Happy Easter

We even went to church....on our bikes and boys in Giants t-shirts. For some Easter also represents the resurrection of spring baseball!

First lesson

Noah' s first swimming lesson. He cried a little but was very brave and confident.  He has watched Eric enough to be ready for his own hand at it.

Friday fun

Today Noah's school was closed and I had some big things at CLIF to do. He was home with Gina and I had some guilt but the things at work were biggies....career defining biggies. So I sucked it up for several hours. Then headed straight in to a fun filled hang out time with the boys. We went to swimming lessons and came straight home, popped in a movie, snuggled on the couch, all three of us under a blanket, with a box of honey graham bunnie crackers. I even left all out bags of stuff, wet suit and all in the car. It was liberating. And you know what? Everyone was ten times happier then we would have been had we all soldiered through dinner and all. Friday fun day can happen even when Momma has to work.

Friday fun

Today Noah's school was closed and I had some big things at CLIF to do. He was home with Gina and I had some guilt but the things at work were biggies....career defining biggies. So I sucked it up for several hours. Then headed straight in to a fun filled hang out time with the boys. We went to swimming lessons and came straight home, popped in a movie, snuggled on the couch, all three of us under a blanket, with a box of honey graham bunnie crackers. I even left all out bags of stuff, wet suit and all in the car. It was liberating. And you know what? Everyone was ten times happier then we would have been had we all soldiered through dinner and all. Friday fun day can happen even when Momma has to work.

Little league

Six years ago I couldn't have even imagined this day. Eric had his first little game. He plays for the Bluejays and Coach Steve is great. Bu kids himself, he does it for the love of the game and sharing it with these little boys and girls.

Happy big 3 birthday Noah

Noah is sweet and kind and spirited and he is three years old. Noah is in the junior preschool at Clif Base Camp and on his birthday it happened to be the student prepared picnic. Once a month the parents are treated to lunch prepared their children. Each time we have this event I say I am only going to stay for a half hour -work and workouts calling - but each time I can't bare to leave. This lunch was no different. I stayed extra long and read him a story then he says, "You go now Mom." This is my queue. He gives this queue each day when I bring him to school and I have discovered if I stay any longer after his send off, he is begging me to stay or take him home. It is his way have making our separation possible. He gives me a hug and a kiss and then says go. Today he also added another little "tear jerker" for Momma. "Thank you for having lunch with me today."

 My baby is really three years old and while his sentences are choppy with pauses as he shapes his words, he is putting words and thoughts together like a three year old does. He is reasoning and attempting to reason with his brother. His personality is blossoming and showing up in a whole knew way. Where we once had to guess at what he was thinking he now openly shares his thoughts. At times its surprising to hear what he has put together. What he has to say is so important to me I never want to miss a word. Happy Birthday!

 Party time with Zane, Taavi, Jayden, and Colt

New Legos from Colt

Party #2 with the Family! Eric always eager to help his brother out, especially when presents are involved.

Birthday cup cakes from Gina

Whip cream!!

Bicycle painting in Mt Rainer

Good morning Mt.Rainier parents,

This week in Mt. Rainier. We welcomed Niko Belur to our class. He has jumped right in to the routine in Mt,Rainier and is doing a great job. Way to go Niko. We also celebrated Noah Thies's birthday with streamers and super cool car shaped banana muffins. Thank you Tara for making the muffins and reading a book to the class. A great big thank you to all the families who purchased books for our class. We have read all them a few times and the children are really enjoying them!! Have a great  and safe weekend and we will see you all on Monday!!!

With Love Ms Rochelle & Ms Sarah

Busy Beacon week

Eric school was hopping with activity this week and I was lucky enough to get to enjoy a lot of the new experiences with him. Eric's love of movement combined with his ability to follow directions and sequence makes him a natural in his weekly dance class with teacher Carol.

The kids classes k-5 showed the progression of what is learned through her dance program and it goes  beyond just moves. They learn geology, teamwork, problem solving, and math all through dance. They also get to be creative with patterns. What I was really amazed by was each kid expressed themselves in their own way and then out their expressions together to create and entire ensemble of movement.

Here we watch Eric class perform their class warm-up.

Next up in Eric's week of activities was the 100th day of school celebration. Eric has been building this up for a while and invited me to participate in the celebration. How could I refuse?!

I joined in the math portion of the celebration to help in counting to 100 in many different ways: by ones, tens, the even fives. Every child in the class brought in 100 of something. The kids were so excited to share what the had selected and they each got to say a little something about their choice. They were so proud of what they brought.

Here is Eric counting his 100 "monies" with the class.

Eric first field trip

Yes, this was in October and this is the Pumpkin patch in Clayton. I was a chaperon and it was one-hundred and ten degrees HOT! I drove William and Eric in my car. William told us many stories on the drive. He also told his he has SIX babysitters so if one "dies" he as more.

Scene from Clif Bar Camping Trip

Leighton & Noah playin some frisbee

Eric setting up camp with Logan and Harper

Our navigator for the hike

Snack break on our hike 

Scooting to Base Camp

To Clif Base Camp we go. Noah practiced and practiced on his brother's scooter for three straight days until he mastered the two wheel scooting technique. For Christmas he received his OWN scooter from Oma and Opa!

We loaded the scooter in the car so he can zip on along from the car to the base camp's front door.

Before you freak out, yes I am holding his helmet in my hand effectively chasing him with it out of the frame of this picture.

Off to an athletic year

On January one we all skied as a family together at Alpine Meadows and had a blast. Noah requested the fast hill and Eric skies run after run seeking out new challenges all on his own like jumps, lifts, longer runs, and more complex turns.

Noah also has started in his own Li'l Kickers class at Bladium on Saturday mornings.

Our kitchen is broken

Noah is right when he says our kitchen is broken. In the beginning of December we launched into our first ever remodel and ripped out the kitchen until there was nothing left but the  floors with a big hole in it. Three weeks later, and totally planned for, our kitchen is still broken but with some major progress towards being "new"!

To some, starting home improvement projects during the holiday season is an overwhelming prospect. With a small amount of apprehension, we went for it. It actually made us do something we hardly ever do- keep the holiday decore to a minimum and better evaluate what HAD to be done to enjoy the holidays together.

The kitchen remodel has given us nice new perspective on how to do less and have more all while taking the "hectic" out of the season. It helped us to calibrate a nice balance. We have a small tree with some special ornaments and our beautiful outside lights up with the same, if not more joy in our household.

This is not the little tree I spoke of. This is our Montoya Family tree..

We did print Christmas cards this year and we will send them. Keep an eye out for them in the new year!

Hope, peace, joy, love

We went to church last Sunday. We actuallly made it past the children's sermon this time despite the boys outward disagreement of who got to play with Action Chugger during the service. You see, usually when we go to church it goes like this: we arrive late to miss announcements. No need to waste Eric and Noah's young boy short attention span on announcements. We sit down shuffling who sits where, try to sing a hymn, and then they go up to the alter for the children's sermon. They LOVE the children't sermon.

Today Noah got to place the sheep in the nativity scene and Eric got to bring Joseph along his journey across the room. After the children's sermon, the children are invited to a play room with Birdie. Noah and Eric have outgrown the play room and want nothing to do with it. I am lucky to get through the readings let alone the sermon before these boys need to move their active bodies. So I usually feel satisfied with the lesson they have received and we retire to the backyard where we play kickball until community coffee hour which is perfectly aligned with snack time.

Today we made it through the entire service! Being it was the fourth Sunday in advent, the 4th candle was lit. After all my years going to church with my mom and watching the candles being lit, today I actually took in what they meant. Hope, peace, joy and love. Whether or not you believe in Jesus or even God for that matter, these four things are something everyone can strive to believe in and celebrate over the holiday. It is hope, peace, joy and love that bring us together. I was touched today by the sermon and that "belief" is faith in something even though logic, knowledge and science can't make sense of it.  Humanity can not survive without hope, peace, joy, and love. Yet, it takes faith to accept them into your way of being because they come with uncertainty, unanswered questions. Hope, peace, joy, and love often defy logic, yet everyone needs them.

Christmas is the celebration of our Savior, our belief, our faith in all things good in this world all centered around the birth of a child. To me it through our children we learn to accept hope, peace, joy and love into our life. As adults we must re-ignite the child within us so we can be parents. We jump into parenthood with all its uncertainty and accept the challenges. This is true faith in action. There is a Carter's ad that says when a child is born, so is a new mom. We learn side by side with our children. As the grow into themselves we grow into our parenting-selves.

For this Momma it is through all children I can see true hope, peace, joy and love.

This is my understanding of what Christmas is. Bless the birth of all children.

Team USA

Eric goes to soccer club. Movein' up from Little kickers.

If its not a school day what is it?

Noah understands the morning rules quite well. On school days we don't watch cartoons. Cartoons use to work well as incentive to get dressed and eat breakfast. Over time cartoons mucked up the steps to getting out the door. New rule. No more cartoons on school days. What does that make a non-school day to Noah?

A cartoon day. He states to us, "Tomorrow is a cartoon day?" as a half question half statement.

What does that make a non-school day for mom and dad? A morning between the sheets day.

Happy Thanksgiving

I am lost for words these days. This photo, courtesy of Joey Chandler photography, captures my forever thankfulness.

Happy Thanksgiving.

All the things we have been doing that I have should have been posting about

I wish I could write about everyone of these things in grand detail! I will but for now it is the experiences that carry the weight!


Kindergarten begins at Beacon
10th anniversary weekend
Eric turns 6
Noah comes into his own: Buddies at Basecamp and temperment and doesn't like Z Bars wibbily or worms wormy
Game 1 of the World Series
Addison turns 3
Halloween: Clif Parade, Batman, Power Ranger, and 400+ trick or treaters
Kitties Blessed
Fall Fun at Petaluma Pumpkin Patch
Cable Car ride with Grandma and Grandpa cable car museum
Pictures in the Presidio
Momma's birthday
Mom adjusting to kindergarten
Eric playing soccer on Team USA
Noah at Soccer Shots with Coach Ce Ce
Eric telling me his misses being little
Gina with us for one year
Our new family ride
Remodeling the kitchen
Momma visting DV, Caleigh, and Graham
70th Birthday party for Oma and Opa
......oh my what have I missed?!

Sights and sounds of San Francisco

Looking over at Buena Vista park this fine fall lunch hour and I see a paint crew playing a breaktime soccer scrimmage to the sounds of kids pelting out God Bless America from the playground. The Giant's World Series fever could have something to do with the singing.

Most of all, I was happy to have a play date in the park with Noah.

Kindergarten and beyond

Today we drove by Daddy's high school on our way haircuts for the boys. Clearly we weren't heading to our local hair salon since we found ourselves Moraga. Our much loved CLIF hair.stylist invited us to her house for weekend trims.

Eric, who began kindergarten in September, had lots of questions about when Daddy went to school here. "How old he was? Did he know to drive? How did get old enough? How is it different from my school".