Through Eliza's Eyes

Eliza loves gadgets. She knows how to use my iphone better than I do, she love's playing with the camera, the video camera, and the kids gameboys. Every so often, I find that my little one has been photographing her world and it is always interesting to see her pictures;

Eliza looks up: To the right:

To the left:
To the front:
and of course a self portrait:

Sometimes I feel like I forget how amazing life is. I often get caught up, worried about this or that. Burying my brain and busying my hands. So busy waiting for the next great big thing, that my here and now is often filled with wasting time and making excuses.

Then there is a moment, like this one where I am sorting through photos; clearing my memory card; that I come across pictures that my 3 year old daughter took when I was busy doing something else. Pictures of things that I take for granted - things that are worthy of her lens.

Living in a construction zone...

This past summer the coast guard started construction on our housing. They are removing the stucco and replacing it with nice siding, replacing the windows and doors, and enclosing our carport into a garage. Sounds great eh? Well last week they finally got to us. They poured the footings for our new garage and changed out the support beams. They set up scaffolding all around our house as well. Yesterday they started demolition on our neighbors house so as you can imagine, it is now a construction zone in our yard! Very dusty, dirty and NOISY! I thought I would take some pics of their progress as it moves along and post them here. Hopefully we will have a fancy new house in the next couple of months!

That's why we call him "Bruiser"

Aww! Look at our sleeping boy. Sweet Eh?

Well look a little closer. What is that? 1. 2. bruises on his forehead?

Oh wait! one more in the corner of his eye...for a total of 3 - yes three big goose eggs in the matter of 2 days!

How does that happen to such a sweet little boy????

Well, he likes to climb on the spinning computer chair...
And then jump off when mom walks by...that is close enough for her to catch me right?

Then he finds a laundry basket of clean diapers. Yumm! clean diapers! but wait the basket is round...anyone wanna guess how this ends?

Oh and if you can't reach all the junk mom has up on the counter, you gotta find a way to get up there...hmmm - looks the the vaccume is a great step up. And yep you guessed it...that falls over too!!!

End of the Summer

Summer is officially over. What a crazy summer it has been! We had two vacations. The first one right after school got out, when we went to San Diego to visit with our good friends the Sages and visit Disneyland. The second was a trip last month to Utah to our first Sluder Family Reunion/Farewell to John as he was preparing to leave for his mission. So we have been very busy! Now that school is in full swing, there is a crispness in the air and fall is right around the corner. Here are a few pics of our family enjoying the last few weeks of summer.

Sarah, Eliza, Zwieba, Ben, Sam and Adam at Bodga Bay.

Eliza plays in the sand

Sam throws a stick into the ocean to see if it will wash back in the tide

Eliza on her 3rd Birthday, showing me that she is "3"

Eliza putting on a "minnie mouse" bow

Adam, Zwieba, Eliza, Ben, Sarah and Sam on a hike up to Salamander Canyon here on base.

View from the top of Salamander Canyon Road. It is a beautiful view but the climb is a killer!

I am bad at this blog thing!

I haven't posted since January and we are now in September. I will try to get some new pictures up soon, but in the meantime I thought I would update with what we are up to.

School started again and we have been trying to get back into the swing of things. Sam is now in 8th grade at Petaluma Jr High. Sarah is in 6th grade and Adam is in 4th grade at Two Rock Union Elem. We have two birthdays coming up this month. Eliza turns 3 on the 9th and Sam turns 13 on the 17th. It is amazing to me that we have an actual TEENAGER!

August marked the end of our 2nd year here in Petaluma and the begining of our third. We are anxiously awaiting the first cut on the advancement list and are hoping that Zwieba will be making chief next year and looking forward to the changes that will bring to our family (another move next year) and Zwieba's career (Hopefully an Officer In Charge position at a LORAN station).

I continue to try to keep up with all that raising five kids entails - a house that is never completely clean, laundry and dishes that are created on an hourly basis, changing diapers, kissing boo-boos, signing homework logs and dodging the rolling eyeballs that remind me that I must be doing something right as a mother to be evoking such a response LOL!

As the kids grow older, so do I and for each thing that I think I have mastered, 10 more things come along that I need to learn! But through it all I know how blessed I am. I constantly try to remind myself that each moment is one that is fleeting, and I try to remember each stage and enjoy it knowing that all too soon it will end. It is bittersweet to watch your kids grow up and as school starts each year I am reminded how fast it is happening. I am excited for them - to see what and who they will become, but I am sad for me. For that day that I wake up without a baby in my bed kissing my cheeks, a blaring Ipod in the next room, muffled arguing about who's turn it is to play video games, it will surely be a lonely day. I guess I will just have to get Zwieba to take me to breakfast and for a walk on the beach...

Playing Catch Up: October 2008

Wearing Ben:





Climbing Trees:


Halloween Spooks:

Playing Catch Up: SEPTEMBER 08

September was especially busy This year. Sam turned 12 on the 17th. Zwieba's Grandma Sarah and Aunt Tessie came to visit us and see our baby, Ben. We had an eventful couple of days and really enjoyed their visit.

Here Sam is in his Wrestling gear. He wrestled for Petaluma Jr. High in the 74lb weight class. He did pretty well for his first season of participating in a sport. We were very proud of him!

Sam also advanced to 2nd class in scouts. His Great Grandpa Ben sent this special neckerchief to Sam to wear at his advancements. This neckerchief commerates a reenactment of the Death March that Ben participated in.

Grandma Sarah met her 5th great grand child while she was here. Here she is holding our sweet Benjamin...

On Sunday, September 21'st, we blessed Ben and Sam recieved the Aronic Priesthood. Here is Zwieba and the boys after church in our front yard.

Ben was an angel in his little white outfit...

All of us together for a picture.