Nurturing and Encouraging our Angels with Love

A few new hobbies

2010-05-12T03:59:00.000-07:00

Every now and again, I get into a routine with life and unfortunately efficiency wins over balance. So naturally I feel the need to add creative outlets to weigh out the work. So I picked up a few hobbies, some new, some thrown by the wayside.

A couple of months ago I sewed a patchwork quilt (an old hobby) but I'm not quite finished because I'm priding myself on a $0 cost so far. I'm scouring the thrift stores for cheap batting, or an old or free twin blanket, to be used as batting and then....voila! A quilt will have been made with absolutely no money. I used free material I had on hand, some sheets and an old aloha shirt of Jeff's. I'll post pics when it's finished.

A few months ago, I listened to a book on CD called Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver and it inspired me to finally start my first vegetable garden. I've always wanted one, but we've never lived in a place for over a year, so I didn't want to commit to anything before. But we've broken the 2 year mark in our house now and so I thought, why not? So I began my project by attempting to recruit Jeff on board. Jeff is not easily recruit-able, and my questions and nagging did not help. He finally helped me gather up some free wood that we had and before he left to work he told me with full confidence that I could do it.

So I thought and thought and thought on where to begin. I knew I wanted a raised garden, but I didn't know how to make a frame or how to stake it in the ground. I had already chosen the sunniest spot on our yard, which happens to be in our front yard by the road. We live in the sticks, so curb appeal doesn't apply here. I was determined to build this garden right, and thankfully I found a step by step blog on exactly what I was doing. I measured, cut, screwed, leveled, and hammered my very first raised vegetable garden! I was so proud of myself. It isn't pretty by any means, but it was free, which I always say is the best price.

To top it all off, I filled my garden with two big garbage cans full of composted horse manure. A friend of mine, Lori, has horses and was more than willing to share the goods. Joshua and I planted green onions, zucchini, summer squash and sunflowers. So far only the sunflowers have started growing ans we are all so excited to watch our plants grow!

Lori, happens to also be an old running buddy and she has helped me to consistently add miles to my weekly runs. I've been feeling great and with a little encouragement from her, I have signed up for my first half marathon. It's scheduled in a couple of weeks in Seattle and I feel really good about it. It's early in the morning, so I'll be going solo. I do wish though someday, that Jeff and the kids would be waiting at the finish line to cheer me on. But, for now, common sense and sanity are the names of the game.

Lastly, I tried photography for a single serving hobby. I was playing with my camera and took a few pics of some plants in my front yard.

This one with this bright pink flower emerging is my favorite.

My Mom donated some of this decorative grass for me and I just love how this plant looks. Behind it is a glimpse of a huge wreath that Jeff made with branches found around the yard.One of Jeff's creative hobbies.

So that about sums up a few old and new hobbies that have helped balance out my life. Thank you Lori for the best nutrients for my plants. Thank you Joshua for your smiles and excitement in our garden. And thank you Jeff, for always believing in me and encouraging me to pursue my hobbies.

For the love of reading

2010-02-22T16:01:00.000-08:00

I know in my last post I weakly committed to sharing a little more depth of what is on my mind. Sure, I feel strongly about some political issues, religious issues and the need to learn truth, but with a month or two that has gone by with no interesting posts, I and whoever reads this blog knows that that was not on the top or anywhere near my priority list.

My priority list goes something like this: -feeding and caring for 4 little kids and a husband- cleaning the house, yard and van - going to work- exercising - grocery shopping and errand running - and last of all ...reading. Blogging is actually not even on here. So I thought I'd share one of my passions in life...Books!

I love books! I'm always reading something. I particularly love historical non-fiction, but I can appreciate all genres. I just finished reading Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I was already a fan of his from Angels & Demons and The DiVinci Code, but this book touched on some topics I just love. I'm not going to spoil the book though. It's a great read.

The book talks about Noetic Science which is, in simple terms, studying energy and the spirit. There is just so much we don't know about when it comes to energy and nature and people. We are all so connected. Energy flow is real and powerful. I'm sure most of us have heard about the monks that live in Tibet and the ability they have to raise their own body temperatures. That's only one aspect of harnessing energy. There are so many different directions one can go with that. I love reading about the healing forms of energy.

So after reading Dan Brown's book I happened on another book which I am just finishing up called Talking with Nature by Michael Roads. It's about this British man, who moves to Australia and starts farming and interestingly enough, is given this gift to communicate with nature. He is constantly being taught that there is a oneness that we as humans have with nature. I believe this wholeheartedly and there really is so much truth one can learn if we all take the time to just listen.

Jeff enjoys a good book too, but if he's not quick enough, I'll "borrow" whatever he checks out from the library, and read it too. He checked out The Scavenger's Manifesto and it is a humorous, light read. It's basic philosophy is to not be a part of our consumer driven society. The authors suggest we scavenge for things, whether they be for free or from a thrift store to get what we need. No need to tell me that.

Hopefully the kids will have a love of books like I do. Here are a few pics of the little ones.

I just love how cute and clean the kids look right after a bath. Brandon's hair is wild and I love it!

Leanna is our junior bookworm. She devours a chapter book in about 2 days! She's becoming a great writer too!

Taking a stroll down Joemma Beach.

Christmas 2009

2010-01-04T10:42:00.000-08:00

If I don't update this blog, no one will, so I better get to it. I was thinking about broadening my theme for this family blog. Instead of just repeatedly showing off my kids and activities, I thought I could start sharing some of my thoughts on life and issues and some of my many opinions to go with.

My blog has become "look how cute my kids are", "no. really. Look how cute they are!" And although nothing is wrong with parental pride, it has made my blogging site a little mundane. So without too much organization I will begin with the next post.

The holiday's went well. An enjoyable and delicious family day with my parents, my brother and his family. Then off we went down to California to spend the rest of the holiday's with Jeff's parents and the extended Neal family.

We walked through a neighborhood that went all out on Christmas lights and decorations. It was a little overrated but festive nonetheless. I took the kids to a trail to ride scooters, Grandpa Neal took the kids on a wagon & tractor ride in his back field, opened lots and lots of presents on Christmas Day, had an amazing prime rib roast that Jeff made for the family, worked out hard at the local YMCA and could barely walk for the next two days. We visited with all the in-laws on New Years Eve and I played tennis for the first time, which was fun, but humbling. Hung out on New Years Day and then said our goodbyes until we see them all again.

The Airborne Toxic Event

2009-10-30T13:41:00.000-07:00

Last night Jeff & I went to Seattle to see The Airborne Toxic Event and we were blown away by their sounds and performance! They put on a great show and they played with passion and energy. Listen to their music and you'll know what I'm talking about. I'm all about supporting bands with true musical talent, great lyrics, and amazing vocals. Oh, since I'm frugal to a fault, the tickets cost about the same as a movie ticket with popcorn. We had an awesome time minus all the calories.

I'm back...but not committed

2009-09-16T22:17:00.000-07:00

Okay I know it's been a while. My camera died and then my computer died and within that time of a few months I lost all interest in blogging. I became a bookworm during that time and I thoroughly enjoyed that. But now I have a new camera, an updated computer and a brief interest in blogging again. So here goes.

As you can see, everyone is getting huge! Everyone had their birthdays this summer. So Leanna is 7, Joshua is 5, Brandon is 4 and Joseph is 2. We had a nice, relaxing summer. Jeff's parents came up from California to visit and spent Independance Day with us. We watched the BEST fireworks show I've ever seen off of Lake Union in Seattle. We had a great time! Leanna and Josh then went down to California with their grandparents for a week and then stayed with their Aunt Cindy and Uncle Danny, who took them to Disneyland and California Adventure for the first time. After spending some more time with Grandma and Grandpa and some more relatives, they flew back home all by themselves. They loved every minute of their vacation! They are so adventurous!

We filled our summer by going to Palmer Lake, Joemma Beach, Penrose State Park and our beach access down to Filucy Bay. I took the kids on lots of bike rides, walks, fishing trips and outings to Seattle with PoPo and Gong Gong.

These are first day of school pics at the bus stop. I love walking the kids to the bus stop every morning. I love the smell of mornings and the quietness. Leanna is in 2nd grade, Josh is in Kindergarten, and Brandon will be starting Preschool next week. It'll be just me and Jo Jo man cleaning house together. Lovin' it!

Hairdo Central

2009-01-11T22:53:00.000-08:00

I've being feeling ultra creative lately, particularly in cooking and hairstyling. Yes, they are completely different things, but you wouldn't believe the Mexican meal I whipped up the other day. It included, homemade turkey enchiladas with a white cheese sauce, made with homemade tortillas (I've perfected them), homemade spanish rice (definitely one of my best pots) and homemade horchata (you know the rice water/cinnamon/milk drink). Let's just say, all our bellies were full and I recieved lots of dinner praises that night.

My camera needs to be replaced in a bad way, but it'll have to do for now. This is a hairdo I just made up. I call it the Naiobi inspired hairdo, from the Matrix. Since I always do Leanna's hair when it's wet it looks wild when we take out whatever style she has in. I should have taken a picture of her hair after I took these pigtail buns out. She had a tight curl afro. It was crazy cool!

So this one I did tonight. I looked online for some ideas and came across this. It was easy and fun. Sorry the picture doesn't do justice. I'm still a novice when it comes to braiding. I know the basics, but I still need to learn the difficult stuff. There are some great ideas online though. I'll be trying them out.

The white, white Christmas of '08

2009-01-05T02:19:00.000-08:00

Is BBQing only for the summer? Not in my family! A foot or two of snow does not and will not deter my family from firing up the grill. My brother Jeff is married to a wonderful Korean gal and they always spoil our family with oh, so yummy Korean BBQ. So here's my dad, brother Jeff and Josh cooking up some good eats at my parents house.

Cousin Connor and Jo-Jo playing together.

Cousin Macy, Leanna, Spence and Dad playing in the snow.

Here's my Brandon Boy looking especially cute, considering a few days prior to Christmas he fell on my Christmas present from Jeff, which were dumbells (just what I asked for), and split the bottom of his chin open, and recieved 7 stitches! He was very brave! No, I didn't get rid of the dumbells, but the kids know now to stay away from them. A trip to the hospital brings fear to my kids like no other.

So 2008 has come to a close and this when most people reflect and list all the wonderful things that happened throughout the year for each family member. But, since I'm not most people I'm just going to say that Heavenly Father has blessed our family in countless ways. Everyone is healthy and happy. We're thankful for each other and for all of the relationships we have with our family and friends.

Fun with Jo Jo

2008-11-19T12:12:00.000-08:00

I took a few minutes to play around with some pics of me and Jo Jo this morning and this is what I came up with. I love pictures and I really could look at my 'old-school' photo albums and all my pc albums all day. If I ever start flipping through old pics, Jeff quickly leaves the room, because he knows I will tell him every story behind every picture I have. And if he doesn't act interested enough I get annoyed and wonder why? So this is a personal hobby, if you know what I mean.

The Best Halloween thus far!

2008-11-04T11:11:00.000-08:00

For the past 3 years Leanna has worn the same kitty-cat costume. I didn't think she'd want to wear that again this year, so I bought her a different one. But, the day came and she just dressed herself into a cat and we drew a nose and whiskers as usual. That girl is so easy to please.

Jo-Jo is so darn cute, I really can hug and kiss him all day long! Look at him in this lion costume!

I don't know what it was, but all of us, especially Jeff & I, had an amazing time trick-or-treating this year! We've made it a tradition to go to the harbor and collect candy from all the store fronts, something we've done for 3 yrs now. Even after cruising around the harbor, we hit a few streets in the neighborhood (a first for us). Jeff probably had the most fun of all. He was all smiles that day.

Gone fishin'

2008-10-09T13:31:00.000-07:00

It was picture day at school so I had to get a shot of all the kids together. So cute!

Gong-Gong (my dad) bought Joshua a fishing pole along with a fully stocked tackle box for his birthday this past spring. My dad took Josh and Brandon fishing last weekend and they both caught one. Everyone was so excited. So everyday since then we've been fishing and yesterday I caught a small fish. It was fun. I grew up fishing with my family and I have some great memories fishing, reading, and napping in a boat or by some lake in Canada.

Low Tide at Filucy Bay

2008-09-11T13:08:00.000-07:00

This is the beach that's a 5 minute walk down the street. We went there today at low tide to go exploring. Josh was very brave catching and holding up crabs for a picture.

This is a nice view of the bay. When we have a few bucks I'd like to buy a kayak to paddle around the sound. And get a little exercise.

Brandon would turn over rocks and get so excited! He'd yell out things like, "Oh, cool!" "Wow!" "Check it out baby!"

JoJo had a great time exploring, and when I went to wash my hands in the water, he quickly followed and kept on walking right into the water. He'd inhale fast when he felt how cold the water was on his feet, but he'd tromp in and out all day if I'd let him. I love it that our kids love the water.

JoJo

2008-09-06T09:05:00.000-07:00

This incident is actually a few weeks old, but since my camera is on it's deathbed, I have no new pictures to add. I'm pretty sure all my kids have been caught unrolling the tp at one point in their toddler years. It's pretty funny everytime.

JoJo is...let me count...14 months old now. The older kids love playing with him and he's so good natured. He wrestles when they wrestle, he runs when they run, he dances when they dance and if they ever play a little too rough and crazy, he has the good sense to just stand back and watch.

Speaking of dancing...the Neal family has had dance fever and it's not going away anytime soon. Jeff and I have been adding to our music collection (thanks to the library) and we are all lovin' the new tunes. While the kids were in the bath last night we listened to some old Depeche Mode. Remember those guys? I just picked up a couple of Janet Jackson CD's from the library yesterday. Can't wait to bring back the memories.

Oh, I almost forgot the most exciting news of the week! No, I'm not pregnant...I swear that's what everyone asks whenever I have good news. I wonder why? No...we got a free piano! I'm a huge fan of craigslist and I check it all the time. So when I finally convinced Jeff that it'll be almost a decade before we can afford the $3000 Yamaha piano that he wants, he defeatedly gave in to a $0 no-namer on craigslist. Jeff got a U-haul and brought it home himself. So the actual cost was a little over $20. Not bad! Plus, the piano works great, looks nice and fits perfectly in our house. If my camera is willing, I'll try to get a few shots of it with the kids playing. Jeff and I are working out our rusty fingers, playing scales and we're teaching the kids the basics. Leanna is very excited to learn and realistically we should find someone locally to teach her. This is all very exciting and I hope we can eventually appreciate some Mozart or Chopin in the near future. If not from our piano, then maybe from our library collection.

Summertime highlights

2008-08-24T09:53:00.000-07:00

Computer problems are to blame for my lack of postings this summer. It's been a fun couple of months and I'll highlight a few things we did (in no particular order) including yesterday's day trip to Mt. Rainier.

* Leanna lost her two front teeth and looks so cute.
* Spent 4th of July in California and celebrated all the kids' birthday's at Grandma & Grandpa's house.
* On Leanna's 6th Birthday we went to the Santa Cruz Boardwalk and rode lots of exciting rides.
* Brandon is now potty trained and he also moved out of my room and into Leanna and Joshua's room. All three kids now share and it's going really good.
* Joseph is walking around now and is getting some more teeth.
* We've gone to the beach a few times, which is just a 5 min walk down our street. Jeff, Leanna and I have all jumped into the cold sound water too. It's salty and refreshing.
* Joshua still loves the vacuum and has added a new obsession...brushing his teeth.
* Went to a few BBQ's and hosted a few BBQ's.
* Attended everyone's first PowWow and visited the Seattle Zoo.
* Leanna decided to chop all of her hair off. It's an adorable bob now.
* And of course went to Mt. Rainier and hiked around in "North America's truest rainforest" according to the Lonely Planet. We also hiked around Mowich Lake and soaked our feet afterwards. The place is gorgeous!

Last day of paid work tomorrow

2008-06-12T22:09:00.000-07:00

I was teaching ESL for the past 5 months and I really enjoyed working and making a few extra bucks. But the time has come for Jeff to make the bigger bucks and for me to take care of the house and kids. Jeff, bless his heart, has done an 'okay' job at being Mr. Mom, and we're both ready for the switch. I miss the kids terribly and Jeff misses, missing the kids.

Leanna took this photo of Joseph and I. She's got talent. She loves taking pictures and we let her take as many as she likes. Joseph is starting to walk now and it is so cute. What's equally as cute are how the rest of the kids get so excited when Joseph takes a few steps. They count his steps and then announce to the rest of us!

Living WAY out there!

2008-06-04T10:34:00.000-07:00

Because of the real estate slump, the beautiful house that Jeff designed and built hasn't sold and so we moved into it. We absolutely love it out here! It's 20 minutes to the grocery store (which is actually far...considering we lived about 30 seconds from one before), and 30 minutes to any other kind of shopping. Anyone that knows me knows that I am not a shopper at all, so that doesn't bother me one bit. We have one really nice family that lives next to us and that's about it. The other neighbors keep to themselves and it's really, really quiet. We have the luxury of hear birds chirp and the wind blow. We live on high bank waterfront and that picture above is our backyard view.

Last weekend we made a fire pit and made s'mores and it was so fun. Brandon, the sneaky boy that he is, ate half of the chocolate all by himself. Everyone had too many marshmellows, and fortunately between our family and the neighbors, we finished them off. Too much sugar!

Somebody turned 4

2008-03-27T16:56:00.000-07:00

Do my boys build houses or cool towers with their legos? No, they build guns....very big guns! We never showed them how, they just knew. Then they proceed to go around and shoot anything and everything. Today Brandon was pretending to shoot the cars that went by while waiting for Joshua's school bus to come. They're being creative right?

Leanna loves playing with Joseph. She misses him while she's gone at school. She was hopping around with him and making him laugh. I love to see them play together. The other day Brandon and I were waiting for Josh to get home from preschool and as soon as he got off the bus, Brandon wrapped his little arms around Josh and gave him a great big hug. It was so cute!

Josh turned 4 yrs old yesterday. He was sick with some stomach virus for the past few days so it was really nice to see him smiling and feeling better. He even helped me bake this cake. Surprisingly the kids didn't even touch their peices of cake....they just ate the ice-cream. It's been quite a while since I've bought ice-cream so it was a real treat to them...and me too.

As Josh is opening his gifts, Jeff motioned me to take this picture of Brandon quietly dipping his finger into the icing to to have a few tastes. Sly boy.

What did you do?

2008-03-13T21:57:00.000-07:00

Jeff found some "artwork" on the staircase this morning. The black marks all over Brandon's hands and sleeper gave him away.

I brought home a work bag that had 2 dry erase markers in them and Brandon must've gotten into it last night. He made some pretty good circles for a 2 yr old though.

He didn't forget the railing. He was busy last night.

Right after I discovered this mess, I told Brandon boy what he did was a n0-n0. He was really upset. He went to his room, on his own, and cried. I had to call him out just to take this picture. If you look closely there's more drawings on the wall below the mirror.

I wasn't even mad at our 2 yr old for doing what he did. When you have kids you have to expect the unexpected.

Call Guiness Book of World Records!

2008-02-24T07:22:00.000-08:00

The sun finally came out in Washington and we soaked it all up this week. Joshua, our 3 yr old, decided he was ready to ride a two-wheeler, and with that, I walked behind him and held the seat, he pedaled, and he was cruising all by himself! It was as easy as that. He rode and rode and never fell. The very next day, he taught himself how to start. He sat on his seat, pushing his bike forward with his tiptoes until he rolled a little and then put his feet on the pedals and started riding. Amazing! We're so proud of you Josh!

$2.70 in change and other news

2008-01-10T17:22:00.000-08:00

I still haven't gotten my new camera batteries (they're in my amazon shopping cart but I still haven't purchased them), so these are some old pics of my beautiful kids in case this blog entry gets boring.

We packed up all the kids and drove all 14 hrs to Sacramento to spend the holidays with my in-laws. The drive went really well and I still haven't given in to the DVD player in the van. We're old school...toys and books for entertainment...and my personal favorite when I was a kid...looking out the window!

We spent Christmas Eve and Day with Jeff's parents and sister's family. The kids and their cousins were so well behaved opening their gifts and playing all day which surprised me considering a full house and chocolate, candy, and cookie overload.

Meanwhile, Jeff fixed our CD player in our van. A couple of years ago Joshua put all of our change that he found in the car and put them in the CD and tape player. So, we went without good music for 2 yrs. Jeff retrieved $2.70 in quarters, dimes, nickles and pennies and ran off to buy a few fun CD's for our drive home. After a week and a half of visiting, playing, shopping and hanging out, we started our super long journey home.

This time however it was more eventful than we would have liked. We started getting closer to Mt Shasta and Jeff & I noticed hundreds of ducks or geese flying south. It wasn't just a few V's of birds, this went on for miles and miles. So we knew we were going to come into some very cold weather and snow. Once we got up to the California border we were dumped on with tons of snow. Jeff exited off the freeway to get chains and in doing so got into a little fender bender. No damage was done to the other guy's truck, but we broke our headlight and put a little ripple in our hood. Thank goodness the other guy shrugged it off. So we bought our overpriced chains and gloves and Jeff got soaked with the snow while putting them on. A few miles later, we took the chains off and cruised for while until we reached the Oregon border. The chains went back on and about 10 miles later, they came back off. By then we became pros at putting on and taking off chains. In Oregon after dinner we decided to go to Toys R Us and let the kids spend their gift cards from Uncle Mike and more importantly run around in the store and burn some energy. Leanna had a loose tooth, her second one, and it was really bothering her. So I checked it, and it basically fell right into my hand. Jeff went and got a wet paper towel and I put the tooth in my purse and we continued shopping.

Back on the road everything went fine until 1:00 am when we were about 2 miles from home and a good ol' policeman caught us doing 65 mi/hr in a ridiculously low 55 mi/hr highway zone. Jeff shrugged it off because we were having such a great conversation and he "didn't want to let it get us down". Could my husband surprise me more?

We made it home, everyone got colds and we are just barely getting better. Maybe next year I'll ask Santa for a leer jet and a personal pilot!

blood, sweat and tears

2007-12-05T22:23:00.000-08:00

My camera batteries have run out and buying some new ones is quite the chore for me right now, hence the picture of Billy Blanks, the Tae Bo master. I've recently been borrowing his DVD's from the library to get back in shape. They're a lot of fun and they give me quite a workout. I tried other kickboxing type videos to change things up, but nothing compares to the energy and positive motivation of Billy Blanks! Hopefully I can stick with it and lose the post pregnancy weight.

Happy Halloween

2007-11-01T14:54:00.000-07:00

Puppy Dog

Horsey, Kitty Cat and Lion

Trick or Treating along the harbor storefronts and on this tall pirate ship.

Pump up the Jam

2007-10-21T20:54:00.000-07:00

Years ago Jeff & I downloaded music from the internet, back when it was legal to do so, and we've unleashed the collection of dance, rave, 80's, and good ol' rock n' roll to our neighborhood, whether they like it or not. Yes, it's PARTY time at the Neals, any given day, any given time (except nap times of course...those are oh so precious). Usually it's in the evening, the kids turn out the lights and Jeff plays DJ with the volume on LOUD. We show off our dance moves and burn a few calories. Leanna has got great dance moves and attitude too. Josh can dance too, and sometimes just does the "maniac" run on the spot. That kid has loads of energy. Brandon mostly jumps around (remember those middle school dances?) and also sways his head to the beat. Joseph is usually up in his room sound asleep. Amazing how babies can sleep through anything. Jeff, aka Mister Roboto, is by far the best dancer in the house. He suggested we get a disco ball to hang in our family room. It's a great idea and I think I'll follow through with that. Who would have thought that our kids would appreciate Blondie, No Doubt, Yes, and Nine Inch Nails?

Joseph at 3 months

2007-10-05T14:46:00.000-07:00

Joseph is getting big! On to 3-6 month clothing now. It still amazes me that babies grow out of their clothes in just weeks.

A friend of mine offered me a part-time receptionist job at his chiropratic office at http://www.holmeschiropractic.net/ and I've really enjoyed that. I think more so for the short break from the kids, than for the extra cash. But anyhow, it gets me showered more often than not and for that I am grateful.

I can get this boy smiling & laughing all the time and it just cracks us up to watch and listen to our cute boy. He's a great baby who sleeps wonderfully and never really fusses. I moved him from the cradle to the crib, so he has his own room now. Brandon is out of the crib and onto a big boy bed sharing a room with Joshua. It took about a week to get adjusted to that change. Lots of late nights playing in their room together. But as Jeff said, all that partying took it's toll and they couldn't keep up with that lifestyle too long. As for me, I feel great! I'm getting a lot more sleep and that makes for a happy mommy!

Japanese cuisine

2007-09-17T16:31:00.000-07:00

I felt particularly creative and ambitious the other day and made up all sorts of yummy Japanese food. I made sushi, tempura, inari sushi, and miso soup. I made tempura with a variety of seafood and vegetables including: shrimp, scallops, green beans, yams, sweet potatoes, and zucchini. Brandon loved eating the sushi while I was making it!

Okay, I had to take a picture of this meal. Isn't it beautiful? We stuffed ourselves and still had lots of leftovers. I never thought I'd ever say this, but I love cooking and baking. It's fun to learn a new recipe and then perfect it, and try all sorts of new kinds of food. I made a Pakastani dish the other day and it was great. We usually eat chinese food on a regular basis and all-american dishes too. My favorite recipe sites are allrecipes.com and foodtv.com It's fun to be creative!

Our first Kindergartener!

2007-09-06T16:13:00.000-07:00

I can't believe Leanna is already going to kindergarten! This is bittersweet of course. I enjoy the break of 4 kids to care for all day long and I love that she is learning and having so much fun at school, but I miss her already! Her 1st day of school was a 1/2 day, and she already knows 2 kids in her class (one from church and one of her neighbor friends) which I'm so glad about.

It was a family outing to take Leanna to the bus stop this morning with digital camera and video camera in hand. Josh was just as excited as Leanna was, it was really cute.

We weren't the only parents excited to see our Kindergarteners ride the bus for the first time. In the above picture, I was calling Leanna to get her attention and she was looking for me and couldn't find me in the group of parents documenting this momentous occasion.

I didn't realize how many kids we had in our neighborhood! Leanna had great time riding the bus and she made it back safe and sound. I'm so pround of our big girl!

Peace & Quiet can mean two different things

2007-08-23T15:19:00.000-07:00

I was downstairs, most likely doing housework enjoying the non-noise of little children, when I started to worry about the unusual length of quiet time I was experiencing. I went upstairs (and knew they were up to something when I smelled baby powder on my way up) to check on the kids. Josh and Brandon were covered in baby powder, so I put them in my bathroom and told them to stay there so I could take this picture. We were all great sports about the whole thing. At least the house smelled good!

Another afternoon of quietude that Jeff & I enjoyed immensely was captured in the above picture. Josh is sleeping on the couch, Leanna is sleeping on the floor, Brandon is sitting on the couch holding Joseph while watching tv. Our resting and sleeping angels.

Random Pics of the fam

2007-07-29T20:47:00.000-07:00

I figured the only way I'll ever be in a photo, is if I take it myself. So here it is with baby Joseph at about 3 weeks old.

Daddy with his two younger boys, Brandon and Joseph.

Joseph, happy and easy going, relaxing in his swing.

Brandon decided that eating one graham cracker wasn't enough. I think he picked up 7 crackers and stacked them together. He ate it like a sandwhich. Whatever works right?

More pics of Joseph

2007-07-09T12:07:00.000-07:00

Welcome Home Baby Joseph!

2007-07-09T11:51:00.000-07:00

July 3rd, 2007 at 3:16pm, little Joseph Israel Neal entered our world. He weighed 8lbs 3oz, and was 20 1/2 inches long. Labor lasted about 3 hrs and Jeff and our midwife were wonderful coaches.

We think Joseph looks alot like Leanna when she was a newborn. It'll be fun to see how he changes as he gets older.

Jeff and Joseph bonded immediately. Joseph's a cute little cuddle bug!

Leanna can't get enough of Joseph. She wants to hold him, feed him & burp him all the time. The boys love their baby brother too. They love to caress him and hold him as well.

We're so blessed to have this beautiful baby join our family!

My Baby Boy for one more week....

2007-06-11T08:12:00.000-07:00

Brandon, who I love to spoil, will only be my baby for one more week. I should, and hope to deliver our new little one this week! My due date is the 20th, but I've been having contractions on and off for a couple of weeks now. Brandon will join Joshua in becoming a middle child. I still can't believe I'll have 4 children soon....6 people in the family! Yes, it's hard work, and yes, I'm busy, but I'd have it no other way. I love motherhood and I love raising children. It really is the greatest calling in the world!

My Boys!

2007-05-10T06:32:00.000-07:00

I gave Jeff a haircut this week and decided to cut my boys' hair as well. We usually do this every year when the weather gets warm. Aren't my boys so handsome?!

I highly recommend co-op preschools!

2007-05-02T16:31:00.000-07:00

http://picasaweb.google.com/vhneal/BeachDayWithLeannaSPreschoolClass

Leanna's preschool year is concluding in the next couple of weeks and it's been a wonderful experience for the both of us. I was a little ambitious and joined the Co-op board as accounts recievable co-treasurer and although it was time consuming at first, I really enjoyed the challenge and the chance to see how the co-op was run. I also met some great moms out there who all seem to share the same morals and values as I. Each mom works in the classroom 2-4 times a month with the teacher and we really get a chance to see our child learn and develop socially and mentally. Leanna had an ideal class of 7 kids and they all get along beautifully. My boys will definitely be attending this same preschool as they get older. The web album above is when we had a beach day with Leanna's preschool class. They had a fun scavenger hunt and they had a great time exploring and getting wet.

Trial Web Album

2007-03-25T08:40:00.000-07:00

Thought I'd give this a try and see how it works. If successful, I'll try to do this more often.

http://picasaweb.google.com/vhneal/JoshuaS3rdBirthday

We celebrated Joshua's 3rd Birthday yesterday and it was nice get together with my parents, sister-in-law and little baby Connor. Joshua got a monster truck, a new bike with training wheels, some new clothes and more toy trucks. He had a great day and he especially enjoyed assembling his own bike! We are so thankful to have Joshua in our growing family. He is so helpful, so kind and so loving.

Sunday pics at our new house

2007-02-04T07:54:00.000-08:00

I'm having problems uploading pictures on the software I normally use, so until I figure it all out, expect maybe one picture every 6 months. I'm not kidding! I hardly have the time for email and blogging. The family is doing great though. Some updates for those who may have not heard are:

We bought a new house in Gig Harbor, WA and we love it!
I'm expecting another BOY!
We're due June 28th.
I'll be delivering baby with a midwife in their Birthing Inn (the rooms look like a Bed & Breakfast - I'm really looking forward to that)

Baby Connor

2006-12-10T17:38:00.000-08:00

My youngest brother and his wife just had their first baby a couple of weeks ago. Leanna is such a big girl holding cousin Connor. We're all very excited to have our new addition join our family next year. I'm due June 20th. I found a group of midwives in our area and this group also has their own birthing inn located in the same building. I feel so good having a midwife deliver our baby. My last experience with Brandon was exceptional.

Merry Christmas everyone!

It was meant to be.

2006-10-26T20:48:00.000-07:00

Fall time is here and it is so beautiful with the leaves changing colors. Leanna is happy learning art, songs, crafts and whatnot with her small preschool class. Joshua, who is born with infinite amounts of energy is always busy fixing, building, cleaning or vacuuming. Brandon is so easy-going, and happy playing with big brother and big sister.

Well the biggest news of the season is here! I'm expecting our fourth child! I knew I wasn't done at three, and I think Jeff wasn't either, but he just had a harder time admitting it. We're very excited and the kids are happy to have another playmate too. Looks like we'll be having another summer baby. I can't wait to meet our new little one next year.

Sippy cup break!

2006-09-13T14:01:00.000-07:00

Two happy and busy weeks in August were spent in Sacramento, CA to visit Grandma & Grandpa (Jeff's folks). We always have a wonderful time visiting everyone there. We celebrated Grandpa's 70th birthday, we went swimming, we went hiking at the Calaveras Big Trees park, we spent 3 nights in a cabin up in the Sierras, and we went to Fairytale Town!

All of these activities were spent with the kids' cousins Logan (3yrs) and Miya (2yrs). The picture above is at Fairytale Town which the kids just loved! We really enjoyed watching the kids interact with their cousins. They already have such a good relationship with each other. It's great to see them enjoy each others company.

Helping Daddy fix the car!

2006-08-02T10:37:00.000-07:00

Before we head on down to California to visit Jeff's parents and family we needed to change the brakes in our minivan. Joshua was so excited to help!

Now as a side note, Joshua loves to "fix" things. He loves his tools and he takes his screwdriver all around the house and unscrews everything he can find (i.e. door hinges and such). Josh doesn't care to watch cartoons like his sister. His favorite show is Trucks which is a guy show about fixing and installing things on various types of trucks. He loves this show and is glued to the tv when it's on. He actually gets annoyed when there's a commercial break.

So yesterday he was so excited to "help Daddy fix the car" as he repeated to us all day long. Of course little Brandon had to join in on the fun too. He observes and copies everything his siblings do. Sometimes funny, sometimes not.

It made changing the brakes take twice as long, but hey, the boys had a great time!

Our Brandon Baby Boy is 1 year old!

2006-07-20T21:32:00.000-07:00

Brandon turned 1 year old on July 14th. He's modelling his birthday outfit given to him from his Po-Po and Gong-Gong (my parents). Yes, he is preppie and I love it! Brandon is such a good natured little one. He's quiet and is content playing with his toys. He wrestles with Joshua all the time and with Daddy too. The only time we hear him is when he gets excited and wants something, whether it be a toy or some food. He'll let out this distinct baby scream and it's so funny. Brandon is also our biggest cuddle bug. He loves to be held and snuggled with. He'll lay his head down on you and just hold on. He's so cute. We're so blessed to have him in our family. Love you Brandon Baby Boy!

Olympic National Park

2006-07-12T13:43:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago we took a day trip out to Olympic National Park and we were completely amazed at how beautiful Washington State is. We drove up to Hurricane Ridge and for fun we decided to hike up this trail which was about a mile, and hey, everyone else was doing it. Normally a quick short hike on a trail wouldn't be such a challenge to me, but let me tell you, every step was a struggle.

Earlier that morning I had climbed up the kids' bunkbed to grab a blanket and on the last step down I put all of my weight onto a darn Happy Meal toy! It totally stabbed me in the foot! As I fell to the ground, through cursings and whimpers of pain, I told Jeff that I swore I wasn't going to be one of those families that had toys everywhere and that we inevitably became one of them! I was a gimp all day. Hence my struggle hiking and having baby on my back too.

We had a great time nonetheless. We love living here in Washington and enjoy being surrounded by mountains, ocean and trees.

I 'm hungry too Mom!

2006-07-11T09:47:00.000-07:00

In the hustle of getting Mommy, Daddy and our 3 little pidgeons fed in the morning, I had apparantly taken too long for our growing 2 yr old to wait. Instead of waiting for a couple of slices of banana bread, he reached up and grabbed half the loaf and sat himself down on the couch to eat. Josh's expression clearly says "What's so funny mom? I was just hungry."

When you're tired....you're tired...zzzzzz

2006-07-11T09:36:00.000-07:00

Leanna sometimes says she's tired around dinnertime, but usually so she can keep playing or watch a little tv. After all of us finished our dinner, I told her she needed to take 5 bites and then she can be all done. We all left the dinner table and went about our activities and after 5 or so minutes I went to check on her and this is what I found. A very tired girl who pulled another chair to lay down on. She was sound asleep when I took this picture. I thought this was so funny!

Beautiful Baby Brandon

2005-10-14T14:40:00.000-07:00

Brandon is now 3 months old and growing so big! He's a great baby! He spends his day sleeping, eating, watching Leanna and Joshua play, and cuddling with Mom and Dad. We love Brandon so much and we are so blessed to have him in our family.

Neal Family

2005-10-14T14:24:00.000-07:00

This blog site is a way for all of our friends and family to stay in touch with each other and to keep updated on how we are all doing. I know we all live in our various places and unfortunately we can't visit often, but hopefully by visiting this site we can still stay connected.