God or Santa

For those of you that don't know, Josh learned the truth about Santa and the Tooth Fairy earlier this year. It came about when a girl who sat next to him in class let him in on the Tooth Fairy secret and then he put two and two together and started questioning about Santa. I had to give in, there was no way around it, he kept asking point blank "Are you and Dad Santa?" After finally getting a definite answer, "Yes", he cried and cried. I don't blame him, poor kid. He'd just found out that Santa is dead or at least didn't exist the way he thought. Well, we've moved beyond that a bit. He knows he has to keep the secret from his sister and he's looking forward to participating in the stocking stuffing this year.

Earlier this month, Josh, Carley and I were sitting in El Pollo Loco eating lunch and Josh asks me a question. Is God more powerful than "Santa"? Yes, he actually added the air quotes around the word Santa. Picture it, the 8 year-old with his fingers bouncing in the air as he says the word Santa. I had to control my giggle and inform him that Santa is talked about in this family, especially around Carley, as a normal person without air quotes or any strange indication that he might not exist. If my 8 year-old knows what air quotes are, does my 4 year-old? (Thankfully she was too engrossed with her soda to listen to our conversation.) After I got over the shock of air quotes, I answered the real question. God must be more powerful than Santa if Santa is just mom and dad. Maybe he still believes, maybe just a little.

Smoke Smoke Go Away

This awful smoke has been hanging around for about a week now and we're sick of it. More 'dry' lightning is predicted for the weekend and there doesn't seem to be much relief in the near future. I considered driving over to the coast for fresh air but it turns out San Francisco has a bit of smoke fog as well.

I've really been trying to keep the kids indoors for the most part but sometimes they just need to get out and burn a little energy. Friday we headed over to our friend, Wendy's house for an hour of swimming. I took a few pictures on the way (yes, while I was driving) just to show what the air looks like around here. It's deceptive because it doesn't smell like smoke and appears to be just a foggy day.

Backyard Fun

This hasn't been a very busy week and with the fires on all sides of the valley we've been pretty smoked out (it's more like smoked in). I can't manage to keep the kids inside days on end and Monday wasn't too smokey so we had some friends over to play in the kiddie pool in the backyard. A $10 pool and a hose can be hours of entertainment.

Aunt Shelly Visits

Shelly came down from Washington to visit for the weekend. It was so great to have her here again, we haven't seen her since October. Because it was such a short trip, we mainly just hung out at the house and played an occasional board game. No matter what we do, we love having Aunt Shelly to visit.

Walt and Kids Visit Carpinteria

While I was away on my girls vacation, Walt took Josh and Carley to visit Grandma Gemma and Aunt Emma in Carpinteria, CA. I wasn't actually there (Florida, right) but I have heard that they had a great time. They drove down Friday right after Josh got out of school, his last day, and the drive was long because of frequent stops to burn some little kid energy. Saturday and Sunday was spent playing in the ocean, swimming in the pool, a little shopping and of course, good Grandma cooking. Monday was another long day on the road.

Mommy Gets Time Off

A couple of my girlfriends and I got away for the weekend. Amber, Wendy and I went to St. Pete's Beach, Florida (on the Gulf of Mexico near Tampa) for four days of sun and fun. We got to stay in a condo on the beach, right on the beach (thanks Amber's sister's in-laws!!) for free and didn't keep much of a schedule at all, we hardly checked the clock except to say "wow, it's already 6 o'clock". There was a thunderstorm three of the four days we were there - came in quick, went out quick. There isn't weather like that here in California. It was a wonderful trip.

Here is the 60 second version...


While I was gone, Walt and the kids went to his mom's house down near Santa Barbara. They had fun playing on the beach too. I'll post some about that tomorrow.

Josh Gets Awards

Well, wrapping up the school year has been exciting for Josh. Today he received two awards in school.
The first award was the Academic Excellence award for third trimester. One child per class receives this award every trimester and Josh has been awarded it once every school year since he started Kindergarten. This is a picture of Mrs. Batt, the principal, presenting Josh with his certificate and medal. Josh also recieved an award for Perfect Attendance for the whole school year!! This is the second year in a row that he's had perfect attendance the whole year. In fact, he's only missed one single day in his entire school career and never been tardy. (Maybe I deserve an award for that too.) We are very proud of our healthy, smart boy. He's pretty proud to have received medals, again.Here is Josh receiving his perfect attendance medal. He was one of only four kids in the lower grades to get perfect attendance for the whole year. Go Josh!

Last week, Josh performed in the 2nd grade's The Emperor's New Clothes. He was one of the crooks who helped make the Emperor's "clothes". It was a very cute performance.
Check out pictures here: http://thielfam.smugmug.com/gallery/5057871_fmqZa#305920885_r8s8V

Preschool Graduate

Well, it's official, Carley has graduated preschool. (Do they ever fail a kid in preschool?) Her teachers are fantastic and always go above and beyond what is expected. There was a little ceremony followed by a potluck lunch. Carley had a wonderful preschool year and graduation (gladulation as Carley says) was the perfect ending.

More photos: http://thielfam.smugmug.com/gallery/5057875_2PHXF#305924668_WDWtQ