Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Trent's treasures

Trent is becoming quite the hoarder with all his treasures.  He has a bucket full of treasures on his desk that he says he needs and can't get rid of.  Every few weeks we go through the treasures and we donate a few.  I don't like clutter, so the numerous treasures he finds overwhelms me, but I am trying to let him keep treasures that are special to him and donate the rest. Sometimes the treasures can be as simple as a rubber band from the floor at Home Depot (I throw those away as soon as possible) or a bouncy ball from the quarter machine...Trent sees most anything as a treasure, which I can't decide if that's good or bad. Everyday I look at the bucket of treasures and really have to control my urge to throw it all in the trash.  What stops me is the joy I know Trent's treasures bring to him and how he treasures each of his treasures.
Another "treasure" Trent came home with...nutty!  
Everyone needs a fake mustache.

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Piano

Trent has been taking piano lessons for a year now and has progressed so much. He is now playing with two hands and his rhythm is getting so much better. He played a piece for us on Friday night and I was just so proud of him and how far he has come in just a year.



Thursday, October 6, 2011

Sunny San Francisco

We headed up to San Francisco last weekend and I was hoping for cooler weather than we had here at home, but no such luck.  The weather forecast indicated mid-60's with possible rain and cloudy skies, but what we got for the most part was beautiful blue skies with big white puffy clouds and temperatures in the low 70's.  I guess I won't complain, but I love mid-60 degree weather.
We were excited for our trip to San Francisco because our good friends just had twin boys in July and we would finally get to meet them.  Trent couldn't wait to see and play with their 4 year old son Luca.  Tim was over the moon excited about the bike ride he was going to do with Eric in Santa Rosa.  And I was just so happy that I would finally get to hold the new babies.  I just couldn't wait!
We got to San Francisco early Friday evening and it was perfect timing because I got to spend about an hour or so cooing over the twins before they went to bed.  Oh they are so perfect and I loved every minute I spent with them. I was rarely without one in my arms, which was fine by me.
I have Sammy and Tim is holding Matteo.
After the twins went to bed, we had a yummy dinner and then put the bigger boys to bed. Trent and Luca were super excited to be having a sleep over.  We read them a few bedtime stories and then it was lights out. 
 
Saturday morning came early for all of us.  Jen was up early with the twins, I think these days she is happy to get just a few hours of sleep a night. Tim and Eric were out the door and heading to Santa Rosa by 5:30 a.m.  Luca was up at 6:00 a.m.  Trent wandered into my room at 6:15 a.m., I told him to get into bed and sleep some more, which thankfully he did.  Trent and I got up at 7:00 a.m. and we were ready for the day...well kind of I needed some coffee first.  The zoo didn't open until 10:00 a.m., so we had a few hours before we needed to head out.  Trent and Luca played, Jen and I tended to the babies and when it was time we loaded the kids in the car and went to the zoo. We were a bit worried on the drive to the zoo because it was sprinkling a bit.  The zoo is on the coast, so it can get foggy and drizzly, but once we got into the zoo the sprinkling had stopped.  Through out the day the weather just kept getting better.  When we left the sky was blue and the weather was in the low-70's, just perfect.
A quick picture before we started exploring the zoo.
Checking out the zebras and giraffes in the distance.
Lemurs.
 Flamingos
 Laid back Meerkat
 Cuties!
 Feeding and petting the animals.
 
 
 
 Love this boy!
 Playtime for Luca and naptime for Trent.  
He said he was sooo tired...oh please.
 Checking out the bees.
 An old chimp.
 Cute Koala.
 Kangaroos, Emus and Peacocks
 Jen and Matteo
 Our scary spiders!
 One big anaconda...yuck!
 Waiting to board the train.
 
 All aboard!
 Waving to the people like they were celebrities.
 One pretty polar bear.
 Trent was very excited about the grizzly bears.
 
 A giant hippo.
 A relaxing rhino.
 Love the giraffe poking his head up and over the rocks.
We had a great time at the zoo.  We were there for about 4 1/2 hours and the twins did so well.  Trent and Luca loved seeing all the awesome animals.  After the zoo we went back to the house and Trent and Luca played, played and played some more.
We were all exhausted and ready for bed when Tim and Eric came home from their ride at 8:00 p.m.  Tim and Eric conquered Levi Leipheimer's GranFondo and I am sure they will do it again next year.  They rode 100 miles up and over the mountains in Santa Rosa.  They didn't have the great weather like we did.  They got the rain we didn't get and it was cold, but they finished the 100 miles and had great stories to tell.
We left for home late Sunday morning and got home by 5:30 p.m., which was nice.  I got things put away and ready for Monday morning.  We had a great weekend with the Sentlingers and we can't wait to see them again.

 My boy holding Matteo.
 All smiles!
Big brother Luca with Matteo and Trent
Sammy wasn't too happy, but Trent was happy to be holding him.
 Trent just wasn't sure what to do with a crying baby.
The gang...minus Jen who was taking the picture.

Splashing in the puddles

On Monday, I wore a tank top and shorts.  On Tuesday, it was a bit cooler, so I wore jeans and a t-shirt.  Then on Wednesday, it was pouring rain for most of the day and I had to pull out my rain boots and jacket to go with my jeans and t-shirt.  Seriously, this Southern California weather is bizarre. I don't mind the rain and I love the cooler weather, so the weather change was ok with me.
On the way to school Trent was telling me how he wanted to jump in the puddles when he got home. I am all for jumping in the puddles, but I had just given away his rain boots because they were too small.  I told him this and he said that's ok I can wear yours.  So, when we got home he put on my rain boots and happily jumped in the puddles. Now, I am on a mission to find Trent some new rain boots.
.
Trying to find the biggest puddle to jump in.
Our neighbors across the street usually have the biggest puddle.
Nice!