Monterey Bay Aquarium

What with W's Easter break and starting up his second-to-last quarter and taking the only fast working computer with all our uploaded pictures, I have simply neglected our blog postings a bit. To be honest, it's been really nice not spending as much time on the computer. I'm amazed by how much I'm able to get done around the house or how nice it is to simply relax on the sofa, reading our book of the month. Anyway, I digress....here's what we did during W's break...

 Our first family vacation! First stop was the aquarium. I haven't been in years while W & E have never been. It's a lot bigger than I remember. And even though it was the middle of the week, there were a ton of people. The seahorse & jellyfish exhibits were my favorite. Did you know that in some species, male seahorses are the ones to give birth?! Could you imagine? :)

So amazingly awesome that we get the chance to see some of God's most creative & intriguing work!

Ezra did really well during the day! He loved being faced out in his wrap which was the first time we tried it.We only had a rough time during part of the car rides to & fro...go figure. And we had a minor melt down before bed {at a Thai Restaurant...um, we'll take our food to-go, please!}, but he slept very well in his pack-n-play. It's definitely more stressful traveling with a youngster {especially one who hates his car seat}, but we were a great team & still really enjoyed it. It was good to start local just to try it out first. Oh, and it's really hard not to buy things for him {now that I know he's a boy & all}, but I was very good...our first day anyway. He doesn't need anything. All things baby really require a lot more self-control!!!

Happy Easter!

Today was spent at church in the morning and at my parents' in the evening. I'm so overjoyed to say that we're not too old yet for Easter baskets! :) William totally made out with lots of fun gadgets for cigars while Linds & I got hot yoga passes. Ezra got a tiny basket with a book and rattle. He's very excited.

 We had a fabulous lamb dinner with all sorts of sides. And Lindsay made the most delicious dessert which somehow was feasted upon before any pictures could be snapped! It was a fabulous evening and I loved having everyone together. Great food, wine & company! Eat, drink & be merry for today we are spiritually alive...thanks be to the Lord!

Moto Museum

We've lived here for exactly three years and have talked about the Blackhawk Museum for all three of them. After spending the afternoon in the plaza, we decided to come back the next day and actually go on that date that W's been wanting to take me on. We packed a lunch, joined with the Germans and headed out. I'm not a huge car fan, but I can appreciated pretty things. Lots of shiny chrome and glossy colors. Here's some of my favorite...

And my favorite favorite {we would TOTALLY own one!}

See, doesn't it just look like we all belong?!?

On Being Manly

This is what I came home to last night after tutoring. Apparently, W didn't like ANY of the gifted binkie holders and said they were way to close to being girlie. So this is the contraption he created to give Ezra a more rustic, manly feeling. And because I can't undo his knots, I guess this is the way it's going to be! ;)

Fun Friday

We had a fun-packed day yesterday! First, Ezra & I headed to the Scrapbook Expo to walk around the chaos that Missy Diane called "March Madness for Women". To date, I have never seen so many items all dedicated to one hobby nor as many "Scrapoholic" t-shirts. Based on the ladies' purchases, the dollar booths were a real hit. I just went for the "experience"...  and to see all the goodies my mom bought for Ezra's album! Although I am a sucker for cute stamps but successfully walked out empty-handed! :)

Ezra did fabulously-- meaning he slept the entire time besides his feeding! And with the 135 to .25 female to male ratio, it really wasn't a problem. We also watched a few demos to learn new techniques.

All the ladies & their goodies

For the last half of the day, we headed over to a nearby town to enjoy the sunshine, some shopping and just hanging out with our German friends.

We introduced them to my favorite store. Here's W and Ez color coordinating with the store's decor.

And the ladies trying on headbands..of which I purchased one. Figured I did so well at the Expo, why not treat myself?! ;)

And on the way home, Ezra decided to discover his foot!!  Definitely a big day! It was pretty much the first full day we've gone out with Ezra. And he was smiles the whole time & napped really well in the wrap. Phew, what'd I tell you. I'm just tired by recapping it!

My Favorite Kind of Seafood!

Our dear friends, the Moogs, got so cute & creative for our church's annual Chili Cook-off a few weekends back! Autumn, my favorite baby girl, was the star lobster {Is it weird that I love holding her when she comes over on Tuesday nights and Ezra is already asleep? I swear I'm really not ready for another one...yet!}. They even served their seafood chili with baby goldfish on top. A.dorable! We love you, Autumn Rain!

Book of the Month

Another fabulous book from book club!! I'm happy to report I only missed one month since Ezra was born. And I'm glad I came back for this one. This is an excellent book with great writing, character development, and story line. The 500+ pages were very intimidating at first, but very easy to get through. It's a historical fiction piece that follows the life span of Amineta Dello, an African stolen at 11 & sold into slavery during the 1700s. She lives as a slave in South Carolina, eventually finds freedom during the Revolutionary War, and spends the last of her years fighting against slavery with British abolitionists. Meena endures all sorts of horrible loses, but there is still an awesome redemptive quality to her story!

 Going Away for Heather & Meeting Ezra Party!

So next week, we all meet. What started as just a neighborhood book club has expanded & changed since we began last spring. We gained two new girls and lost one, the creator of the club! I've really enjoyed getting to know these incredible ladies and read books I wouldn't necessarily pick on my own. It has also been a great intellectual outlet since I'm no longer teaching. Plus the wine, stories and silliness aren't bad either.

St. Patrick's Day

What a great day yesterday was! Ezra napped so well while I was quite productive around the house and stole some moments to relax. And he was in such a great mood while we "played" together. The weather was absolutely beautiful so we enjoyed it with a walk outside. W & I also got a few hours (Thanks, Dad!) during the evening for our tradition of drinks! We met up with a friend at a favorite local bar...one of the few places that serves Guiness, W's favorite beer. Then home again so W could keep studying for finals!

Things that make me happy on Leprechaun Day!

Thanks to blood from my mama's side I am 1/4 Irish. Both from the North and the South, I'll have you know! Even though I don't have to wear green I do just 'cause it's fun. And Jess has some Irish in her (care to fill us in on how much, Moms?) , but that makes our 'lil Leprechaun at least 1/8 Irish!

So to celebrate this glorious day I wanted to share a few pics of things that make me happy 'round this time of year.

Mama Judy sent us some cute socks for E.


The new leg of the Swenson Clan
(notice the drool marks on the shoulder!)

Walks in the woods


And, of course, Irish Beer for an Irish Day!

-W

Art Project

I'm not an artist at all. I really wish I was one. But one of the many things I learned from my 5th graders {when I was teaching} is that you don't have to be an artist to enjoy art. I love art. I love painting and crafting even though I know I'm not that great. I measure this by the fact that I could never sell my work, because no one would actually want to buy it.

But I've been looking on etsy.com for a "Baby Sleeping" sign to purchase, and after seeing a few, I thought Hey, why not make one?!  Since I had finished my book club book, I was looking for some other fun thing to do during Ezra's naptime. I headed over to Micheal's for a square canvas and ribbon. I've been working on it for a few days & just had to finish it because our Winter/Christmas wreath has being hanging since October. At least we got rid of the pumpkins a few weeks ago. Sheesh!

Here are the supplies I needed:

One 8x8 white Canvas
Various sized paint brushes
All purpose craft paint
Ribbon
Stencils

And here's the finished product hanging on my door right now. I don't love it. The crooked "knock" just kills me. It's definitely not perfect and I wished it came out better. But I like it. And I really enjoyed making it. Like I said... I love art, but I'm no artist.