there he is!!!

Liam gets the biggest kick out of this and as a result, so do we! I didn't want to forget.

P.S. I take no credit for the way he was dressed. I'll just say him and Daddy were watching a little NASCAR that day. 

bentley

Bentley and Auntie Pam.

On Monday morning when I was driving Addie to preschool, I knew that the topic of the week was going to be pets. So I started to engage her in conversation about pets. I asked her what pets we have and the first pet out of her mouth was Bentley.

A year ago, when we found out Addie had an allergy to dogs, we asked Aunt Pam to take him for a trial to see if that would improve her eczema. It didn't. But ironically what did improve was Bentley's skin. Long story short, Bentley is no longer the miserable, itchy dog with nasty little bumps all over him. And he is even off his medicine that was used to control the skin flare ups. We all concluded that there is something in the air up here that isn't down in Southern California. So Kevin, Aunt Pam and I made the decision that Bentley would stay with her permanently and as I was driving Addie to school that day, I realized I hadn't explained this to Addie yet. 

I had spent my own time grieving about this decision but I admit, I wasn't prepared for my little girl's reaction when I told her that Bentley was going to stay with Aunt Pam for good. I started to explain that we could go visit him and that's when I heard a lump in the back of her throat as she said, "But we need Bentley back! We can get Auntie Pam another little white dog." I will never forget her four year old voice pleading with me about our dog and before I knew it I had a lump in the back of my throat and we both had tears in our eyes, as the realization set in that Bentley was no longer considered our pet.

And now I'm crying writing this...Bentley we love you. As I've said before, you were my baby and source of comfort, when I didn't know if having babies was going to be possible. Loving and caring for you, trained and prepared me for the day we brought our first newborn home. And now she loves you. You taught her that dogs can be gentle and loving companions. You made her giggle countless times. You tolerated (for the most part) your hair being pulled, smothering hugs and many, many changes, that were not always in your favor, as we welcomed two new human beings into our home. You are a good dog Bentley. We miss you terribly but we are so grateful to know that we will get to visit and love on you again!

soccer

Our girl had her first soccer practice! She did great and more importantly, she had fun! When we asked her that night what she liked best: swimming, dance or soccer, her reply was, "I like all of them!" We were happy to hear that! We're so glad we are able to give her a variety of experiences and look forward to all of the positives that come with extra curricular activities!

resort at squaw creek

Kevin had a trade show in Squaw Valley and thought to bring us along for a little family vacation! I feel so grateful for the opportunities that have come with Kevin's job at Cues, not to mention the steady income it provides and the hard working man my husband is. So much to be thankful for.

Our three night stay at The Resort at Squaw Creek was incredible! Every where we looked there were scenic views. I must have said, "this is so beautiful!" a hundred times. The people were friendly, the food was good, and the weather was perfect! I can't wait to go back!

The kids and I took in the view from the lobby as Kevin checked us in.

My pictures are a poor capture of what our eyes really got to see. It really was picturesque! 

This was the view from our room. I know. UH-mazing!

 After getting settled in we headed down to the pool(s)! The pool with the slide was the most popular with us Widmers! Kevin and I had a brief daydream of ordering adult beverages from the pool cabana and relaxing. But before we knew it our drinks were warm, and we were headed down the slide again with our babies!  Ha! Ha! What were we thinking?!

Love those happy faces!

Later that night, we headed into Tahoe City for dinner. Then we walked across the street down to the lake, Lake Tahoe that is, and enjoyed a park and live music!

Here's a video of our happy night at Commons Beach in Lake Tahoe.

Each morning we would eat breakfast in our room enjoy the view.

Then I would pack the kids up for a nice long walk down to a park.

We had the park all to ourselves every morning!

Here Addie is pushing Liam, very gently, in the swing.

There was a perfect-sized slide for Liam! As you can tell he enjoyed it!

A little snuggling time back in the room before Liam went down for his nap (and before I changed his big pee diaper).

After his nap, Liam caught up on a few emails for Daddy while he was downstairs at the trade show.

There's our Daddy at his Cues booth!

And here we are at The Village! This is a beautiful place at the bottom of the ski lift, full of hip restaurants, neat shops and amazing places to stay.

Doing the tourist thing.

At The Village there was a shop called Hunky Dory where you can make your own candles. So Addie and I stopped in and she made her own rainbow, heart-shaped, mandarin-scented candle.

On our last night, we stopped in the lobby for a couple of games of chess. We had some good laughs playing with Addie while she found creative ways to win the game. Hmmm...we might have to teach her to tame that competitive side. 

addie's first day of pre-k!

We are so proud of you Addie and excited for another year of watching you grow at PEP Preschool!

my little bakers

Just a random collection of my kids helping me in the kitchen. 

Addie and Liam I love you two!

In just a diaper and an apron, Liam is helping me make THE most delicious strawberry shortcake! It's called Bishop's Cake and it's from one of my oldest recipe books that was given to me by my Aunt Pam.

On this occasion, we were making chocolate chip cookies and Liam snuck up on the stool, got the spoon out of the cookie dough and had himself a little sampling.

Aprons and kitchen mitts! 

Who knew they could be so much fun!

What's the saying...Good moms let their kids like the beaters. Great moms turn the mixer off first. Phew! Looks like I made it into the "great moms" category.