What is this fine and refreshing beverage? So crisp and sparkling, yet only $2.19. It is joy in a solo cup!

Ummm Boones Farm Strawberry Hill

Now that we are older our taste has become more refined. We had a $10 cap at Costco or Trader Joes when it came to purchasing wine. There are definitely deals out there and some of the $10 wines were great. But we were slowly becoming aware of the wine that Santa Barbara had to offer. Our previous choices weren’t bad for everyday but we realized there were occasions when you would want to celebrate with a nice bottle of vino from our Golden coast or the French countryside.

Then we came across Kunin Pape Star (a California take on Châteauneuf-du-Pape), Consilience or when we were introduced to Curtis wines (which we were able to purchase two cases at a special deal of $6 a bottle versus $25.) Now we’re screwed. I went to an event that had cheap wine and I almost spit mine back into the glass but realized how awful that would look. Gone are the days when Mickeys big mouth was a hit.

Damn you Curtis, DAMN YOU!

(Dont even get me started on the fabu wines that Papa Andy serves at his house….)

Loen is fearless when it comes to animals, which worries me. Derby is definitely more cautious but Loen will charge after a furry friend. She doesn’t understand that they are not always friendly. While at Mima’s house Loen kept going after their cat Pounce. She finally got a hold of his tail and he flipped around and swatted at her. 1: I was glad the cat was declawed. 2: The last thing I need is a child freaked out by cats. I told her the cat was trying to give her five (not knock her block her off). That was all the reassurance she needed to go after Pounce again. Derby kept calling the cat “doggy” then halfway through our trip in Michigan he was saying “kitty”. I’ve had people tell me that we should really get the twins a dog. Perhaps I should lock those people up in the house with the twins and a puppy for 24 hours and see how they feel about that idea then. For now we are content visiting other peoples pets.

Loen and a horse

Family with the horse. I love Derby’s expression

Restraining Loen before she charged after 2 baby alpacas. I’d hate to be an episode of When Animals Attack

At the SB Zoo

View from our window

Huge ball of fire (seen from the backyard)

The smoke cloud was terrible

Tadd and I were so happy that we were able to spend Christmas at home. No hospital, no traveling, best of all no drama. We were both excited to see how the twins would react to everything.

We had friends and family over for Christmas Eve, of course I forgot to take pictures till almost the end.

Loen and Fauxpa Andy

Loen loves to walk around now

Derby and our friend Sheridan

For once we wanted the kids to wake up early but they slept in until 8:30. Finally they got up and we started with stockings (this will probably be the only year where they sleep late on Christmas morning so I shouldn’t complain) There was no stuffing the twins in their stockings this year.

She was intrigued with the paper (both of them ate a fair amount of wrapping paper, its roughage right??) She was probably surprised that we didn’t stop her from ripping up the paper, I’m sure that sent mixed messages.

“Loen use your teeth to rip open the present. Thats what I’m doing”

The each got a Bitty Baby from Mima T & Papa Don. Loen looks like she is giving mouth to mouth

“This baby is my doppelganger!”

Derby loves tough guy clothes, so does his dad.

The glider horse was a hit

One of my favorite pictures from Christmas morn

Grandpa Jim checking out his new mug

After the toy explosion at our house we went for Christmas supper at Dee and Andy’s. The perfect excuse to dress them up in Holiday attire thanks to Andy Sr. & Winnie!

Even Matt wanted to get in on the clip on tie action.

Derby had a hard time parting with the tie

John & the twins

Our Christmas card this year. I put my name on the list so I would be sure to save a card for the twins baby book. Of course once I was finished stuffing envelopes I thought “Hey I have an extra how did I miss that?” And promptly sent it out to one of our friends. It wasn’t till after the mail was picked up did I realize that was the copy I wanted to save. Well here is one that got returned due to an incorrect address so I scanned it, unfortunately the mail carriers weren’t too gentle with the paper. It is only fitting because I had some major drama with these darned cards, i.e: incorrect margins that wasn’t realized till all the paper was printed so I had to HAND trim each card to make it look even, buying all of the silver paper at Michael’s and they have yet to restock it (why am I always short on paper??). I kept muttering that next year I would do e-cards but I probably wont….

Front of card

Inside

Let us do the fast rundown. Landed in Traverse City, Michigan and lo and behold who should be waiting for us? Mima T and Papa Don, I should have expected that. From here on out the twins were going to be ruthlessly spoiled. I told Jim (Tadd’s dad who also flew with us) that he probably wouldn’t be able to hold the twins while in Michigan. They were hot commodities those two. We got to the hotel, pointed out some big lake to the twins and then settled into getting the twins down for a nap so we could get some shut eye ourselves. It was pretty lax for the rest of the day. Saturday we went out to lunch and walked around for awhile . We went to this great kids store Bugs and Butterflys . We got a few new things that I have fallen in love with, I will also say the prices were better than in Santa Barbara. I got a new red sling from Sprout Pouch (since my other one that I got from our friend Michelle was too small now that the kids are bigger) a teething necklace that both of the twins are really into but you have to be ready for a boat load of drool down your chest and some new blankets that are the perfect weight for Santa Barbara. We got to meet our cousin Parker at last, but what is that? No pictures? Yea that sounds like us. (I’m sure someone has pictures but not us). After all that it was time to go back to the hotel for naps (of course) and to get ready for Dave and Lisa’s wedding.

In downtown Traverse City. Loen tried a high chair for the first time. Derbs was asleep in the sling.

It should be said that we have made it a habit of forgetting the camera as of late. Or should I say thought we forgot the camera. I was annoyed I wouldn’t be able to take any pictures only to find the camera the next day in the stroller under some diapers where I had stashed it for easy access. So the following wedding shots are courtesy of Grandpa Jim’s camera. Also at the wedding Tadd and I forgot the following: pacifiers, slings, extra diapers and wipes. Thank goodness we were staying at the hotel next door to the reception hall.

Self portrait of Grandpa Jim

Here we are the happy family (though I was cold because I forgot to bring a sweater. The kids are warm though). This was before the start of the wedding. Before Loen decided to loudly talk through all of it and I had to sneak down the center aisle to stand in the back.

Ahh, a picture of Loen showing how she can effectively make the most noise

The piper and Dave. Every wedding should have a piper. I tried to get the piper at our wedding to play “If You Want My Body” ala ‘So I Married an Axe Murderer‘. He said it couldn’t be done but I saw it in a movie dammit!

Lisa and Tadd’s cousin Dave

Ring bearer Reece and flower girl Hanna

Tadd’s Uncle Dave & Aunt Mary

Hey Derby, wake up before you miss all the fun. I’m not napping so why should you?!

I swear the kid had pants on for the majority of the wedding.

Tadd had a great time with his cousins Reece and Hanna. Here he is teaching them YMCA. Reece wants Tadd to move next door. Tadd is like the crazy Uncle that does all the dangerous circus tricks why others gasp in horror, but the kids love it

I love how Reece is having a great time.
(From L-R: Don, Tamie, Loen, Reece, Hanna, Derby, Jim & Tadd)

Reece and Hanna got some of the disposable cameras and were taking candid shots with Tadd’s encouragement. I would love to see how those pictures turn out!

Next day: Road trip!

We got to Michigan right before the big color change

At a winery by some lake..

Art shot of the grapes

Loen LOVED this swing ( and Derbs was asleep. Imagine that)

Loen and I at the LAKE FRONT. Tadd states Michigan has the most coast line of any state in the continental United States and great beaches. I say for it to be a beach it has to include an ocean not a lake. Ah our birth states clash (can you tell where we were born? Little hint I was born in: aliforniacay)

This was a special moment during our trip, the 45th parallel.

So that is about it. We flew home and had to change planes 3 TIMES. From Chicago to Denver the woman sitting next to Derby & I puked. I will say she was kind enough to turn her head from us and puke all over her husband. I felt bad for them and gave them a clean burp cloth and a stack of antibacterial wipes to try and get the majority of upchuck off of themselves. I had to turn my head from the sight of puke dripping off the phone in the middle headrest before I got sick myself. Then of course there was the incident where I almost gouged out my daughters eye on the way home. Point is were home and still recuperating. After I post this I might get around to emptying out our luggage…..

]]> http://thetadpoles.com/2008/09/24/michiganwe-camewe-sawwe-went-home/feed/ 1 http://thetadpoles.com/2008/07/06/flame-fire-smoke/ http://thetadpoles.com/2008/07/06/flame-fire-smoke/#comments Sun, 06 Jul 2008 17:14:34 +0000 Hava http://thetadpoles.com/2008/07/06/flame-fire-smoke/ Last year at this time we had the Zaca Fire, this year there is the Gap Fire. Last year it was annoying to stay indoors, this year we actually had to leave the house due to smoke and ash. As Tadd said “we are 6/10ths of a mile from the evacuation warning zone”. You can see where we are different because I would have said the fire was close, I wouldn’t have figured out how close we are. With the twins being at risk for respiratory issues we left to stay at Fauxma and Fauxpa’s house on Wednesday night. Not to mention the fact the power kept going out. I wasn’t too thrilled at the thought of hooking up the breast pump in the middle of the night to the auxiliary jack in the car (I later found the battery pack. That thing takes 10 BATTERIES!). So we packed up all of our crap by candlelight and left at 10 pm. We packed everything back up and went home the next morning. We thought things would be better. Ummm no. The next night the smoke was worse and Derby started to cough, then the power went out again. Andy gave me a dad-type lecture of “I told you not to go home. You don’t listen to me.” as we showed up at their doorstep the next night. We stayed there for 3 nights. We spent last night in our own bed which was great. The smoke was much better. So for those who were worried, we are hanging in there. More updates later…and I will reveal our surprise house guest.

Aerial photograph by Scott London

Our anniversary was a couple of weeks ago. What a difference four years has made

Before:

After:

Mothers Day. Nope, no pictures for this holiday. The camera always seems to be out of reach and then we’re too lazy to get it. We had a mellow day. Tadd got up early and surprised me with a card and gift. A beautiful loose opal, the twins birthstone, in which I get to choose how to mount on a necklace. I was so excited. I told Tadd he was lucky the twins weren’t born in April which birthstone is a diamond (MY birthstone), Tadd’s reply was it was already on my ring finger….whatever. I have yet to make it to Bryant and Sons to have it mounted but it is on my list to do.

Derby started laughing last week. He was being so funny and I tried to call Tadd at work so he could hear it but he was in a meeting. So I quickly got it on my camera phone to save for prosperity. He hasn’t laughed like that since but he does the cutest little cowardly lion laugh lately with quick smiles. Loen is different in which she will hold her smiles for a long time. She has just started jabbering a lot. Once I stop being lazy I will get the videos off my camera and post them.

We tried rice cereal on the advice of our Pediatrician. Loen wasn’t that in to it, we have tried a few times now and she just spits it out. Derby on the other hand seems to have picked it up quickly. My chubby lazy son. I know what is going through his little mind “What? I don’t even have to work for this food?? They just shovel it it? Well BRING IT ON!”

Whew….swallowing is SO much work

“What the hell is on my tongue?!”

I’m going to take a break on Daddy’s lap. (The eyes are still blue)

Last weekend was the Santa Barbara Big Dog Parade. I’m not an animal person. Babies, now I LOVE me some babies but animals not so much. But we went to the parade because we thought it would be fun to see all the costumes and Cesar Milan AKA “The Dog Whisper” was the Grand Marshal so that would be an added bonus. We walked in the parade with Brent, Michelle, Grant and their dog Kayla.

King Titan

Derby Dog’s favorite place to be…. between the boobs (I got my hair cut after this. It was looking shaggy)

Loen was over the parade by this time

Caesar Milan AKA The Dog Whisperer

After the parade we decided to have lunch and do some wine tasting at Kalyra.

Fathers Day was similar to Mothers Day in that it was low key. We had brunch at the same place and then went to Costco (oohhh our favorite store). I made the terrible mistake of holding on to Tadd’s card vs giving it to him. I ordered him a gift but it was due to be delivered on Monday. Long story short UPS driver showed up on Monday and sat in our driveway while looking for the package. He went through the whole truck twice and couldn’t find it. Tadd looked sad, especially when he said to me that he thought that I had forgotten to even buy him a card for his first Fathers Day, which is SO NOT TRUE. I had the cards from myself and the twins but I thought it would be better if I had the gift to accompany it. After numerous calls to UPS turns out the package was misplaced, they called at 8:45 pm to say they were going to look for it and I should call the next day to see if they found it. They found it, it was delivered and the daddy was happy. He really needed a new wallet and after weeks of looking I finally ended up ordering him the same Ghurka wallet but in black. I would like to point out that the twins wrote a VERY thoughtful card and they gave lots of coos to the daddy this weekend, so really he shouldn’t have been mopey.

A happy daddy with Thing 1 & 2

Wonder Twin Powers Activate!
Loen: “Form of a Sabertooth Tiger”
Derby: “Form of…..a teaspoon of Italian Ice. What?! I’m hungry!”

Loen

Tadd and I attempted to take the twins to I Madonnari at the Santa Barbara Mission. The artwork is pretty amazing. Even though it was overcast we thought it would be nice to walk around. It would have been nice if we were able to get anywhere. We found parking a few blocks away and got out “The Enterprise” (when we were kids that is what we called my parents huge ugly green 1970′s station wagon with the wood paneling on the side. What kid my age hasn’t been in one?!). Well, I bequeathed the name to the big stroller. We got the twins out and tucked in, then we were on our way. I should mention that every time Tadd and I went to see the drawings it was AFTER the festival. The chalk lasts for weeks if it doesn’t rain too hard. We had never been in the midst of it with all the vendors and people and artists. If we had then we probably would have second guessed ourselves on going or at the very least took the slings vs the stroller. We barely got a few yards in when we were surrounded by people either watching the artists or watching us. We decided to turn around and come another day when lo and behold there was another stroller with 3 month old boy-girl twins behind us. Now we were just a spectacle. Since we were stuck I talked to the other mom for a bit. After commenting on how small my twins were I told her they were preemies. She says “So were mine! They were born at 35 weeks and were 5 pounds each.” We exchanged the stats on our twins. She agreed that 24 weekers were a lot more preemie than hers. We finally were able to separate and push our way through the masses. Later Tadd says how much it bugs him when people say they have a preemie when really they were almost term. We talked about the “grass is always greener” phenomenon. If I had carried to 35 weeks and the twins spent a week in the NICU, we would probably tell people they were preemies. I’m sure we would have bemoaned the whole NICU experience too. You just never know till you have lived it.

Anyways to go back to what I was saying in the first paragraph. After we left I Madonnari we stopped at Pottery Barn to replace a glass that we (Tadd) broke. As we are walking around we see a couple with infant triplets. I had to stop myself from walking over and peeking into their stroller…..

Well if you were this cute who wouldn’t stop you?????

Lord, that is a fat goat

My sad little sheepy

Looking at the Mission from a safe distance (the rose garden)

Update: Click here to see what we  missed: Best of I Madonnari

John spent the weekend with us while his parents were out of town. Faux-bro is always a big help

Loen under our new sign. Not to be mean but you would be surprised at how many strangers feel it is okay to bend down and start touching them. I know they mean well, but hey I don’t know where their hands have been. I would rather people thought we were being uptight than the twins being hospitalized from some virus they got from a stranger.

Blue Crowned Pigeon (that thing was huge for a pigeon, it must have had a glandular problem)

White handed gibbon

The elephant was enjoying a little swim

Hosing himself off (then he went and threw dirt all over himself. Kinda negating the whole bath thing…)

Tadd using the zoom lens to spy on us at the penguin pool while he was by the elephants

They are in the midst of remodeling the zoo and the park was a new addition. They had a hill covered in a really soft artificial turf made for sliding. They even padded the tree trunks that were close by in case someone got out of control. It was really cool.

Loen was ready for a nap

We were sad to learn of Gemina’s passing. She was always one of John’s favorites when he was little. He did get a chance to feed another member of the giraffe herd though.

Even the giraffes do yoga in Santa Barbara. (You can see the beach which is right across the street)

The gorilla was napping right against the viewing window.

Derby doing his best gorilla impression. (His eyes are the same color as the sign)

Derby debating creation vs evolution

Yes, there are more pics of Derby this time around. Loen was sleeping peacefully in the stroller while Mr. Derbs demanded to be held.

Money, you can’t take it with you. I just want to have enough so our ride is a little smoother. (Oh I’m such a liar. I want more than that)