Blessed

I can not think of a better word to describe the way that I feel after these last two days. My work is like a roller coaster-has its good days when the kids are all in good moods, are goofy and want to sit and hang out and talk with me. Then there are the not so good days when everyone is tired, moody, don't want to listen and more time is spent fighting them on things then getting to enjoy the little things. The last two days have been the highs of that roller coaster. We have been silly, we have done chores and homework and have just talked, but it has all been with a good attitude. It brings me so much joy in my work and makes me look forward to the next day. The latest craze has been the gingerbread playdoh that I made for them. Jedi and I have sat for hours the last two days talking, listening to music and molding different shapes out of this playdoh that smells MARVELOUS! The kids have been polite, sharing and having fun building things together and we have even found time to be super silly. Tonight we learned to boogie and have car dance parties...and oh did we laugh! They bring so much joy to my life and I have found myself so content and loving what I do! Sure there are the spills, the messes, the tantrums, the accidents and the piles of laundry to wash and to fold...but I wouldn't have it any other way. God has blessed me with a family that has taken me in and loved me-and the timing could not be better!

Hanging out for my birthday dinner! :)

What's new?!

Today was the beginning of a new job, a new family, new kids, a new house. I was not the only one starting out new though. The kids are at a new school, just moved into a new house and I am a new nanny. So there is lots of adjusting for all! :) It was a fun day though, just getting to know the kids-their different personalities and who they are. The youngest, and who I will be spending the most time with seemed to warm up quickly. His mom said he was showing off for me jumping in circles on the trampoline and trying to play keep away. When he did get shy, it was nothing some bubbles and coloring pages couldn't cure! So here I go, jumping feet first into a new adventure, but not gonna complain about the way that God works because He always works things out for the better and shows me what is best!

"buh bye, see you!"

Today marks the end of another fantastic summer! We spent the summer reminiscing on all of the things that we had done together this summer and all of the fun that we had! The girls wanted to make something to remember the summer by, so we decided to make a poster and draw, paint, and write all of the things that we did this summer. I asked the girls if they even could remember it all and they said if they put their heads together they could come up with a list and I think we got it all! I am going to miss my morning cuddle time with Greta, dancing and singing with Ava, watching Cake Boss with Soso and laughing at all of the crazy things that Sashy does and says, but thing good thing is, "I am not going to San Diego." I kept having to remind the girls of this everytime they would be sad that it was the last day and school was starting. (Too which one time Greta replied, "no, but you're leaving the country" ;) )

This summer was full of experiences, lessons and memories that I would not trade for the world and have helped me become and prepare to be a better person. Its amazing what you can learn from four small little girls and how they can make such a huge impact on your life.

That's a wrap for this summer sitter. Time for a nap!

"Add some Pazazz..."

I love doing projects that take a majority of the day because it keeps the girls busy and we get to do fun things and make a mess that we don't have to clean up for a while. Today was one of those days. The girls have been asking since the beginning of the summer when we were going to make sugar cut out cookies and today was the day. We had fun mixing the dough and cutting the shapes

and then of course the best part....DECORATING

We mixed fun colors and gave them "pazazz", as Greta said, by adding sprinkles and her favorite red sparkle decorating gel. I love watching their creativity and seeing how simple or intricate each cookie turns out. We were admiring how bright and fun the colors were and the girls both agreed that they did not look real, that they looked kind of cartoony...

well cartoony or not they sure tasted good, but looked almost too good to eat!

...almost ;)

From Winter to Summer

I bet there are not many kids in CA that can say they spent the day in the snow one day and the next playing in the waves at the beach...my four can! We have had a good two days and a great wrap up to a work week for me. Yesterday the long awaited "Winter in July" was finally here!! We made snowflakes, played with snow and built gingerbread houses and snowmen!! The girls look forward to Winter in July every summer...and I must say I find it quite fun myself! No snowball fights broke out this year, but we managed to have a good time without it! :)

Today the girls mom took off work and we packed up all the kids and headed to the beach! It was the perfect beach day filled with laughs, screams (happy screams of course) and wipe outs! We played in the sand and the waves all afternoon and had a fantastic time. The girls even got me all the way in the water riding the waves back in and getting sucked under! It was fun to be a kid again.

So...Winter one day, summer the next, doesn't get much better than that! :)

Oh Play-doh

I swear I have never seen more play doh out and everywhere ever in my life. These girls can't just have 1 color out, they've each gotta have 3, but of course the colors can't mix cause that would be horrible!!! But at least it keeps them occupied. They molded and carved and shaped for 2 hours I think before they decided they were done and cleaned up...mostly. The thing with play-doh is that it gets EVERYWHERE and of course it is not in easy to pick up pieces, or even still soft enough to add back to the rest of it. The smaller the pieces, the quicker it dries and then you have flecks of colored play doh everywhere! So when the girls disappeared I continued to find little pieces of dried up play doh-on the floor, on the table on my clothes and in my hair. Don't want to know where else it may have ended up, but hopefully I got it cleaned! :) Mostly the afternoon was filled with the girls playing on their own, a picnic lunch outside and the anticipation for what tomorrow may bring! ;)

Barbies, Barbies, oh and more Barbies

Today was declared Barbie day by the girls as they dug through my tub of old Barbie's and accessories and changed their outfits, hair styles, and occupations. One minute a teacher, the next a ballerina and still next a princess. They were entertained all day long and it was fabulous. It was fun for me to take a little trip down memory lane too as they pulled out the different dresses or dolls and I remembered something from when Barbie's were a daily activity in my life. Unfortunately we had to learn the hard way that my 10-15 year old dolls sadly were not made to be played with, left in a box for who knows how long and then pulled out for 3 little girls to love oh so much. We lost a few heads, a few legs and the what was once permanent hair styles have all been pulled out. I caught Ava sucking on the head of baby Barbie at one point with the rest of its body sticking out of her mouth...oh geez! One sentence I thought I would never hear myself say, "Get the babies head out of your mouth!!" Love it!
We started the day out though by filling the house with the glorious smell of chocolate chip cookies. Greta was up early so after some snuggle time, breakfast and chores, she and I whipped up a batch of cookies, which then sat on the counter all day tempting us to eat them...and eat them we did!