Haircut...Oh No!

Rob keeps reassuring me that this is Jack's "summer haircut."  If by summer he means "God awful," then I agree.  Same stylist as always, but I don't know what happened this time.  It is so short that all his cowlicks stand at attention.  Please pray for Jack's hair.

Blackmail

Now THAT'S what I call bed head!

Uuuhhhhh...needless to say, I immediately called to schedule an appointment for him to get his hair cut this week.  But if this is not one of the cutest photos of him, then I don't know what is.  Mommy will be using this for sure when he is in high school.  For sure!

Fireworks

Brunch in Redondo

Waiting for fireworks

Wow!  Fireworks!

Snoozing in the stroller

After brunch in Redondo Beach we journeyed back to Ventura in time to catch fireworks at Ventura City College.  We had a picnic dinner on the lawn, listened to music and waited for the sun to set.  Jack and Rob wandered thorough the vendor booths and came back with a cool Batman cape/mask for Jack.  We had hot chocolate (boy does our Thermos work, yikes!), cookies and popcorn to munch on as the sun slowly sank in the sky.  Finally it was time to cuddle in our chairs and take in the show.  Great display, as usual.  The biggest shocker of the evening was that Baby stayed awake for the entire evening!!  We brought her in her jammies since she usually falls asleep between 7:00 and 8:00, but she was wide eyed for the entire event.  She wasn't scared of the explosions, thank God, because the ear plugs didn't work in her tiny ears.  When the last burst fizzled in the sky, we packed up the stroller and wagon to head home.  Both kids were sound asleep before we got off campus.  We literally poured them into bed (Jack couldn't be roused enough to even get his jammies on ) and then sacked out ourselves.  What a crazy, busy, extra fun four day weekend!

Asleep in the wagon

P.S. I Love You

Happy, happy, joy, joy!

Palm Springs in July?  If Kim and Lorenzo are there for a quick visit from Italy, then so are we!  Two of the greatest, fun-packed days we've had in a very long time.  Yes, the heat was ridiculous, but when you have air conditioning, a pool and super company, who cares.  Jack and Lauren spent most of their waking hours neck deep in the water.  Jack loved copying Luke and Collin by jumping off the edge of the jacuzzi into the pool.  Miss Lauren wowed the crowd by showing off her mad skills at kicking and swimming underwater.  I seriously don't remember the last time we were all together, seems like someone is always missing.  But with Nick and Paula there from Oceanside, Kim and Lorenzo from Italy, and us from Ventura it was like Thanksgiving in July.  Jack had the best time EVER playing with his wonderful cousins, in the water and out.  At one point we had Angry Birds being played on three iPads and an iPhone all at once!  We had delicious meals both days, too.  I can't decide what my favorite was, maybe we should do it all again to refresh my memory, ha!  Pasta, potato salad, ribs, pear tart...(mouth watering)...over two days I know I defeated my week's worth of hours at the gym, but it was well worth the splurge.  Thanks so much to everyone for making such a fabulous weekend for us.  My laundry is clean, I'm ready to do it again :-)

Mommy and the little dolphin

Auntie Kim and her future partner in crime

Three Gaming Musketeers

Movie time!

A serious feast deserves some serious wine, Bella Barbera!

Flemings

Hey, hey, the gang's all here!

Friday night was classic Dinner with Dad Night. It's been a while since we did an MLK (my little kids) dinner with Dad, but this time we had all four of us kids and even all our "dates."  Flemings in Manhattan Beach did not disappoint.  Food, service, ambience, were all outstanding.   Nikki and Troy brought the entertainment (lottery scratchers) to celebrate everyone's birthday since it has been many months since we have had a dinner celebration together.  We also had Andria's graduation from nursing school to celebrate.  My mom and Jim watched all three grandkids for us, so it was an unusual adult only event.  Rob and I didn't know what to do without kids, so we ate, drank and laughed like newlyweds.  We told jokes and stories until about 10:30 which felt like 2 AM to us parents in the group! On Saturday, Rob and I were both in a world of hurt from trying to keep up with the professional drinkers at the table, but we had so much fun that it didn't damper our spirits at all.

Dad and Phil

Roberto and Andria

Nikki and Troy

Who are those people without Jack and Lauren?

Bone-in rib eye, mac 'n cheese, asparagus, garlic mashed potatoes, onion rings and shoestring fries.  Not to mention my pomegranate martini!

She's Nekey!

Getting ready for her bath after swimming.  Lauren has been scooting everywhere!  She has almost cracked the code for crawling, but in the meantime she uses her tummy as a fulcrum and turns wherever she wants to go.  He also rolls side over side as quick as a flash.  And bath time is her favorite time of day, without a doubt.  She is our water baby, for sure!

Aaaaargggghhh Mateys!

It's hard to believe that Max is already 2 years old!  But we joined the family in Long Beach to celebrate his "terrific two" birthday with a fabulous pirate party.  Jack started researching his role early.  We went to Disney store for the hat and wig, and the 99 cent store for all his other props.  We raided his closet for "piratey" clothes.  We even watched Peter Pan and a little bit of Pirates of the Caribbean so he could perfect his performance.  By the time the party arrived, he was ready for his Oscar worthy performance.  He couldn't decide if he was Captain Hook or Captain Jack Sparrow, but either way he had a blast!

Shiver me timbers!

He thought the mustache and beard were AWESOME!

That's a lot of candles little man

...and I'll huff, and I'll puff...

Oh, love your cousin.

Grandma Phyl with Lauren

It's hard to say which of them loved cuddle time the most.

Returning home with frosting in his beard.