Goodbye Salanoa's

So a few weeks ago we had a BBQ at Kristin and Monty's before they left for their next adventure. Colorado will be home for them for a bit as Monty returns to school. I am very sad to see them go. I have enjoyed getting to know my sister in law better and her family as well. I loved watching the kids play together and seeing Christian start to play with the "big" kids. We will miss them, but at the same time are excited to visit them because we always wanted to visit Colorado. :)

These are a few fun pics that we captured at the BBQ.

They have a great yard for bike riding and the kids learned how to ride pretty well on thier own that night. Now Christian wants a big boy bike.A litle help from mom.Just what she had been waiting for...thanks Auntie!Our new found fav that we brought to share.

7 years

Dustin and I celebrated 7 years of marriage on July 19Th. We went to Glen Ivy Hot Springs for the day and enjoyed some much needed relaxation. We soaked in some pools and rubbed some mud on each other. :)We did take the camera, but kind of forgot about it and just enjoyed the time together, so no pics to post from our fun day.

I will post this pic of the two of us courtesy of Christian (note the blurriness). This pic was taken on our vacation last week...more on that later.

Christian's first day of kindergarten

Dear Christian,

Yesterday was your first day of kindergarten. When I woke you up for school you were excited and ready for your adventure. As we arrived at school you kept your positive attitude and entered your new world with eagerness. You were a little shy, but still excited. Your new teacher, Mrs. Proach, greeted you by name and you even gave her a hug. Your friend Cambria is in your class (as I requested) so that should make things easier for you. But I think you will quickly make new friends. Daddy even took a day off from work so he could be there for your first day of school. Chloe missed you, but really I think she liked the house to herself a little too. :)

When we picked you up from school Mrs. Proach said you had a good day. You cried a little, but she thought it was because you needed to use the restroom. :) You later told us a boy pushed you down. Overall you said you liked school and that it was fun. We were so glad to hear that. (just a reminder that your 2nd day didn't start out so good, lots of crying when I left you, from both of us) We took you to lunch at Uncle Andy's work to get sandwiches, you were happy!!


You were excited as we left for school...you picked Star Wars for your back pack and lunch box
you looked so handsome!almost there...a quick stop in front of your school sign...and the adventure begins...your friend Cambria is there to share the funmy last view of you as we say goodbye

Christian we are so proud of you!! We know it was a hard day (for all of us), but you did great. When you told us a boy pushed you down we wanted to hunt him down. We talked to you about it and really you seemed to just brush the whole thing off. You are so forgiving, we need to be more like you. As parents we just want to protect you and make sure you are safe at all times. It's hard to be away from you, but we also know that we need to. You have to explore the world for yourself and learn and grow into the amazing man that we know you will be. We love you so, so much and look forward to watching you grow and learn.

xoxo
Mom & Dad

It's HOT!!

Summer has finally hit us and hit us hard. It's HOT!! We were looking for a little relief for the kids since they were getting pretty tired of being stuck in the house and I think we found it. We got the kids a slip-n-slide and the fun began...

Chloe wasn't too sure about sliding on it, but she sure had fun wearing the goggles and jumping in the puddles.Christian took right to it and had a blast!And he loved getting a little extra help from dad. :)Dad had some fun of his own...I could have snapped photos all day of the fun that was being had. Sometimes it really is the small things that make for a happy life! I sure love my little family!

4th of July

It feels like I'm behind on blogging, but really I'm not. We just haven't done much lately except the daily routine of things and to be honest we haven't even taken any pictures of our own family.

Dustin is still crazy busy at work and my little photography business has been plugging right on it's way with a few shots each week for the past few weeks and even some wedding consults in their so you know we are busy around here. And we have also been fighting germs in the house...yuck!!!

We did snap a few pictures on the 4th of July though. We went to Church in the morning then just relaxed at home during the day. As it got dark we headed out towards the University of Redlands to watch the fireworks. We found a new favorite spot to view them from and sat back and enjoyed. It was even a little chilly which was so nice.

Chloe had seen these flags at the store and said we had to get them and wave them at the fireworks...so we did! :)

still alive...if you were wondering

I wish we had some fun and exciting news to report, but really nothing too exciting on the home front. We have been busy with pre-kinder stuff for Christian as he will start school on August 9Th (tear). I had the amazing opportunity of attending an awesome photography workshop last weekend (more on that later). Dustin has been so busy at work, which means job security I guess so that's always a good thing. And my photography business is just rolling right along and getting bigger as it goes. This is a huge blessing to us, but a little intimidating at the same time for me. I told Dustin that I think I have to start considering myself a working mom, at least part time. :)

So I really have no fun pictures to share because we have been doing a little more working than playing these days, but some fun is coming soon...I can feel it. :)

catching up (again)

It seems like all I do on here is play catch up these days. I guess it's a good thing to be busy though and so I don't have too many complaints about it. It's good to be busy in these hard times.

So lets get started...

One night I went into Christian's room to check on him and this is what I found him doing...He said it was him and I holding hands and that he missed me so much. I couldn't even be mad that he was still awake after that. :)

The kids had their first dentist appointments...it was an experience to say the least. Their teeth looked good though, so that was good news. Chloe got her first nightgown, thanks to daddy, and loved it!She is still obsessed with her baby dolls.I love how this little guy on the TV seems to be suggesting how my clients must feel when they see me coming. :)Some cute momentsChloe wanting to wear daddy's hatChloe loves to talk on the play phone and this time she said she was talking to Auntie Kristin...about babies I believe!Christian enjoying daddy's birthday present...a Nintendo system.This was the little kitten that Dustin rescued under the house. Some how it was up in the floor boards under the house...no idea how it got there.