artists

several weeks back james and julie became legitimate artists. not the kind with crayons or markers, but artists with many brushes, paint colors and their own canvases to create their masterpieces.

saying they were excited was a huge understatement...the kitchen table became our art table and we soon began mixing colors to make them just perfect. we talked about these paintings being hung in their rooms and what they wanted them to look like.

james decided to paint a fire house with a burning building next door complete with fire truck and men spraying water on the fire. it was so fun to watch him, you could literally see him thinking of what he would do next. he has never really been interested in coloring, just wasn't one to sit still for that long...we have have found a creative outlet for him in painting however!

it was no big surprise that julie wanted flowers. after some discussion, we decided to include a sun, grass and butterflies along with the flowers to make it a more complete piece :) james added some ladybugs and helped decorate a bit, what a great brother he is! can you see the joy on her face, she loved every minute...this is right up her ally!

we hung the paintings as soon as they were dry and when people come over it's one of the first thing they show off. i think they did an amazing job, don't you?

flowers and butterflies

big changes have come about in the watney home. for a while now I have know that we would not have a playroom for much longer. the kids absolutely loved rooming together, it created some of the sweetest moments and bonding that i will be forever grateful for. but alas, the time came for there to be a girl room and a boys room.

a couple months ago i started the process of switching everything around, wow was that a big ongoing job :) i have had a lot of fun planning what to do in julie's room, we decided on a garden room. it is still not totally finished, but i just love how things are going so far. it is of course pink, a little darker shade behind her bed. the cute bedding has flowers and butterflies to carry out the garden theme. i am in love with vinyl decals that you literally 'stick' on the wall. so much easier than painting everything and pretty reasonably priced on etsy. julie's name and all of the flowers and butterflies are just that, stickers :) i think they make the room and i can't wait to finish putting them throughout the room. I ordered one section of vinyl fencing to act as her headboard and have the flowers coming from behind the fence, makes for a nice 3D effect as well :)

a rug and new window treatments will be the next step in pulling this room together. i also want to get some art canvases and let julie paint her own garden on them. i think it will give her some ownership of her room while decorating the empty wall above her bookcase. oh yeah, i bought that bookcase at a garage sale and painted it to match her bed. i will paint her night stand and dresser the same color, just have to find the time :)

with julie is her own room, it has allowed me to think of how to decorate a now all boys room.

for many years now james has had a deep love for all things fireman, so there was no other decor he wanted than a fire room. jacob of course is so easy going and wants to do just what his big brother does, so a fire room it is. so far all the planning is still in my head, there are some great vinyls i will be purchasing soon with firetrucks that have the boys names in them along with some other fun 'fire' type sings i've found on ebay. i want to go to a firehouse and take pictures of the boys dressed up in their fire gear, hopefully on the truck. i have 2 big picture frames that i think will work well to have those photos blown up and displayed in. can't wait to put this room together, i will post pics as soon as i get working on it! i did however opt out of the fire pole that james wanted to get down from his bunkbed, a good idea i think! :)

Wedding Weekend

Last October we attended an amazing family wedding at Pebble Beach, really it was more of a wedding weekend! It was by far the most beauitful, luxurious event we have ever been to. It was made even better by some very generous people who allowed us to stay in their gorgeous home in Carmel, half a block from the beach!! If you know my kids, they were in heaven playing, building and destroying their sand castles and I couldn't get enough of the ocean air and sounds of the waves.

Josh and James were both in the wedding party along with our niece Emma. It was so fun to see them dressed up looking so great and so excited to do their 'job'. James said he was nervous but you would not have noticed, he smiled and stood up front during the ceremony, showing how he is maturing into a young man. I still want to hold onto the young part for a while :)

Cousins

Love!

Seriously, he is adorable!

Cocktail hour on the patio.

This was our table!

A warm fire in the banquet hall.

We were fortunate enough to have two wonderful girls I work with come over to be with the kids while Josh and I attended the reception, a decision that was well worth it. Josh and I were able to have a great evening with adults, amazing food, drinks, dancing and lots of laughter as we celebrated the new couple into the night. The next morning there was a send off brunch at a monster of a house. These pictures show the grounds where the kids played while we enjoyed some more time with family. What a wonderful way to keep celebrating!

Looking up at the house.

Nice view!

Wow, it really was a fantastic weekend, one that we are sure not to forget. I can not wait to see the professional photos!! Thanks and congrats to the happy couple!

Busy time of life

No excuses, it's been way too many months since I last posted anything. So, I am going to start slow and just post a couple of pics at a time of what we are doing at the moment!

Here's the quick run down of the kiddos:

James: Doing fantastic at school, reading and writing already in kinder, still loves all things fire trucks and anything to do with army guys. Is an incredible older brother and doesn't hesitate to let you know something is bothering him :).

Julie: Loving preschool and learning to use her voice (since big brother isn't there to do it for her), is addicted to monkey bars and riding her bike or any adventure without fear of any kind, a sweet kind hearted love!

Jacob: Running like crazy, quiet trouble, a follower of anything his older siblings are doing, loves playing ball, a very sensitive little soul.

Hoping to keep up with this so much better in the future, what can I say, I'm a busy mommy :)

Whirlwind April

Yikes, just realized how many pictures I posted, sorry. Guess that explains our busy month so far! Lots of bike riding, birthday parties, visits from family, Easter and much more.

We were blessed to celebrate our risen Lord on a chilly day with family. We managed to get in our egg hunt before the rain! James and Julie have got it down and Jacob seemed to enjoy his first Easter, even found one egg! What a great day it was.

Tara (my sister) came for a visit for several days during her spring break. We all spent a wonderful day at our local zoo and had a great time playing throughout the week. The kids love when she comes and they excitedly call her "fun Aunt Tara"!

Tara was also here to celebrate James' 5th birthday. We had a party at The Home Depot with many of his friends from church and preschool. Wow, what a cool party!! We provided hard hats for each child and Home Depot gave each one an orange tool apron. The kids, with parent help, then each built a project. This month it was a butterfly house. So fun to see all those kids hammering away and building. James had the best time and will remember this experience for years to come!

His actual birthday is on the 20th so I am sure we will celebrate again with family. Still can't beleive he is 5, wow!

Looking forward to a trip to my parents soon. The kids miss their Nana and Papa and ask daily when we will visit again. They love going to their house! Can't wait to meet my nephew Jonah who will already be 2 months when we see him.

The Highlights:

James (5): flies on a 2 wheeler, hits a baseball out of the air, reads and writes many words, great golf swing, high energy

Julie (2): rides a big girl bike with training wheels, no fear, quite the ballerina, first golf blister, loving heart

Jacob (8mo): crawls, pulls up, cruises, stands alone, shy, million smiles, happy heart

Enjoy this spring weather!!

Josh and I were fortunate enough to get away for a night to beautiful Monterey for our 10th anniversary. What a wonderful time we had hanging out at the lovely resorts in Pebble Beach. It was so nice to look back on ten years of marriage and realize what a good thing we've got going! We were able to sit with a beautiful sunset and "dream" of our future. What great things lie ahead, I can't wait. :)

January was busy. Our anninversary trip, an afternoon in the 11 ft of fresh powder snow, an awesome trip to my parents for the weekend, golf tournament included (go nick!), lots of play dates, and my personal favorite, the start of dance and gymnastics every week!!! I now feel like one of "those moms" who stay home full time but am rarely home. We do a lot of living in the car.

Point and flex

Jump!

In preparation to register James for Kindergarten in a month, we had our first trip to the dentist. Xrays and all, James did perfectly, no whining or complaining. What a great boy I have!!

I'm totally relaxed!

Julie's teeth were checked as well. The dentist quickly noticed she sucks her thumb, a habit we have been trying to break for several months now. In an effort to "encourage" her to stop, the dentist told Julie she will end up with "horse teeth" instead of a pretty smile. So now every time James sees her sucking he says "horse teeth" and she quickly takes her thumb out!! Isn't it nice of him to help his little sister :).

a visual always helps, right?

Jacob is up on all 4's reaching and scooting. He "talks" a lot, my favorite of course in ma ma!! Can't believe he's only 6 months. The boy loves to eat and is just so very happy in any situation. What a wonderful gift he is to our family.

Love those rosy cheeks!

Well, Jacob is waking from his nap, and big surprise Julie is still hungry, (the girl eats non stop and is still so skinny), guess I better go. Must get something done before picking up James in an hour. Love and hugs to you all.

Happy Valentine's Day!