Grand Canyon Trivia...

Found this interesting book about the GC in the littlest souvenir shop ever just inside the El Tovar Inn situated right along side the south rim. Did you know...

1. If Niagara Falls plunged into the GC, how many times longer would it have to be to reach the bottom of the canyon? 28 times longer!

2. The highest elevation in Florida is 345 feet. How many Floridas could you stack up like pancakes inside the GC? 15 Floridas !

3. Yosemite valley is seven miles long. You could line up about 40 Yosemite Valleys along the GC's 277 mile lenght and you could still hide more in the GC's side canyons.

4. HOw many Golden Gate Bridges would it take to reach across the GC? 12!

5. What portion of the state of Arizona is occupied by Grand Canyon National Park? Less
than 2%!

6. There is an elementary school inside the park for the children of the employees.

7. Every summer they hire about 8,000 people to serve the rush of tourists.

8. Is the GC the largest national park in the US? NOPE--it is 11th on the list.

9. Arizona doesn't go on Daylight Savings Time: In the summer, it already has enough sunlight!

10. What cut the GC? The Colorado River, plus erosion caused by precipitation--although the exact details of how a river flows towards higher ground (as it does) it still a mystery.

11. The oldest fossils in the GC are about one billion years old--but none of them are dinosaurs
bones. The CAnyon is much older than dinosaurs.

12. What causes the most forest fires at the GC? Lightning! From 1940- 1975 52, 518 forest fires were started by lightning--an average of four a day!

13. Grand Canyon tourists sometimes eat deer poop! It's true! They mistake the small pellets for for pinyon nuts. Note: If you want to be sure you aren't eating poop, look up. If there isn't a pinyon tree within site, don't swallow them!

14. The Colorado River got it's name from the spanish meaing Red River. 19 % of it's length lies within the canyon. It is unsual because it is a river that flows through a desert. The trout in the river rode to the bottom of the canyon on the backs of mules.

15. How many GC mules have fallen off the trail and killed riders? Zero!

16. What is the most dangerous animal at the GC? The rock squirrel!

17. BAck in the 1930's deer in the GC became addicted to cigarettes!

18. Rattlesnakes are the most poisonous creatures in the GC? FALSE!
Red ants are! Zero people have died from rattlesnake bites in the GC.

19. What is more dangerous at the canyon -lightning or cameras? Cameras--careless!

20. How often do people fall into the Grand Canyon? Only once! (Bad Joke). :>
11.

The Grandest Canyon of them all...

Have lots to post but will just share some pix for now...

Moments in the land of motherhood...

Did you use soap in the shower? No, but I used deodorant afterwards!

Mom, my "growing" muscle hurts. Your growing muscle? Hmmm...and where is this muscle located? She pointed to the ache and I smiled knowingly, "That's your GROIN muscle." She giggled and said, "Oh! Is that what my dance teacher called it?"

Mom, is it too hot to wear a tank top? (I wasn't sure how to answer that one). Um....

Niko, your teacher emailed me your test scores from today--you got A+'s on everything! Cool--how many did I miss?

Okay, here is ten one dollar bills. Put $1.00 in the basket for tithing, and give the rest to your friend's parents to pay for your dinner after church. Okay? You know what to do with the $10.00? Yeah. Sure. No problem. --- After my child returns home: Did you give your tithing? Yep! Did you pay for your dinner? What? No. They paid for me. Did you say thank you very much but you had your own money tonight? No.... Why not? You never said I had to give any money for dinner. Why do you think you had extra money then? Huh?

Ugh!!

Every night before my daughter drifts off to sleep she kisses her daddy and I each on the cheek and says, "Thank you for a wonderful, spectacular day!" and with a smile on her face, she dances off to bed. She truly lives a life of the glass half full.

My son proclaimed one night as I was snuggling up to him, and tickling his cheek, "Mommy, you are so pretty. Your skin is like white velvet. And your freckles--God gave you one new freckle every time you were kind to someone." This child is a poet--not to mention the keeper of my heart.

Pitching in...

Flower Day at school--One week a year is set aside for Teacher Appreciation week at our school (and most schools, I believe). It is a rush of thoughtfulness, goodies, and love. This here is me doing my part with another 5th grade mom, Sherri, as we gather the flowers each child from our class brought in for their teacher for Flower Day. We did our best to display them in the donated vases--Sherri was a natural! There were so many flowers this year, Mr. Shore was showered with three bouquets, "I've never had this many flowers in my life!" What the picture doesn't show--it was coooold and the water on the stems left our fingers feeling like icicles. But it felt so good to pitch in!

Basketball...

Our school team of 5th and 6th grade basketball players had a blast the past few months--they ended up taking first place and earned the title of league champs, winning every single game they played !!! Go Defenders!!

Dancer girl...

Lauren is the team captain of her Lyrical team. One of the mom's caught her in action here. She loves to dance--can you tell?

Almost...

It's snowing in 49 states today--and it is 80 degrees here in Californian today. I almost feel guilty--almost!

12's...

Niko played his first Boys 12's down in San Diego recently. It was a tournament of invited players only; a tournament of champions! Each boy had won at least one tournament last year. He was so intimidated. As it turned out, he was playing boys a foot taller and most of them were turning 13 soon (he just turned 11). I was proud of him!

Powells...

I stumbled across this fantastic candy store recently and thought it would be a fun rainy day activity--Powell's Sweet Shoppe in Aliso Viejo! They have sweets from the 50's, 60's, 70's and even todays stuff as well. They have a gelato assortment, a fudge bar, and even a Harry Potter section (you can see the girls here trying on the hats from the movie)! They had Flints, Nik L Nip's, candy cigarettes (remember how cool it was to pretend to smoke like our parents? Can you imagine offering those to our kids nowadays?!!) --there were zots, and those Big Cherry's, Abba Zabba's and so much more. It was the most wonderful cavity inducing place I have ever been in! The quote of the day goes to Grace, "THAT was the GREATEST candy store EVER!" Oh, and please ignore my son's lovely expression--this is the face I get now whenever I take his picture. Isn't he just a darling?

Rainy Days...

It is cold, windy, gray, and wet outside. And I love it.

California weather shows the same episode most days, and this is a nice change to the usual line-up. I feel for the folks that have water seeping in, and I myself am praying that our very own pool does not overflow (it is right on the verge), but all in all I am at peace with mother natures stormy visit. I lighted the fireplace, turned on my Itunes, bundled up in my sweats and sweater, and will warm my hands soon while washing the morning dishes. May even make a cup cocoa for myself (although THAT won't be as fun without my mini-me's to share it with). --Maybe I'll save that treat for when they get home from school. Something to look forward to...

As I look outside at the rain drenched ground, I wonder how may Californians forgot to turn their sprinklers off this week?

Ephesians 5:15

Be careful how you live, make the most of your time.

Favorite Snapshots from 2009...

Niko took this one of me at the Animal Kingdom Lodge in Orlando. Juan enjoying his vacation. :> All of us sitting in the giant golden chair at the Casino in the Bahamas. My insane son letting the man place a snake around his neck at cub scouts. The three of us at a museum in Deadwood, South Dakota. Lauren celebrating her birthday (am still looking for Niko's pix from Disneyland). Lauren at her Dance company luncheon. Niko's tennis draw--and the first time he was teh first seed in a tournament!

On the way to play tennis. Having fun during a dance competition. End of the year Luau. New Game Stop in town. All the boys are having parties there. Video game heaven! Lauren performs in Annie--Pop-pop flies out to see!
New Years Eve at teh Beebe's -fun! The audience cheering for NIko's talent show performance. School field trip down to the beach. MOre New Years Eve. Someone toliet papered our house--never did find out who! Both my kids got the Timothy Award! What a great year!

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HIghlights of 2009....

I started this blog as a journal of sorts, to document the daily happenings of our life. As it turns out, I can barely keep up with the happenings, much less documenting them! So, even though they aren't in the order they happened, the following are some of the highlights of the last year:

I turned 44!
Juan turned 45!
Our kids turned 11!
Juan and I celebrated 26 years together!
Our company had it's 15th birthday!

Joined Facebook--which is something I would never do.
My youngest biological brother found me on Facebook--after almost 20 years of losing touch.
I started to write my book. Glad I joined Facebook.
Touched base with friends haven't talked with in nearly 30 years. We are all mostly living very similar lives. Raising kids, working, trying to figure it all out.

I gained 10 pounds. The most I've ever weighed in my life (except when pregnant).
Have a double chin and realize I was just fine with one.

My son got his braces off, and then got glasses on. His feet, btw, are now bigger than mine, Lauren's and almost the size of Daddys'. He is growing like a weed!

My daughter got her braces off, and her retainer too. She was one of four 5th graders asked to join the Math club at school and she is stoked about that! She has a high 8th grade reading level, and loves the Harry Potter series. She started her own blog and loves to write (hmmm...). :>
She has taken a break from the growth spurt in 3rd and 4th grades but her feet fit perfectly into my adult sized shoes.

Both kids are learning Spanish.

We added Grandmas dog to our household and that is a good thing. Chloe was lonely. Joe is the perfect addition.

I got reading glasses. Juan is next.

Niko won 5 trophies since he started competing in April in the USTA tennis circuit. Lauren went to the ACSI Speech Finals and got a first place ribbon. Niko played football for the first time ever--and had a great time. Lauren competed in tennis for the first time ever and wants to compete some more. Niko is playing Basketball for the school and loves it. Lauren was chosen to be the Lyrical Dance Team captain for the team she dances on.

We finally hired someone to take over some of my duties at the office. I only work one day a week --and I am not really sure how to navigate through my days now. I have never been a stay at home wife, mom, or anyone. 2010 will have to bring some clarity and focus on this, I hope. All these hours, with so much on my "want to do" list. Where do I begin?

Went to South DAkota and loved it! I highly recommend it to all! The locals are some of the nicest folks I have ever met. Even let me sleep in the lobby of the hotel when I wasn't feeling well. Went to Bahamas and had a good time too. Be careful though. A week after we left, they stopped the cruise ships from docking there. Too much theft. Sad too--beautiful island.

Had a lovely six week visit with my aunt. what a treat! Had three lovely visits with my dad--what a treat! Wish I could visit with my other aunt--what a treat!

Had a twenty year anniversay lunch with Wendy, Jackie, and Shundra. We all met at Paramount Studios 20 yrs ago, on the same day, in the page department. So grateful we still are in touch.

Juan got a very bad case of Shingles. Said it was the worse thing he has ever been through. Thankfully, after five weeks, he is better now.

Did I tell you my son is Rock Star? Lauren has taken up guitar now too--maybe they'll form a band!

Only 2010 will tell.....

2010...

Twenty-Ten, for me. That is how I will call the date. Short and simple. That is my motto for this new year we started today. I have no desire for chaos, racing pulse (unless, well, you know), nor any stress if at all possible. Things will be what they are, people will be who they are, and I will try to be part of the solution of it all, rather than part of the problem. So far, so good. Only 364 days to go. :>

one decade ago...

Day 15...

Went into work and handed out Christmas bonuses. I always enjoy putting a smile on everyone's faces.

DAY 14...

Took and few moments and opened and read a whole slew of wonderful Christmas cards. It jsut isn't me though that enjoys seeing the faces of friends and family on these cards, or reading the updates on those we know and love; the kids can't wait to pull them from me and have a good look-- see as well. Thank you to all that have sent greetings our way. ;>

Day 13....

Took Lauren to see one of her dance teachers perform in a wonderful ballet, "The Nutcracker". It was 55 minutes of the most beautiful costumes I had ever seen. Thing that stood out the most: Miss Michelle's perfect dancing--and the big green blob of makeup covering up the large star tattoo on her back! This was once again, another lesson on why it is never good to get tattoo of any kind.

After that, Lauren made a darling card for her little sister at dance, and grabbed her gift and we were off to the Dance Team Christmas party. Dropped her off, came home and the boys were out

doing some Christmas shopping. Used the time to wrap some more gifts and do the dishes.

At 7pm, we all got in our fancy holiday clothes and drove up to the Honda Center in Anaheim. Andrea Bocelli was performing and we got there just in time! Took our seats and the lights went down and the orchestra began to play. It was enchanting. The voice of that man--well, I could have listened to him for hours. The first half of the show was filled with some of his opera hits, and the second half was all Christmas. He had one song where a dozen or so children came out and sang with him, "Santa Claus is coming to Town" --if you can imagine that! "Silent Night" brought tears to my eyes, and can that man hold a note! NIko said, "Man, I can only do that for two seconds and then I have to breath. He is awesome!"

I want our kids to witness excellence on many levels. I pointed out this man's success, not because of his voice, but in spite of his inability to see. When he sat down to play the piano, Niko was blown away. "How did he learn if he can't see?" Lauren enjoyed both halves of the show, and giggled when he had four curtain calls! Culture is all around us, thank goodness.

Day 12...

Cleaned up my red room today. Had a pile of presents under a burgundy blanket for two weeks now. Kids new they were there (I was testing their self-control--or maybe torture is the right word?). Hee Hee....anyway, I decided to wrap them all and place them under the tree. They were met with a big round of excitment (which I caught on my flip video camera!).

This was supposed to be our party night. With Juan getting sick though, we had to call it off. We were very disappointed not to get to see our dear friends, but we knew Daddy needed this time to get better. Scabs are there now, so he is not contagious anymore, but now it looks like he took a bad fall bike riding and skidded his face across the pavement. He was craving a meal out last night though, so we ventured to a restaurant we all liked, and then, with the light rain falling all around us, on the way home we drove around Ladera and looked at Christmas lights. Not as many as last year, but the home that did put up lights, went all out, more than usual. It was not our Christmas party, but we were together, and that was nice.

DAy 11...

Juan, on the mend. Doctor says he was lucky the lesion on his eye (from shingles) went away.

We are grateful.

Rainy morning, forgetful morning. Had to run home and get niko's binder, book report, sweatshirt (he thought he left at school) and both kids umbrellas. Then, I worked at school and helped pack up Christmas store. Got grays hairs on my head covered in a nice shade of brown. Grocery shopped, and washed one load of laundry. Made niko's favorite tacos for dinner, and Isabel came over and cooked plantains and beans and rice for "dessert". Only 6:22pm and I am ready for a hot bath and a good movie upstairs. Loving the rain. Tired and worn out, both.

At peace though. Gonna enjoy the weekend.

First 10 Days of December...

Day 1: Happy December! Put out my "Jesus is the reason" sign.
Day 2: Bought and delivered See's Candy to everyone at the office
Day 3: Christmas Shopping and finish putting up deocrations
Day 4: Volunteered at school to help set up Christmas Store--miss tree lighting in town square due to tennis lessons. Kids disappointed.
Day 5: Cleaned house and garage to prepare for our kids Christmas party
Day 6: Finish Christmas shopping and wrap some gifts. Juan gets sick. Went to doc and put on anit-biotics. They say it is an infection.
Day 7: Lauren has sore throat. Juan is worse--I send him back to Doctor because I think he has shingles and it was misdiagnosed. Niko is stir-crazy from the rain, so I play catch with him in the house. He loves it, and goes to bed easy tonight.
Day 8: Lauren a bit better, no fever, still sore throat. Juan does have Shingles--I run to the only pharmacy in South County to get his new strong antibiotics--over in Lake Forest. Forced to cancel Christmas Party. Too tired to cook- Drive to Pasta Bravo, and find out they went out of business. Drive to Panda Express, get dinner, serve dinner, grateful no dishes to wash.
Day 9: Take Juan to eye doctor. Shingles in his eye, ear, throat and nose now. Care for Juan, clean bathrooms, do two loads of laundry, address and mail tons of Christmas cards (while Juan sleeps), do banking, grocery shopping, and run kids to and from all after school activities. Try and remember to administer Juan's eyes three bottles of eye drops in the correct order: two of the bottles, four times a day, and the third, three times a day. Homework, pass out.
Day 10: Dishes, vacuum, pay bills, drop off toys for Toys for Tots. Deal with grumpy husband
whose had it with the nightmare of Shingles. Make chicken and asparagus for dinner. Boys grumble because I put something green on their plates. Lauren devours it. Dogs get out of kennels in middle of night and wake up Lauren. She wakes me up. NIko hears us and now we are all awake. Let dogs outside, clean up their mess, and we all go back to sleep.
Need to go feed dogs now because Niko forgot this morning. Then get lunch for kids (see posting below). Oh, and--- Juan says I'm getting absent minded because I forgot to buy his favorite bread at the grocery store. If the shingles doesn't take him out, I will.

Morning Musings...

It is like an ice box in here! I just turned on the weather channel (which I really enjoy for some odd reason!) and we are experiencing mild temps compared to the midwest. I cannot imagine living like under a blanket of snow like that. It is pretty to look at, but brrrrr!!!!

Finally, at 8am this morning, I lifted the heavy warmth of my comforter and shreaked as the chill rushed in, attacking my skin. Kids had been up for a hour getting ready for school. We had 30 minutes to get to the campus. Fortunately, it is only 1 minute away, but still, I had to get dressed, brush my hair and teeth, and make sure they had breakfast and lunches.

It is incredible how stiff my bones get in the winter. I managed to get my sweats on, and my hair pulled back, and the kids fed breakfast. Lunches? I told them I'd treat them to the lunch of their choice today. After a round of hurrays, I pulled on my uggs and ran them over to school.
Line up had already begun as they hopped out at the curb. Lauren blew me kisses, "Bye Mommy, Love you, Have a great day!" Niko grabbed his backpack and slid over the seat and jumped out, "Bye Mom!" I said, "Bye Loves. Bye Baby girl, Bye Sweet Boy. Love you!"
and they were off. I sat there, along the curb, and watched as they scooted off. Lauren was two yards ahead of Niko and her body language told her teacher she was making every effort to hurry. Niko (I had to smile) was going, but at his own pace. His body was saying, "I'm coming. I'll get there. I'm cool." And, they both did get there, in their own ways, in their own time.
Everything was fine. Something tells me this is indicative of the years to come, and that is just fine as well. :>

Progress...

Spent three hours so far Christmas shopping--80 % done, got cool things, unbelievable prices, and so easy!

Ornaments for 2009...

We hung two new ornaments this year on the memory tree in our family room: The moose labeled South Dakota, is from, um, South Dakota, and the cruise ship Juan just picked out on the Disney Cruise ship when we were in the Bahamas three weeks ago--appropriate don't ya think?

Gratitude....

A week off. With the vacation under our belts three weeks ago, we had nowhere to go but home.
And it was jsut what we needed. We still saw a great show in LA, "Mary Poppins" with some great friends, and we saw some great movies, "The Blind Side" is a tear jerker and so worth seeing! Kids loved Planet 51, and I loved New Moon. After the Pan con Pavo (turkey sandwiches done El Salvadoran style--so yummy!) we put up tons and tons of Christmas decorations, did some shopping, and then we rested. Life is good, for so many reasons, and these are some of mine (in no particular order) :

1. My sanity (which comes and goes, but the moments of clarity are divine!)
2. The health of all whom I love (especially the two who were born on 11-5-1998!).
3. Understanding that faith in a higher power is in itself empowering.
4. Reaching 44 and realizing so much of the daily stress is nonsense.
5. Working for 15 years and building a company to a point that now I can take some time off.
6. Having friends that get me, and love me anyway.
7. Having family that don't get me, and love me anyway.
8. Being able to put my thoughts into words since the age of 9--otherwise I might have not achieved my #1 above.
9. Ugg boots --I love ugg boots!
10. See's Chocolate--tell me, have you ever heard of a recipe for left over chocolate? Of course not!
11. My guy--26 years, my loyal and faithful partner in life, love, and everything, and no matter how frizzy my hair is, how bad my morning breath is, or how wrinkly my skin is, he keeps coming home every single night.
12. My ability to know who is good for me, and whom is not.
13. Good books on my nightstand.
14. Milk and cookies in the morning.
15. My blog, for whom this expression would not be able.

I have some gripes too, but in the spirit of the season, we'll leave this post at listing the gratitude!

Double Ones...

Eleven! It boggles my mind that my babies are now only a brief stint from being teenagers. Some days the years felt like decades, and others, only moments in time. Had these photos taken at my friend, Mindy's house a few months ago at one of those photographry at home parties. So easy! I RSVP'd to the evite, got the kids dressed up, and we popped in for a total of 15 minutes. Mindy got some free pix, and we a hassle free photo session. This gal is very strict about the time alottment--which turned out to be a plus for all of us! These were my favorite--they are darn cute if I do say so myself! If anyone would like the link to her website, leave me a comment, and I'll post it.

Eleven... double ones--the child part in childhood is over, done. I was so careful during the past decade to be present, and kind and a good example, because I knew they were both looking to me. I wanted to raise people that I would like to know as adults. I failed more times than I care to admit, and despite my shortcomings, they have grown into pretty great human beings. And flaws of their own? Well, now I can feel their world getting bigger, more influences, and I am having to repeat myself more often. I am not fond of selective hearing, it wares on me to know the lines of communication are getting clouded. So, it is my very conscious vow to keep those lines as stream lined as possible, and even as I aknowledge, the child is indeed more behind us than in front us, their childhood is not completely over. Doing my best to keep the child in my home, and the hood as far from our lives as possible is my fervent wish, and I think if we keep doing what we have been (exhaustion aside) we will meet our goal. My kids are inherantly easy, but life can take a turn at any moment, and even though there are times when I wish I could be done and on to grandparent time, there is a deeper desire to cherish the last leg of this very precious time. I just looked again at their pictures here---aren't they just the cutest?!

Home again...

We just got home from a week in the Bahamas--three days in Orlando, and 4 days on the Disney Cruise. 87 degress and clear skies. Celebrated our twins 11th birthday--here were are on Disney's own island, Castaway Cay--Fabulous time had by all!

The rest of Hallow's Eve...

My very cool Rock Star, and my adorable bumble bee, with our neighbor bee, Amanda--too cute!

Niko likes spiked hair (although you can't really see it in this photo), and Lauren always giggles when she see's something silly--the belly was too much! I think both costumes fit them perfectly!

Niko has never enjoyed pumpkin carving--until this year. He had a grand time diving right in with his grandfather! Lauren's witch on a broomstick drew lots of compliments from trick-or-treaters all night long. One teenage girl said she should be an artist. When I told she was thinking about it, she said, "Follow your dream!" as she ran off to gather more candy. A fun night had by all. One more year, they think, and our treating days will be behind us. So sad....

Happy Halloween everybody!

I got an email from my treasured friend, Elizabeth, this past week asking if I was okay. You see, it has been about six weeks (!) since my last post --and that is highly unusual for me, and I know she was wondering where I went I am sureWe don't get the chance to see each other in person and I know for me, reading her blog is a wonderful way to keep in touch. I am betting it is the same for her. Blogs, are truly a very cool way of perserving our families journey through this world, and a super way of saying hello to those we don't get to see as often as we would like. So, Elizabeth, thank you for thinking of me ( I so treasure your friendship!), and here is a photo essay of the Halloween decorations we managed to somehow get up in between the rush of other activities...

I will write of our other happenings soon, I promise! :>

Lost and Found...

What is it about something be lost, and then something being found?

I pop into this blog sometimes, written by a man that owns a used bookstore. He thought it would be a great idea to post the bookmarks, letters, notes, dried flowers, etc that he discovers among the books that are donated to his store. You wouldn't imagine it being anything more than people's trash, but it is actually a very cool thing to see what he has found each time, and to imagine the stories behind each one.

I realized a similar discovery of my own this week. I started this online writer's workshop a few days ago--in part to help me with my memoir I am writing--more to make sure I am on the right track than anything else. As I was writing one chapter of my story recently, I realized some more historical facts were needed to make the characters deeper and more defined. I went to Ancestry.com and they were having a two week trial period for free! I signed up and went about looking for information on my biological family.

At first I kept getting these long lists of "Hays" people and none of them matched my mother, so I tried the "De Mont" side. I couldn't believe it--instantly, there was my uncle Bob! It not only showed his approximate birth date but it listed my Aunt Joann and her maiden name, the ages they were (approx) when they got married, and the registrar's document of the marriage record where they got married!

This fueled me to continue my search, even though it was midnight, and even though I could not find my own parents marriage certificate (I don't think they were ever legally married), but I did find both parents social security numbers, their dates of birth (which I already knew) and the dates of death (which I did not know for sure). I jotted down some of the info, put some more of it in the website shoebox, and went to sleep very pleased, but not sure why.

The next evening I went on a bit earlier and began my search again. This time, I found all my Uncle Bob's children, except for one (he had several). Then, I began to enter every name of a relative I knew, on both sides of my family. I was on there for what seemed like forever, when I stumbled across a long list of "De Mont's" I hadn't seen before. I clicked on one that looked like another listing of my mother: Anna Sue De Mont (Anna Sue Hays) born 1948.

When it opened up to reveal the rest of the information listed I was stunned. It said:

Female born Aug 7, 1965, Los Angeles County, and mothers maiden name, Hays. It was... me!

Don't know why but it never occurred to me to search myself; after all, I KNOW when and where I was born! With my heart beating faster, I knew I was on to something so I went back to the main listing and clicked on the next box with my mother's name and this time it was my brother, Sean. Each of my siblings one by one was revealed as I went down the list--and then I was blown away--another child, a male, born March 16, 1970, was listed between my brother, Tim, and my sister, Cassia!

I always knew we had another sibling, and I always knew his place on the totem pole. What none of us knew was his birth date. He was given up at birth and nobody could remember the day he was born. The year had to be 1970 or 1971, and we knew he was delivered in Santa Barbara County, but that was where the deduction ended. Others in my family say they have looked, and I am sure they gave it a good effort, but to no avail. That night, without trying to, I simply stumbled upon it. I couldn't believe it!

You know, I don't really need to know him (We always knew of our brother as Travis Kent because my mother said that is what she would have named him), but there is something very exciting about uncovering a piece of the puzzle. My siblings are curious to meet him, and are intending to execute a more detailed search for our brother, but for me, I am contented just knowing when and where he came into the world. I will never forget how stunned I was to see those numbers pop out at me like that--I read it over and over.

I am writing this book of my childhood, a book of memories of the life I had with my biological parents, for my brother, Jason. I wondered that night, when I found our brother Travis was in fact born on March 16, 1970, if Jason feels that same sense of fascinating discovery-- as he reads each new part of the story I send along to him. We never lived together, he and I, and we are twelve years apart, but it is uncanny how similar our experiences with our parents were. Each of us has our own particular moments, but the feel of those moments is very much alike. At the very least, I imagine he experiences confirmation that his memories, so similar to mine were real--as I felt when the story of a baby brother named, Travis Kent, became an reality for me late one night last week.

I am still not sure why "discovery" is so interesting to me, to Jason, or even to the guy that who owns the bookstore. Maybe it's about the connections between what was once lost, and what is now found. It completes a circle so to speak, a conclusion of sorts, and our brains love closure of any kind. We take comfort in the answers. Yes, I think it is about the connections. After all, isn't that what everything is about?

Summer is over, School has begun...

It is 9:51am and I am sitting here all alone.  Juan and I just left our twins at school for their first day of 5th grade.  He dropped me back here and then he went off to work.  I will go to work too but I felt inspired to journal here first.  

It was hard to get Niko out of bed this morning (he tossed and turned until midnight last night).  I remember doing that the night before the first day of school too. Lauren got up and was singing and goofing around, totally thrilled.  I dragged myself out of bed, made breakfast, lunches, and made sure the kids were showered and ready to go.  We all hopped in the car and drove the one minute drive to the campus.  We were twenty minutes early but the parking lot was already full.  The school enrollment was up this year.  I think we have maybe 130 kids now in the whole elementary.  

It was so wonderful to see familiar faces!  and some new ones too!  I tried to take pictures but realized I had forgotten my memory stick (!) and then I did take some video but not for long since the camera died.  I could kick myself for not being prepared but the truth is, we were living in summer mode right up through dinner last night, and I didn't even think of it.  On the bright side, dinner was filled with memories of the blessings our time off brought us:  a fun vacation in South Dakota--Mt Rushmore, Wa-Tiki waterpark, go-kart racing, tennis tournaments, art classes, hanging out with Nena, hanging out with Pop-pop, pool parties, cuddle time reading good books together, cuddle time watching the US Open, ...we made the most of our twelve weeks, I can confidently say we are all rested and ready for the responsibilities that school brings (for all of us!).

Their teacher, Mr. Shore, is new and I could tell the kids were searching his face to find any clues they could to the year ahead.  I found myself looking too and I told them my first instinct was it will be a wonderfully enriching year full of growth for both of my kids.  We stayed for flag salute, said our goodbyes, and were off to begin another busy autumn.  I am looking forward to it!   

Shattered...

It was a quiet afternoon yesterday, and we were all up here in the bonus room hanging out with some friends--when we heard a huge crash! Juan ran into Lauren's room (she had just gone in there for something) and fortunately she was fine. I thought the sound came from downstairs but he was sure it was made upstairs. He was right. He walked into the master bedroom and to the left into the bathroom and came upon a big scattered pile of glass. Our shower door had exploded!

How this happened we have no idea. Nobody was in there thank goodness, and the glass was tempered, so I guess we'll never know....any ideas on how this happens?

Taco Tuesday...

We have had the opportunity to partake in many fun original happenings this summer, ie: Lauren took an art class at the local college here with her friend Katie W, and Niko joined in with his buddies for a week of spiritual growth at VBS, we repainted Niko's room to a new cool skateboard gray, Lauren joined her friends in private tennis lessons and now she really understands how to score the game--and even competed in her first tournament! Their have been birthday parties galore, and one night we invited the whole class to one of our neighborhood pools for a no-frills swim at night pool party! It was low key and a wonderful chance to let the kids swim without the hassle of applying sunscreen, hats or swim shirts. Lauren made her brownies and the kids swam for three hours under the moonlight. Last week, we realized we were running out of summer and still had one more idea to put into play---Taco Tuesday!

My son is a big fan of my taco's and wanted to share them with all of his friends. I couldn't make dinner for the entire class so I urged him to choose three and we go from there. Maria, from the office, got him this giant sombrero last year and he wanted to use it somehow. We decided to get each boy how own sombrero, and then for a little added humor, we picked up a packet of stick on moo-staches. They were hilarious!! As each boy arrived Niko greeted them with their new look and christened them with their new names: Brendan was Burrito, Logan was Loco, and Nate was Nacho. Without hesitation and with a lot of gusto I might add, they jumped right into the fun!

Here you see them singing what they thought was a mariachi song. It was too funny! Shortly afterward they attempted ping-pong with those giant hats too. They played the Wii, ate a big dinner of Niko's mama's tacos, and then we went over to the courts and they played on the tennis courts for a solid hour (I can't say it was really tennis, but they cracked up the whole time). Niko has gotten pretty good at tennis so they played the three of them against him--and they cheered with victory when they finally got a ball past him. He was running all over the court and loved it. We got home and cooled them down with chocolate brownie sundaes that they devoured. The time flew but fun was had by all!