Our youngest granddaughter, Tatum, turned six years old this year! We have told her to stop growing up, but she doesn't listen! (You never listen!)
We weren't able to go to Reno to be with her on her birthday this year, but we did talk to her that evening.
The week-end before, she had a party with her friends at Chuck-E-Cheese, and went to see the movie, "Earth." They had a fun time, and I wish we could've been there with her. (At least I had almost two weeks with her and Ariel here in Utah.)
She's our little "alien pizza" as Monica and Ariel call her. She is such a unique little character. She is so full of life, full of energy, (and full of apple juice--she loves it).
She loves her big sister, Ariel. They have lots of fun together. Ariel has always been her little Mom--helping Monica take care of her. Ariel has always been so sweet to her, and has really taught her so many great things. They are both little angels, just like Monica.
Tatum is in kindergarten, and will soon be in first grade. All of the kids love her, and want to be her friend. She's so sweet and loveable! She is our Mini-Monica. When you see the two of them walking together, you'd think they were twins, with their long blonde curly hair, and skinny bods...except for the fact that one is more than four feet taller than the other one!
She is so much fun, and so smart!! She really does have an adult sense of humor. She never ceases to surprise us with some of the things she says.
I decided to write down some of our "Tatum-isms" this year. We are always amazed by her, and how she thinks and communicates those thoughts. There are hundreds of them, but here are a few: (some of them make sense to us, but they all make sense to her!)
**one of the times the girls visited, Tatum saw a picture of Jesus with little children. It was on a table in the living room. She said, "I know who that is, that's Jesus. I used to live with him...he's nice!"
{one thing you have to remember about Tatum is that she has gone to church with us maybe twice, and never attended Primary!}
**Tatum came into the kitchen one day while Bob was doing dishes and got an apple juice box out of the frig. She then said, "Bob, you need to get more of these-this is the last one." She said it so "in charge" and cute that Bob was laughing. Noting that he was laughing, she said "NO SERIOUSLY!"
**Ariel was sad and crying one night because she missed Monica. I was telling her not to cry; Tatum said, "I don't cry when Mommy is gone...I really miss her, but I don't cry."
**One day, Ariel took her glasses off and said, "I can't see a single thing!" Tatum thought that was funny, and (with her front tooth missing) started going around saying, "I CAN'T THEE A THINGLE THING!" When Papa Joe was here, he got so tickled at her saying that and couldn't stop laughing and joking with her about it. Now, every time we call him, she says that to him just to make him laugh. He really gets a kick out of her!
**When Ian was over at our house one day, he said to Tatum "Why do you say 'DUDE' so much? She said, "Cause I'm a dude girl!" I said, "Good answer!" Then Tatum replied, "I'm cool, I'll tell you that much!"
**Bob was out of town, and Tatum said, "Oh my gosh...I can't stop thinking about Bob. I just love him and miss him soooo much!"
**Tatum was bugging Ariel one day, and Ariel told her to knock it off. Tatum pointed at Ariel and said, "You used to love me when I was a baby...you used to hug me...so why don't we do that now?!? Ariel wouldn't hug her, so Tatum threw fruit snacks in Ariel's lunch!
**One day, I made Ariel laugh really hard at something, and then Tatum started laughing and said, "I don't even know what that means!!"
**Tatum was not telling me the truth about something that happened. I said, "Tatum, look me in the eyes and tell me the truth." [I always said that to Ian & Ariel, and they could never look at me and not tell the truth.] Tatum started laughing and said, "Well, I'm only smiling a lot because I'm happy." We all started laughing with her; then she said, "I'm smiling because I'm beautiful!"
**Tatum and Ariel were fighting and Tatum called Ariel, "stupid!" Ariel said, "What did you say?" Tatum then replied, "I said it to the wall!"
**Once when we went to pick Monica up at the airport, Tatum and I went to the bathroom. I told her to stay close to my stall or some one might kidnap her and take her away from me. I then said, "That's a funny word, huh Tatum?" Then she said, " Yeh, it sounds like a kid is going to take a nap...it should be called 'kid-grab-nab'."
**Monica, Ariel and Tatum were laying in bed one night reading books. When Monica was finished reading, Tatum said, "Hum...am I American or what!?!"
**Tatum and Ariel were drinking their bottles of water really fast, having a contest to see who could drink the fastest. Tatum stopped and said, "Well Grandma, water is good for you and that's why we drink it...and because Jesus wants you to."
None of us know what goes on in the minds of these little children and how they perceive the world around them. The way they express themselves sometimes amazes us and always makes us laugh.
Tatum is such a unique little individual, and we love her so much! She has been such a happy, crazy, goofy, nutty little person ever since she was born. We haved missed a lot of her growing up since they live in Reno. But, she knows how much we love her. We talk on the phone a lot, but we wish that she was here with us every day.
Sorry we missed being there on your birthday this year, and hope you had a fun day!
Monica has done such a wonderful job raising Tatum and Ariel, mostly by herself and while having a full time job. She's a great mother! Thanks for having these beautiful children. We cherish them and you!!!!
Sunday, April 19, 2009
APRIL 2009
Well, it's been a great month. We returned from our San Diego trip on Thursday evening, April 2nd.
Ariel and Tatum were able to stay with me. Bob got to visit with them until he left on Sunday, April 5th.
Bob had to go to San Antonio, TX to work for two weeks. While he was working there, his Mom and Dad came down to visit him. (San Antonio is a great place to visit.) Their hotel was just a couple of blocks from the Alamo. While they were there, they went down to Corpus Christi, TX and saw the USS Lexington. I believe Bob said it was another aircraft carrier in WWII. I'm sure they really enjoyed it.
The girls, Ariel and Tatum stayed with me for two weeks. I took vacation days while the girls were here..to spend more time with them. While they were here, we had such a great time. We went to the park almost every day, went shopping, played games, read stories, etc. We picked up Ian a few times from his bus stop so he could play with the girls. They have such a great time together. Ian is really Ariel's twin, and Tatum thinks of him as her older brother.
Ariel even made me clean out my refrigerator. Angie and Monica are always bugging me about all the expired food I have, so I think Monica told Ariel to check the dates on anything she ate. We threw a lot away. (Well, I can't help it...we buy food, then Bob leaves, and I can't eat it all myself!)
Ariel is so sweet and such a joy to have around. Tatum is our little firecracker. They are both so sweet and so happy. They are so precious to us, and we are so thankful that they are in our family.
Easter Sunday was April 12th. The girls were back with their Mom, I had to work, then went to church. Bob was in San Antonio, TX with his parents. Angela & Richard were at home, so things were back to normal. I was again alone again working for JetBlue...talking to strangers all day.
Richard's birthday was on Thursday, April 16th. Bob was gone, so we had them over later for pizza.
Tatum had her 6th birthday on April 23rd. I can't believe how big she is now.
The rest of the month, Bob was still gone until April 24th.
Then, on April 26th, I started my journey to Hawaii. (Read all about it on my next blog)
Ariel and Tatum were able to stay with me. Bob got to visit with them until he left on Sunday, April 5th.
Bob had to go to San Antonio, TX to work for two weeks. While he was working there, his Mom and Dad came down to visit him. (San Antonio is a great place to visit.) Their hotel was just a couple of blocks from the Alamo. While they were there, they went down to Corpus Christi, TX and saw the USS Lexington. I believe Bob said it was another aircraft carrier in WWII. I'm sure they really enjoyed it.
The girls, Ariel and Tatum stayed with me for two weeks. I took vacation days while the girls were here..to spend more time with them. While they were here, we had such a great time. We went to the park almost every day, went shopping, played games, read stories, etc. We picked up Ian a few times from his bus stop so he could play with the girls. They have such a great time together. Ian is really Ariel's twin, and Tatum thinks of him as her older brother.
Ariel even made me clean out my refrigerator. Angie and Monica are always bugging me about all the expired food I have, so I think Monica told Ariel to check the dates on anything she ate. We threw a lot away. (Well, I can't help it...we buy food, then Bob leaves, and I can't eat it all myself!)
Ariel is so sweet and such a joy to have around. Tatum is our little firecracker. They are both so sweet and so happy. They are so precious to us, and we are so thankful that they are in our family.
Easter Sunday was April 12th. The girls were back with their Mom, I had to work, then went to church. Bob was in San Antonio, TX with his parents. Angela & Richard were at home, so things were back to normal. I was again alone again working for JetBlue...talking to strangers all day.
Richard's birthday was on Thursday, April 16th. Bob was gone, so we had them over later for pizza.
Tatum had her 6th birthday on April 23rd. I can't believe how big she is now.
The rest of the month, Bob was still gone until April 24th.
Then, on April 26th, I started my journey to Hawaii. (Read all about it on my next blog)
Monday, April 13, 2009
FAMILY SAN DIEGO TRIP
On Sunday, March 29th, our whole family took our trip to San Diego. We flew on JetBlue. I was worried about us all getting on the flight, but we did...and we all got extra-legroom seats together. The flight was great, except for the fact that Angela, Anakhan and Azure getting motion sickness. Anakhan and Azure both barfed on the plane..Anakhan barfed on Angela, so she got sicker! Other than that, it was a great flight! JetBlue is great because everyone has their own TVs to watch.
Our flight left in the afternoon and we arrived into San Diego about an hour and a half later. We picked up the two rental cars, and finally got to our hotel early in the evening. We all just unpacked, and relaxed by the pool on Sunday evening.
On Monday morning, we all left for our first adventure to "LEGOLAND." That was such a fun day. We saw so many Lego creations all over the park. They had lots of rides that the kids enjoyed. What a fun place!
On Monday evening, we had to split up to different hotels. Angela and Richard stayed at Comfort Inn just a couple of miles away, while Monica and her girls stayed at the Residence Inn, where Bob and I stayed. Ian stayed in our room, because Angela and Richard's room was pretty crowded with the other kids. When we got back in the evening, all of the kids (including Richard) went swimming, most of us just relaxed in the hot tub.
On Tuesday, I had a surprise planned for everyone. (It was the only day I didn't tell them what we were doing.) That day we went on a "Hornblower Cruise" It was a trip into the ocean for a whale watching adventure. Richard called it our "water staring" adventure, but we did see lots and lots of dolphins, but no whales!
Right next to where we went on our "water staring" trip, Bob noticed that the "Midway" was there and he wanted us all to go and visit the same ship his dad was on when he was in the Navy when he was about 19 years old. (he is now 85!) He is one of the original plank owners. Not many of these guys who were in World War II are still around. That was great to visit the ship, and see what cramped quarters the crew members had to live and sleep in. When we got back in the evening, we had dinner and went to the pool again.
On Wednesday, April 1st, we all headed out for the SAN DIEGO ZOO!!! What a great day that was, too. The first thing we did was ride the zoo bus around the park, and then we went to see all of the animals. Some of our favorites we saw were the pandas, the meerkats, the elephants, both the African and Indian. In the afternoon, we watched a sea lion show, and the kids were hoping to get splashed on! One of my favorite animals is the peacock. I had gone in to a gift shop early in the day and bought a peacock magnet for my frig. I told Ariel that I hardly ever get to see them display their tail feathers, so I bought that just in case we didn't see one. Before we left, I saw a peacock and wanted him to display his tail feathers. I had heard that if they get frightened, that's when they do show off, so I got as close as I could with my camera, and sure enough he or she showed off for us, and we all got to see the beautiful colors on his tail feathers. We all had such a good time together that day, too. That evening, the kids hit the pool again!
The next morning, we all got ready for our trip home....and nobody wanted to go, but,we got ready for our flight back home on JetBlue, and got back in the early evening. We had such a wonderful family trip, and I don't think anything could've been better! Everything went so smoothly, and I think we will all remember this trip for a very, very long time.
Our flight left in the afternoon and we arrived into San Diego about an hour and a half later. We picked up the two rental cars, and finally got to our hotel early in the evening. We all just unpacked, and relaxed by the pool on Sunday evening.
On Monday morning, we all left for our first adventure to "LEGOLAND." That was such a fun day. We saw so many Lego creations all over the park. They had lots of rides that the kids enjoyed. What a fun place!
On Monday evening, we had to split up to different hotels. Angela and Richard stayed at Comfort Inn just a couple of miles away, while Monica and her girls stayed at the Residence Inn, where Bob and I stayed. Ian stayed in our room, because Angela and Richard's room was pretty crowded with the other kids. When we got back in the evening, all of the kids (including Richard) went swimming, most of us just relaxed in the hot tub.
On Tuesday, I had a surprise planned for everyone. (It was the only day I didn't tell them what we were doing.) That day we went on a "Hornblower Cruise" It was a trip into the ocean for a whale watching adventure. Richard called it our "water staring" adventure, but we did see lots and lots of dolphins, but no whales!
Right next to where we went on our "water staring" trip, Bob noticed that the "Midway" was there and he wanted us all to go and visit the same ship his dad was on when he was in the Navy when he was about 19 years old. (he is now 85!) He is one of the original plank owners. Not many of these guys who were in World War II are still around. That was great to visit the ship, and see what cramped quarters the crew members had to live and sleep in. When we got back in the evening, we had dinner and went to the pool again.
On Wednesday, April 1st, we all headed out for the SAN DIEGO ZOO!!! What a great day that was, too. The first thing we did was ride the zoo bus around the park, and then we went to see all of the animals. Some of our favorites we saw were the pandas, the meerkats, the elephants, both the African and Indian. In the afternoon, we watched a sea lion show, and the kids were hoping to get splashed on! One of my favorite animals is the peacock. I had gone in to a gift shop early in the day and bought a peacock magnet for my frig. I told Ariel that I hardly ever get to see them display their tail feathers, so I bought that just in case we didn't see one. Before we left, I saw a peacock and wanted him to display his tail feathers. I had heard that if they get frightened, that's when they do show off, so I got as close as I could with my camera, and sure enough he or she showed off for us, and we all got to see the beautiful colors on his tail feathers. We all had such a good time together that day, too. That evening, the kids hit the pool again!
The next morning, we all got ready for our trip home....and nobody wanted to go, but,we got ready for our flight back home on JetBlue, and got back in the early evening. We had such a wonderful family trip, and I don't think anything could've been better! Everything went so smoothly, and I think we will all remember this trip for a very, very long time.
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