Life's a Beach

After 2 years we finally went on a vacation that did not involve hospitals, doctors or stress. We took off for Pismo on a Wednesday and didn't come back until late Saturday! We never get to go out of town during summer because of Cory's job. The last time we went anywhere it was November and only a quick trip to the beach. So this time was so nice to be able to actually unpack and relax. We spent the first day on the beach all day....sandcastles, playing in the water and a picnic. The next day we drove to San Simeon to see the elephant seals then stopped along the way back to Pismo. We had lunch in Cambria, fed the seals in Morro Bay...so fun! The last day we had a big breakfast then headed to the Avila Farm. We took the tractor ride, fed the goats and got some goodies for Granny and Papa (they had been babysitting Bear for us). We finished off with more fun on the beach at Avila before heading home. I think we all threw a fit when it was time to head back. We had so much fun being to focus on nothing but each other, the kids even got along better! We ate yummy food, filled our bellies with as much Pismo Yogurt as possible and ended each night with the relaxing spa! It was a very long overdue break from reality...now where to go to next?!

Fun, Fun and More Fun!

Summer fun has arrived! With school ending came all the joys of summer - kicking off the festivities was Kindergarten Celebration (aka graduation) where the kids sang some songs and had yummy cake! The very next day was Sami's 6th birthday. Honestly, how did this happen?? Six years old, really?? I cannot believe that much time has gone by since I first held my baby girl. She is becoming such a little lady. Any remnants of those toddler days are long gone! She had all of her cousins and family over for a swim party that weekend. She and Cory shared a birthday present (his birthday isn't until July 14th..didn't this work out well for him??). They got a Wii..she was showered with all kinds of fun games and goodies to go along with it too. She can almost duplicate Miley Cyrus' "Hoedown Throwdown" dance from the movie. Oh, the joys of video games! We took a family trip to the Fresno Zoo and had a fabulous time - the kids loved seeing all the animals and we got to eat at our favorite Fresno restaurant, yummy! Next came Sami's June ballet/tap recital at LJ Williams Theatre. The theme this year was
"Broadway Babes" and she did an awesome job! Her "boyfriend" Joey even brought her flowers after the performance. Very convenient that his Mom is one of Sami's ballet teachers! We celebrated with Red Robin afterwards, of course! Then we had our Father's Day BBQ at church and home. And now, 4th of July just came and went. We went the Rawhide game the night before. The kids had a blast running around, eating snow cones and watching the fireworks at the end. The next day we had dinner at Granny and Papa's, then off to Exeter for the fireworks show. This is our absolute favorite place to go for fireworks. Blankets, lawn chairs, drinks and a few yummy treats is all you need. We loved it! All in all, this summer is shaping up to be fantabulous! Our next adventure: 4 days in Pismo...can't wait!!

PooPoo Play

Matthew has been showing a lot of interest in potty training these days, so I try to take advantage of it when I can. A couple of days ago, we were staying in for the afternoon and he had just gone potty on his own. So...since we weren't going anywhere, I figured I would let him wear his new Cars underwear. Two minutes later this is what happened:

Matthew: "I peepee in my chonies Mommy"
Me: "It's ok buddy, you're learning. Come here, we will change you."

Matthew walks over to me and I proceed to pull down his shorts and then underwear.

Me: "OH NO!! You didn't tell me you had gone poopoo in your chonies!"

Poop is all over the floor and his legs at this point.

Matthew: "I sorry Mommy, I sorry" as he tries to step away from to poop only to actually step in it and then do a banana peel slip and fall in it.

Me: "Matthew, just stay still. There is poop everywhere!"

Matthew is now getting upset and starting to cry. Sami meanwhile has been sitting at the table nearby doing homework and decided to help out.

Sami: "It's ok Matthew. You are learning, this just happens sometimes. I used to have this problem when I was learning too."

Such a sweet girl, she then goes into Matthew's room and gets a diaper to try to be even more helpful. Meanwhile, I have most of the floor cleaned up, his feet and legs. I turned to get more wipes and that is when I saw poor little Matthew with a wipee in each hand cleaning the floor!

Me: "Matthew it's ok honey, you don't have to clean the floor. Mommy will do it."

Matthew steps away and I continue to clean up the mess not paying attention to what the kids are doing. When I got done, I stood up to take it all to the trash and what do I see? Sami has lifted Matthew onto the coffee table to put a diaper on him. Great help but one problem...I hadn't quite got to cleaning his bottom just yet!

Me: "OH NO! Sami you can't put him up there...Mommy needs to clean his bottom."
Sami: "I'm sorry Mommy, I didn't know where to put him."
Me: "It's ok but he needs to get cleaned up and now we need to clean the table."

Matthew gets down, I wipe his bottom and head to get more cleaning supplies. When I return, there is sweet Matthew with yet another wipee in his hand cleaning the table and saying...

Matthew: "It's otay Mommy, it's otay. I cleaning...all better!"

And with such satisfaction on his face he goes and puts the wipe in the trash. How could you not just sit and laugh at all of this?! That is exactly what I did...sat down with them and laughed until it hurt. I wish I'd had a video camera of the whole experience....kids - gotta love 'em!

Time Flies...

Here again, I have let time get away from me and the blog has been neglected. Between work, sick kids, holidays and activities - we have been flying by the seats of our pants! Let's see...what has happened: Sami lost her 2nd tooth at ballet, Matthew has been through the ringer with a virus, Easter/Spring Break, ending of the weight lost competition at work (didn't win but lost 15 lbs), warm sunny days outside, our first swim and now Mother's Day. This is my 2nd favorite time of year and I am relishing every ray of sunshine. The effect the extra time outside has on the kids is the cherry on top...sleep! Here are some random pics taken over the last month or so, enjoy (see slideshow above).

Oh the Lil' Leprechauns

St. Patrick's Day came with much excitement this year. Sami was so excited to see if the leprechauns would visit her house this year and Matthew was even a little curious as to what exactly was going on! While the kids and I took a nap, those little tricksters invaded the house and caused all kinds of trouble. They knocked over the chairs, got into the flour leaving footprints all over the house, tied our curtains together and made an overall mess. Fortunately they also left behind a bucket of goodies: chocolate coins, gold nugget bubble gum and suckers! Who said you need to be Irish to enjoy this holiday?!

Friends from Afar

While I was growing up my family had exchange students from other countries that lived with us for a year at a time. Lars is from Denmark and lived with us while I was in elementary school, I think maybe 4th grade. He moved to the US several years ago but we had lost touch along the way. Thanks to the wonder of facebook we all reconnected. Lars, along with his 3-year-old son Tristan, came and spent the weekend with our family 2 weeks ago. We had so much fun and the kids got along perfectly! We ate lots of yummy food, watched Josh play some baseball, went to the St. Patrick's Day parade and even roasted marshmellows over the fire pit at Papa & Granny's house. We are all looking forward to many more visits with the two of them! Here are some pics of our fun times: