Word on the Streets

solitary sam [toy drawer play]. . .

when i am at home in the day it is just sam and i together. there are still things i have to get done and even though i do sit and play with him for a little while the laundry needs switching, the dishes need to get unloaded or loaded and there are still any number of other projects that creep into my day. while i work away trying to get things on my to do list done, sam has time to himself to explore and play. he makes new discoveries and advancements each day in the confines of his home. just the other day i found him inside the toy drawer. up to this point he has only been able to stay up to it and bend over into it to get things out. he has figured out how to get in and out of it now and loved walking around the corner to find him sitting in there completely content. i couldn't get wait to pull out the big camera for this series! i love capturing him in moments like this and it is not always doable. but today he was in there and didn't realize i saw him so i had time to get to my big camera and shoot before it all went away.

little big man sam lately. . .

sam is growing up so very fast. he plays with my shoes to feel big. he sat in his chair and watch cousin robert work for an entire day, fascinated completely by the power tools and robert himself. he plays in the dog fountain at the kiddie park. why is there a dog fountain in the kiddie section of the park? he goes down the big slide by himself with ease. he got his first big hair shave and it is much cooler for him but i miss his long straw-like hair! this little big man is growing up way too fast. 

house changes at the streets. . .

we have been working on little changes around the house this year. i have had a dream of a few things happening and slowly but surely they are coming true! i just can't believe it has taken me this long to make these changes but i'm very glad we are getting to it. 

first big change was the hallway. i have always craved a mud room and never been able to figure out how we could have one. then we came up with this idea to fill in the 1/2 wall in the hall and hollow it out on the hall side to make a cavity where backpacks and coats and school projects etc could be placed. so my cousin robert got on it and made it a reality. this was a huge change in the house. it made it so that i could order a very large canvas of our family photo for the other side of the wall. and what used to be our dining room in now a second family room of sorts. we added wall sconces on a dimmer and ordered a comfy corner sectional for the room. the rug was a steal at world market and my old trunk serves well as a coffee table in the room now. it is a comfortable place for our family to sit and enjoy each other and listen to the boys play piano. (piano playing--still a work in progress!)

i got the hooks for the hallway from world market as well and we decided to put only one long shelf in. I don't want a place for tons of junk to accumulate! 

we are working on having our kitchen cabinets painted white and redoing our backsplash. then we are looking at wood flooring! it could be a dream come true. i just have to wait and see if it will acutally happen! lots of before and after posts might be coming this year. for now i have photos of our hallway and our new comfortable front family room. area.

the second cousin's camp of 2013. . .

this year we are doing three separate cousin's camps. not everyone will be together in the summer so we are doing cousin's camps with each set of cousin families when we get to see them. this second cousin's camp was with the waite family. sabrina, annie, and lauren and jack and morgan had a fun day and 1/2 together. the t-shirts turned out cute and they wore then all day on saturday. everwhere we went people wanted to know what they stood for. 

friday night we went to lucille's bbq restaurant for dinner. we did that mostly because everyone would find something they liked and the name lucille was the children's great grandmother (spelled lucile whitehead bunker). then we went to see charlotte's web at the henderson pavillion. it was a great show! the kids really liked it. the theme this time was from small things the Lord can do great things. so the play charlotte's web went right along with that. then all the kids slept over at our home. then next day we were up early and went across town to the orchard where the children picked arugula, spinach, kale, beets and snap peas. then across the street from the orchard there is a small family farm that is open to the public. there were plenty of animals for them to see. the cow, the pig and turtles and the peacocks were all happy to have company. we bought a few fresh veggies from the farm and then washed up and headed to our favorite cupcake bakery in town: retro cupcakes. the glass case with all of the cupcakes in it was like heaven! all the children got to pick two kinds for themselves. they loved it! 

next we stopped at our favorite fast food joint in town for burgers and the best shakes on the planet! smashburger on sahara hit the spot! i just downed my chocolate shake in a minute after such a long morning outside. 

when we got home the children swam in the pool to cool off for a few hours. then we got busy painting pj shirts and an 8x10 canvas. the 8x10 canvas was the official art project of the camp. so they each had to paint something that went with the theme. i thought each canvas turned out great. it was fun to see what each child imagined. sabrina did the water from cancun, annie did an A for her body, lauren did the earth, jack did a volcano and morgan did a turtle. these will look great hanging in their rooms. it was a fun day!

 

easter 2013 [house of sickness]. . .

coming home from spring break was not so fun because for the entire week that followed everyone in our home was sick and couldn't kick it. our easter was very low-key. it was almost something we completely passed up because no one felt good. but baskets got filled and the neighborhood easter bunny did come to our door as he does every year. sam was even not feeling good enough to really enjoy the finding of his basket. once he found his little bunny he gave it lots of loves. 

spring break 2013 mini cousins camp san clemente, ca. . .

for spring break we took the first 1/2 and went to stay with cousins in san clemente, ca. it is always a great time! we love to visit them and play. since this year we are not able to get everyone together for our yearly cousin's camp we are trying to mini cousin's camp activities when we can get together with the different families. rod and i took the harris cousin campers down to san diego to the mormon battalion museum and then the historical state park across the street in old town san diego. it was so much fun! we fit in the car just perfectly, thanks uncle darren for your tahoe! the mormon battalion museum was the favorite for all of the kids. it is so well done and so very interesting. it is also free! if anyone wants something fun to do with kids and adults that is a great place to go and visit. 

we have two of our ancestors who were in the battalion: edward bunker and robert harris. the presentation is so well done! jack got to be dressed up as if he were in the battalion. it was hilarious! the kids panned for gold and we went up to the watchtower and felt the wonderful coastal breeze! these kids are just so much fun. on the way home we played music and they sang and sang. i got video of them which we have packed into a video for nan and chief who are in africa on a mission. we talked then on monday night about weaknesses and how they can become strengths. the mormon battalion men where asked to do a very hard thing but because they did it they actually were blessed to learn how to thrive in the desert and in the west so that when they made it to the salt lake vally they were better equipt to teach people how to cultivate the land and thrive. our weaknesses can become strengths and we can all do hard things. 

the historical state park was fun too. we explored some old wagons, made out like bandits at the general store candy wall, panned for more gold, saw a donkey and held the reigns of a stagecoach! it was perfect weather and fun. we love times like that together!

on monday we hit the beach as a family. we love to go to crystal cove. it is beautiful and the tide pools never disappoint. the sand was perfect for building castles and the waves were just right to play to your waist in. sam was not too sure at first but once he got the hang of the sand he was enjoying himself compeletly. 

sam in blue stripes. . .

sometimes a darling baby and beautiful natural light are just the perfect combination. sam in his blue shirt with stripes and his big blue eyes are just the thing to capture. i love this baby boy more than words can say. he is a treasure i waited for and waited for and am so glad i have. would that there were three more just like him. my dear boy, you are loved! (16 months old)

our own little jedi warrior in the house. . .

sam has found the pipe that blocks our slider door. we are so very sophisticated here with our locking system! he is carrying that pipe around the house most days and acting like a little jedi warrior! i must say he is darn adorable and i love that he finds such joy from simple things. this is just a quick snapshot of him playing while i was working on the couch and had my phone. 

then other day i cleaned out our garage floors. while sam sat in his stroller outside with me i scrubbed down the garage floors. it was so nice to start clean in the spring. i am sure with the summer heat on the black pavement we will have black floors again soon enough. but to start clean is always a good start. 

i'm thinking of having my kitchen cabinets painted white. i dream of a white kitchen but the trick it how to do it on a dime budget. it is a trick i think. 

everyday sam is my little buddy at breakfast. we sit with jack and morgan at breakfast before school but i am usually busy making lunches and we read scriptures and pack backpacks and sign papers. it is a mad dash to get out the door. so after they leave sam and i have time to sit down together and eat our own breakfast calmly. it is such a treat and priveledge to have him!

at home alone with sam. . .

sam is at home alone with me during most of the day. he wanders around on his knees and finds things to do. i chased him around with my camera one day and i love what i got. i love that he sits quietly on the carpet and watches a few minutes of tv. i love that his little white diaper sticks out from his pants and shirt in the back. i love that he seems like he is king of the castle at home alone. and though it is sad, i love when he comes to my knees and begs to be held. 

february and some of march randomness. . .

the first of this year has been swamping me for some reason. i have not had my big camera out and i've only relied on my iphone to capture our doings. here are a bunch of february randomness. 

1) my cousin robert is back to work on our hallway and help me create a wall in our dining room/living room and a coat/backpack doorless closet in our hallway. he is so good at what he does, seriously it is going to be amazing when it is all finished. he showed up looking like the alaskan wilderness man that he is and we love it!

2) we've been looking at wood flooring for the house. just looking and i'm in love!

3) spring is here and easter is nearing so i purchased a darling little bunny friend to hold my fresh flowers for the season. he makes me absolutely giddy with happiness when i see him on my kitchen counter.

4) sam is so cute around the house. i catch the backside of him in his favorite places. sam is getting very comfortable at the park. he is making his way to the top of the slide and comes down with a little nudge. i love this baby and am happy to take him to the park anytime. he is not a crazy wild child. he has some trepidation but not too much to be annoying. he is cautious and careful but has fun. 

5) we've purchased outside lights for inside our new living room. on the wall that robert is building we are going to put lanterns and i think i'm gonna love them. i've also ordered a massive canvas photo of our family. it is massive and i'll have to take a photo of it when it arrives. 

6) we purchased a couch, a sectional really. it is for our living room. we moved the dining table over under the big side window and are creating a more useable living room in the old dining area. we also moved the piano over there into where the buffet used to be. i really like it and hope that we use the front room more! the sectional will take a long time to get here. it is a grey velvet color and i'm so beyond excited to see it all finished.

7) girls camp. i've been asked to be the youth camp leader supervisor this year. it is being incharge of about 50 girls from 9 different wards. i'm so excited about it. i've been released from all my other church responsibilities (primary leadership for 8 years was a long run.) we've been coming up with the logo and the fun little things that YCL girls are incharge of doing like 1st years initiation and special pins to give away.

8) we purchased a bed frame finally. after 12 years of marriage i found a bed that i love. it was at the same place we got our sectional and it was in the clearance section. it was a total of $350. and the funny thing is it is the exact same style as the one at restoration hardware that i love.

9) this might sound funny but i've been cooking with lots more cabbage. cabbage is so good for you and i really like cooking with it. red cabbage especially makes everything beautiful.

10) jack and morgan are totally into the star wars origami books. they are not actually star wars produced but an author has used the story characters to create books that make little origami figures. jack and morgan are loving it. i have all these little finger puppets all over my house.

11) sam is still good in the stroller with me walking. he is so happy while we walk.  

12) rod turned 42 this year. he is salt and pepper more each day. it was a brillant idea he had to get little mini bundt cakes in different kinds. we all had a bite of each kind and there was just enough to go around. we love this man! he makes life so easy and enjoyable.