Boys & Dates

The other night it was just me and the boys. Doug had to work downtown and Taylor slept down at MacKenzi's, which left me and the trio. It actually turned out to be a good evening. Luke and Weston went down around 7:30pm and Jared went to be without a fight. Probably because he was the king of the house for once. I have forgotten how much I can accomplish when my kids go to bed at a decent hour. I feel myself more motivated to tackle projects, etc. I actually painted this magnetic board that Allison had gotten me from her enrichment night. I was so tired of looking at it in the corner of my bedroom, I broke down and painted and hung it. I must say I think it turned out pretty good. I was happy with the results.

Love the new vinyl stickers!!

It makes me want to just pick them up and hug them when they look this sweet and innocent. The best part was Weston sleeping with this dog book. He has become obsessed lately with Taylor's stuffed animal dog along with his blanket. I love when they identify and find something they can snuggle with. So sweet. All of my kids have done this. Taylor used to have a bear she called "baby" which I still have. I had to sew the head back on about 6 or 7 times. Jared and Luke both have their "special" blankets they cuddle with, which are now pretty much just batting.

Cheesecake Factory

We ended the night going out on a double date. Of course it was with our best buds... whats better than that? Its so funny to listen to Greg and go off about jobs or just misc. orth. Angie and I always ask them if they have anything better to talk about. Guess not...at least they enjoy it right?? Sorry Greg, you do look like you have had a bit much to drink. Maybe it was that regular coke that got you on the first round! Or our waitress spiked your drink. Anyways, we ate until we were sick at Cheesecake Factory. And of course finished off the evening with a Dolce de Leche slice of cheesecake! The best part of the evening was coming home to a house full of sleeping children. Hurray for early bedtimes!! Alright I am off to sleep.........chow for now.

We have entered into a new phase with Luke. This seems to be his expression most of the time since he has out grown his naps. A sad day for mom, but if I make him nap he refuses to sleep at night. So, I am sacrificing my peaceful afternoons to deal with my grumpy child from about 3-7pm. Aren't you jealous???

 

Too Close To Home

Due to my early to bed early to rise motto lately...I have been actually able to turn on the morning news. Has anyone been following this story in the paper? My family actually were the ones who brought this to my attention a couple of weeks ago. The reason I think it captured my attention most because they found these men literally about 5 miles from where I grew up in Arizona. Ironically, they lived in some apartments just 3 miles from the AZ temple. It really makes you think that serial shooters, and murder could really happen anywhere. It seems we have to be on a constant watch for us and our families. I guess even when you think you live in a "safe" place you still have to be careful. I couldn't believe how willing the guy was to talk to the press about the shootings that him and his friend had done. And so calmly at that. Kinda freaky. I think long over are the days of letting your kids ride your bike freely where ever with friends. I remember doing this as a kid not even thinking twice about it. Now, I won't even let my kids in the front yard without someone around.

The reason I bring this up is because Doug and I got on the internet and started job searching. You always want to search for a place you will feel safe. We searched of course the Phx area first since our entire family lives there. Nothing to serious just googled a few here and there. I was surprised to find out that there weren't as many opportunities in the valley. There are so many details that you have to take into account when finding a place to live. Like the call schedule, the $$$, how long it takes to pay into a practice, loan repayment programs, schools, church, etc. I know that Greg & Angie are currently doing this and have been so overwhelmed by so many different offers. The weird thing is for the past 8 years we have been told where to go and now the tables are turned and we can choose. I think I would rather have someone put it into a match into a ranking order (much like residency) and they pick it for us. This probably contradicts what I said yesterday about being ready to just move somewhere and stay put. I guess I am saying I want it to be a perfect fit for our family. What is worrisome is you want to choose a place that best suits your family. And looking at any job offers I have come to the realization that you aren't going to have it all. In the meantime, we'll still keep searching.

WHINE WHINE WHINE without the CHEESE!

I will admit I am PMSing right now. It's the time where I am a negative "Nelly" (doug's nickname he has given me) and just not a nice person to be around. I feel so bad for my kids and husband during this time. I was completely a wicked witch yesterday. By the end of the day I felt so guilty looking back as to how I treated my own sweet family. But, seriously sometimes Luke just knows what to do to push my buttons!! The Gordon girls were over playing nicely. (A huge bonus to me because I was able to make jam). Anyways, Luke decided to go in and disturb Jared and Maci playing legos. He not only destroyed what they were making, but proceeded to throw legos around the room like it was raining or something. And of course I went in to see what all the ruckus was and he just gave me a huge grin with those dimples!! That was the straw that broke the camels back. I was sooooooo angry when he did that. Later that evening when I told Doug about it. He kind of chuckled and said, "thats what kids do" By then it was kind of funny, but boy I was boiling at the time he did it.

Lets just say if I were trapped in a desert, on a beach or some sort of island...... I truely don't think I would survive. Sadly, I have come to realize that I rely on modern things to get me through each day. Especially since I have had children. Don't get me wrong I love my children dearly and wouldn't change anything about any of them. However, it sure is nice to have the convience of x-box, television, computers, cell-phones, water parks, dvd players..well you get the picture. The question I have is what did we do without these modern things? It was only about 6 years ago when they started getting cell phones. Crazy!!

We decided (Angie & I) at the last minute to take the kids to the water park to kill some much needed time. I was bummed when the girl who cuts my hair cancelled my 12pm appointment. I figured she might because she was moving tomorrow. Shesz can you believe she did such a thing? I figured what the heck since I didn't have anything going today after the cancellation and all. Remember I am in survival mode for the next two weeks. So the more plans I have to keep the kids entertained the better. Thank goodness for Angie and her kids down the street! So we loaded up the 7 kids, with packed lunches, sunscreen, and strollers and we went to Fiesta Texas.


I almost feel as though I have been living in a "pretend fantasy" world over the past month. I have been traveling like crazy and having so much fun. When we were in California at the condo I really didn't want to leave. I wanted to stay longer and soak up the sun, eat out, and just hang with family. I guess I am partially feeling a little resentment over living the "student" life for so long. It has become increasingly frustrating to me that our student loans are much more than a mortgage and cars combined. I'll spare you the personal details with all of our other dreadful I owe yous.... I am ready for the "real" world and ready for annual family vacations, being with family, and my kids to be settled into a place they can call "home" until they move out for college. To be in an established ward and not have so many "move ins and outs" Maybe part of me feels this way because when I went to Utah to visit Steph I saw what life could be like when we are done. I guess the bottom line is I have hit the burnout mark of residency. I have supported and continue to support my husbands choice of career. I am so glad that he has found a career that he loves. I think it is so important to love what you do. And I wouldn't change the people we have met over the time doing it for anything. We have made so many wonderful friends and lived in great places. I also don't think I would be where I am as a person if I didn't get to experience these things in my life. Okay I feel a bit better that I have vented some of my frustration. After all thats what blogs are for right?

Good ending

After my whining post.... I got three "Happy" things in the mail today. I wish I could have posted this earlier, but my mailman doesn't get to our house until about 3pm. Doug's moonlighting check--yeah can now pay the bills! A darling belated birthday card from non-blogging Pam, whom I have never met. Who do you know that sends you stuff you have yet to meet?? So sweet of her. Thanks Pam you made my day and its even in my most favorite colors! Lastly, a post card from Luke's new teacher. He starts preschool the same day my older ones do. How cute is that! Just another reason I love blogging and Jill's contagious "good mail" A great ending to a melancholy day.

June Cleaver i.e. Susie Homemaker

Our annual family tradition

Today I felt like miss Susie homemaker. I don't at all mean this in a negative way, but was in the kitchen for practically the whole afternoon. When I got married to Doug he came from a home where everything was homemade. And it wasn't just homemade, but very good homemade. I on the otherhand had no clue how to cook ANYTHING. So I had a lot to live up to. I can't even begin to tell you how much experimenting I did when we were first married. Doug and I chuckle over all of the different things I "tried" to make that never turned out. Thank goodness with much practice I have turned out to be an okay cook. One of the things that Doug's mom makes is homemade jam. So, I of course decided to try and experiment with this 10 years ago. Still to this day make it each year. Now, that my kids have tasted this they won't eat anything but homemade jam. It was that time again since I was down to my last jar in the freezer. So I fulfilled my annual family tradition of making jam. Of course I had some little helpers as well. The biggest downfall was it does make your kitchen a complete disaster!



I was also proud of myself in that I was Ms. Fixit today. I fixed our toliet and am happy to say I can now flush the toliet without lifting up the lid. Hurray! I finished a couple loads of laundry, vaccumed my house (Jill I too love to have my house vacuumed), made the kids dinner and we even finished the evening with scriptures and family prayer. Wheew! I can't even believe it myself.

On a different note, Doug and I are trying to get our kids back into the early to bed early to rise mode. This so far has become quite challenging. This morning Doug told me to wake up the kids before 8am so they would go to bed before 10pm!! Yes, I did say 10pm. I hate when my kids are going to sleep the same time as us. That means no adult conversation or downtime. I am going a little crazy over this issue. Lets just say that I didn't have a very happy little girl this morning. Anyways, I set the alarm in Taylor's room for the morning so we will see how it goes. Only 10 more days until school starts (hey but whose counting)!

Professional Travelers

Friday we decided (I guess I mean I not we) to head out for a fast trip to the Dallas area. My sisters husband was in a soccer tournament and she was also up there visiting a friend. So, I packed our stuff and Doug walked in the door from work and we hopped in the car. I really didn't think he thought I was being serious when he called me up in the morning and asked me what I was doing. I replied saying. I am cleaning, packing, and loading up the car. In which he said, "Seriously its not like we havent driven enough in the car lately."

I figured what the heck. Right now I am in survival mode until school begins. Which means the busier the better. Plus our nephew and his wife live there, so we had a place to stay. We left on a whim around 3:30pm. Stopped off for dinner in Pfleguerville. (Doug loves saying this) kind of an interesting name. Its about 10 miles just north of Austin and happened to be very clean and nice. After we had fed the kids we were off for the remainder of our journey. We got to Mark & Kristi's around 9:30 pm. There house is so cute and they have done (or she has done) a great job at decorating it. I took a picture of one of the guest rooms because I thought it was so cute. Believe it or not she hand painted these strips. Kristi claims she loves to paint so I think I will have to hire her to do my next house.

Too cute!!

Saturday we headed up to McKinney to visit where my sister was staying. Dallas is such a HUGE city. I couldn't believe it took over an hour just to trek north on the 121. It was well worth the trip. We ate lunch at Cafe' Brazil, which was very yummy! We also wanted to check out this area since one of our friends that moved lives there and Greg & Angie are looking to maybe move there. It was such a great community. Everything was brand new with all the ammenties that you would ever need and great stuff/activities for kids and families. I told Doug if there isn't a place in AZ that would be our next place of choice!! (well, if there was a job that is)

Me & Janet

Later we left from McKinney and just drove around the area. The kids were getting a bit ancy being in the car for so long, so we headed back to Mark & Kristi's house. We ended up just hanging out for the remainder of our trip. It was so fun just to sit, talk, laugh and reminence about our family. We finally made it back today. It wasn't too bad since there are cities the entire drive. It took us about 5 hours with stops to get home. That is a cake walk compared to our journey home to AZ!! Anyways, a huge thank you to Mark and Kristi for letting us stay in your beautiful home. Hopefully your ears don't hurt to much with all of the KID noise. At least now its peaceful and quiet. Come visit us soon!!

Thanks guys!!

Celebrity Look Alike

Doug has had several people tell him he looks like three actors. Who do you think he looks like the most? Would you choose Drew, Rick or Tony? Personally, I don't really see any resemblance with any of them. I think he is much better looking that all three! But lately, he has been getting people tell him he looks like the "Dancing with the Stars" Drew Lachey. Pretty funny I think. Just curious what you all thought for fun.

KB Crap

We currently own a KB home. For those of you who aren't familiar with this nation builder it is probably one of the cheapest homes to buy. Mostly starter homes and they put so many up so fast the quality is terrible. I really shouldn't be complaining about this, but everything has started to fall apart on us. I don't know if it is the quality, product or what. Over time we have fixed facets, baseboards, air conditioning issues, the hot water heater has gone out leaked all over the carpet, and now most recently we have had toliet issues. We are currently having to flush our toliet with the lid off and do it manually. (sorry no picture for a visual) Now that I am typing it, it really is quite comical when you think about it. Doug has the lid off on top of the counter for easy access to flush. Yes, we are a bit lazy and haven't gotten around to going to home depot to by a new handle.

And speaking of homes we are outgrowing the one we have. It did do us well for when we first bought it, but that was two kids less than now. Now that our kids are getting older we have found the noise level increase and really no space to run around and play. The good news is that we only have two more years to survive in such small quarters, but the bad news is it is still two more years. I guess the reason I am complaining is because Doug and I tried to have an adult conversation yesterday and it was next to impossible. There was just no place for the kids to be "kids."

On another housing note, my brother n' law who is a realitor has been checking out some subdivisions for us in AZ. I was so excited when he sent me some information on some of the areas we like. They are opening up lots starting in October. The good news is that prices have come down significantly compared to a year ago, but of course when I clicked on the floor plan I wanted it was wayyyyy out of our price range. I can always dream right? Anyways, sorry about the housing tanget I guess we have had a little cabin fever with the kids lately.

"Here Everythings Better"

This is the motto for our grocery store HEB. (This is what they sing on the commercial). HEB acutally stands for the founder Howard E. Butt. No wonder he abbreviated the name! What an awful name for a man. I normally wouldn't rant and rave about a grocery store, but this seems to be one of the better chains we have shopped at over the years. We have lived in 3 different locations so have seen different chains. The one thing I hate about AZ is that you have to have some silly card (much like a gym card) in order to get their discounts. I have always been bugged by that, but that is just the way it works. HEB also happens to be the only grocery chain here in San Antonio. I found this pretty odd moving here. What? No competition? So basically, we have HEB, Wal-mart, and Super Target. I really never shop Target for groceries since they seem to be so expensive. But, HEB happens to be clean, the produce is good, and very reasonable. I am getting to the point as to why I love this store so much. It is VERY kid friendly. In fact, my kids love going here just because of the perks. So, I thought I would list the many things I love about our San Antonio HEB store.

1. They have sanitary wipes to wipe off the carts--major bonus!
2. Free cookies at the bakery (not just puny ones like wal-mart)
3. They make their own flour tortillas in the store and always let you sample--yummy!
4. I also like that they carry a lot of school supply stuff and cute holiday stuff.
5. They always have balloons for the kids (not a big balloon fan, but it keeps them happy)
Happy kids=happy mom.
6. They give what they call buddy bucks . The kids can collect these stickers which are free and claim prizes with them.

We have gotten so many things from the buddy buck stickers. You get a free pamplet and stick the stickers on the page until it fills up. Each sticker is worth points. Its much like peter piper where you get tickets and can claim a prize. Most recently Taylor got a pair of flip flops. (kinda cheesy) but she loved them. We have also gotten bags, a beach towel and are going to be sending in for a plate, cup, spoon, and fork set. You can also claim prizes for food items.

This are some current sticker pages getting ready to be mailed.

Anyways, thats just my plug for our grocery store. Sorry about all the rambling, but I figured if I didn't write it down I would forget someday when we move. Since I know we won't live in San Antonio forever. Do you like your grocery stores?

School Can't Come Soon Enough!

It's official I want my kids back in school!! I think they are feeling the same pain as me because I am going a little coo coo. Since all of our fun vacation time and planned activities are over they are constantly moping around the house complaining of none other BORDUM! It seems that every suggestion I make is never good enough, the only reply I get is "thats boring" or "I don't want to do that" It seems that when there is nothing planned they tend to tease one another, fight, want to eat 24/7 and drive me insane. Where is year round school when I need it? The question I always ask them is what do you do when you are hungry at school? There is exactly 21 more days until school begins. The question I ask myself is what am I going to do for three weeks. Sadly, Taylor's bossom buddy left for her grandma's for a week today which means no friend for her. Where's the cousin's and family when you need them most?!

We are still trying to get sleep scheduling back on. Last night the kids would not go to bed again before 10 pm. This truely has to stop. What happened to adult conversation alone time?? It does make it nice for sleeping in, but I would much rather have the early to bed early to rise.

After reading Amie's blog yesterday about how she has organized her pictures it made me want to scrapbook. I used to be so on top of it, but now since blogging it has taken a back burner. I haven't done anything since January. And also do to blogging I have increased my picture taking 10 fold! I just developed some from our Cali vacation and came away with 180 pictures!! I keep staring at the stack hoping I will feel motivated. Not so yet.

This is my sad bag of pictures-
I think there are over 500 pictures in it.

On a happier note, I found out that Jared starts soccer practice next week. I actually have to go and register him today. Normally, I would cringe at the start of a new seasonal sport. But, he has been so bored I think it will be a good thing for us. Taylor has also peaked an interest in it, so I thought I would sign her up as well. This will make 3 activities for her this fall. We will have to see how it goes.

I sent the kids outside today to play in the hose, because I had enough of the television and x-box. In case you are wondering, since we have gotten back the schedule has pretty much been out the window. So my plan B is to just survive the next three weeks. I have had such a bad attitude lately that whatever they do to not make a mess is fine by me! Unfortunately, this only lasted for a short 30 minutes! I need a pool!! It always seems like they are having so much fun in the picture. The sad thing is my kids will always stop and look happy for a picture when they see a camera. Go figure.

(Thanks to Jordan-- Taylor inheirited 2 new suits..isn't it cute?)
Oh, and yes Jill it is from Kohl's.

As you can see from the nice yellow in my yard, it has been extremely dry here. We pretty much came home to straw grass. I was so sad to see my yard so ugly. Without any t.l.c. for a week you can really tell. It's been so hot and dry that our water department has put us on a water restriction. We are only allowed to water our lawns on certain days of the week depending on the last digit of our address. Pretty crazy!! It seems like we either get too much rain or not enough.

Okay, I think I am done complaining except for the fact that I have to prepare dinner. I really shouldn't complain about it, but not cooking for over a week can make you feel that way. What I want to do is soak in a huge bath of bubbles and read a book. But, I know that ain't gonna happen!

This is where I want to be!!
In G'ma Dorothy's fabulous tub.

Taylor Lauren

Happy Birthday to our sweet 9-year-old Taylor!! Taylor was born at exactly 12 noon 9 years ago at Utah Valley Hospital in Provo. The funny thing is when I had my ultrasound I wanted it to be a boy sooo bad. Not because I didn't want a little girl, but because Doug's family was primarly all granddaughters infact it was I think 16 at the time. Once we found out it was a girl we were thrilled and she was named Taylor way before she was born. For some reason she was the only one out of our kids that was "pre-named" and it stuck. Its a good thing she was a girl, because if she wasn't we would have all boys in our house today!! I feel like we have jipped your birthday a little this year since we just got home from vacation. But I will say we are especially grateful to have you a part of our family. The list is endless but here our a few things that we love about you!

1. She is a great big sister
2. Very motherly and looks out for her brothers
3. Smart
4. A great dancer/gymnast and swimmer
5. Avid reader
6. Loves pink and blue
7. Her favorite food is ribs & steak like mom!
8. Is a great friend
9. Social butterfly
10. Has a spunky personality
11. Makes friends anywhere she goes
12. Loves to blast her music (like one of her aunts)
13. Now loves to boogie board and body surf!
14. The princess of the house
15. Has beautiful brown eyes
16. Is the prettiest girl we know!

The list could go on, but I want you to know we love you Taylor and are so proud of the young woman you are becoming. I know I need to cherish every minute with you since you are our only daughter. I am truely blessed to have you in our life!!




This is one of her favorite presents which happens to be from G'pa Stan and Susanne. Doug has already hooked it up and the house hasn't stopped thumping yet! You can tell she is getting older becauseA special thank you to all her grandparents, and family for making her birthday special!

On another note, I am definitely jet lagged. I woke up this morning at 9:30am! I can't remember the last time that I did that. I guess 2 hours in time zones makes a difference. I feel so out of whack. I did get to the grocery store at least today and I splurged and got the car washed. I was just too tired to tackle that task. Now I just have to figure out what to do for dinner! Now what to do should I get a last minute cake or just take her to get some icecream? I am feeling a little guilty about not doing it the traditional way, but my mom did get us a cake last week. What do you think? I guess I will just make the decision when Doug comes home from work.

We decided to let Taylor pick the restaurant for dinner and she chose Salt Grass Steak House. It didn't take much twisting of my arm so we went there for some yummy steak. We didn't end up getting her a cake and she was satisfied with us making some brownies. So she blew out her candle on a slice of brownie and Mackenzi is spending the night. Not a very exciting birthday, but hopefully she had fun.

Proud to be back in the Lone Star State!!

The alarm clock at 4am came a lot sooner than I wanted it too! We tried to get the kids to do down early since the night before since we had a long day of travels, but they all decided they WERE NOT going to do that. Weston proceeded to cry for about 2 hours for what ever reason. Luke did the same. They did so well going to bed every other night and chose to be like this on the night we needed them to go to bed! Doug got the car packed. I got some last minute laundry done and once the kids were asleep we crashed as well. The drive wasn't all so bad and the kids slept until about 7:30am or so in the car. The only thing slowing us down was all of the rain! It rained from Mesa all the way to Las Cruces, New Mexico. Normally, rain isn't so bad traveling because it is overcast and all. This usually makes it cooler and the kids sleep longer, but it hindered going the speed we wanted. There were times where Doug was only able to go about 60mph due to huge sheets of rain.

"The Fruit Loop Rapper"

Our long trip got a little boring early on due to our malfunctioning crappy DVD player. I think its on its last leg and just flat out quit working. Which meant no movies. Not a good thing when you have a 3-year old who is dependent on it in the car! Doug decided to entertain the family by doing a fruit loop rap. I was laughing so hard I almost peeed my pants. It was one of those moments I just couldn't stop laughing. Anyways, I got a photo of it. I guess you just had to be there. You do what ya gotta do for entertainment right?? The kids weren't too amused, but I was.

We made our first stop in Las Cruces, NM for gas and the kids wanted lunch. We found a perfect location for it. It had a Burger King, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell all in one. This made all of us happy since we all wanted different things. Just typing those restaurants makes me a little ill now, but you really don't have much choice when traveling. The kids were fed and off we went!

Our second and last stop was Fort Stockton, TX. We normally just make two stops for gas and during that time just feed the kids. It works out great that way we are not stopping all of the time. We stopped at Subway for dinner which my kids love. For some reason I am not sure if it is the "Eat Fresh" commercial, but they go crazy when we stop here. I can't complain because it is probably one of the healthier places to stop.

Finally after 14 grueling hours in the car we made it home!! The kids did remarkable and I will have to say that Weston is by far the best baby ever. He didn't complain the ENTIRE way. If there was an award to give he would definitely get it. Especially sitting for soooo long in the car. We survived which was the main thing and didn't kill each other before getting home. The best part was it wasn't dark yet. We arrived about 8pm our time. Taylor ran down to get the mail at Angie's when we got home and I got so many great cards and a package from Bridget. Which included a darling notebook, card and sonic money!! My family (both Justin and Janet) also got me sonic money. I am happy to say that I am set for a while for "free diet cokes"Here is a belated thank you photo of all my stuff I got for my birthday. I am excited to go and purchase my new running shoes and haven't decided if I should splurge and get an ipod. Of course my family over did as usual. A special thanks again to all!!



I was able to get the bags unpacked, a couple loads of laundry and everything put away. I was extremely tired as you can imagine and was so happy to crash onto my bed. Tomorrow is Taylor's birthday and I still haven't wrapped any of her stuff! I guess it will just have to wait. And I have no idea what we are doing. Its one of those play it by ear type days.

Living up the last 24 hours of Vacation

Today is our last day of fun and vacation. It was a blast and our living in a fantasy world has now come to an end. The kids had so much fun as did we being around our family. There is nothing quite like family. Just being able to hang around, eat at moms-especially her yummy home made ones (she made them today), go swimming whenever we wanted, and have so many people willing to watch the kids. All bonuses! Special thanks to G'pa Dale and G'ma Dorothy for giving us their house. I know that we were very noisy, so thanks g'pa for putting up with us. He is recovering well, but still needs to rest a lot. We do miss our house, our bed, and of course my sidekick Angie. (Doug misses you too Greg) I feel so out of my normal routine I think I will need another vacation to recooperate. July has been one big party month for us. Its hard to believe that school is going to be starting in just three weeks. Along with that all of the extra activities start back up as well and I again become the soccer mom.

The car is packed and now we just have to mentally gear up for our 4am alarm and head back to Texas! You may ask why so early? Well, in order to get home before dark we have to leave because we are loosing 2 whole hours of time due to the time zone! I really hate that little factor. So we will be a bit off on sleep, but hopefully will get back on track soon. I just feel bad for Doug since he is the one who has it the worst because he has to work on Monday!

Happy Birthday Allison!!

Hope you have a great day!!

Family Celebration

Mom & Dad C. took me to Claim Jumpers for lunch today. Yes, I know we went there the other day, but I had to get one more dose of ribs for lunch. It was mighty tasty as was the corn muffins! We later took the kids over to Doug's sisters house to swim. We got to check out her newly remodeled home. Of course the theatre room was Doug's favorite part of the house. She decorated it in very sheik retro couches. Very fun!! Too bad we didn't have time to pop some popcorn and enjoy a flik. We headed home because my side of the family was coming over to celebrate Taylor and my birthday. It was just like old times. Janet had burned a cd for me and so of course we had to put it on which meant dancing! We danced so much and were so goofy. I was exhausted and was completely drenched by the time it was over. It was so fun. I am sure that Doug and Aaron got a good laugh to see how weird the two sisters are when we are together!

My dad, Susanne, Papa, Grandma, Taylor and Weston

My mom brought a yummy white cake from A.J.'s. Isn't it cute?

This is my best birthday present of all! My husband has really gone overboard this year in spoiling me. He bought me so many nice things, sent me on a trip with Angie, took me to the beach and is an incredible dad. I didn't have all of my gifts so when I get home I will have to post them. Thank you Doug, and the rest of my family and friends for being so thoughtful and kind. All of your phone calls, tributes on the blog and gifts were so sweet. I truely feel blessed to have you all a part of my life.

My Birthday

This is the car that Doug bought me for my birthday isn't he so nice? Its been the best 31st birthday ever!! The car even has air conditioned seats! That is a major plus for such hot weather. No, I am really j/k this is my in-laws newly purchased Lexus. It is such a beautiful car, we heard all about it on the drive back to Arizona. So much that I had to take a photo of it. They turned in their 9 year old caddy for this white beauty.

We spent our last day on the beach literally soaking up the sun. We headed out for the beach around 9am and were there until 3pm. Sadly, we then packed our stuff up showered and headed back to Arizona for a few days. I must say it was a great birthday present being out on the beach for the day and not a cloud in the sky. Glenn & Jen showed up today as well as Doug's other brother Duane & family. Jared was excited to add another boy cousin to the mesh. It's too bad they couldn't come until the day we left. They had fun for a few hours together though.

We arrived back to Mesa around 11:30 pm. So exhausted from the sun, driving, having tons of fun and eating way too much. It was definitely worth it though.

Carlsbad Day 3

We walked the streets of Carlsbad today. I stopped at the local mexican joint "Cessy's" and got my daily diet coke with a yummy burrito. It was very hot, but we couldn't complain because we were at the beach. These fire hydrants were all painted differently around the city. I really should have taken more pictures of the different ones. Taylor thought the one above was so cool because it was a bunch of marathon runners. The one below I thought was cute since it blended in with the scenery. I must say pretty original!

Kathy took the girls Taylor and Jordan (her cousin) to get pedicures for their birthday. They are only three weeks apart. So the two little 9 year olds got painted pink toes along with cute little flowers. They had so much fun and loved every minute of it.

After the girls were done we headed out for dinner and back to the outlet malls to finish up some last shopping. I was able to take Dean & Kathys family pictures for them on the beach as well. They all looked cute coordinated in brown and white. Tonight we splurged and went to cold stone creamery for dessert. It was devine!! I am sad that tonight is our last night here in California.

Cali Day 2

Today was overcast all day, but that didn't stop us from hanging around the beach. The boys continued to play in the sand and daddy even built them some sand "cars" Of course Luke had to have a Mater car built for him. We were able to take family pictures and because of the clouds I think they turned out pretty good.

This was the view from our condo. We were up on the second floor it was so pretty. I couldn't resist this picture of the gorgeous sunset. We shopped all day long and were so tired. Needless to say I was very excited once I hit the pillow!

Carlsbad Day 1

Our place of living for the next 3 days!!

I found an internet connection off the balcony of our condo!! Hurray! I can now post listening to the waves of the ocean. It doesn't get more heavenly than that! Doug is loving that he can sit up here with me reading his book. (I really should be doing this too) But I guess I am a little addicted to modern technology. Why not if I have the hookup.

The boys had so much fun digging in the sand.

Taylor and mom

The kids woke up so eager to go down to the beach. So after Doug & I did our morning exercise we packed up and headed down the stairs to the beach. Taylor and Jared had a blast just riding the waves. We checked out a boogie board and they also had a lot of fun with that. The little boys got tired around noon so we headed back to the condo for some rest time. The older kids stayed with Dean & Kathy.

Claim Jumpers party of 12! The funny thing is Kathy went in to reserve us a seat for our hugomongo family and instead of saying just a minute. The girl said, oh your party is so big my manager has to seat you. The funniest part is it was only about 3:30pm and the restuarant was nearly empty. The food was so yummy and of course the portions are literally for 3 people. Jared's "kid" plate came with two pieces of grilled chicken. What kid is going to eat that much. It was like an adult sized meal. Their muffins were the best part. I couldn't resist and had to get some for breakfast. I just love corn bread!!

The double Clouse clan= 12 kiddos

We left lunar or (lunch combined with dinner) and went on to the outlet mall. We got there and shopped and shopped until the kids wouldn't allow us to anymore. We came out with a bunch of stuff. I am so glad we finally found Doug a watch! We have been looking for two months and he couldn't find one. I am also happy to say that he got a couple of pair of shoes and now can throw his old nasty ones away. We finished up the night with a slurpee trip to 7-11. Now we are about to watch a movie. Until tomorrow!!

Californication

This is the landmark I remember seeing as a kid driving to California. love the mountains near Palm Springs. I think they are so gorgeous. I was always amazed by all of the power mills. There is also a couple of movies I remember seeing them in as well. We are now in Cali! We stopped off to eat at In & Out. My favorite is their handcut french fries and vanilla shake.

Theres nothing like eating unhealthy grub while on vacation!!

It was so good to stop off and see the Palmers. The kids had fun for a few hours and Chanel made them some chocolate chips cookies.

My buddy Chanel I miss living close to!!



Lucy, Jared, Ruby, Taylor and Haley
Everyone is growing up so fast! Its hard to believe we met Haley
when she was just 12 months old, now she is 8!!

Later that day we drove on down to Carlsbad to check into the condo. It was extremely hot and humid, much like home. The boys were so excited to see the ocean. When Luke was sitting up on the balcony with Doug he asked him "daddy what is wrong with the pool?" meaning the waves. Its funny how they perceive and are so observant about things. I loved seeing them get their feet dirty in the sand and playing near the water. Luke is still very timid of it, but Weston loves it.