Pear Blossom

Gosh I have only one thought when I think of 42 inches … don’t you???  Of course I’m talking about the height restrictions at Disneyland  Madison has finally made it, and I mean just by her little itty bitty pony tail!  LOL  I have to say that Madison was a bit reluctant to go on Splash Mountain but after some daddy love she went for it and oh man did she have fun and she was so proud of herself.  Now Grizzly Rapids over at CA Adventures was another story and she almost cried when we got on but she toughed it out and had a “sorta good time” however her first words afterwords were “I don’t want to ride that a second time” … can’t blame her, we got drenched! 

We went the day after Labor Day and it was awesome, short lines, no crowds and the weather was pretty nice (a little hot but not disgusting).   

he really is this nice, he carries my bag and pushes strollers! 

Madison took over the camera     

Doesn’t every kid take pictures of their own shoes???  LOL        

I’m so beyond stoked over the new bedding we just received!!  I ordered a gorgeous quilt from Stephanie, she sells awesome stuff on Etsy and I couldn’t be happier with my new bedding … OK well not MY new bedding, but Madison’s new bedding.   

During the summer I let Madison pretty much brush and wash her own hair … washing of course means lying in the tub with a tiny bit of bubbles on her hair and proclaiming it squeaky clean.  She brushes until she hits a tangle and then moves on, so basically all the ends of her hair are a tangly mess … and the cycle repeats every day.  I don’t really care though, during the summer she’s doing so much swimming and playing that her hair is going to get tangled and wild regardless.  I was quite surprised when she asked me to wash her hair one afternoon, we shampooed and conditioned until it felt silky smooth.  After a quick brush she let me blow dry it for her, the end result was silky, soft, gorgeous long locks … I hadn’t even noticed how long her hair had gotten because it’s usually a tangly mess!    

In spirit of her “fancy” hair she got all dressed up and we went out for a fun 20 minute photo session.   

Madison’s favorite picture 

My fav

Ok so I rarely brag about my little guy … but this I got to brag about!  Our last basketball game was a nail biter, tons of screaming and roaring in the stands and some really great basketball on the court! With only 0.2 SECONDS left on the buzzer Anthony made the last shot to end the game and OMG was it exciting!!    He’s number 4 … blonde boy who grabs the ball at the last second to lob it into the basket. So proud!!  

I rarely travel this much and even though I’ve only made small trips in the last month I still feel like a total jet setter … you know … living out of your suitcase and all, up til the wee hours of the night!   I guess I’m just a party animal  Summer is just about over and I’m really excited we had the opportunity to do one last little trip before the kids head back to school 

We met up with family down in San Diego, did some La Jolla sight seeing, had a family BBQ, ate at the Olive Tree and then hit up a Padres game … fun!  My kids are both crazy about their uncles, since we don’t get to see them that often it’s always very exciting when they do … they both love all the attention they get from them! 

Madison went on a sea shell raid, she wanted to bring back 3 times this amount, I made her pick only the best of the best.  I think I might try and make some kind of wall decor with them … ideas?? 

Uncle love …  

Nose bleed section … good times! 

So we’re back from our vacation, we had to head home a little early because I woke up this morning feeling a bit sick … cold like symptoms.  I think I’m also just run down, I took a nice long nap when we got home and had some yummy chinese food for dinner … still feeling gross though.   We had so much fun on our trip!!  Here is what it consisted of:  

EATING (tons!!)  

SWIMMING

& LOUNGING BY THE POOL     

RUNNING AROUND 

JUMPING AND SINGING ON THE BEDS 

lots of joking, making fun of each other, anything to annoy the other person 

CUTE LITTLE GIRLS RUNNING AROUND EVERYWHERE (Big and Small)    

Anthony had such a great time, he’s old enough now to just run around with all the other cousins, so he was pretty much gone the entire time … just breaks for food and a change of clothes! 

Every year I do a photo shoot with my kids on their birthday (or around it) … since Anthony just turned 10 (insane, I know!!) it was his turn to get in front of the camera.  We decided to do a sports themed shoot since baseball has been such a huge part of his year.  It was hot and very bright outside, I guess I could have picked a better time then 2:30 in the day … but it was the only time to fit it in so I went with it.  Anthony delivered exactly what I wanted, some serious, some silly and some sweet.  Here is just a small sampling from his birthday shoot.               Anyone that knows Anthony, knows how sweet and gentle he is.  He is always happy to entertain a baby, toddler or his 4 year old sister, he is gracious and considerate and loves to have fun.   Anthony has been a blessing since the moment he came into this world, Joe and I can’t even describe in words what a gift he is, we can only be thankful every day that we have him in our life!     

You plan, plan, and plan and then it’s all over in a flash!  That’s how this birthday party went, so much prep work and then it just flies by.  Anthony had so much fun, we rented a water slide for the kids … it barely fit in our yard (literally squeezed in) it was huge.  Anthony was just having the time of his life the entire party, everytime I saw him he had the hugest smile on his face.  I was a terrible photographer and took hardly any pictures at all, but on the flip side I spent time socializing with all our wonderful friends.  After I looked at the pictures I was so bummed I hadn’t taken more of the kids, more of our guests and so on …  

Here are some of the very few images I snapped 

Mads didn’t even think about going down the slide, she stayed in her little kiddie pool the whole time, and once she was cold and done swimming she took all her little girl friends into her room so they could destroy it in record time (that’s my girl!)   it literally looked like a tornado swept in.  Those girls must have changed their clothes 10 times! 

Joe and I have our roles, I’m the photographer and he’s the videographer … I think both of us failed in our jobs this weekend. 

Fun times!  Happy Birthday Ant Bear :)    

Madison just started swim lessons for the first time this year and it’s very exciting!  She has sat on the side lines for so many years watching her brother do everything, but this year it’s her turn and over the course of the year she will have her turn at swimming, baseball and basketball (well over the course of a full 12 months from now) and she’s really pumped about it! 

Madison is so funny during swim lessons, she is one of those girls that really lets the teacher now what she is willing to do and what she’s not … getting her face wet has been an issue, but you can’t go swimming and not get your face wet so she’s just going to have to learn to deal with it.   I am happy to report that yesterday she did successfully get her face wet, baby steps I guess.  The most important part is that she’s enjoying it and looks forward to it.   

Madison and I went to a party this weekend where some of the cutest guests were the furry natured kind …