Casault Family

Kindergartener & Preschooler

2014-06-20T11:14:00.001-07:00

I officially have one kindergartener and one preschooler. This is so bittersweet for me. I've enjoyed volunteering at the co-op preschool and have made such great friends and pretty much got use to the routine for the last five years. Now I've got to start another routine, one that would involve trusting another adult for nearly eight hours with my child. I can still volunteer and do all the fun stuff at the elementary school but our co-op is small and wonderful. If you have preschool aged children I really suggest you consider enrolling then in a cooperative preschool where your presence is needed. I've learned so many different ways to communicate with my children, which I don't think I could have at a drop off preschool. There's a closeness in a co-op that a PTA can't duplicate. I'm happy I've got one more year with my youngest. I have a feeling I'll go a little over board this year with parties, holidays, and other events.

Spring/Summer Garden 2014

2014-06-20T10:41:00.001-07:00

This year's crops are unimpressive. Last year I developed allergies to grasses, weeds, and a variety of trees not to mention dust and dog dander, so it has limited my gardening activities. I went to the allergist late in the season and missed out on allergy shots that many people take now instead of pills so I have been miserable. It hasn't helped that none of the over the counter pills have worked so I'm just sucking it up until next season. I did plant cucumbers and zucchinis later than usual but those have started to grow pretty fast and hopefully I'll have some at the end of July. I'll keep you posted with pictures.

Update 6/29/14: Here's what I was able to get from what I planned in March/April. Forgot to take pictures of the snap peas

Spring/Summer Garden 2013

2013-08-19T23:24:00.000-07:00

This year's garden has been okay. I'm being honest when I say it could have been better if I wasn't too lazy to care for like I did last year. It's accurate to say I took on more then I could and handle and got a bit frustrated and gave up a little. But after my vacation second week of July I gave myself a little push and I'm right back on track. This year kale, snow peas, onions, and collards, zucchinis did very well. Not so well list would include beets, carrots, spinach, herbs, and bells peppers. I didn't transplant the carrots and beets to the bed, spinach I didn't harvest in time, herbs were not taken care of, and bell peppers was not placed in a good location. The verdict's still in on corn, tomatoes, and cucumbers. I do think tomatoes and cucumbers will be on the good list. I've harvested some of both already.

Used rice sacks to plant my tomatoes.

Overgrown zucchinis while we away
but they are regular size now.

Peas, kale, and collards

Summer 2013

2013-08-09T23:15:00.000-07:00

Summer 2012

2012-11-23T23:07:00.001-08:00

Okay believe it or not summer in Seattle was great. There were lots of sunny day, so the boys got lots of vitamin D and lots of gardening time for me.
We didn't travel much because Ned just started his job last November and didn't have any vacation time. We were able to do our usual Cannon Beach trip for our anniversary in July, along with the boys, in laws and aunt Susie and uncle Eric (surprise for mom's 60th).
We didn't go anywhere else but had lots of picnics and playing in the water.

Happy 2nd Birthday Davin

2012-04-24T17:36:00.000-07:00

I remember it was a Friday. The whole day I was feeling pain here and there. I was only 3.5 weeks to 40 weeks. I should have known he would make an early like his big brother. I was nesting like a mad woman and a few days before I was arranging Davin's closet and getting things ready. I decided to have a late lunch with my cousin at my aunt's restaurant. That was where I was really feeling light contractions and by dinner time I was feeling strong contractions. For me giving birth was like riding a bike, I was aware of what was happening. I knew he was coming early, I was cleaning the bathroom and bonding with big brother Kingston. Ned was getting mad at me for being so calm, I even yelled at him for bugging me, but when I was finally at 5 minutes apart he wasn't going to wait anymore and I wasn't either. We were off to the hospital at 10pm and Davin arrived 2:33am. I'll save you the gory details but what they had to do because the placenta decided not to come out. FYI: it was more painful then the actually pushing and contractions.

Easter Egg Hunt

2012-04-17T14:14:00.005-07:00

...and there off...This was Easter Sunday with the grandparents. They were able to find most of the eggs without help. We had a nice breakfast and had a early afternoon egg hunt. Then we were off to hang with my family for my niece's 13th birthday. It was a busy long but most definitely fun filled day.

Spring Clean Series: Yard Work

2012-04-17T13:52:00.005-07:00

I've got my little "helpers". I didn't have anyone to watch the boys this beautiful sunny day so I said a prayer and hoped I could get some weeding done. I got about 30 minutes in until the weeding became, "shoes covered in dirt". I'm in the processing of leveling the yard so I can lay the garden bed down and plan so veggies for this summer. Ever since the boys explored their grandparents vegetable garden, they wanted to have their own. Honestly, I think the boys just love being outside and playing in dirt. What toddler doesn't.

I grew some yummy veggies last year just on the ground it was fine, the garden beds are so much more attractive. Hopefully, I can get most things planted by the end of this month. I'm still quite busy making my own decorations for Davin's 2nd birthday party this Sunday. I'll keep you posted.

Spring Cleaning Series - Kitchen part.1

2012-03-31T16:35:00.024-07:00

Spring is finally here, although in Seattle its pretty hard to tell, it snowed in April last year. Non the less according to the calendar it is. My first project is the room I use most during the day, the kitchen. I love the space I have but I can most definitely organize it a bit, well a lot.
I'm going to try my best to show before and after photos. I decided that I'd start off with my refrigerator. In the last couple of months I've done a great job cleaning out items that hasn't been touched for over a week, old or moldy anything, leftovers I know I'm not going to eat, etc. The thing I noticed in doing this was I really need to use up everything I buy for the week because most of my waste was vegetables and some fruits. I do my best to cook seven days a week but lets be honest, I have two toddlers (who are now anti-vegetable) and very pro-fruits if that's all I feed them, they wouldn't argue), a board member at school, and just overall procrastinator, so seven days turns to five days. But I know your not judging :). Have you ever gone to your kitchen and know exactly what to cook but not in the mood, especially if it means you need to clean, chop, peel, and cut all your ingredients so you just say forget and go to those canned meals or leftovers if they haven't already got mold on them. So to eliminate laziness, waste not just of the food but money, I've started cleaning and cutting my fruits and vegetables and storing them in containers as soon as I get home from shopping for it.

This saved my butt Thursday when I forgot to cook lunch for my husband. But I only had about one hour to do it before he had to go. I told him I'd make split pea soup, which my recipe has celery, carrots, spinach, onion, and garlic. Now that's a good ten minutes of cleaning and chopping. I was able to put everything in the pot within five minutes and it cooked in about 50 minutes.
Now, I'm not going to lie it will take some time but squeezed this in in about 30 minutes but at least its all done. My favorite thing about this is I see everything and therefore I use everything, I don't have waste because I tend to use it faster and eat more. Try it and let me know how it goes for you. Even if you still have waste by adopting this system and just get the feeling of being organized than its still so worth it.

Casault Brothers Update

2012-02-19T22:06:00.006-08:00

It has been a minute. So what's new with the Casault brother been up to?

The boys are both in the co-op preschool. Kingston 2 days a week and Davin just one. I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to watch them interact with other parents and children.

Kingston is quite a character. He alway excited to show someone something he's playing with, (mostly trains or playing with something in the water.

(above) First day of school/(below) him on the first day not wanting to leave

He really loves that water. I'm not a fan. At least we always have spare clothes.

Davin on the other hand is more mellow. He's my little observer. He loves to watch everyone else play. He is snack KING. Seriously this kid sits in the snack table area for at least 30-45 minutes, snacking. I'm amazed at how much this kid eats, tiny as he is.

First day of school. I let him walk ahead of me.

I nearly cried just watching him walk down that hall. I know its not college and he's only 1 but man I was visioning him in the future and I was over whelmed with all kinds of emotions. (LOL) I'm sure its a MOM thang.

There's that stupid water table again :P

Busy June/July

2011-07-20T00:13:00.000-07:00

OMG its been a minute since I've blogged. What have I been up to? Lets see...

1.my husband and one of this best friends since kindergarden birthday bbq
2.my cousin's wedding
3.board meeting for the preschool
4.4th of July bbq for work (clean up crew)
5.4th of July bbq with family (it was at my house)
6.mini vacation to Cannon Beach for my 4th year wedding anniversary
7.my other cousin's wedding
8.car show for my husband's car club

Okay I think I'm good for now. I've had a busy 3 weeks. Although, busy I've had a great time doing and all those activities because I was around friends and family. One very sad note though, my professor from college died. He was a very wonderful man. I was more saddened but the fact that he died overseas while he was with his students. He died of a heart attack, away from his wife and kids and grand kids. So sad and not a way anyone should leave this world. But from what I know of stories he's told he lived and loved life to the fullest. This is one of those moments where I'm grateful for the life I've had so far. I kiss my boys and husband everyday and will continue to do so, even if my boys wipe it off (lol).

Little Lulu

2011-06-02T00:06:00.001-07:00

Busy week, but happy HUMP DAY...omg I just wanted to introduce my niece Luciana Faye born 321am 8lbs 6.2oz and 19 inches. She will be living with me and I now will have my girl fix. Having two boys, oh boy oh boy is a handful, so she's a wonderful break from the craziness. Little Lulu, auntie LOVES YOU very much and I can't wait for you and your cousins to grow up together. You'll have your very own bodyguards so don't worry about anyone picking on you :P

Boys Will be Boys

2011-05-27T22:45:00.001-07:00

My boys play so well. Wrestling, most definitely boys. I can't wait to see them play when their a little bit older. Boy oh Boy, I'm sure I'm in for a treat. Well enjoy the pictures of my goofy guys :P

Close to Perfect

2011-05-21T02:09:00.000-07:00

I'm missing my hard working husband. I saw this video and thought of him. His birthday is in a month. We're having BBQ. Such an easy man to please. I think I told you guys this already but let me remind you, as I reflect on my life with him so far I can honestly say, despite the "bad", no including the bad this wonderful man has made my life darn close to perfect. I don't even care what challenges God throws at me as long as he keeps my husband right by my side. Well its late, please listen to the song, ENJOY!!!

Thank you Husband

2011-05-19T03:04:00.000-07:00

We haven't had any :'( Ned has been busy with work. I think if i worked a regular part time at Costco, I would never see him. So many sacrifices couples make when you add a child to the equation, as if working on a one in one relationship isn't hard enough, shoot a relationship with yourself. Takes a lot of effort on both parts and I'm just thankful who has a partner who does his end of the margin and more. Well like I was saying we're not really spending time together but we'be been walking the dogs as a family. I've got to admit I'm really enjoying. Today we got s special treat, a beach trip before Ned got called in to work at 3pm. Thanks for a darn near perfect life. I love you, Ned.
posted from Bloggeroid

Davin's 1st Birthday

2011-05-11T04:14:00.000-07:00

Here are the pictures I promised from his 1st birthday. I know its super late, but better late then never. This 1st birthday was super special because it landed on Easter, which apparently won't happen again until my little Davin is an old wrinkled man of 84 years old. I decided not to deprieve the kids of the tradition of egg hunting, so I some what themed it as an Easter birthday, pastel colored decorations, bunny on his cake, fun craft bunny Easter basket project and of course an awesome egg hunt. I know this doesn't compare to Kingston clowns, magic trick, face painting and 20 times more guests but this was still a 1st birthday that I'll never forget. I'm not just saying that because I'm his mom either. It was fun, my sister-in-laws helped cook and everyone chipped in or offered to do something. I felt like my sweet little Davin is truly loved. Enjoy the pictures!!!

Davin Update

2011-05-11T02:07:00.000-07:00

Okay, here's a quick stats of his one year appointment:
Height 29inches
Weight 19.5lbs
17 percentile on weight and growth is a little bit below 50

Normal as far has brain development, motor skills are fine, verbal skills where it needs to be, on the average scale chart he's below but every visit he's made improvements. I'm not worried. He walked a week before his birthday, he repeats words after we say them, and he's getting curious and developing a personality.

One Step at a Time

2011-04-23T00:26:00.000-07:00

OMG!!! My sweet little Davin is going to be one years old tomorrow. This year has gone by so quickly. I will have to tell you how he's developing after his first year check year the first week of May. He's had a few milestones in the last month. Teething coming in, repeating words, and WALKING!!! Walking was just this week. I'm lucky enough to have caught this 4th attempt on my phone :) I nearly cried after I took this video. Raising children is so bittersweet, at least I have memories captured.

Mini Vacation

2011-02-10T01:49:00.000-08:00

Finally we made a trip away from Seattle. PRE-babies, Ned and I use to go to Cannon Beach, Oregon for Valentine's Day, (6 years) but the last 2 years has made it a bit difficult being 1. broke 2. close to my due date both times 3. broke. Yes we're extra broke (lol). We had 3 great days away from our daily lives. Kingston's trouble 2 was at a good level all days but we managed. We went to the aquarium, visited some smaller towns nearby, a lighthouse and of course the beach, although not much because of the wind and rain. But as you could tell from some of the pictures we got lucky with some sun breaks every now and then.

This trip was much needed and long over due. Our boys, has much as I love them, take up a lot of my time. I haven't made much time for Ned. There's something about being away from your daily routine in a different place. We needed it, we deserved it and we loved it.

Bye Bye 2010

2011-01-28T00:58:00.000-08:00

Another great New Year's Eve with the family. How do you like our 2010 Burning Man? For the first time we finished a puzzle. Every year to past the time we work on a puzzle. The most exciting thing about this New Year is my oldest brother, Gilbert, was there to celebrate with us. He's been locked up and I was actually really missing him. Ever since my parents moved back home to the Philippines I've really missed hanging out with my siblings. I see Sheilah every day but both my brothers have their own family so its just a few times a month. I'm hoping this year will be a start of more time spent with my siblings. Well here's to 2011, let's make a good one!!!

Burn Bitch Burn 2010

Christmas Overload

2011-01-06T02:21:00.000-08:00

I know its been over a month but life happens and I wanted to let you all know how the boys Christmas went. The picture above says it all. The boys had piles of gifts to open (well mom and dad). As you can tell by Davin's reaction it was quite overwhelming that he had to thank God for all of it. We had a busy Christmas eve. We went to my brother's house and then to my Aunt Nena's. Note to self, one party per day. The boys stayed up past midnight and it messed up their sleeping schedule for weeks. I know they had a good time dancing, eating, and playing with his their older cousins. Christmas morning we hung out with grandpa and grandma Casault. We had yummy breakfast and torn through our presents. I got the best gift ever, my wonderful in-laws gave me a garden. They will be help me build a garden. I will post pictures and updates in my person blog. I will give you the link as soon as the project is started in March.

Halloween 2010

2011-01-03T19:01:00.000-08:00

We had a great Halloween this year. As you can see, Davin wore Kingston's lion costome and Kingston was our little monkey. We were in invited to Auntie Lon's house for some homemade pho and spring rolls. OMG if you've never had Vietnamese food your missing out. I'm still very reluctant to let Kingston eat candy or anything bad that taste good, so there was not trick-or-treating for us. No worries people I will let them go wild in about 5-10 years (LOL).

Kingston the Monkey

Davin the Lion...rrroooarrr!!!

Sweet Little Davin

2010-11-20T19:34:00.001-08:00

Sweet little Davin is nearly seven months old. We went for his six months just a few weeks ago and here's his stat:

Weight= 13.5lbs

Height= over 26 inches

Head circumference= 16.5

He's still in the low 20-30 percentile, but his weight is below, if he was only one pound heavier we wouldn't need to monitor his weight but if doesn't gain a few pounds, the doctor wants to do blood test. To help in his weight gain, I've added baby food and mixing formula with this breast milk. Its not like he doesn't eat. He is exactly like big brother with food, ravenous.

Besides his weight he's a pretty normal growing baby. Excellent motors skills. He's about to crawl now. He can sit alone with no support for minutes at a time. He grabs for things. He can follow objects with this eyes and he baby talks a lot. He got his six month shots. So for the next month, we're going to focus on a more regular feeding schedule, baby food and mixing in formula here and there for that added fat. Its hard right now though since he sick. He has a horrible cold and cough. At his age they can't really do much so we're just letting it pass.

Kingston Milestones

2010-09-29T23:11:00.000-07:00

Kingston my big boy, melts my heart everytime I see him taking steps to be independennt. I love to see it all happen but then I step back and say to myself that it needs to slow down, everything is happening way too fast. The latest milestone is Kingston's first day of playschool. Its nearly two hours of free play with songs, storytime, and group play in between. The first day I couldn't take him away from the trains and block station. All the kids kind of did their own thing.
Here's a picture of Kingston's first ever fat lip. He fell down while playing with daddy. Can you believe it, it took him 20 months to get a fat lip. I'm sure there's going to be more of those, you know how boys get. This summer although, was nice, we only had a few 80-90 degree weather, so we had to let him use this very cheap kiddie pool before summer ended. This day was pretty warm, I think 85 degrees. He had a blast, as you can tell by his face. Lastly, his hand me down big boy bed, which he won't use until after his 2nd birthday in January. I just had to pull it out and let him try it out. I think he likes it, bought him animal print sheets to match all the deco and accessories in his bedroom.

Beach Time

2010-09-10T00:21:00.001-07:00

For our 3rd year wedding anniversary Ned and I had brunch at Salty's on Redondo Beach. It was the best brunch ever. The weather was beautiful and we had a view of the beach. We had alone time for 3 hours. The sun was out and we started seeing families at the park, walking at the pier, and playing in the sand. So instead of enjoying alone time we decided to go home and pick up the boys and Red and just have a day at the beach.

I know we're crazy. Perfect chance to be alone but we go ahead a ruin it by picking up the boys. Plus my sister hardly offers to watch the boys so we should have taken advantage but most of our conversation was about how far we've come and how our family has grown just made us miss the boys and picking them up to enjoy the weather with us just felt right. This was Davin's first trip to the beach. Kingston's first time on the sand since he learned to walk. We live in Seattle so beach trips are rare.

The following weekend we met up with Casault grandparents at Seahurst beach park. Kingston had a blast playing in the sand with me and grandpa Rick.