Swimmin' and Stottin'

 Only one way to cure those winter blues.... 

 Luke didn't even hesitate. 

 Putting his face in was another story. 

 After that strenuous dip in the pool we feasted at Olive Garden. 

It was this good.

Sweet fake-out by James! This might be the closest he's ever come to a vegetable.

 Then we went to the Stotts for a little rock band.

 The party was all about Kendra and Brian.

It was fun to see them, it's so sad they moved away!

 I scored ZERO on the drums. 

Nobody there knew that was even possible.

We girls got the mosh pit going and were dancing and singing like crazy.

Those Stotts do RockBand like no other.

If you don't believe me, check out the back stage passes around the girls' necks and the custom made Stottfest concert T's all the VIP's were wearing.  It was serious biz.

Kendra we miss you.

Move back.

This night was full of one mighty hilarious dinner, thanks in large part to James' quick wit at my expense but that's ok because he's still looking for our van at Arrowhead.  Then there was the free soccer meal that I worked my tail off raising money for, no free meal for Ri's late dinner, Jon spotting the V's parking spot, signals, sign language, and a sweet cuddle with Zack!

Lunch Escape and Brady's Big Day

 I snuck away with Jake for a quick lunch today and it was so fun to get some one on one time with him. My favorite thing was listening to his top picks for eating out and having them change all throughout the lunch.  He's my picky eater, but when he likes it, he likes it.

Here's how it ended:

6. Rays Piza

5. Subway

4. Taco Bell

3. The Spot

 (you Carpinteria locals know what I'm talking about)

2. Le Beau's

(Bear Lake)

1. Miracle Mile Deli

 Luke got a little raspberry on his head at preschool today. 

 That shiner on his cheek....just a bit of leftover lunch he's saving for later.

After preschool, we went to the park today to celebrate Brady turning the BIG 5!

 Gorgeous Weather.  Favorite Friends.

 And eat 'em up whole cupcakes.

(who looks this cute while stuffing her face with a cupcake? honestly!)

 Kind of looks like the moms are all praying....it was a little brisk under that ramada.

 But when that sun came out it was all smiles.

Loved today!

(Only thing that would've made it better was a bathroom:)

Happy Birthday Brady!!!

Payday Letdown

Life is hard. At least that's what my kids were feeling tonight. After a few weeks of chores, it was payday.  Both of my kids were excited, they felt like they'd worked hard and were expecting big payouts.  So we figured how much each had earned and then we subtracted savings, tithing, and then some extra for something special that we have been working together on and this is what was left: $0.

I'm not going to lie and say they both took it like champs. One felt completely robbed. How could all that work have been for nothing? There were tears. It was sad. A big part of me wanted to just say, don't worry about savings this month, don't worry about the special project, we'll hit it next time.  But at the end of the day, I didn't.  And Jer didn't. And I think it was a good thing. Hard but good. It reminded me of my first big paycheck and being so excited about all that money, only to realize that after taxes, tithing, and living expenses, there was not much left.  I want our kids to learn that now while the lesson is easy. That money is something that you have to work hard for and after you do, sometimes it still doesn't stretch quite as far as you hoped it would.  So you make due. Then you pick yourself up and find that determination to work even harder the next day.  

And a good night's sleep always helps:)

Our Adventures with Flat Ellie

We've had a special guest in our house these past few weeks and we've been taking her out on the town. Too bad she is due back to the real Ellie any day now. 

The kids have loved having her around...gives us an excuse to do more fun and crazy things:)
Now if we could only get the real Ellie to bring her family here for a visit....

Preschool Valentines

We went a little heavy on the hearts this week and it was nothing but good!

Lunch with my guys

...well with two of my guys anyway!  Nothing better than having Jer with me to push that heavy cart and help me load the goods. Another perk to shoppin with Jer is our price comparison fun (he's getting good) and the check-out showdown....the guess on the grand total (which Luke won). Jer was loving my driving skills mostly my parking abilities and me rockin the car (literally) on the u-turn to drop him off (yes I hit the curb with about 5 IBMers standing there watching...ahh laughter is good).  But the best part was Jer being the ladies man....I believe we ran into about 5 women he somehow knew (including our Nik:).

They were coming out of the woodwork.

How about that costco lighting in these pics? I'm liking it.

Valentine's Day 2011

 Luke and I got busy making this before the big kids got home.

 I was stirring the frosting and all of a sudden Luke was licking my finger.  Apparently I got a little frosting on it so Luke swooped down and licked it off for me. 

It was pretty funny.

Those are some raw, natural instincts.

 Bree got home just in time put on the strawberries.

 But before dessert we went to Red Robin for a Valentine's Dinner.

Love was in the air all day!

Happy Valentine's Day.

Valentine's Eve and Some Unfinished Biz

 A few months ago, we got TP'ed by someone who couldn't keep it a secret (she gets it from her mom). So tonight was payback time, Valentine Style.

 Jake added the final touch to the roof.  Just returning the favor.

All the while Luke slept. Missed out on all the fun.  But I have a feeling he might have given us away if he had been out helping us. He kept saying, "I can't wait to see Brittany!", so it was a good thing he slept.

In the end, everyone picked a family to heart-attack, so we ended up hitting 5 houses in all.  We had dog scares, suspecting neighbors, and garage noises to freak us out.  We escaped without getting caught with just seconds to spare.  So glad for my scheming little fam who made it so fun.

Happy Valentine's Eve!