Kate On The Local News!

We were hanging out at home the other morning when a friend of mine sent a text message: "Baby Kate is on the news!"  She managed to hit record and video tape the segment on her phone.  What a fun surprise!  I remember now that Kate's teacher (she goes to daycare 2 days a week) had said that the news was onsite, but never made the connection that Kate could be on TV.  As it turns out, the reporter covering the story is the mom of one of Kate's classmates.

Here's a link to the news story.... and the video is posted below.  Our baby girl is famous!

Ballet Fun

It's been so much fun watching Tess do ballet each week. In the photo at the right I caught a rare moment of cooperation when ALL the 3-year-olds were following instructions during warmup time. That's our cousin "CoCo" (Colette) Thiessen on the right.  The girls' ballet teacher, Miss Ally, has incredible patience (you'd have to, right?) and has put together an adorable routine for the dance recital in June.  Below is some video I took during class -- as you can see, it's mostly chaos...but still super cute!  

Hat Trick! Another Valley Championship for CNHS Forensics

Congratulations to CHAD and his forensics team for winning the Valley Championship in speaking events...for the third year in a row!  Below is an excerpt from the news article he circulated around the CNHS campus, sharing the tremendous achievement.

The Clovis North Forensics team won the SVFL Valley Championship for a third consecutive year last Saturday at South High School in Bakersfield. Clovis North fended off a very competitive Stockdale High School to win its fourth title in five years. Overall sweepstakes are determined by points awarded for students in the final rounds of all 12 speaking events. The final sweepstakes points for the top three teams are as follows:

1st place - Clovis North High School - 85 points 

2nd place - Stockdale High School - 79 points 

3rd place - University High School - 56 points 

Special congratulations go out to the following students for their exceptional performance and to those who qualified to the State Championships being held April 17-19 in Temecula, CA. 

Hayk Kosaian & Sammy Linkowski - Valley Champions - Duo Interpretation (State Qualifiers)

Vishnu Pamula - Valley Champion - Original Oratory (State Qualifier) 

Maya Srikanth - 2nd Place - Original Oratory (State Qualifier) 

Justin Lagera - 6th place - Original Oratory (1st Alternate) 

Alexa Perricone - Valley Champion - Original Advocacy (State Qualifier) 

Pooja Heragu - 3rd place - Original Advocacy (State Qualifier) 

Meenu Pamula - 5th place - Original Advocacy (State Qualifier) 

Matthew Cuevas - 2nd Place - Humorous interpretation (State Qualifier) 

Spencer Rosen - 4th Place - Humorous Interpretation (State Qualifier) 

Erika Osilla - 5th Place - Humorous Interpretation (State Qualifier) 

Seshaan Ratnam - 5th place - Impromptu Speaking (State Qualifier) 

Jashanpal Mangat - 6th place - Impromptu Speaking (State Qualifier) 

 


Mr. Hayden and his Valley Champions!

Teacher Appreciation Night

Last week Chad was picked by one of his students (on the girls' basketball team) to be recognized at "Teacher Appreciation Night," where select teachers were introduced during basketball game halftime and presented with an award by the student who nominated them.  Below is the script, written by his student, that was read when he was presented with the award.  Way to go, Mr. Hayden! 

"Mr. Hayden has made such an impact on my life.  He has helped me value my education by showing compassion for his students and his subject.  He is the most intelligent man I've ever met.  He is also an eloquent speaker who can capture anyone's attention.  I've learned that there is always an opportunity to learn and grow as an individual.  He has taught that there are more beautiful aspects of life if you make the effort to look beyond the surface.  Mr. Hayden is a great teacher and person.  His love for English and speaking is contagious and has personally inspired me to be more loving and pursue a more fulfilling life."

PrideStaff Update

I'm continually grateful for my career at PrideStaff.  So much has changed in the past 15 years, and it's been wonderful to watch it all grow and develop -- the company, my department, and my team members.  Since my return to work in June (after maternity leave), we've added 2 new people to the Risk Management Team, for a total of 12!  That means I now manage 10 people, which I never would have believed back when I started (after all, it was just a temp job!).  My role has changed significantly since the early days...it used to be that I handled any new "issues" that came in (employee complaints, employee injuries, unemployment claims, safety concerns, HR needs, etc.). Now, I train the people on my team to handle those issues effectively.  I help develop everyone on the team, and manage the flow of work within the department.  I also do a lot of project work and help ensure that we are providing the necessary information and resources to support all 65 PrideStaff offices across the country.  (When I started, we only had about 15 offices!)

As I've always said, the best thing about working at PrideStaff is the people I get to spend every day with.  This part just keeps getting better and better as we add more talent.  We have a culture of dignity, respect, and teamwork, and we have FUN working hard together!  The more we grow, the harder it is to get to know and appreciate everyone.  I suppose this is a great problem to have!

This weekend is our annual Home Office Christmas Party at Fort Washington Country Club, and this coming Monday we are having a special holiday party for our Risk Management Team.  I'm looking forward to celebrating the season together and reflecting on all we have accomplished
this year! 

Birthday & Kate Video

Birthday celebrations with my little love --
the one who made me a mother,
the best version of myself.

Birthday celebrations this year were simple and meaningful, and I thoroughly enjoyed time with my family this week.  We had dinner with my parents on Monday night (see adorable video of bouncing Kate, below!), and Chad and I were able to have a date night at Ruth's Chris on Friday.  On my actual birthday (Tuesday), Tess had her ballet showcase and we enjoyed our monthly "cousins playdate" afterward.  

Despite some extra pounds and wrinkles, I am choosing to embrace my age and my accomplishments with confidence and grace!  I can officially say that I am "in my prime," after having celebrated my 37th birthday.  This is a shockingly high number to me, waaay too close to 40 for comfort, but in spite of that my heart is full.  I am blessed beyond measure, have more than I need and there is very little that I want -- none of which is beyond reach.  The only thing I feel I am missing, which I am determined to obtain in this "prime" year, is a feeling of vitality (possibly due to the little ones who consume my days?).  I am not one for making pronouncements or sweeping life changes, but in the quiet recesses of my heart I am asking God to help me make healthy choices on a daily basis.  Nutrition, moderation, water, vitamins, exercise, rest, mindfulness, and prayer.  More than anything I want to set a positive example for my girls, life a healthy and disciplined life (physically, mentally, and spiritually), and have the energy and strength to actively participate in all that their childhood has to offer.  So, having put that in writing, it is time to get busy.  Or should I wait until January 1st like the rest of the world?  I mean, we do have Thanksgiving and Christmas to endure...

Summer Funsies Recap

Summer blew by us this year, as we were still adjusting to life as a family of four!  As we head into Fall, here's a quick recap of what we were able to accomplish from our list (first introduced here and mentioned again here).  Not too shabby with a newborn, if you ask me!  Highlights for Tess were anything involving water play, and the highlight for Mom and Dad was definitely potty training!  We put the finishing touches on that just in time for Tess's third birthday, and the girl won't even wear pull-ups at night -- we are accident-free!

Next Summer will definitely boast a few repeats and hopefully some of the adventures we didn't get to. These lists are a fun way to make sure we're making memories and doing meaningful things together as a family, so I intend to create lists for Fall and the Holidays, too.  (I'll put that on my list...to make a list...)

Summer Funsies Continue...

We've been having a Summer full of fun! Our "Summer Fun List" is helping us stay motivated to take advantage of the family time we have together while Chad's out of school.

 

We spent 4th of July weekend visiting the circus, and took an overnight trip to San Luis Obispo/Avila Beach. We met up with Grandma Meg for a friend's art show at the SLO Museum of Modern Art, and enjoyed a trip to Avila Valley Barn. Tess and Daddy had fun making sandcastles on the beach! Below the pics is a fun little video of Tess chasing a seagull and doing a little jig -- it cracks me up!

We also took a day trip up to Bass Lake -- Kate's first lake trip! Tess brought along her little friend Lucy and they had fun playing together in the sand. We decided we like Shaver Lake better, and that we need a better shade structure. Someday we will perfect the lake day trip!

 

We also took Tess bowling! It was a great way to get out of the house but not be outdoors. She had a great time and Daddy was her personal bowling assistant while Mommy and Kate watched.

Back To Work/Daddy Daycare

June 23rd marked 15 wonderful years at PrideStaff, and also my return to work from maternity leave!  I was blessed with a beautiful bouquet of flowers from the executive team and a little donut celebration with my department.  I was so ready to get back to my PrideStaff friends and the challenging, fun, and important work I get to do there.  Leaving baby Kate in Daddy's capable hands for the Summer months made it so much easier!  I am back to my "old" schedule of three days a week, and loving it.  Thank you, PrideStaff, for giving me the opportunity to have a fulfilling career that I can balance with my precious family! 

It's Potty Time!

She's SO gonna hate me someday for sharing this, but I couldn't resist!  We are well on our way to being potty trained!  Last week Tess finally (FINALLY!) went peepee on the potty at home, after MONTHS of talking about it and having occasional successes at preschool.  We are now in full pee-on-the-potty mode, and wearing big girl panties during the day.  Our next big objective is figuring out how to make #2 happen on the potty...then after that, staying dry during nighttime.  Meanwhile, we are celebrating the small successes in a BIG way and having fun with the adventure!

 

Kate's Birth Announcement

Introducing Kate Anna Hayden



She's finally here! Introducing Kate Anna Hayden, born Thursday, May 27, 2014 at 2:39am.  She weighed 7lbs, 1oz and measured 19 inches long.  Mommy, Daddy, and big sister Tess are all thrilled and full of love for such a beautiful and precious gift!

 

On Wednesday the 26th I was scheduled for my 39-week checkup with my OBGYN, but was struggling with what I thought was either mild food poisoning or the flu! I called the doctor's office to ask if I should bother coming in, since I was so sick (I didn't want to infect everyone), and they told me to get myself to the hospital ASAP for a baby check.  I quickly packed a bag and hit the road with my mom, Meg, who was thankfully still in town after coming up to help with baby preparations.  Chad was still at school!  After a few hours in triage the determination was made that I was, in fact, having a baby.  I was quickly admitted and Chad wrapped up his workday to come to the hospital and be with me.  By 5:00pm or so, we were settled into our delivery room with an epidural on the way...and Chad was having his own food poisoning/flu experience!  To make what could be a very long story short, I was so relieved that, unlike the ordeal of delivering Tess, this time was ultimately very quick and relatively painless!  I had the most wonderful nurse, too.  Baby Kate arrived at around 2:40am after just 2 big pushes.  My very first words -- upon seeing the nurse hold her up -- were, "Oh! She's SO beautiful!"  That's been the general consensus from everyone who's met her: she's just a gorgeous baby.  Most importantly, she is healthy!  Chad went home to rest and recover (he was randomly vomiting all night long), so again Meg came to the rescue and stayed with Kate and I at the hospital. 

 

We had many visitors come to meet the new baby, but the most special one was BIG SISTER Tess.  I have never seen Tess so happy in her entire little life -- it's a moment I will never forget.  We are so grateful to Chad's parents Barbara and Paul for taking care of our #1 girl while we welcomed our #2. 

 

Now the journey REALLY begins...we get to figure out how to be parents of two wonderful girls!

 

 

Big House Projects

We've got LOTS to do to get ready for baby #2!  Tess is moving next door into a new "big girl room" so that we can keep her room as a nursery for the little one.  This means moving our hundreds of books out of the guest room closet and into....where?  We had intended to make a built-in bookshelf and office center in our loft area, and since our garage is short on extra storage space, we decided to take the plunge.  We were able to make it happen because we have a GREAT cabinetry guy who charges very reasonable prices!  Below are pics of the bookshelves in progress, as well as the transformation of the guest room into Tess's big girl room, and the return of Tess's room to an official baby nursery. 

We owe HUGE thank yous to our dear friends Troy and Carrie for motivating us to do the painting ourselves by making it a fun get-together, and to my mom (Meg) for coming up to help us get both girls' rooms situated (there was TONS of baby stuff to unpack and put away!).  We're almost there!

Clovis North Valley Champs - AGAIN!

Chad shared the following update with all Clovis North faculty last week.  His coaching successes continue to impress all of us! 

 

 

 

Congratulations to the Clovis North Forensics team for winning the SVFL Valley Championships for the second year in a row.  Saturday's competition was held at Sanger High School and was the second leg of the tournament, completing the final 6 of 12 events.  Clovis North edged out a very competitive Clovis East who had been threatening throughout the tournament. Sweepstakes points are based on the number of students in the final round of the competition.

 

 

Clovis North: 73 points - 1^st place

Clovis East: 69 points - 2^nd place

Stockdale: 30 points - 3^rd place

Edison: 22 points - 4^th place

Sanger: 22 points - 5^th place

University H.S.: 20 points - 6^th place

 

 

2013 Crystal Award Winner!

Chad received quite an honor last week when he was given a prestigious "Crystal Award" from Clovis Unified School District!  According to CUSD, "Clovis Unified’s Crystal Awards program seeks to honor exceptional district employees. Specifically, all Crystal Award recipients have demonstrated that they effectively exhibited Clovis Unified’s core values and that they have moved the district forward through applying these values to meet one of the district’s aims. Ultimately, these employees are making a significant impact on the lives of students, their colleagues, their site and the district."  (The award's webpage shows a complete list of winners for 2013.)

 

The honorees were invited to a special pre-ceremony reception before the beautiful awards show in the gorgeous Paul Shaghoian Concert Hall (which is, conveniently, just across the street from our house!).  For each award winner, a slide show was presented showing what they have done to earn the nomination and recognition.  I was able to capture Chad's slide show on video (below).  I've also included some pics from the evening and a slide show of the best pics from the ceremony's slide show...if that sounds confusing, just see the stuff below my signature!

 

None of us who know Chad and how hard he works were a bit surprised at the nomination and award!  And each year it becomes more and more clear how much his colleagues respect him and how much his students esteem him as one of their favorites and most influential.  And this Mrs. was so blessed that in the event's program, he credited me for much of his success!  It's true that we both work hard and support each other relentlessly in our respective careers.  I couldn't be more proud of Mr. Hayden!

Duck Dynasty?

For a while now I've been meaning to take Tess to feed the ducks at Woodward Park.  I wanted to wait for a day where we had the right weather and enough time, and when I had the $5 bucks for the ridiculously high entry fee.  We got a great opportunity earlier this week when Tess's friend Lucy came over for a play date.  After visiting the donut shop for a totally unhealthy breakfast, we went to Dollar Tree for three loaves of bread and then headed over to the park.

I had heard rumors, but was not prepared for what awaited us.  My first clue was when I parked the car and the ducks and geese began their approach.  It could have been a scene from a Stephen King movie called "The Ducks"! Forget about enjoying the outdoors, or heading down to the waterfront to entertain our feathered friends.  I quickly determined that if these ducks/geese were truly aggressive (as they appeared to be), we would not have time to leisurely tear off pieces of bread to toss to them.  So the girls and I huddled into the backseat of the car and set about tearing up all three loaves into small pieces, and loaded the bread pieces into our grocery bag.  Both of them were scared to get out of the car at this point, which was surrounded by quacking and honking geese.  So we simply opened the back of the car and fed the ducks/geese from the safety of the trunk.  I was a little surprised that we didn't have water fowl trying to climb into the back of my car, and relieved that the girls got to enjoy feeding them this way even though it wasn't what I had originally envisioned.

Innovative duck feeding.  Most of the geese
were as tall as Tess!

The girls' "safe place" - and the back of my car is now (still)
covered in bread crumbs...

At least he appears to be waiting politely...

Oxford to Turnberry

From the beginning of November to the end of March, we went from this.....
 

 

 

To THIS!

 

Life has been crazy busy, to say the very least. When we started the process of building a home, we felt like we had all the time in the world to "get ready" for moving. But then we blinked, and escrow had closed....and we hadn't even started packing! We began moving things over the first week in April and were officially "moved in" (i.e., sleeping at the new house) by April 27th. I'm so grateful to my mom for coming up and spending an entire week with us, keeping Tess occupied so that we could do the work of packing and moving!

For years, we knew that eventually we'd need more space than our Oxford house provided. And we firmly believed that we would eventually just add onto the house, given our love for the location (Old Town) and our huge backyard space. But as our family grew, we realized that more space wasn't the only thing we needed. We needed a street that our kid(s) could play on-- with other kids -- and a neighborhood where we could feel more of a sense of community. When we reached the point where we felt ready to "make a move" on the addition, we had a huge check and decided we needed to look for a different, bigger home. Long story short, we were very cleary led to build a new house in the Rivers Edge development by Bonadelle. Coincidentally, the neighborhood -- and even our specific lot -- is right across the street from Clovis North High School.

We're moved in, we're getting settled, and we're almost completely "out" of the Oxford house. In a few weeks we'll be having a big yard sale to offload all the furniture and other "stuff" that didn't assimilate into the new place. And we're getting Oxford ready to rent out, which will be a whole new adventure....as much as we felt led to move out, we didn't have ANY peace about selling it (even though being a landlord is the last thing I want to do in my life right now!).

What we'll miss about Oxford:

--Our wonderful neighbors, Tom & Niki, and their two adorable doggies, Shorty & Brownie. We had some very fun nights eating, drinking, and playing cards on their back patio!

--Being able to walk to Old Town: the Farmer's Market, antique shops, coffee shops, etc.

--Being so close to our spiritual community AND one of our fantastic babysitters, Julianna.

--The IDEA of our cute little bungalow home with wood floors, crown moulding, and custom carpentry.

What we won't miss about Oxford:

--The lack of community on our street, and the run-down houses.

--Our cranky neighbor who loves to call the policy for every. little. thing. and whose cats were ALWAYS in our business.

--Trying to leave for work in the morning with cranky parents dropping off their kids at Weldon.

--Primitive living! No dishwasher, garbage disposal, limited hot water, low ceilings, and minimal closet/storage space!

What we LOVE about our new place:

--More space! Just enough, but not too much, at 1783 square feet.

--A beautiful, landscaped backyard and large back patio for entertaining.

--An endless supply of hot water, thanks to our tankless water heater.

--Room to move and cook in the kitchen! And of course the dishwasher and garbage disposal.

--Location, location, location: Chad's commute is 5 minutes, door-to-door, and ON FOOT!

--The potential for raising a family in a neighborhood full of other families where the kids all get to go to school together, too.

It's been difficult to be "in transition" over the last 6 weeks or so, and it will probably be end of Summer before we've got things just how we want them. And then, projects begin. (Even though it's a new house, it's like a blank canvas and there is much we want to do to it!) Being in transition is difficult for me -- I want things done, and I want them done NOW, and I hate living in any state of limbo. But I'm choosing to remember that in life, almost everything is a process. I'm reminded of a quote by one of my favorite authors, Anais Nin: " Life is a process of becoming, a combination of states we have to go through. Where people fail is that they wish to elect a state and remain in it. This is a kind of death." Here's to becoming!

Some pics from along the house-building journey can be found below!
 

Adventures In Babysitting!

I didn’t have much babysitting experience as a kid/teenager, but boy have I made up for lost time!  Last week we had the honor and pleasure of house/baby sitting for some friends of ours….while they were off on a trip to Maui!   Yes, it was me and Chad, with FIVE girls (if you count Tess), 2 dogs, a cat, and a guinea pig, keeping everyone alive for the week!  This included school drop-offs, dinners, bath times, play dates, and the like….all while rocking the Honda Odyssey minivan.  It was hard work, but it was FUN.  I truly believe that anything is doable for the short term, and these girls are each so beautiful and sweet that it was a JOY to play house with them.  I rose to the challenge, I must say!  There was only one brief time where I had to say, “Nobody say my name or talk to me for 2 minutes!” which was, of course, met with small voices saying, “Why can’t we say your name, Miss Sarah?”  Definite highlights of the week were snuggling with the girls watching kid movies, answering difficult questions (like, “Why do babies come out all bloody?”), and hearing all sorts of random, inside facts about Mommy and Daddy while they were gone (like, “I’ve seen my dad naked, like, a thousand times!).   I’d truly do it again in a heartbeat….but I will never, EVER have four children.  Their mom is absolutely my mommy heroine – I have no idea how she does it all and is still so sweet and lovely herself.  That woman deserves a week in Maui!  Below are some pics from our week of FUN....you can see that it really wore Tess out, too!

Be Thou My Vision

For as long as we can remember, my mom (Melody), aunt (Debbie), cousin (Valerie) and I have wanted to sing together.  Not just anything -- we wanted to prepare something special and perform it.  And this past weekend, we finally got our chance!  After a few months of practicing together when we could, we pulled off a beautiful a capella arrangement of "Be Thou My Vision" and sang it for the Sunday service at Reedley MB Church.  While the service is available to view on the church's website, it doesn't do our performance justice.  I was really tempted to be nervous, singing in front of the whole congregation, but I made sure that I knew my part like the back of my hand and focused on blending with the voices of the women next to me, and while it wasn't perfect, it was a beautiful offering.  We hope to be able to sing it together again....someday!

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;

Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art

Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,

Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;

I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;

Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;

Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,

Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:

Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,

High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,

May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!

Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,

Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.

Cake Decorating Class at JoAnn

During the month of August I had the opportunity to cross off another "bucket list" item by taking a cake decorating class at JoAnn Fabrics.  (I know, I'm easy to please, right?!) My mother-in-law was game to take the class with me, and we had a lot of fun laughing our way through the sessions as we tried to keep up with the teacher and not get totally covered in sticky, brightly-colored frosting!  This was my second class at JoAnn and I love that they make this kind of learning available and affordable.  I love indulging my crafty side, but I'm so cerebral that I need the "boost" of the classroom setting (Pinterest alone isn't enough inspiration!).

The class was FUN and super informative, and I learned techniques I didn't expect to.  I thought it would be all about decorating "finished" products, but the class was a "basics" one so we covered everything from layering your cake to "torting" (filling in between layers) to frosting it (and making it look smooth and pretty) to filling cupcakes and icing them.  We learned how to make frostings of varying consistency and what consistency to use for what type of project/effect....we learned "tips and tricks" for getting cakes to bake evenly....we learned how to color our frosting accurately....and we spent A LOT of money on cake decorating supplies that we will hardly ever use.  At each session we also practiced different frosting techniques (all the foofy, pretty stuff), and I was bummed that I had to miss the last class when they taught everyone how to make frosting roses! I have a rain check for session #4, though, so I will get to it eventually!

So here are the PROS from taking the class:

--Getting to sample cookies, cakes, and frosting on a weekly basis

--I now have a decent supply of cake decorating tools

--I am no longer intimidated at the thought of decorating a cake; it's really not as hard as it looks!

--I learned more of the "basics" than I thought I would, but as it turns out, these skills will probably be the most useful

--I had tons of fun with my mother-in-law every week

And here are the CONS:

--The class fee of $27 is misleading; by the time I bought all the required supplies/tools (and I didn't even buy all of them!) I probably spent closer to $100

--There is a TON of prep work every week that is not disclosed in the class brochure (they don't provide you with cookies/cakes/cupcakes/frosting -- you have to make your own ahead of time)

--The class was very FULL, and there was a lot to cover each week; Barbara and I both felt our learning was rushed

All that being said, I am eager to eventually get in my 4th session and then take the next class in the series!  I have an adorable little one to make all kinds of birthday cakes and cupcakes for!

Below are just a few pics I snapped with my phone during class sessions 1-3.