Just when I got used to taking pictures of fast-moving kids...

...We went and got a puppy. A black, bouncy, floppy puppy who is in and out of the camera lens faster than I can take the cap off. My kids stop and say "cheese." The puppy, not so much.

Introducing the newest member of our family, Snarls Barkley.

At four months old he's 17 pounds, loves to play catch, seems potty trained already (keep your fingers crossed!), listens well and loves our kids. The Pasadena SPCA seems to think he's a labrador/chow mix, but only time will tell.

Welcome, Barkley!

Naps are cherished around our household

Saturday was hard.
It started out ok
but meeting our new puppy was stressful.
Explaining puppy jumping and excitement to toddlers takes a calm conversation.
Hard to do when he is jumping.
We couldn't find the freeway onramp.
Shopping for him was even more stressful.
The kids were well-behaved
but 179 choices of dog toys are too many.
And so are 82 collars.
What dog bed will he like?
And why isn't the dog door fitting like the box says it should?
I don't know what was wrong with me
but tears came several times throughout the day
when nobody was looking.
Smashed fingers in the automatic trashcan didn't help.
Neither did kids who said they wanted one thing for lunch
only to change their mind once it was served.
I disappeared several times into my bedroom
to beg Him for help getting through the day.

By 8:30pm I thought it best to crawl into bed,
read His Word,
Pray for more patience and less frustration,
and end the day early.

The next day was much smoother,
happier,
back to normal,
and filled with patience.
No anxiety or irritation.

And 3 hours of this helped.

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

Matthew 11:28

Weekend Lake FUN!

This weekend we hooked up our jetski to the truck and went up to our friends' house in Fresno for some good, reliable fun. We always have a good time, filled with laughter, great meals, and fun activities with kids, but this time we were looking forward to fun on Millerton Lake with our jetski and their parents' boat, and the trip did not disappoint.

We arrived nice and early to a calm, quiet, wide-open lake, ready for us to scream our watercrafts across.

Marley, age 1.5, was the only one who stayed on board all day.

Loudoun loved the tube the best....

Especially when he got to go SOLO!

Avalon had no fear either, and gladly took her turn with Dad.

It was so nice to go on a boat where not only could someone take a big camera (the jetski makes it difficult), but the mom we went with DID! She took some fabulous pics of our family enjoying a great day.

Mason (age 4, shown above with Loudoun on the tube) brought his brand new Spongebob boogey board, and it was big hit with all of the kids during lunchtime.

Our regular lake has a speed limit of 35, but this lake had NO speed limit...woohoo!

Everyone took turns on the jetski

I don't think I've waterskiied since age 14...over 20 years ago! But I got up on try #3. Not bad.

Although, Tommy was much better.

But my fall was the best of the day...and captured on camera.

We are definitely going to make Millerton Lake more of a regular, summer destination.

How come nobody interviewed me when I wanted to have kids?

Who knows why, after having 2 young kids who need constant attention, dance classes and soccer practices, swimming and bike riding, a husband who wants to be a lake rat every weekend, a new house that we are still learning how much yard work is required of us, and 2 full-time careers that demand our attention, sometimes after we drive out of the parking structure, WHY we are looking for our first puppy is beyond me.

And just when I came to grips with the fact that I am cuh-raaazy, I was presented with the fact that this whole dog adoption process is ridiculously involved. I have to fill out 20 minute applications, for every rescue I am considering finding a dog from. I have to get home inspections and approvals from all said rescues. I have to prove that I like to exercise, which I cannot even prove to myself and the rescues have to meet my kids to make sure they aren't spoiled brats who are gonna tug on the new dogs' ears. They tug on my ears, so I'm not sure what kind of guarantee they are looking for.

But I am ok with all of this, because I understand the importance of finding the right dog for the right family, especially when placing rescue dogs. I don't want to get the wrong dog, as much as they don't want me bringing the dog back after a several weeks.

What gets me though, is why don't they do these checks on people who want to become parents to KIDS?

birthday weekend. Yes, I drew it out for 3 days, so what.

My birthday was on Friday. The big 35. You know, I can no longer fit in the 25-34 bracket on surveys. And this year it was divisible by 5, so that makes it HUGE! Thanks, Jamie...we both feel excited about that fact!

I had to work on my birthday, but my boss let me leave early, so that was a nice treat. I went home to flowers from Rick, who had the day off. We took a long nap at the pool, soaking in the warm sunshine. When I woke up, I picked up Avalon and we went and got pedicures. I love girly time with her, and so does she! We both picked silver sparkles.

I received a birthday gift card in the mail for TGIFridays. A very LOUD restaurant, but a good place to take the kids on get this...Friday...so we yelled across the table and laughed and ate bar food on my birthday.

 

Avalon spent 20 minutes scooping her leftovers into the to-go box. She was so into it, she didn't even want any dessert!

On Saturday morning Rick and I took the kids over to Grandma's house for a weekend sleepover. Which meant our relaxing weekend began. We headed out to Jewelry District in Downtown LA and shopped for Rick. Then we sat down to lunch at our favorite sushi restaurant in the valley. We kicked back at home for a little bit, and then got ready for dinner and a show with good friends.

We slept in on Sunday until 11am....YES! 11AM!!!! I seriously don't think I've slept in that long since I had kids. We mozied over to all-you-can-eat brunch buffet where we sipped on coffee and filled several plates for over an hour. We came back to our pool and lounged during the rest of the afternoon. Well, Rick mowed the lawn and I tidied the house, but who wants to add that part to a birthday weekend?

We finished up the weekend by picking up the kids at Grandma's house and enjoyed a family BBQ dinner with close family members. On the way over we moved around carseats for the pick-up, and noticed this:

At first glance, Rick's backseat is pretty darn clean. But underneath, well that's a whole different story!!! Proof that kids are MESSY!

I feel well-rested, loved, joyful and peaceful. Rick and I got closer this weekend, missing my kids made me appreciate them even more, and spending time with family and friends reminded me I am pretty darn lucky.

Have a good week!

Wordless WATERMELON Wednesday