Da Flu

I am playing hooky today! And it actually doesn't feel good. We have missed church the last 2 weeks because we were out of town and traveling both Sundays. Well, now our family has been stricken with the flu. As Nolan woke up on a happy note today, Reagan woke up sick so it is another day at home!

And these pictures that follow are extremely old! I started a post about 2 weeks ago and never finished it. So here you go:

We had a treadmill competition one night. Reagan likes to go fast on the treadmill, but she can't go as fast as mom and dad. So Matt and I ran as fast as we could for a minute. I can't remember how fast I went, but it was too much and I stopped after 30 seconds.

The first weekend in February, we had an overnight retreat with the Young Women in my ward! We went to a cabin up near Sonora. It was a quick getaway, but the girls bonded in that amount of time. It was good for them. (siiiiiiiideways pic)

We went and played in the snow the next day. It was like 60 degrees in the mountains and after sledding, most of the girls removed their jackets.

Its kind of funny that I am posting pics of my YW, since most of you don't even know them, but I thought the pictures themselves were really great. I love the snow spraying up into their faces and their expressions.

My kids will only eat "snacks," so we refer to mealtimes as "snack." Well, this was a real snack and one they love to have. I put surprises in their mini muffin pans. I usually search around the cupboards and fridge for random items to put in them and they love some of the things they end up with. Today the big hit was pepperoni slices.

Reagan likes to have her picture taken.

Reagan and her friend Addie putting on a show for me!

Reagan cutting off a chain on her countdown trip to Utah. Again, old picture. We got back from Utah a week ago :) We went with the Berrett's and Addie made Reagan a chain to countdown. It was a fun way to pass time till we left.

We have a tradition for Valentines Day to eat in. In the past we have ordered takeout from Chili's and ate on our nice dishes. This year I did a little extra and made stuff from home. Well, sort of made....Costco did most of the work for me! Our menu was panko-breaded shrimp for appetizer. Tomato soup with parmesan crisps (Trader Joes did the work). Spinach, feta and carmalized onion pizzas on flatbread (I did the work, with recipe credit to Our Best Bites). They were delish and Matt even loved them! That is saying quite a bit since he isn't a big fan of meals that don't contain meat. The kids got their own marinara and mozzarella cheese pizza. My inspiration for these pizzas was a recent meal at Cheesecake Factory, where I had their pear and gorgonzola pizette. Uh, yeah, to die for. I have been craving it ever since. These were a good second.

It was a good Valentines Day spend with the ones I love most :)

Some January Lovin

Wow. Today is one of those days where I remember why I live in California. Even with our school budget cuts, sucky real estate market and dramatic politics, it is nearly 70 degrees today. I registered my first born for kindergarten today. Surreal, I tell you! We had a picnic lunch outside, then both my kids took naps. Reagan has not napped forever. It has been nice. And here I am, blogging about it. The bond between bubs and sis continues to flourish. They really love each other. They fight like crazy and tears come, but in the end, the love is there.

Reagan climbed the wall at REI. This was a fun experience for her and if we had spent all day in the store, instead of just an hour, then she would have climbed over and over. I am glad I had my camera :) She was so proud of herself.

The train obsession with Nolan continues. He sleeps with his trains, he walks around all day with his trains, he plays with them. He calls them his "choo-choo's." He is normally a great sharer, but hates to share his beloved trains.

We took the kids to ride the steam train at Tilden Park. Nolan was a little scared at first, but he ended up enjoying it and the whole ride home was talk of "blah blah blah, choo-choo!"

We caught a great view on the way home from Tilden Park. This is a view of the bay bridge leading to San Francisco.

Matt scored a train table at clearance for 20 bucks at Target and it is now placed in my "formerly staged well" living room. Oh well :) The kids love playing in here and it is large. I always knew that my furniture would get pushed back for train tables and legos.

My dear friend Laura turned 30 and we kidnapped her and surprised her with a girls night out at Cheesecake Factory. It was a success and we had a great time with some equally great food! Yowza----the cheesecake is out of this world. I think I peed straight sugar for several days :)

We got new windows!!! This (along with our cheap bathroom makeover, which I will reveal another day) is the official completion of our home improvement process. Other than small projects here and there, we have upgraded it to our liking. We are spent (financially and physically) and are ready to just take it easy and build our lives and bank account back up. But don't they look nice :) Sometimes I find myself just staring off into the distance and I ask myself, "what am I staring at?" And I realize, "oh, its my windows!" They do look that good. Holla!

Last weekend a friend brought over a train set that her son never played with and she got it at a garage sale. I did not expect what she brought over to be the GeoTrax railroad set. Wow, my kids played ALL WEEKEND with it. The batteries are still going strong...

This is Nolan's smile when he says "CHEEEEEESE!"

It really has been a busy January. I am not used to this, as this is normally a slow, blues-y month for me. I got a new calling as Assistant Director of Stake YW Athletics, so now I am helping with volleyball every Saturday morning, through end of February. I also was asked to be the 3rd year leader for Girls Camp this summer. Oh and we are driving out to Utah with Laura (my 30 year old friend *wink, wink*) and her kids at the end of the month. Matt's dominating in ward basketball, and he is a happy camper. So February is not slowing down either. Life is good!