Father's Day

A Happy Father's Day

The 2 most important men in my life...

My Jonnie and my dad.

I love you both sooo much.

Elle made a card for Jon all by herself and was so excited to present it to her daddy.

She listed her favorite things about him.

Here is Elle's list in her own words:

Daddy - Here are the things I love about you!

1. you are nice to me

2. you smell good

3. you dress good

4. you are a good sport to me

5. you take really good care of me

6. you have good parents

7. you help me when I am sad

8. you give me fun stuff

9. you give good hugs

10. you give me good kisses

Pretty cute, huh? To see it in her 6 year old printing makes it even more adorable. We're saving it forever, for sure. Gwen and Lily gave their daddy his favorite candy, licorice and hot tamales. We presented all of his presents to him with breakfast in bed of course. I can't get over how excited they get about everything. So sweet.

We had a very happy father's day.

Tap

As you can imagine, Gwen was over the moon with excitement the day her tap dancing costume arrived. It's so cute on her. All she keeps telling me is "mom, you want to see my maxie ford?" I die.

I think I learned the maxie ford step when I was her same age.

She had a dress rehearsal in her class on Friday. Her eyes were glued on me during the entire dance making sure I caught every move. It was so cute. I love that part of being a mom. They're soo excited to show you everything. I made sure I made a big deal about the whole dance and of course how cute she looked. And what did I tell her I loved the best out of the whole routine...? The maxie ford steps of course.

Sisters

This morning I was upstairs trying to get everything ready to head out for swimming lessons and came downstairs to Elle in her jammies dancing with Lily. Elle said, "mama, Lily was sad and so I got her a baba (our word for sippy cup) and put music on to dance with her." I walked into the front room to this sight of Elle holding Lily tightly and dancing. Oh how I love them. I love that they love one another. What Elle was doing with Lily was exactly what I have done with her and also what she sees me doing with her sisters. It was so sweet to see Elle comforting her sister the way she has been comforted. Ellers, I love you.

Crunch!

Gwen and Lily set up camp on our trampoline this morning. Gwen took out quilts, stuffed animals, snacks and of course their pillow-pets. I found them just like this munching on apples all snuggled up next to each other. Lily is quickly leaving her baby stage behind (which makes me sad) and is now just one of the girls. Gwen is LOVING the company.

All Mine

I have said this many times but living with little kids is like having your very own cartoon characters running around your home. It's the best and I never tire of it.

School Carnival

Elle's elementary school had their annual carnival. The excitement level about this event was pretty high. On the day of the carnival the rides were being set up before school let out. Blow-up bounce houses covered the school yard and I can only imagine what a big deal that was for the kids to see while at recess. As I was driving Gwen and her friends around that day, every time we passed the school the preschoolers in the back of my car would start yelling and pointing. Jon came home from work early and we went as a family. Gwen won the cake walk which was a HUGE deal to her. She was able to go to a large table with her winning ticket and choose any cake she wanted. She chose the one with mounds of frosting in rainbow colors and on top balanced a big plastic crab. She was beaming and very proud. Elle spent the majority of her time waiting in line for the trampoline jump. They were hooked up with harnesses and were able to jump (in elle's words) super-duper high. Yes it was crowded and the lines were long but really, as a parent there is nothing better than watching your little ones be so excited and happy. Totally worth it.

Memorial Day

We spent memorial day at the beach. It was pure heaven for me and made me so excited for summertime. Jon was able to surf with his brother, Syd and the girls had fun trying to spot which black spots out in the ocean were uncle syddles and their daddy. Lily never tired of the sand toys and Elle and Gwen spent most of their time on their boogie boards. I came home with splotchy burned legs which is completely typical of my first time out each summer. Can't wait for more days just like this.

New Week

I'm happy this marks the start of a new week. Last week was a rough one for me health wise. Being a mom of 3 little ones and also being sick is rough. I'm feeling better today and am so grateful. I think my family is too!

The sunlight in our home this morning was so pretty.

The flowers on our kitchen counter made me instantly feel better and then there's my Lily. How cute is she? Gosh, I love her. Her name suits her so well, doesn't it? I have countless photos of her on our front porch but truthfully that is her favorite place to be. She would stand there all day if I let her. I think it gives her a sense of freedom. Oh, and have I mentioned her very favorite thing to say? It's, "mama". She sounds like a broken record all day but I still love it.

Lily, you're adorable.

Home

Palos Verdes will always be "home" for me. Growing up there, I took its beauty for granted. I never realized what a unique and amazing place it was to live until I left for college. Since we don't live too far from there now, it is always so fun for me to take Jon and my girls with me and to show them all of my favorite spots. Elle was so cute and as she was looking out over the cliffs she said, "Mama, I love it here because this is where you were a little girl." I couldn't have said it better myself.

She's a Keeper

I went in to the backyard to find Gwen just like this. She was very serious. I asked her what she was doing. I had to ask her 3 times before she heard me or even realized I was standing in front of her. She looked at me and said, "mom. i am watching barbie mermaid. shhh."

I have movies on my phone and her #1 favorite is the Barbie one. Why the swim cap and goggles on dry land, you ask? I asked too.

Inquiring minds want to know.

Her reply, "mom. how else can I see underwater?"

Apparently she was not watching Mermaid Barbie. She WAS Mermaid Barbie.

Easter Morning

The Easter Bunny came to our home. Before bed the girls put their new matching easter jammies on and tore the last chains off of their "countdown to Easter" paper chains in their room. I still can't get over how excited they get about every single holiday. Easter morning is one of my favorites. The girls were thrilled with the little gifts and chocolates left in their baskets. Elle could not put her new book down. Gwen blew bubbles in her new silly straw cup and lily went nuts for her new little stuffed bunny.

Easter Sunday

Our very own Easter Lily was not interested in being in the picture with us - but we still love her

On our way out the door for church. I managed to wipe all of the chocolate off of their faces for this picture. They had just finished a healthy breakfast of sees candy, peeps and pez.

Real Home no.6

Our home is featured today on

stephmodo

I am a big fan (and follower) of Stephanie's beautiful blog and to say I am flattered would be an understatement.

Thanks to my good friend, Elizabeth

who came up with the idea of submitting pictures of my house and also for taking the time out of her busy life to take them

Easter's On Its Way

4 more "sleeps" until Easter. The countdown has been going on for weeks in our home. Elle and Gwen made paper chains that hang in their bedroom so they can be SURE to know how many more days until "THE BIG DAY". Elle made this Bunny hat at school and this morning I came downstairs to find Gwen watching cartoons with it on. Oh, how I love this 4 year old.

Love

~ my lily and my jon ~

Sea World

Gwen's preschool class had a field trip to Sea World. Elle was at school but Lily and I joined her. So fun. We saw Shamu do a flip and went to the shark tank. Gwen's favorite however was the starfish pool. Lily's favorite was the bag of popcorn she walked around with.

On The Inside

In my mind, Elle is still my baby. I can't get over how grown up she is looking lately. At times I'll look at her and get a glimpse as to how she'll look when she's older. I love babies but I must say Elle getting older is really fun too. She is constantly told how much she looks like her daddy. And it's true. She is a McGee through and through. A dead ringer for Jon when he was little and Jon looks just like his dad. The other night laying in bed she said, "mama, I know I look like daddy but I think I'm just like you on the inside." How cute is that? It's true too. She is is a lot like me.

As she was drifting off to sleep I told her she was perfect and not to change a thing. She whispered back, "mama, what if I get a new freckle while I sleep - is that ok?"

I assured her that a new freckle would be fine. She would still be perfect.

Besties

My best friend Allyson was in town this past week on vacation with her family. It was so much fun to see her. We met when we were just 5 years old on my driveway and were inseparable ever since. Hard to believe we've been friends for 31 years. I wish I had a scanner because I have some pretty hilarious photos documenting those years... grade school t0 college roommates to marriage, babies and everything in between. The best part however is that no matter how long it's been since we've seen each other we don't miss a beat the minute we're together again. Our brilliant plan in 5th grade to marry brothers and live on the same cul-de-sac didn't quite work out as we had planned. We've had to settle with meeting up on stolen weekends here and there... but we'll take what we can get.

Love you, Ally - here's to 31 ( + ) more years.

Silhouette

The silhouette of the little girl on our nightstand is me when I was 8 years old. I had it done at Disneyland and can still remember trying to sit so still for the artist. I was so excited when I found it the other day that I had to put it out. I have plans for this one and also for silhouettes of my 3 girls but until then this little one makes me smile.

Switched

I switched my lamps around last week. And to make it clear I do not have time for trivial things like this. I know this blog is quiet but my life is not. I do not putter around a quiet house with music playing switching things here and there. It's crazy around here all the time. When the idea hit me to move things around Elle and Gwen both had friends over plus we had 3 neighbor kids over, I was holding Lily and starting to make dinner. Did I wait until a more convenient time? Of course not. I had Elle crawl under the table and unplug the lamp, I had Gwen's friend hold the lamp shade and two more kids upstairs doing the same thing. They were all good sports and quickly ran back out on to our trampoline. Elle did tell me she thought it looked really pretty before she ran off. Thank you for humoring me, Elle.

Do you see what it's like living with me? Embarrassing - I just can't help it.

Gwen the Pirate

Gwen was invited to a Pirate Birthday Party last Friday. I remembered 5 minutes before she left that she needed to go in costume. We made it work and she thought she looked like a real pirate which was all that mattered. She was amazed at my skills. The costume in reality was a lame attempt on my part. I'll be sad when my girls start realizing that I'm not really as great as they think I am. I know that day is fast approaching. Until then - I'm soaking it up.

The Climber

This morning as I was rushing to make Elle's school lunch and get breakfast for everyone I saw Lily climbing up on to the kitchen bench. I hurried and told Elle to move the table. This is now what we have to do because Lily is a climber. She can get on to the bench all by herself and then she climbs on to the kitchen table. Then from the kitchen table she gets on to the pass-through wall. She has had 2 black eyes from falling from there. She will cannon-ball on to the sofa on the other side of that wall and sometimes she misses. Not good. I like the first picture. She's so proud of herself and is all smiles for the camera. Then this picture below is when she realized the table was moved. Her plan was foiled!

We're on to you, Lily.

Pretty

At a little antique shop that I like to go to I found these potted succulents. They were in old scraped up pots which I loved. The pots didn't have bases on them and since I knew I was putting them indoors I had to do something. I searched around and found some mis-matched things that I thought would work. When I saw this turquoise one and put it with the largest white pot it was perfect. On the other two pots I went home with I put vintage blue and white china plates ( 2 for $1) under them. Pretty.

Pure Love

I went in to wake Lily from her nap and found her just like this. She had opened the shutters and thrown all of her blankets out of the crib. Adorable. I love her so, so much.

My sweet, sweet Lily. I love being your mom.

Dear Leprechauns...

Here was Elle's attempt this morning before school at what she called "a leprechaun jump kick". She was jumping and trying to click her heels together. Apparently Leprechauns do that. Who knew?

Before bed last night Elle started writing a note that she said she was going to leave for the Leprechauns. She had a lot of unanswered questions. She asked me for an idea of something to ask them and I said to ask them how old they are. She looked at me with a confused look on her face and said, " moommm, everyone knows all leprechauns are the same age and they are all 105." I had no idea! I then offered the idea to ask them if they go on vacations and if so where do they like to go. She again said, " moommm, they stay at their rainbow and St. Patricks day IS THEIR VACATION and the place they go is to all kids houses all over the world." Ok, then. She then sat at the table and carefully thought up her own questions.

This morning, the first place she ran to was her note. And yes, the leprechauns did respond to her....in teeny, tiny writing since leprechauns ARE teeny tiny. Here were her questions and the leprechauns answers. ( I can not even describe the pure joy that came over her when she looked at the paper and saw that the leprechauns had answered all of her questions.)

Are you a boy or a girl? a boy

When do you take a bath? at night before I go to bed

What is your favorite song? It's Not Easy Being Green by Kermit the Frog

Do you know how to swim? no

How many houses do you visit on March 17th? 63,000,000,071 houses in one night. I'm tired

He then wrote to all three girls and told them to have a lucky day, not to forget to wear green to school and signed his name, Leo the Leprechaun.

I love my Ellers. She is the cutest, happiest little 6 year old. So imaginative and wide eyed about life. Did I mention that I really love her? I do. A lot.

Lily Pie: 20 months

She's growing up and I'm not quite sure how I feel about it either. It's fun to see my girls develop and change but at the same time I want to keep them as my babies forever. I love the first photo. That's my view of her all day. Lily - standing at my feet with her arms straight up wanting me to hold her. If she wants something she'll come and poke me with her finger until I follow her to see what she needs help with. If I'm on the computer she comes and puts her head on my lap while she's standing or if I'm doing dishes she'll come over and wrap her hands around my legs and stand on my feet. If I'm sitting on the ground helping one of her sisters she'll squeeze right in and plop right into the middle of my lap. It's cute. These pictures present a very mellow Lily but that is not the case. She is CRAZY BUSY and into EVERYTHING. She only knows one speed and that is - Fast. All of my girls have been 'busy' but I'm going to have to say Lily has set a new standard. She's a climber and I find her on top of our kitchen table frequently. It's scary. The only comment I get when I take her anywhere is, "you've got your hands full." Yes I do. My hands are full, no doubt about that and I'm exhausted by the end of each day but what is there to complain about when what they're full with are chubby cheeks, blue eyes and a bald head. Could be worse and I wouldn't have it any other way.