6 Month Update

It's been a while. A much needed break from all things "social media" was required. It was a nice break. And although I am not sure I am back for good... my sisters have sweetly all mentioned they miss my updates. If only I could get them to update as well... :)

So - here are some bits and pieces from the past 6 months...

Hiking. I love my little posing Clara.

Halloween with Nana. Jackson the ninja is trying to chop off her head, Clara a.k.a "cat girl" is saving her.

Thanksgiving. I seriously can't believe how well these two get along.... 98% of the time. The other 2% well, use your imagination... sibling torture. But still - I think we are pretty lucky that they do so well together.

Our thankful tree.

 The day after Thanksgiving we went to Sea World. It was a beautiful day with minimal crowds. There was a section with "snow". The kids did some sledding and snowball fights. It was a little piece of heaven for them both.

 All but my mom, me, and my cousins baby went on a fun water ride. I was worried Clara would hate it, she was nervous to go. But she ended up loving it. And I am glad I stood by and watched... because they all came off the ride dripping wet!

 After Sea World, we took my family to our favorite San Diego beach spot. The Sea Lions were out on the beaches. It was a foggy night, and freezing. But the peacefulness of being right on the coast is one of my favorite things. Someday I will live in a beach city. I love it.

 We met up with Grandma and cousin at Descanso Gardens. It had been couple years since we had last been here. It is incredible. So peaceful and beautiful. We all rode the cute little train that went through.

 Grandma Rose with Clara, Jackson and Gibson. Best GRANDMA EVER. We love her.

 We made gingerbread houses.

 But mostly ate the candy that was supposed to go on the houses. It was a "eat as much as you can" kind of night. It might have been my favorite night of the year. :)

 We walked down Thorough Bread Lane and looked at Christmas lights. Love that we get to walk and look at the lights. I grew up driving from house to house because it's cold and snowy in UT. California winters are pretty awesome.

 We stayed warm with hot cocoa.

 Christmas Eve we went ice skating. Clara totally surprised us and was a rockstar. She really picked it up quickly and did awesome.

 Jackson had a harder time... which is rare, because the kid can do pretty much anything. And the fact that Clara was actually better than him didn't go over to well. :)

 But they both still did a lot of this....

 Christmas Eve these two got new pajamas from our Elf... Mr. Jingle. I love this picture because Clara is cross eyed. Ha ha. Something she has taught herself to do and any time we try to take a picture of her and she is in her usual goofy mood, she will do this with her eyes. It is all on purpose and totally cracks me up.

 Christmas morning the kids woke up to this....

 And this.....

 After Christmas we went to AZ for some time with Scotts family. The entire family was in town... which is rare. So we took some family pictures. The Grandkids:

 The whole family...

 And us...

It's been a good 6 months.

Horse Ride

My sister and her hubby invited us all over for an afternoon of horse riding, cow riding, animal holding, and BBQing.

I think this was #1 on Clara's list for "things to do while in UTAH". She is animal obsessed.

Here they are waiting their turn.

Jackson started out with his cousin Henry. Henry is a more "experienced" rider. Jackson would be considered a "nervous beginner".

 This was my eye candy while all the kids were riding horses! I love baby Callum. He is so cute to watch roam around in nothin but his diaper! He is a true cowboy and the kids is just over 1.

 Jackson soon got brave enough to ride on his own.

 Clara jumped right now. And loved every second of it.

 You better believe I got on a horse too! I even did a little trotting - which only lasted for about 2 minutes - and the next day I woke up sore. Seriously.... saddles need some major cushioning if you ask me.

Fun day.

On the back burner....

I can't believe summer has come to an end. To be honest, before summer began I was dreading it. I was so worried about staying busy and keeping my kids entertained! I started out with a plan for each week... a theme and some fun activities to go along with it. I think we lasted about 2 weeks with it and after that our summer quickly filled up. We were constantly on the go and hardly had a minute to spare. It was a blast! 

I also started working again this summer. I have started doing eyelash extensions, shellac nails, and waxing out of my home. It is so convenient and I am so grateful that I can work and help bring in some money - but I would be lying if I said it wasn't an adjustment. Sometimes it completely stresses me out. It grew much fast than I was expecting and I have had to learn to balance life in a way that I am not used to doing. 

So between busy summer schedules and my "work" that I do on the side.... my blog was put on the back burner. So here is my "CATCH-UP" from all our major events that took place the last month and a half of summer. 

CLARA'S BIRTHDAY PARTY

Unicorn theme. Last minute planning. Pinata's make every party a success. I can't believe my little girl is 4. 

BEACH ROAST DAY

Beach day with friends. Stayed until dark and did a roast. Amazing corn on the cob boiled in sea water. Grilled pineapple. Marshmallows. Grateful for amazing friends. We love the beach. 

SAN DIEGO FAMILY REUNION

A week in San Diego on the beach. Perfect weather. "We are a gold medal family" theme. Boogie boarding, sand castles, jelly fish. Exploring La Jolla. Family Olympic games. 

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

Jackson - 1st grade. Clara - preschool. New backpacks. Traditional decorated signs. I can't believe summer is over. 

The end.

Clara turns 4

I can't believe we celebrated this little girls 4th birthday this past weekend!

About Clara:
1. She loves TV. Her favorite show is Team Umizoomi
2. Her best friend is Dotty. Her blanket. :)
3. She loves to help mom cook.
4. She LOVES dogs. And really all things animal related.
5. She eats all day long. The most common phrase I hear from her is, "I'm hungry". It's comparable to other kids saying, "I'm bored". And I am pretty sure she says it out of boredom.
6. She loves miniature toys. Which doesn't help me much when one of her favorite toys gets lost. Its like where's waldo in a room full of toys trying to find the right one.
7. She has her own little fashion sense, and likes to pick out her own outfits and clothes from the store.
8. She still sucks her two middle fingers, and sniffs "dotty" at the same time.
9. She is a fish, and loves loves loves to swim.
10. She loves music and picks up on a lot of the lyrics of what I play. It helps make me aware of what I am listening too. :)

I love this sweet little girl. She is still my little attachment and I wouldn't have it any other way! I can't believe she is so grown up... I hate that time goes by so fast. Please stop growing!

Dive Time

Most of you know that Scott and I both grew up diving. We lived in different states, never met when we were young, but have found that we were both at many of the same competitions. While Scott was taking first in his age group, I was taking last. No joke. BUT - despite the difference in our capabilities and talents, it is a fun thing to have in common! We have both agreed that as long as our kids want to (and we can afford it).... they will be on a diving team. For now -- their dive team is "Randall Aquatics".

We ventured over to the college near our house and spent the afternoon playing around. Scott had to do some stretching before he attempted his old skillz...

And off he went...

 Where's my pictures you ask? PA-LEEEZZ... if you ever want to see me dive. Drive to my mom's house, find my old videos, and something that plays those old school tapes, and there you have it. For now - you will see me behind the camera. :)

Jackson was all over the boards. 3-meter? It was nothin'! He jumped off like he was competing at nationals for the 10th time. It was so awesome to watch.

 Clara watched from the sidelines....

 For about 2 minutes and then she herself... climbed up the 3-meter ladder and was off. No joke. My kids are braver than me. But that is because I am older, and I know better.

 We just finished up some swimming lessons for Clara. And she is quite the fish. Scott (or myself) was always there to help her in the water....

 But she was basically always swimming on her own. Way to go little Clara!

We are going back next week, the last day the pool is open and will be doing this all over again. It was just too much fun!

4th of July!!!

Did you know the 4th of July is one ofymy most favorite holidays??? IT IS! I love love love it. It stems back to when I was young, it's always been kindof a big deal in my family growing up. So - the tradition continues - and the fact that Scott serves in the Military for our wonderful country only makes this holiday that much more of a "BIG DEAL" in our family!

The night before I sent Scott to the store so that I could make my mom's famous CARAMEL POPCORN. It is tradition that we always had it... of course it should be eaten while at the Oakley Rodeo with the smell of horse manure in your surroundings.... but INSTEAD we ate it in beautiful Souther California, surrounded by palm tree's, while watching an amazing fireworks show. Just a little different from what I am used to, but I can roll with the changes. :)

I love to get my kids all dressed up in the RED WHITE and BLUE!

 They were so excited to wear their new outfits, they woke up at 6:30 am. Wow - awesome.

 We started off the morning with our church at a Stake Breakfast. A few "Proud To Be An American" talks were given, and some beautiful music was played. We filled up on pancakes, eggs, sausage, and OJ. The kids ran around on the grass and played football. It was fun, even though I left feeling 5 lbs heavier than when I got there - and the food filled day was only beginning.

After breakfast we headed out to a parade in La Verne. The parade wasn't anything special, but the cute neighborhood was TO DIE FOR! Everyones houses was all dressed up for the holiday. I loved the patriotism I felt there. I hope wherever our family puts roots down (in the far far far future)... will have some major love for the country.

After the parade we went swimming. You would think my kids were born in a swimming pool - they are total pool rats. I LOVE IT.

 After the pool... yes there is an after. This day was FULLY PACKED.

We headed our for a BBQ... food, never ending food. And an awesome fireworks show.

We had such a fun day! My kids were EXHAUSTED! As soon as the fireworks ended Clara was begging to go home. She was d.o.n.e. Jackson was tired, but would never admit it... that kid can go forever! He had so much fun that on our way home he asked, "can we do that again tomorrow?". I think we had a successful day. Happy 4th!

Kids Pre-4th of July Party

July 3rd my friend and I did a fun 4th of July party for the kids. It was TOTALLY last minute, but turned out great and the kids had a blast!

We did a slip'n'slide.

We decorated the kids bikes....

 And they rode up and down the street in "parade style"!

 We then threw candy on the grass and let them run wild and collect whatever they could grab!

 Mama's and most of the wild ones...

 They decorated graham crackers with frosting and m&m's.... yummy!

We also did a fun game... the kids played squirt gun tag. 2 kids had squirt guns and ran around trying to  "tag" the other kids with the water from the squirt guns. It was so fun - the kids LOVED it!