VERTIGO!

I just want everybody to know that I have not abandoned my blog- for the past several weeks I have just been really, really sick. I kind of thought that I was mostly just exhausted from taking care of my little dudes because they just hit this really, really active stage. These guys are climbing, running, jumping, whirling and just overall into everything. I was honestly just getting really dizzy taking care of them. At about the same time the doctor stuck me on some crazy medications because we are getting all set and ready to do another fertility cycle... at some point. Anyways, Ian started getting home earlier and earlier from work as my list of things I could do started dwindling- I couldn't cook- it made me too dizzy. I couldn't do the laundry, it made me too dizzy. I couldn't vaccuum, I couldn't get on the computer (hence the long absence)... I basically couldn't do anything. Finally Grandma Louise graciously agreed to watch the boys for a week up on her, well, it's practically an acreage. The boys romped and played and had the time of their lives and I got to rest. After the fourth day of not being able to watch a movie, look at the computer, or even look outside because it made me too nauseous and dizzy I decided to try something really easy- I went to the Family History Library to check out some nice, still, archival microfilms. It made me feel a bit queasy but I thought I would be OK. Well, I wound up puking all over the floor. My friend told me that something was really not normal with me. It was true, I hadn't been able to stand for more than a couple minutes without feeling pukey. Anyways, I went to the doctor right away and he diagnosed me with VERTIGO! It turned out one of the crazy medications he had me on has a small chance of causing this Hitchcockian little quirk. Once he took it out I got better and better. Once I felt a lot better though I was so mad!! My doctor did this to me!! But the good news is that I'm feeling sooo much better. Today I was even able to put in a load of laundry and yesterday I was able to watch a movie all the way through. My next one will have to be... you guessed it... VERTIGO!!

Monkey See

We just got back from a ridiculously fun weekend down in San Diego! A whole group of us headed down and stayed in the same hotel together. Wow, what an adventure- 8 couples, 10 kids and a whole lot of craziness. We hit the beach, Ian got to go surfing, and we took the kids on a carousel ride at Seaport Village in old town San Diego. Not all the kids liked the carousel, but Caleb couldn't get enough. He lifted both of his arms up high over his head and laughed and laughed. The craziest part was when we went out for dinner - the restaurant told us they didn't think they had enough high chairs to accomodate everybody. Needless to say it was quite a zoo! I'm going to put up some photos soon. We feel very blessed to have so many wonderful friends with children that are nearly exactly our kids' ages. Unfortunately we left our camera somewhere in San Diego amidst the mayhem, so I will have to get some borrowed photos unless it magically turns up. In the meantime, here's a silly video I took of my Puente boys- all three of them- from last week. They really know how to get each other going in the mornings!

My first quilt

Alright, so it's not perfect. I had some kind of setback at every single step along the way, from the very beginning when I chose a couple fabrics that just did NOT work together and had to pull out what felt like a million seams to achieve colour harmony in all 16 rows, to cutting my backing a liiitttle too shy of my front, to cutting my ties too short so they were just little baby stubs... anyways, I finally got her done. The process was so fun and I have to say that the end result is a very cheerful comfort indeed. I enjoyed the creative outlet that didn't require the level of intense concentration I have to draw upon when I edit, and I also liked the fact that I could pick it up and put it down at a moment's notice and didn't have to get frustrated about it (this last thing is something I've found to be very key with my two active and increasingly demanding little dudes). Also, so many other ladies in my ward are into quilting that it turned out to be a great bonding experience throughout the process. A group of us hit the fabric district on Saturday and I purchased the goods for my next quilt. I think the best part will be this weekend when I give the quilt to my sister-in-law Faith as a support gift during a crazy time in her lift.
As a random aside, I noticed that the outlandishly cute new line of baby girl dresses on Shabby Apple.com uses a ton of fabrics I used in my quilt, and that I just bought for my new quilt.
http://www.shabbyapple.com/c-16-shabby-baby-dresses.aspx

Hmm... a new project idea? I better master this first.

Happy Valentines Day Card For Melissa

A little early card for Melissa that we thought the rest of you might get a kick out of.

From The Puente Boys

Don't send a lame Starring You! eCard. Try JibJab Sendables!

Julian's Makeover

Before...




and After...




I just love the long baby curls, but Julian was starting to look a bit scruffy so we figured it was time for a little trim. Thanks to Auntie Faith, Julian's first haircut... well, we can't say it went by without a hitch, but it definitely had a successful finale. Although you probably don't notice the difference too much, Julian wound up with bang-free blinks. Julian wasn't too into it at first, but by the end he was enjoying the pampering. Thanks Faith!

Butterfly Sanctuary

We visited the monarch butterfly sanctuary along the coast by Santa Cruz over Christmas! It was so much fun! It's hard to see the butterflies in the photo, but they were everywhere. We looked through a telescope and saw them clustered on the trees. Afterwards we checked out the Natural Bridges State Park right on the beach. The boys loved running around there.

Santa Cruz Christmas

We had such a great time in Santa Cruz for Christmas! It was wonderful to see the whole family. Aside from the boys' colds everyone had a super time. Had to share the picture we took with Santa at the Santa Cruz lighthouse. Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the new year!

My New Year's Resolution- No More Bitter Ranting About LA Housing

A dear, sweet friend of mine stopped by a few days before Christmas to deliver a lovely little present. We sat down for a chat, and unfortunately she brought up a subject I have found myself trying to avoid lately: the housing options in Los Angeles. Before I knew what had happened I was atop my soapbox, lamenting about how much it costs to be here, how long of a commute Ian would have if we moved somewhere affordable, how terrible the high schools are in the whole Los Angeles area, which is just a bit pitiful to bring up because it has zero impact on me until like fourteen years, anyways, I went on and on.

After she left I felt pretty ashamed of myself. I let my bitter ranting get the better of what could have been a sweet Christmas moment. I realized that after Ian and I found out we couldn't afford a home basically anywhere in LA, I got really angry about it. I felt we had done everything we were supposed to- we got great educations, well-paying jobs, frugal lifestyles- Didn't we have a right to the American Dream which, by definition, includes a little home that you own in an unfancy neighborhood that's not 10hours away from where dad works, that has comes with nice kids for my kids to go to Scout Camp and church with and decent schools that turn out well-educated, community-minded, if not a bit immature, graduates?

Well, it turns out that if we're looking at living anywhere in the Westside of Los Angeles in super pricey southern California, the answer is no. End of discussion. I can't have all of those things here. I can have one, or two of them if I really try, but I can't have all three, or four, or however many it is. And getting mad at the Los Angeles tax codes and grandfather clauses and urban sprawl is not going to make me feel one bit better. I realized that what I can do to OWN the fact that we are choosing to live here, we are choosing this- LA living and all its warts. I've looked at the other options- moving out of the area, hiring a nanny and going back to work, etc. etc. and honestly, none of them is a better fit. Maybe someday, but not now. So my only option is embracing what we've got. So yeah, anyways, I'm going to head over for a beautiful bike ride along the beach on a perfect balmy Saturday at the end of December with my husband who has a super short drive to work- oh yeah, and I'll schedule one in for July too ;)