Christmas

Grandma and Grandpa Harp came over for Christmas Eve. We sang carols and played a silly little tell-a-story-open-a-gift game Grandma Harp created. Aunt Debbie made these darling penguins that Ty couldn't get enough of!


In perfect California Christmas fashion, we spent Christmas Eve at the beach, enjoying the tide pools and the sand dunes.



As has been the tradition for generations, we acted out the Christmas story from Luke 2. Robbie refused to be Joseph, but Ty was all too excited to be a shepherd (wearing authentic garb Uncle Daniel brought from Jerusalem). Just for the record, Uncle Jaron was the donkey.

Christmas was absolutely gorgeous and after the presents were unwrapped, they were outside the rest of the day. (This is of the kids anticipating distribution!)



One big highlight was this stomp rocket. Each time the kids caught one of the launched rockets, they got a quarter from Grandma Wilde or Grandpa Harp. The kids were loaded by the end of the day. :)

Other Vehicles

He's wanted one is whole life--my mom finally gave in. Yep, here's my dad with his very own John Deere tractor! We tried to do races--tractor vs. lawn mower, but the mower ran out of gas and had to be towed by the tractor! So funny.



It rained hard for almost a week straight, completely flooding the uncovered boat! Rob took a dryvac to the whole thing and dried out all the equipment--the kids thought it was the best!

Unstoppable

Rob is currently in the garage with his dremel and a headlamp. Should I be worried? Of course not--he's just sawing off the muffler (yes, with that very dremel) to our new hand-me-down '96 Mazda. Never done it before. Oh, but no worries--he watched a how-to video on YouTube. Awesome.

Beach Blast

Weather is no hindrance--not to my boys, at least; the beach is appropriate at all times of year for them. We've been having a blast taking them to Marina Park--one of my favorite beaches as a child. They run and splash in and out of the water--both ending up completely soaked by the end of the day. The latest has been the sand dune adventures--leaping from the top (Rob demonstrates) or making it into a slide (see Ty). Ty has the most "jumping guts" running full speed and lunging from the cliff--totally eating it face-first sometimes. Robbie's the "water devil" braving any wave that dare comes near him. So fun (except that now my camera is BROKEN--I think there is sand in it!)

While in Utah this weekend for my little brother's wedding, Rob stayed with the boys and had a blast at low tide. They caught a crab, found a huge group of anemones to touch, and a starfish the size of Ty's torso. They didn't want to leave--I've got little beach boys in the making. Love it.

Hottest Pool Boys Ever!

The boys can't get enough of Grandma and Grandpa's pool. It's freezing cold so they haven't even been in it, but they spend most of the day by its side. They brush the steps and bottom; they get the brooms wet and "wash" the deck; the latest, though, is the sea kayak--they go for boat rides all day. So cute.

Yesterday Hunter, the dog, tried to hop in with Robbie and totally missed! He panicked, reaching desperatly for the edge but couldn't get up. Imagine the fat pregnant lady lifting the obese wet dog from the pool--hilarious, I'm sure!

Big Green Dinosaur

My mom interviewed Robbie after mowing the lawn and turned his responses into a poem.
i like it when i get to help
dad mow the lawn
it’s the funnest ever
only big boys can ride
with dad
--cause grandpa’s lawn mower
is like a tractor ride
it is REALLY dangerous

it kind of looks like
a BIG green dinosaur
but it has some black on it too
the seat is yellow
and it has lights on it
so after dark
we can see

i can’t drive it by myself yet
it is really tricky
when you turn it on
it kind of hurts my ears

i get to sit on dad’s lap
it is like a car
because it has a steering wheel
he lets me steer sometimes
i’m like a big man –a little bit

my favorite part
is when it’s going up hills
it is really fun
we go up there
and get the grass

it is like a weed eater
because it eats grass
it chops it up
then it goes into bags
sometimes it spills
on the sidewalk

when the bags are all full
we dump it out
way back in the yard
it’s hard to turn it around
but that’s alright

i like riding on it
cause it’s a little bumpy
specially when we go over rocks
sometimes I get off
and pick them up
i found a brick too
and toys and sticks

the seat tickles and shakes me
it’s kind of funny
we run over the dog poop
it’s really yucky
i wish I could do it again
right now
it’s the bestest ever

A Life of Work

My parents live on a little less than three acres, which really just means tons of room for the boys to explore. I learned to hate Saturdays growing up; it wasn't a play day at our house, it was a work day. My boys got a sweet taste of it on Saturday. They woke up and spent almost two hours mowing the lawn and yard (though it was way more fun than tedious), and that afternoon they helped Grandpa plant a plum and nectarine tree in what will be called the "Family Orchard" (we each get to pick a type of tree to plant etc.). That evening, Robbie went to the hardware store with Grandpa and got his first real hammer and wrench. What a day!