A Graduate and a Swimmer.

Wyatt graduated from Kindergarten and Eva is a fledgling swimmer, take a look!

Eva's first swim from Mel on Vimeo.

...and a few more from their first dip in the pool:


What a nice and busy weekend, we are working hard to get the backyard cleaned up and back in good working order. A nice, mostly unstructured week ahead [yay], and a camping trip on the horizon. OK, I'm off to work on Eva's swimming!

Anticipation.

Emily was heartbroken when she got home from school on Friday to find that we had poured 16 gallons of muriatic acid into our newly full of water swimming pool. So we are all waiting patiently since our bodies do not need an acid wash! Hopefully next Friday, which coincidentally is the last day of school they will be in it. That day is also supposed to be the hottest day of the week [90's] if the weather forecast is telling me the truth.



Friday was Wyatt's kindergarten field trip to the Oakland Zoo. Tony and the fathers of three of Wyatt's kinder buddies went along to chaperon. The Dads! How cool is that?

Today, as soon as Tony returns from a thankfully rare Sunday morning at work, we are off to Gilroy to visit his younger brother Rafi and his lovely wife Miriam who have just had baby #4. Three girls and a boy, how about that! Somehow that sounds like the perfect mix to me! Her name is Miranda and I can't wait to meet her.

Big last week of school: Wyatt receives an award Tuesday, Sarah has a song-fest/picnic on Wednesday, Emily is playing the Pink Panther on the piano in the talent show on Thursday, and my boy Wyatt is graduating on Friday!

Happy Memorial Day! Soak it in. Up next: summer vacation!

Friday Rocks!

If Friday was a person, I would hug and squeeze him so tightly that he would feel uncomfortable afterwards.

This morning I received some unexpected gifts, it was like a parade, one after another the givers arrived! My friend [and cousin-in-law] Monica brought me fresh and still steaming tamales! My friend Janet brought me early pool-warming floating goodies! The AT&T man brought me a new phone number after not having a working home phone for nine days! And then, my wonderful pool making geniuses came and did more wonderful pool making genius stuff!

My mood changed drastically when I watched the final hour of Grey's Anatomy that I had thankfully recorded. I did one of those I am so sleepy that I cannot even stay awake to watch the season finale of my favorite TV show things last night. It's probably a good thing I didn't stay up for it, I don't think I would have been able to sleep after that! I cried like a screaming banshee baby in my living room. I turned the TV off an hour ago and my eyes are still hurting! What are they trying to do to us, those GA writers? Aaaaaaaaaagh!

So now I am recovered and feeling the happy glow of my best friend Friday once more. Oh sweet Friday, I love you, you are amazing! Come here and let me hug you again!

Pool Pics.

I tried to take a picture from the same spot every time for good comparison. I should have taken them at the same time every day because some have lots of shadows. Ah, the perils of perfectionism.

May Mix & Match.

Last Saturday was the big auction/luncheon fundraiser for the nursery school. Emily had three basketball games in Modesto and Tony took three of our kids with him, Sarah stayed with me. We started at 7 a.m. and helped to load up the moving van with auction items at the mini-storage. Sarah was so happy to help with this, my kids seem to love helping when there is a truck ramp involved. Later in the morning after we unloaded the van at the estate where the fundraiser was held, we changed into our party clothes and I was able to have an impromptu photo shoot with Sarah in one of the gardens on the property. Here is my favorite:

There were so many amazing items in the auction, the ladies that put that together are so very talented. I bid on this basket at the very last minute and won it, it's a salsa garden, how cool! My husband was pleased with my selection, remember, he is sort of salsa royalty.

On Friday, it will be three weeks since they excavated for the pool. Last week they did the gunite, [and I watched in astonishment, the man with the hardest job ever] this week they have been preparing the ground around it for the decking and I think they might pour the cement for that today. It's been quite a show around here. I have been taking lots of pictures and I promise to share soon. We are all very excited and openly oozing with anticipation around my house. Plaster and water are next week.

Mother's Day was nice, and low key. We just went to church and later in the day a quick visit [for me because I came home early with two of my kiddos] with my Mother-in-law. Don't mind Wyatt's sad face in the photo, he was just upset because he couldn't find one of the things he made me for Mother's Day.

Playing Ball.

A few pics from our first games this week:

Wyatt and Sarah are playing ball again this spring. They aren't on the same team this year though, which makes things just a little more complicated. This is what I mean:

Monday is Wyatt's practice
Tuesday is Wyatt's game
Wednesday is Sarah's practice
Thursday is Sarah's game

All that on top of Girl Scouts and basketball and CCD and PTA and field trips and concerts and picnics and parties and fundraisers and luncheons and auctions and nowmyheadisspinning. Oh beautiful May! All three of my ball playing kiddos are loving it and it really is fun to watch. It's crazy, but it's so worth it!

I just found out that my niece Sydney's [Renee's oldest who is 13] softball team won the championship in her league! Way to go Sydney! We are all THRILLED and VERY VERY HAPPY for you! You GO GIRL!

Decisions, Decisions.

If I had to pick one photo to describe Eva today as a cheeky little three-and-a-half year old girl, it would be this one.

She picked Snow White.

Art de Wyatt.

All the kindergarten year, these family projects come home. The kids have to do the project with their family and bring it back to school. This one was my favorite. The kids were learning about farms and so we put this one together, together. Emily has become something of an origami whiz kid, she made all the animals just by folding colored paper. Wyatt and I built the barn together. I made the tree. And, my favorite part, the farmer, was all Wyatt. Don't you just love his smile?

Oh kindergarten is fun. If this year keeps racing by like it has I will have another kindergarten graduate in about a month. Time stands still for no one, not even fun little kindergartners.

Silly sidebar: We are netflixing Gilligan's Island discs. It was one of my favorites as a kid, I think at one point I watched it every day after school and I know I have seen them all many times over. Anyway, I have never heard my kids laughing so much for anything they have watched before this, they crack me up. That show is so wholesomely funny and ridiculous of course. I used to think Skipper was bully and bossy. Now I see how much he loves his little buddy and is just looking out for him. I highly recommend Gilligan if you have a kid or a gang of them, especially on a rainy day like today. I wish you could hear my kids giggling at Gilligan right now. Now Wyatt is telling me about Gilligan singing opera and he wants me to come and check it out. Ciao.