Disneyland

The Happiest Place on Earth (but not for 2 year olds) - Disneyland

We were lucky enough this summer to get the opportunity to go to Disneyland with my husband's family. I LOVE Disneyland - always have! We had fun - especially watching the older three cousins as they experienced Disneyland. We can't wait to go back! Sidenote: (going with three 2 year olds presented a bit of a challenge but we survived)

Day 1 - Disneyland Magic Kingdom

These three had a lot of fun!

They both decided they needed hats from Disneyland!

PLUTO!

First ride of the day - Jungle Cruise!

Tarzan's treehouse!

Rhett loved the Nemo Submarine!

Waiting patiently to see Michael Jackson star in Captain Eo!

The teacups!

Day 2 - Free day - Downtown Disney & Swimming

We were lucky to have a pool at the house we rented for the week!

This was Rhett and Sawyer's favorite place to be at the pool - on the steps splashing each other.

climbing on the giant lego outside the lego store at Downtown Disney

Day 3 - California Adventure

This was all that he did while we waited in line - climbed on the railings. And it was like telling a grasshopper not to jump - impossible!

Mr. Potato head kept the kids entertained as we waited in line for the Toy Story ride

Jeremy and I rode "The Little Mermaid" ride all by ourselves so we captured the brief moment with just us!

Flik's Flyers was a highlight of the bug land

Day 4 - Six Flags

This day needs a quick synopsis just due to the nature of this blog - scrapbooking our memories. This was one of the those days that as I look back on it I remember how comical it really was. We ended up leaving a bit later than we were supposed to that morning, were stuck in LA traffic due to a car accident, ended up getting to Six Flags a little after noon. It was extruciatingly hot, entered the park with a true intent on being able to enjoy most of the rides because it didn't seem that busy. Until Jeremy, Jesse and Jim stood in line for a ride for almost 3 hours. We spent this time in the kiddy area which was fun for the kids. The adults were able to ride 2 - 3 rides  the entire day. Not worth the money we spent to go! The day was definately memorable though and we learned that in the future we will probably not venture to Six Flags :)

entertaining the boys in the stroller proved to be a bit of a challenge at times.

They did pretty good most of the time!

Batman and Poseidon

Addie and Kenna on a ride!

Day 5 - Beach Day

On this day we spent the morning swimming in the pool and then spent the afternoon at Balboa Beach. It was rather cool so we did not stay for long but we were fortunate enough to spot a few dolphins a few yards from the beach which was really fun!

Mommy and Rhett at the beach!

Mommy, Rhett, Aunt Katie and cousin Owen at the pool!

He was full of sand!

Bapa Jim with his grand-daughters

Uncle Jeremy was infamous for throwing kids in the pool - and they loved it!

Kenna and Chade that is!

The waves were decent!

cousins!

The twins and their youngest sons!

The girls camel fighting in the pool! I think once Chade joined in - he won :)

Rhett buried in the sand - and his daddy decided that it would be funny to make him a mermaid!

Addie as a mermaid!

Day 6 - Disneyland Magic Kingdom

Addison is apparently NOT the true king of England - darn!

Waiting in line for Peter Pan's Flight!

The infamous dumbo ride!

Mickey Mouse's house!

And who was actually in his house - Mickey Mouse of course - go figure!

They found the pirate treasure on Tom Sawyer's Island!

 Toon town!

Tinkerbell!

These two were hilarious - most of the time :)

Extremely tired after a long day at Disneyland!

Day 7 - California Adventure
Our last day at Disney! :( We spent most of the day at California Adventure and then some of the evening back at Magic Kingdom. It was a great last day!

had to get a picture with Mater and Lightning McQueen!

My aunt, uncle and cousin just happened to be at Disneyland on this day. We were able to meet up with them for a few minutes - it was fun to see family especially when it was unexpected!

The boys LOVED getting soaked at the bugs life water area!

Don't take me treasure - Arggg!

Ariel!

Princess Tiana!

Goofy girls!

Pocahontas!

Destined for Hollywood? I kinda hope not!

These two had so much fun together!

 My favorite picture of them :)

Disneyland Parade - a must when visiting!

She would make a great pirate!

Thanks Disneyland and California for a great vacation! We had a lot of fun and made some wonderful memories.

July 2011

July came and went - very quickly! Here is what occured:

The 4th - of July that is!

We spent the 4th of July parading in Melba, eating yummy taco truck food in Melba, napping at home, watersliding, eating, firework watching at grandma Elaine's house. It was a fun family-filled day! Happy Birthday America!

Disneyland

Disneyland deserves it's own post so that will be coming soon but we had a lot of fun!

Jeremy's birthday

Jeremy turned 33 years old on July 12th. I can't believe we are in our 30s. It really doesn't feel any different then our 20s. The only signs of our aging are in a few gray hairs (Jeremy - not me :)), a few eye wrinkles, more sun spots and a few more aches and pains. We celebrated his birthday by going out to Fuddrucker's (his fav) and then heading to his twin brother Jesse's house to have dessert and gifts. It was a fun evening!

 

Books Read

Unbroken by Laura Hildenbrand - AMAZING story!! I'm not even going to give a synopsis due to  the fact that everyone should just read it. It is a historical biography about a young man's life and experience during WWII. One of the best books I've ever read!

The Hunger Games - I read the first book on my way back from California and quickly began the second book, finishing it a few days later. Crazy story - a little futuristic - and I normally hate those kind of books or movies but this was so entertaining and I look forward to the movies coming out next year.

Katie's birthday

My sis turned 29 this year! Wahoo - I can't wait for her to join me in the thirties! We had fun celebrating at my parents house with her best friend JoJo.

Movies

Took my kids to see "Mr. Popper's Penguin's" with aunt tee-tee! It was very cute and the kids enjoyed it.

 

Work

I did spend one day this summer at work - like really at work - like I got paid to be there and - work! Crazy huh? Well, the 4 day work week that is quickly approaching has made many of us teacher folk become a little aggitated and aprehensive about how we are going to fit all of our curriculum in. So - we worked and figured it out and now feel a little better about things.

July was busy and fun!

June 2011

The first month of summer and always my favorite - it's never too hot but pleasant enough that our afternoons can be spent outside and it spells the beginning of a much needed vacation from work (love being a teacher :))

This month:

Books Read:

Lady of Light - another book in the Brides of Culdee Creek series. Such an easy, entertaining read. Just what I need in the summer.



Heaven is for Real: Such a good book - so encouraging and enthralling. Loved every minute of it and look forward to eternity.

Family Activity:

Trip to the cabin with my family - it was in the mid 70s the entire weekend and absolutely beautiful. My dad and Jeremy spent a lot of the weekend with chainsaw in hand attempting to cut up some of the wood from the trees that the power company had to cut down. The kids enjoyed climbing on those fallen trees, as well as taking walks, roasting marshmellows and playing games.

She found a frog in the outhouse (no longer in use) - and wanted to take him home. Sadly, she was unable to :(

Swimming Lessons

I put Addison in swimming lessons a few years back and she did great. However, she still has a real fear of the water and so I decided that this year she NEEDED swimming lesson, especially if we were going to go on vacation and our house was equipped with a pool. So - I enrolled her and Rhett in beginning swimming lessons and I'm SO glad that I did. They both did so well and Addison grew in leaps and bounds and even jumped off the diving board at the end of the two weeks (Rhett did as well but is that a surprise to anyone??). I will definately re-visit Summer Swimmers next year and both Addie and Rhett look forward to going back there. They had tons of fun!

VBS

Addison has forever loved VBS and this year was no different. We ventured all week in Pandamania and enjoyed Chatter's theatre, singing, crafts, games and a water day at the end of the week. I enjoyed my time as a crew leader and had fun with a great crew!

I regret not taking any pictures of VBS this year :( but this is a picture of Addison and her friend Brenna. They dressed up alike for twin day at VBS.

Nook Color

I want one!!! Not just for myself but also for my classroom. I can see how amazing it would be to have as a supplemental tool in my classroom. A few other fellow teacher friends feel the same and so - we are writing a grant. Yikes!! Even saying the words make me nervous. It's been a lot of work so far and we are not nearing it's completion anytime soon. We have until November and we've been told we are great candidates for the grant so we are crossing our fingers. I definately have a new found respect for anyone who has ever written a grant.


Garden

We have a garden again this year! It's pretty fun to see stuff grow because I've never really been good at making anything grow - except maybe my children. This year we planted raspberries, tomatoes, strawberries, onions, cilantro and all different kids of peppers. Our hope is to use the majority of our crop for salsa (raspberries are exempt from the process - and strawberries). It's been fun - with the exception of discovering a new found hatred for robins. So far we've been able to enjoy a few peppers as well as our strawberries - once we fended off the robins with bits of tinfoil.

This is our garden at the beginning of June.

summer reading program at the library

My kids and I enjoy participating in the summer reading program they have at our local library. My kids already enjoy reading so it's not a motivational tool for me but more of a fun outing and the kids get to earn fun prizes if they read for so many minutes and days. It's a great program!

Potty training

Something I loathe but was necessary to complete before day care arrived in August. So we made a potty chart complete with Toy Story stickers and if he completed a line he would get a candybar (his fav). That and that fact that we told him he was a big boy and we were not going to buy him anymore diapers. He cooperated and successfully goes pee in the toilet without hesitation. I was so proud that it only took a few days and he was trained. However, pooping in the toilet is another matter altogether and one that he is not so excited about!

Walking
5:30 am comes at a very dark and dreary time in the morning. Now I'm used to it - I began running at 5:30 every morning - It began a little rough but now I LOVE it. I feel like I lose a huge part of my day if I don't do it and I have time when I get home to do my devotions and shower before Jer and the kids wake up - amazing!!!

Playdates and Sleepovers
Summer would not be complete with a few of these!

puppy playdates - we watched my parents puppy for a weekend and Addison couldn't help dressing her up in build-a-bear clothes.

BFF sleepover - too precious!

Solomon

One of the reasons that Jeremy doesn't like pets is that they end up costing us a lot of money in the end - due to not only food and grooming but also in vet bills. Solomon has proved to be a keeper and therefore we fork out the big bucks when need be to make sure that he has some life left. He has never been a dog that chews on things - weird I know. However, he lack of general dog instincts has cost him his teeth. They have rotted and now are gone. He has a few stragglers left but the pickins are slim. So for $500 we received a dog with no teeth and better breath. Worth it?

MTI Class

I spent a week this summer studying math - sounds exciting huh? The State of Idaho has required all teachers to take this new Math Initiative class. I needed 3 college credits to recertify so I thought that this summer it would be necessary to take it. It was a pretty good class and I am greatful that I was able to take it with some friends - that made the days a bit less daunting. I'm glad I took it though and I feel more knowledgeable in the area of mathematics now - something I never thought I would say.

Softball

Jeremy joined our men's softball team from church for probably the 8th year in a row. I enjoy going to the games (yes - even with my children) and cheering the team on.

That's a quick (well. . . .) synopsis of June



Well . . .

Ummm . . . sheesh! About mid June time went spiraling into the abyss. That and computer issues which come to find out was to blame on a little piece of dirty lint - it's always the little things right?

I have so many blogs that I want to write - a quick June synopsis if I can remember anything, a July briefing as well as many "thoughts" that my mind has been contemplating about certain "things". So - what do I do when I have too many things I want to write about but know that it's going to take a LONG time? I procrastinate and when I find time - like now - I just babble and then go read a book instead.

It's on my "to do" list this week - to get caught up in blogs. Until then . . . . . chapter 17 awaits :)