Messages from the Pacific: April 2009

One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest.....

AND SO IT BEGINS...

the goal:
construct a chicken coop out of salvaged/recycled materials. (mostly)

The Crew:
Suz, and number 76.(aka ROCKSTAR!)
yes, we ARE sporting our safety shades...

Location:
My Backyard

you should know that there were power tools involved. Vintage 1983 variety. I think that steel was heavier then. It was somewhat intimidating, but we were not discouraged. Just scared.
Suzanne, clearly victorious with her first cut.(showoff)

Laying out a home for our future hens.

I really like the drill. A lot.

so far, so good..

please note the rusted out stroller in the background. This served as our wheelbarrow.
I'm not sure I can describe how thrilling framing the bottom felt. many high fives ensued..also girl power! shout outs..(also proving to my girls, who happened to be watching the action, that my talents lie beyond just laundry).

The base is finished...do you have any idea how long this took????

and then I broke my hand.

To be continued.....

Officially a Soccer Mom

She ran right out with her team... Every time she ran past us, her eyes were sparkling

Assessing the situation

Avery hasn't had a game yet, but I got a couple of her practice

She took it pretty seriously..she was so excited to get a spot on her team

Sophia's team- The Princesses. Really, I thought we had plenty of that already in our life, but she was ecstatic. Clearly it was meant to be.
Avery's team- The Butterflies. Also fitting

HAPPY
EASTER!

We had such a wonderful weekend. We started it by the girls' school egg hunt. They planted their baskets a few weeks ago, and watered, trimmed, and nurtured them until this day..they loved this! they also get to "cut the hair". Sounds fun, and it is, although it does give me more to sweep up. oh well...good times, good times.

Lyla Rose is always included. I love that.

The eggs were filled with raisins and carob chips. Avery wanted to know where the real candy was.

The reason I was getting annoyed taking pictures. This kid has a hard time sitting still....

Also, my camera is dying. (Toby, if your reading this, feel free to take note..hint, hint, nudge nudge)

Hell hath no fury like taking away this egg dye from Lyla. She dyed one egg. Seriously, we could not move that glass more than a centimeter away...Have at it sister. It was the brightest pink we had.

Our Easter dessert. again blurry %$#@ pictures! my broken camera needs a cast.

Hunting for eggs. Look close, and you can see the ladies...

I loved how much she was enjoying reaching into her basket and pulling out her treasures...Oh how she screamed with delight!

Next time i'll make sure her mouth isn't full

The sweet Mckinney boys joined us for brunch..boys in oxfords are just delicious

It was difficult to get the girls looking at me, and also to keep Abby and her cone out of the pic!

THE END

It rains where we live. A lot. (130 inches per year)
We roll with it.

The nice thing is, the sun eventually comes out. Even if only briefly.

This is the coconut tree that rocks the front yard. I love and fear this beauty. The fronds are as long as my minivan. The coconuts that drop are huge and heavy. I have a better chance dying from one of the coconuts than a shark. (so says statistics) I wonder how much more those scales are tipped when you take into account the amount of time I spend in my house vs. the ocean?
Beautiful though.

Have you ever taken a walk in the rain in your pajamas?

I HIGHLY recommend it.

She really was enjoying it. Sometimes it is just hard to keep up.

Even if you get stuck with the broken umbrella, and can't keep up

And if you're lucky, the sun will come out at the end, and if you are a real nice mom, you let the little ones have a session with the camera.

First: Photography by Avery Olivia