School has begun!

I vividly remember 4 years ago, when I was working at the labs & Bronwen & Ava were going to La Petite, daydreaming with Conrad on how we would "win the lottery" when both girls would finally be in school. Oh what we would do with the extra $1K in our pockets hahaha. :-) Now fast-forward several years later & here we are (Wow how our lives have changed more than I would've ever imagined!). Anyway, as of today, August 31, 2011, we now have two children in elementary school.

The girls made special place cards for their back-to-school dinner last night (pasta with bread), took a long bubble bath, & laid out their outfits in our room. While I made "mermaid waves" in Ava's hair & straightened Bronwen's, Conrad cooked us eggs, waffles & fruit. We all drove to Bryn Mawr & watched both of the big girls in their annual parade. Ava had me laughing when we got back home because she said, "The parade was so embarrassing!" Me, "Why?" Ava, "Everyone was cheering for us like we were babies." Me, "Oh! Hahahaha!" as I'm replaying Conrad & I yelling, "Yay Ava!!!! You're in kindergarten now!!!" We were cheering the loudest of course haha!

What a great day, though my heart broke this morning when Cate was walking around the house calling, "A-ah! Bron!" She was looking for her sisters.... :-( That still brings me to tears!

Lake Chelan -Anniversary Celebration!

Conrad, the girls & I went to Lake Chelan to celebrate our 10 year anniversary. Of course we brought the little girls. To us, anniversaries are there to celebrate the founding of a family. The girls make our beautiful family, so it is only natural to celebrate with them.

Day One: Wednesday, August 10th

We left around noon on Wednesday (right after lunch so Cate could sleep in the car) & got into town at 330. As luck would have it, our room was ready! We freshened up then hit the town. Conrad, being the brilliant man that he is, chose the resort because it was right in the center of the city. We literally walked to a Thai restaraunt (The Bamboo?) for dinner. Next stop, Safeway to load up on a few groceries. At this point Cate was being "A bad Waz" [dubbed nickname from Bronwen & Ava -babies cry, "Wah", Cate cried, "Wah," alas "Waz" was born -hideous I know, yet Conrad & I even call her that!]. We pretty much hustled back to the hotel & went to the pool/hot-tub to relax. Dessert was cookies! Ava had some organic milk & exclaimed, "This organic milk is delicious. Mom, next time buy this organic milk." Ava only drinks chocolate milk, so this was a big deal. Cate spit up a little (or a lot) on her precious blanket, so I had to hand wash it then spend about 1/2 an hour drying it with the blow drier -ack! Conrad & I managed to get everyone to bed by 930, so we could be well-rested for the next day's activities.

Day Two: August 11th -Anniversary!

The night before, Conrad made arrangements for us to rent a speed boat for the morning! We ate breakfast at the hotel bistro -only mishap is when the waitress brought pancakes for Bronwen when she asked for French toast- we fixed it though, then headed out to pick up our boat. Cate had a major cow when we put her in the life jacket. The girls thought it was the coolest. We got in the boat & Conrad took off like a natural. I swear, the way he picks up anything that's mechanically related, he would be able to fly a plane if he ever needed to! The girls sat up on the sun deck with the wind blowing in their hair. It was like a dream come true. We went tubing, had sandwiches, chips & fruit, & the whole experience was surreal. By 1 pm we headed back to shore, where Conrad docked like a pro. We went back to the hotel for a few minutes then walked over to a charming Mexican Restaraunt for dinner. Full of energy, walked over to the local bowling alley. Conrad & I bowled great games, & so did the girls, even though they were too busy playing with the owners' chihuahua, Jake! Finally, we headed back, went swimming, showered, ate pizza & slept. It was wonderful.

Day Three: Thursday, August 12th

Time to head back... We packed up, went to eat breakfast, gassed up the car & drove home. I was actually really sad to leave. That's how you know when you've had a good vacation~

I love you, baby.

10 Wonderful Years with my Amazing Husband

The reason why I can do anything in life is because of Conrad. He is my earth angel. He is always the one who consistently encourages me. He believes in me. He helps me. He gets excited with me even when I tell him the same thing a billion times. He never tells me I can't do something. He is the reason why I am so happy in life & why I have always been successful. He is the person who is my best friends & makes my life richer. He is why I try to be that person for our girls. I love you baby. Happy 10 years!