Funny Myles

One day last week while Bjorn was getting ready for work Myles joined him in the bathroom. Bjorn got out of the shower, toweled off, did his hair, brushed his teeth and then came this little voice. "Daddy, your fur is all dry!" He was talking about the curly hair that covers Bjorn's legs. It's STILL funny to me to hear out loud the way kids think. And just when I think I have heard it all, he reminds me that I haven't. Love you Bubba!

One foot, two feet...

Can you see the bruising on the top of the big toe? It extends all the way up the top of the foot almost to the ankle.

Battle wounds

This is how mom saw me most of her time here. I was totally taken care of. She brought me everything I needed. It almost felt decadent.

Lets just say last week was a hard one. I woke on Monday to an abscess that needed attention. After calling the dentist I dropped off my kids to my friends home and went to the dentist who deduced that it was a "difficult" root canal that would need to be done. She sent me to the Endodentist who luckily could get me right in. He started the two prong procedure and by noon I was home with the kids after undergoing phase one. The following day I was scheduled for foot surgery that has been coming for a while now. The surgery was referred to by the doctor as a "bump and run". It only takes a few hours for the Doctor to go in and shave off the excess bone, but it takes quite a bit longer to heal. I assure you there is no running going on here. In fact I now have an old lady walker to help me get around and to act as a barricade so the kids don't come to close to the very painful feet. I now have two incisions on each foot(inside and outside). The doctor said it would be no big deal to do both feet at once, the nurse and everyone else kept saying "are you sure you want to do both feet at once?" I now know why they were asking me! I have to say it is more painful than I thought. The first night I got to sleep at 6:30 am. It has a horrible night of pain and restless legs. When you can't get up and walk, and your legs are crawling, it's a horrible feeling. The following day I was able to get some stronger pain killers which worked well, but make me nauseous. So it's back to the IBU 800.

I went back to the doctors yesterday for the follow up to surgery. The sutures look great but will stay in for another week. For now it's "take it easy", feet up, ice, and don't get them wet. It's not that easy taking a bath with both your feet hanging out the side. You try it sometime. I can't wait to get into the shower and get both feet wet! The up side to the story is this, 1st it will be nice to wear any shoes I want and not have to worry about if they will hit in the wrong spot, 2nd, it's always nice to see mom! Myles told me, to tell her, that "she could come back tomorrow."

A huge shout out to Mom who came and saved the day taking care of us. I felt so bad just sitting on the couch or in bed while she did all the work, but at the end of the day the kids *HEART* having her here. We had great food, fun playing and reading, and lots of kisses. It's always fun when Grandma's in town. Thanks Mom!

House maintenance

Lydia was in the middle of getting changed when she spotted the "problem" and got to work right away!

Myles, ever the fix it, had to don the safety goggles in order to get a handle on this "problem".

Lydia, now dressed, is always a helpful assistant. Do you see that pipe wrench? Well I guess we really have a problem spot because, that is where the pipe wrench lives. It CANNOT go in the toolbox with the other tools at the end of the job, it must stay there for safe keeping.

This is a little insight into a Sunday afternoon at the Dodd house. You know the plumbing is always a problem and needs constant attention. Not to worry, I have three very willing handy men to do the job. It's a favorite pass time for everyone. Let's just hope a real plumbing emergency doesn't arise as the real handy woman wouldn't have a clue what to do!

First day of preschool

Myles and Audrey wait by the "lunch wagon" before entering the classroom.

The VERY proud and happy preschooler. He was thrilled to go to school, and even more thrilled to find out he has a "cubby" to put his "stuff" in.

It's official my kids are growing up way too fast. Myles started his first year of preschool on the 6th of September. He is the oldest in his class and by far the tallest. The smallest girl in his class of 5 only comes to his shoulder. It's quite funny. He absolutely loves it despite his "I don't want to go to school" comment each morning before school. When I asked him how his 1st day of school was he simply said: "It was pretty cool Mom."

He is enrolled at a Presbyterian church run school that would have been super close to our old house on Ivy Ave. It's just one block west, though we are not far even in our new home. Just a short 2 min. drive. He is going twice a week this year. I wish I could afford to send him more. He seems to really love it. He has already come home singing a song about apples! It's really cute. I will try and get a video of it so you can see.

Now if I could get Lydia to stop crying each day we drop him off. She would just really like to stay too. Next year! I think he should get one whole year to himself. The girls could technically go in a month or so, assuming I could get Audrey potty trained. But for now I think that we will keep them home for the year.

Way to go my big bubba! So proud of you!

Old friends

My old Boston roomie Somer, and her husband Billy, baby Paz, and Jack the dog came for a quick visit on their way to Mexico. They are moving there and have driven from Calgary, Canada stopping in Seattle, So. Cal, and then on to Mexico. Good luck in your travels and the grand adventure you are about to embark upon. Thanks for stopping to see us. It was a great day at the park. We loved the visit. Maybe the next will be in Mexico!

A Circle

Myles and the girls *HEART* playing on the stairs. I hate it and tell them not to play there all the time. I was doing something... I don't know what, but I heard arguing over a blue ball. Myles of course won, but as he grabbed it he began to fall backward and down the stairs. He reached out to grab something, Audrey. They began to fall head over heals down the entire flight of stairs, landing at the bottom with his face against the null post. He came running to find me screaming so loud that he couldn't breath. I finally got him to calm down and tell me what happened and all he could say was, "Momma, we were like a circle falling down the stairs". I hope this will teach them to play somewhere else in the house.

Cheeky Monkey

I can't remember why he didn't have clothes on this afternoon. It's an occurrence that happens oft at our house. They get in the pool without clothes, they get wet at the water table, they get hot... the list goes on. Although I have to say that riding while naked isn't the most responsible thing. It could cause a few "chaffing" problems if you know what I mean. I do however love those cute little cottage cheese buns!

Myles has really come out of his shell the last few months. He has become quite the imaginative boy. He loves to make believe and pretend and make the girls follow along. The other day he set up his "country" in the living room. It was the country of Living land. I thought it was rather cute. He sets up shopping all the time and announces with his microphone that lane #3 is open for shopping. He takes his Fred Flintstone cars to the "gas station" (the garden hose) for fuelling all the time. It's quite a job imagining all day long.

Myles starts pre-school two days a week on Tuesday. I'm jumping for joy and think he is going to love it. I wish I could afford to send him more, but I'll take two days. The hardest part is going to be the girls. They cry when he leaves them. I forget that the three are always together. The girls keep telling me that they are going to school too. It's very cute.

Way to go Myles, you are getting so big, and I'm sure you have big things ahead. I can't wait to see what live has in store for you!

Love you Bubba.

Wait for it...

So as promised I have finally taken pictures of the little girls room. It turned out really cute if I don't say so myself! I found the cute picture on our last trip to Prague. Then the Dolls hanging on the wall are from mom and dad's trip to Russia. The red mirror was a hand-me-down from Aunt Carol and Uncle Hal when they moved to the East Coast. It was stained brown, but I put a coat of red on it and love how it looks hanging from these curtain tie backs from Tiapan Trading. I picked them up for 3$ each and a quick coat of paint on them for the tie backs and the hanging letters. I love them. The toy stack was an Ikea find that needed to be pained too. And last but not least the lamp I found a strand of black and red beads in my sewing stuff. So I guess what I am saying is the only thing I really spent money on was the framing of the picture. It is always the most expensive and I wish someone(ahhmm...Ryan, Leslie, Dru) would buy and mate cutter and learn to do this well. I would pay for the mate cutter. Anywho there you have it! What do you think.

Potty training #@*&

This is the bucket of pee pee pants at the end of the first day of potty training the girls. Score card says...18 pair of underwear. Not bad for two girls, but not good either. Man I forgot how much the first day sucks. It's an intense 3 days, but so worth it when you are done, or so I thought. Well, turns out Audrey had a little bug and she had "butt pee" for the first day and a half when i finally threw in the towel with her. I just couldn't take it anymore. It's one thing to have pee running down the legs, but poop is entirely different. So...I put her back in diapers. She was a little sad that she wasn't going to get treats and prizes, but I still gave her treats when Lydia got them and she was happy as could be.

Day two I only had 4 pair of undies in the bucket, and Lydia had actually had some success at going pee on the potty. By day three she only had one accident and was getting to the potty almost on her own. Now two weeks into it she just takes herself to the potty. She isn't so good at wiping, so I try and stay on top of that, but WAY TO GO LYDIA. I love it when it's done, I just hate it when I'm doing it. Two kids down, one to go...

Silly Myles

Myles and I had a "date" on Tuesday evening. A co-worker of Bjorn's gave us some great tickets to the Barnum and Bailey Circus that is in town. As we were walking into the arena I said: "do you want to hold hands?" He said: "Why mom?" and I said: "Because we are on a date and that's what you do." He said: "Sure mom, I'd love to." Then he said: "I think we should bring dad on our date next time."

We watched the whole circus and had a great time. I asked him the following day what his favorite part of the circus was and he said: "when the lady pushed the button to get your Coke into your cup." Translation, when we went to get snacks I got a Coke from the bar because the line was much shorter than the other food lines. So the bar tender had a soda fountain that was handheld. She pushed one button for the Coke to come out and he thought that was the best things since sliced bread. The things he says make me laugh all the time. I think he's going to have such a dry sense of humor. It sure is funny to watch their little personalities unfold before you.

Trip to Utah 2011

The kids and I took a trip to Utah for the 24th of July. There is always a lot going on that time of year and everyone tends to be around. This was the second time we have gone and it was just as fun as last year. The kids love to stay with Grandma and Papa. Heck I do too. Who wouldn't, it's like staying at a B&B. You get all your meals, local travel info, even free babysitting. Who wouldn't love that! Anyway we packed a lot into our short week and a half.

A big Thanks to Dad who flew out and drove with me to Utah. I don't think it was quite like our road trips of yore, but it was fun all the same.

We visited the Hoggle Zoo with Some of Kristin's kids as well as some of Leslie's kids. The weather couldn't have been better. Not to hot and overcast most of the day. A perfect day I would say. We visited most everything on display, but there was construction so some of the animals are not there. Not to worry though, we still got to see plenty. The bird show was great! A little long and I could have done without the hawk trying to eat the Parrot, but otherwise really good.

Next it was bowling with the kids. Myles had his first time bowling and he loved it. Tess and Graham were very patient with him and his wanting to go all the time. They kept their cool and told him when to go.

We didn't make the parade this year, mom and dad where in-charge, but it was too hot and I didn't want to sit with the kids for that long. So we went to the Park for the carnival while the parade was en route. It wasn't crowded and we had a great dinner of pulled pork, corn on the

cob and fry bread and creamies. Well I did at least, the kids just ate junk. They loved the rides and the games and we came home with quite a haul of carnival trinkets.

I got together with my Kindergarten friends who all happened to be in town too. With all six of us there and all of are kids there were 23 kids and 6 mommas. What a great time we had at the Blanchard's pool. Thanks Kristin for letting us come and invade your space.

Winnie the Pooh was out so I thought it was time for Myles to take in his first ever movie. He loved it. He even sat through the whole show. I had six kids in tow and everyone was great. A little candy and popcorn goes a long way with this crowd!

A quick trip Paces Dairy Ann and Salt Lake with my friend Michelle turned me on to all kinds of wooden crafts to do. I have now completed all my projects and need to return to get more supplies. Maybe it's a good thing I don't live closer...

Then Saturday after Bjorn got in we went to the Church Museum in Salt Lake. Mom is a Docent there and she knows just about everything about that place. We saw a lot that I had never seen before and it was very interesting. They have a great area for kids too so they could blow off some steam after being bribed to be quiet for about an hour and a half. Thanks mom, what a great tour. I would recommend your services to anyone! This was followed by a scrumptious lunch at Hires in downtown Salt Lake. This was the place Bjorn and I went to eat lunch following our pictures on our wedding day. Mom had taken all my things home and thus I had to eat lunch dressed in my wedding dress. The lady who was our car hop thought I was crazy to eat a burger and fries in my wedding dress, I just told her I was supper hungry. She brought me back about 10 bar towels to lay across my dress so I would drip anything on me. How nice. It's still the best place for a root beer float.

Sunday was the day to head out of town. It was a fast trip, too bad getting home wasn't just as fast. We forgot about Sunday Vegas to Cali traffic. It took us 15 hours to get home. Oh well, we won't make that mistake again...

Thanks everyone for a great trip. It's always fun to see you and we love coming to play. See you next year!

burrito kids

Would anyone like a "bubba and bean" burrito? My kids beg me to make them into burritos everyday. They think it's really funny. I think that it all started when the girls were little and we would wrap them up tight like this. Myles, ever the memories, hasn't forgotten and now the girls think it's fun too.

4th of July 2011

Myles learned how to balance with his floating ring and could kick and get around the pool quite well.

This year for our 4th of July Celebration we got together with our friends the Larsens. They moved last year to Glendora, a neighboring town to Monrovia. We were sad to see them go, but they found a great house for them, and lucky for us they have a great pool. We ate a BBQ dinner full of fun 4th red, white, and blue themed items and then we all took a dip in the pool. After swimming we ate dessert and did a few fireworks and sparklers with the kids. It was a great time had by all, especially the kids!

Lydia still a little shy about the water wanted nothing to do with her ring, but would be fitted with water wings. Not that she was going to drowned. She had a death grip on me the entire time.

Audrey loved to use the ring upside down as it didn't ride her as much. She especially loved the warm hot tub.

Myles with two fists. One full of ice cream sandwich, the other with California's version of a "sparkler". Not much spark, just flame at the end of the stick. I don't get it.

Even Audrey joined in the sparkler fun.

Daddy with the kids. Can you see how Lydia didn't really like the ring. She cried till I took it off.

Thanks Larsens for your hospitality. We always have a great time when you are around!

Dodd Family Reunion 2011

Our family reunion was held in Solvang, California this year. It was attended by about 50 members of the Dodd family, with Thora having most of her children and grandchildren there. We visited Legoland with Andrew and Lydia and their children just a few days before the reunion started and then we headed north for the big gathering. Her is Myles on the nights joust ride.

All my monkeys sitting atop the camel in Legoland. It appears harder that I thought to get everyone to look at the camera at the same time. Who knew?!

Maggie on the knights ride.

Lydia the "little Angel".

Myles the "Biggest Angel".

Here we are with Tommy, Carolyn, Aunt Kalite and Uncle Byron.

My very first picture of Audrey and Lydia on the slide together. I have so few pictures of the two of them together looking in the same direction.

Aunt Kalite playing cars in the sand with Myles. He was in total heaven to have someone give him so much attention.

Katharine Driving her Volvo at Legoland.

Myles and Daddy going on the big slide. Myles first attempt at the slide was without his sack, and it didn't go over so well with the employee's of the park. Oh well, better luck next time. He must have gone on this ride about ten times in a row.

The wild and crazy ride with all the kids. It was quite funny to see all of us riding this bike.

The rest of the "Crazy Danes" on bikes. We had a total of 5 bikes for everyone. The largest of the bikes held 11 people.

Esther, Wyatt and their kids.

Andrew, Lydia and kids, along with Heather and Adam and kids.

All the cuzzies.

Mommy, Myles and Audrey who never got off my lap to get into the water.

Audrey, Lydia and I sitting on the rock and cooling our feet on a hot day.

A cold day on Gaviota State beach. We found lots of great big sea shells and I had a great time "hunting" for them. Audrey was her honery self that morning. Lydia just had fun walking up and down the beach with her little bag. Myles just kept up with me and would hold all the fun shells I found. While adding his own collection of rocks along the way.

Lydia looking like quite a little girl and not a baby any longer. It was fun to see everyone!