Charlie is loving first grade! He thinks eating lunch at school is pretty cool, and he's also rocking the reading biz! His good buddy Sawyer from kindergarten is in his class and I had the fun privilege of helping settle the kids in on their first day for lunch, and watching them giggle and talk together excitedly made me happy.
As our little family grows up, we're trying to establish some family traditions for holidays that are just our own.
I am loving our July 4th tradition!.JPG)
Our good friends Melanie and Jerry (yes, I still like to say "Ben and Jerry" this and that) host a neighborhood breakfast every 4th, and we ride our bikes up, have breakfast with our great neighbors, then we ride our bikes just over a mile to the parade.
I love that we have something active and physical along with our tradition. We would've done it three years ago but at that time Andy was only a few months old and unable to ride in the bike trailer. So this is year two!
Last year the sirens made Charlie cry, and Andy didn't care too much one way or the other about the parade.
Finally this year, we all enjoyed all of it and there was no crying, well amost. I like parades and if you combine good ol' love for my country, toss in a little nostalgia from my youth, and the fact that sirens also can have a very sad connotation, it is probably no surprise to those who know me well enough that parades actually make me almost cry a bit too. I usually try to hide my goober-ness beneath my sunglasses or blame it on the bright sun in my eyes! Shhh....
Happy Fourth of July!.JPG)
I have a little catching up to do on the blog because of my prior frustration with uploading pictures to blogger. Today it seems to be working pretty well, phew!
In March during spring break we headed out to San Diego and split a beach house with Ben's Mom Anita, and his sisters Laura and Heather and their cute families. We totaled 7 kids and 7 adults!
It was SUCH fun. Our beach house had great ocean views and was really nice!
Our first dinner on our first night!
We made Gracie a mermaid. The kids LOVED playing in the sand.
Grandma's are special.
It just DOES NOT get any better then this:
We visited Sea World. Within the first 10 minutes of arriving Andy split his chin open but all is well now!
Then one day in Disneyland!
Here we all are on the way into Small World!
Charlie loved Buzz Lightyear ride, Small World, and the Winnie the Pooh ride.
Andy seemed pretty happy the whole time and didn't fuss the entire 11 hours we were there!
He even had a special moment with his Fairy Godmother:
Andy chillin' with the girls Maddie and Rosie, waiting for fairly like things:
I thought of the Beach Boys at this moment, "Two girls for every boy!" Gotta love California!
It was such a fun trip, the kids were great, the beach house was perfect. Lots of great memories! Thanks to Ben's family for being so awesome and doing fun things like this!! I loved it.
My bliss:
And then, a few weeks later, I turned thirty.
And that's all I have to say about that.
We brought home our newest family member on Saturday!
Meet Cricket. She's our 11 week old Yorkie puppy. She weighs about 2 lbs.
Her first night she was so quiet and good. I was shocked. I expected her to cry all night! She was quiet as a mouse. She's been an absolute doll and seems to love us already. The boys just love to see her and she's really cuddly. What a cute little creature!
Ben said "I'm glad you talked me into it."
He loves her too!
Is anyone else having problems with blogger lately? It uploads pictures sometimes, then all of a sudden it just...won't.
It looks like it is but it just sits there for EVER and never gets anything done.
Help! It's very aggravating.
Do you remember on Pretty Woman, at the beginning and end they show a shabby, presumably homeless man, cheerfully wandering the streets of Hollywood asking, "What's your dream? What's your dream? Everyone that comes to Hollywood has a dream?"
That's what I'm asking you. I have read on some various blogs about bucket lists, things that people want to accomplish before they die. There are some pretty quirky and interesting things on those lists. I also blog a lot with a group of amazing women about health and fitness, and we often talk about goals and willpower and inspiration, and all sorts of great things. There is talk about how we can achieve amazing things with the will to get up and work for what we want.
It got me thinking. Marinating over what my real dreams could be. They've changed over the years. To run a marathon? No. To skydive? Not anymore. Some people dream of climbing Everest. I will never be among them! I have dreamed of being on Broadway, to be a veterinarian, of living by the ocean or on a great expanse of land with a lake and a Golden Retriever named Marty.
Some dreams I've had have come true, and I'm so thankful. To marry a great guy (greatest EVER!), to have healthy children (they are healthy, beautiful, smart, good, funny, everything I could ever want), to have great friends. Done and done!! I've been blessed in life to have pursued a great career, I became a dental hygienist. I work two days a week and make good money, and still have time with my kids and to run a household. I love my job, I am happy doing it, it adds to my overall life's satisfaction. I love my family so much it hurts, I love my friends, my home, and my neighborhood. I am happy with life, truly happy. Laundry and a dirty kitchen disrupts my bliss, but that is another story.
But......maybe, just maybe, I could be lucky enough to have even more? Sounds kind of selfish, considering I've been given so much. I will be honest though and tell you that I do hope to achieve more with this life I've been given. I've found my dream. Let me correct myself, I have always had this dream but I tucked it neatly aside for a very long time. To write. More truthfully though, not just to write, but "be a writer." I've always loved reading, I toyed with the idea of majoring in English, but decided against it with no regrets.
It took me a lot of courage to admit the dream to myself, and even more to others. I want to write a book. I've started writing one. I've joined with a group of other writers. I've done some research and I realize that it's a long shot. It's a tough road to get published, even tougher to become well known, to have a bestseller. TOUGH I say. It will take a lot of work, time, and sacrifice. Can I do it? Am I good enough? Doubts can crush your will to succeed. I won't answer those questions because I don't like the answers I give myself. I'm just going to go for it. Now you know. It's terrifying to admit. I have a LOT to learn. I will learn it. I am finding immense satisfaction and joy in the whole process. In the end, that may have to be enough, which is the nice thing about dreams; sometimes, trying is the true triumph.
Now it's your turn. "What's your dream? What's your dream? Everybody that comes to Hollywood has a dream." Tell me if you dare.
Our brown eyed buddy turned two on Saturday!
We had a fun filled simple day because he was just getting over a bad cold.
Andy at two years old:
Loves fruit and veggies (especially berries and broccoli and green beans) but has little interest in eating in general.
Loves all balls!
His favorite movies are Cars and an old Gumby and Felix Magical Mirth video that is way old.
He can repeat almost anything you say. He can say 3-4 word sentences.
What he says the most: "I'll do it."
He is VERY independent.
Andy likes to look at books.
He is still talented at throwing tantrums especially when not feeling well.
He is very sweet and darling and spunky.
He is mischievous.
Andy can really tell you off if he wants, but also gives very sweet kisses and hugs.
Nicknames are: Monkey, Zeedle, Magoo, Candy Andy, Baby Goose
We love our bud. We are so thankful to have this little monkey in our lives.
