Christmas Parade

Today was the annual Christmas parade. The girls just love their marching bands, so it was a must. A good time was had by all. I didn't get many parade pictures, as I was mostly turning around to capture the girls and their dad.

Grammy stopped by on her way home from work, and Charlotte practiced new faces on her.

We thought this was so funny--the Sheriff's Dept. had their bomb dismantling robot out there. Uh...Merry Christmas?!

Fingerpainting

I can't believe it has taken us this long to do some fingerpainting, but sadly...it has. Actually, we've tried the Color Wonder paints before, but they don't care for those. Toddlers are an instant gratification lot, and having to wait 2.3 seconds for your color to appear on the paper is unacceptable! So I picked up some of the old fashioned stuff at Target tonight. Who says you can't have fun on Friday night for under 6 bucks?

Poor guy...

I just came across this picture while I was looking for other photos. It was taken about a month or so ago, at another game night. The girls had their tutus out, and well...poor Michael fell victim to "tutucide."

This is how moms play Wii...

We had game night here at the house. While the boys play cards, we usually chase kids around and chat. This time, we borrowed my parents' Wii for some games of our own!

Donava and Sabrina...with Michael helping.

The Cupcake Triplets (Rachel, Charlotte, and Kara Mae) retired to the kitchen for a snack.

Cutie Madison loves to have her picture taken.

Kara Mae and her cupcake.

"Happy Thanksgreenbeans!"

For those of you not in the know...that is Charlotte for "Happy Thanksgiving." She knows the right way to say it, but finds her version SO much funnier! We had a wonderful time at the Mariposa fairgrounds this year, and we were POOPED! Here are a few pictures. I'll try to get more up.

Rachel was a tee ball fiend.

The girls were obsessed with what looked like an auction arena.

We finally got to meet our cousin Eva. She is the cutest, sweetest little girl!

Charlotte and Grammy...and Charlotte's little lop-sided "cheeeeese!"

Wheeeeee!

Papa made a huge pile of leaves just for us to play in today. So much fun!

Happy Halloween!

at Grammy Terri's house...

Zoo Boo!

This evening we gussied up in our ladybug costumes to go to the "Zoo Boo" at Applegate Zoo. The zoo was all done up in Halloween decor with lots of people to trick-or-treat from. I got some pictures, but they're not the greatest. Note to self: bring a point and shoot next time. The Rebel is very cumbersome when trying to trick-or-treat and carry ladybugs. Thanks to PaPa for the pictures!

We just keep crankin' em out!

Our good friends, Steve and Carol, have just had their very first baby--cute little Aiden Nicholas! Go see!!!!

Watch It! It's on Tonight!

So different and so fun. I've been under the weather the past few days, so I pulled up the first two episodes on my DVR. It totally cheered me up.

Cupcakes, goooooood!

The girls scored some cupcakes after the pumpkin patch. Now if we could only hide some broccoli in there. Speaking of which, I'm interested in this book. Has anyone out there tried it, or anything like it? I'm wondering how well it works.

Pumpkin Patch: And We're Back!

The girls got to check out the pumpkin patch with their Grammy and PaPa today. Here are a couple of cute ones. More photos to come.

I'm not sure why she looks so forlorn. Perhaps she just couldn't find the perfect pumpkin.

Are you watching this?

...because you should be. Holy cow. The Greatest Generation.

Hey look!

I took a picture. It's blurry, as I'm still a total dork with this camera. That, and the lighting in my dining room stinks. I'm trying to stay separated from my flash, as my class said it was a no-no. Sorry I haven't been around, and I'd like to blame it on the new job. But that's actually going really well. I'm just lazy! But, rest assured, the mac and cheese continues to flow freely in the Rawlings household.

Artists, Like Grammy!

Being that Grammy is a famous watercolorist, the girls get a good dose of art! In Grammy's painting class, pants are optional! They're just in the way, really.


Here we are, fresh from breakfast:

Time to start buying fall clothes!

While it may not feel like time to wear them, the fall clothes are out! We made a bit of a dent at Target today, and I'm sure there are more to come. I also snagged us a couple of cute pairs of sneakers from oldnavy.com!

I'm sorry that my posts haven't been terribly wordy lately--save for the high school questionnaire. The truth of the matter is: I'm tired! My new job as a literacy coach is wonderful, but I'm definitely in new territory. I am worn out by the end of the day. I was worn out as a classroom teacher, but this is a different kind of worn out. I'm at a wonderful site, though. I couldn't ask for better people to work with. I'm sure I'll hit my stride here soon.

From a while back...

Rachel, trying to recapture her youth in Maddie's Bumbo.

Not going anywhere this weekend, you?

It's so flippin' hot out there, so we're staying close to home. We're getting some home projects done, and HOPEFULLY getting out to see The Bourne Ultimatum! Wanna see my cute September desktop?

You can get one of your own here.

Taggity Tag Tag

Okay, if Megan and Kelli can do it, I can too.


High School Questionnaire
1. Who was your best friend? Jen and Libby were both my closest friends, though I still tried to stay close to my pals from grade school: Susan, Sarah, Brooke, Kathy, Autumn, and Stephania.

2. Did you play any sports? Not in high school.

3. What kind of car did you drive? An '82 Toyota Celica with louvers on the back window. That's right--louvers!

4. It’s Friday night. Where were you? At Lyon's eating those big fat fries with ranch, watching movies with my boyfriend (and probably eating fries), at the football game with the band, or getting ready for the band review the next morning.

5. Were you a party animal? I was the person that drove the party animals places so that they wouldn't kill themselves. They didn't mind the louvers.

6. Were you considered a flirt? Not at all! I was shy, shy, shy. Most people thought I was a brat, but really I was just terrified of you.

7. Were you in the band, orchestra or choir? I was a band nerd. I played the flute. I got to go to Hawaii and the Tournament of Roses, then dropped after two years to be in Drama.

8. Were you a nerd? see above

9. Were you ever suspended or expelled? Nope. I don't think I was even tardy! Man, I WAS a nerd.

10. Can you sing the fight song? We did have one, and I can see the words on the gym wall....uhhhhhhh. I know the band played it... "Hail to the Varsity!" That's it!

11. Who was your favorite teacher? He made gross noises, and was so very odd, but Mr. Stanley's tests had us rolling in the aisles.

12. What was your school mascot? Merced Bears

13. Did you go to the Prom? Yes, and I can beat Kelli. I went with my boyfriend AFTER we had broken up. How's that for an AWESOME idea? sheesh.

14. If you could go back, would you? I just wish I hadn't worried so much. It so wasn't worth it.

15. What do you remember most about graduation? My class was ginormous and it was super hot. I was wearing a totally cute dress, though. I also thought my hair was RAD...in that "look how huge and rad my hair is!" way.

16. Where were you on Senior Skip Day? I didn't get the memo.

17. Did you have a job your senior year? I worked at a local Hoffbrau called the Red Steer. I was even in their local commercial. No one can pass a big tray of roast beef over the counter with quite the flair that I can.

18. Where did you go most often for lunch? We had an open campus, so it was all about personal pan pizzas from Pizza Hut and corn dogs at Weinerschnitzel.

19. Have you gained weight since then? I have to work a lot harder to keep weight off, that's for sure. All of the marching and running around made it easy to pack in the food without paying the price. Ah, the ol' metabolism...how I miss ye!

20. What did you do after graduation? I got a job bagging groceries, then commuted to Stanislaus.

21. What year did you graduate? 1992

22. Who was your Senior Prom Date? My then boyfriend Ryan, who really is a great guy, despite the sarcasm above.

23. Are you going/did you go to your 10 year reunion? I didn't go. I was told that no one is very different at those, and that the 20 year is the cool one. That's the one I'm shooting for.

Sometimes...

...you just need a little push.

Sometimes, you get pushed in the wrong direction.

...and sometimes you're just cute.

Just got back from Sacramento. **Cool game alert!**

I've just tumbled into town after a FIVE DAY conference with the other reading coaches, and while it was fun, I really missed my family! I did get to visit with Jen, Dan, Becca, and Katherine one of the days I was there. Dan made yummy pizza, from the ground up, and I had so much fun holding Sweet Katherine and running around and coloring with Becca. I also got to just sit and catch up with My Jen! I miss having my best friend nearby!


The other new coaches and I had to endure some "hazing" this week. I dare not go into the scary details, as they're not for the faint of heart! I DID find out about a really cool game, however:





SUCH a fun game! Especially when you're not CHEATING! You know who you are (Patti*, Cecilia*, and Ann*)!


*indicates Barry Bonds-like cheating

Not super-jazzed about vacation being over, so....

...I've resorted to watching funny Back to School commercials on YouTube


I love that guy! He's one of my favorites on My Name is Earl. Hey Crabman!