Desktop Delight!!

So ... these are the desktop collages that I have gazed at for the past 18 months. (That last one was created just today.)

No wonder I spend so much time at my computer.

Sigh.

Bi-Annual Update

So ... I'm not gonna lie. In my head I think my simplehappy home blog is kaput, just when one of my children reminds me that they have "people" who count on me for updates. So here I am again ... not really with apologies ... but with a new crop of photos of my brood.
I just came back from a trip to the Dubs where Miss Dub1 showed off her skills on a musical instrument sent by fave aunt and uncle, Sonny Boy and Mrs. Boy, from Cancun. The band-aid on her head hides a very ugly puncture wound (pulled together by 6 stitches) that was inflicted by a plastic golf club ... at golf class. No lie.

Here is Miss Dub2 showing off her spunky attitude on the playground. If there was a Spunk-O-Meter, she would be off the charts.

Miss Dub3 provides us with pure and simple scrumptiousness. Seriously, it is hard not to want to eat her whole.

Mr. Gee is honing is baseball skills ... and a lot of other skills that involve a lot of movement and very loud noise. He's a charmer, that Mr. Gee.

L'il Sis ... the "Sweet Pea" ... is oozing with charm also. Most of it oozes out of her head in the form of hair. Beautiful, curly hair. I'm pretty certain if you watched closely enough, you could see it grow.

Last but not least (actually, I had other pics of Sonny & Mrs. Boy's spectacular Cancun vistas, but Blogger ate them ... this will force me to do more posts. I swear) is Ms. Gee's baby boy, Morrissey. Also ranking high on the Cute-O-Meter. You want to meet him in person, admit it.

That's it. I actually DO apologize and will try to do better.

Seriously, I will.

HEY! Blogger did come through! Enjoy this vicariously ... just as I had to. Sonny Boy and the Mrs. are spectacular photographers!

West Coast Winter

So ... now that The Dub's are in the Northwest ... relatively close to the coast ... I like to think that if I went to the beach and looked to my right, I could wave to them. You know, because we are now pretty much on the same street. These beautiful Dubbies warmed my heart this season when we Skyped/Face-timed with them on Christmas night. In fact the whole family was united through technology ... West Coast to East. I realize that this picture doesn't include Baby Sis, but I will not forget her in my next post.

Here are the local sweeties. I can't believe how excited they are to see Santa. Mr. Gee there could not be smiling any harder and the li'l sweet pea practiced her "ho, ho, ho"s all season long. As an after-Christmas present to her mom, she finally started walking.

I missed out on that big moment because I was "up the street" in the SF Bay Area with Ms. Gee and her pup.

I hope your Christmas was this lovely and that you are smiling just as earnestly as Li'l Mr. Gee.

The Pleasantest Thing

"Oh ... how I love to go up in a swing,

Up in the air so blue.

Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing,

Ever a child can do."

With thanks to Robert Louis Stevenson and four of the most joyful faces on the planet.

No Tricks, Only Treats

So ... this is the last of the Halloween celebrating I plan to do this year. Here are the Grandkids Five in all of their costume glory. I did have the privilege of accompanying the Race Car Driver and the USC Cheerleader to a Trunk or Treat and witnessed their glee over the fact that people were just randomly handing them candy.

I didn't get to see the Ballerinas in actions however I heard all about it. They are SO excited to be settled into their home in the Northwest. However on Halloween night they had some serious coats on over their costumes, so I chose to show you these pictures where they were first trying out/on their costumes.

Oh boy do I love these guys.

Wacky Wednesday

So ... these first two picture of Mr. Gee are because I promised him some blog time, having been consumed with the fact that my girly grandkids outnumber him 4 to 1. Also ... these pics were taken specifically when he dressed up for Wacky Wednesday for Soccer Camp a couple of weeks ago. Every single, wacky bit was a specific instruction from him to his mother. He is one creative boy.

He is also a very sweet boy. I was babysitting him not long after I had the infamous "blackout" and he said "Oh Nanny. I wish I could have been there to protect you." No lie. Exact words.

Then today ... where apparently the wackiness continues on this mid-week day ... I received these two pictures of the elder Dub Girls. The wackiness is apparently a genetic thing.

Oh, who are we kidding. Wackiness has always been a family trait.

It's one of the many reasons I am so happy to be a part of this family.

She. Is. One.

So ... can you believe it? L'il Miss Gee turns one year old today. And let me just say that the only thing that grows faster than her ... is her hair. That girl has a head of hair we could all aspire to have. It's thick and curly and beautiful. Just. Like. Her.

She also has a bit of a sassy attitude which only makes the hair thing that much more enjoyable.

She is also one of those rare babies who will keep the hair band IN her hair on a regular basis. (In the picture above she's also sporting a boo-boo on her nose, but it only seems to add to her charm.) Her talented mother makes all the hair bands, fyi.

I call her my "Girly Girl". She absolutely loves it when I say that. I can honestly say that she is rather fond of me. And visa-versa.

Happy Birthday to my Girly Girl. Nanny is very proud of you.

(My front door is drying as we speak and keeps me homebound once again. At least I have power which I didn't for 8 full hours yesterday. Boy ... I sure do love to complain, don't I?)

Girl's Club

One

Two

Three

Four

Four Fabulously Feminine Friends.

sigh

(Don't worry Li'l Mr. Gee ... I'll give you your day too!)

Nanny X 5 !!!

So ... She. Is. Here. Miss Dub3 arrived on Friday, August 12th (8/12) at 3 minutes before noon. She weighed in at 8 pounds, 12 ounces (also 8/12 ... how cool is that?) and measured 21 inches long. She incurred a few battle scars as a result of her "sunny-side-up" delivery but has healed like a champ and is actually opening her eyes on a regular basis.

Oh how we love this precious little Dubster.

Holding her feels pretty close to Heaven.

~ My Morning Walk ~

So ... my morning walk usually involves this view. (Except that I rarely have these delightful 4 year old grandkids in the picture which is just the biggest shame of all!!) Not too shabby. Also keep in mind that while I'm walking it's in the mid 60's. Farenheit.

I have decided to change my route on Saturday mornings. It took me a couple of tries to find the perfect beach walking path, but I'm pretty certain that these views meet a certain standard of perfection.

I was quite enamored with this touch of green among the sea/sand/sky.

I'm just loving my Saturday morning walks. Want to join me??

~ How I am Spending my Summer Vacation ~

So ... using the term "vacation" may be a bit misleading. As the above collage will testify, I am indeed one year older. And slower. And less agile. So spending my summer with a bevy of toddlers and 4 year-olds is testing the limits of my waning agility. The cake only has one candle on it because ... well, because the Gees were wary of catching their house on fire. But spending my birthday with them (and attending L'il Mr. Gee's soccer game) was a summer delight.

Then ... just when I thought I couldn't be any more excited, the Dub Girlz showed up (all 3.75 of them ... and they are all girls) and we promptly spent a day at the Magic Kingdom. And it was magical. Hot, but magical. (Yes, my AZ friends ... it was in the upper 80's and I had the audacity to complain about it. Sue me.) What can I say but yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life fer me. One of my very favorite sentences in the entire English language.

The Fourth was a Fun-Filled day from start to Finish. The 4 year-old's had a "sleepover" at Nanny's the night before and that was just the beginning of a day Full of Festivities and Food and Fireworks. We attended my first Fireworks in my local community and I cannot begin to describe how heavenly it was to basically walk there and back. We also walked to the pool and back. And to a picnic gazebo and back. I love my local community.

Could we smile any wider? I don't think so.

Hope your summer is as swell as mine is.