Swimming videos

My girls have been taking swimming lessons all summer at a friend's parents pool. The swim teacher is fantastic, and the lessons are paying off big-time.

Recent Pictures

Gosh, it's been awhile! I last posted in 2011. Here is a random assortment of pics especially for you, Mom.

Here's my girls, pretending they love each other ;-)

Arden with the Strawberry Shortcake wig.

Alana and two of her best friends at preschool graduation.

Cari with who knows what on her face :)

The girls engrossed in a session of "melty beads". I think maybe Anela gave that to Alana awhile ago...?

Arden showing off one of her new school outfits.

All three girls doing a fashion show of their new school clothes.

Potty training arden

Well, it was a glorious week and a half, but I've given up. Having spent 40mins to an hour unproductively on the toilet numerous times, I've found out that Arden just isn't that interested and I don't have the energy to incentivize her. Plus I am SO tired of the urine all over the house. I'll try again after she starts preschool. In the meantime, enjoy some cute potty videos.

Homeless

Some videos from Gramma Rose's house. We were "between houses" at the time. Alana was so intent while making her music.

Playing at the children's museum. Grammy Jean was visiting at the time.

Finally some pictures - Beach vacay

For a few days while temporarily made homeless due to our renovation, we stayed at Blue, the Inn at Plum Island. Plum Island is a barrier island located about an hour north of boston. The cottage we stayed in was nice and across from the beach, but tight quarters for our family of 5. The kids really enjoyed the beach even with the noseeums that bit them on their heads.

Snack time

We took a day trip to Newburyport when Chris went into the office one day. Newburyport is very charming.

Get Ready...

The Murphys are going to Hawaii in October! The visit will be shorter than we originally hoped for since it's during the school year (rather than in August), but we are excited nevertheless. We want to get a chance to see everyone, especially all the babies and kids!

* * *

RENOVATION REALITY

The renovation is finally winding down. Overall the house looks good and we are happy. The kitchen looks great, but still needs a backsplash. The kids bath turned out surprisingly charming in turquoise and white. The master bath is still not done. Sigh. Around the house, the tilework is passable to barely adequate. Sadly, our contractor is not a skilled tilesetter and let us down in that regard. He also made some mistakes re: building code when he put up the staircase, which otherwise looks pretty good. Let's hope the inspector starts drinking early when he comes to check things out. I can't stomach the thought that the stairs might need to be redone. Lots of touch-ups needed to the interior painting and the exterior painting is the most disappointing, especially considering what we paid. Overall we are going to hit about 30% over budget! Yikes!!

Love the neighborhood. It's like a liberal Mayberry where older kids actually ride their bikes unsupervised and neighbors all know each other. Two of our friends live around the block, which has been great! We'll miss the block party in October, which is going to be held on our street, but we'll will be back for Halloween...a time when the neighborhood goes crazy. Usually there are a couple haunted houses, people dishing out hard cider and hot cocoa to trick-or-treater parents, houses decorated to the nines, and so forth. I'm already plotting my decorations...I'm thinking stuffed crows, haunted signs, and ghosts for year one...hoohahaha

I'll put up pictures of the kids and the house when I can. Sorry it's been so long but things have been crazy up until recently.

The twins are so cute. They like to get cozy and tuck themselves into our bed!

Daddy and Lani had a "date" this morning, so the twins and I went to the park to celebrate this beautiful spring day. So we get to the park and immediately they wanted their snack. I think they spent 15 minutes just sitting there eating and sipping.

Took the T into Boston in April with our friend Ari...

Golden eagle nest webcam

Well, if spying on bald eagles isn't exciting enough, we can now ply our voyeuristic tendencies with golden eagle chicks!

http://www.goldeneaglecam.com/

Has anyone noticed that the raptor population seems to be exploding? When I drive down the highway nowadays, I see hawk after hawk. Gramma Rose has several hawks living near her home. They've been making mincemeat of the pigeons who patronize her birdfeeders.

And then just the other day, Chris and I saw two hawks circling over the house. It's wonderful, and as far as I know, related to the banning of DDT...which is also, unfortunately, responsible for the reemergence of the bedbug. Yuck!

Bald Eagle nest webcam

Live webcam of a bald eagle nest in Iowa. Mama has three chicks. If nothing much is happening, check back later.

http://www.ustream.tv/decoraheagles

Videos of the kids

Blue and the Twins

I am heartbroken, and Cari keeps asking about Blue. She keeps saying Blue is at the doctor. She just loved her doggy.

I'm eating a bland diet in honor of my pittie and how she had to put up with a restricted diet due to IBD for 9 long years. (It's pretty easy since I have no appetite.) One positive: I feel so good that I stuffed her full of foods she wasn't allowed in the last few days of her life, and I'm grateful that her appetite remained somewhat normal till the end (though I had to hand feed her and give her water via syringe). She was always a foodie.

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm info

Mom-

The takeaway of the following presentation is that endovascular surgery has reduced morbidity (recover/complications) and mortality than open surgery.

http://www.osler.org/main/media/samples/printedsyllabus/VSNotes.pdf

Blue went to doggy heaven today

Blue was the greatest dog I've ever known. She was about 12.5 years old. Chris and I will love and miss her forever. RIP Blue.

These are pictures from happier and healthier days (in San Diego).

Disaster in Japan

It's terrible. First an 8.9 earthquake, then a terrible tsunami and potential nuclear meltdowns. It's like a godzilla movie without the monster. The people of Japan are in my prayers.

The New York Times has interactive before and after pictures here. Just pull the bar across. I think you will find it unbelievable.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/03/13/world/asia/satellite-photos-japan-before-and-after-tsunami.html

BTW, didn't I just have a post on the end of the earth? I'm definitely updating my family's emergency kit.

Everyone please take care and be well!

Moyamoya?

Grammy Jean is being told she needs surgery for her aortic aneurysm (latest size 5.2 cm). Grammy is scheduled for surgery with Dr. Dang in HI, but I am wondering if she should come here and have the thoracic aneurysm group at Mass General give her a third opinion. Boston is a medical mecca that draws not just the sickest patients, but also the best doctors. We'll see what Grammy thinks. She does need the surgery soon...

In the meantime, please please keep her calm. She needs to ensure her blood pressure does not rise, per Dr. Dang. No smoking, no stress! And someone needs to keep an eye on her in Vegas (wish she was not going!)

On a related topic, I discovered some interesting information about something called moyamoya disease. (Moyamoya means puff of smoke in Japanese.) It's rare in non-Asians, more common in Japanese and other Asians, and appears to be hereditary at least 10% of the time. Luckily, it's very treatable with surgery.

Below is one (haole) man's story. Terrible headaches started at age 18, eventually followed by tremors and transitory numbness in fingers in his 30s. Had surgery in his 40s and is now doing well it would appear. (Steph, don't mean to scare you with MY hypochondria, but did your doctors consider this re: your headaches?)

http://www.moyamoya.com/history.html

Could Uncle Allen have had moyamoya disease? Did he have headaches for a long time? Moyamoya usually affects children or women in their 3rd to 4th decades, but about 1/3 of sufferers are men. And of course Uncle was Japanese-American.

More info about Moyamoya:

http://stanfordhospital.org/clinicsmedServices/COE/neuro/moyamoyaDisease/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moyamoya_disease

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1180952-overview

Do I have moyamoya? I don't think so. I had an MRI of my noggin a couple of years ago because I had this weird stabbing pain at the back of my head that throbbed and didn't go away for a couple of months. The twins were a couple of months old (hmmm!) No problems detected, no aneurysms either. I hope IF it is in our family that I didn't pass it to my babies.

Dancing Girls

Can you say Alvin Ailey dancin'?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM0m8ktHdv4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zp06r7k3HhM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCgZt8FgAhc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ilbk0sQNpvg

Exercise prevents gray hair?

Now that I've rounded the corner to middle age (there, I said it), I've started to take my health more seriously. So, it is with great interest that I read this article on exercise and aging. Based on this mouse study, exercise helps prevent gray hair and muscle loss, keeps your heart healthy and maintains brain volume.

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/02/can-exercise-keep-you-young/?src=me&ref=general

Check this out and you may end up hitting the treadmill!

Valentine presents from the grands

These worked out quite well. Everybody was extremely happy with their presents, particularly Arden.

Videos - trying again

Did I post this one before?

Some cute kids

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredir?uname=tlcnurseryschool&target=ALBUM&id=5576886906063406209&authkey=Gv1sRgCJaq3-H4suD6jgE&feat=email