T-Ball Pictures

This is something we MUST do every year...buddy pictures with Lucas!  The boys are getting bigger...and more handsome...every year!

Here is our little Pirate (#9)

Pirates, T-Ball 2011

Coach Jenn, Coach Shawn, Brody, Bobby, Jacob, Lucas, Jedi, Coach Rob, Coach Kevin

Tyler, Kaden, Conner, Aiden, Max, and James

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day!  This year things were complicated trying to get together (since we were being busy moms...), so Mom, Michelle, and I decided to have lunch together.  The kids came with me and we met at La Bou.  It was fun to get together and laugh.  The kids had made Grandma a tea cup and saucer that they handpainted.  Michelle and her kids made Grandma a helping hands apron.  It was adorable!  We had Grandma put them on and pose in the cafe.

Outside we took this picture to commemorate the day!  (Just gotta love the iPhone and it's camera that you can turn around to take a self portrait!)

On Mother's Day we didn't have much planned as a family.  Tyler made me toast and oatmeal and Zach left out some flowers and cards, but other than that it was a regular day.  So regular that the kids didn't even stop fighting for the day!  At one point we had to separate them, so Zach took Tyler on a motorocycle ride and I grabbed Lucy and took her to the nail salon.  I figured that if I had to separate the kids I would get something good out of it too!  Lucy and Mommy had pedicures and a chance to relax. 

Mother's Day Tea Fit For a Queen...Bee That Is!

On Thursday, May 5th Busy Bees Preschool had their annual Mother's Day Tea.  Lucy was excited to have me come to her class so she could serve me tea (lemonade), strawberries, and cookies.  First the kids sang songs, then they made a craft, and then we "lunched" outside.  It was a very special day.

We were having tea

Lucy's gift to me was a homemade purse stuffed with Hershey's kisses.  I got the purse, and guess who got the kisses?!

Here is a video of some of the singing that the kids did.  Precious!

Our Super Star!

In Tyler's class they have a new Super Star each week.  The teacher goes in alphabetical order, so Tyler had to wait a long time to be the super star.  We got his packet of information before the two week spring break, so we had a long time prepare for his special week.  His first task was to color a poster that was all about him.  He was very artistic on his poster and creative with the colors.  Both Mom and Dad helped him color on it as well.  He wasn't really fond of Lucy helping out, though...

Look at my handsome super star!  On Monday he took in his poster and talked to the class "all about him".  On Tuesday Tyler was able to take in an item to share, so he took his Pluto, penguin, and the stuffy he won in Santa Cruz.   

On Wednesday he was taking in a guessing jar.  He wanted to do jelly beans and he wanted to do 100 of them, but his teacher said that was too many.  He took in 52 and then the kids were able to eat them. On Thursday Tyler was able to take in another sharing and he wanted to show off his art...

...and his sister!  It was the cutest thing that he wanted to share Lucy.  The teacher was okay with us taking over the class for a few minutes.  Zach was actually able to attend, and it was a really cute presentation!

Tyler says the funniest thing about his sister at the end of the video.

On Friday Tyler was able to take in a special snack and he chose popcorn with a gummy worm at the bottom of the bag.  He's even creative in his food choices!  At the end of class the teacher gave them a book about being Super Star.  Each child had to draw a picture and say why Tyler was super.  It was the neatest thing!

Happy Birthday Zachary!

Zach turned 33 this year!  He never really likes to celebrate his birthday, but this year he wanted to dine at Sienna and eat at the Chef's Table.  He saw the menu and it made his mouth water!  We went to dinner with his Mom and Dad, Kara and Ryan, and then us.  It was fun!  Happy Birthday Zach!  We love you.

We Need A (Spring) Break!

This year has been a rough year for our family.  Zach has been working out of town a lot and there have been various family stresses going on, so we REALLY needed a break as a family.  The kids had a week of spring break, Zach had a break in his work schedule, and Jenn just wanted to get out of the house!  We planned a trip to Santa Cruz and Monterey.  We were going to stop at the Boardwalk on our way to Monterey and play around, eat at our favorite restaurant on the wharf, and then continue on to our fancy hotel!

We arrived at the Boardwalk and bought lots 'o tickets for the kids to go on rides.

Grandpa Don and Uncle Flip Would Love This Ride!

This boat was called the Little Toot.  Too Cute!

They had quite the view from the flying dragon!

We went on this dragon rollercoaster as a family.  The kids love these kinds of rides!

It started to rain quite a bit while we were playing on the Boardwalk. Luckily it didn't put a damper on the fun we were having!

We rode on these "gondolas" across the boardwalk. This scares the heck out of me! Zach and Lucy rode together, while Tyler and I hung onto each other for dear life. The highlight of our "flight" was spotting Sponge Bob and Patrick on the beach!

The kids really wanted these birds, so Zach figured out a way to win for sure.  There had to be two people playing, so we would wait for everyone to pass by and then Zach would play one of the kids.  We were guaranteed to win, so he played twice (and lost to Lucy and Tyler) and made each child a winner.  Isn't that sweet?

After riding rides and playing arcade games we walked to the wharf and went to Stagnaro Brothers for a yummy dinner.  The weather was chilly, so we ordered hot chocolate and clam chowder to warm up.  The warm rolls and butter were SO yummy.  We like tradition and this restaurant is a tradition for us!

After a nice night at our hotel (the Embassy Suites) we woke up bright and early to go to the aquarium.  We wanted to beat the crowds!

Zach is fascinated with the jellyfish and he took TONS of pictures.  They are very good, though, we must admit...

The seahorses were pretty fantastic too!

The penguin thinks Lucy is pretty cute too!

We spent awhile at the penguin exhibit.  The kids really enjoyed watching the penguins and the otters play.

Aw, maybe they do like each other...sometimes...

To remember our trip (or to spoil our children) they got stuffed animals.  Tyler picked a penguin stuffy and Lucy picked a very soft otter.

After leaving the aquarium we went to the beach to play in the sand. The kids really enjoyed that and we got lucky to have beautiful weather.

 After lunch we went to our favorite park in Monterey - The Dennis the Menace Park.  They have the coolest toys to play on.  There is a train for the kids to climb on, crazy slides, a maze, and a huge bridge to run across.  Tons 'o fun!

We also enjoyed the time spent relaxing in our hotel room.  The Embassy Suites had a great breakfast in the morning and fun snacks at happy hour.  The kids enjoyed our "fancy" room, the indoor (albeit COLD) pool, and the coy pond.  Overall...it was a success!