Day 4 - A Day to Chill

Today we did a whole lot of this...

a little of this....
and some of this... and just a bit of that. We are wrapping our day up with this.

A great day of loving on my boys, long walks, playing at the playground, and enjoying not having much to do.

Tomorrow...Disneyland???

Day 3 - Tourist Whirlwind

Toby was off today so we decided to leave early and try and hit as much tourist stuff as we could. We started off by a great drive out to Malibu. The water was beautiful and the homes amazing. I wish we could live that close to the beach. As we were heading back south to Santa Monica I spotted some dolphins playing so Toby swerved off and almost ran over a cyclist (he loooovvvveees them by the way). While we were looking at them we also saw a seal. Jack informed us that it wasn't a dolphin...he thought it was a whale.

Santa Monica was our next stop and we first visited the pier. We walked around, watched surfers, played on the midway, and took it all in. We then went to Venice Beach and visited the famous Gold's Gym...where Arnold worked out back in the day.

Sam liked to ride like this in the stroller...a man I walked by said, "Oh...there is a kid in there.." like it was perfectly normal for him to be back there.

The crosses represent every soldier that has died in Iraq and Afghanistan. Very humbling...the ultimate sacrifice.

We could not go to Venice Beach without seeing this...thought the sign across the street was hilarious and probably very true.On to Beverly Hills for a lunch at Jerry's Famous Deli and some celebrity home searching. Most of them were behind tons of greenery but were able to see the Beckham's up close. At their good friends the Cruise's we were only able to see their gate. Same as the Playboy mansion. We saw lots of other houses and I am headed back for another day of this (I LOVED IT). We drove around some more and saw sites.

La Brea Tar Pits Playboy Mansion

We then headed back towards home because we had to get some more of those tasty cupcakes...YUMMY! We ate them and the boys played in the local park. Then home and I cooked pork chops, green beans, pasta roni, and biscuits. Now we are relaxing and Toby is gearing up for another long week. I am planning on doing some more research on things to do with kiddos. I am thinking Disneyland is on our itinerary in the next few days but we will probably lay low tomorrow. I'll let you know.

Oh yeah...we did end up going to The Grove last night. We didn't see Santa but we did enjoy taking in the Christmas spirit.

Day 2 - Sweet California

Today we kind of laid low because tomorrow the Mister is off and we are going to hit the road early to try and get in as much as possible. So the boys and I just chilled this morning and then joined Toby for lunch. We ate at a great little Mexican place that had a great view. Sam ate his normal gallon of salsa (just like his Dad)! Toby then took us to this little deli/bakery and let the boys pick a treat.

We then headed back to Old Pasadena and went to a little cupcake bakery called Dots. We ordered several mini cupcakes and enjoyed them thoroughly. We tried Marble, Vanilla with vanilla creme frosting, Red Velvet, and Strawberries and Cream...they were each delicious. Then did some more shopping. We stopped in at Ralph's to get some groceries tonight and Jack said he needed a treat and he of course picked out a Hershey's bar (his favorite). So I think it is safe to say that as of 5:30 this evening...we have had quite a bit of sugar. Yet, I am sure we are not done because we are headed to The Grove tonight to see Santa and watch it snow in LA. And hopefully see a few celebrities.

California - Day 1

So we made it. It being the incredibly long drive from Texas to sunny California. Our first night went okay and the boys and I ventured out to explore Pasadena today. We went to KidSpace Museum and the boys LOVED it...so much so that there was a bit of fit throwing when it was time to go. The museum even had a tricycle race track...Jack was in heaven. We played in water, painted, explored bugs, build blocks, watered plants, climbed rock walls, and even made our own root beer. We then ventured to Target to get a few essentials. They loved the downtown Target with the huge glass elevators in the middle. We all got a nap in and are home playing, doing laundry and cooking dinner. Just like a normal family...except we are in a one bedroom apartment in California and Toby is working six 12 hour days. Other than that...perfectly normal.

GIANT BATTERY

AWESOME BUGS!

WATER SYMPHONY (USING WATER GUNS AND DRUMS)

CLIMBING

JACK LOVED THIS PUZZLE AND SET ALL THE DINOS UP

WORKING TOGETHER

PLAYING AT THE PARK BY THE ROSE BOWL

DON'T TAKE OR PICTURE MOM!

THROWING LEAVES

I'm Back....Hopefully

After a very long blogging hiatus I am back with lots to post about. Much of it will probably just have to be skipped. We have been enjoying fall and have been busy. We are starting to gear up for Christmas which means lots of shopping and sewing. Here are a few things that I have been creating lately. Hooded towels for my friend Brittany's son, Rhett, Jack, and Sam.Thanksgiving cookies for Jack's school party. Inspired by the amazing http://bakeat350.blogspot.com/.Halloween cookies also inspired by Bake @ 350...she really is very talented.Towels for my friend Niki's kid bath. Jack sporting his Thanksgiving shirt for his holiday party...Sam has one too.

Jack's Halloween shirt...Sam's got stained before I could take a pic.

And just because...my little Mickey Mouse and Boba Fett.