Last Day of 1st.

Today is Savannah's last day of 1st grade and also my last day at home with just Ivy and The Goo. I am thrilled to be on our own schedule and to spend quality time with all three of My Littles. I am ready for this break. Thank you Mrs. French, I know you will never read this but you've been a fantastic teacher.

Congratulations to my niece Sydney on her 8th grade graduation! We celebrated with her last night, she has grown into a sweet little (artistic!) lady so quickly. Have fun on your big trip Syd, can't wait to hear all about it when you come home.

Faith.

My dear friend Faith is in California for her sister's wedding. She found some time to sneak away and meet me up in Sacramento. Ivy and I went to the party supply store and found the biggest balloon they sold to greet her with. Then we went downtown to meet Faith's train.

At lunch I snuck a photo of My Littles and Faith in a conversation. It made my heart swell to see these cherished people in my life enjoying each other's company. Seeing her again is such a cozy feeling, her warmth is comforting.

The few hours we spent with Faith were easy and joyful. Lots of smiles and laughs. Ivy and Goo adored playing with her (poor Savannah had school, she really missed out). Time went by so quickly and soon enough we were back at the station, saying goodbye to our lovely friend.

Book Club Update.

Friday night's book club was great fun. It started out slow with just a few ladies then at the fullest point in the evening there were 12 of us. My last guest left at 2:45am, my neighbor Kristina. Yes it was a very late night made even later because I just couldn't go to bed with all those dishes in the sink and dirty glasses on every surface. But the hour after Kristina left was a great time of reflection for me. I love this book club and feel so lucky to have been invited in the first place. I am relieved however, to have a year's time to recover from the stresses of hosting. Oh...and I had on display a few pieces from my Dad's taxidermy collection (this is funny if you have read the book); two raccoons, a coyote, opossum and a bobcat. Oh the reactions and laughs...

Daisies To Brownies.

On Saturday morning, The Little Girls celebrated their Bridging Ceremony with their Girl Scout Troop. For their community service project they chose to grow vegetables from seed in a greenhouse and then transplant the starter veggies in a garden. The harvest from their garden will be distributed by a local church through their community outreach food closet. It is a program we as a family are very proud to be a part of. Leaders Kari and Jenee have worked with these girls on this project for five months.



After the troop and families planted the garden, we had a delicious picnic and program to bridge the girls from Daisies to Brownies. The girls sang songs and recited their pledge and honor code.

Then each Little Girl walked across the makeshift bridge as their leaders said sweet and endearing words about them individually. They received their sashes, badges and pins. Little Girls were proud and yet a little shy to be put in the spotlight- it was darling.

They are a tiny troop and the best of friends. These Little Girls have big dreams and are making a difference in their community. Their efforts are inspiring and I couldn't be more proud.

Breathe.

You Guys, I'm hosting book club tonight and I'm a little nervous. I've been trying to be really low key about the party after last week's disappointment but now I'm a bit on edge. Plus not many of these ladies know me very well and so I guess I'm letting them "in" which puts me in a vulnerable weird space. Anywho, what are you up to this long weekend? Do you go away for Memorial Day Weekend? Have a barbecue? Go to the lake? Camping? We typically have very quiet long weekends because of The Shop, Tim works the weekend because of the holiday sale. However we will keep busy because of tonight's party, The Little Girls' Girl Scout Bridging Ceremony and having a little picnic with friends. But mostly I am looking forward to reading in the hammock while The Goo explores the yard and accumulates copious amounts of dirt in his shoes and pants. 

What's Up With The Little Girls.

Remember when The Little Girls took a short break from Ballet and 2 years went by? Starting this week Ivy and Savannah are back to taking classes and this time at a new (to them) Ballet School. Ivy had her first class today. She was excited but nervous before and then beautifully proud of herself after when her teacher released the class.

Savannah has been frustrated with a classmate lately and so I told her the best way to express her concerns was to write a thoughtful letter to her teacher without being too whiny. She needed some help on the spelling of the bigger words but otherwise the sentences are her own. I think it's so funny...I could say all of this stuff about some adults I know. Mrs. French, can you give me some advice too? 

The Bright Side.

I spent most of last week crazily prepping and planning for my first crack at hosting book club only to end up postponing it due to a most unfortunate case of the stomach flu. I had cleaned and filled the house with flowers, planned a menu and grocery shopped...ugh...
I did however get the most rest I have had in a long time thanks to Tim, my hero, staying home from work Friday and even completing my volunteering hours at Savannah's school. I must say whenever I get a cold or the flu, my biggest worry is not the fever or cough, vomiting or headache. It is the managing three kids and caring for them while I am feeling shitty. I am relieved a great deal if Tim is ever able to skip work so I can get some rest.
On Saturday and Sunday my energy came back bit by bit and we spent most of those daylight hours working in the yard and garden.
While I am disappointed the anticipation of Friday night's expectations were a major let down, I am grateful for a relaxing weekend here in our haven of a home and for the gift of time; time to take care of myself and time to heal.

Pug Love.

In the evenings and once The Littles have gone to bed, The Pug and I have a wee snuggle. The house is quiet except for her snoring and a few random disjointed words from my sleep-talking Little Girls. She is a sweet, endearing pup whose love is infectious (except with Tim who still remains distant and annoyed, worrying The Little Girls greatly. We have many conversations about Daddy's hard heart).

Palm Desert Part 2-Traditions.

We have done this vacation every May for a few years now and so we have stumbled into a few traditions. Tim and I love the second-hand stores (more than you can imagine books, perfect cashmere sweaters, sundresses galore...) so we always try to make time for this.

The desert resort areas are overwhelmingly inhabited by cottontail rabbits. They are precious and surprisingly unphased by human activity. They will, however, hop like hell whilst a certain 5 year-old redhead chases them straight toward an inevitable heart attack. The Littles know the vacation has begun once they've successfully chased any bunnies from our lanai to the surrounding shelter of shrubs.

I feel spoiled rotten when mid-week Michelle drives out to the desert to spend the afternoon/evening with us.

Tim and I decided we should encourage time away for each of us. He golfed an afternoon away and I stumbled rather sickly to my favorite shops on El Paseo. I love the desert garden path between shops.

Fudgsicles.

And the best? Well, the BEST is last. Angela, Ricardo, Addie and Lucas come the last weekend and we celebrate COUSIE TIME with glow sticks and intense Lalaloopsy pretend play.

Palm Desert Part 1-Lazy Days Routine.

Our days in Palm Desert revolve around swimming. Because the first part of the week we had unseasonably cool weather, we enjoyed the activity center's playground and mini golf in the mornings.



When the sun did break through the clouds in the afternoon, we spent as much time at the pool as we could. Savannah is now an independent swimmer so she gleefully enjoyed the water slide pool where all the lifeguards knew her by name. Ivy was brave enough to try the slide while sitting on either Tim's or my lap, we all cheered The Little Girls over and over. I have no photos of the slide. I was quite preoccupied with The Goo, who has no respect or fear of the water and thinks he is part fish. 

Once we are all waterlogged and starving, we head back to the condo to rest up, eat and watch The Littles dance and play on the lanai.

After dinner and when the golfers have retired, we head out for a night walk. The cottontails and lizards are out, the crickets and the palms sing in the wind. Unfortunately we had limited night walks on this trip to the desert because I was actually quite sick with Strep Throat. Tim was a great sport and took all three Littles to the pool so I could get some uninterrupted sleep.  

My favorite time of day in the desert is dusk. The Littles run around crazy on the 17th hole and the air is sweet and cool. 

Checking In.

Happy Monday Hutters! We are home from the desert and I can't wait to share a bit of our time away with you dear readers, but quite frankly I am still reveling in the vacation high I feel after more than a week at ease with My Loves. Just a quick check-in to wish a belated Happy Mother's Day to all of you Moms.



Away.

We are in the desert this week, practicing a little R&R. We are getting quite good at it. I hope you are also finding some time to escape.

Old Is New.

My favorite cashmere sweater had a few too many holes. Instead of tossing it I wanted to re-purpose it's soft knit.

I cut it up into strips, sewed the strips end to end, gathered one of the long sides using this technique, and stitched it to the ends of my favorite cuddly blanket.

The ruffle dresses this softy up into a pretty throw.