Just say No!

I should have learned this lesson long ago, but somehow forgot it these past two weeks. We have been nonstop and I should have just said "No!" to some of the things we did. Hunter is sick and so am I and I know it is because we just ran ourselves into the ground. We listened to the Sign of the Beaver in the car as we were driving so much this week. I yearned to have a life more like Matt's from the book. He lived in a simple one bedroom cabin and relied on his environment for his food. All that mattered to him was his livelihood and being with his family. Sometimes I wish I could take my family away from all the modern "conveniences" and just enjoy one another- and not have anywhere to go! So, I am looking forward to this next week- with much less activity-to just try to catch up on the simple life I missed while we were running around from one event to the next. Will I ever learn to simplify?

Critter Country

We took a few field trips during our Critter Country unit that I wanted to post:

Huntington Library

Every first Thursday is free-but you have to get tickets from their website a month in advance! It is beautiful here and wouldn't even mind if I had to pay to get in.

The Rose Garden was in full bloom and everything smelled beautiful!

The Children's Garden is a great place to visit on a hot day!

LA Zoo

The LA Zoo is not my favorite and every time I go I think "maybe this time will be better." It would've been a great field trip if we were learning about construction because we saw more orange cones and yellow tape than we did animals. But, I shouldn't complain. We got in for free and other than the majorly scraped knees that Hunter got from running-and then falling down- a hill, it was a nice day with our friends.

I guess we did see plenty of cute little animals- they just weren't in cages!

Picture Problem

My blog won't let me add any more pictures. It says "You have exceeded your total photo upload quota." When I go to the help page it says that my Picasa Web Album, which is linked to my gmail and my blog by no choice of my own, has no more storage and I have to PAY for more storage.

Has anyone else had this problem? And if you have, can you solve it without paying for anything?
Please Help!

Congratulations Graduate!

Hooray! On Friday, my sister graduated with HONORS from the

University of San Francisco

in Art History and Art Management. I am so proud of Monica!

Ladd and I were lucky enough to go up to San Francisco, along with my mom and dad, to see her graduate. The graduation was held in this beautiful church on campus.

We had a great time, saw a few of the sights, including the Museum that she has been interning at, and ate a lot of really good food! It was really fun to spend a few days with my parents and sister. San Francisco is a beautiful city and a fun place to visit- I am just glad I have a brave sister who dares to drive in that city. Driving in big cities, especially ones with narrow and hilly streets, is just not something I can do!


And a Big Thanks to the plethora of people who watched my kids while we were gone. Throughout the weekend, 7 different people watched my kids! It sure can be stressful leaving the kids for a few nights-but it was worth it!
Speaking of the kids, we spent some time walking around the Presidio, near the George Lucas School of Film. All of the buildings we went in had some kind of Star Wars tribute, so we had to get this picture for the boys. It made us miss our little Star Wars fanatics!

**If anyone knows of a museum or gallery that is looking for a super talented, brilliant, and kind person to hire-please let me know!

Medieval Times

Our Charter School offered a field trip to Medieval Times. What a perfect trip to have at the end of our "Magical Kingdom of Books" year!

Our Lovely Princesses and Handsome Knights!

We cheered for the Blue Knight! Go Blue!!
Hunter was a little fearful of getting too close to the Knight and did NOT want a picture with him!

Eating with their fingers-no utensils in the Dark Ages! Tanner was pretty sure they didn't have water bottles back then either- oh well!

They serve you a whole cornish game hen and I am pretty sure Tanner ate the entire thing plus all the sides (corn, potatoes, bread, and his favorite, chocolate chip cookie!) He is starting to develop the appetite of a big boy-YIKES!

Last time I went to Medieval Times I was in eighth grade and was thoroughly impressed. When I walked into the arena today, it seemed quite a bit smaller than I remembered and the show was not as spectacular as I remembered either. This means I am getting old as this is not the first time I have been disappointed by things that I remember from my youth. However, my kids thought it was absolutely amazing and played "Knights" the remainder of the day. Luckily, they will hold on to that memory-until they take their own kids!

I love these little Knights!

Elections

Our California Primary elections are coming up. From the countless flyers, signs, and endless phone calls I have recieved, I don't want to vote for anyone at this point. But, I know it is my duty to vote, so I want to be better informed. Just wondering if anyone knew of an unbiased website that talks about the candidates. Or, if you feel strongly about any candidates, please share! I need some help from people I trust!

Thanks!

More Birthday Fun

We celebrated Tanner's birthday with our family on Saturday at our house. Here are a few pictures from the party...

My mom made a cupcake tree with a Star Wars theme. Black icing with edible sparkles-it looked just like deep space!

Cousins playing at the Lego table!

Tanner read every word of every birthday card this year!

Cute little Bridgette enjoying the swing!

I think everyone had a good time at the party- but I sure I am glad our "birthday party weekend" is over!

One Grateful Mother

I am so grateful to be the mother of two sweet boys. In these past seven years of motherhood, I have learned so much from them. They have taught me how to love unconditionally, increased my compassion toward others, taught me how to laugh at difficult situations, and helped my on path at developing patience. I have absolutely loved spending each day with them discovering this world together. I am so grateful that Heavenly Father placed these two sweet little guys in our home.
I certainly would not be the mother I am (which is very much a work in progress!) without the example of my own mother and mother-in-law. They are wonderful examples of service and love. I am thankful everyday for their love and support.
Of course I couldn't do it without Ladd. He is my rock and I would certainly be lost without him. I am so glad my boys have such a wonderful dad to look up to. He goes off to work hard each day so that our kids will be provided for and I can stay home with the boys. He even deals with my very early alarm going off each morning so I can have a little time of my own before I have to put on my mommy face. I love him so much.

Wishing you all a Very Happy Mother's Day!

(The pictures on this post were taken by my friend Suzanne as a Mother's Day Present!)

Happy 7th Birthday!

Tanner turned 7 today! We celebrated all day...

Morning presents and phone call from Grandma (where her whole class sings Happy Birthday to the birthday boy!)

A trip to Victoria Gardens with school friends to see the play, Treasure Island (we loved it, definitely for older kids though due to some scary parts!)

And the highlight of the day- a Star Wars Party with some of our favorite Star Wars fanatics....
Tanner was so excited about this party. We only invited a few friends. (We are having a massive family party tomorrow, and I can only handle so much!) I asked Tanner what he wanted to do for his party and he said "Eat Star Wars food and play. I don't want any games or actvities." So, that is what we did. We ate Tie fighter Ties, Jabba Jiggle, and made R2-D2 treats.

Instead of cake, Tanner wanted Princess Leia Danish Do's. (Danishes that look like the buns on the side of her head).
All the kids thought the food was great. The kids kept busy building Lego Star Wars things and then running around playing with them. They sure were easy to keep entertained.

The only real activity I snuck in was a book exchange. Instead of the guests bringing presents, I asked each child to bring a new or lightly used book for a book exchange. (I got this idea from a friends blog- love those blogs!) This way I didn't end up with a bunch of gifts we don't really need and all the kids go home with something useful. It worked out really well! Everyone was happy with their new treasure. Only one boy was a little disappointed with the book he got, luckily I had a few extras and let him choose another one which he loved (Star Wars coloring book-$1 at Michaels!)

Hunter is proud of the his new book!

We are so grateful that Tanner is part of our family. We are so proud of our little peanut who used to keep us up all night and now has grown into such a sweet, intelligent seven year old boy!

Happy Birthday Tan-Man
We love you!

Two Things

that happened today...

1. Tanner has a nasty head cold. He described it very accurately when he said, "It feels like there is a big wall in my head and I can't break it down."

2. Tonight, while I was reading to Tanner in his room, Hunter put himself to bed. I finished putting Tanner down, left his room expecting to find Hunter at the Lego table. He was not there. Then I noticed his bedroom door was shut. It is always open unless Hunter is sleeping. So I peeked inside and sure enough Hunter was fast asleep in his bed. I guess I had one sleepy kid today. I felt bad that the poor little guy had to tuck himself in, but when I told Ladd, he said it was the best news he had heard all day. I guess that is typical of a mom vs. dad reaction.