Why You Don't Buy the Cheap Nappies

...but before we get into all that, last night, Mom, Abby, the twins and I all went to the Yuba-Sutter Fair. It was really fun and I ran into some people I haven't seen in years. I remembered what it was like when I was a kid showing my 4-H lambs as we walked through the livestock barns and show areas. I got to camp out and stay the whole week and I remember every year, the same rule applied: stay away from the carnies. Like they even needed to say anything. I also told her when I was in a bed race with my friends, Heather and Ronnie and we won first and last place.Abby just had a total blast... although she'll tell you she's not too sure about that Go Gator roller coaster ride. Her face was on the brink of terror the whole time but she couldn't wait to tell her daddy that she went on a real roller coaster. She also got to play some carnie games, learn about local agriculture in a little passport book, get a toy airplane from the Republican booth, play in the kids area, eat a corn dog, taste cotton candy for the first time (something she's always wanted to do and talks about all the time), pet some animals and she even got her grandma to buy her a sparkly pink toy guitar. Pretty good night, I'd say.Don't you love how all the photos are blurry. Um, yeah, they're artistic and representative of a crazy evening... or something like that.Which brings us back to the cheap nappies. This is what I found when Liam woke up this morning... it was all dried on his legs and squished into the bedding and that's not chocolate on his face. The nappie, you will notice is by his head. I won't even get into the gory clean-up details but needless to say it all culminated with a large load of laundry, about a gallon of stain remover, a hospital bed-liner and a long baby bath. Is it night-time yet?

Bye-bye Ginger

My parent's horse, Ginger, has been sick for a while. She was getting really old and just deteriorating and there was really nothing to be done for her. Last week, she stopped eating her pellets and we knew the end was near so I sat Abby down and prepared her. Ginger was the first and only horse she had ever really known. All Abby knows about horses came from Ginger and she helped take care of her ever since she could barely even walk. She rode her when only 18 months old. She could feed her by herself with no fear of the giant animal following behind her. They were great friends.
Sunday, Ginger passed away quietly in the softest grass in her pasture. When I broke the news to Abby she just cried and clung to me for a while. She was absolutely distraught and said, "Ginger was just the best horse ever! I wish she never had to die!" and we talked about the Plan of Salvation and how death isn't the end but the beginning of the next life, etc. We talked about how we will miss her but that she wasn't in pain anymore, etc. We talked about how it was okay to cry, etc. She began to stop crying a bit and I thought we were really having a moment and then she said, "I wish Ginger was a pegasus-unicorn and could live forever in Butterfly Land!" Then started crying and dramatically threw herself back into my arms. She was totally serious and sincere and it was all I could do not to laugh.We loved Ginger and I am thankful for all she taught my daughter. She will be missed.

The Female of the Species...

...is more deadly than the male. Or so says Rudyard Kipling (and a terrible song from the worst decade of popular music... the 90's). I was on the computer and heard fussing behind me and when I turned around, this is what I saw; Lily climbing all over poor little Liam. At the time, I thought it was a funny coincidence since Lily is totally crawling around like Lightning and Liam is barely wiggling around (that head of his is HUGE), but just yesterday, I was at my parents house in the kitchen and when I came back into the living room, Lily was all on top of him again... poor little guy. He is stronger though, so when he gets good at moving around, she had better watch out!

My Mother's Dress

My mom was going through boxes of things she's stored over the years and came across a little dress she wore when she was a little girl. It was bought by her mother in 1958 and she wore it for school pictures. Well, she got it out, washed and pressed it and put it on Abigail and guess what? It fit her perfectly! How awesome is that? It was so cool to think that Abby was wearing a dress my mom actually wore as a child in the 50's. I don't even think it looks outdated. So cute!

Dillon Beach

Paul has been wanting to go to the beach for a long time but it seems like every day he has off, there is something else that comes up. Finally, Tuesday, we had a very nice family day and went to the Jelly Belly Factory and Dillon Beach. The weather at the beach was very typical North California Coast weather: chilly and windy and overcast. We found a nice big rock to shield us (especially the babies) from the wind and it was actually quite nice. Later, the fog lifted and it was even rather pleasant. Abby loved building sand castles, looking for shells and playing chase with the surf. We flew a kite, dozed and discovered a little crab and watched it for a while. We took a ton of photos. Lily seemed to really love it. She is very sensitive to the light and had to squint... she needs some baby sunglasses STAT. Liam looked like an angel the way the sea and sky made his eyes a brilliant blue. It was a lovely, memorable family day.Notice Paul in the background lifting Liam up to the sky near our little camp by the big rock.

Why I Haven't Been Blogging Lately

I'm exhausted...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz