skinny quinny

quinn had her wellness checkup today and she is happy and healthy! she is 23lbs and 33.5" (long and lean....yeah, i'm jealous of a 1 year old). she is also starting to wear big girl undies (only because they look super cool) and is clearly making the transition from our baby girl to our big girl.

the par-tay

we all had a blast at the park. yummy food, super bubbles (thanks for the recipe mom), a beautiful day, and the best cupcakes ever!! (i used the raspberry cake recipe from shelly, which she used for josh's 5th b-day, and frosted them with the bestest frosting ever-which is a recipe that comes from my mom.....so mimi and grandmama helped make ryder's party a hit this year, thank you!)

the three amigos. i said make the sweetest face possible, and this is what ryder comes up with, what a little goof ball.

to see more pics from the party click here

july 25th

the day finally came, ryder is 5! a whole hand:) we started our day with birthday breakfast, which consisted of cinnamon bread, greek honey yogurt with fresh berries, juice, and a huge box of trix (can you believe it, i asked ryder what he wanted to eat for his birthday breakfast, anything i said, and he wanted trix, those damn commercials won again!). he opened all his wonderful presents, and then we packed up and headed to golden gate park for his party.

taking a moment to reflect

as ryder, quinn and i were finishing up our bedtime stories, i said to ryder, "this is your last night being a four year old." he got a little quiet, we looked at each other silently, and tears just started to weld up in our eyes. he said, "i still want to be 4, i like being 4". it was such an amazing moment to share with him, reflecting on a year that has passed, watching it go, letting it go, and then being excited for the new year to come! we are saying good bye to 4, and greeting 5 with open arms:)

working with color

today ryder got to go with jesse to the art studio. they listened to neil young, mixed paints, learned about the color spectrum, made color swatches, did a few paintings, played darts, and had a popsicle on their way home. do you think ryder will want to that again.....yes, indeed! we are hoping to work studio time into the schedule once a week.

his creative juices were still flowing, so we had to get some supplies out on the table.

and quinn just loves art! has mastered the crayons, and now is onto the paints (non-toxic, of coarse!)

lucky girl

our neighbor brought us some cupcakes this morning, so after our brunch we all had one. quinn was hilarious eating hers, and making this goofy squinty face (which looks similar to her grandpapa's) every time she would take a bite!

fun picnic dinner

it was so nice out today i decided to pack up a picnic dinner and bring the kids to the park!

instead of using a spoon, tortilla, or chip, quinn uses her baby doll's foot!

yummy!

kissy kiss. love love love these kids!!

young 5 here we come!!

so after a long and grueling 10 months of indecisiveness, jesse and i have finally decided to send ryder to the young 5 program at his preschool this fall, instead of kindergarten. we are all just thrilled, and a huge weight has been lifted from our shoulders. thank goodness the nightmare has ended.....well, until we have to start all over again this november:)

the invitation

ryder just loves blowing bubbles, so we are having a bubble party. large bins of homemade magical bubble solution, lots of different wands, good food, beverage, hopefully some sunshine and lots of laughter.

i still can't believe my little boy is turning five, where did the time go?

ryder's birthday wish list

ryder decided he would make a video to share all of his birthday wishes. i think he has re-shot this video atleast 4 times because he keeps thinking of new things to put on there! oh, and right after he recorded this one (which i said was the final one) he remembered he really enjoyed playing with his cousins Nintendo DS!

ps. we are getting the bike!

whats up doc

we went for ryder's 5 year old check up, can you believe it....FIVE!! everything looks good. he is healthy, smart, silly, and 100% foodie! his doctor asked him what his favorite fruit was and he said, "well, right now i am into plums" so then the doctor said, "oh, well i am really into cherries at the moment" and ryder says, "oh yeah! cherries are totally awesome!"

he just cracks me up!

fourth of july-night time (burr!!)

as the sun went down so did the temperature! we just added more layers and ran around waiting for the fireworks to start. it was definitely worth waiting for, and the kids just loved it!

golden gate bridge from crissy field

the girls all bundled up

the last few minutes before the show

ryder loved this!!

ooooooo.........eeeeeeee........aaaaaaaaaa:)

fourth of july-day time

as cold as the day was, we packed up the kids and all our super fun outdoor gear and goodies and headed to 'crissy field' to picnic with some friends!

ryder with the girls (this is eloise, our neighbor)

playing pasta toss! can dinner be any more fun:)

these two are up to no good, as always!

we had these guys all playing tag....bet they didn't think that was going to be part of their celebration.