What kind of a mother are you?

Because apparently I'm the kind to ignore my kid until he finally falls asleep playing with the barn on the COLD, HARD wood floor.

And the only reason I know this is because Ella yelled "hey mom, come look at Zach, he dropped dead on the floor"!





Sorry Zachy!

Happy Mother's Day....

Today my Ella told me that "if you were a prize in my prize box at school, then I would pick you mom. You are the greatest mom."
Coming from a six year old, I will say that is a great compliment...you would have to know how much she LOVES picking from the prize box. Sadly, it's usually something that I think hmmmm, I wonder how long she will have to have that until I throw it away!
So today it really was a HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY! My hubby had to be in Finland for meetings all week and we really missed having him around, so I didn't get my customary toast and diet coke in bed...but to make up for it, I did get a lovely trip to the spa upon his return.
I am profoundly grateful for the women in my life. My wonderful mom, sister, grandmother, best friends, sisters-in-law, and the countless examples that have made me a better person and mother.
Finally, to have been blessed with 3 amazing children. I look at them and realize how lucky I am to have Ella and Zach and to raise them on this earth. Someday I hope that I will be worthy to raise my Kate, and that as the years pass my heart will heal a little more.
So today, I'm glad that I'm at least worthy to be picked out of the Kindergarten prize box...and at this point in my life, that's pretty dang exciting.
Ella (6)

Zach (19 months) aka: el diablo

Kate (April 2006)

Zach's First BIG BOY Haircut...

Okay, so I admit I have been cutting my kids hair for a while now, and I will say the word "mullet" has started popping into our conversation about little Zach's hair. So, I decided he was overdue to get a "REAL" cut from a trained professional. (dang it, I tried)

Things started out pretty good...


Then the cape came on and it started to get a little scary....


Then the cape came off, and the water-bottle came out...not so good.


It did end better, and not as bad as I thought...he seemed pretty pleased with the non-mullet outcome...but mostly I think it was the small bag of sour-patch kids our cute hair-dresser Stacey gave him!



And jumping for joy that it's ALL OVER...at least for another 2 months.

Swine Flu?

Funny little Ella. She wants to know about everything they talk about on the news, so now that the SWINE FLU has come around (JENN-I know you are in FULL panic mode...just go buy another self-tanner for your food storage!)
Ella wants to know all about it. Today we had a funny little conversation, and it's so ELLA.

Ella: mom, can I watch Charolette's Web?

Mom: sure, I bet Zach would like that one.

Ella: Yeah, I haven't watched that show in a LOOOONG time.

Movie plays for about 10 minutes. We get to the part where Wilbur the pig is living in the house and sleeping in her room.

Ella: Is Charolette's Web a "REAL" story mom?

Mom: (mom is reading by the way) Yes.

Ella: So, everything is real except the talking pig?

Mom: (whoops) yes, everything is real except the talking pig.

Ella: What about the talking spider.

Mom: (shoot) okay Ella, it's a pretend story, but it's the magic of the story that is so fun to believe in.

Ella: Okay

Ella: mom, I REALLY want a pig for a pet...can I mom?

Mom: NO

Ella: It would be the perfect pet, and we would make sure that it didn't have the SWINE flu before we took it home.

Mom: NOOOOOO!

Ella: Fine, can I turn on another movie then?

Gotta love my 6 year old's mind. She is always a worker bee. And who wouldn't want a talking pig...minus the SWINE FLU part?

What? oh, crap..

Those were my words as I tried to update a new template to the blog because I was bored...

"WHAT? Oh, crap..."

That's what I yelled when I found out that it had deleted something called "widgets"..who names something "widgets"..isn't that politically incorrect?

So if your name is not on my blog list, it's not that I decided I don't like you, but that I can't find your blog on google! So please send it again.

Is this worth all the work?

"widgets" please..you ruined my day.

Bye-Bye to California...Hello...snow?

Are you kidding me? Three days after I move from my beautiful house, friends, WARM weather, flowering trees, and Disney at night...I get 10 inches of snow?

Really, could it be any harder to move somewhere...it's April Mother Nature, cut me a break.Saying good-bye to my friends and my house was possibly the second hardest thing I've had to do. We have lots of memories in that house, but when it was all said and done, things had been packed away, all we had left were some walls, lovely dark wood floors(that I had to clean twice a day), and some nice window covers. The thing that really means the most is my little family that huddled in a circle, and cried, said a prayer that we would find friends for our children, friends for mom, and another nice house to create new memories in, in Utah. After a tearful good-bye we shut the door and walked into our new life.
Here is our last swing in the backyard...

When our baby Kate died and our friends and ward put in our whole backyard, they planted a tree for her. This tree will go totally dead in the winter where we think it will never come back, but about the middle of March you will start to see the green little buds, and then one week before Kate's birthday it comes out with the most amazing purple bloooms, almost like grapes. It will be missed...it still has a ribbon tied around it and it has grown into the bark. I will miss the purple blooms on her birthday but luckily got to take a picture of it before we left.

Fortunate for me, I know that my friends and my little daughters friends will be with us for life, and I can't WAIT to have them come to my new home.
In the end, I guess what really matters most will be the memories we create, the happiness we get from our healthy, beautiful families, and the time we get to become better than we are now.
I absolutely LOVED my time in Temecula, California. I guess I'll be changing the name of the blog soon from "California Randle Family", but I'm not quite down with the "Utah Randle Family"...but I'll keep you posted when the change comes!

Daddy Daughter Dance Feb. 13, 2009

CAUTION: GRANDMA POST (that means lots of pictures of her grandkids, and slight bragging rights!)
Today was the big DANCE. We have been thinking about this crowning event ever since our friends the Johnson's, told us this was a hightlight of Nicholas Valley school. I have been worried that Nate would not be able to make it home to take her, but he flew in from New York this afternoon and picked my beautiful Ella up to take her on her first "date".
After many trips to the mall to find the perfect dress etc. we finally found THE ONE! We had a great time getting ready, not too much drama--but she wouldn't be a girl without crying about curling her hair right? She loved the end result, and I think it will be a great night for these two to boogie the night away.

It is raining like crazy right now, so I hope they had a great time, and enjoyed this great time together.

Here are a few of my favorite pictures--

The side view of the dress and final products!

Nate when he picked her up at the door!

Saving shoe boxes around the world.....

Many of you know how I like (LOVE) my diet coke. A few days ago while trying to shove the 12-pack box in the trash, I had an epiphany.

For several days I've been stressing about picking a shoe box that will have to be sacrified to the "valentine" god's this year for my kids class....and then it hits me.

The DIET COKE BOX! (I quickly pulled it from the trash). Brilliant...i think to myself. There is a carry hole on top, it will hold 30 plus valentines, and the opening is exactly the right size for all of those BIG ones that kids can never quite fit in the top of your hastily made shoe box slit! (You know who you are...the mom's that add pencils, lots of conversation hearts, or some crazy thing you found at the dollar store!) Plus you never again, will have to use one of your good steak knives, to cut an opening in this box...they are already preforated for you. HOW GREAT IS THAT???

No more will I have to make some poor pair of shoes go homeless, waiting for the dirt and dust to collect on them, and then be forgotten in the back part of my scary closet.

I have saved your shoe boxes from certain "valentine" death. Put down the exacto knife girls and go buy yourself some soda!

Why now, little bubba?

All he wants to do is SWING with G-MA ALL day long! If I go out there, he yells and points back to the house? When did I become the low man on the totem-pole? I thought this wouldn't happen until at least 14 when I had to drop him off 1 block from the movies...oh, well. When do i become cool again? Oh, yeah, when I have to pay for college....see you then ZACH!

Happy Birthday Sign....

Some of my cute friends got me this great B-Day sign for my birthday a few weeks ago. I've had my eye on these for awhile, so it was the perfect gift!

I just wanted them to be able to see how cute it is on my fireplace, all ready for Ella's big six year birthday next Tues.

I will always think of them every time I put this up...Thanks, Missi, Krissy, Mandy and Julie!

I really want to see the "new" update lunch photo...who has that?