Adkins Family

moving along

2012-01-26T15:04:00.000-08:00

Moved into the kids rooms: new tables and chairs into each of their rooms! Kim's mom, Shirley gave them money for Christmas for them and they've been a hit! The kids have been using them a ton... thanks Grandma Shirley!

We lost three dear people in our lives a couple of weeks back, all on the same day. Nathan's Great Aunt Myra, "Grandma" Rachel Grebe and my Great Uncle Jimmy. Unfortunatly due to colds, an ear infection and two flat tires (thank goodness I was parked in the driveway both times we noticed they were flat, the second was due to a bad patch on the first flat tire), the kids and I weren't able to make it to either memorial service for Aunt Myra or Uncle Jimmy.

Moved into Papa Neil and Grandma Eileen's house: GG (Great Grandma)! Nathan's grandma had lived with her sister, Aunt Myra who was 92 years old, four years younger than GG. Neil and Eileen, bless their souls, had GG move in with them, so I spent some time helping them get her quarters ready for her to move in. The kids loved being able to help and be at Grandpa and Grandma's again so soon! GG's only been there for about four days now, but seems to be enjoying her new "apartment" as she calls it. : )

Wyatt getting into something he shouldn't, I'm sure...

Enjoying a cup of tea with Mom. : )

wrap up

2012-01-12T09:15:00.000-08:00

Some pictures of our last couple of weeks in December:

Morgan generously gave each of our kids one of her pillow pets.

Such a sweet, thoughtful girl!

Showing off her cookie, hand on the hip and all. : )

Tearing into all the loot in Tehachapi.

♥

A visit to an ostrich ranch, quite interesting!

I never knew ostriches were used for so many things.

How Clint hauls firewood. ; )

Precious moments.

Somehow, somewhere Aunt Sara missed her calling.

from afar

2011-12-20T16:23:00.000-08:00

First off the bat, I want to tell you about my driftwood from the Oregon Coast. If you look in the middle far left of the first photo below, you can see it sitting there on the sand just waiting for someone to stop and take a rest on it. I thought it would be nice to have for someone to take a rest on at my house. So, my dad willingly carried that heavy, water-logged stump up that hill to our beach house rental. There was a staircase, but I don't think that made it all that much easier! We wrapped it in a garbage bag and it rode down to California in the back seat under Wyatt's feet. I got it home, took the hose to it and got (some) of the sand, etc. off of it and then lugged it up to my second story balcony to dry out. Later that day I noticed some termite droppings under it. Not good when you live in a condo complex... or anywhere else for that matter. So, not willing to let my piece of the coast go, I asked my father-in-law if he could fumigate it for me (it helps to have connections!). So he willingly drove it two hours away to work and took care of my little friend(s) and then let it dry out. When it dried, it almost completely split in half. Now another dilemma. What lengths am I going to go to for a log that I saw on the beach? We've invested so much into it now, so we had to press forward. Nathan thought of putting some straps of some sort on it to hold it together. So, my father-in-law took it back to work and one of his guys put epoxy inside and then fashioned some steel straps for it. It made the drive back to our house and it is now dry, termite free and we like it. Whew! So thanks, Dad's for all you did!

Now for the more important part of the post, Uncle Gene and Aunt Lindsay came to visit from Sicily! It was a quick visit, but we're so glad we got to see them. I didn't get a whole lot of pictures, but following are a few.

An early Christmas.

An early birthday celebration. : )

A cooking class for Lindsay's birthday.

A visit to Amelia's ballet class with her friend.

Thanksgiving weekend

2011-12-12T13:44:00.000-08:00

He can still hang loose.

Watching the pro.

Thoroughly enjoying the pumpkin cheesecake.

A visit to the vet hospital to check up on Bo. He had undergone stomach surgery (for "bloat" in other words, his stomach had flip-flopped and he would have died if he hadn't had surgery w/in a few hours). He is back home and getting back to normal now!

Daddy giving a thumbs up to watching everyone shoot some guns.

I'll spare you the other 324 pictures I took during this outing, but I did get this one of Nick nailing the pumpkin on the upper right. If you look closely, you'll see the orange shrapnel.

most of november

2011-12-02T09:05:00.000-08:00

First, a relaxing trip to the cabin...

Wyatt taking off on his own. Something familiar these days, it seems.

Princess hair, thanks to Aunt Kimmy. ♥

Looking at the Target toy catalog.

A baby shower for ilona. ♥

The newest version of going to the pool. No life guards required.

And last but not least, a broken wrist. : (

If you look closely, you will see that his entire thumb is casted as well, meaning there isn't a whole lotta use for his left hand, for about 16 weeks. I think he'll think twice before jumping a fence after the sprinklers made the grass below nice and slippery. Maybe it's time to get our gate key replaced so he can just get in that way.
♥

dress up

2011-11-09T15:14:00.000-08:00

Before we get around to Thanksgiving, I should probably get a Halloween picture up! Amelia started a ballet class a few weeks back and she couldn't be more thrilled. As you will see, she takes it all quite seriously! ; )

A fire fighter (our neighbor boy), Morgan/Ariel the mermaid, and our own little Earp and angel. ♥

first day of ballet

It was all Morgan's idea.

Snow pants from Grandma Janet!

mini me...

October festivities

2011-10-28T16:49:00.000-07:00

two girls

2011-10-25T10:17:00.000-07:00

Its officially been four years since I started watching Morgan. I went ahead and stuck the photos from each year here, just for fun!

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

guest post: photographs by Amelia

2011-10-19T15:33:00.000-07:00

The Oregon Coast, Part III

2011-10-10T10:05:00.000-07:00

The Oregon Coast, Part II

2011-10-03T17:01:00.000-07:00

Who knew there were a bunch of birds out there? My brother's zoom lens, that's who.

The Peter Iredale.

The one day we could see Haystack from the beach house.

Paparazzi.

The Oregon Coast, Part I

2011-09-28T22:14:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure how many posts I'm going to do on this trip we just took, but there are lots of photos documenting our relaxing week at the coast. Some might think it was crazy for us to drive for two days to go to the beach when we could just drive 10 minutes down the road, but the Oregon Coast is quite different from the sunny, crowded, oil derrick views of Southern California. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind those things and am blessed to live near them. Nathan has never been to the Oregon coast and has always wanted to go. I have been there a few times as a kid and have fond memories. So we packed up the car, met up with Grandpa, Grandma and Uncle Drew and relaxed away looking at the big swell out the living room window. Somehow, that never got old.

It was rainy for the first day or so, which I had expected for the whole week. Then, the sun came out and it was actually warm and not windy, two things I do not usually associate with the Oregon coast. It was a nice surprise. We enjoyed having some visitors for a few hours the first day too.

Wyatt was driving AK somewhere in his car. : )

I love this picture. ♥

Amelia is clearly thrilled to eat at Mo's. At least the rest of us enjoyed the moment.

western bbq

2011-09-23T10:21:00.000-07:00

On September 11, we headed down to the old neighborhood for a western style bbq dinner. Unfortunately, we didn't get any pictures of the two ladies that put it all together! They did a wonderful job, everything was so put together and delicious. We had a nice time, and it was fun to see some of our former neighbors and meet some of their extended family.

The kids looooved this little horse balloon!

These old Navy fighter planes flew over 3 times.
A reminder.

The scrumptious menu and the cowboy decor.

Patriotic cobbler served with ice cream and a freshly made raspberry sauce drizzled over it. Mmmm.

One happy fella who got to take the horsey home!

Unca Bow

2011-09-19T16:54:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks after Uncle Clint's actual birthday we all got to go to their new (to them) house and help celebrate.

A new, fancy knife was the prized gift for this "glorious man."

A peek at their almost finished kitchen.

The kids loved the ledge from the dining room leading onto the couch.

Somehow remaining calm during the mayhem.

Exploring the rocks and 360 views just up the hill from the house.

Happy birthday Uncle Clint!

Pretend City

2011-09-12T10:24:00.000-07:00

Pretend City: A Children's Museum. Free admission on their 2nd birthday. I didn't think it was well advertised, so we thought we'd give it a shot. I guess that information was a little more well known than I had perceived. While driving around for awhile trying to find parking, we saw that the line was out the door and wrapped around the side of the building (it is in a large warehouse). We finally parked far away and hoped our car didn't get towed. It didn't. We had fun with the other kids in line around us while we waited for an hour and a half. Once inside, it was a crazy scene of children everywhere, but our kids had so much fun! You understand now why I took Wyatt on a leash, although that didn't always work quite as planned either. He can disappear in a large warehouse with a pint-sized city full of excited children everywhere rather quickly. Thankfully I can say I brought him home with me safe and sound. Maybe next time I'll dish out the dough and go when there are less people!

She loved this grill, she got to do it just like Daddy! ; )

The girls favorite part of the day. The stage. Imagine that.

A bit of stage fright.

Future plumber?

The grocery store was a Ralphs, quite suitable for our family!

The Grove

2011-09-07T15:45:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks back our dear friend and relation, Stacey, was in Los Angeles for business. So we got to go up and spend an evening with her. We ate some yummy crepes (not to compare with any one might eat in Paris, but you've got to take what you can get) and then spent some time wandering around next door at The Grove. Amelia felt the need to dance as there was music piped in to be heard everywhere. : )

[Photo credit: Amelia]

Stacey may or may not have purchased a cute dress at the store in the background. : )

Dancin' in the street...

Dancin' in the alley...

Fun times. : )

The City of Angels.

Galaxy

2011-08-30T16:53:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Travis and Kim, we got to take in an LA Galaxy soccer game. It was really fun, we had great seats and the Galaxy won.

It was a bit tame compared to the last soccer/futbol game I attended in 2001 in Torino. It was the last home game of the season and Juventis only had a few goals to be tied with Roma for the championships. The crowd noise was pulsating through my body, there were people lighting things on fire and then about 30 minutes before the game ended, the fans stormed the field sending the players for cover. Just as they were getting a handle on the crowd, the people from the other side got through the plexi-glass onto the field. Finally, the announcer said for everyone to get off the field or they would be arrested (they must have said it in English, or I had picked up enough Italian by that time I figured it out). So, the people moved to the edges of the field and the players came back out and finished the game. The intensity of the whole situation was incredible. Juventis won the game and then everyone went out on the field and were tearing up chunks of turf and going crazy. A whole new meaning for the term "and the crowd goes wild" for this seemingly small town American girl.

I guess I got sidetracked (imagine that?). Back to the MLS game:

Yes, ladies, I was this close to David Beckham.

Number 14 is Robbie Keane and they had just signed him that week from Ireland. He made the first goal and made our Irish eyes smile (that one is for you, Noreen). And the other guy in white is Donovan. I'm sure most of you probably don't really care and this is all pretty funny coming from me, since I'm not much of a sports fan in general.

Our hosts. : )

august

2011-08-26T14:32:00.000-07:00

Unlike much of the rest of the United States, we have had very pleasant summer weather this year. Or maybe it's been a little too chilly for some?

We did put on some summer clothing and enjoy some time at the splash pad with Aunt Kimmy. : )

our boy

2011-08-21T16:26:00.000-07:00

We had a babysitter recently say to us, "Wyatt is soooo cute!" And I replied, "I'm glad he's cute because he can be SO naughty." Here are some prime examples:

Quite proud of his new swim vest thing. No, he did not wear it for his bath and yes, we did put board shorts over the bottoms for the pool. We aren't that European here, folks.

He climbed out of his crib a couple of times last week, so he now sleeps in his "big boy bed." This has made for some very messy and destructive naps. And I've been having to take naps to help with the mental capacity it takes to keep up with it all. It is getting better and I think I've moved everything I can think of up high in his closet that he shouldn't be getting into. See that curtain/blind rod? That's broken into three pieces now. And he hid two of them between his sliding closet doors down in the tracks. Naughty, I tell you.

Poor Baby Uncle Ernie.

And the hat. And blankets. And carpet. And dresser. And desk. And truck. And stuffed animals. Oh, and Wyatt's eyes, face, hair and clothes. The eyes were the give away as it stung and he cried so I went to check on him.

He had been playing so nice and quiet before that.

the fair

2011-08-11T09:35:00.000-07:00

cousins

2011-08-02T07:25:00.000-07:00

We had the pleasure of some of Nathan's cousins from the Lawrenceville area visit us last week. It was so fun to get to know them better and show them our little corner of California. The only pictures I have are from their first night here. We took them for a very windy bonfire at the beach. We proceeded to take them to the beach again the next day and despite the sunburn, I think they all enjoyed themselves.

A primitive form of engineering:

building a fire on a windy day.

No hesitations. It was straight into the Pacific for this guy.

Taking shelter.

Wyatt learned from the big boys what life is all about.

camping

2011-07-27T17:06:00.000-07:00

Tis the season to dust off the camping gear, only to get it dusty once again.

Thank goodness for these shade tents... it was hot.

Special treatment. : )

The girls got full makeover's both days, thanks to Aunt Sara! : )

Wyatt was just dirty the whole time.

Nothin' like sleeping in the open air.

Happy Birthday, Morgan!

2011-07-13T17:22:00.000-07:00

Today Morgan turns 4. You are a special girl to us and we love you, Mo! Last weekend we celebrated at the beach, followed by a party at her house. Kim appropriately commented that it looked like a princess vomited in their living room after Morgan was done opening her gifts. She loves each and every present though!

Trying on Uncle T-Bone's hat (or as Wyatt says: "Trav").

Morgan's sweet baby cousin #2.

Happy birthday to Nana, we're happy to have shared your day too. ♥

Enjoying the new back patio.

Morgan's happy cousin #1.

front row

2011-07-05T07:35:00.000-07:00

Last night we found out that living in a condo with a view of a parking lot and the back of a shopping center has at least one advantage. The fireworks show at the golf course nearby. We got a front row seat in our jammies from Amelia's bed. I think we'll have to make this a cozy tradition. Maybe next year I'll play Con Te Partiro to go along with it to make it more inspiring. Or something like that.

our pool

2011-07-01T20:12:00.000-07:00

These pictures are for Arla... and for any of the rest of you who want to see the girls in the pool. ; )

more NW fun

2011-06-27T15:32:00.000-07:00

(This picture is supposed to be in order with the Corbin Art Center. I can't get it to re-arrange.)

Delicious shortbread cookies as big as your face...

...make you sit and smile with the giver. : )

We visited the Moore-Turner Heritage Gardens after a delishious breakfast at Chaps with Dave and Lynn. I did my senior thesis on the restoration of these gardens, so it was neat to finally see it finished and blooming (not from my research work, that was all Lynn's doing).

The Moore-Turner gardens happen to be right next door to where we got married at the Corbin Art Center, so all 15 of you who were in attendance at the actual ceremony might remember this spot:

We've also had the opportunity of having dinner with quite a few different folks, but I haven't snapped photos every night. I guess my time was being spent enjoying myself, as these two seem to be doing:

And of course, Uh Dru's "cycle."

Spokane

2011-06-22T14:27:00.000-07:00

I actually have the time to do a blog post when I'm not at home! Here are a few pictures since our arrival yesterday:

Chef Wyatt going to pick some thyme.

A little scary, but a lot of fun. : )

two

2011-06-09T18:52:00.000-07:00

We've got a certain little boy in this house turning two next week. He was due two years ago yesterday, but he took his time a comin'. When he decided it was time to meet us, he came fast and he hasn't slowed down since. We love you, little Buster Boo (as Amelia affectionately calls him).

We celebrated a couple of weeks early with the family up in Tehachapi, we took advantage of having both Aunt Lindsay and Uncle Drew in town. It was so much fun to watch Wyatt take it all in.

The boys taking turns on Nick's dirt bike.

Aunties ♥

Checking out Uncle Nick's pint-sized wall board. Now we just need to photoshop Wyatt and the board into a beach scene. : )

Cake made by Aunt Lindsay! : )

The lolly pop banditas.

cheep cheep

2011-05-19T08:45:00.000-07:00

It's baby chick time. We got to help Grandpa and Grandma pick out three new ones to join their little brood. Then we got to go see the 21 new baby chicks at Savanna, Sierra and Kaden's house. Not to mention their Gator, some dogs, geese, fish (in a bathtub) and a horse. Am I forgetting anything? The kids had so much fun playing together, I hope we can do it again soon. Thanks, Rosanne, for the yummy lunch and the band aids. : )

Amelia then had a salon, where anyone could be her "patient." : )

Tehachapi is a great place to fly a kite, Amelia had so much fun with her new princess kite from our friends Matt & ilona.

an eventful weekend

2011-05-10T17:34:00.000-07:00

As per usual, we try to jam in as much celebration as possible in one weekend when the Adkins Family all join at once. The first of several reasons for this coming together was that Aunt Lindsay flew in from Sicily! She'll be here for about three weeks, leaving Uncle Gene to fend for himself overseas. Wish you were here Uncle Gene, we miss you! Uncle Nick celebrated a birthday last week, and of course, it was Mother's Day.

Lindsay enjoying some American espresso. : )

Thanks Grandpa & Grandma for the delicious dinner out.

New bathing suits from Sicily.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Mother's Day

(the purse was from Papa Neil ♥).

ducks, dessert & dinner

2011-05-04T17:49:00.000-07:00

When it was too quiet, I went to check on the kids and found this wonderful scene:

(if only that happened more often)

Watching a turtle go back in the water at the duck pond.

My friend Kari was back in town and her sister, April is a pastry/dessert chef at The Resort at Pelican Hill in Newport Coast. So a few of us were able to go and get the royal treatment. April sent out a sample of every kind of dessert they have on their menu, and it was amazing. We had a four course dessert extravaganza and then we got to tour the kitchen and snagged a few more treats back there. It was so much fun!

Dinner out with Travis and Kim. ♥

Easter

2011-04-26T16:00:00.000-07:00

catch up

2011-04-19T08:35:00.000-07:00

Ahhh, April. Baby showers. Going away parties. Fun at the park with friends. Perhaps it gets hot enough for a day or two to enjoy some time at the beach, summer style.

The story of his life, the girls (and Wyatt).

The mommy to be over by the fire place. ♥

Loves with Grandma.

Refreshments before the taco guys were ready.We miss you, Brooner's!

We had lots of fun at the park with Molly and Ellie. : )

He wore that bucket for the longest time. Apparently he doesn't like the taste/texture of sand any more.

arizona

2011-04-12T17:09:00.000-07:00

We had the privilege to go to Phoenix a few weekends back for my cousin Brett's wedding with my parents. Since we have some good friends that live in the area, we hopped in the car a day early to spend a little time with Ellie and her mommy. It was so fun to have some girl time together, and I don't think Wyatt knew he was the only man holding down the fort. ; )

[Photo credit: Jenny B]

[photo credit: Jenny B]

Friday evening was spent with all of our Taylor family at the rehearsal dinner. The kids had a blast feeding the goats and climbing various structures around.

Brett and Laura tied the knot on Saturday, and we're so thankful that we could be there with them!

The Brown siblings.

Brett & his momma. ♥
A few years from now I doubt this will be happening. R was so sweet with Amelia!

march birthdays

2011-04-04T10:33:00.000-07:00

This year was no exception, our March birthday weekend came once again. It was so nice to be with family, we loved having you all here!

The new pink, princess bike with streamers (practically demanded by the princess herself, thankfully she has a daddy with a kind heart).

We now have no shortage of princess apparel around here, and the girls love it!

As you can see, I spent hours decorating a theme cake.

Anxiously awaiting a piece of cake.

Taormina & Caltagirone

2011-03-22T07:22:00.000-07:00

Our last two days in Sicily were spent exploring the towns of Taormina and Caltagirone.

Taormina is a beautiful area with amazing water and quite the climb to the top where there are views of Mt. Etna and the mainland of Italy.

If you look really close, you can see a bit of smoke coming from the top of Mt. Etna.

A tribute to the prickly pear that grows everywhere on the island.

Caltagirone is a lovely town famous for it's pottery. We had a nice relaxing day there, besides the part where Amelia and I climbed the Staircase of Santa Maria del Monte that has 142 steps. The cool part is, each step is lined with a different hand made tile.

Even this duomo is made of tile.

Enthusiastic near the bottom.

Worth the great view at the top... she did it all by herself, with gusto! ; )

Enjoying cappuccinos, pastries and Hello Kitty chips.

The drive back down the hill was memorable, their Tom Tom gave us very narrow directions (scraaaaatttcccchhh!). Then it told us to turn right down this "street":

If you look closely along the sides, you will see steps at various intervals.

We look forward to exploring more of you, Sicily... someday.

Siracusa

2011-03-18T16:57:00.000-07:00

Siracusa is a lovely little seaside town rich with history. Our first stop after lunch was the "aquarium," not much more than a fancy pet shop display here in the USA, but the kids loved it! We didn't get to see the Greek and Roman amphitheaters, but plan to go back when we have more time (perhaps next year?).

Duck pond and papyrus.

g.e.l.a.t.o.

I love all the layers of time.

Useful graffiti.

It is quite likely that the Apostle Paul spent time in this same piazza (Acts 28:12).

We took a walk through this church and Amelia kept asking when meeting was going to start. : )

Who says Smart car's aren't sporty?

After being in Europe I get why they are called Smart cars... although not so Smart in the US.

four

2011-03-16T10:59:00.000-07:00

Happy 4th birthday to our dear, sweet Amelia today. We love you, Sis!♥

Carnevale

2011-03-15T08:00:00.000-07:00

When we drove back to Gene and Lindsay's after the Valley of the Temples, there was a parade going down their street, so we threw on Amelia's princess dress and headed down to see what it was all about. It ended up being about four groups of people dressed up, one group of Native Americans, followed by a group of cowboys, a group of devils, and a group of Vikings. We never really figured out what the significance was. They had blaring music coming out of a building next to the old church and a ton of kids running around in the small piazza in front. They all had bags of confetti and were throwing handfuls, point blank at one another. Amelia was quite confused with it all, but eventually joined in the fun.

Wyatt strolling up to the commotion with the coolest (only) leash in town.

Thanks, Uncle Gene and Aunt Lindsay for the silly string and the confetti!

Trying it out with Uncle Gene.

Not so sure about the whole idea.

After getting offended over several handfuls in the face, she decided to try it out. Now that we are unpacked at home, I'm still finding small pieces of confetti around the house!

We took a stroll out on the pier afterward and looked back to see Mt. Etna peeking over the hill at us.

Thanks for putting up with all of my posts, this is my form of journaling for the trip since I didn't keep one while I was there. I did that when I studied in Torino for the summer and its so fun to go back and read now.

Valley of the Temples

2011-03-13T15:46:00.000-07:00

After an Italian breakfast at the agriturissmo, we headed to the Valle dei Templi. We needed to follow signs to Agrigento, can anyone tell me which way to go based on the following picture? Thankfully, Tom Tom got us to our correct location.

In front of the Temple of Concordia

built around 430 B.C.

Temple of Concordia

Temple of Hercules

(The national hero of Sicily)

built around 510 B.C.

An amazing, old (maybe ancient?), olive tree.

On a side note: we are back home safely now after a long, long, day of flying on Friday. I am continually impressed with the kindness of strangers when I fly alone with the kids. It was evident that the prayers for our safe journey were heard and are much appreciated! ♥

agriturismo

2011-03-09T13:09:00.000-08:00

After spending time in the big city, we headed south to a bed and breakfast in the country, known here as an agriturismo. They usually cook their food using ingredients from their farm such as olive oil and citrus. This time of year the mud is too thick to ride horses, but we at least got to go and say ciao to them. The rooms here were really neat, I think perhaps we slept where horses once did.

Amelia's "princess" bed, getting an American welcome.

The kids with the "Cuties" they just picked, although Amelia wouldn't eat hers because it was a blood tangerine and apparently didn't look quite right. Blood oranges are in season here and are mmm mmm good.

Cavallo. No, we did not eat these guys as some of the locals might!

Santo and Francesca (or Fran-jessica as Amelia says) who run the agriturismo.

Uncle Gene getting some snuggle time.

Another couple that worked there had a 3 year old named Rebecca. These two girls had the best time while we were eating the delicious dinner Francesca made. It is Carnevale, so all the children everywhere dress up in costumes. More on that later.

Mondello & Palermo

2011-03-08T14:55:00.000-08:00

Friday we headed to stay at a B & B in Mondello, near Palermo (the largest city in Sicily). Despite the overcast/chilly weather, we went to the beach with the kids and they had a blast. We went to dinner in Palermo that night, and then did a little shopping there the next day.

Who says the Med doesn't have waves?

You just have to visit in March...

Uncle Gene the stroller pusher.

The opera house in Palermo.

Cheers to a lovely family. ♥

This fountain was such a magnet to him. He was a bit wet by the end of dinner.

The kids had a blast talking to "Josh" on the phone between our rooms.

Amelia trying on dresses in Palermo (you like-ah?).

Cafe Duomo

2011-03-07T15:06:00.000-08:00

We went to dinner in Catania last week, the kids enjoyed their pasta with olive oil while the adults appreciated the fine dining. : )

photo credit: Amelia (pronounced Ahh-maah-leeah in Italiano)

Thinking he is such a big boy drinking out of a fancy glass!

Her first taste of gelato. Strawberry, of course!

Wyatt was feeding me mine. Mmmm. Pistacchio.

(I actually uploaded the wrong picture, but I'm not going through that process again, so here ya have it).

Acitrezza

2011-03-03T07:18:00.000-08:00

Last night we ended up going to a small town called Motta and went to a yummy pizzaria. There is a castle in the town and Amelia kept asking about the princess that lives there. : ) Today Lindsay and I walked down the boardwalk with some beautiful water and rocks to look at. The waves are unusually big right now, so it makes it fun to watch.

hanging out before dinner

decorating cupcakes for an early birthday celebration

playing with dough at dinner, she had a blast!

part of the castle

enjoying her cupcake

Wyatt too!

I hope to go back and get some more pictures of these rock formations when the lighting is better, they are really amazing. Tomorrow we're off to explore more of Sicily and staying at a couple of b & b's, so no posting at least until next week sometime. : )

lag

2011-03-02T08:30:00.000-08:00

We made it in one piece! We're a bit on a wacky sleep schedule, but I suppose that comes with the territory. Wyatt slept until 11:00 and Amelia slept until 11:30 this morning... after both kids were wide awake around 2:00 am and I had to use some persuasion from a bottle of children's benedryl around 3:00 to help them out. Guess it worked! Uncle Gene got off work early today, so we got to pick him up and see the base. We hope to go into Catania to do a little shopping and have some dinner this evening. I forgot that everything is closed from 1:00 to 4:00 in the afternoons and restaurants don't open until 8:00 pm over here. I was once accustomed to this lifestyle, but I have since aged 10 years and have birthed two children. ; )

Sacked out on Momma's bed.

Trying on Uncle Gene's hat on the way home from the Base.

And thats it for pictures thus far. I hope to take many, many more.

we're off...

2011-02-27T20:10:00.000-08:00

The kids and I are taking off for a trip to Sicily tomorrow morning. Perhaps I'll post from there, perhaps I will when we get back. It depends on how often I'm down the street sipping a cappuccino looking at the Mediterranean (through the rain) while Aunt Lindsay watches the kids. Who knows, maybe Nathan will even do a post from home. ; )

While you're checking back to see if I've posted or not, you can look at pictures of the kids eating the cake Amelia made for Valentine's Day (it was quite dry, but they liked it!).

loves

2011-02-14T14:40:00.000-08:00

From ours to yours, Happy Valentine's Day!

If you want to see pictures from past years, click here.

♥

green & yellow (not just Green Bay)

2011-02-11T18:49:00.000-08:00

We had an unseasonably warm Super Bowl weekend up in Tehachapi, so we went outside and enjoyed it! A highlight for the kids is checking for the eggs every day, and this time it was warm enough for Grandma Eileen to give the kids a ride behind the John Deere. Most of the weekend was spent wiping Wyatt's nose, which seems to be a continuous theme for the past two plus weeks. Poor kiddo is now on antibiotics for an ear infection. Despite not feeling well, he still enjoyed our time with Grandpa and Grandma.

He climbed up and down that thing like he owned it.

And this was just funny to me for some reason. Morgan is going on a two week cruise to Hawaii with her mommy and daddy, along with Travis' Aunt and Uncle here in a few weeks. So I thought it would be fun for them to learn to hula via YouTube. It cracks me up how Amelia is so into it and Morgan does her own thing. I think she'll be more into swimming than hula-ing anyway. : )

current events

2011-02-03T16:54:00.000-08:00

Amelia baked this carrot cake to take to meeting last month with her

mini bake set she got for Christmas (and in our rush out the door, I

didn't even take the plastic off for the photo shoot!).

Typical play around here.

The modern bride?

We have five flowering pear trees outside our front windows,

they are absolutely georgeous right now!

Our own little red-nosed Wyatt dear. He tripped into the edge of the bathroom trash can. It makes it harder to wipe his runny nose when he's already trying to wiggle away from me.

yee haw!

2011-01-24T16:03:00.000-08:00

"We get to ride ponies at Bridget's birthday!" This was probably the most common phrase coming out of Amelia's mouth last week, and the ponies and the party did not disappoint. Unfortunately, my map reading skills made us a late, so we kind of had to rush through everything, but the kids had so much fun. Thanks Kari and Cody!

Happy 2nd birthday cowgirl Bridget! ♥

He got the biggest kick out of feeding the goats.

birthdays & more

2011-01-18T14:18:00.000-08:00

While these two were off to Rome to celebrate Christmas and Lindsay's birthday...

We flew in from Spokane and headed straight to Tehachapi to celebrate the birthday's of these two lovely ladies (with the kids ever present to help unwrap gifts):

Nick and Bandit getting some cuddle time in:

Finally home again after a little over two weeks and getting back into the swing of things around here:

We've been enjoying some warm weather here, getting in some time at the beach and at the park. Quite a change from the weather we were visiting two weeks ago! No complaints for either kind, both are lots of fun. I haven't been toting the camera around much lately, thus the lack of posts. : )

It's cold here

2011-01-01T18:19:00.000-08:00

Glimpses of our time "back home" for the holidays:

New cozy jammies... which they need, it's currently 11 degrees.

Her new brush from GG that she takes very seriously.

He still enjoys trying on other people's shoes.?!

Using Grandpa and Grandma's furniture as parallel bars.

Wearing my old Cabbage Patch doll's shoes.

Uncle Drew's new old ride complete with lots of pinstriping.

Endless reading (thanks GG!).

Helping Papa D.

The perfect sledding hill for the little ones in the front yard.

Celebrating two special people's birthday's

(Dad's got a big one coming up in Feb, but we're not going to be here).

A beautiful sunny day downtown.

fortunate

2010-12-23T16:55:00.000-08:00

She was so excited about this blue ruler (most of it is out of the picture).

Said blue ruler.

Apparently dry erase marker does not erase off paint.

Family ♥.

Extra fun in a new tutu.

I caught Morgan at a good moment, most of the time
she just stood there, it was too funny (she had informed
her parents on the way to the play that she wouldn't
be singing that night, and she didn't!).

Wishing everyone a happy Christmas & New Year! ♥

comfort & joy

2010-12-18T09:25:00.000-08:00

A new sweater from Sicily & a happy little brother.

A cake pop flop. They were gross. They got tossed.
Next time I will follow a recipe and maybe they will taste
and look as good as Bakerella's (I wish!).

The old changing table to hold toys in the closet.
They pretend to be R and J (who have real bunk beds!).

I ♥ holiday cards. They make my day.

Morgan's dance recital... very cute watching

four three-year-olds perform for us.

Amelia would loooooove to be in Mo's ballet class, but

informed the instructor (with arms crossed and all),

"I can do it all by myself at home."

Good thing, it's cheaper! : )

merriment

2010-12-10T10:12:00.000-08:00

Dr. Amelia checking for cavities (she didn't find any).

Soon there will be stockings in the reflection.

Pardon the dust. There is a lot of that around here.

Festive lights on the doll house.

Enjoying the local holiday parade.

Thanksgiving

2010-11-29T23:43:00.000-08:00

This year we got to enjoy Thanksgiving day at the Millers, and what an enjoyable day it was! The kids had fun keeping things lively for all of us, it was great seeing how well Jill and Amelia still get along and how Wyatt cowers around Miss Mia. : )

Sorry, Lucas, this is the only picture that turned out of the kids table

(he wasn't so sure of Amelia cozying up to him for the picture!).

I crack up every time I look at this.

A brief moment of serenity.

Wyatt's favorite trick the rest of the weekend at Grandpa and

Grandma's. Bandit isn't really supposed to have human food... oh well!

Looks like Aunt Sara is a good shot with a snowball! ; )

Poor boy was a little top heavy and could hardly walk.

Hopefully the only time we'll see this ride with snow on it. From

now on we're going prepared with the four wheel drive in the winter!

blood donation = free fish

2010-11-24T10:38:00.000-08:00

At the hospital where Kim works, they treat you right when you donate blood. Incentives include espresso drinks or various free tickets, and getting to sit in a comfortable chair uninterrupted by children while nice nurses bring you whatever you want (Drumstick or Dove Bar?). Not to mention Kim gets eight hours paid time off for up to four donations per year. I'm not into needles and blood, but I have big veins in my arms and I just don't look. Funny what things you look forward to after spending most of your time at home with kids. : )

Anyway, both Kim and I opted for Aquarium of the Pacific tickets the last time we donated. It was a fun day for all. Oh, and we pet a shark. Never thought I'd do that... but it was small and everyone else was doing it. ; )

Enjoying Goldfish crackers and people watching while the rest of us watched fish.

playground

2010-11-20T15:21:00.000-08:00

The weather has been quite warm here until this weekend (rain, hooray!). So last weekend we took advantage of letting the kids run around for awhile. There was a catch, I wanted to take pictures of them together... Wyatt didn't cooperate very well for the 'togetherness' pictures, but I suppose thats all part of the fun. : )

October 23

2010-11-18T22:40:00.000-08:00

This post is really more for me to keep record more than anything else. October 23, 2007 is the day I started babysitting Morgan and I have tried to take a picture of the girls every year right around that time. If you're interested in the first three years, click here for last years post.

in general

2010-11-10T22:01:00.000-08:00

One week they're feeling the cool rain...

The next week it's in the 90's and they're frolicking fairys.

We hung a few things up on the walls last weekend,
it feels a little more homey now.

A playdate with Bridget and her overly due momma. ♥

New jammies from Grandma.

A feast on our toilet.

A feast on Wyatt's face.

the bride & the bee

2010-11-04T15:36:00.000-07:00

For various reasons I am not that into Halloween. That being said, Amelia has been talking about being a bah-ride for the longest time and has been anticipating getting to dress up for quite awhile. Seeing her sheer excitement getting out of the car when we went down to our old neighborhood to say hello to a few friends was so fun. She pranced about and when people told her she looked so pretty, she exclaimed: "I know I do!" I suppose now it's time to work on proper etiquette, perhaps learning to just say, "thank you!" Wyatt was a good sport and even wore his hood for most of the time. : )

The getup, after the dress up:

A is for Autumn

2010-11-01T15:49:00.000-07:00

We took our annual October trek to the mountains this past weekend. Kim and I took the kids up Thursday night and were so proud of ourselves for getting the pilot light on the heater started and then went and chatted by the fire. We discovered a few hours later that it had gone out and would NOT re-light when we went to bed. So space heaters and blankets it was, we survived to live another day. : ) With a phone call the next day, we figured out how to reset the thing and stay warm the rest of the weekend. I'm sure all you North Westerners are chuckling right now.

Saturday we headed over to Lake Arrowhead as we generally do. This year we decided to get pumpkins for the girls, which they enjoyed carving with their daddy's later that night. It was Octoberfest at Arrowhead Village, so we took in some good deals at the outlets and some lively polka music. The girls had so much fun "dancing" to the music, and as you can see, Kim and I prodded them along. A far cry from about 15-20 years ago when my dad used to blast German polka music from his garage stereo with both doors open and I would run for cover due to extreme embarrassment.

more where that came from

2010-10-28T06:29:00.000-07:00

Celebrating Daddy's birthday at home (that's his new hat).

Playing dress up with Aunt Lindsay.

Probably up to no good.

Dinner at the new bbq place in town for Gene's birthday.

Back down to San Diego for Uncle Gene's birthday party.

The last time we'll all be together for awhile. : (

Amelia's fairy dress from Aunt Lindsay,

and some mighty good cupcakes!

arrivederci il partito

2010-10-18T16:57:00.000-07:00

Don't you just love online translators? I wish I actually remembered how to say "goodbye party" in Italian. There was a party for Gene and Lindsay hosted by the ever so gracious Warr ladies and Ms. Julie. We had authentic Mexican street tacos (how do you say "delicious" in Italian?). It was one of their last times to get real Mexican food before heading over to Sicily in a couple weeks for three, yes, three years. Needless to say, my next few posts will probably be Gene and Lindsay heavy since we're trying to squeeze in as much time with them as possible before they go.

An oh, so excited Aunt Sara! : )

We're going to miss you two!

kids being kids

2010-10-07T15:13:00.000-07:00

Trying not to be blinded by the ever-so-attractive

foil splash guard while helping mommy make dinner.

The little man loves his daddy's shoes.

Could they be any cuter (or fancier?)?

We had dinner with EJ and her parents over at Tom and Karry's,

the girls put on a wonderful show for us. Quite an enjoyable evening.

The hat was of his own choosing.

before & after

2010-09-29T15:20:00.000-07:00

Here are a few before and afters of the main living area. The before pictures are from when we came to see the place the first time. We still need to get some things up on the walls and un-box the decorative items, but all in due time. Guess you'll have to come visit us in awhile if you want to see that! ; )

before: from the front door

before: kitchen/dining

before: from dining room

after: with some additional counter space

away

2010-09-22T09:04:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, the kids and I were able to sneak away from the boxes and enjoy time with the family in Tehachapi. Daddy had to stay behind and work at the office all weekend. : ( It was the first weekend for apple picking up there, so we headed to the orchard and did our thing. The apples aren't quite ripe, but maybe if I get my kitchen in order soon I can make a crisp.

Blocking Wyatt from getting any more apples from the bucket.

He did pretty good for himself with those little teeth.

monochromatic

2010-09-15T21:44:00.000-07:00

A glimpse of our kitchen... getting closer!

transition

2010-09-10T08:17:00.000-07:00

Well, we're moved in. And that's about it. I really hope to have "after" pictures soon, but I'm thinking it will be awhile before we get to the nice, clean, organized stage. Many, many, many thanks to all those who have helped us get it this far. Eileen, Lindsay and Gene for all the times you've come up/down for the day to watch the kids, my mom for flying down to watch the kids for a week (even sleeping on the floor at our old, empty house for a couple of nights!), my dad for flying down last minute to help with all of the extra projects, Travis and Kim for all of the help painting, cleaning and installing things... and boxes!

Our room. The boxes are continually shifting.

Wyatt's room.

Amelia's room.

My favorite part of the house right now because
it's done and hiding boxes behind doors. ; )

Yes, the couches are still wrapped in plastic a week later
as there has still been a lot of painting and sanding going on.

I'm really, really hoping we can put the appliances where they go by tomorrow.

The tool/trash/paint/old sink center.

Wyatt watching Grandpa hide the exposed electrical so his little fingers don't get electrocuted again (he's fine by the way). And a glimpse at the new floor and counter tops.

Daddy's make-shift office now that we have internet hooked up. Doesn't that look convenient?

on the home front

2010-08-19T10:21:00.000-07:00

Right now the condo doesn't look like a place we'll be moving into in about two weeks. I also know that a lot of progress can be made in that time. Right? I am so thankful that the bulk of the work will get done before we move in though, what a blessing!

This picture was taken pre-demo last week. The kids had a great time reading through the phone books that were left there. Kim and Morgan came over and the kids had a wonderful time tearing around the place with no furniture. Soon enough, our downstairs neighbor came up to see if everything was alright. I informed her that two three-year-olds were running around and she was relieved that we weren't bowling. Unfortunately for her, that is how we were introduced as her new neighbors. Thankfully she was kind and understanding after that.

All the trim ripped out. The previous owners would be aghast if they saw all their hard work piled up on the balcony. They spent an extraordinary amount of time putting it in wrong, on many, many levels. The spotlights have been removed (this is not an art gallery, it's a living room) and recessed lighting has been installed. Oh, and all the ceilings scraped!

Here where we currently reside, I have a paint booth set up in our neighbor's garage that adjoins ours. These babies went from bland to bold with a few cans of spray paint. My index finger is still asleep from the spraying and I can still smell the fumes...

And that same neighbor has been hanging on to this for Amelia for awhile. She loves it!

jingle, jingle

2010-08-11T23:16:00.000-07:00

No, that would not be the sound of money in our pockets. Quite contrary, actually. It is the sound of keys to our very own condo! After seven offers on various houses, we closed escrow earlier today. Fortunately for some of you, it’s not an Eichler or Cliff May home (see Nathan’s previous post on this topic). Perhaps someday. For now, we are so excited to get to stay in the neighborhood, only moving a mere four miles away. This is four miles from the beach though, so we'll have to get used to that. :) Here are a few before pictures from when we walked through it the first time a couple of months ago. And don't expect to see any after pictures for at least a month or more! Or any other blog posts for that matter...

Did you happen to count those last three? That's three bedrooms! Oh, and two bathrooms. So now when someone is in the bathroom and one of the girls needs to go, we can just go in the other one. What a luxury. : ) And three bedrooms for three children to nap in so I can get some peace and quiet. I think I like the sound of that. And yes, there are trade offs moving from a (rental) house to a condo, but we've come to grips with those and are so thankful that the Lord has provided a place for us to live with our family in a safe neighborhood.

barbeque & babies

2010-08-10T15:51:00.000-07:00

We got to meet sweet little baby EJ this weekend! She is such a cute baby, and at 2 1/2 weeks old, has more hair that Wyatt! She was super good at dinner and it was fun to spend a little time with her extended family (and ours!).

Proud new parents.

And yesterday, I put these two girls down for a nap in the same room.

Too bad it didn't work.

home on the range

2010-08-05T10:03:00.000-07:00

Don't let this picture of relaxation fool you.

It was only for a few seconds before he moved on to his usual non-stop self.

Well, except when he's doing this. : )

His favorite new place to play.

fishin'

2010-07-30T08:00:00.000-07:00

Boys love dirt.

So opposite of our girl.

95

2010-07-28T11:26:00.000-07:00

Grandma GG Adkins turned 95 on July 20, so we all got together over the weekend to help her celebrate. She can hardly believe it when she hears the words ninety five associated with her! : )

All of us except for Ben, who is in South Korea.

Sleeping Beauty.

Sunglasses!

The birthday girl.

Talking to Ben on the phone to complete the celebration.

Highlights (Week 2)

2010-07-22T14:46:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more pictures from our extended trip up North:

Enjoying a cold treat from GG Marti

This is for you, Uncle Ron B, and FYI, he dropped this thing
and I'm so thankful it missed his feet because it's HEAVY! : )

GG reading Cinderella, Amelia's most favorite book of the trip.

We extended our trip to go to Vancouver for my Grandma Yvonne's memorial service and got to stay with the K's again. It was nice to be with all of our extended family again!

J's turn feeding Wyatt, R got to the next time. : )

not pictured: Uncle Ron T who was equally soaked!

Practicing for Grandma's memorial service slide show accompaniment.

They did a great job!

Somehow Amelia planned to coordinate with my cousins!

And we got to squeeze in a 60th birthday celebration

for Aunt Jane while we were all together.

Spokane highlights, week 1

2010-07-12T12:39:00.000-07:00

Jake, Emily & Wyatt on the 4th of July

By far the best gift Erin got at her bridal shower. ; )

the old ball game

2010-06-28T08:07:00.000-07:00

We just remembered these pictures on our camera from the Angel's baseball game we went to when Uncle Drew was here. Although we did root, root, root for the home team, the Brewers (who are they, anyway?) ran a lot more guys across home plate than we did. A fun night though!

mmmm. hot dog.

bonfire & birthdays

2010-06-16T09:37:00.000-07:00

As promised, here are a few more pictures of our baby's first birthday weekend. We headed to the beach with Travis, Kim, Morgan and Uncle Drew for some blackened hot dogs (yum!) and gourmet smores. Somehow food always tastes so good over an open flame.

The next day the whole extended Adkins family showed up to help celebrate Wyatt's first birthday. We celebrated Uncle Nick's birthday too. His was at the beginning of May but kinda got buried under pre-wedding commotion. To honor both boys, we had a John Deere themed party. We hope we made our Buchanan relatives proud. : )

(well, all John Deere except for this CAT!)

o n e

2010-06-13T00:00:00.000-07:00

Wyatt is one year old today! A birthday party post to come soon...

the professional pictures...

2010-06-09T11:04:00.000-07:00

Once again, Photography By Karoline did a wonderful, wonderful job. So I just had to share a few! ; )

Cinderella and Skid Steers

2010-06-03T16:32:00.000-07:00

We got to go see a production of Cinderella while we were in Tehachapi this weekend. Aunt Myra and Grandma's neighbors, the R's, who take wonderful care of GG got us tickets. Amelia said that the only special ones in the play were the Fairy God Mother and Princess Jasmine (of course, the two R girls). Unfortunately, Amelia did pick up some bad habits from the overly zealous step-sisters in the play and I'm still trying to figure out how to deal with that.

Enjoying the beautiful weather.

Amelia supervising Uncle Nick as he and Papa get ready to head out to do some work (don't mind her mis-matched outfit, there were several wardrobe changes that day for various reasons). Little did they know they'd have an adventure with a rather large diamondback rattlesnake. Thankfully, everyone was okay. That is, except for the snake. He was no match for Uncle Nick and his mower.

San Diego Zoo

2010-05-27T16:51:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Kim (and Clint) we got free tickets to go to the San Diego Zoo. So, we braved the hill-laden zoo the day after the wedding. Here are some pictures of the animals, and a few of the kids too. : )

Is this klipspringer not the cutest thing you ever saw?

Mommy's sweatshirt does just fine in a pinch.

At least it wasn't pink.

rehearsal & [a few] wedding pictures

2010-05-19T23:11:00.000-07:00

Courtesy of Travis and Kim, here are a few glimpses of last weekend. Perhaps more to come later. : )

Proud Papa

Mama's

cousins and such

2010-05-18T07:45:00.000-07:00

I know most of you are hoping for wedding pictures, but I did not take a single one! So, we'll wait for some other people to get theirs uploaded and I'll share then.

A few weeks back we drove up to Grandpa George's funeral and enjoyed time with our extended family. GG loved holding Wyatt and did so every chance she got. The kids got to play with their second cousin's, R & J and had so much fun! Got to love R's facial expressions.

Not quite sure if he likes ice cream yet.

Doing her best keeping up with the boys.

Although he tells his parents he'd love to have another

baby around the house, this picture isn't so convincing.

By the way... Mr. Boy is walking now!

gesundheit

2010-05-11T15:40:00.000-07:00

While Mommy is in another room cleaning up a different mess, Wyatt figures out how to aquire a box of tissues.

wildwood flowers

2010-04-21T23:28:00.000-07:00

The last weekend was spent in the lovely mountains of The Hatch. We got a quick visit in with GG, trying not to over do it as she hasn't been in the best of health. She was able to perform one of her favorite things of late though in holding Mr. Boy (and he wasn't too squirmy!).

On Sunday afternoon the kids were at home with Grandpa and Grandma and Nathan caught a ride home with Gene and Linz, so I hopped in the car and went to explore some of the local wildflowers. The California poppies were going crazy. It looked like the hills were on fire, but in a fluorescent orange construction color kinda way. I still had on my dress and flip flops, not intending to explore past the side of the road, but the beautiful day got in the way of my plans on my last stop. I hiked as far as I could until it got too steep for the meager leather straps on my feet to handle.

[You can see the blanket of orange in the background].

What was once wildlife.

Gratuitous Hemi shot (haha, NaomiG!). : )

more picture potpourri

2010-04-12T22:35:00.000-07:00

Easter

Discussions on what was going to be happening on the first day of VBS.

Little dude checking out Daddy's board.

Yes, you can squish three children in there.

Mo reading Amelia a bedtime story. : )

Twirls.

march madness

2010-03-30T10:52:00.000-07:00

A kid birthday party (minus Bridget).

A St. Paddy's tea party in the playhouse.

Working on the trike.

Those of us that observed birthdays.

Let's just say my age has a "3" in it now, like Amelia's! : )

Yet another birthday celebration with the Fletchers.

Ten days with Gramps and Gram here.

Amelia's first swim lesson.

spring melt off

2010-03-18T07:05:00.000-07:00

Snow is a novelty for us around these parts. We were able to spend another lovely, relaxing weekend at Travis' aunt and uncles cabin and the girls had a blast sledding on the last of the snow. Then we came home to weather that was at least 40 degrees warmer!

three

2010-03-16T07:29:00.000-07:00

Our Amelia June is three today. We love you, sweet girl!

doings

2010-03-11T15:56:00.000-08:00

Here's what we've been up to the past couple of weeks. A quick visit from my dear cousin Jill whom I haven't seen in, um, nine years? Can it be that long ago? We grew up together until she was in sixth grade, then she moved to California. It took me a few years to follow suit, and we're still a seven hour drive from each other. It was so good to meet her hubby and their new adorable addition.

There was a tea party bridal shower for Aunt Lindsay last weekend, we had such a nice time. Thanks to the ladies that put that on, it was delightful!

Two eager helpers.

Wyatt and Jilly playing

Dollies and doll houses.

Pardon the crust and blemishes, not to mention that his whole face doesn't fit in the picture, but if you look real close you can see his new (ever so sharp) chompers.