visit from Jenny

Jenny came to visit in February. We headed to good old downtown Mesa. Had fun taking pictures with the MANY statues that line Main St. Found a tasty little deli for lunch and hit Sweet Cakes for a treat. It was a great day spent with family.

soccer!

I signed Jacob up for soccer in January. His practices started in Feb. It's his first time playing any kind of organized sport. He brought home a flyer from school, and the price, practice and game schedule seemed manageable, and he seemed interested. Now I just need to find something for the girls to do that is just as manageable. One thing at a time...Jacob has had fun. We are halfway through the season. It was hard for me to watch at first, he was so timid, unsure of himself and seemed so young on the field with older kids, but he has held his own, become more sure of himself and I'm proud of him! The weather is great right now during games, but I'm dreading the last few games in May. I'm sooooo sad that summer is on it's way!

wall art, 2nd edition

sofia had fun with a pile of napkins she found in the pantry. she does seem to enjoy displaying her art as much as she likes to create it. this is what i found on the wall just the other day. each flower or design is named after her friends from school. too cute to pass up a photo op!

we {heart} cub scouts!

I obviosly don't know how to use my camera...I took the first two pictures and a friend took the second two. my flash and i do not get along! congrats to jacob for earning his bear patch! he wrestled a bear that night and came home with a fierce bear claw around his neck. we, i mean he is now working on his webelos. FUN times.

audiences are great!

I was in the kitchen making dinner and I heard Jacob ask Isabel to watch him play a game. When I walked into the room this is what I saw. I love the arm around his shoulder.

grapefruit anyone?

Since I came to live in Mesa, I have always wanted citrus trees, but have never had them. I was so excited to have some orange trees when we moved into this house. I thought there were three orange trees. The middle tree was just in bad shape and didn't produce any fruit last year. Just a few weeks ago I noticed big yellow grapefruits hanging on the tree! A grapefruit tree. I was so excited. I love grapefruits! I think that since I've been irrigating since I moved in the tree has had water and decided to produce this year. It is still a pretty ugly tree and needs some serious love, but on the backside of the tree are tons of grapefruit. Sofia will go out, pick a grapefruit and some oranges, come in and snack on them. How convenient! Now if I could only take care of the trees, but I have zero yard tools, zero citrus tree knowledge, and zero time.

I keep finding reasons to like Mesa...it is starting to grow on me. Citrus off the tree in the middle of winter is a huge bonus! dead in front, full of grapefruit on the side near the wall.

A palm tree that has just popped up among the trees.

YUMMMMY!

Couldn't leave out the oranges. They are also delish!

whoo-hoo sofia!

Sofia used to chew her nails down to nothing! It drove me crazy. I told her that if she could quit biting her fingernails for at least a month I would take her to get a pedicure and manicure. Of course I thought it would be hard for her to do. So I totally bribed her with something she had been asking for, thinking I would never have to actually pay up. Well, the girl stopped biting her nails within 2 weeks. That was about 6 months ago. At first I wanted to make sure that she had really kicked the habit, but then time just passed and I kept forgetting my side of the deal. This last weekend, I took her. She was thrilled. She loved the whole process. I did tell her that this was pretty much a one time thing, for super special occasions. I am proud of her for quitting a bad habit. Next time I will think twice before I offer any kind of reward! They did charge me quite less because she is a little girl, so that helped. I'm super proud of her!