Desert Fun

Jack has been BEGGING to see Luke and Collin for months now. He was over the moon when he got a chance to spend the day with them Friday. They played at the park for a while and then we all enjoyed a delicious lunch at Pizza Vino. Great food, great company!
Extra bonus was seeing Great Tutu on Thursday! We grabbed deli lunch on our way into town and descended upon her quiet home with our motley crew. The kids were wound up from being in the car for a few hours, but Grandma Dotte handled it with her usual grace and charm. It was so wonderful to sneak a few hours in with her.
Now finally home after too many days away. Nothing like tucking into your own bed after several days away.

Christmas Kisses for Shannon and Lauren

This just melted my heart this morning....watching Shannon and Lauren give each other Christmas Kisses.  A memory maker for sure.  Merry Christmas everyone!

Rude Language

Sometimes Mommy and Daddy just need a good laugh :-)

Happy 5th Birthday Jack!

Five years ago today, our beautiful little miracle boy came into our lives and changed it for the better.  In light of what occurred last Friday, I can only say that we are especially lucky and blessed to have him in our life and we cherish every moment with him.

Happy Birthday Jack!

The Elf Is Back

Last year we adopted an elf and Jack named him Pootie. He comes to stay with us from Thanksgiving until Christmas. He observes the goings on and reports back to Santa every night. The kids can talk to him and tell him what they want from Santa.
Well, Pootie has been a bit mischievous lately. Below are some photos of the tricks he's been pulling. He read to our candy dispensers, wrapped the toilet in Christmas paper and hung our underwear from the mantle! Needless to say, the kids have been thrilled with his antics :-)

Short Movie of the Yo Gabba Gabba Live Event

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Happy Thanksgiving

It was a quiet one for us. I made a traditional meal with every detail. The turkey was brined and roasted perfectly this time. And all the sides were delicious. Of course, pumpkin pie and pecan pie too. We had plenty of down time, relaxing on the couch, watching some classic movies. Simple day, reflecting on all our blessings and how grateful we are for all of you. Hope your day was wonderful.

Yo Gabba Gabba

Today we took the kids to LA to see Yo Gabba Gabba Live. We arrived early to grab lunch at The Yard House. Mommy and Daddy needed a beer to withstand 2 hours of kids' music and dancing characters. Overall, it was a good day. Lauren LOVED the show. She danced and sang from start to finish. I really liked the rapper Biz Marquee. It was adorable when he had kids come on stage to perform with him. The look on Lauren's face when DJ Lance Rock came on stage was priceless! We'll have to get that video clip posted soon. Now off to make turkey sandwiches...yum!

U-C-L-A

Can you guess which team we are rooting for? After beating USC we are pretty pleased with our new coach and our whole season. We hope to beat Stanford Saturday and earn the title of PAC12 champs.

Cute

That's all. Just cute. She was practicing her cute pose for our family pictures. If you think that's good, just wait until you see what the photographer got! Holy moly!

Andria's Wedding

After months of planning, the big day finally arrived for my beautiful sister, Andria, and her wonderful fiancé, Roberto. It was a perfect day, filled with so many reminders of how blessed I am. The kids did a great job as flower girl and ring bearer. I was honored to be a member of the wedding party and had such a great time with the party crew (all 20 of us!). Thank goodness Rob was able to take such a huge role with the kids, so I could be present for Andria. Lauren had such a great time dancing that she literally feel asleep on her feet! One minute we were rocking out to Italian songs and then her hand slipped out of mine. As I picked her up, she laid her head on my shoulder and conked out! It was a full day of fun for all of us. Of course more photos will be coming after the photographer gets done, but here are a few to get you started...

Lauren has an early birthday celebration

Although Lauren's birthday isn't until this coming Thursday, Oct 25th, we had an early celebration at Grandma Laura's house last night.  She loves the ruby red shoes she received from Grandma and Pa.

The Apple doesn't fall far from the tree

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CPC Pre-School Harvest Fedtival

I had the pleasure of running one of the prize booths for the Harvest Festival today at the kid's Pre-school. Jack had a great time.

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Cutest

Is it just me or is she the cutest girl ever?

Jack goes to yellow belt!

Jack was so proud and excited at his belt ceremony yesterday.  He has done really well since starting his TaeKwonDo lessons.   He passed his first belt test and received his new belt last night with all of us watching.

Bath Bunny

Kids say the darnedest things. I could not go to bed before sharing Jack's latest zinger. Let me set the scene: bath time. While juggling his wiggly sister, I said to Jack, "Pick up your washcloth and start cleaning your body. And DON'T forget your butt." He sadly picked up his bunny wash rag and said to it, "Sorry bunny!" And proceeded to wash his bottom. Hee hee!

Boo Decor

We spent a little time yesterday getting decked out for Halloween. Thinking so much of Grandpa Nick and Tutu while we dig our (and their) treasures out of the trunk. Lauren thinks it's spooky, but she says "fooky" which is just hilarious.