Accelerated Reader Awards

Before Spring Break started the boys were both awarded with certificates for completing levels in the Accelerated Reader program. J has now passed enough that he can test on chapter books and his confidence in taking tests is growing as well. He still isn't a book worm like M, but is enjoying the Magic Tree House series, Junie B Jones, and anything to do with with Pokemon and Star Wars.

M is amazing all the teachers with his level of reading, his goal is to finish the program before the end of school year so that he can earn a prize from the school. His teacher, Mrs. K, said that she doesn't know of anyone who has accomplished that as early as third grade. When we switched schools last year he had to start at the beginning again even though he did AR in first grade it didn't transfer with him...which makes his achievements even more amazing in my book.

Happy 9th Birthday!

When did this guy...

turn into this guy?!

Happy 9th Birthday M!

PCS Season

PCS (Permanent Change of Station) season is upon us once again. For most moving this cycle (the military tries to move most families in the summer, or around Christmas/winter break, however it doesn't always work out that way), they are busy prepping and organizing their moves...well now we get to join in on the fun of the season! J found out last week there was an opportunity to move to Scott AFB reporting in July, he called to see what I would say (after he already said yes). Of course I was all full of questions...what would he be doing, does this fit into his "plan" for his career (which if you are familiar with the military you now I use the term "plan" loosely), when we would have to be there, does he need to go for additional training, etc, etc...most questions he really didn't know the answer to at that point. Thursday he called saying he got an email saying that his orders were going to be processed!

Both of us are super excited about heading closer to home (which 9 hours to my parents farm is considered close when we have dipped our toes in the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean within the past couple of years), to get back to a slower pace of living, and dare I say cheaper lifestyle (gas on base today is at a low of $4.05 today). As Grandparents and Parents age, it will be nice to be able to possibly have long weekends or summer breaks back in MN again without breaking open the boys' piggy banks. This summer we were planning on taking leave and driving back to MN, it will be two year since being back, but instead we will try to take leave with the PCS and be able to get reimbursed for some of our travel costs going east thanks to the military moving us.

We have brought up moving to boys in passing, but haven't officially said we are moving, and they seem up for a change. They did ask if certain friends will be moving with us, since it seems whenever we have moved in the past we have lucked out and have had similar assignments to other families we know (fortunately we do have friends already stationed at Scott, just not the specific ones they mentioned since they are stationed here with us now). I think they will be excited about being closer to their cousins and Grandparents, but most importantly to them is that they want to live somewhere with snow...check!

So starting today we have almost 100 days before we need to check into Scott AFB, that means less then a 100 days left here at Travis AFB (insert sad face about leaving some great friends). So less then 100 days to get things organized, have J go on a "trip", host my parents trip out in April, have the boys finish school and attend soccer camp, clean and pack up the house and hit the road for our new assignment. Hopefully we can fit in some fun trips and adventures in there somewhere since my CA to-do list still has some items that need to be crossed off!

Pinewood Derby 2012

To say it has been crazy around here is an understatement. J has been busy at work and pulling long hours and weekends, so much that lil' J had to ask if daddy was on a trip...however, the boys had a Pinewood Derby to get ready for and I (we) tried our best at getting daddy and the boys together for at least a couple hours this week to get something put together.

This guy was super excited to try his hand, and was excited to redeem himself after not so fun rain gutter regatta.

He at first thought it would be fun to make a more abstract car...so daddy obliged and tried his best...

after a brief discussion on aerodynamics and the pack favorite contest we decided to scratch that idea.

M is always the great thinker, trying to figure out what design he wanted...

After sanding a bit the boys were ready to paint their cars...

and polish the axles.

We were ready for the 2012 races! It was held in the CRW warehouse on base.

The competition...there were some great looking cars there.

Excited to get started and see how his car does!

Every time his car ran down the track he would look back and smile!

After all the Wolf heats were done they announced the winners...he ended up tied for first in time, but it ran second in a heat against the other car and ended up in second.

One of his best buds got third.

Next came M's den, the bears...he ended up earning 2nd place as well.

M's car is in the white lane (which was the slowest lane on the track), black and orange car.

Proud with their 2nd place medals.

Both boys were in the race off for the top cars of the pack. It was a close race, but M finished 5th overall and J finished 3rd.

An extra special day for my special boy!

Briones Regional Park Hike

Thankfully I have a wonderful neighbor who is a whiz with her camera and knows a thing or two about photos, editing, and exporting photos...thank you SO much Candice! Click out her name and go check out her work, she is fabulous and I think I owe her a bottle of wine ;)

So with her help I have figured out how to upload photos AND how to play around with Adobe LightRoom 3!!

So two weekends ago we went on the Pack Hike at Briones Regional Park, J had ridden his motorcycle in the area before, but it was new territory for the rest of us. It had rained two days the week before so we were expecting a sloppy mess, and it was slimy and messy in some spots, but overall it was a great day to be outside and our shoes weren't a total disaster by the end of the day.

I L.O.V.E. this picture of M

N started off on his own, but 4.5 miles with climbing over 1000 ft above sea level got to be a little tiring after awhile for those little legs of his. J ended up putting him on his shoulders for the first time ever, N was super scared at first...but now he requests it just walking around the house ;)

There were cows all over this park grazing and enjoying the new green grass that sprouted from the earlier showers in the week...they weren't afraid of people at all.

J enjoyed the hike and had a good time chatting with one of his buddies the entire hike.

The view from the trail, overlooking the Walnut Creek area.

After the hike we turned the van towards Berkley on another road J had explored with his motorcycle. We ended up on the other side of the peak and had a great view of the bay, Berkley, and even could see the Golden Gate Bridge.

Before heading back to the city we found a Steam Train to take the boys on...M may have said he was too old for this part of the day...but he was rewarded with supper at p.f. Changs so I don't think he will complain about having to take a ride.

Busy Boys

So the boys have been taking a break from their sports activities and have been able to concentrate on some of the cub scout events that have been going on instead. Two weekends ago we had the opportunity to go on a 4.5 mile hike with some of the other families in the pack. Once I figure out how to convert RAW images to something blogger will take I will have some photos of the glorious (and LONG) day we spent hiking.


This weekend the boys had their Pinewood Derby...which involves the house looking like this...

and ends up with this...J got 2nd in his age (Wolves) and then ended up getting 3rd overall for the pack. Sorry for the camera phone pics, again once I figure out how to upload and convert from RAW I will get better pictures up here. M also got 2nd in his age group (Bears), but didn't place in the pack races. This win for J really made up for how miserable he felt after the rain gutter regatta, unfortunately we didn't get the memo that everyone uses the catamaran style boat for that race ;).

Some of My Favorite Cleaning Things

Ackk...its been a while again since I posted something. It has been kinda crazy and actually not really feeling it...However I think I have a topic to share with ya'll...maybe it will be helpful, maybe not...we shall see.

Being the trend setters that we are...ok, we really aren't that trendy and are more like followers after something is proven to be cool and to be quite honest not to much of a fade...I thought I would share some of the top items in our household that keeps this house running...no one has paid me to say anything positive about their products (although that would be pretty cool) just wanted to share the love I have with some of the stuff I use on a daily basis. If you have any products you think I should try leave a comment and I will look into testing it out in our madhouse  loving home.

1. Mrs Meyers Clean Day

LOVE A LOT! Hooked on the lavender scent, heck the boys even like it ;) I was able to score a stockpile at Target when they had $1 off coupons each bottle and buy 3 get a $5 gift card...big savings! My hands don't seem to be as dry from all the hand washing I do and I can smell when the boys have washed up or not ;)

2. Shark Steam Mop

When I had planned to become a FCC provider I decided that I wanted to try to eliminate using chemicals on where all those little babies would be crawling around on. Plus I really was tired of buying refills for the swiffer all.the.time. Love how easy it is to use, and really LOVE that the floors are clean with no sticky cloudy residue and it dries super fast. It does take a little time to get it warmed up, although by the time I vacuum all the crumbs up it is ready to go. It came with two microfiber cloths that I just throw into the washing machine with the whites when I am done using it.

3. Dyson Animal DC17

I have had my Dyson for over 3 years now and can't believe how well it works. Every stinking day I seem to use it...we do have 3 little boys and a dog so lots of traffic. See all the groody stuff in the canister, that from when the carpet "looked" clean...yeah it looks like I sheared a sheep in there. One thing I wish was that it was lighter to carry up and down the steps and the initial cost to purchase it was a little hard on the checkbook.

 4. Scentsy-Eskimo Kisses scent

New to the whole Scentsy craze, but went to my first party before Christmas and received some free samples from the Scentsy lady down the street. I am in love with the Eskimo Kisses scent for in the 1/2 bath and laundry room area...clean, crisp and cool smelling...totally different then when you are huffing smelling all those little samples and becoming week in the knees from the lack of oxygen. I took advantage of the 10% off sale last night and stocked up with 2 bricks (now discontinued...tears!), they should last me a couple months!

5. Lysol Wipes

I know I can use a rag and some homemade concoction that is just as affective and way cheaper...but I have three boys, 2 of which are old enough to "clean" some of their own messes. Using the Lysol Complete allows them to scrub off all that extra hardened toothpaste off the counter top or to wipe off the toilet...ew! Again I look for coupons and stock up when I think I can get them the cheapest and have a stash in each bathroom and in the kitchen.

I have more then five favorite things, but I can't tell you all my secrets in one post...there will probably be another time where I need blog fodder ;)