staycations in full swing

It's really the way to go, I'm tellin' ya!

Staycationing is where it's at!
My kids still get naps, it's cheaper, I don't have to live out of a suitcase, and we still have a BLAST!


Friday, I met my friend Fawn down at Sea World. They have a new Sesame Street play area that is fun for kids Jack's age. He kinda loses interest in the animal shows. You know, the somewhat educational part. But crap...bring on Elmo and he is good for hours.

I thought I had out smarted Sea World this time by bringing my baby carrier so that I could take Lucy and Jack on the rides together. but NO...i guess I didn't read the small print about no infants on rides....yadda, yadda, yadda. So Fawn had to step in and take Jack. Thank you!
I only wish that catching up with old friends was easier to do with 4 kids under 4!


Then on Saturday, we drove 35 minutes to a place called Tom's Farms. This place has everything! For about 6-8 bucks, your child could be completely entertained!

For ZERO dollars, Jack ran around the grassy areas chasing ducks and throwing rocks into the stream. He must have crawled under 15 chains trying to catch these ducks.

For 2 dollars you can ride the carousel. Jack would have done this 15 times, but I sat him down and explained to him the value of money and that these are tough economic times, and that sometimes we can't always get what we want, so he decided one ride was enough.

But then I had to take my "value of money" speech back when I saw caramel apples...6 dollars later.

Hands off buddy. This is mommy's time!

The best part was the train ride. Jack is so into choo-choos right now, it's ridiculous.

I highly recommend a day or evening at Tom's Farms. They also have a cute petting zoo, pony rides, a farmer's market, strawberry shortcake, roasted corn, a practice shooting range, kid tractors, and much much more!

Next on the staycationing list:

Movies in the park
Train museum
Irvine Mud Park

this was fun

meet amanda. isn't she a cutie? and quite a skilled poser!
just what i needed for good practice.


i will post more on my photo blog later.

staycation

We had plans to go here at the end of July.

And to this city at the beginning of July.

But then GAS PRICES happened!

...and airline tickets skyrocketed.

And who really wants to spend their life's savings just to get away?
So word on the streets is that it's all about the

* staycation *

Honestly...I bet everyone can find someplace close to home that would be cool to visit and won't break the bank getting there.

As for us and our "staycations", they will be including lots of days at the beach.
Because will Jack really know the difference between Hawaii sand and So. Cal sand?

Possibly a trip to the nearby mountains, or a city tour of LA or San Diego, or just the discovery of our local museums and parks.

And as I'm already finding out, you don't need to spend the big bucks on places like Europe.

Beacuse you never know when Europe will come to YOU!

then cheek to cheek, and jaw to jaw...

we sipped some CI-DER through a straw. The cutest boy I ever saw was sipping cider through a straw. (cider through a straw)

If you can't match a tune to these lyrics, then you've probably never been to an LDS Girl's Camp.


It's been 10+ years since I've been, but last night Kelly and I got to go up to Big Bear to visit our young ladies from church. It sure brought back a bunch of memories. And pranks.
(Like the time I crawled under the 40-foot dining table during dinner to go and lightly tickle up the pant legs of my adult leader. She jumped 6 feet out of her chair, dropped her dinner, then hit me. I deserved it.)

Come to find out, these girls haven't been too innocent either. You know who I'm talking about.
(Sunscreen on the toilet seat, bookshelves blocking the door, saran wrapping leaders in the night....)
Phew! I'm glad I was only there for the evening now that the tables are turned!

Here is yours truly with kelly THIRTEEN years ago. We were quite a sight to behold.

13 years later. Wrinkles around my eyes...what? Am I that old?

And look what I caught Mama Honey doing! (double click picture to enlarge)

Thanks girls for letting us relive those fun memories! I just wish we had more time to sing some of those classic camp songs.

so join in with me...

"just a boy and a girl
in a little canoe
with the moon shining all around,
he dipped his paddle so
you couldn't even hear a sound..."

starting to sink in...

They're gone...they really are.

We had a fabulous, yet too short, 2.5 days with our some of our besties Chad, Amy, Finley and Tucker. We threw them on an aerobed and they didn't compain once. We enjoyed some time at the waterpark, a BBQ with old friends (sorry no pix), and time at the beach.

It was just like the old days. Except in the old days we didn't have children to corral.

Jack and Fin got along...well...like 2-year olds do.
They shared a few hits, ran around the house hoarding toys and shouting "MINE", and played the NO game.

They played at the waterpark. Wow...Jack is really putting his whole body into that squirt dragon.

Fin had a blast dumping water. Aim....you should have left her here all week with us. NO SAND!

Finley wasn't too fond of the sand, but I bet she's a maniac in the rain!

Goodbye Tucker...we'll miss you too!

Until next time, friends. Hopefully in OREGON!

Happy Father's Day, Mr. Nostalgia

Growing up, my dad liked to entertain us kids with old slideshows of Amazon natives (which means lots of topless women) that he met while serving in the Peace Corp. He would revel over each photo telling us in detail, whether we were listening or not, about each experience.



My dad is a man of memories. Memories of a sweeter time.
My dad is Mr. Nostalgia.



Now that I have kids, he likes to reenact his parenthood memories with the grandkids.
Here are a few examples:



Yes, you've seen this before, but this is where it all began. That's me with dad.

And here's Jack with Grandpa. He's since updated his look...from mustache to Mohawk.

Here's me at the San Diego Zoo with the goats.

And here's Jack.

Riding the train with my mom in San Diego.

Even though a meltdown was occuring, we HAD to ride the train and get the same photo...for Nostalgia's sake!

Here's my dad and me in the pool.

....oh and here's my dad and Jack!

All I can say is...we had some good times DAD! Thanks for all the memories and the effort that went into creating them.

There are a few, however, that I don't think will be reenacted any time soon!


Case in point....

Love you dad!

Dear Daddy,

Because you are the BEST dad ever, we wanted to do something special to show you how much we love you. It was a little tough to pull off, seeing as how we are still in diapers and not old enough to earn minimum wage, but we found a nice lady to hire who accepted payment in the form of long naps.

Her resume stated that she was very comfortable handling heavy machinery, but we were peeking through the window and were not too impressed with her coordination.



In fact, she was so clumsy that she crashed the lawnmower into the rock wall you built and knocked off a few rocks. We were very upset, but she gave us fruit snacks and we called it even.

The yard looks great. It is only a small token in comparison to the wonder dad that you are to us! We LOVE you....group kiss.

Love,

bubs & lu

P.S. Next year we'll try to find cheap labor that doesn't sweat like a snowman on the beach!

fiasco

Once upon a time there was a husband and a wife.
They lived in a house with perfectly nice stained, maple cabinets, but always dreamed of having white cabinets.
One day they made a last minute decision to have their cabinets painted, even though everyone said they were CRAZY.
The painters came, the couple left the house for 3 days and when they returned in the morning they discovered their cabinets were ruined from drying outside in the misty, dewy air.
The wife wanted to cry, the husband kept his cool and the painters probably wanted to croak after all the work invested.
After a day of worry, there was a pow-wow to discuss the plan of action.
The couple is relieved to say the painter is ordering new cabinets on his dime.
All will be made well again...just not yet.

Moral(s) of the story:

Don't decide to paint your entire house 3 days before house guests arrive.

Don't dry things overnight in the elements.

Hire trustworthy people who have the integrity to make the situation right.

Don't ever try to entertain children away from home for 10 hours.

We caught him!

Apparently old man Jawahar of the Jazy Ice Cream Company has a lead foot.
For two months we've been trying to catch him when we hear the twinkling melodies echoing through the neighborhood.

but how...how might I ask...does he expect children to catch him when he cruises through at speeds of 40mph?

The first time I waved.
The second time I whistled.
The third time I hooted and hollered.
and this time I placed my running shoes by the door with a stack of quarters and chased him down with a high speed sprint.

it was all worth it for this chocolaty banana goodness.

why are all ice cream men and their trucks creepy?

creepy or not, their ice cream ROCKS!

what's your favorite ice cream truck treat?

blessed

We blessed our baby lucy today.

It was beautiful.
She was a perfect angel during the blessing.
(Probably because she was exhausted from the up-the-back-out-the-onesie-blowout she had five seconds before.)

the dress

daddy & daughter

mommy & daughter

bubs & lu

bompa & mammy