The Mobley Look

All of the Mobley children have the Mobley look, whether it be a blessing or a curse! Recently, David compiled this group of pictures of the kiddos. It is amazing how strikingly similar they look! In fact, before posting this, I had to ask David to double-check my identification!

MARY

MARY

MAGGIE

MAGGIE

MATTHEW

MATTHEW

JONATHAN

JONATHAN

JOSIAH

JOSIAH

Update on 2013 Goals

Well, it's time for a confession.  I fell behind in meeting the goals I set back in December.  The goal I set for April was to plan our backyard landscape. I really don't know what I was thinking!  In April, I pretty much just tried to keep my head above water, but I did have lots of time to think about the backyard.  Every time I even thought about it, I got completely overwhelmed, so I suggested to David that we just pour concrete everywhere!  This idea was quickly vetoed!  So, we had two companies come out to give us estimates.  Both companies came up with the same solution, one would have cost $15,000 and the other $20,000!  YIKES!  I think we'll do it ourselves, thank you very much!  So, we have a rough plan, which is still awaiting approval from our homeowner's association. 

On the image below created in painstaking detail by David, the dark grey areas represent existing concrete, and the light grey areas represent where we will put pavers of some sort.  The green areas are raised beds for vegetables.  The blue areas are in ground planters.  Inbetween the raised beds, I am hoping for an area of plants that attract hummingbirds and an area of plants that attract butterflies.  All the kids' play equipment is going to go on the side of the house with grape vines and citrus trees behind it.  The only other plants we are 100 percent sure about are Western Redbud and Bougainvillea, both of which are attractive and drought tolerant:)  We also hope to invest in a patio table, a bbq, and a retractable awning for shade.  I think this is going to be a BIG summer project!


My goal for May was not so lofty: begin to teach Mary and Maggie how to play the piano. I started last week.  So, now I can declare my goals for April and May complete! 

Sweet Big Brothers

Matthew and Jonathan are the sweetest big brothers in the world! They absolutely love Josiah and are eager to spend every possible moment with him. They like to help me with everything: diapering, burping, bathing, you name it! And they can't possibly go to bed without giving him at least one goodnight kiss. These boys are surprisingly affectionate with Josiah, that is, when they aren't trying to poke his eyes out, pull his limbs off, or tenderize his bulging belly!

Affectionate Jonathan

Affectionate Matthew

The Runway Dash

This past Saturday, the whole family went to the Orange County Great Park to run The Runway Dash, a one-mile race. Mary and Maggie both ran in the race and ran the whole time, although Maggie did take two spills! David pushed Matthew and Jonathan in the stroller and won first place in the stroller division!  Josiah and I cheered everyone on at the finish line! Afterwards, there were lots of recovery snacks: fruit, granola bars, granola, ice cream and milkshakes and a PANCAKE BREAKFAST! Each race participant also received freshly picked strawberries, zucchini, summer squash, and cucumbers!  I think we found a new Mobley tradition!  

Maggie's Earrings!

It's official: my Maggie is growing up! A few weeks ago, we all took a trip to Claire's, and she got her ears pierced! Not only that, but she even paid for it herself! While there were many different earrings that could be used for the piercing, we encouraged her to choose one of the $20 options, which included balls and stars, either in silver or gold. Although she really, really wanted the $40 Hello Kitty earrings, she settled on the gold stars.  To help her arrive at this decision, I had to pull out the "stars, balls, or nothing" strategy.  It worked, whew!  Maggie is such a girly girl, she frequently asks me if her earrings make her look beautiful.  She is also very conscientious about caring for them and reminds me to clean her ears after breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

In this picture, she is also trying to show you her two wiggly teeth, too. Sigh...she really is growing up!

Now, thinking about the ear piercings: Mary was almost six when she got her ears pierced; Maggie's 4 1/2, so I guess I'll be taking Matthew and Jonathan to get theirs done this fall. Ha, ha...just joking, everyone!

Happy Birthday, Mary!

Back in April, Mary and I celebrated our birthdays together! As usual, we celebrated at home with chocolate cake and presents. You can tell from the pictures that Mary enjoyed herself...A LOT! 

Per Mary's request, I made a Texas sheet cake with chocolate frosting and purple decorations.

It took a few tries for Mary to successfully extinguish all SEVEN candles!

Mary was delighted with the sewing box and supplies from Nana and Papa!

She was also delighted with SEVEN pairs of earrings from Grandma Nancy!  She now enjoys changing her earrings every day!

I think she's excited about the DIGITAL watch from Gramps and Grams!  (We'll let her have one now, since she can tell time:))

We saved the best for last--a PURPLE swimming cap and PURPLE goggles from the whole family!  It's pool time in SoCal!