playing catch up

I don't know where the time has gone- things have been busy and kind of crazy around here. So here is a quick run down to catch up....

1. Paul had a week off- we were supposed to go to Oregon for a Sunriver trip and a home Duck game, but decided our time would be better spent at home getting things done around here (cleaning out the garage, landscaping the front yard, and other house related things). Did any of that get done?! Of course not!

We went to my mom's house in the bay area for a long weekend- went to the temple, played with YaYa and PaPa, visited with friends, and just enjoyed an unrushed visit.

Then we came home to gorgeous weather, so we just ended up playing all week. We went swimming, went to The Barn to pick out our pumpkins, got ice cream every day, and just hung out as a family. It was nice. We stayed busy- Paul went into the bank EVERYDAY since we were here. He just couldn't stay away. Plus, we just did our normal stuff- Avery had preschool, I had Young Women in Excellence on Tuesday, Paul had a softball game. So, the week just flew by, but we had fun.

2. We have our annual craft day at church on Saturday and I am in charge of one of the classes. I put together a family tree kit for the event. I am pleased with how it turned out. It has received a great response, which has meant a lot of work preparing all the kits. I am still short 4 frames after cleaning out every Walmart from the Bay Area to Santa Maria! It has been fun, but I will be relieved when it is over!

3. Our deck is finally done. It is kind of like an extra little room (especially with the weather being as warm as it has been lately). The girls love playing out there, running around, eating at their mini size picnic table and just enjoying the noises of the outdoors (their favorite activity is to sit, listen, and try to guess the sounds they hear- usually airplanes, dogs, chickens, or the horses nearby). We have been enjoying it as well. One more thing on the list down. If we could only get our front (and of course back- but that is on indefinite hold at the moment) landscaping done, maybe it would look like a completed house and our neighbors wouldn't consider us an eye sore any longer! That is next on the never-ending list!

4. We have had the pleasure of having Paul's 90+ year old grandma living here in San Luis at a retirement center for the past few years. It has been neat being able to see her on a regular basis and watching the girls develop a relationship with their great-grandma. Just last weekend however, she moved back down to the L.A. area where she is from, into more of an assisted living situation. We had a big family gathering to send her off. We will miss her, but know that she is happy to be moving back "home" and will have lots of family and friends there to take care of her. She even has another great-granddaughter named Avery down there (Paul's cousin has a little girl named Avery who is 2 months younger than our Avery).

5. I had the privilege of taking some photos of the most adorable baby girl last week for some friends of ours. They are the most beautiful little family and I had so much fun! Thank you Garrett and Becky for letting me into your new little world!

There is still so much to catch up on, but it is all going to have to wait for another time. I still have some work to do on the family tree kits! Always busy!