Awesome Family Fun

Insta Friday: January 27, 2012

2012-01-28T09:49:00.000-08:00

Saturday The Girl had a birthday party.

We decided to put curlers in her hair and make her fancy.

However, we didn't allow for enough drying time,
so we ended up with piggies instead.

That night Will took us out to Yogurtland to celebrate
me being able to eat something other than chicken broth.
Yum!

Sunday I got the bug to clean the craft room/nursery.
I was trying to find something and I couldn't,
so I started cleaning and I couldn't stop!

Eight hours later we had THIS!

Monday I saw this beauty at the store.
It's called Rapsberry Ice and I LOVE IT!

It was a rainy day on Monday so The Girl rocked a headband
and a ponytail.

I love the rain.
I was sad to see it go.

There was no playing outside,
so I settled in with a good book and did some reading.

Wednesday afternoon it was a quick trip to the grocery
store to pick up some treats for that evening's
festivities at the church.
While I perused the Valentine's Day aisle,
The Boy kept himself busy :)

New Beginnings turned out wonderfully!
I work with a talented group of women and
they really know how to rock an event!

Thursday morning we did FREE breakfast at CFA,
and then headed off to pick up the carpoolers.

That afternoon the weather was perfect,
so we emailed the girls and told them to join us at the park.
We partied like Park Stars till the streetlights came on.

Friday after school I picked The Boy up myself
and we headed to Pretend City!

It was the grand opening of the new sushi restaurant
and the kids loved the new digs!

We even got to listen to a story and learn more about Japan.

Adventures in {Angry Birds Birthday}

2012-01-23T00:01:00.000-08:00

This year The Boy had an Angry Birds Birthday Playdate for his 6th Birthday.
He invited his friends from kinder carpool and his bestie.

This was supposed to be less stressful for me and more fun for The Boy :)
We started with decorating our treat bags.
I printed off coloring pages from Cartoon Jr.
and the kids colored them.

Then Jaime and I helped them cut them out and they glued
them onto their bags.

Then we played a little Angry Birds game.
The kids loved it, but it was hard waiting their turns :)

Then we headed outside in the Angry Birds costumes
that my friend Kirsten had made her family for Halloween.

The kids loved them!!!!
First they just ran wild . . .

And then they broke into a more organized game
of DUCK, DUCK, Angry Bird!

No Angry Birds Birthday would be complete
without some super cute cupcakes!

So I ~~begged~~ hired my cousin Cory of Lady Cupcake's Corner
to make some awesome toppers and she shipped
them to me for the big day.

JT requested red velvet cake.
What?
6 kids + red velvet = No Bueno.
So we ate them outside.

One of the fun things in the goodie bag was
an Angry Bird mask that I made for the kids.
As you can see,
my model wasn't a willing participant.

However, the other kids loved them!

You can get a template and brief tutorial on my other blog.

Insta Friday: January 20, 2012

2012-01-20T17:34:00.000-08:00

Whoa! What a week!
I have been terrible at taking pictures because
I have felt AWFUL.
I think I'm almost better and hopefully
I'll get to eat real food again,
because these clear liquids aren't cutting it.

Saturday The Boy helped his Bestie
celebrate his birthday - Jedi style.
It was so much fun!

Monday this little booger slipped into the garbage disposal
without my notice.
Rest in pieces :)

I was still feeling slightly off that night,
so for FHE I took the kids to CFA.
It was empty, but the staff was slow as molasses.
I don't think I've ever waited that long for my food.
Ever.

Tuesday was Pack Meeting.
I made brownies and an Arrow of Light.
The scout receiving it wasn't able to come and
someone else brought cupcakes.
Oh, well.
The little scouts still ate all the brownies :)

Wednesday I went to the doctor and the rest of the day was kind of a
blur of resting, ibuprofen, and chicken broth.

As was Thursday . . .

Friday I picked myself up,
chugged some white grape juice,
took a shower and drove carpool.

This week took it's toll on all of us :)

Insta Friday: January 13, 2012

2012-01-16T21:33:00.000-08:00

Saturday night
(January 7th)
I introduced The Girl to the tradition of
sponge rollers the night before church.
I spent many a Saturday night having my hair rolled.

I tried to convince her to sleep with this night cap.
That didn't last very long :)

And she continued the tradition of sleeping on sponge rollers.

But it was worth it because Sunday morning
she looked darling for her first day as a Sunbeam.

I started and finished three books this week.
Woohoo!

Tuesday I watched my friend's sweet baby girl and little boy.
It was fun to hold a sleeping baby.

Wednesday we had a visit from our friend T
and The Girl was glad to have a playmate for the day.

Will went to the Clippers game that night
and got to try his hand at shooting a free throw.

Thursday Jaime and I traded babysitting so we
could get our color on.
I needed it . . . BAD!

And Friday I was glad to be rocking Blondilocks again :)

Just in time to host The Girl's little friends from
Sunbeams for her Barbie Birthday Playdate.

That night my little lady grew up and gave her dear Pluggies
away for the Pluggy Fairies to take away to babies
that need them.

Insta Friday: January 6, 2012

2012-01-07T15:27:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!!!!

How's your 2012 shaping up?

We rang in the NOON Year at Pretend City.
The kids love that place.
They ask to go there daily.
Maybe we should consider becoming members . . .

This little lady made it into the local paper!
Hooray for wearing a mommy-made
outfit that day :)

It was a party in Town Square!

That night we hit Ruby's for dinner.

And played Sorry . . . guess who won?

Only Will and I made it Midnight.
Both the kids pooped out around 11:30.
We tried to rouse The Boy for a drink . . .

It looks like this one drank too much :)

Monday was gorgeous so we headed to the beach!

It was loverly and we all had a smashing time.

The Tall Ships even came out for a battle :)

The Girl is still loving her dress up box.
Belle was the princess of choice on Tuesday.

She got up early, crawled into our bed,
kicked her dad out, and fell asleep.
This is a sweet sight to wake up to.

It has been warm here this week.
The kids decided they wanted to go to Hawaii,
so they threw a Luau in our living room.

How was your week?

Insta Friday: December 30, 2011

2011-12-31T14:51:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it's over.

Christmas came and went in a flash.
And Sunday we're leaving 2011 behind.
It was a fabulous year.
The beginning was a little crazy
with The Boy's absence seizure diagnosis,
The Girl's random hand burns,
and The Boy's trip to the ER,
but we finished strong
and had lots of fun in the middle.

The Friday before Christmas we kicked it at Pretend City
and got to see Santa one last time.

They rocked the dance party with the Kazoom Band.

And because The Boy was the best dancer/singer/performer
Nick gave him their CD. The Boy was so thrilled.

I am so grateful for my drive-thru pharmacy.
Seriously awesome.

Christmas Eve meant new jammies from Grandma & Grandpa!

Christmas morning brought lots of excitement.
And coordinating clothes for church :)

Monday was a lazy day with lots of resting
and computer playing on the NEW family computer.

It also meant more fabulous new jammies -
this time from Grandma A-Team.

Tuesday was a family day with a trip to several
parks for lots of fun and bike riding.
It almost ended in tragedy when The Boy crashed
into a thorn bush strategically planted by
the City on a tight curve of the bike/walking
path.
This picture was taken 4 days later.

But Daddy saved the day with ice cream and a trip
to a thorn bush FREE park - as all city
parks should be.

Wednesday Will was back to work and the kids
and worked on clearing out old toys to make
way for new toys.

Thursday was The Girl's Big 3 Birthday!!!!
She kicked it off with a birthday donut.

Then the kids and I headed off to Pretend City
to celebrate and use their birthday tickets.

I found this costume slightly disturbing.

That night when The Girl opened her presents
she was pleasantly surprised to get a dress up
box complete with an Ariel dress.
I think Ariel will be living with us permanently :)

Friday we bought a zoo!

The Boy wishes :)
We joined the local zoo . . .
same difference with less work.

Insta Friday: December 16 and 23, 2011

2011-12-22T19:34:00.000-08:00

Mama, I forgot to post last week!
Well, I didn't really forget to post,
just ran out of time and then this week
got away from me.

So let's start back at December 9th . . . .

On the 9th, The Girl and I went to the new Deseret Book
while The Boy was kickin' it at Kinder.
Joyfully they had THESE!

That night The Boy busted out his Hot Wheels
track that he got for his birthday.

Saturday morning we went to the Swap Meet
with Aunt H and then came home and
went to the HOA "Holiday" party.

While grocery shopping I remembered
to look for this little lovely in the
in-store Starbucks.
The stingy barista wouldn't give me
a pump for it.
Boo.

That night we hunted for our Christmas tree.

Monday we had FHE with friends
and my cute friend that hosted let the kids
make these fun edible snowmen for dessert.

Wednesday I got the tree decorated!
And Eugene made himself at home.

Thursday I got these little cuties all finished and ready
for the Cookie Exchange.

I also sported these pretty purple gloves
to make scrubbing the floors not so terrible.

The Cookie Exchange was a big success!
So big, that I forgot to snap a picture DURING
the awesomeness.

But here are the yummy cookies!

And I won these during the handmade gift exchange game.
Delicious.

On Friday, December 16th we bundled
up to do the Kinder carpool drop off -
of course we donned a Lid.

After Kinder holiday party we headed to
Pretend City!

The Girl took the stage.

The Boy took to towing cars.

Then we learned about Las Posadas and did
some art together.

Saturday I spent the afternoon helping my
rad friend Jen decorate for the Ward Christmas party.

Sunday after church -
and after the coolest lesson ever (ie "Mr. Krueger's Christmas" & cookies) -
I stopped at Monica's to pick up this!!!!!!

Sunday night we took the kids and Aunt H
to look at Christmas lights.

And The Boy got to play in faux snow.

Monday it was dueling sewing machines
at Jaime's house while we both made
something amazing.

I just had to snap pics of my crazies,
cuz they're cute like that.

Tuesday was a cookie decorating party for the kids.
My friend Brooke is one brave woman.

That night we stopped at Joann for some supplies,
the line to check out was insane!

Wednesday was an early morning trip to the dealership for an oil change,
a playdate with a cousin, and a trip to Walmart for returns
and allergy medicine.

That afternoon the kids had their dental cleaning
and they both came through like champs.

Thursday I put up my lovelies from Creme de la Gems.
They are so darling!

The Santa Ana winds were wild and ferocious,
but we braved them to go to Downtown Disney
and pick up something for Grandma.
Of course we had to visit Darth.

And there you have the past two weeks!
It's almost Christmas!

Insta Friday: December 9, 2011

2011-12-09T14:48:00.000-08:00

December is in full swing this week,

with lots of fun festivities and a certain 6 year old's birthday :)

Last week I got my Christmas Book Advent ready to go -
oh, only a day late :)

Saturday morning Eugene the Elf made his
debut at our North Pole Breakfast!

Then I headed over to Costco to pick up 52 pizzas by myself
so we could serve lunch to 400 Boy Scouts.
Craziness.
I loaded them all by myself.
The door people kept shouting - LOADING!
But no one came.
Not impressed.

The 52 pizzas made my car into a pizza sauna.

Later than afternoon we headed to Heritage Hill
for Victorian Christmas.

The kids loved the Thumbelina marionette show.

I loved the Giant German Paper Stars!

That evening we made a trip to Sears for a
replacement belt for the vacuum.
This sign in the bathroom made me want to vomit.

Sunday night we went to the Community Christmas
display.
I only took pictures with "real camera",
but everything was beautiful!

Monday was this guy's big day!
Six year old.
Where did the time go?
He kicked off the day with a birthday donut.

That evening Imaginext turned on the adventure :)
I've never seen him more surprised or more excited.

And of course there was a cake with candles.

Tuesday I worked on these little ditties.

While this guy watched some 3-D Imaginext videos.

This one was not thrilled to be my model.
Now, that's one Angry Bird!

Wednesday it was all about the Angry Birds playdate!
My cousin Cory made these fondant toppers
and shipped them to me so I could add them
to the red velvet cupcakes The Boy requested.

We had all the kids from kinder carpool (and Jeremy)
over for a rousing playdate.
Complete with costumes (made by my friend Kirsten),
cupcakes, and coloring!

Wednesday evening I went to Lito's boot camp.
I highly recommend to all my local friends.
It was awesome.
Then we headed to the Spectrum with the youth
for some flash mob caroling and hot cocoa.

Thursday night I headed to the Queen Mary
with Jaime as my +1 for the Fresh&Easy
holiday preview party.

It was amazing!
I fell in love with the Sparkling Pumpkin Cider.
And the F&E wine expert - Richard Wherry,
was kind enough to get us a bottle.

The food by chef Cynthia Perez was fantastic!

The swag bag was filled to the brim
with Fresh&Easy goodies.
I gave my wine & coffee away to a fun
friend I met at my table that evening.

And Jaime and I had fun in the photo booth :)

Insta Friday: December 2, 2011

2011-12-01T23:30:00.000-08:00

It's been a good week.
We had lots going on and that's how we like it.
Saturday after my nephew's soccer game we headed
to El Far for dinner.
Yummy!

The kids were excited :)

Monday will flew out to Orlando for training.
The kids and I had a slumber party complete
with popcorn and a movie in the living room.

Tuesday I couldn't sleep.
That happens when Will is out of town.
So I worked on a baby shower gift.

Wednesday I had a blogging event at Heritage Hill.
The place is awesome and I definitely
recommend checking out Victorian Christmas
this weekend.

The Tailgate Truck and Taco Maria were there
to feed us. They were both amazing!

The Christmas lights and ambiance were so enjoyable.

And having Meringue Bake Shop there didn't hurt
one little bit.

After the event we hurried over to the church
for a surprise baby shower for my Beehive adviser.

Of course I brought cupcakes :)

Thursday was story time for the dollies.

And I cleaned my bedroom.
A true Festivus miracle!

That night I went to the Relief Society Christmas Dinner.
It was so cozy and fun.

Insta Friday: November 25, 2011

2011-11-28T23:29:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I'm a few days late with last week's post :)

But I was having way too much fun enjoying
the holiday weekend with the fam.

On Friday (the 18th) I went to San Diego
to see Mindy Gledhill in concert with Jaime and Kara Noel.
It was magical.

I rolled in around 1am and then proceeded to get up
4 hours later to help my friend set up
her table at the CUW Boutique.

After the boutique I took the kids to a Pump it Up birthday party.
And then afterward, we headed to a birthday
party for one of my friends.

Monday we met my fabulous friends The Waites for breakfast.

They were passing through on their way back home to
NorCal and we love seeing them!

Tuesday I started and finished this little cutie
for The Girl.

Wednesday was the Kinder Thanksgiving Feast.
My little Adam Gray looked so cute!
And said his part so well.

That night I stayed up late making this shirt for The Boy.
Why do I do this to myself?

And Thursday morning I made one for The Girl too.
They had to be darling for Thanksgiving :)

I did some serious Black Friday shopping that night.
I'm so bummed I didn't snap a picture of the chaos.
We hit ToysRUs, Walmart, and Target
and were home and in bed by 2am.
I love it!

Friday we watched my nephew's soccer tournament
which was just down the road.
So fun!

Insta Friday: November 18, 2011

2011-11-21T14:17:00.000-08:00

Last Friday The Boy didn't have school

in honor of Veteran's Day,
so Will thought it would be awesome
to head to the Universal City Walk
and show the kids all the cool things.

Our favorite was the iFLY.
It is so cool!

I also loved It's Sugar.

There was lots of giant candy and treats.

We did dinner at Johnny Rockets.

The next day was the last soccer game of the season.
It was rainy and cold.
Will said The Girl looked like the youngest
member of Hanson in her warm clothes :)

This guy scored a goal!!!!
He was so thrilled and it made his dream come true!

That night he and I went to see the musical
being put on by the church.
It was a fun mommy-son date night.

Monday is was back to waiting for carpool :)

Tuesday night Will's Cub Scout Troop
had their Space Derby.
It was comical and fun :)

At 2am on Wednesday I woke up in a panic
because I had forgotten to stop at Costco and pick
up a pumpkin pie for the Teacher Appreciation luncheon.
So at 6am I got up and made homemade pies instead.

This was all that was left.

The kids finished it off :)

Wednesday was my mom's birthday :)
and we did the whole YWs thing.

Thursday night I busted out my crazy and did the midnight
showing of Breaking Dawn Part 1 with my friends.
I got all fancified for the evening :)

Friday we saw this awesome sign!!!

And Friday night I headed down to the QBM with
Kara Noel and Jaime to see Mindy Gledhill in concert.

It was magical and awesome.
I rolled in around midnight.
My body is craving sleep!
It didn't help that I got up at 4:30am
on Saturday to help a friend with her boutique.

Adventures in {Un-Apple Picking}

2011-11-16T00:01:00.000-08:00

The day after Halloween - November 1st - The Boy didn't have school.
So we invited our friends to join us on a trip to Snow-Line Orchard.
I've wanted to go for several years, but I've just
never made the jump to make the drive up there.

I am SO glad we made the trip this year.
The Fall colors were gorgeous!

I asked the kids to sit under the tree so I could
take their pictures.
This is what I got :)

Jaime made the girls cute apple picking clothes.
However, we were about 5 days too late to pick.
The nice man fixing the chair told Jaime if
she would be there at 8am the next morning she could
help him glean the last of them.
LOL

It was so cool to see the cider being pressed.

The Boys thought it was super cool.
It's good to be tall :)

As soon as we got there the kids found these seed pods
from the tree that looked fluffy and fun.
Well, they were really prickly and mean!
The Boy got the worst of it and the nice donut lady
told us to go rinse his hand and need and he'd feel better.
It totally worked.

The ambiance was just fabulous.

This sign totally made me laugh.
I might need to make a printable of it :)
The Boy {LOVED} the unlimited apple and apple cider tasting.
He told one of the ladies, "Your apple cider is delicious."
Awesome.

We also had to have some FRESH apple cider doughnuts.
They were SO yummy.

And enjoyed by all!

After Snow-Line we headed to lunch at good old Panda.
We really wanted to go to a pumpkin patch and saw a fun
one as we got off the freeway, so we decided to head back there.
Sadly it closed on October 31st!!!
Brave Jaime hopped the barbed wire (ok maybe walked around)
and asked if they would please, pretty please, let us pick some pumpkins.

The nice man at Live Oak Canyon let us!!!
We were so grateful he obliged,
because the kids had their hearts set on it.
Well, at least The Boy did :)

He found the perfect pumpkin.

I love the Cinderella-style pumpkins.

Hooray for a fun day!
And I will definitely be back to both next year!

Adventures in {Halloween 2011} Part III

2011-11-14T16:11:00.001-08:00

The Boy had a great kinder Halloween Party - on Halloween :)

They had three rotations.

He started inside with stories with the teacher.

And a fun art project with some of the moms.

Then it was outside for some large motor activities.
It took him a few tries to the the hand to the opposite foot :)

And face painting!

Then it was time for costumes, a movie, and a fun little snack.

Then time for the costume parade!
I've participated in my fair share of elementary school
parades - as Glinda, a Purple Crayon, a worm,
a pregnant Starbucks barista :) - but it is definitely
more fun to watch your own little one parade around.

He told me the parade lasted FOREVER.
Silly boy.

Insta Friday: November 11, 2011

2011-11-10T15:22:00.000-08:00

We survived the Flu Plague of 2011.

Hopefully we won't see it again til 2013 :)

So we woke up Friday morning - after our 3am
flu party - vomit free, but to rain.
We still donned our festive clothes
and headed to Disneyland.

It's awesome to ride with The Girl - makes me feel good.

Guess who the flu hit at Disneyland?
Oh me.
I found sweet rest with Jose.

My parents spent their 33rd wedding anniversary
at Club 33, sans us.
At the exact moment they entered The Club,
it started to POUR!!!!!!!
We hung out in the Jack Store for about 15 minutes,
then pulled on our ponchos
and ran - or rather hobbled in pain -
to the Haunted Mansion.

After we hid under the Hungry Bear Restaurant.
My fabulous little sister took The Boy on rides,
while The Girl and I kicked on the covered dock.

Holding true to the pattern - after
6 hours of misery - I was fine for about 18 hours,
so I got to enjoy the rest of Disneyland Magic
pain and cold sweat free.

Even though sitting on the cold ground
was less than desirable,
the World of Color show was awesome
and worth the wait.

Another crazy thing about being at Disneyland that day?
We randomly ran into 3 families from our congregation
who were also there for the day.
Crazy!
And we all ended up at the Carousel at the same time.

Saturday we did soccer and The Boy
was so excited to have his Grandparents and his Aunt
there to cheer him on.

Later that evening we took them
to the Great Park for the only
ride that didn't terrify The Girl that weekend.
Weird, huh?
Little Mermaid characters, yes.
Floating 400 feet above the ground, no.

We love the FREE carousel!

Sunday our Nemesis The Flu lingered with me and
hit Will.
I only got dressed because I had to drive my
parents to LGB.
And by dressed, I mean I put yoga pants under
my night gown and a hoodie over to keep me warm.

Monday it seemed that all was well.
I even gave The Boy a haircut.

Tuesday I wanted a picture before school.
He was glad to oblige, until his Razor whacked him
in the ankle.

Will woke up feeling AWFUL, but hauled
himself into the office to get training started.
He was home 2 hours later and didn't leave
the room for almost 36 hours.

Of course I was hosting book club that night.
So amongst the cleaning and sanitizing,
I made this little cutie and decorated
for Thanksgiving.

I finished cutting them out The Boy's soccer party.
He loved his coach (so did we), the pizza and the trophy :)

Wednesday he came home with his Spirit Shirt.
He was so proud!

While the little sis was at dance class,
we played at the park.
We saw these fun looking birds,
the refused to let me get close enough to take a good picture.
We were bird detectives on WhatBird.com
and figured out they are Whimbrels.
They summer in Alaska and can winter in California.

Friday I got to see Joy's Hope,
Rags to Stitches, Little Penelope Lane, Olive Blue,
Rock A Bow and lil noodle bug in person.
I love the OC handmade/creative community.

Adventures in {Halloween 2011} Part II

2011-11-09T00:01:00.000-08:00

The Friday before Halloween was our
Stake Trunk or Treat.
It is a marvelous event with millions of children,
trunks full of candy, and costumes a plenty.

We got fancy tonight and gave Little Red
some cute piggy tails.
I love how the Big Bad Wolf had droopy ears
because it's slightly humid outside.

After the Trunk or Treat we headed to our favorite
pumpkin patch to meet who?
But Jaime and clan of course :)

I made the kids keep their costumes on so
we could take a few pictures in front of the giant pumpkins.

Then I let them be free and enjoy the wonder
of the pumpkin patch.

The kids loved the "haunted house".
It's more like a glowing hallway:)
The Girl was nervous at first . . .

but when she saw that she could glow,
she wanted to stay in there all day!

The annual measure-up!

My beautiful girl loved the bubbles.

The last activity of the night was a pony ride.
The Girl declined to participate,
but The Boy was ready to go.

The Boy enjoyed the pony and the complimentary hat to wear
during the wild ride.

This ride was more The Girl's speed :)

After the pumpkin patch we headed to the
Woodbury Chick-fil-A in our costumes
for some FREE food.

Stay tuned for Part III . . .

Adventures in {Halloween 2011} Part 1

2011-11-07T12:53:00.000-08:00

So our Halloween 2011 was full of fun and friends.
We kicked off the festivities with a
trip to Old Town Orange's Treats in the Streets.
We've been once before - and it's chaotic fun :)

We started with a trip to Bruxie for a late lunch
with Jaime and the kids.
I love that place!

The kids were in silly moods.

Then we donned our costumes and got ready for some treats.

Do you like his Big Bad Wolf face?

Don't forget Granny!

After we finished at The Circle, we were driving home,
and Jaime and I both thought of the Great Balloon!
We got off the freeway and headed to The Great Park.

We wanted to see The Big Balloon while he was
all decked out for Halloween.

We had an hour wait til the first flight,
so the kids played at the playground.

And rode the carousel.

Carousels at night are so magical.

I love it all lit up and ready for a spooky ride :)

Stay tuned for Part II . . .

Insta Friday: November 4, 2011

2011-11-03T17:02:00.000-07:00

How was your Halloween?

We had such a great weekend 'o fun.
It seemed like Halloween lasted 5 days this year.

Thursday afternoon I finished the last piece
of my costume just in time for Treats in the Streets.

We headed to Bruxie with Jaime and clan
for a late lunch/early dinner before the festivities.

Then we got all dressed up and ready to go.
It was a warmer day and The Boy
lasted only so long in his faux fur.

We did get to see Darth Vader,
but by then we were sweaty and over
the treats.

As we were driving home Jaime and I remembered
that we wanted to ride the Great Balloon
while it was all dressed up,
so we headed over and in perfect time.

We had an hour to kill before the flights started,
so a little carousel riding was in order.

The kids loved the ride with friends.

Friday night was the church trunk or treat.
It was a cooler evening,
so we lasted longer in our faux fur :)

Afterward, we headed to our favorite
pumpkin patch for fun with friends.
The horses were spooked by a mega-flash,
so The Boy is waving at me and shouting - NO FLASHES!

Saturday was soccer,
and The Boy had a great game.
One of his best.

Pretend City hosted us for some Halloween fun.

Monday was the Kinder Halloween Party
and I donned some spooky spider web eyes.

The parade was warm and lasted - FOREVER -
according to The Boy.

Brooke came to visit so she could get
some spider web eyes too.

We had a spooky Halloween dinner.
Mummy dogs, ogre noses, worms, and Frankenstein Jell-O.

The kids enjoyed trick or treating with
some neighbor friends.

This was the spookiest house - complete with killer babies.
The Boy said about 10 minutes after we'd been there,
"That killer baby house was awfully weird."

Tuesday there was no school - HOORAY!
So we headed to Snow-Line for some Fall fun
with our favorite friends.

There was apple tasting, cider tasting,
cider pressing, friends, and cider donuts!

Watching the donuts being made.
Yum!

This sign was hilarious.
It read - Speeding kills bears.
Jaime and I both screamed when we saw it.
The Girl said, "What's wrong?!"

That night about 9:00 The Boy started throwing up.
He threw up until 3am Wednesday morning.
He stayed home from school,
but never ran a fever and never threw up again.

So I took him on his first field trip on Thursday - to the zoo no less :)

He even got to ride the bus for the first time.

When we got home, he passed out and slept
for 3 hours - as did his sister.
So I finished cleaning up for my parents & sister to arrive,
and converted The Girl's old Minnie pillowcase dress
into a skirt.

We picked up my parents from the airport
around 7:00 that night,
we got home, and around 9:00 put the kids
down to bed so we could all get some rest before Disneyland
the next morning.
At 9:10 The Girl threw up for the first time and continued
until 3am Friday morning.
Awesome.

So, I stayed up with her and made
some festive shirts for Disneyland.
Because we were going, flu or no flu.

To be continued . . .

Insta Friday: October 28, 2011

2011-10-27T17:00:00.000-07:00

Hooray!
It's almost time for Halloween!

Tomorrow night is our church trunk or treat!
If you want to join us, come on over!

Last Friday we did park day.
And the little lady was so excited that she got to swing.
A rare occasion :)
The other moms make fun of me because
I pretty much refuse to swing her.
Parks are for running and jumping, not sitting.
We can sit at home.

Friday The Boy's costume came in the mail.
Phew!
He was starting to get panicked it would never come.

I found some glasses for my granny costume in the
Dollar Spot at Target.

Friday night we went to Pretend City
for Family Fun Night.

It was so fun!
And we even got to make a fun family craft.

After Pretend City we headed over to check out Boot Hill.
The Boy wanted to go in so badly!
But he just couldn't do it.
So we just went home.

Saturday after soccer we headed to
The Threadery with Jaime and clan.

Then we stopped in Old Town Orange

The rad barista at Bruxie thought the kids
were so cute that he gave them some free custard.

That afternoon I finished The Girl's cape for her costume.

All day The Boy talked about the haunted house,
and how he wanted to go again.
He pinky promised he'd REALLY go in.

So we headed back over.
They left out the monsters,
and he did it!

Monday I had a visiting teaching date at Yogurtland.

Mmmm . . . oatmeal cookie!

I kept working on The Girl's costume.

And shirred for the first time.

We went BOOing! for FHE.

We even got all fancy, Eli's Lids style.

Tuesday I finished top to The Girl's Costume . . .

. . . and the tutu and made her try it all on!

Then I hosted a small brood for the morning,
so we headed to the park.

I also cut & stapled like crazy to finish
a project for The Boy's teacher.

A little audiobook and a stapler,
and I was ready to go.

Wednesday is our crazy day,
it culminated with a Halloween PAR-TAY!
for the youth at church.
Look at these sweet kabobs one of the girls made.

My friend Jenn hosted.
I love her house!
She is so stylish and fancy.

I need this chandelier STAT!

I love how she added a sparkly spider web to it!

Insta Friday: October 21, 2011

2011-10-20T14:17:00.000-07:00

We had another action packed week.

I am beginning to wonder if lazy days
and blank agendas will ever occur again :)

Friday morning I practiced my make up
for the party that night.
Rocked these eyes during carpool.

I spent Friday working on these beauties.

They took me 3X's longer than I thought they would,
so I never got around to making the Candy Corn Bugle Mix :(

That's ok, because then I took my Cocoa Latte machine
and that little beauty won me a prize from Jaime.
Awesomespice.

And of course we got our craft on!

But apparently I left the salt at home.
Although I swear I packed it.
But it wasn't in the bag.
And then I found it next to the bagels when I got home.
Weird.

Saturday after soccer I took this guy to get his blood drawn.
He was so worried about it.
He kept asking we what it would feel like.
I said it wouldn't hurt as much as a shot,
but probably a little more than his TB test.
After it was done he said,
"Mom! You were wrong! It was just like the TB test!"
Phew.
No tears and all smiles after.

Saturday afternoon/evening I whipped up
a pretty composition notebook cover
for a friend in the ward that just got called on a mission.
She's staying local to be the secretary to the mission president,
but she still had to go to the MTC.
So she needed something to take notes in :)

Sunday it was all about church.
I got a new calling!
When the Bishop told me he was releasing me as Laurel adviser
I started bawling.
No joke!
He told me not to cry until I heard where he was calling me to.
2nd counselor in the YW Presidency!
Beehives here I come!!!
He said - You thought I was going to call you to Primary.
LOL

Monday there was no school!
Holla!
So we did lunch with our besties at Ruby's.

I'm not quite sure what this was all about,
but it's hilarious.

Tuesday the waste people dropped this monster off.
I did not order this monster.

Seriously, look at it compared to the one I wanted.
Crazy.
Call to straighten it out and apparently
some random person canceled my service
and ordered this?!
They were embarrassed to say the least.

Monday night was rough for this little lady.
This is was she looked like at 10:15am
on Tuesday morning.
Silly girl.

Tuesday night after soccer practice
we met Will at the church to help him get ready
for Cub Scouts.
The Girl led us in some music.

We came home and had dinner and movie - picnic style.
They had cheesy chips - not nachos - cheesy chips.

Wednesday I shipped off these for a local boutique this
Saturday.
I love the look of everything all packaged and pretty.

Wednesday was MADNESS!
-Last minute trim for picture day
- Finish up orders & get to the post office
- Drop of The Girl for a playdate
- Volunteer in the kinder classroom
- Drive home carpool & pick up The Girl
- Come home make cookies
-Dance class/run back during dance to make more cookies
- Pick up from dance/come home to take cookies out
- Run to the park for a playdate
- Home and more cookies
- Daddy home, dinner served, mommy off to YW in Excellence
Phew!

YW in Excellence was magical!
And the 6 dozen cookies I made got devoured.
Radtastic.

I got to try Butterbeer for the first time.
Yummy, but SUPER sweet.

This morning we tried out our special edition cereals :)
Well, The Girl did.
The Boy isn't much for cereal.

Insta Friday: October 14, 2011

2011-10-13T20:35:00.000-07:00

What's up party people???!!!
It was another action packed week here at our house.

Friday I powered out a cute little ditty to
giveaway at the SoCal Social.
It totally screamed Funky PolkaDot Giraffe :)

Friday we met my friend Brooke and her little
girl for lunch at Cafe Rio.
Mmmm . . . sweet pork salad.

Friday night Will's boss took us out to dinner.
Mastro's.
Seafood tower.
Scallops.
Alaskan King Crab Black Truffle Gnocchi.
Warm Butter Cake.
Magic.

Saturday I rocked the SoCal Social
with Jaime and Kara Noel.

It was so much fun!!!

And lunch at The Filling Station was YUMMY!

And Mark Montano was RAD!
(You might know him from 10 Years Younger or While You Were Out)
(Now you should know him from The Big A$$ Book of Crafts)
(ENTER MY GIVEAWAY!)

And I came home with lots of RAD-tastic stuff!

It's BACK!!!!!
Let the holiday stockpiling begin!

The Boy tried to get me to buy this
grocery store ninja costume.
Handmade mama don't think so!

Little M laid down on Tuesday
and The Girl played with her hair and
sang her songs.
Little M passed out at 11:00am.
The Girl covered her up and Shhh-ed me :)

Yes, we are still going strong on the Bento-style lunches.
They are so fun.
Especially since this month I can do HALLOWEEN!

The Girl will not be left out :)

That afternoon I busted out this beast.

And spent the afternoon trying to figure
it out when I should have been folding laundry.

We almost missed soccer practice!
Luckily my reminder on my Android went off
at 4:45 while I was standing in line at Costco.
We zipped home, grabbed the cleats and shin guards,
and zipped over to the field.

Mmmm . . . yummy lunch.

What the Wednesday HEAT WAVE, Batman?!

Not even funny.

And still 81 at 8:00??
Not cool.

The Girl and I enjoying Word World in our jammies
on Thursday morning.

Life is good.

Insta Friday: October 7, 2011

2011-10-05T14:41:00.000-07:00

We jumped right into October and we're loving it!
Friday carpool was awesome.
I love watching how excited these
little ones are to get to school each day.

Friday night while running errands we saw a rainbow!
There hadn't been any rain,
so it was super cool.

The errand we were running when we saw the rainbow
was a run to Trader Joe's to grab this!!!

All last Fall I meant to go and get some,
but I never remembered.
And then I was sad.

Friday The Boy also lost a tooth.
He's super proud because it means
he gets to be on the Lost Tooth Chart at school.
Simple joys.

Friday night we also went to the soccer skills clinic again.
Again it was awesome and The Boy had a a blast.

Saturday morning we got up at the CRACK OF DAWN
and headed to Knott's.

We had tons of fun and The Boy was proud
that he rode some Big Rides.

Saturday night while Will was at the Priesthood
Session of General Conference,
the kids I did some grocery shopping
after a picnic at the park with friends from church.
I found these and thought they were SO CUTE!

Sunday was General Conference watching day,
complete with pancakes and bacon.
I wanted German Pancakes, but got out voted.
I loved watching The Boy listen to keep
track of key words so he could fill up his graph.

I made a new princess.
Can you guess who she is?
Think old school.

The Boy went old school watching
old episodes of Super Mario Brothers.

Monday I started getting my butt kicked
but this lady.
Tuesday I couldn't walk.

I used my yummy pancake mix for dinner that night.
The kids begged me to add chocolate chips.
Smart kids.

Tuesday night I hosted book club.
We discussed The Last Lecture.
I spent the day scrubbing, decluttering and cleaning.
Why do I choose days that I HAVE to get the house clean,
to go through baskets of magazines and papers
and spent 2 hours sorting through the collecting?
Why?
Just dust, vacuum, sweep and call it good.
I have a problem.

I was all cleaned out after Tuesday,
so I woke up Wednesday to a rainy day
and my book club ~~feast~~ mess.

Since I was volunteering in the classroom that day,
I was also driving carpool Wednesday.
Rainy day + 5 kinders + a 2 yo = AWESOME!

I wish I would have taken a picture of my 6 little ducklings
following me in the rain with their 5 little umbrellas.
But I was too busy not getting wet :)

A rainy day also meant bun warmer,
heater, and homemade hot caramel apple cider
in my Longaberger travel mug.
Simple joys.

Today I worked on korkers.
I hadn't made them for a long time - kinda fun.

What's up with y'all?

Adventures in {Camp Spooky}

2011-10-03T00:01:00.000-07:00

Saturday the family and I got to attend
a VIP experience in Campy Spooky at Knott's Berry Farm.
I was super excited to take the kids somewhere I'd been
when I was a little girl.

Me and my mom circa March 1981

Luckily Jaime brought her fancy camera and snapped
awesome pictures for me all day long!
I did do the photo editing,
so at least I was partially useful :)

Since it was all about Camp Spooky,
the kids got to dress up.
The Boy was a "Hawaii Guy" and loved posing with all the characters.

The Girl was a "Hula Girl" and she had no interest in going near
any of the characters.

We started the day with a yummy breakfast at Lucy's Lunchbox.
I loved how they served the kids' breakfast in keep-able containers.
Can we say new Bento container???

After visiting with some bloggy friends - like Kara Noel -
we hit the rides with Jaime and clan.
It was a lot of fun watching the kids having so much fun.
I loved being in the park before the crowds and enjoying everything with no lines!

I even did some some!

What was I thinking???

After that ride I was a little woozy for an hour or so :)

The Girl was all smiles starting Woodstock's Airmail,
but her feelings at the end were another story.
Hee, hee

The kids even got to do some trick or treating!

The Boys - big and little - did some of the Big Rides!
Ghost Rider, Montezooma's Revenge and Sierra Sidewinder to name a few.
The Boy was crazy excited to conquer the Big Rides.

The Girls kicked it together and had some fun of their own.

The Dentzel Carousel is a classic!
(see the picture of me above)

Why is my girl so crazy?!

We had a fantastic time at Knott's Berry Farm.
The staff was awesome, the rides were fun,
and there was something for each of us to do.

And we even got to pretend we were hot dogs.
Awesome.

I also loved the jail . . . so did the boys.
They were in awe that the guy in jail knew their names.
True confessions . . . so was I!!! LOL

Thank you Knott's and Camp Spooky for having us!
Bye!
We look forward to coming back!

Disclosure: We were invited to Knott's Berry Farm by GigaSavvy to attend the VIP Camp Spooky Event. I attended because I was wanted to create fun memories with my family. I received parking, breakfast and park admission for free. I blogged about it because I wanted to and not because Snoopy & the Gang told me I had to. All the thoughts & opinions are mine.

Insta Friday: September 30, 2011

2011-09-29T13:52:00.000-07:00

Eeek!

September is over!!!
Insanity!!!

I found these pictures on Jaime's Facebook from last week
when she watched the kids so I could go to Back to School Night
and stayed to help me plan out the soccer banner.

Crazy sucker-loving kids :)

The soccer banner as it evolved . . .

Friday I was up for carpool . . . love the line of cute kids . . .

It's so fun that four of them are in the same class.

I kept working on the banner . . .

Friday night we went to the soccer clinic put on by the visiting UK Coaches.
It was awesome and I'm glad The Boy liked it.

Saturday we rocked the game with our new team banner.

Then it was off to a birthday party, because soccer pictures
that afternoon.

Saturday night Jaime and Jeremy joined us for the
last movie on the beach at the Newport Dunes.

We found this weird scene in the bathroom.
Not real, but still kind of creepy.

Sunday was Sunday.
Church and naps :)

Monday it was back to waiting for carpool to pick up.

Tuesday Jaime saved my bacon and watched the kids
while I got my hair did.

Ahhh . . . so much better!

Wednesday we went to the dance store
and picked up dance shoes for The Girl.
There was a drive-thru Starbucks next door.
Hello, Salted Caramel Frap.
The Girl inhaled it.
She has her mom's sweet tooth.
True story.

Wednesday afternoon and evening
we did dance,
park day,
pancakes for dinner,
and the YW Camp Reunion.

Thursday I did a room mom meeting,
worked on costumes for the Campy Spooky event at Knott's,
and picking up Will's suit from the dry cleaner.

Tiny Dancer

2011-09-28T00:01:00.000-07:00

This post is completely for the Grandparents :),
but she just looks too dang cute not share.

Last week The Girl took one step closer to being a big girl,
and started dance class.
I know, I know.
She's not even three yet,
but she just needed something to call her own.

She's not big enough for school.
She's not big enough for soccer.
But she thinks she's big :)

So when the dance teacher said she was big enough for dance,
I jumped at the chance.

She was so excited!
We got her a leotard & tights.
We still need to get ballet & tap shoes.

He didn't want to be left out :)

She loved trying on the leotards.
She settled on a pink one -
though black did have the vote for a few minutes.

She gave me the thumbs up when I said
I'd be back for her in a little bit.

She love the entire class
and loved all her friends.

I love my tiny dancer,
that is finally big enough for something of her own.

Insta Friday: September 23, 2011

2011-09-23T01:14:00.000-07:00

Saturday after soccer,
and before a birthday party,
we squeezed in our city's Emergency Preparedness Fair.
It was awesome.
Firetrucks, bike cops, police dogs . . . a little boy's paradise!

This was as close as she would get for a picture :)

(That's Shauncey - she's a search & rescue dog.)

Then we headed to the birthday party,
where we acted all crazy up in there.
Good times.

We finally busted out the hose and
gave the car a shower.
I was secretly holding onto the red Oregon dirt
because it made me smile whenever I looked at it.

Sunday my husband parked next to this car at church.
I want to know how we become besties with the owner.

I tried my hand at braiding for the first time.
She screamed all the way through all 45 seconds of it.
(And maybe I did too & had flashbacks to 1984.)

Did you all celebrate talk like a pirate day on Monday?
I wanted The Boy to wear his Pirate 'Stache shirt,
but he'd worn it and hid it in his room,
so it never made it to the laundry :(
So it was a basketball shirt instead.
Boo.

But I did survey the damage a 2.5 year old and 17 month
old made that day.
Did I do anything about it?
Nope, that's what the 5.5 year old is for.
He is such a GREAT BIG AWESOME helper.

Tuesday the UK coach helped the team practice.
So fun.
The kids loved his accent.

Wednesday I rocked a school volunteer badge for the first time.
Holla!

And the girl rocked her first dance class!

Wednesday was stressful for various - self inflicted - reasons
and so after I finally made it home and sat down,
I did so with a nice mug of hot cocoa.
It's the little things.

Thursday was less stressful and lots more fun,
mostly because Jaime came over and helped me make this.
She rocks.

(This is not the final product - just the first of several prototypes)

Insta Friday: September 16, 2011

2011-09-16T17:11:00.000-07:00

Woohoo!
It's Friday!

Last Friday I had this folder
of school documents to sort through,
read, sign, and return.

My handsome guy wore his Scooby Doo t-shirt.

We made a fun Back to School Survival Kit
for The Boy's teacher.
If you want the printables to make your own - GO HERE!

Will took us out to El Far!!! for a celebration dinner.
We brought Aunt H to join in on the fun.

Check out this Nacho Supreme appetizer.
We should have stopped here.
Srsly.

We came home and had fun at the hot tub
with glow sticks.

Saturday we had our first soccer game . . . in the rain.

And we enjoyed the rain . . . while it lasted.

We used it as an excuse to bust out the Cocoa Latte machine.

The Girl slept with a bun in her hair,
and in the morning she had voluminous hair.

Monday I started packing The Boy's lunch Bento-style.

And he wore his super heroes shirt.

Tuesday was our first day that homework was due,
so he rocked his "A Wookie ate my homework" shirt.
Holla!

This was Tuesday's Bento.

Tuesday was soccer practice.
It has been so awesome to see The Boy come out of his
shell and enjoy the game and get in there.

Here's Wednesday's lunch.

I had to go to the dentist today for the final adjustments on my new crown,
so rad Jaime came over to watch the kids.
Then we all went to Chick-fil-a thanks to Jaime.
She rocks.
And that night we did craft's the youth from church.

Thursday's lunch.

I spent Thursday morning with just The Girl and me.
It was so fun.
She helped me run errands and get ready for the
crafty get together that evening.
I sewed up some gifties for my friends that were coming.

Late afternoon I went back to the dentist to
get my crown cemented in.
Hallelujah!
This is the view from the chair.

Thursday night we got our craft and grubbin' on!

My super cute friend Kara Noel taught
us some awesome crafts.

I sprayed painted for the first time.
Ever.
No joke.

I gave the girlies their gifties and made them model
them for me.

Friday's Bento - so fun! I'm loving it.

Friday is my day to drive carpool.
Five 5 year olds + one 2 year old = AWESOME.
And lots of shocked looks from the other parents.
I had one mom say, "Oh - you're the BIG carpool."
Um, isn't that the purpose of carpool?
Pack it til it's full, baby!

The Girl and I went to the park.
She even got to swing.

This just looked so cute when I was waiting
for the Kinders.

Hello $.99 store WOOD earrings.

Remembering Summer: Bucket List in Pictures

2011-09-14T00:01:00.000-07:00

Remember our awesome Summer Bucket List?

It ensured we didn't rest for one minute this summer.

And I can honestly say it was a summer packed full of fun.
I thought it would be fun to show you our Bucket List in pictures.
So here we go!

1. Go to the swimming pool.
And boy did we go . . .

and go . . .

and go!

2.Go to the beach.
Only a handful of times this summer,
but still so awesome.

3. Go to Utah.
Oh, we went.

4. Take a trip to the OC Farm. (see #24)

5. Play at the park.
The kids love when Dad comes, because they can swing.
I don't do swings.
Moms - can I get an AMEN?!

6. Have a bonfire at the beach with Daddy.
We didn't {EXACTLY} do this one.
But we did have a bonfire with Dad.

And go to the beach with Dad :)

7. Go to the zoo.
The petting zoo that is!
We'll do the real zoo in October when kids are free and it
isn't 100 degrees.

8. Go to the LR water park.
This was my favorite "local" spot this summer.
Thanks, Jaime!

9. Make homemade popsicles (UNDONE)
This one would have been so easy.
No excuses here.

10. Eat at Panda Express.
This was also on Aunt McK's list, so it was perfect dinner
trip when she was here.

11. Swim at the Lagoon.
Thanks, Hero Camp!

12. Make rainbow Jell-O.
It was the perfect side at out 4th of July poolside BBQ.

13. Have a camp out outside.
We loved sleeping in the trailer tent so much, we did it twice!

14. Make a crab cake. (UNDONE)
This was The Girl's idea.
Not quite sure what she was going for.

15. Eat at the Sweet Tooth Fairy. (UNDONE)
Will is going to Happy Valley in a week,
maybe he'll bring us some back!

16. Visit the bakery. (UNDONE)
I guess you could count Sprinkles or when I went to the Julian Pie Co.,
but we didn't :)
We had plans to visit The Queen's Bakery,
but our plans were foiled by an electrical fire and a sudden closure :(

17. Have a slumber party in the living room.
We did this while Aunt McK was here.

This was the aftermath.

18. Go on a picnic in the park.
We had our picnic at the OC Great Park during the Razor event.
It was even more awesome that Daddy was there.

19. Play at the Pioneer Park Splash Pad.
Life is so hard.

20. Read Stand Tall Molly Lou Melon.
Check.

21.Visit the pet store. (UNDONE)

22. Go for a family walk. (See #5)

23. Eat at Yogurtland.
Oh we did - several times.

24. Go to the OC Fair.
It was my first time and we had lots of fun!
Fried frog legs, what's not fun about that?

25. March in a parade.
Ok, so we rode on a float in a parade, same difference.

26. Watch a movie on the beach.
To be completed on 9/24.

27. See fireworks.
We caught the city fireworks on the 4th,

and made our own for the 24th :)

28. Make homemade ice cream.
It was YUMMY!

29. Go to the library.
The Boy got big and got his own library card.

30. Have a pool party.
7 cousins, 3 aunts, and 4 extra friends . . .
the A-team knows how to PAR-TAY!

The only thing that was on The Boy's list
and not on the family list, was to go fishing.

{BONUS}
Go fishing.
Done.

Things we didn't complete:
Make homemade popsicles.
Make a crab cake.
Eat at Sweet Tooth Fairy.
Visit the bakery.
Visit the pet store.
Watch a movie on the beach.

My friend Jaime had the rad idea to finish them all
off in one day - I think it sounds like a rad plan.

What was on your bucket list?
Did you finish it all?

The First Day . . . of School that is

2011-09-12T16:13:00.001-07:00

We started the day with a smile . . .
a Mickey Mouse chocolate chip pancake smile!

The Boy was thrilled.
I surprised him with a special breakfast for his special day.

The Girl wouldn't be left out of the photo op :)

He looked so handsome,
with his spikey - not church hair - 'do.

Of course I was a manic trying to get out the door on time.
Of course I was a procrastinator an didn't make this sign until 15
minutes before we needed to walk out the door.
Of course my printer was REFUSING to print.
Of course I started sweating profusely as my anxiety sky rocketed.

He picked out his shirt -
because Batman is the coolest, or so I've been told.

He wanted to show off his new Lightning McQueen backpack.

Will joined us for the big day.

My friend Kirsten snapped a family photo.

Sweet anticipation.

Little S is in our ward, lives in our neighborhood,
and we carpooled to preschool last year.
I love her.
We are so blessed to have her in our class this year!

Little K was also in preschool with The Boy last year.
She is full of spunk and makes me laugh.
We're excited to have so many friends all together.

Here he goes.
Of course he's the last in line because he's
too busy socializing with all his friends :)

His sweet, sweet teacher greeted him by name.
AWESOME.
Or not awesome/sign of trouble because she already know his name?

Just kidding!
She's the one that did his kinder assessment
the week before :)

Oregon . . . Oh, How I Love Thee

2011-09-08T21:23:00.001-07:00

Over Labor Day weekend we shot up the state
of California to join Grandma & Grandpa A-Team
on their mission in Oregon.

They are serving as the caretakers of a YW Camp
and we wanted to visit and check out
the awesomeness that is Oregon.

Ok, so I didn't know that Oregon was so awesome
until I got there, but I fell instantly in love.
We got there Thursday night about dinner time
and G&G met us in Eugene at Carl's Jr. for dinner - Grandpa's favorite.
Then we headed back to the camp.
It was dark when we got there,
so we hung out and then went to bed.

Friday was a gorgeous day.
We visited the archery range, the confidence course,
and of course the pond!

We also hung out at the wading pond.

The Boy convinced Grandpa to take him out on the pond.

Getting back out was another matter :)

Later that evening we took The Girl to the "doll house".
She would have stayed here the entire trip if she could have.

The Boy enjoyed the rope swing.

Saturday we got up "early" and headed to Lone Pine Farms.
G&G knew that The Boy would {LOVE} this place.
Goats.
They were right :)

You could put the feed into cups and haul it up to the goats.

This guy looked like he wasn't going to wait for it to come to him!

They had a giant corn field with stalks, but no corn!
We couldn't figure out why, until we realized it was for a corn maze.

I just wanted to lay down in the gorgeous produce and die.
YUMMY!!!
We got blackberries the size of peanuts.

I'd love this water tower in my back yard . . . if I had a yard.

Makin' friends with the goats.

The Girl got brave enough to feed them herself.
She was like, "Did you see me mom?"

When we got back we put on our suits and headed to the pond.

Grandpa tried to get the zip line unlocked.

Will had to lend a hand.

Grandpa went first!

The Boy came next.

He almost had a heart attack out when he had to climb out of the
muddy bottomed pond. He kept saying - It's all muddy!
But he did the zip line 3 or 4 more times.

Will and The Girl came down next.

She told Will, "You are squeezy me too tight, Dad!"

The Boy on another trip down the line.

And another freak out about getting all muddy.

My pretty little lady.

Grandpa had to drain the pond for the season -
Oregon only lets them keep the water dammed
for so many months of the year -
so The Boy squeezed another boat ride out of Dad.

Then he played life guard in the cute tower.

Sunday we went to church and camp home and napped.
That evening we had a camp fire complete with smiles and s'mores.

And a few hot dogs . . .

Three generations of A-team men.
I love it!

I introduced G&G to Reese's Peanut Butter Cup S'mores.

The Boy loved them.

Will roasts the marshmallows just perfectly!
He's my go-to marshmallow roaster.

The Girl skipped the grahams & marshmallows
and just said - Give me the chocolate.

Heaven.

Grandma took The Girl and I on a ride around the meadow
on the Gator.

And she got one more visit to the doll house.

We miss them so much,
but are proud of them for serving the Lord and others.
I loved Oregon so much I would have stayed
there forever if Will would have let me :)
I plan on returning for Spring Break . . . Will thinks otherwise.

Insta Friday: September 9, 2011

2011-09-08T18:44:00.000-07:00

What an eventful week we had!!!
First, we hopped in the car last Thursday and
drove 906+ miles to Oregon up the I-5.
It was a beautiful drive.

Except we saw a disturbing dumpster
outside a Carl's Jr. in Stockton.
Eek!

We arrived in the evening and I fell in love instantly.

The road to the camp is SPOOKY at night :)

Friday we kicked it around the camp.
I showed everyone my MAD archery skills.

The Boy made a new best friend with one
of the boys camping with his family.

We ventured to the Confidence Course.

The Boy had a grand time pretending to be Tarzan.

It was quite entertaining.
(This is as far as they got.)

The pond looked gorgeous.

So The Boy convinced his Grandpa to take him out for a boat ride.

The Girl was in love with the "Doll House".

And The Boy enjoyed the rope swing.

Saturday we headed into to town to visit Lone Pine Farms.
The Boy was smitten with the goats.

I was smitten the blackberries!

We came back and headed for a dip in the pond.

Grandpa braved the zip line.

And so did The Boy!
And The Girl!

We checked out the lovely wading pond after
Grandpa pulled the plug on the big pond
to drain it for the year.

And saw an ENOURMOUS slug!

We explored the trails and visited the amphitheater.

Sunday we went to church.
So that meant I wandered the halls during
Sunday School with The Girl because she wasn't
having any of the going to Nursery in an unfamiliar place.
But the Relief Society lesson was awesome
and the teacher was darling & hilarious.

Sunday evening we had a farewell cook out.

Monday we loaded back in the car for 906+ miles down the I-5.

Mt. Shasta is lovely!

We got a little punchy.

Did cool tricks at Carl's Jr.

Made a pit stop at the Ghiradelli Outlet.
Yum!

And then almost 940+ miles and 18+ hours later,
we made it home.
Yep, a couple detours, lane closures, and holiday traffic
made it the drive from YOU KNOW WHERE.

Tuesday we did nothing.

Wednesday we had our last playdate of the summer with our favoritest friends.

Thursday my baby boy woke up a Kindergartener!
We had chocolate chip pancakes to celebrate.

He had a fabulous day and I survived.

We celebrated in style.
Salted Caramel Chocolate Frap?
I die.

Insta Friday: September 2, 2011

2011-09-06T14:56:00.000-07:00

I'm late to the Insta-Friday party,
but I was without internet this weekend,
so here it is!

The Girl learned how to give thumbs up.

These evil little things made an appearance
at a celebration for a dear friend on Saturday.

$3 Leapster games at Wal-Mart?
Best $3 I ever spent.

We met Martha thanks to PBS SoCal and Pretend City.

We also got to take Daddy to Pretend City for the first time.

My crown broke so I had to spend my
Monday afternoon in the dentist's chair:(

Tuesday we had a play date with just ourselves at the
the splash park.

Well, some other kids were there too :)

I rejoined the ranks of Soccer Mom for another season.

Isabella decided to pack herself for our trip.
She donned her Lid and backpack and said she was ready!

Wednesday night we partied in the hot tub.

Thursday we hit the road and headed to Oregon.

We saw this disturbing dumpster outside
a Carl's Jr in Stockton.

We arrived late, but it was gorgeous!

The road to the camp was spooky and fun!

Adventures in {Fairy Gardens}

2011-08-26T00:01:00.000-07:00

My uber darling cyber-turned-real-life-friend - Kara Noel of Eli's Lids -

invited The Girl and I to join her for a fun event via OC Family.
I was super excited because it took place in one of my favorite
places in Orange County - Old Town Orange.

We were up & ready by 8:00 in the blessed morning -
a rare occurrence around these parts.
Shameful, but true.

As soon as I pulled up to Dragonfly Shops & Gardens, I was in love!
It's a darling little shop in a vintage 1920's home.

We were the first to arrive - besides Kara Noel & crew -
so we spent a half hour or so touring the quaint & cozy grounds
and shop.

There were so many lovely things & The Girl wanted them all.
I was particularly interested in the miniature gardens.
Since we live in a town home with only a front patio,
there aren't any wide open spaces for gardening & growing.
But these miniature gardens are planted in pots
and are gorgeous!

Aren't they darling??

(Kara Noel talking fairy magic with Miss Dani about fairy magic.)

The Girl was excited to make her very own fairy garden,
but was nervous for me to go very far.

But she got to work painting her pot.

Miss Libby took good care of her when it came time for potting soil.

And Miss Dani helped her get everything just right.

She enjoyed adding the rocks to her fairy garden.
You have to cover the dirt,
because fairies don't like to get their feet dirty.

The entire morning was absolutely enchanting,
and I think a fairy garden class would be
perfect for a birthday party
or a morning out with friends.

Now we have a lovely miniature garden for
fairies to come and make mischief in while we're sleeping.

I'll definitely be back to Dragonfly Shops & Gardens,
because there were so many fabulous local vendors
inside the shop that I didn't get to look at
because I had a handsy 2.5 year old with me.

Plus, it's right down the street from Bruxie :)

You can find more information and pictures about
Dragonfly Shops & Gardens and the Dragonfly Hollow classes
in the following places:

Dragonfly Shops & Gardens
{WEBSITE}
{FACEBOOK}
{TWITTER}

Dragonfly Hollow
{WEBSITE}
{FACEBOOK}

If you do stop over, tell them Kyla from Funky PolkaDot Giraffe
and Awesome Family Fun sent you,
and they'll give you 20% off your entire purchase!

Disclosure: We were invited by Kara Noel to attend the Dragonfly Hollow class at Dragonfly Shops & Gardens. I attended because I {HEART} Kara Noel and it sounded like a fabulous thing. I received the class for free. I blogged about it because I wanted to and not because fairies told me I had to. All the thoughts & opinions are mine and were in no way influenced by fairy magic . . . or were they?

Insta Friday: August 26, 2011

2011-08-25T17:00:00.000-07:00

This week was a lot less jam packed,

and and I think we needed to slow down slightly,
but it just pretty much came to a halt.

Friday we did go to the library
and my little guy became a big guy and got his own library card.

I shopped the Friends of the Library Bookstore
and made out like a bandit!

Friday night I blow dryed and flat ironed for my
hot date with Will for our 10th wedding anniversary.

(Yes, I'm on the way to get the babysitter)

Will was so excited to take me to the infamous El Farolito in Placentia.
It's Legen . . . wait for it . . . DARY!
And it did not disappoint.

As is evident by this . . .

Saturday we got up at 7:30 in the blessed morning to
join Kara Noel at Dragonfly Hollow for a fairy garden class.

It was fabulous and magical.
(more to come tomorrow)

And Dragonfly Shops & Gardens is literally
a stone's throw from Bruxie,
so of course we had to brunch there.
We had the Nutella & banana with a side of waffle fries.
The Girl was only interested in the fries.
She also decided she wanted my Black Cherry soda
instead of her strawberry lemonade.

Funny story. I knew Bruxie was nearby, so after
the class I loaded The Girl into the car
and pulled away from the curb,
drove like 20 feet and realized it was 3 shops down
from the class!!!
Parking was scarce by this time, so I was like, GREAT!
I just lost my parking spot!
I circled the block quickly and luckily no one took my spot.
I'm such a blonde sometimes.
Beckey of The Hippo Brigade, who also attended the class with her daughter,
had the same idea, so we brunched and chatted.
So fun to make new blogworld friends.

Saturday afternoon I installed my anniversary gift.
It matches my Nikon perfectly :)

Shopping for school clothes has started.
Wookiee shirt?
Check!

I also took lessons from Julie and was a cool mom Saturday night.

Sunday I spent Sacrament meeting in here with a restless little girl.
Leaving me to wonder . . . why do I bother?
But then teaching a lesson on regular scripture study to my favorite teens
later in the three hour block reminded me why.

That night I experimented with
brownies, graham crackers, and marshmallows.
The experiment was YUMMY!

The Boy treated us to an Animal Magic show a la John Abrahms.

Monday we started taste testing possible lunches for school.
The banana PB&J burrito was a hit!

That night I made Gyozas and fried rice.
So tasty.

That night The Girl had a terrible headache.
It carried on ALL night and into Tuesday.
I was sure it was the flu.

Tuesday went to Target to get some fluids and Tylenol.
While we were there we found some sparkly nail polish
to do a Spa day while The Boy went to a playdate.
(I was totally upfront with the playdate friends what was going on with
The Girl. Just in case you were wondering.)

She never threw up.
She never coughed.
She never did anything but complain that her head hurt.
And by 5:00 that evening she was completely fine.
So, I concluded it wasn't the flu. Phew!

So we had a sparkly toes Spa date.

Wednesday morning The Boy woke up complaining that his head hurt.
Uh-oh, maybe it was the flu.
2.5 Tylenol Jr. and 3 hours later he was feeling fine
and asking for PB & Banana toast.
I obliged.
And to go swimming.
I did not oblige.
Two hours later - after falling asleep for an hour -
while I'm doing the dishes in the kitchen,
I hear, I think I'm going to . . .

I guess it was the flu.

Wednesday night he passed out on the floor in the living
room after not being able to keep anything down for over 8 hours.

He spent a sleepless night next to me in bed, tossing his cookies several times.
I was so worried I was going to wake up to being thrown up on,
but I survived . . . barely.

Thursday afternoon I had to head to the dentist to have a crown checked.
(Don't worry, it's just broken . . . again)
So I tried this stuff to make me look less Zombi-ish.

Came home and rifled through the food storage
shelves to find something to get me through the afternoon.
Found this, and cried.

And spent the afternoon next to this sweet boy.
(cookie tossing free since 10:00am today . . . knock on wood)

Adventures in Watching John Abrams: Animal Magician

2011-08-23T23:27:00.000-07:00

This summer we've been ~~stalking~~ {erm} following

John Abrams: Animal Magician.

We first saw him at Hero Camp at the end of July.
The Boy was instantly in awe of this man that did magic with ANIMALS.
He was heartbroken that he didn't get chosen.
But we did the whole,
"There are 150+ some kids that also didn't get chosen" speech
and talked about how cool the magic and animals were,
and we were all ok again.

Hero Camp July 2011

After a visit to John Abrams' website,
I found out that he tours local libraries during the summer!
We were too late for the two shows he'd do at our local libraries,
so we headed down to San Clemente to catch the action.

This time The Boy's dreams came true
and he was picked for one of the acts!!!!!
He was thrilled.
John walked by saying, "I need another boy."
And The Boy, trying to keep his seat planted firmly in his seat,
because John doesn't pick anyone not sitting, raised his hand
and shouted, "I'M A BOY!!!"
John said, "You certainly are. Come on up."
And John was even more endeared into The Boy's animal loving heart.

San Clemente Library August 2011

Finally, we took our friends with us to the Yorba Linda Library
for John's last library show of the summer.
We arrived at the same time that he was unloading his car and
The Boy shouts, "Animal magician!!!" and then
proceeds to tell him it was COOL how he did a certain piece of magic.
John kindly reminded him not to talk about it because some people hadn't
seen the show yet :)
He asked if we had seen him this summer.
I said, oh yes, this is our third time.
He said he wasn't sure whether we were stalkers or fans,
but he liked it. Ha!

One thing I liked about the Yorba Linda show was that the kids
sat on the carpet and were close to the action.
I love that you can see The Boy's giant smile from behind.
Look at those cheeks! He's thrilled to be so close.

John obliged me with several posed shots - just like at Hero Camp :)

Each time John chose audience participants,
and each time The Boy wasn't chosen,
he'd turn around and give me the thumbs up sign,
signifying that he was ok :)
We'd talked before how he'd had a chance to go up,
and so he probably would not get picked and that was ok,
because someone else needed a chance.

Well, low and behold, for the 2nd to last act,
HE WAS PICKED!!!!
See the excitement????

They got to "move it, move it" a little on stage before
John started the animal magic.

Well, The Boy definitely MOVED IT!!!
And pretty soon he was the only one movin' it.
He drew smiles and laughs from everyone - including The Animal Magician.

Now onto the magic . . .

Presto!!!

Now The Boy "plays" Animal Magician
and gives us magic shows in the living room.
We also chant a lot of, "I'm gonna check me out some books!"

John Abrams' Animal Magic shows are MAGIC!!!
The kids are enthralled and engaged
from the moment he walks onto the stage.
Thank you Orange County Public Libraries & Mr. John Abrams
for making this summer magical for one ~~little~~ animal lovin' boy.

John Abrams also does school assemblies!!!
We're new to public school this Fall,
but you can bet I'm going to figure out how to get the PTA
to get him there!!!

{WEBSITE}
{TWITTER}
{FACEBOOK}

Disclosure: I attended all of the John Abrams' Animal Magic shows of my own volition
and received no compensation - except for an excellent time and a happy 5 year old - for attending or writing this post. I wrote this post because we love John Abrams' Animal Magic and we want to share it with the world!

Par-tay at Pretend City!!!

2011-08-23T00:01:00.000-07:00

Last week we attended the 2nd Birthday Party for Pretend City.
There was a RAD deal on Plum District,
and I already had Plum Dollars,
so it was perfect timing.

The kids were so excited to go to Pretend City.
I kept it a surprise until we pulled up and then said, "Surprise!"
They didn't love that we were 15 minutes
early and had to wait outside in line :)

So we took some pictures with the rad polka dot balloons.

As we headed in we were greeted at the table by Plum District reps
and got our tickets for our Dippin' Dots from @dippindotwoman herself,
cake pops from Just a Bite, and candy bags from the B Candy candy bar.

Jackpot!!!

We actually ended up right at the face painters from Creative Parties for Kids.
It was awesome luck because the line got long as soon as we sat down.

+

She looks less than thrilled, but it's just her serious face.
She wouldn't smile - she was all business.

+

During face painting I had the opportunity to meet the
Social Media Specialist at Pretend City - Juliet Ekinaka.
It was so fun to talk to her about how Pretend City
has expanded their Social Media reach to help
bring the awesomeness of Pretend City to more families.

(Juliet is in the top right corner of the picture. She was adorable and rocked a rad headband.)

The finished products!

After face painting we picked up our cake pops from just a bite
and loaded up our candy bags from the B Candy candy bar.
The kids were in HEAVEN!

+

After we danced a little on the stage and then found our
friends, we decided it was time for some Dippin' Dots.
The Boy went for rainbow, while The Girl and I had caramel brownie.

Pretend City is perfect for The Boy because he LOVES to pretend
and he loves FARMS!
Pretend City has a farm complete with a ride on tractor.
He was in heaven and seriously rode around the city for over an hour,
until he kindly gave it up to his friend Sam to ride for a little bit.

The Girl loved all the activity and the people.
She went from the beach, to the fire station, to the farm,
to the grocery store, to the stage and back again.
She finally found the marina and stayed there for the last half hour,
just splashing away with her brother and his friend.

She also enjoy several of the UNLIMITED bags of popcorn.

+

We had a fabulous time and we'll be back to Pretend City again soon!
Thanks to all the vendors that made this a fabulous afternoon!

Disclosure: I attended the Pretend City 2nd Birthday Party via Plum District. I paid for my own tickets and everything mentioned was included in the ticket price to this special event.
All opinions about the experience are my own and I received no compensation for them.
However, if you follow the Plum District link and sign up, I receive referral points.

Insta Friday: August 19, 2011

2011-08-19T01:38:00.001-07:00

Where is this month going???

We had a fun filled week and the days are flying by.

The rock candy is done!
And beautiful and yummy.

A friend passed away suddenly last week,
and his funeral was Saturday.
One bright side was that Grandma A left her mission
and came to be by her besties side during this sad time.
We took advantage of having her here.
The Girl had a successful romp in the backyard:)

We cleaned up a bit and headed with most of the A-team to Souplantation.

No pictures, please.

Monday we went to the Birthday Par-tay! at Pretend City.

It was awesome!
(more on that later)

Tuesday Jaime treated us and my "cousin" Cory to her rad water park.
We were early ::GASP::
So we kicked it on a bench.

Wednesday was our FIRST Sprinkles & beach day of this summer.
Double ::GASP::

But it was a good one!

Except for the fact that The Boy has decided that he hates sand on him.
Really? at the beach? You're freaking out because of the sand?

But it was made better with friends.

Wednesday night we went bowling with the youth from church.

The Girl only lasted 5 frames and then The Boy had to bowl for both of them.

Thursday was Chick-fil-A & John Abrams' Animal Magic!
Yes, again.
We're addicted to his humor, animals, and MAGIC!

And when I got home, Will was waiting with flowers.
Ten years, baby.
Holla!

How was your week?
Is your summer over?
Has school started?
Did you check out the first installment of
Welcome to Mommy School??