DeeDee

When I was a baby, my parents made the mistake of buying me Wish Bear.

I imagine it looked something like this.

I couldn't say "baby" so the bear became "DeeDee".  And 27 years later, the name remains.

DeeDee went everywhere with me, which is how he got lost.  I think the story was, we were at the Ochoas' house and DeeDee somehow got placed on the ground in the kitchen, just underneath the cabinets.  His little hiding place wasn't very obvious and I went home without him.  My mom didn't realize he was missing until it was time to put me to bed and I refused to go without DeeDee.  An imposter was brought in but I wanted nothing to do with it.  Thankfully, Sister Ochoa ended up finding DeeDee and life was complete again.

I remember my mom making me a DeeDee pillow.

Just like this little guy.

I also had a ceramic DeeDee that had a huge crack running through it.  Thank goodness for super glue.

Nancy's...not mine

DeeDee went on sleep overs with me but stayed in my bag because I was too embarrassed to show him off.  LaVor even threatens to throw him away if he sees him, so he stays tucked away in my top drawer.

Why would he want to throw away my favorite childhood toy, you ask?

Because he looks like this.

Battered, abused, sewn back together, bald, but most importantly, loved.

This DeeDee is loved just as much as our new Dee Dee. 

The Lime started out saying his name like "Dada" but now it's turned into "DeeDee".  All day, we hear, "DeeDee help", "DeeDee walk", "DeeDee truck", "DeeDee's Dada". 

I promise not to let my new DeeDee end up looking like my old one.

[useless junk] Keep(s) Falling on My Head

Since my recent conversion to Pinterest, I've looked at more home decor photos in the last month than my entire life.

I would REALLY love to create a board called, "You've got to be kidding me!". But in my welcoming e-mail, Pinterest asked me to be nice and I follow the rules.

One thing that gets me going is when I see outrageous wall decor over a bed. Clearly these people are not taking into account earthquakes!

Could you imagine sleeping with all of this stuff directly over your head, when the earth starts shaking violently?

Someone needs to watch my video of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.

Go, Go, Go, Go on an Adventure

The weather has been exceptionally unusual this year.  And although I'm anxiously awaiting more rain so the landscape will be green again, I do love only having to wear a t-shirt during the day.

After The Lime woke up from his nap on Saturday, we had to get out of the house and fill up on some vitamin D.

I've only been to Sycamore Grove once and didn't make it pass the bridge so this trip was fun.  Lots of exploring!  The Lime could hardly contain himself that he was able to run free and check everything out. 

One parent in the front, one in the back, just to be safe.

Climbing up...

Made it!

On the hunt for squirrels!

They were "hide" (hiding).

Now you see him!

 

Now you don't!

This reminded me of the drive-way to Mama's house in Forrest Gump.

We heard a ton of pecking, which could only mean 1 thing...

Woody was on our walk with us.

Checking out all the treasures the woodpeckers were hiding.

He just stopped and wanted to play in the dirt.  

We had lots of fun and got a great work-out (halfway through, The Lime didn't want to walk anymore.  My arms are buff from carrying 30 pounds around).  We'll just remember to bring the jogging stroller next time. 

And we won't forget the sippy cup in the car.

R&R

My brother-in-law came home for his R&R, from Iraq, in September. Their little family was able to enjoy some much needed time together on an awesome trip to Disneyland.

I love Disneyland. But that's not how I'm spending my R&R these days.

The Lime is into colors right now, despite still calling everything blue. He was able to repeat every color we told him last night but if you ask him, "What color is the apple?" it'll be blue.

He's also into "iting" (writing). We like to "ite" in his coloring books. Blue is naturally his favorite crayon to use but I'm an equal opportunity colorer. It's a favorite activity of ours that I could honestly do all day. The tv is off, the house is quiet except for The Lime saying, "Mama! Ite!", and I get to spend time with my love.

It's also a great tool to attempt to calm him down before his nap. But I won't tell him that secret.

My masterpiece with a green face mask.

Aware

I was feeling a bit down yesterday and my feelings were bubbling at the surface.

The Lime has a plugged up nose so LaVor stayed home with him. I always feel very awkward without at least one of my sidekicks. Although we've been in the ward almost 5.5 years, I have yet to connect with anyone besides my sweet Visiting Teachers. And I totally take the blame for that. I'm not social.

Anyway, we had Ward Conference so the Bishop and two members of the Stake Presidency spoke. I can probably count on 1 hand where I've really felt a Sacrament Meeting was for me. As the President finished up, he said, "As I knelt down, asking Heavenly Father what I could say to you, I was impressed to say this. He is aware of you. He knows you and He loves you.". The President said he didn't know who needed to hear it, but someone did. That someone was me.

Throughout the day, I kept thinking about a note I received several years ago while in the Tri-Valley ward. The Relief Society had an anonymous drop box where we would put notes for the other sisters.

This note said, "Kim! I just need to tell you how sweet you are. I don't think you hear that enough. You are always smiling and that always makes me smile. You are a strong daughter of our Heavenly Father. You are also a wonderful sister in our ward. Again, thanks for just being you!"

I tend to forget that although I may be visibly alone and feel alone, I'm not. I'm loved and being thought of constantly.

From Deseretbook.com

The Big C

We needed to make a trip to Costco on Saturday, to get yogurt and cheese.

Somehow we walked out of the store with much more than that. How does that always happen?!

One of the items that snuck its way into our cart was Chevy's salsa. Our local Chevys closed a few months ago (no more crispy flautas...WAH!) and we've missed the semi-guiltless treat of chips and salsa.

And it wouldn't be Costco without something BIG (hence "The Big C"). If only they were also Chevy's chips...because I would include those in my "meal before I die". The best.

Birthday Celebrations

Since LaVor and I both had to work yesterday, The Lime's birthday celebrations had to wait until everyone got home.

We enjoyed Nation's for dinner (we both got cheeseburgers, he got a hot dog) and everyone agreed it totally hit the spot.  We then met Jared at our house to open presents and eat cake.  The Lime even got a chance to open his presents from Grammy & Papa, while talking to Grammy on Skype.  Unfortunately, our internet SUCKS and we kept losing the connection.

One of the only things The Lime wanted for his birthday were balloons.  The look on his face when he woke up yesterday and saw them in the kitchen, was perfect!  He also got a crazy amount of tractors, a football, books and 2 new shirts, one of which he picked out himself.

For as long as I've known him, Jared has always gotten a mint chocolate chip ice cream cake for his birthday.  Since Liz is no longer with us, that detail got overlooked on his actual birthday.  So, since LaVor got that exact cake for The Lime, and we had "3" and "2" candles, we sang to him as well, despite him objecting to it.

We didn't do anything big or fancy but I know The Lime had a great day!