End of an Era

My days as a stay at home mom are coming to a close!  I have accepted a job offer to work as a Learning Consultant at Kaiser in Oakland.  I start on May 21.  When Marshall starts Kindergarten at the end of August, he'll enroll in the after school care program.  Until then, I hope to employ a college student nanny for the summer.  I definitely feel a sense of sadness about leaving Marshall, but I do think the time is right to purse this opportunity.

“Stepping onto a brand-new path is difficult, but not more difficult than remaining in a situation, which is not nurturing to the whole woman.” -Maya Angelou

Marshall is 5

Time has escaped me yet again. We've kept busy since I last wrote. Marshall turned 5 in March. He had a party at a gymnastics place and enjoyed leaping around with his friends. We spent a weekend in Cayucos, visiting family and friends. Chris ran another half marathon. I went on an overnight trip to Capitola with my book club, Chris and I have enjoyed a few date nights, and we celebrated a nice Easter with Mary Ann and John. Today, Marshall had his 5 year check-up and Kindergarten exam. He is 36 pounds, 40 inches tall, and in great health.

Month of Fun Concludes

Farewell, February. We'll miss you. We had some amazing weather mid-month. Temps in the 70's. Wearing short sleeves! It has turned chilly this week and rain is coming. Chris is getting into the swing of his new job. He likes the work but is still adjusting to the commute. I had a great birthday weekend. Saw lots of friends.

Marshall is good. Healthy and loving school and soccer. He only naps now 2 times a week (3 if I'm lucky) and that is just so odd for me. I have spent 5 years planning everything around naps so it is very strange to not have that factor to contend with. Staring at Marshall yesterday, I thought he had some dirt specs on his face. Not dirt, freckles!!

March is shaping up to be a contender for the Fun Month title. Chris has his annual guys' ski trip; we're spending a weekend in Cayucos ; Chris is running another half marathon; and Marshall is celebrating his 5th b-day.

Dressed up for school Valentine party

Fun Feb

Valentine's Day, Britt's b-day, my b-day...February is usually an all around fun month. This year it got off to a great start when Aundria, Julie and I took an overnight trip to Sonoma. We got facials, window shopped, wine tasted, and ate a lot of good food. It was so relaxing to get away and so fun to be giggly with girlfriends. This coming weekend, I'm doing another ladies only night away to celebrate Britt's b-day. The following weekend, we'll get together with friends for my b-day.

The big news around here is that Chris started a new job last week. He's no longer with John Hancock but is a Sales Manager for Lenox Advisors in San Francisco. He isn't thrilled with the commute but likes the opportunity and is enjoying the city vibe.

Marshall is great. He finally seems to be shedding the cold he's had for almost a month. Goodbye snot! Yesterday was Kindergarten registration. Really?? We're at that point already?? His most recent funny: while playing tag in the yard I announced I needed a bathroom break. He said, "just pee on a tree mom." Um, no thanks.

Sonoma trip. We didn't pre-plan the all black wardrobe. Honest.

Miscellaneous

We've avoided post-holiday blues and January is moving along swiftly. Our weather has been all over the board: downright warm at the beginning of the month, a brief stretch of freezing temps, and now we have rain.

My mom came up to visit at the beginning of the month so we could join my sister at a bridal event. We had a fun time and Steph found THE dress. We're all getting very excited for the big day (Sept. 15).

Marshall came down with an impressive cold this week and had to miss PJs and Pancakes day at school. BUMMER. We do have some great news: Chris passed the CFP exam (Certified Financial Planner) that he took back in November. The results just came in. It was a long wait! It is a very big accomplishment.

Some recent Marshall funnies:

• 
  
  Pulling out a turtleneck shirt to wear, he said, "I'm going to wear my frog neck today."


• 
  
  "Daddy, we watched James and the Huge Fat Peach today."


• 
  
  "Hey, who didn't flush the toilet?? Oh. I think that was me."

Ice block building

Mickey Mouse Riley
Walking Lafayette Reservoir

Additional December Fun

Since the holiday stuff wasn't quite enough fun, we squeezed in some more! =) We had my friend Anne and her daughter, Claire, come for a visit. We took a day trip to Carmel. We went on a New Year's Eve hike with a group of friends. Marshall also got a new haircut in December. He wanted me to spike it like Guy Fieri from the show Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. So cute!

Sunrise

Triple D, Baby!
New Year's Eve hike

A day in Carmel

Tea with Claire

Xmas

Our little Darth Vader

Poppy and Grammy

The beloved Dragon Fortress

Reading with Steph, Wynn and Ernest

Christmas time was a lot of fun. The weekend before Christmas, we took a trip down to Simi Valley for a Blazej family holiday party. It was great to see so many of my relatives. There were a ton of my cousins' kids for Marshall to play with. Santa made a visit and all the kids got gifts. We also spent some time with my grandparents, mom and Bob on our way home. We exchanged gifts with them, since we stayed home for Christmas.

We hosted Christmas Eve dinner and then went to Mary Ann and John's for Christmas day. Marshall was spoiled silly by everyone.

We celebrated New Year's Eve with a group of friends. I tried to convince Marshall to go to bed but he stayed up the whole time! We were all exhausted the next day.