Ketchup? Catch up? Blog-shmog...sorry it's been so long!

I am continually reminding myself that this blog is not only how some of my family keeps up with us... but is actually a sort of an online family journal and that I should treat it as such. I finding that I take pictures to capture every little thing with the internal conversation of "this would be fun to share on the blog... " But alas... it never makes it to the blog.... until months later. I am motivating myself to post more by promising that each year I will have printed/bound our blog for that calendar year. It's a way to scrapbook... without all the clue and scrapbook paper mess to clean up, and realization that you've only completed a few pages in several hours worth of time.
With this is mind, I apologize for the length of this post.... but here's what we, Normans, have been up to!

Summer was a blast. I am SO spoiled to have summers off from work.
We got about 75% of the way through my "to do list"... do you ever finish all of the projects? I've come to the realization that with a home, your "to do list/projects" are NEVER ever done. They just seem to get bigger.

We did make it to Washington this summer. Weeks before we started talking about going on the airplane, with Gawpee and taking out bags to go see Grandma Janet and Grandpa Dick. We drove by the airport a few times where some of the planes are parked near the road... so that Jennah could see the size of the plane up close. She was really excited to see the inside... Finally. This girl is a world traveler... that's all I have to say.

The morning we left, Jennah, Gawpee and I went to the nail shop, and got matching manicure/pedicures... Jennah got to pick the color. Can you tell? Purple. Glitter. Need I say more?


It was SO nice to get out of the heat for a week! We packed a lot into a few short days, but loved being with our family that we miss so dearly!

Jennah LOVES and ADORES her cousins.... Alec, Brielle and Lia.
In this picture, can you tell who is from California... and who lives in Washington?
A little girl in paradise... at the beach... with her 2 grandmas....We did A LOT (understatement) of driving while we were there...
but it was beautiful everywhere we went so it didn't matter.
We stopped in this little town. If you have never heard of it... maybe you've heard of the Twilight movies?
If you've never heard of those... maybe you're living on another planet.

We made it all the way to Ocean Shores...
(which is nothing like the beaches we, California folk, are used to) for the 1st ever....Thomas/Birchfield Family Reunion. Meeting family that we've never hugged and kissed before.... made it really hard to say good-bye.


We weren't home very long before Jennah and I needed a trip to the ocean... so we called up our Beach Buddies, Stacy, Ellie and Jacob. It was a miracle, but we got 3 car seats in the car. (Don't ask me how... I'm still trying to figure it out how we did it.)
Every trip deserves a trip to the Monterey Aquarium...
Jennah loved showing Ellie and Jacob around... and from the looks of it... we think they LOVED the place just as much as we do!
In the last few days of summer vacation, we had a little friend get together at our home... (truth be told... it was a "Mommy's Girlfriends Play Date") to do crafts. What can I say... Mother, like daughter!
Now. Let me warn you. This "Craft Date"... CHANGED my life.
I was introduced to this bad boy...

Expression. Cricut. Machine.
I will NEVER be the same.
Andy, it's all Shauna and Amy's fault.
Blame them.

... moving on.

Jennah's 3!
Her actual birthday was on Thursday, August 26th.
We took cookies to school and then we did a little family dinner/cake thing that night.
She helped make the cake... and couldn't wait to eat it. I'm still trying to figure out how she got on the counter... WITHOUT a step stool.

We had to re-light/sing several times.... I LOVE to see this look on her face!

And then Saturday was the BIG party with all our family/friends. Jennah had a blast... at her "elephant" party. (Several weeks ago, I asked Jennah what kind of party she wanted. Barbie? Elmo? My Little Pony? Princess?.... she literally pondered for a second, with her finger on her chin, head tilted.... looking upwards, and said "ummm, elephants!?!" ... it's a good thing her mama OWNS a new Cricut Expression cutter.... to make her dreams come true. Hee hee hee!)
She had a great time celebrating with all of her friends and family and LOVED opening presents. She was so sweet, each time she opened a gift, she would say... "oh I love it! Thanks so much!" The hard part about being 3 and opening presents is that you want to play with each gift you open... before moving on and opening the next gift while your guests are waiting.

After a summer with activities like this.... we all need naps.
I just wish we all had IKEA chairs to sleep in!