Pineapple Harvest

Today I weeded the garden. It was super easy because of the recent rain we got. I thought I would try pineapple this year and got a fruit off of my plant. It is about the size of an apple and very cute. I noticed that it was getting rounder and smaller with all of the rain so I thought I better pick it before it rots. I think I will eat it tomorrow.

Nutcracker Crush

I caught Heidi going a little too far with the nutcracker tonight!

Christmas 2008

Christmas this year was very traditional for us. We had the turkey dinner christmas eve at Dan's Parent's House and the kids did a little nativity for us. ( Traditionally, Jill (neice) was the director/producer of the nativity and caroling but since she was recently married she had her co-producer Ben by her side. And although she thought that marriage would earn her a right to eat at the "Adult's Table" she, and now Ben, seem forever destined to sit at the "kid's table".)

We exchanged gifts with cousins, hung out for a while, and then headed home. Christmas eve is always interesting with Dan. Getting ready for Santa is one of the funnest times for me, but Dan gets more and more disgusted as the night goes on. He sees the "stuff" as needless waste and going overboard. I am torn between Frugality/Conservation and my love for shopping/christmas in general/kids excitement on christmas morn. The latter always wins. Maybe when they are older we can teach them some "object lessons" on christmas. NOT!

On Christmas Day, the kids were forbidden to wake us up before 7:30. Nonetheless, starting around 5:00 they started drifting into our room, to check to see if we were awake. We held them off until 7:10, then headed downstairs.

Christmas Day we were lazy and hung out in PJs all day. Unbelieveably, it actually rained on christmas this year. I don't think I have seen a rainy christmas in at least 10 years. It was sooo cozy! We got a Mario Cart game for the WII from Santa and have played that game nonstop. I even have been playing, and my thumb is so sore. We got the WII last year and the kids havn't played it like I thought they would, now I am wondering if it was because we had the wrong games??? I set up a Taco/Taquito/Veggie buffet to munch on all day in the kitchen but it was demolished the second Dan's family came in to see what Santa brought. Oh well, at least it got eaten. Heidi's favorite gift was Barbie Mermaids that she could take in the bath. She begged to go into the bath even before she was done opening her presents. We let her go in, and after 2 hours of playing, I had to coerce her out before she shriveled up. That night she went in for another 2 hours!

After endless hours of playing and Mario Cart, we ended christmas at midnight and went to bed.

The Christmas Card

Well here is this year's picture. What you don't know is that 15 seconds before Reed was pinching the girls and got yelled at. Oh, how photos lie! Well, my intentions were big for christmas cards this year. I bought a stamping set and was going to hand-make every one of them. That is, until I looked at the calendar and what I still need to do. I combined that with what I don't want to do and learned that Costco can print your cards in 24 hours and you can order it all online. So, Costco here I come! Look for yours soon!

Klein Holiday Haus 2008

Obviously, I cannot restrain myself when it comes to christmas decor. Posted are pics of our house this year. Dan did a great job with the outside. Now that I have run out of space to put things, I am extending my decorating reach to the neighbor's house where I spent 3 hours today decorating for her party. I think I may need a 12 step rehab program.

Outfit of the Day

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Heidi has a habit of changing clothes and costumes about 9 to 11 times a day. At times she is a princess, a ballerina, or a witch. Today it is a chilly 67 degrees (Yes, I know I shouldn't complain, but my toes have been cold for 2 straight days.) Anyways, Heidi was running around in her underwear and I said "Heidi get some clothes on." and she said " But I'm playing baby Jesus and this is my costume."

December Weekend

This saturday we went to the Community Center to volunteer on the City's Float for the New Years Day Rose Parade. Even though our hands were sore from cutting for 2 hours, we had a fun time and it was good to teach the kids some community service. ( Heidi was the best worker, and although the volunteers were sopposed to be 6 yrs old, we smuggled her in.)The float is going to be very cool. It has a swimming pool in the middle of it that the city dive team will dive into. I am uncomfortable driving my car having a cup with the lid off, and I have professional, first hand experience filling a pick-up truck bed with water and driving it around town. (Good times!) Lets just say that there wasn't any water in it when we got home. So I don't know how a swimming pool on wheels will work, hopefully there are not too many rough stop and go's.

After working on the Rose Float we went to Riverside to the historic Mission Inn to see the Festival of Lights. There was a line with about 300 people in it just to get through the Hotel. Using our "Anti-Cattle-Driving Maneuvers" we managed to avoid the line. Through a mixture of stealth, charm, persistence and luck we managed to convince an employee that our time would be best spent poolside away from the crowd and we got access to the pool,, where we were the only ones and spent our time enjoying the lights from the chaise lounges.

Thanksgiving Brawl 08'

Setting: Thanksgiving was dwindling to an end. We were cleaning up the dishes and putting up christmas decorations, christmas carols playing and children playing in the front room. Suddenly, we hear a blood curlding scream, the kind when someone has been shot or something really bad has happened. Dan rushed to the front window and yells for me to dial 911. Instinctivly, I do. But I have no idea why, except that there is someone screaming in front of the house. As I am talking to the operator I, look out the front window and see about 10 shadows across the street at our neighbors house in a big ball on the front porch. There was a full swing brawl taking place. I could see kicking, and punching and alot of tackling. Glass was being broken over peoples heads. ( Mayhem in a nutshell.) I hurriedly sent the kids into the back of the house in the family room and had to explain to them if there are gunshots to get on the ground. It took the cops about 8 to 10 minutes to get here and by then our neighbor had ordered everyone to "leave before the cops get here". By the time the cops showed up (9 of them) everyone had disbanded and drunkenly driven off. An innocent passerby stopped his car to try to break up the fight and ended up getting whacked on the head with glass while his wife and kids looked on. ( These are the reasons we don't intervene in situations like this.) Needless to say, I will give an update on what caused the brawl when we find out. Otherwise, it was just another eventful night living in Mission Viejo "Safest City In America".

School Pictures

School pictures came back about a month ago. Although I hate school pictures, I buy the minimum order just to help out the school. So, instead of sending you a 5x7 and 2 wallets to hang on your fridge to be ignored for the next year... I am posting them on the blog.

Reed 6th Grade, He hates his teacher Mrs. Young.

she reminds us of our neighbor Pam. (If you have heard our Pam stories...or been lucky enough to see her in her swimsuit in the front yard (or without in the back).... you will understand.) Funny enough, Pam is also a 6th grade teacher!

Ashley 3rd Grade. She loves her teacher and is Miss Perfect in class.

Emily, 2nd Grade. She hates homework!She loves art and drawing. She works so hard on her drawings in class she sometimes just decides not to do the actual school work. Every girl has her priorities.

Heidi, Preschool. This picture was taken by one of the preschool moms. I love it. She should be the school photographer.

November Sunset

Tonight's sunset from our front balcony. They don't call it the golden state for nothin'.

Halloween 08'

Halloween night I made the traditional Dinner-in-a-Pumpkin. ( As usual, it was delicious.) The only glitch was my punch bowl that has the punch squirting out of a skulls eyes, didn't seem to squirt punch. Thus, taking away from the gory ambiance. The neighborhood met at our house for trick or treating at 6:00. We herded 12 kids for an hour and a half :( This halloween was good because the kids didn't seem to get as much candy as usual. It was really hot so Reed pooped out at the bottom of our hill and went home so his candy reserves were cut in half. He also had 2 friends spend the night and they stayed up until 4:00 am. By morning he only had 4 pieces of candy left. Yippee! I only have to deal with one day of "behavioral issues" instead of 15. Emily's school class is donating their trick-or-treating candy to kids in the hospital so that takes care of that! I am now picking up endless candy wrappers and pulling lollipops out of the carpet.

Country Bumkins

This weekend we went with Dan's family 1 1/2 hours northeast to a town called Oak Glen. To again get our "fall fix" we ventured out into the countryside. There were apple orchards where the kids could pick apples. Cider mills, craft booths and farm animals. The kids had fun in the countryside. And we returned with a big apple crisp, a bag of hand picked apples and a jug of cider. (Nothing tastes more like fall.)

I had to post this picture of Dan's mom sporting her avaiator sunglasses. STYLIN' (And the view behind them was just rolling hills as far as the eye could see. Very pretty in the smog.)

Pumpkin City

As is tradition every year, we made the annual visit to Pumpkin City. We have been going for about 16 years now. Long beofre the kids were born. The kids get ready by scrounging around in the old costume box to assemble some makeshift halloween costume to wear. I don't think they even realize that none of the other kids there are not dressed in costume. They love going and get a glimpse of farm animals and revel in what any other kid in america would think to be boring and no big deal. They get to see ducks, ponies, cows, pigs, goats and other miscellaneous farm animals. They walk in straw and go on a carnival ride or two. Since it is still 80 degrees here its the only way we have of knowing the seasons are changing.

Ashley got to see real pink pigs. Her favorite animal.

The cutest pig in Pumpkin City.... and I didn't even have to pay to pet him!

Go Speed Racer...GO!

Another day in the carefree life of Heidi.

Doggie Poo Bags

After 3 hours of fighting the kids to get the house cleaned. I took them on a bike ride on Oso Creek Trail. We stopped and waited for Dan to meet up with us and the kids started playing with the complimentary dog poo bags. As we sat there we noticed the nicest smell... it was that of baby powder and gardenia mixed together. After further investigation we figured out it was the poo bags. Who would have guessed! Needless to say they each took one home.

"Special" picture of Audra

Seems I'm not the only one in the family that looks like a tard in a bike helmet.
Photo: courtesy of Amber

Hansel & Gretel (Cali style)

I bought a new bike seat last week to replace the one that has molested me for years every time I rode my bike. This one is mix between a saddle and a beach cruiser seat. I call it the "wide load" seat. Nevertheless, it is much more comfortable. So today we decided to take a ride (before everything catches on fire) while the kids were in school. We rode from Mission Viejo down to San Juan Capistrano and could have hit the beach if we kept going. The trail was dirt and we were truly mountain biking at some times because we didn't know where the trail was. We got a little lost. And what should have been an hour ride turned into a 2 hour ride/walk. The trials were not clearly marked and we ended up on a coyote/horse dung trail. There were some sandy parts of the trail that you could not ride in and we had to cross a creek 4 times. My legs got scratched because the trail wasn't wide enough for a person. And I was terrified of rattlesnakes and mountain lions. We eventually made it back to the right trail and got home in time to pick up Heidi from preschool. It was all and all very fun and I think I will do it again next week, with the exception of getting lost.

P.S. You really can ride through sand if you're going fast enough.

P.S.S. Dan says I look like a tard in my helmet.

Scootin

Dan was sitting in his car in San Diego the other day and took this random video. It ranks up there as a work of art- in and of itself. The simplicity in this is captivating. So Hilarious! For your added viewing pleasure click on Mr. Knickerbocker on our music playlist on the sidebar. A true multimedia experience and a feast for your senses.

Toilet Paper for all!

Given the soaring price of consumer goods in this country.. Reed and his friend Dwayne decided to contribute to humanitarian aid and give the "less fortunate" some extra toilet paper.

This was their first "service project" and it was very funny to watch. They got scared at every car that went down the street a block away from them... and would (very GI Joe-like) run for cover. I'm sure no one will ever know who it was since they left their masks, and a steady trail of broken toilet paper in front of our house.

Wet floors

Our floors are always wet from kids trailing in and out from the pool, so it was no surprise when the bathroom floor was wet. The problem was it was wet from under the wall. After a day or two we started to wonder why it was still wet. Being the investigative, smart, intelligent, and suspicious...(did I mention smart?) ...person I am, I went to the other side of the wall to see if any water was there. Sure enough the carpets were soaked under our book cases in the den. ( This also explains the " rancid smelly shoe smell" we had noticed.) So Dan got his plumbers crack pants on and went to work. He tore away the oak paneling (which will be like a puzzle to put back together) and cut into the drywall and found a pinhole leak. These leaks plague our subdivision and this is our 2nd since we moved in. He patched it and it seems to be holding and the carpets & wall are starting to dry out. Dan was so happy that none of his beloved books got ruined. I was hoping a few of the WW2 books would get wet. Maybe I will soak a few of them before he notices that it wasn't the leak. OOOppppsie!

Jill's Wedding

Our niece Jill got married yesterday. The girls were flower girls and loved to see their cousin all dressed up in her wedding dress. Reed was bored for the most part until the cake and candy table was discovered. The reception was huge and there were about 400 people. The food was good and it was nice occasion. Ben (the groom) has an identical twin, and during pictures Dan kept trying to convince Jill to have a picture taken with Ben's twin.

Heidi kept going down into the gardens of the reception site and making out with this "bear" statue. I had to keep a close eye on her as it got dark. I didn't want any coyotes to come scoop her up for dinner.

Reed did a labor of love and set up the dance floor for the bride and groom with flower petals. (seems the florist "forgot" to do it) It kept him busy for at least an hour. He was so proud. We really like Ben, they are crazy in love and we wish them a they have a long, happy marriage.

Sniffle, Sniffle :{

Today Heidi started her first day at Miss Julie's Preschool. She goes on Tuesdays and Thursdays for 3 hours. She was excited to go but was confused why she was taken to Miss Julie's house and not a "school" building. I dropped her off with Dan then came home. When I opened the door it was the strangest feeling. The house was empty. It was so sad. I guess I'm entering a new phase in life. Its a good thing she has 2 years left before kindergarten or I would have been in tears today. All the kids are getting squeezed when they get home from school today.

Lingerie is not for newlyweds.

Jill's Bridal Shower is tonight and in looking for a gift I kringed at the thought of giving her kitchen "stuff" and then thought the typical gift for a bridal shower would be some sort of Lingerie. Upon further thinking...I did not get her lingerie because; If you are a newlywed and already need to "spice it up" with lingerie your'e heading for trouble. So, I made her a quilt. And since I probably won't see it again and my fingers are still raw from quilting all night to get it done on time, I decided to take a picture to share with the blog. Maybe, I will get her lingerie when she has a baby shower someday.

First Day of School...Yippee!

School is back in session and I can't decide which is better, when the kids get out for summer, or when they go back in the fall. The house was quiet today and Heidi has already started talking to her imaginary friends again...Luckily she starts pre-school next week and will be occupied for two days a week in the mornings. Ashley (3rd grade) and Emily's (2nd grade) classrooms are next door to eachother so they are happy to be close together. Reed is a little nervous. He is in a tiny classroom with 36 other 6th graders. They are literally crammed together in rows like the cattle in Norco. (Good thing they had the "Hygiene" film last year.) It is also rumored by "well-connected" parents that his teacher is "not-good". So it will be interesting to see how this year pans out for him. As for me...... it's back to my Soap Operas and Bon Bons for another 10 months.

The last beach pictures.

O.K. in looking at the blog I realize just one more beach picture will annoy the hell out of anyone who doesn't live here so ... here are some more!

We had a family bbq to celebrate "the boys's" birthday and to say goodbye to Marshall as he leaves to start his freshman year at BYU. On another day Geeb visited and some snorkeling attempts were made off of shore, before they got "too tired" and came in.

Reed getting ready to snorkel.