December 28, 2002... the day that started it all

A CORRECTION: Our wedding date is the not the day that started it all, as this wonderful page would suggest.  It started for me much earlier, early spring 2002. Tsnail had borrowed cd's, came by to drop them off, and Jill and a few other friends came over.  It started when Jill displayed her sarcasm in all it's glory.  Silly, but that's what made me raise my eyebrow.

I was good friends will all her roommates and, given my propensity to avoid difficult or awkward situations, I left it at that.  

But her roommates didn't. And she didn't.  We hung out in a group of friends, and we started gravitating toward each other, but I still hesitated. Partially because of the roommate situation, partially because another friend claimed interest before me (you don't cross that line), mostly because I was a wuss and didn't want to deal with those partialities (which ended up being apparitions anyway).

My birthday came along, and my entire family was gone, so she offered to take me out to dinner.  I had decided to ask her out at this point, but I wasn't going to ask her out on my birthday.  I was planning to ask her out the next week, but she beat me to it (would I have actually done it the next week????  I'll claim for the record, because no one can prove otherwise, even though I can't confirm, that yes, I would have).  She took me to a seafood restaurant, which I  later learned was a big freaking deal. 

Then we went to disneyland, then we kissed, then we dated for a little bit, then we showed up at my parents kitchen table, ring on her finger, parents unaware of the seriousness of the relationship. 

It's been five years now, and I'm so glad she took me out on my birthday.  It's been a great five years. She's been very supportive of me in my schooling, in my writing stories and books that probably won't ever make us much money, in my building a quarterpipe. She's a great mother and wife and I love her.

- dave

(I don't do sentimental, so this is as close as it gets)

long wait in lines pays off

Waking up at 4:15 am and waiting in line for hours paid off... they love it. I knew they would. 

Christmas!!!

Christmas was so much fun.... and a little crazy too. Luke had his first of 3 melt-downs at 8:30 am. That's what we get for jumping right into the morning without eating some hearty breakfast. But how could we drag him away from all of the excitement? We took the day really slow and still had some unopened gifts after dinner under the tree. Thats the best way to do it for our kids. Not too much over-stimulation. Then we went to my Mom's. I wish I'd had my camera. When Luke saw that his cousins were there he ran to the door to greet them. The 3 boys walked back into the family room in a line, each with there eyes glued to the new handheld games they had gotten. It was actually nice. Everyone was opening gifts and chatting while the boys sat there on the couch playing their Leapster's in absolute silence. That was pretty much the rest of the day for Luke. He went from his Pirate Ship to his L-Max and then back again until bedtime. Ella played pretty evenly with all of her toys. In fact I couldn't probably tell you what her favorite one was. At least until the swingset was reveled. They didn't see it until 4 pm since they were so busy playing with their new toys but loved it. I knew they would. Ella did give a lot of love to her new talking, responsive baby doll from Santa. It was actually a bit creepy to us adults. And she was also in heaven with her new "Care Bears" Dave was stoked on his new, fancy cell phone and I was thrilled with my new Nikon Speedlight flash.

I can honestly say that the best part was being with my Husband and Children. Watching everyone's faces light-up and feeling the excitement in the air. I am so grateful for this time of year and love the Christ-like spirit that is so heavily in the air. People are so kind and thoughtful. Its a time of miracles and good-will. I am thankful for the birth of my Savior and the opportunity I have had to reflect on his birth, his perfect example and his atoning sacrifice for me. I always miss this time of year when it is over and get a bit sad on the 26th of December as it seems to come to a close. I wish it felt like Christmas every day and I hope that I can do my best to keep the spirit and focus of this time, always.

Christmas Eve

We had a non-stop day. It was so much fun going to breakfast with my Family in the morning and then coming home to make and decorate sugar cookies with the Tingey's. Then it was off to my Parents to stall while Dave and Brad put together the kids swing set. Finally we headed out to Corona for a wonderful dinner with GG,  Dave's Aunt Linda, and her fun kids.. It was a lot packed into the day but it was full of Family and fun. Thanks again Brad for your help... and we owe you lunch!

Ella's birthday

Ella had a great birthday. She got all sorts of "My little Pony's" and Care Bears ( her two favorite things lately) We had a nice dinner with GG, Uncle Ryan, Aunt Kim and their boys and Aunt Megan and her friend, Jason. It was a lot of fun. Ella got to eat all her favorites. Waffles with syrup (or dip as she calls it) chicken nuggets, and Dad's yummy home-made pizza for Dinner. Too bad we had to leave Church early because of all her terrible coughing... poor Ella. No fun to be sick period, let alone on your Birthday.

We all love you Bella.

Happy Birthday Ella Jane!

Ella... her first day on earth.

My baby girl... I miss those days long ago.

Ella at 2 weeks

Me and my girl

My baby is two today!!! It seems like just yesterday that I was in horrible, 17 hour, labor in Aurora, Illinois. I had the worst Nurses known to man, no Family around, most of our closest Friends had gone home for the Holidays so there were no visitors. Dave left about 1 hour after Ella was born to pick up Luke from a dear friend's house where he'd been for 7 or 8 hours already... at Christmas time. And Dave only came back once for 10 minutes after that because Luke hated being there.

O' but she was worth it all and then some. I remember thinking that she was going to be so big since Luke was 9 lbs. 6 oz. And when I started hemorrhaging the ultrasound tech ran in to see if all was well. After she discovered that we were both fine I asked her how big she thought Ella would be. When she waid 7 lbs. I laughed..." yeah, right!" then I asked Dave after she left, " Wouldn't that be so nice?" Finally. after 3 tiny pushes I got my first look at my baby Girl. It was her tiny feet. I exclaimed, "She's tiny!!!" And then I had her in my arms and fell in love. She was so small, 7 lbs. which was itty- bitty to me,  and so sweet. I couldn't stop staring at what we had created. What a gift she was.

2 years ago we got teh best Christmas gift we could have ever asked for. Our beautiful, sweet baby Ella!

Santa visit

this was from a few weeks ago but I really wanted to put it up. My Dad described it best when he said, "it looks like she's having a little trouble with the naughty or nice question."

telling Santa he wants a Leapster L-max

luke jumped right on his lap and smiled.

looking a bit nervous 

and then it happens... the full-blown cry of terror

After our first attempt at going to see Santa as a Family failed (a baby spit up and we waited 30 minutes before needing to get Luke to OT) we went again this morning. Luke was really reluctant but I told him that if he didn't tell Santa what he wanted how would he know what to bring him on Christmas. This seemed to make good sense to Luke so he agreed. I didn't think Ella would be afraid since we had already gone once with out any tears. I guess being sick and sleep-deprived put her in a different category today. I know it sounds mean but I sort of prefer the pictures where a kids crying.

Luke walked right in, looked shyly up at Santa and said" I want a video game." before Santa even had a moment to say anything. It was really cute. After Santa gave him a high-five Luke relaxed and decided Santa wasn't so bad... he jumped on his lap. Ella on the other hand was not so eager.

Then as a special treat we met up with Sam and took a ride on the train!!!

Christmas update #4... David

                                                    Dave looking o' so serious.

Dave is doing all he can to enjoy not being a student anymore before he goes back for more. He decided last Spring, to all of our surprise, that he really needed to continue his Schooling and get his PhD. So once again we will be students, which we are actually really excited about for a lot of reasons. So he has been really busy these last 6 months researching all the programs in his field, studying for and taking the GRE, and applying to Schools. We should know about March where we will be learning and adventuring for the next 4 years. Dave loves School and learning so it is only natural for him to miss it and want more, a very strange feeling for me. 

He has truly found his passion in teaching College and has especially loved being at UCI this past year. He is a tough teacher who expects much from his students but both his colleagues and students have praised his teaching and ideas.

His anticipated novel, "Houndstooth" will be out this Spring. Look for it on Amazon around April. He is obviously really excited to see the finished product, maybe it will help it all feel real as he is still in shock that it was picked up for publication so quickly. He is already hard at work on his next book.

In his spare time he loves skating on his quarter pipe that he built in the backyard and spending time with his kids, who love having their Dad around so much. We are blessed by his schedule. If any of you are looking into a career or a change I suggest teaching College. Last semester Dave had a full load and was still home all day on Tuesdays and Thursdays and by late afternoon on Wednesdays and Fridays. Its been so great to have him around so much and he is the best, most involved Dad I have ever known.

I am so proud of Dave for all of his hard-work and accomplishments. I know it is really cheesy but he is my absolute best friend and I think about how lucky I am everyday to be married to him.

Sea World

We had the nicest time at Sea World today. I was amazed at how much the kids loved it. I knew they'd enjoy themselves but couldn't have imagined how much.

Luke loved the Orca's and we had to go back and view them a few different times. He and Ella both were in a trance during the show"Believe" At one point Ella, in between her squealing, shouts of joy and applause, tried to run to the glass saying, "I'll save you Orca. Im coming to swim with you!!!" I think she actually thought she would get in the pool somehow. I still cant figure out what they needed saving from.

Luke kept stating how much he loved Sea World. He was a happy and cheerful boy all day. It was one of the most fun Family days I can remember. I loved watching their faces as they saw things for the first time.

The cutest part came after we saw the sharks. Luke was quite nervous and in a bit of a hurry to get out of there, although thats that part he wanted to do right off the bat. When we were done I gave him a high-five and said how proud I was of his bravery. He played it off like he was never scared in the least... false. After a minute he turned to Ella and said, in his sweet voice he uses with her sometimes, "Ella, You did it! I am so proud of you and you were so brave in there with the sharks. You're such a big girl. Gimme five!" Ella's face lit up as she received this praise for another few minutes from her hero. I love watching these encounters.

Christmas card update 3... me

Man, I wish I had some really interesting or exciting thing to write-up but no such luck. My year has been perfectly ordinary with my perfectly extraordinary Family.

I have been doing a lot of a few things though... I'll run them down here.

1. Driving. Gymnastics, Disneyland, about 4 or 5 times a week to my Mom's house ( my kids love their Nana and Papa's place because its filled with Star Wars, Care Bears, a pool, a cat, endless fruit snacks and a fan club) Luke's therapy, fast-food( sometimes all Luke will eat is nuggets from these places and I don't fight him) the mall, the park, friends houses....etc, etc...etc.

2. Breaking-up fights and defusing kids. I am so happy that my kids love to play with one another, and do it more and more each day, but that also means more "that's mine!" "that hurts!" "stop it!" and "Mommy!!!!" And we also have lots of the" I want it!" "Why?!" "NO!" and other such quotable's. Its my job to fix, explain, stop, feed, listen to , ignore, and settle. It keeps us Mom's busy.

3. Love. OK, there have also been thousands of hugs, kisses, high-five's, fixed boo-boo's, and tickles that I have been busy with this year. Man, that's been a really big one for us this year and I have really gotten all wrapped-up in them.

4. Taking pictures. i photo counts my photo taking at 2,656 as of present for the year 2007. So as you can imagine my hands are a bit tired from all the focusing and my right index finger really needs a rest from the trigger on my Nikon. I have actually been shooting for friends as well this year and as of recently have been asked by some friends of friends who have liked my work or seen our Christmas Card somewhere. I am loving it! I hope next year my camera gets even more fun shots in the game.

5. Teaching the YW in FV1 Ward. This is so fulfilling to me. I actually feel a bit selfish because I know I get so much more out of the lessons then the girls. I get to work with some amazing girls who have limitless potential, socialize with some of the best most fun leaders in the Stake and get a free pass to go out on Wednesday nights to do it all again!!! I love this calling and feel it a great privilege to be serving where I am.

And a few things that have not been keeping me busy this year....

new babies( a first in a little while) gourmet cooking, doing the dishes (GG likes to do it and insists I let her) working out (anymore) eating healthy, sewing and gardening, being crafty... I miss my scrapbooking buddy, and picking up my Husbands slack... he's home all the time!

So, thats me. Sorry, no photo. Like I said no eating healthy or working out. I find it hard to capture a flattering photo recently. I will get back in the game.... tomorrow.

Already manipulating?

Just a funny Ella story, I feel like so many recent posts have been about Luke.

Last night we were at my Brothers house... as previously blogged. Ella found a small treasure at one point in the evening, baby Christians blue pacifier. I watched the scene unravel.

Ella looked around for Kim or Ryan, saw that they weren't watching her and snagged the binky. She didn't try to put it in her mouth, that would be too obvious and clearly someone would take it away from her. Rather she tried to conceal it in her small, dainty hands and make her escape. If she could sneak past Kim on the end of the couch by the Hallway, she could go to the kids room and enjoy the new treat without any one ever knowing about any of it. She started to  walked by Kim, almost side-ways... binky curled up and behind her back. She then smiled as big as she could and interrupted Kim's talking with, "Hi Kim" smile." Hi Kim!" bigger smile. And then she continued past.. inching side-ways. Kim thought it was so sweet that Ella made such an effort to say hello and to give her some cheesy smiles. All I could do was laugh. " Ella" I say, " Please give Aunt Kim the babies pacifier." She looked at me, almost surprised, and said, " O' here Kim!" As though she had gone over there with it for the sole purpose to return it and be helpful. She then ran over to me yelling, "Mommy, I did it! I did it!" Again, as if that was always the plan.

She really tried to pull one over on us... I think when the manipulation is happening this soon it cant be a good sign.

Christmas time with the Harvey's

We had a really fun night. We met at my Brothers house where we decorated sugar cookies and gingerbread men, listened to and acted out the Nativity story with Nana, and went to the Christmas Tree lot to pick out a tree for Papa and Nana's house. The kids had such a fun time with their cousins. They really love spending time with them. And I got to steal baby Christian, literally from out of a nap in the swing. But see Kim, I told you I'd keep him asleep. Even Dave held him, big for him. And admitted on the way home, "He is really a cute baby." Christian makes me so baby hungry. So anyways, it was a great night for us all! Ella was especially happy to have a doll to play with during the Nativity... not too many baby dolls with all boys there.

Thanks for the Hot Coco and cookies... it was all so yummy. 

Christmas update 2... Luke

This has been a huge year for our little Luke man. In February he was diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome and got involved in various therapy classes right off the bat. He turned 3 in March and transitioned smoothly into the programs offered by the School District. We discovered along the way the therapies that were helping him progress and that there were also some regressions. We adjusted accordingly and Luke really started to thrive. In May we started him on a Glutton-free/casine-free diet that we have credit for his largest leaps. I am so thankful we made the efforts to try this diet for Luke... the changes came pretty much right off the bat, its amazing! In September, with the Districts suggestion, we enrolled Luke in to Christ Presbyterian Pre-School. I cant say enough about this choice but that I believe we were led to it. CPP has been a perfect fit. They have a ton of structure and routine. Luke knows what to expect each day and loves it! His teacher, Miss Suzuki, feels like she was hand- picked for Luke and he talks about her all week. In November the head of the District Program came out to observe Luke for 3 days and her report stated that he "was excelling in the environment and did not stand out from any of the other children in any significant way." She told me that Luke just seemed like a different child then he was even a few months ago. I agreed. We still have hard days and hiccups along the road but I am so proud of his journey and all of the hours and hours of hard work he has, and continues, put into it. He does so well with all of the therapies and his super hard diet. He never even bats an eyelash anymore when people around him are eating sweets and other fun things. Luke simply replies..."Im allergic."

Luke is our sweet, funny boy who has become the best helper I know. He loves to clean and always keeps me informed if Ella is doing anything she shouldn't. He is always kind to others and enjoys playing with his cousins and friends. His favorite things to do are going to Disneyland, singing, playing with his Sister, going to Nana's house, having alone time with Daddy and getting dressed in the morning... he loves to look good. He is extremely smart and we are constantly amazed by this near photographic memory.

I love to be around this boy and have been having so much fun bonding with him... especially the last couple of months as he has started to let his personality shine through more. He is a joy  to our Family and to all who know him. I couldn't imagine a better boy for us all, we are so lucky!!!

Christmas card brag... day 1, Ella

Since I never got our little Christmas card out I thought this would be a good place to do a little write-up on the family. Today will be all about Ella.

To put Ella into words... this may be hard. 

Our little sweet baby has become our feisty, independent toddler. She will be 2 on the 23rd of this month and acts every bit of it. Even amidst  the power struggles and cleaning of crayon marks all over the place she is still our little darling. She is the opitomy of loving. Giving hugs to all who she comes in contact with. She comes up to us about 20 times a day, smiles, and gives us the biggest hugs. She has the power to melt people everywhere. Also she is as social as a teenager. She immediately commands all the attention in a room by making silly faces, saying funny things or doing a dance. Ella still has quite the vocabulary and continues to amaze people at the many things she knows and says, its so much fun to watch these stages in their lives. Earlier in the year as we were teaching Luke all of his letters and letter sounds somewhere along the way Ella picked them all up to. Its so funny to hear her sing them all... what a surprise that one was. Im loving this second child thing. Its so much less work and stress, they just pick up so much from the first. It makes my job a lot easier. Miss Ella has even been trying to potty train herself. Going poop and potty like a big girl. I know she is showing me that she is ready to kick those diapers but Mom is just not on board yet. I am still recovering from the 4 months of potty-training her Brother. Also she has started Gymnastics, which she loves! She really enjoys swinging on the bars and walking like a pro on the balance beam. Plus there is lots of time to jump there, something she was doing at 12 months old and has never stopped. Ella jumps all day long as though she is on a trampoline, its actually quite funny to watch.

So thats a bit on my Ella. I am obsessed with her and want to be around he all day long. She makes the days bright and joyful. Fun and bouncy. Exciting and sweet. I love this silly little princess.

Luke's Christmas program

                                                               Luke was so excited

                                      His Nana and Papa Harvey came to lend their support

                          I think Ella clapped and cheered louder than anyone. But she was really glad                                                        when it was over saying, "now its time to swing!!'

Lukie did such  a wonderful job at his pre-school sing along this morning! He was so cute up on the stage singing his well-rehearsed songs. I think he got a tad bit of stage fright because he wasn't singing quite as enthusiastically  as he did the last 2 weeks for us at home. But who could blame him? There were about 20 kids and 60 audience members!

I am just loving all this "big kid" school stuff. Parties, programs and pre-school. I cant wait for many more proud moments watching my kids do these types of things. I love being a Mom. And I love my beautiful singer Luke.

A date with Prince Charming

In front of the huge tree

Me and my date in front of Small World

The amazing castle 

I had the best date I have had in a long time and I wasn't even with my Husband... sorry honey. I went with my little prince to Disneyland tonight. I don't think he has ever been there at night when the lights were all on, and at Christmas time it cant be missed. So I allowed him to stay up past bedtime(6:30) and be my special date.
We had such a wonderful time. Luke just lights up at Disneyland and becomes his best self. I enjoy him so much and just cant stop hugging him and telling him how much I love him. He makes me feel like the luckiest Mom on his good days.
After Small World he said," just one more ride ok Mommy? We'll go on Peter Pan and that will just bo our last ride. I'm sort of tired and its been dark out for a long time." The people behind us started laughing. I really wanted him to enjoy our "late"night out and tried to convince him how cool the fireworks would be and that there were still lots of rides we hadn't gone on yet. To which he replied, "thats OK Mommy, lets just go home after Peter Pan." I couldn't argue with him so I just smiled, kissed his perfectly round cheeks and said OK.
On our way to the car, without prompting he said quietly, "Thank you so much for taking me to Disneyland on our date." I love this boy so much I almost cant stand it.

Our composer

Luke took a great nap yesterday and as a reward, yes we love bribery, he asked to go to Nana's house. It was really nice to be there, just he and I. Typically Ella shoves herself into center stage and Luke is content to just hangout in the background, therefore not getting a lot of attention. This was just Luke and I sitting with his Nana and Papa, whom he adores. I could tell he was enjoying all their attention and I think it was nice for my Mom and Dad to be able to just focus on 1.
So Luke noticed the stereo on their pier bed and asked if he could turn it on. It just so happened that it was on a classical music station, my Dad's favorite. Luke lit up and started to wave his hands around like he was conducting... in perfect rhythm. Then he started to "play the piano" with is fingers. He kept saying how much he loved the music and asked what the songs were called. My Dad stated that one song was called "ducks in space" With my Dad everything is related somehow to ducks. Luke was satisfied with that answer and kept repeating, "ok... ducks in space." After a few minutes as the songs tempo got faster he stated, "This song is about some ducks flying around. And then there is a monster that comes and tries to catch them." He continued to tell parts of the story of the song, he even acted out some of it.
It was a fun evening with just the 4 of us. And I think that we may have a little composer among us. He now only wants to listen to classical music in the car and has been asking for "ducks in space" all morning. Now I just need to figure out what that song really was. O' and he made me promise that when he's bigger he can play the piano... just like the music at Nana's house.

Ward Christmas Party

Dave and I went to our Ward's Christmas party tonight. It was a last minute decision. We did not plan on going, Dave in particular. But we decided to support our Ward and attend, even though our friends... the few we have... were not going to be there. Sure enough we walked in and there were no "young" people to sit with. So we walked to the back and took a seat all by ourselves. On the way to the party Dave made a joke about ending up sitting with the Bishop. Well, what should happen but the Bishop asked us to join them at their table. I was glad to accept though. I felt so anti-social sitting all alone... though I know Dave was fine with it. We ended up having a fantastic conversation with the people at our table, eating great food, listening to the amazing Troubadour Choir from FVHS and I even got a slow dance in with my Husband. We left early, I promised Dave only 1 slow song. But I was so happy to have gone and had such a nice time with my Husband. He was the star of the conversation. Everyone was asking him all sorts of questions regarding literature, theory and other such things. I loved watching him be the social, conversational one... it was a lot of fun. I am so proud to be his Wife.

Big girl? Little girl?

On Tuesday Ella surprised us all by going potty like a big girl... in her potty. I was so proud of her and she was excited as well. I called my Mom to tell her the big news. We spoke excitedly about how grown up she is. All the big girl things she is doing and saying. We spoke for about 5 minutes in this fashion. I got off the phone to see my "big girl" had found a crayon and decided to color all over the white tile floor. A big girl? Well, maybe we still have a ways to go. 

Don't worry Grammie... I finally got all the crayon off your floor :)

Sweet Henry is here!

This sort of feels like a Family event. One of my closest friends, Vanessa, had her baby yesterday. After going 6 days past her due date, Henry Parkin Tingey made his debut weighing in at 9 lbs. 9 oz. Can you believe it was only like a 5 hour labor? She deserved to have everything go perfectly and I am so glad it did. My kids have been so happy that "Henry 's out!" as Luke says, and can't wait to meet him.

A new tradition begins

I had a friend who made gingerbread houses every year at Christmas time. I loved the way she spoke of it and the fond memories she had about her family's tradition so when I saw this great kit I knew I had to add it to my cart.
The kids were so excited about making this cute gingerbread house. We pulled it out today and Luke just couldn't wait to get going. Ella on the other hand, couldn't wait to start eating. Each time Luke noticed that Ella had snuck a treat he would exclaim the since Ella had one it was only fair that he got one as well. Luckily Luke didn't see even a half of the times that Ella snagged herself a goodie... or we'd have had 2 hyped up kid's at bed time. The best was that when Luke asked for a candy to taste he followed with " You and Mommy talk about it." and then said "my tummy is asking for it." He's a funny boy.
So here's to the first year of a new tradition. It was such a fun family activity. The kids really did end up doing a lot of the decorating.

Thanksgiving

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year. I am still so amazed that it's already over and that we are now in December! It was a quite Holiday with some of the best food eve. I must say that Dave's turkey was the best we had all ever had. It was so juicy and so flavorful. The glaze was a mixture of Coca-cola and maple syrup and it made the best gravy I have ever had... hands down. We all ate until we had stomach aches, I finally asked Dave's Aunt to take my plate away from me. 

The kids had fun with their cousins and spending the morning skateboarding with their Dad. I will post those photo's soon. 

I have so many things to be thankful for and I don't acknowledge them all enough. 

I have been blessed with the most supportive and family oriented Husband I could ever imagine. He is always helping and playing both roles of Mom and Dad. I guess that's the blessing and the curse of being home so often. My kids are so kind and sweet. My days are filled with their hugs, kisses, silliness and compliments. A bit of screaming and crying too but I'll even take that. 

I have the great blessing of being a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. All of my greatest joys and happiness' come from that one blessing. I know where I came from, my purpose in this life and where I am going after I depart this life. That knowledge brings me such peace and also gives me the confidence I need to dace the challenges in this life.

I could go on and on about what I am grateful for. The best friends who share so much with me and who inspire me to be a better person, Wife and Mother. Wonderful Parents and In-Law's who sacrifice much for me and my family, talents and hobbies to give me satisfaction and joy. 

I have been given much indeed.