Oh the fun...

...of a cone and a hose. 

The Boys' New Ride

One of the things we knew we'd miss about leaving Costa Mesa was being able to walk to the Back Bay. Having that area of nature so close to us was fun not to mention therapeutic. So, when we started talking about moving, we specifically looked for areas with a nature preserve or regional park.We were so happy to find a city that wasn't too far from the beach (for regular visits) and had it's own version of a Back Bay! Though we can't walk to this particular place, it isn't a far drive. While I was at work a few weeks ago, Ru took the boys on a little scouting adventure. They fell in love and Kyle did well keeping up by riding his bike over a mile! They were super excited to show me the following weekend. And just before the weekend came around, Ru found their new ride on Craigslist. This way, we figured, we could put in more than a few miles to our bike rides. That is, if they could get along in such a tight space. It was worth the try, at least.

On our first trip out, the boys did amazingly well. We brought each his favorite stuffed animal, a walkie-talkie, and plenty of snacks and water. 

Ru was amazing pulling both of them up incline after incline.

When we got back we noticed Gavie had fallen asleep cuddling up next to Kyle.

Precious.

We'll see how the next ride goes, but so far so good! :)

House Tour

Welcome! Come on in ...

That's a gardenia bush (above) by the way... We hear the whole thing blooms with the most amazing aroma. 

The Kitchen - 

It's tiny!! Hardly any counter space and limited storage. It's taken a lot of creativity to organize what we need the most and scale down what we have. It's cozy though. We can comfortably eat as a family by lifting up the side of the table. When we have guests, we eat outside.

The Living Area - This room is still a work in progress. We are likely to get rid of a few pieces and move  things around.

I didn't realize until uploading this picture that Gavie's birdie made an appearance on the mantel. He has been absolutely in love with this thing and holds it, kisses it, and squeezes it saying, "Bucka bucka baahk!" We'll forever remember this Christmas as the one with Gavie and the "chicken."

The Office - This space is in limbo, too. I have several ideas and I'm trying to forget the ones that involve buying something. What do you think? Should we move the desk over and put the bookcase next to it? Or, should the desk go under the window? Or leave it where it is? The filing cabinet will probably go in the garage. We're grateful we now have a place for the desk that's not in the dining area. Little steps!

The Boys' Room -  I specifically hung up wall decor that had been in their other room just to give them a sense of familiarity in this new place. Though after a while, I'd like to change/update a few things here, too. Hard to tell in this picture but the boys' gained 30% more space. That enabled me to bring in an old desk from my parents' house that I used to have in my room growing up. Kyle loves it and often uses it when he goes "to work."

I've really gotten into personalized/sentimental wall art. There's a story behind each piece and I love the idea of changing out/adding on to it as the boys grow. 

This one that says, "The Nights Are Long But The Years Are Short" really summarizes the past 4.5 years! :) I just had to color and frame it. Fortunately, moving here has been such a blessing in that area.

I don't mean to make my son's side of the room look like a classroom, but Kyle is really into maps and following directions. He cares very much about knowing where his family/extended family live. Even knowing where a cousin is in Norway. (He still talks about you, Tusen Takk! :)

We are painting the nightstand (pictured above) and this old chest of drawers (below) that was in my mom's room as a little girl. Both are primed and ready for some paint.

 The Boys'/Guest Bathroom -

The Master Bedroom - 

Our Closet/Vanity/Master Bathroom - Yes, I vacuumed. I need a picture of it so I can remember what that looks like! :) 

Outside! - There are two sliding glass doors, so the boys go in and out a lot. Gavie loves listening to all the birds that live in nearby trees. I'm telling you, we've got a menagerie. It's so peaceful outside. All you hear are birds chirping and the occasional airplane flying by.

We (my parents and I) spent a collected 9 hours weeding, trimming, and planting (back when Rudy was recovering from his injury). The planter to the left in the picture (below) was completely bare. Since we don't want to invest much of our own money in landscaping a temporary place, I was happy to find the little white-flowered plants for just $3 a pop. They're supposed to grow to fill the planter with some greenery and the occasional bloom of flowers. It's so fun to have some dirt to get my hands into. Hopefully we'll leave the place better than we found it. We'll see what color thumb I have.

K and G have a little play area. We store our bikes and other outdoor toys to the right of the picture where the width of their area continues down the side of the house. 

The boys got this sandbox from their GG. It's been a hit for them and any friend who comes over. Now the boys have sand, dirt, pebbles and rocks to play with.

Our new patio table has two ends that lift up to seat 10 people. This is how it looked a few days ago. It's been fun to eat outside comfortably (with elbow room and without neighbors seeing and hearing your every move). The Mexican blankets come in handy for early morning and evening meals.

And this is how it looked tonight with more lights up. 

So that's it (minus the garage). While this home isn't blow-your-mind amazing, it has greatly increased our quality of life. It's all the little things that add up to make a huge difference. Hope you can come visit us sometime soon! :)

The New House

Many of you have asked for pictures of our new place and I'm trying to take and upload them. Life has had a way of making that simple task surprisingly difficult to accomplish. My boys keep me very, very busy. :) We've also had a slower start in getting settled with being sick, the holidays, and Rudy being hurt for so long. We are ever so slowly checking off our list. Most of the rooms are still a work in progress with many walls completely bare. It's been fun and challenging to find new homes for our things. We've gained about 500 square feet but other than having larger bedrooms, the extra space is in weird places (like the "hallway" to our vanity/bathroom). A challenge for me has been to work with what we have and not buy that thing that would be really cute here or the new color schemed this or that. Most of our belongings are either hand-me downs or 10 years old. And while they are still functional, my tastes have changed and I would enjoy replacing quite a few things. But, keeping our focus on the goal...we are here to save and I realize it isn't wise to refurnish a temporary rental. Back in our apartment we were kind of stuck with the colors we had chosen to paint on our walls. Here, we have clean, bright white walls with new potential. It's a nice change.

Anyhow, we are so happy here. Though we fully appreciated our apartment, being at this house has affirmed how ready we were to move. Let's just say we have no doubts we made the right decision. Here's a list of some (new) things we are enjoying:

• Our new-found privacy and ability to make noise/be human in our home. 
• A backyard patio large enough for our boys to run around and play (and we can now comfortably entertain!) 
• Having an attached garage with good storage space and remote access 
• Trashcans at the side of the house (no more walking down to a dumpster!)
• Laundry washer and dryer!!! (no quarters!)
• No stairs to climb with bags of groceries, kids, laundry baskets, etc. 
• Larger bedrooms with vaulted ceilings
• Two bathrooms (yay for showering without kids' toys!)
• A fireplace. Though it will hardly be used, it adds a cozy feel to the room. I have a thing for mantels.
• A cul-de-sac with nice neighbors and friends for Kyle. There are 37 kids on our street and we're meeting them/playing with them on a daily basis!
• New places to explore around us. We miss being able to walk to the Back Bay, but we are close to several similar places in our local hills and regional parks - plenty of hiking and bike trails.
• A place for our desk that isn't in our dining room! :)
• Great city with a quaint, historic downtown. I could write a whole post on what we've found or learned about this town. It's a great fit for our family. Whew!
• Church friends who live a block away. I love being able to walk to a friend's house.
• Better commutes for both Rudy and I - we eliminated 1 of the 3 freeways we take to work. 
• Central location. We are closer to just about everything - except the beach :(  

So that's a few things, eh? It took a considerable amount of time and energy to find this place but we are still pinching ourselves that we've been able to significantly increase our quality of life while staying on a budget. Pictures coming...

Catching up - A Family Train Adventure

While Rudy and I were supposed to be celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary away, the plan was for my family  to take the boys on a train adventure to San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano. Even though Ru and I didn't end up going, we decided to opt for a morning to ourselves (for Rudy to sleep off the pain meds and I to get some much needed things done plus a lunch date. :) Kyle loved opening this present on Christmas Day and had much to anticipate for two whole days... :)

My parents and Mike and Allison got on the train up by their area and met us at our station. Kyle loved that they were coming on the train to get him. 

 Back on the train, they headed north to San Juan for lunch at Ruby's. We heard that our boys sat the whole time and ate their entire lunch! Wow.

Thanks, family, for a great adventure and memory for Kyle (and Gavin). Ru and I greatly appreciated the time. (Happy 10th, Ru!!)

Catching up - Snapshots of Christmas

I know it's well past Christmas, but I wanted to go back and include just a few pictures I took so we have at least some visual memory of this past season.

There are a few neighborhoods that go out-of-control Christmas light happy. The Brea one is a sight to behold. We hit up a few that were amazing but I didn't have my camera with me. The pics below are from a local one we visited. This particular house made it snow for us! Gavin kept exclaiming "Bubbles!!!" And yes, that's me at night in short sleeves...pathetic Christmas weather! I'm so glad that every other year my boys get to do what I did growing up...go someplace else that's cold and possibly has snow! Christmas carols make a lot more sense elsewhere. :)

 Both Gavin and Kyle were fascinated by all there was to look at.

 Back at home, Kyle wanted to be sure Santa knew we had moved and dictated our Santa sign for us.

Our Christmas morning was amazing thanks to the love and generosity of our IL family. Thank you!! Gavin loves balls and thoroughly enjoyed this present from Auntie Ray and Uncle Ben. A silly picture of Gav, but shows how happy he was about his present. ;)

 Kyle's favorite was this Panda Village building set from Santa. He's been saying recently that he wants to be a builder when he grows up. He enjoys building various villages for the Pandas.

Later Christmas morning we went to my parents' house where Auntie Michelle, Uncle Michael, and Auntie Allison were staying. I didn't get many pictures, but the boys had so much fun playing with their wonderful, new toys waiting for them there.

Kyle got to make and decorate cookies with Auntie Michelle.

 And he enjoyed reading books with Uncle Michael.

I'm sorry to my Oregon family for the lack of pictures from our Christmas together days later... however, for the sake of the blog record...we were all together minus one family who live overseas (I guess I didn't explain before we got there and so Kyle fully expected to see all his cousins. He came home and said with genuine sadness, "But mom, where were the others?") Kyle had a lot of fun playing with Chase and someone got the brilliant idea of calling up our beloved Miss Esther to come watch the boys so the adults could have time to catch up and talk. 

We've had a lot of fun family time. I'll blog more on that next.

I'm on a roll... :)