Wildflower 2012-Bradley, CA

Martha, Justin, John, Maureen and Rob braved the heat and hit the water and pavement for some real fun, well...I guess I would not go that far, but we did have fun.  I was able to join the triathletes for their journey this year.  With the exception of Rob, this was a first time event for our group. I can honestly say, they inspired me. Don't get any bright ideas, I'm not out swimming in a freezing cold reservoir, but I do want to try and join these crazy kids for another adventure. We had a great time.

Ode to the moments...............

After I saw this on "Pinterest" I realized that even after the baby stage, losing sleep while holding or rocking or soothing one of my children is quite possibly one of my favorite things.  The stillness of the night marked by the comfort of my child, is priceless.

We're Having a HEAT WAVE

We were blessed with summer temperatures in the Bay Area this weekend. I did not take the kids to the beach on Saturday and regretted that, so Sunday morning, I packed them up early and we went to Santa Cruz.  Because of my lack of expertise in the Bay Area weather patterns, I met 55 degree weather and fog.  I'm happy to say, the girls barely noticed, until Harpers feet turned blue.

As we packed up, however, the fog lifted and it turned into a beautiful day. I had a good time, spent all of it with the kids are had a blast.  Luca and Harps also got out and rode their bikes and "rides" this weekend. Luca would sleep with her new bike, if she could.

Look Out Lance Armstrong

This Christmas we bought Luca a balance bike. For those of us that are "older" we didn't have these growing up, so I was a bit skeptical about their success in helping children transition from training wheels. Nonetheless, Santa gave Luca one and she rode that sucker everyday for months. When the Bensings moved, Cousin Paige was nice enough to give Luca her fancy bike that was too small for her. After a few minor adjustments and new brakes, etc.. Luca's bike was ready to go. Sadly, when we arrived at the bike store, Luca was beside herself to find out this bike did not have training wheels. The bike shop repair man even told her that this bike is so fancy that it cannot have training wheels. Luca left the store crying. In her dramatic ways she even screamed "I cannot believe this, I don't have training wheels." I knew that Luca could do it, but she did not believe in herself so I decided not to make a big deal of the drama (I'll save that for when she's in high school!). We got to the park and I told her we can just forget it and go buy a bike with training wheels later this year. Luca wiped off her tears, put on her helmet and waited for her dad to grab the seat. Next thing I knew I was pushing Harper in the swing and there went Luca, sans Justin. She did so good and we were all so proud of her. There was a woman watching her son play at the park who thought that this was just the sweetest moment. She took a few pics for us and emailed them to me. When we got home, I was able to take some pics. Harper made it difficult because she tried to escape from our watch. I did manage to snap some. By 8:00pm, she was showing her skills to the neighbors and asking if she could ride it all weekend. She cannot wait for her cousins to come home so she can show them her new skills. Justin and I were both so proud of her. Way to go Luca! Needless to say, I'm saving the balance bike for Harper.