corona del mar beach

We spent some time discovering new beach spots.
This was an evening at Corona Del Mar Beach.
It was hot, the water was just right and the sunset unreal.

mt. loafer

We had a plan: Hike to the top of mt. loafer
So we met up at 6:00 am and we were off.
It was such a beautiful morning.
I wish I could start off every day like this.

We took a little break in the forest
and somehow started doing this.

We are such nerds. We were laughing so hard.
I was crying.. I almost peed my pants.
A hiker man stumbled across our path.
I think he was very startled.
We have always had the best times for the last 20 years! (yikes can that really be?)
From middle school to mothers.
I love these life long friends.

a funk

Ever since our return home from Disneyland and the kids have gone back to school Lucy as been in a bit of a funk. Some might even call it a slight depression of some sort. All she wants to do all day long is stay in her pajamas and watch one of four things.
1. You tube videos of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride over and over and over again. Which is only 8 minutes long. So every 8 minutes long you hear her yelling MAAAAAA MAAAAAA PIRATES!! I have learned to get stuff done in 8 minutes intervals which is sort of a pain.
2. Nemo
3. Monsters Inc.
4. Mickey mouse club house
One day when a full on fit occurred with I tried to wash her pajamas I knew she needed an intervention. I put my foot down. My 2 year old was no longer going to be a duplicate of a washed up housewife wearing dirty pajamas and watching you tube all day. She even wanted to eat her meals in bed in front of the computer...In bed I tell you! Which was a battle she never won but still just that she would try was bad enough. So I have initiated a few rules starting with limiting her Pirate watching and getting her out into the sunshine at all times possible. I think she is starting to pull out of it...phew! I was getting worried.

disney

We really did not take a lot of pictures at Disneyland unless they were on our phone. We were just to busy planning out our fast pass strategies, getting soaked on rides, eating frozen lemonades, watching fireworks and parades, and hitting every ride imaginable on both sides of the park. We had the best time but went back to the hotel literally exhausted every night. I thought the kids would want breaks during the day. I was so wrong.

This was Lucy on every ride arms up and lovin it!

Highlights:
It was a surprise trip for the kids. Canyon thought we were going to Boston because that is where the flight crew said they were from. They did not put it all together until Canyon saw all the California license plates and saw the Disneyland sign on the freeway. They were so excited!

Ellie loved the big fast rides. She wanted to go on Indiana Jones SOOOOOO bad but even with a little help adding some height she was still an inch short. She went to bed that night the last thing she said before she shut her eyes was "I hope so bad I grow an inch tonight". Canyon laying closely nearby replied " I hope you do to". The next morning he marched her straight over to the measurement stick and sure enough she did not grow that inch. She was so disappointed but I think Canyon took it a little harder than her. He felt so bad for her. It was so sweet.

Little Lucy deserves a post of her own. She was literally crazy about it all. Mini mouse, fireworks, rides, cotton candy. But most of all it was all Pirates for her. She could not get enough of that ride. After a few rides on it she would anticipate the drops coming up and would raise her little arms up and sing the theme song the whole ride through. We had to practically bribe her to get on the tea pots after that ride :). She got to go on the Mattahorn with a little added height help and loved that one too. To this day she still remains a little crazy. Disneyland has changed her. I am serious.

Favorite Rides
Canyon- California Scramin/Space Mountain
Ellie- Space Mountain/Tower of Terror
Lucy- Pirates/and in a very far 2nd Mattahorn, Monsters inc. or Pooh Bear.

second day

Canyon was sick the first day. It was kind of sad.
So this was his second day of school.
He is making 4th grade look good. :)

p.s. he is also making Ellie look really small in this picture. He is a big brother but not that big.

laguna beach

Laguna Beach: great beach, super neat town.







The waves were SO big when we were here. The tide kept creeping up on us until we were pushed as far as we could go. We had dug a hole for Lucy to sit in. We had a surprise wave come in. Shane went to save the camera and the tide swallowed up Lucy in her hole. When the tide receded it had filled the hole with sand and she was trapped. No tears were shed, just a really serious (are you kidding me how could you let this happen) blank stare and some super messy hair. We were all laughing so hard, including every stranger nearby. I wish we had our camera out for a picture.

oh..sweet music

music makes almost everything in life a little better don't you think?

songs like these have been keeping me company around the house while I do mundane things.
it makes the world of difference....thank goodness. :)
have a listen and see.

You Really Got A Hold On Me - M. Ward & Zooey Deschanel

simplicity

It was Ellie's first day of first grade. It is a harsh reality when you realize your little one spends more time with a teacher during the day than yourself (the mom). I was excited to find out how her day went and have all the questions flowing through my head answered. Did she eat her food at lunch? Did she find someone to play with at recess? Did her day seem long? Did she make any friends in her class? (she didn't know anyone in her class). Here is her response in true Ellie fashion.

Me : How was your day
Ellie: It was good...it was really, really good.
Before I have a chance to respond
Ellie: And guess what! It is really easy to make new friends because girls say "do you want to play with me" and I say "sure, I like your ponytail"......and then you are best friends.
Me: Oh..good Ellie. What our their names.
Ellie: hmmm...... I don't know.

I love how simple a child can make things in life be.

(ellie first day, first grade, 2009)

wonderful

This is what we were doing last wonderful weekend.
(more to come)

Happy End of Summer long weekend everyone!

Stewart Falls 2009

Every year we hike to Stewart Falls.
Luckily for us no one got fully submerged into stinging nettle this year.
Only a slight mishap on a giant log turned teter toter took place.
and the weather was near perfect.
Until next year little waterfall, we love you.

speed of light

This little lady has got some legs on her. Her lengthy stride probably doubles her height.
I love the way her little fists clinch up and how high her legs get off the ground when she picks up her speed.
It was amazing to me that she even made it to go back the other way without totally eating it face first.....and after looking at these pictures even more so.

nine

He may be old enough to swim in the deep end, be the oldest in his elementary school next year, attend summer camps, play night games until dark sets in and only come inside when hunger sets in. Every so often when I carry him to bed and his long legs dangle to the floor I get a heavy reminder that he really is old enough for that stuff. I just feel lucky that he still is a little nervous about thunder at night, not that embarrassed by me yet, watches cartoons in the morning, tells me I always know how to make him feel better, and gives me a hug and a kiss and a "I love you" everyday. These things help me realize he will always be my little guy.....no matter how big. I am grateful for that.

13.1 miles

So It just happens that I just completed my first half marathon. Toward the end of training for this race I was so burnt out on running that I was sort of dreading the race itself. 13.1 miles seemed sooooooo long. But 2 giant blisters, really really sore legs, and a finish line later I am happy that I did it and I finished in better time than I thought I would.{yay!} So here is a little re-cap on how things went down.
3:50 wake up, dressed,other stuff, wheat toast with peanut butter and jelly {yum}.
4:15 off we go
5:00 get on bus to shuttle up to the start.
5:30 arrive at the start...or is it a refugee camp. The start was in a big dirt/gravel space in the middle of the woods. It was pitch black and unusually cold. People were just wondering around in the darkness with garbage sacks and space blankets on huddled together and peeing in the bushes. {porta potties had a long line}. It was so strange it seemed like a refugee camp to me.
6:00 sun starts to come out.. pretty view... lots less refugeeish.
7:00 race starts.
mile 4- feeling good.
mile 7 a 1 mile up hill climb. No better time to try out the GU. It was nasty but I swallowed that slimy clump whole and drank a whole bunch of water. I made it up the hill and back down. Thankyou GU!
mile 11 - tired, tired, tired, sore, sore, sore. blister is coming Ahhhhhhh! Keep running keep running. I kept telling myself that like a crazy person. Maybe I was a little crazy at that point. A little black eyed peas helped me through it.
mile 12- almost done.. pick up the pace lets get this think done already. That is when I heard a honk and saw my kids hanging out of the car waving.....that helped me push through it. {love you guys!!!}
mile 13.1 Finish line. {YAY}

Geez...what can I say I have a love/hate relationship with running. It was fun in a werid sort of way and tormenting all at the same time. But I accomplished my goal for the summer a half marathon and It felt good. However my legs do not... they are soooo sore. Will I be able to walk tomorrow?

p.s. how do runners make it with out music? My music kept me going so many times. There is no way I would have made it.
And how to people run double what I just did and do a full marathon...AMAZING!

I Gotta Feeling - Black Eyed Peas

sprouting

Over the summer some changes have occurred that make me realize that even though I call her baby she is really not that at all. Opening doors is a piece of cake, the somersault has a new perfect form and the big wheel has never seen such attention. New words are escaping those little lips everyday. Last week was "humus" and "heartburn"....it makes me laugh. She is not only spunky but opinionated now. Especially when it comes to shoes, she wants the blue diamond ones... always. One thing remains constant. When ever it's sleepy time she asks for three things. Ba Ba {bottle} B {blanket} and then she smiles and says "bed" and sleeps and sleeps and sleeps. How can I ever turn that down? It's so easy. I am a sucker. One thing is for sure. That change is going to be a hard one.