Hi Ya!

Last Friday the boys tested for their next Taekwondo belts.  Andrew went for purple and Owen went for high-green (green with a black stripe).  Both boys did the best they've ever done.  Owen surprised us all with his confidence and power.  Andrew was amazing.  He had just learned half of his form two days before and performed his moves like a pro.  Good job boys!

Who's that girl?

Who's that girl?, originally uploaded by leslie_capron.

It's Sarah with a bow in her hair and a purse! She's been letting me put bows in her hair lately. Makes me happy. She's still our little tom-boy though; her purse is filled with cars.

Back to our regular programming

I'm sitting in the van parked in the garage because the painters are still here and everything in the house is covered in plastic. (Hmmm, I wonder if I should just keep it this way and never have to clean again, tempting...).   Sarah is napping in her carseat, so I have a few moments of quiet before I pick up the boys. 

It's been another busy week, birthday party on Sunday night, two playdates on Monday (separate ones for Owen and Andrew and lots of driving), organizing the painters and picking carpet.  Another belt test is coming up, so no slacking on TaeKwonDo and we don't want to skip swimming because it was 80 degrees here yesterday.   (Ok winter, I'm ready when you are.  I bought some really cute boots for you and I'm sad they're getting dusty in my closet). And I joined a book club!  First book is Blessings of a Skinned Knee by Wendy Mogel.  

My new photography class has started and it's all about LightRoom, a photo editing program.  If you see people in my flickr stream that you don't recognize, know that it's a picture for the class ; ).  

Here's a new favorite shot of Owen (in my favorite spot).  Owen is so fun-loving and gregarious, but he has a really sensitive side too.  I love it when I feel like I've captured it.  

Sorry if these lists of my week are a bit boring, but I need to write this stuff down because sometimes I wake up on Saturday morning wondering what the heck I did all week.

Housing Boom

"Isn't it just the way life is: one foot in front of the other, day by day, slow steady cadence, patience and then BAM, you slip through a wonderful wormhole and feel hugely propelled forward in what feels like an instant"  - Lisa Byrne


This is how I feel right now.  


"Where are we going to live next?".  This question has haunted, inspired and scared us since Andrew was born and we felt the need for more SPACE.  And since having Owen and Sarah, the drumbeat of MORE SPACE has been pounding.  But always tempered with "its great here", "the location is awesome", "in New York, this would be a palace", "be grateful for all we do have".  


So the question lingered.  Do we stay here where we love it, we have friends and are finally feeling really connected, but prices are just insanely expensive, or do we move to Northern California which is also insanely expensive but filled with friends and family too?  


Finally about 10 days ago, on a whim we drove by yet another neighborhood, but this time I felt it.  The "it", the answer.  


Here. Home. Future. Family.  And its in Irvine.


So we here we are.  We've met with realtors, new carpet and paint is on the way.  Things are moving.  We are moving.   

Performance Review

The other day I was sharing with Leslie how wiped out I was from going through our semi-annual performance review process with all our staff. She, of course, had no sympathy for me stating, "Those things are important for people. In fact, I wish I had someone giving me feedback on how I've done since I stepped off the corporate track a few years ago."

Well Les, since you asked for it, here's your annual review.

Bottom line? Exceeds Expectations.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Location:Starcrest,Irvine,United States

That didn't take long

And another resolution bites the dust.  I didn't post at all this week, nor did I take a photo.  That's ok! I'm still a good person!


I'm stunned it's Friday.  This was one busy week: doctor's appointments for my mom, getting tax stuff together, lot's of "mom I forgot my _____ (sunglasses, share toy, pants)"  requiring many trips back home, the usual TaeKwonDo, swimming and reading tutor time, waiting around for a new dresser (Ikea finally failed us), Owen's teacher's last day (requiring actual room-mom work), a new photography class, watching the entire first season of Downton Abbey, and most excitingly -  meeting with realtors!


We think we finally found a neighborhood that will be a good fit for us.  I'm so excited.  I hope this works out!  If it does, Thanksgiving at our place!