, my Pilates video will just have to suffice.

After the class we went to the pool for some fun in the sun. The shallow area, 1-3 feet deep, is awesome for kids. The adults could sit in the pool and play with the kids, who could actually touch the bottom! Such a difference from our community pool, which is 3 feet deep at the shallow end. We had a picnic lunch and did some more swimming.

At one point we were taking a break from the pool, when the wind picked up for just a moment. One of the kids' floating toys started to blow away, so I grabbed it with my left hand. A second later, the umbrella in the middle of our table flew up into the air. I grabbed it with my right hand, trying desperately to hang on. The umbrella was headed right for Maryam, who was frozen in place. Another gust ripped the umbrella from my hand. It dropped to the ground just in front of Maryam. I tried to grab it again, when another gust picked it up off the ground again, right over Maryam's head, and dropped it into the hot tub, just missing an older man and two little girls. At the same time I was wrestling and chasing our umbrella, other umbrellas and tables were being toppled. One of our friends and his one-year-old daughter had their table and umbrella blown over onto them. Fortunately, they were both ok. The poor baby was scared, though.

The wind probably lasted for 1-2 minutes and then it was calm again. Strange!

Save or Purge?

Since I returned home from vacation, I've been working on switching the kids' bedroom and the guest room. The kids were in the smaller of the two rooms before. I am moving them into the larger room so that I can move their toys out of the living room and into their bedroom. As it turns out, this is a much larger project than I initially anticipated. The large furniture is already moved and in new homes. Now I need to address all of the "stuff."

We have quite a lot of baby stuff--almost everything you can imagine, times two! I saved everything because we might have more children someday. There's also a large recliner that has seen better days; but it's the perfect chair for nursing twins, so I can't let it go. I really would like to have more space in my house and garage for things we are actually using. But I can't justify getting rid of all the baby stuff since we are not sure if we are done having babies. I have a desperate urge to purge right now, but I also really want a couple more babies.

Have you dealt with this conundrum? How do you reconcile the need for space with the need to be frugal/thrifty/practical?

It's Been So Long

I can't believe I didn't blog during the entire month of June! Ok, yes I can. June marked the end of my 5th year teaching at Antioch High School. I worked at graduation, and this was the first time I actually cried at graduation. I realized that I was saying goodbye not only to the kids, but also to my friends and my career for a while. I didn't realize that I was going to be so sad about not teaching while I stay home with my kiddos. It was a very strange experience.

Moon Cousins

Two days after graduation Tobin and the kids and I hit the road for vacation. We caravanned with Tobin's brother Trenton and his family to see the Moons in Idaho. It was really fun to spend a week with the whole family together again. We went to Yellowstone for a day, but we didn't get to camp because it was too rainy. We decided it would be best to wait for better weather so our camping experience will (hopefully) be positive. But we did enjoy a nice, long day in the park anyway. We went to a hot springs pool for a swim, the boys played plenty of golf, the girls shopped, we ate lots of s'mores (made on the BBQ), etc.

Tobin and Lydia eating S'mores

After a week in Idaho, we drove down to West Jordan, Utah, to spend time with my family. **I will apologize now to those of you who live in Utah but did not see us while we were there. A week really is not enough time to get everything done. Sorry!** We spent time with family, helped do flowers and decorating for a wedding, had an 80th birthday party for my grandpa, met Lewis' fiance, stayed with my brother and his new wife, etc. We really enjoy spending time with all of our family.

Peyton on the carousel at Hogle Zoo

Maryam and Opa on the carousel at Hogle Zoo

After a week, Tobin flew home to California. The twins and I stayed in Utah to help my dad and mom out after my mom's surgery. We went to the zoo, worked in the yard, played with cousins, tried to keep order, cooked meals, did laundry and a little housecleaning, and much more. Mom is doing very well, and says she feels much better now that the surgery is done. At the end of two weeks, I rented a U-Haul trailer and my dad and brother Bruce helped me load up my bed and dresser from my childhood. Then, Dad drove home with the kids and me--and he did most of the driving! Yeah, Dad! He got to stay and play for one day, then he was on an airplane headed home again.


I'm sure there's a lot more to tell, but it will have to wait for a later post. That's enough light reading for now. Take note of the picture at the top of the blog now. If you don't remember what Tobin looked like before, scroll to the bottom and compare the picture there. He has lost about 60 pounds in the last six months! I'll work on getting new family pictures taken in the next few weeks, so we will have a nice new picture with my hot, skinny husband!