Jenna

I noticed that Jenna's tongue was very connected when she was born--she can hardly stick her tongue out and cannot even lick her upper lip. The doctor said unless it affected her eating or speech, they wouldn't do anything about it. I took her in to the dentist for her first check up on Tuesday and they said it has to be corrected---now! Her upper lip is also connected to her gums right above her front teeth and they said that has to be fixed as well, but can wait for a few years. They said often times, kids will fall and hit their mouth and it will take care of itself, but if not, it needs to be done. So....we have to wait for the dentist to preauthorize this procedure for her tongue (about 3 weeks) and then they call let us know it's all done and we schedule the appointment--it will be at least July before it's done. I feel soooo bad about it! I don't want her to go through this pain. They said it will be sore like a bad canker for a few days. I just wish they would've taken care of it when she was a baby, but I guess now is better than later, since they said it hurts more and takes longer to recover. I am a little surprised that the dentist does it though. He will not do the upper lip though--he refers that one out since it's a little more complicated I guess.

Vacation with Words of Warning....

This will be a long post, I'm sure. I added a couple of pictures, but put a slideshow on the end with all the pictures, for anyone who wants to see them.

Jon had to go to San Jose, CA for a business trip and since I had an airline ticket that needed to be used, I tagged along for part of the trip. Just before I left, Jenna got sick--a fever. I took her into the Dr. just a few hours before flying out and they said it's just a virus. She's over it now. Anyway....my flight was delayed because of all the crazy weather, but I got there on Thursday night. We went to dinner with a friend and walked down Santana Row. It's a crazy street--everything is soooo expensive and everyone is trying to dress (and drive) to impress. Very superficial. Jon had to work on Friday, so I took the rental car (yes, by myself) and drove to Santa Cruz. I stopped by the pier, but didn't go out. Then I drove to Monterey. I had just read a book that took place there, so I walked down Cannery Row and went to the big aquarium. It was amazing!!! Then I headed to a beach in Carmel-By-The-Sea. A lady on the plane told me about it---it was one of the prettiest beaches I've seen! Soft, white sand; a soft breeze blowly; a foresty area, that gives way to the beach; the soothing sound of the waves. It was big and there were a lot of people there, but I had my own space to lounge around in. I went back and got Jon from work and then we headed to San Franciso. I don't know what I expected, but it was different that I thought it would be. The homeless population is out of control there!!! So sad....We walked around and went to Nob Hill, Union Square, Chinatown, etc. On Saturday, we took a trolley car and went around Fisherman's Wharf and Ghirardelli Square. We also took a ferry to Alcatraz. That was an experience. It was eerie to see the mug shots of this hardened criminals. They had an amazing audio tour of the cell house that was very well done. We walked halfway across the Golden Gate Bridge and went to Presidio afterwards. I love how I can be in a foresty area one minute and on the beach the next. I love the ocean!!! We got up early on Sunday and went to Muir Woods--an old redwood forest area about 10 minutes north of the city. It was soooo peaceful and beautiful! We underestimated the traffic going to the airport from there. Our flight left at 1 and we got there about 12:30 and they wouldn't let us on the flight. We had to take the BART (train) and then a shuttle bus to the Oakland airport to try for a ticket there and they were all sold out. Every flight out of San Jose, San Francisco, and Oakland was oversold and we couldn't get anything until Monday. And since it was a new day, we had to repurchase our tickets for a last minute price of $700--each!!! I finally convinced Jon to get a rental car and drive home. We pulled out at 4:30 pm. We drove for 8 hours, switching off driving, and then finally got a hotel. We got a few hours of sleep and drove another 4 hours home. We had so much fun! But the word of warning is this: if you want the easy way home, DO NOT miss your flight! Make sure you're there in oodles and plenty of time. We definitely learned our lesson, but had a blast anyway--I guess we made lemonade out of the lemons. :)

Adventures in Dance--Part II

Kristen's dance recital was rescheduled for last night. The morning started out rainy, but the afternoon wasn't too bad. We needed to leave just after 6 pm, but right before we needed to leave, a HUGE storm broke out. The sky was black and it hit with thunder, lightning, hail, and heavy rain--small rivers were running down the streets. We waited for the worst of it to blow over--about 20 minutes--before leaving and it rained the whole way there. There was still lightning for a little while, so they started the recital just a little late. Fortunately this time, I grabbed a heavy rain poncho for both of us and an umbrella. It rained for about 3/4 of the recital. After the rain cleared out, it was cloudy and cold . Of course, we got hit with the biggest storm in the state, right around that time, but they finished and did a great job!! Only about 1/2 of the dancers were left for the finale, but it was great. Kristen has an amazing dance teacher!! She does such a good job with the girls and Kristen's so happy to dance with her!

Shimmer

Last night, I fed the fish and Kristen's fish, Shimmer, didn't rush to the top as always. I tapped the glass and it swam up to eat. This morning, I cleaned the bowls and Shimmer is dead. Rats!!! Jon's going out of town today and it's a super, busy, crazy day today. Kristen's sad and wants a new fish RIGHT NOW. Poor thing....she'll have to wait....Of all the fish to die, why hers?! The other kids probably couldn't care less, but Kristen does.

Oh So Quiet....

I'm about a week late making this post. Laziness or busyness I guess.

Last Monday night, Kristen had her last dance recital of the year at an outdoor ampitheater. Her main dance this spring is to the song "Oh So Quiet." I think it's off the movie "Ice Princess." Anyway....they got to reuse their darling candy cane costumes. Kristen's dance number was 17/53. She is also a snake (dancing to "Cold Hearted Snake") in the big dance production number--Indiana Jones. Then she does a dance to "Hoedown Throwdown" for the finale--it's from the new Hannah Montana movie. The last two dances were numbers 52 and 53.

Anyway....the show started and then the clouds came. They said the show would go on, since the stage was covered. Just before her first number, the rain came. They moved the dancers backstage. They did the best they've ever done on that dance--in my opinion anyway. Right after they were done, it started blowing, thundering, lightning, etc. They stopped the show to do an intermission to see if it would blow over, but it didn't. After waiting forever, they called the show. They decided to reschedule for this week--tomorrow--and she'll get to do all 3 dances again. :) Just a side note...Jon's flying to California tomorrow afternoon for a business trip and I'm meeting him out there on Thursday. There's a 30% chance of rain/thunderstorms tomorrow night. Pray hard and cross your fingers that it holds off! Just in case I don't get many pictures at tomorrow's recital, since I'll have all the kids with me and I'll be on my own, here are a couple from last week:Kristen and her best friend Hannah!

I love the glittery makeup this year!!! Dancing in the rain!

One more thing....4 F-16 fighter jets and a bigger plane kept circling around and around and around during the recital. That was kind of fun!! You can see the storm moving in.

Happy Birthday Jarren!

Yes, it's the season for our family's birthdays---and we had another one yesterday. Jarren turned a "fascinating" 6 years old! He had a "fascinating" day. It was kind of exhausting for me---we ordered some gifts online and they ended up not getting here in time, so I had to rush around while he was in Kindergarten, trying to find things that he might like. He got a frog and lizard that grow when placed in water and shrink when left out and you can do it over and over again; he also got a spark scooter, a glow-in-the-dark soccer ball, a new "soccer" outfit, a mini mummy, a magnet/gyroscope/prism set, a cool bike lock and spoke lights, a Lego set, money from grandparents, and other fun, "fascinating" stuff. He wanted an army tank cake and I put in a good effort, but it's not professional by any means. He's been the spotlight student this week at school and really seemed to have a "fascinating" day. In case no one noticed, Jarren's new favorite word (that he uses for everything) is "fascinating." Poor little Jenna---she wanted to pop the balloons for the treasure hunt; she wanted to open the gifts; she wanted another birthday! She was right next to Jarren for everything! And he was sooo good to share with the other kids--what a sweetie. Happy Birthday Jarren!!!

Kristen's First Shiner

Kristen got her first black eye a couple of days ago. The kids were all home from school (off-track) and I let them watch PBS so I could jump in the shower. I got out and Kristen had a black eye. How? I thought maybe she duked it out with Jarren or Kendall slugged her or Jenna threw a toy at her. Nope---she was lying down while watching tv, stretched her arms straight out above her head, and accidentally dropped the remote--smack dab onto her eye. Ouch! It's really not that bad, so just in case no one can tell, it's HER left eye (or the right eye when looking at the picture).