August

August was the month of boxes. Packing, moving, unpacking. It was also my month to to have Eleanor home on Fridays and Madeline home on Tuesdays. As much as I love having both girls together, I adore having them individually. I got the chance to take Madi to the beach, on the trolley to eat downtown, and to Sea World (all with just a purse or small bag, wow!). Madeline made all of the choices about her activities, schedule, etc. She seemed to enjoy running the show (of course) and I liked being able to give her the choices without worrying about what Ella needed. I was also so happy to just relax with Ella, cuddle with her sans interruptions, and enjoy my last few weeks of nursing.

I assume I'll be seeing this look a ton in the teen years

Painting with the stamp she made at the science museum turned into handprints and messy fun

Sleeping Ella - a rare sight

At the science museum

Packing was a long process. I am still a little overwhelmed at how little I could pack once we had sent the garage stuff to storage. It felt like we needed everything regularly to keep Eleanor or Madeline functional. Or I couldn't pack the things that made the condo look nice while we were still showing it to potential buyers. Bleh. Once we finally got to the week before moving, I was so glad to be able to just start at the top of the condo and pack every room one by one. Jameson was NOT happy to have boxes all over then house. I am not sure that he is scared of anything quite as much as cardboard. Madi did like all of the boxes, but preferred to play in them versus pack stuff up.

First time playing in the new house!

Bella came for a visit with Grandkarl and the new laundry machines

Madeline wanted a purple room (and insisted Ella did too). Thanks to the extreme wall texture, this took me all day.

The couch trying to fit through the door. We lost this battle and spent the first month in the house using the glider and camping chairs to sit in.

The fridge, a battle for space

We had this gorgeous gate put in to give us dog separation in the back (and more privacy)

Bye Bye empty condo :(

Box pile post unpacking

Our beautiful (slightly retro) stove and microwave

Yay yard with plumerias moved in

Madeline helped Matt empty the storage unit out

The weekend after we moved, the Sheas happened to be visiting San Diego. What a great excuse for a girls' night and a pool party! I was so glad to get out of the house Friday night, wash my hair for the first day in a week and focus on something else besides kids or boxes. This outing also provided me with a goal for unpacking. Before I left the house, we had emptied all of the boxes inside the house except for one office stuff box that is currently living in Matt's closet. Matt took the girls to the Gross' house to hang with the other dads and enjoy some Daddy-Daughter entertainment. On Saturday, we celebrated Brynn's birthday with a pool party at Miss Rose's house. Madeline hit her very first filled pinata! She was terrible, but it was cute to see!

Madi and Michael lunching together

Exactly one week after moving into our house, I was lucky enough to get to unpack my classroom too! If you can't hear the sarcasm in the text, check your volume :) Matt stayed home with the girls on Friday since they had a teacher day. After spending the morning together, he had enough and came to have lunch with me (and leave the kids behind when he left). The girls were stoked to watch Blues Clues on my giant promethean board and Madi played with all of my science toys! Luckily, my mom came down on Friday night to watch the girls and we headed out to Juniper and Ivy for an adult night out. Matt and I celebrated our birthdays and anniversary with a super yummy dinner at a fun place. I even got to meet Chef Blaise!

The Labor Day weekend was filled with fun. Mostly we enjoyed our house, and got ready to have friends over for the first time. Madeline had her tent up all over the outside (and inside) of the house. She spent three days eating meals in the tent, trying to sleep in her tent, and getting the dogs to go in and play with her! We had so much fun with our friends! We haven't entertained more than one couple at a time in years. With the size of the condo and people having kids, we just didn't have the space for good separation. The house has completely changed that feeling! We have a great space for the dogs outside, they are even doing ok being separated inside the house. We love the outdoor space for the kids to play and grown ups to hang out. The kids go to play in the blow up pool, run in and out of the playroom, and generally just be crazy with very little worries over dangers. Our Sunday BBQ day was awesome even though it was a zillion degrees and the flies were insatiable! I am so looking forward to our next day to have friends over!