June Highlights!

This month has been so wonderful! It's been a fantastic start to summer and we are loving every minute of it. Many milestones were had this month. Carter is a preschool graduate! It's amazing to see how much he has learned and how much he has grown. My once quiet and shy guy made many new friends (including his new best friend Cole!) and learned lots of new skills. I was a little sad that preschool was over because we love Miss Aimee so much and I am really hoping that his kindergarten experience will be just as great. I get a little emotional when I think of far this kid has come. He overcomes every obstacle that comes his way and just continues to touch our hearts every day. He is so sweet and kind-hearted and full of joy and love. He currently loves all super heroes (especially Captain America, Spiderman, Iron Man, and Wolverine) and playing video games with his Daddy. He is an amazing big brother and cares for Archie so much. The two of them play together all day long, making my life as a mom quite easy. Archie wanders around miserable whenever Carter isn't around. (How am I going to get through 5 days a week next year with Carter in school?!)

So proud of our graduate!

Carter receiving his medal from Miss Aimee and Miss Sylvia

Auntie Torrey brought balloons and stuffed kitties--best present ever!

Hugs from Grandma

At graduation dinner we learned that "Everyone loves Archie"

Celebratory ice cream for our graduate

And just so we don't leave Archie out, this month was a HUGE milestone for him! Potty training was an immense success and our days of diapers are long behind us. I am thrilled!

Reading books in their underwear

For my birthday we went to CA Adventures and had a wonderful time. Ate lunch at Ariel's grotto, rode our favorite rides, and Dave, Carter, and I went on Radiator Springs Racers for the first time (so awesome!)

The boys get nervous around the princesses!

Cute little prince

What a great start to summer! I am determined to teach the boys to swim (or at least be comfortable in the water). We are going back to Hawaii in 2015 and I want these boys snorkeling with sea turtles!

Making silly faces with his best buddy Cole.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the mamas out there who are shaping the future of our world by raising the next generation of leaders, innovators, educators, entertainers, athletes... Being a mom is an incredible journey and I am loving this roller coaster ride! I had a wonderful weekend thanks to my sweet husband. The boys gave me a Keurig machine, a Glen Ivy gift card, and a brand-new cell phone! Woohoo!

We spent Saturday at Disneyland where Carter was FINALLY able to (with the help of socks and big boots) get on Star Tours. Dave got to take him so I didn't get to see his reaction but apparently he loved it! 40 inches is the magic number at Disneyland so now he can get on most of the rides. I can't wait to take him on the next ride!

Sunday we had dinner at Dave's parents house with all the cousins and then Dave and I sneaked out and headed for the Hollywood hills! We saw a concert at the Greek theater and got to snuggle under the moonlight. It was lovely. I sure do love and appreciate these boys with all my heart and although being a mom is tiring, stressful, and my anxiety levels have drastically increased... my heart is so full of love and happiness for my boys that I am so thankful for every single second that I get to be a part of this family.

Carter made me this lovely headpiece for the Muffins with Mom party at school

This kid gets away with nearly everything just because of this sweet face

And this is my wild child... 100% boy

Riding the train (Archie is scared of the dinosaurs!)

2014 Updates

So I realized I have had this blog for over 4 years but each year I blog less and less. Sometimes I wonder why I do it at all (you know because I have oodles of free time) but I remembered that this blog is for my kids. I really want them to go back and read random posts as they get older and giggle over the memories and I hope they will treasure these sweet times as much as I do. That being said, we are now in the month of March and I haven't posted since December--yikes!--so here we go...
Southern California seemed to forget it was winter this year so we had a lot of fun, sunny day adventures in January and February. Dave and I celebrated our 8 year wedding anniversary (woohoo!) and Dave celebrated his 34th birthday.

They must put something in the food at Wahoos. My kids are addicted. 

Beautiful beach day with Torrey

Completely content digging in the sand...HATES the water. 

Happy Valentine's Day!

And we finally decided to renew our Disneyland passes! It was a great expense but so far I am so excited for all the fun adventures we will have this year. Disneyland really is magical and my boys are so lucky to get to go as much as they do.

Carter is in a karate class called Little Ninjas. It's only once a week but he loves it so much! He wishes it were every day. I am so proud of how much he has accomplished. The class focuses on discipline, listening, and following directions. I love it!

Last month was career day at Carter's preschool and Dave gave an excellent presentation on pest control. It was hilarious to see the reactions to the bugs he brought. Some kids screamed but other kids were eager to touch the bugs.

Lastly, February ended with what seems like the start of winter. We finally got some much needed rain! I wasn't sure how the kids would feel about being cooped up indoors but we came up with a lot of fun activities and spent a lot of time in our pajamas!

Making indoor sand castles

Watching the rain storm

Making homemade soft pretzels

They turned out really yummy!

To end... my kids say some pretty hilarious things at times. Whenever they play Star Wars toys together, I overhear conversations that sound like this: "Come to the dark side!" "No Darth Vader." "Well just play with me then." "Here Darth Vader. Eat some chips." "Okay fanks." "Pew, pew, pew!" Apparently the chip eating commences a battle.
Last night we were trying to put Archie to bed. He kept saying, "I don't wanna fall to the sleep. I just don't wanna fall to the sleep!"
While doing dishes this morning, a bubble floated up from the sink. I said, "Hey look Carter! A bubble! Where did that come from?" Carter: "From the bubble store, Mama."
The boys are obsessed with playing Super Mario Brothers with their daddy. Archie runs around telling Carter, "You be Marwee-o. I will be Wa-wee-gee." (This drives Carter crazy because Daddy has to be Mario and he has to be Luigi.)
Today Archie took two chairs and placed them side-by-side. In a high falsetto voice he exclaimed, "Aww wook! Wook! They are best friends! See, Mama?"

And while I am not a strong believer in the terrible 2s, Archie has been testing my patience lately with some really random tantrums. He hung from the freezer door for 30 minutes screaming because I would not let him have a popsicle for breakfast. Then this morning, he asked for his beloved "chockwit nilk" (chocolate milk) and I gave it to him in a cup. This caused a complete meltdown because he wanted it on a plate! Yes, a plate. I tried to explain why I couldn't serve him milk on a plate and offered a bowl instead but by that time he was beyond reasoning. Gotta love it!

Merry Christmas

This post will be short and sweet... much like our Christmas was this year! It was a bummer that it fell on a Wednesday which really gave us one day to cram everything in... it left us all a bit exhausted. Santa answered many wishes this year and the boys got a WiiU system, lots of Star Wars toys, clothes, shoes, toys, cars, legos, science kits, and much more. It sure was exciting to see their little faces light up with excitement! The funniest moment was when the kids came downstairs, Archie saw the plate by the fireplace with a carrot for the reindeers and cookies for Santa and immediately starting eating what was left of the cookies. They were more appealing to him than all the presents!

Naptime at 5pm!

Hawaii!

Dave's company has a manager's retreat at the end of every year. Last year he went to Mexico and I stayed home with the kids. Boo, right? Well this year the wives were invited to tag along on the Hawaii adventure. Dave left a few days earlier to attend meetings and such and then I got to travel with the lovely Harmony, who makes traveling quite easy because she did everything. I just tagged along on my free Hawaii adventure.

We stayed at the Turtle Bay Resort on the North Shore in Oahu. It was so beautiful. I loved every second of it... the heat, the humidity, the sound of the waves crashing. I loved that we could go to the local farms, sit on a bench and eat fresh food that they had grown and prepared. (Highlights: coconut shrimp, veggie panini, salads with grilled pineapple, fried banana bread covered in coconut cream sauce...) My favorite adventure was snorkeling (even though I was a bit awkward at it) and getting to swim with a gigantic sea turtle. I also really enjoyed the walk through the botanical gardens to the waterfall where they filmed some scene from Lost.  My journey lasted five days and I know everyone thinks I am crazy but it was too long. I missed my boys and really wished they had come with me. I can't wait to return to Hawaii someday but with my little adventurers in tow! (Although sleeping in, enjoying adult dinners, and not changing any diapers or dealing with any tantrums was quite nice!) Thank you to my friends and family who took such great care of my kids. I really appreciated it and it felt great knowing they were in loving and capable hands!

View from our room

My mornings began with sunrise, coffee, and my Kindle

Waterfall from Lost

The sand at Lanikai is like a smooth white powder!

I miss this

Best spot to lie in the sun and read!

My absolute favorite moment

Since it was the rainy season, the sky would open up, dump a few buckets of rain, then stop and the sun would start shining again. It was so odd and so different than the weather we are used to here.

Grayson's Day

Dear Grayson,

Today was your day. I love that it is the one day a year that we set aside as a family to honor you... but I hate it all the same. I wish you were living in my arms and not just in my heart. I wish that it got easier to think about you. I wish that when I thought about you I could feel pure peace and no pain. I have read a lot about grief and the steps we are supposed to feel but maybe I am different. Instead of one emotion at a time, I still feel the mix. Four years ago today was when I held you in my arms and watched you take your last breath. And I still feel pain, anger, frustration, guilt, failure, and fault. There are triggers that randomly make me think of you and sometimes I am caught off guard when the tears come. We went to Disneyland today and when I saw my boys' eyes light up with amazement, magic, and wonder...my heart ached for you. Your brothers are growing up so fast. I wish I could picture your face as it ought to be... 4 years old. I wonder if you would still have dark hair, unlike your very blonde brothers. I wonder if you would be calm like Carter or wild like Archer. I wonder what your voice would sound like... what it would be like to hear you giggle under the covers at night with Carter... telling secrets and sharing a bond that only twins can share. Today I asked Carter if he remembered you. He said yes. I know it is because we show him your picture and talk about you. Today I told him a story about how when you were both together in my tummy, I could feel you kick and poke each other, like you were playing a game. He laughed and thought it was so silly. I hope he will treasure that story in his heart as he grows up.
I recently listened to a song that I have heard many times in my life. But one line pierced my heart as such truth that I cried. "I'll say it loud here by your grave/those angels can't ever take my place."
I love you Grayson. Now and forever you will always be mine. And I will always be your mommy. And that thought brings me peace.

Preschool Pictures

I know I am biased but seriously... this kid is cute.