snow trip

we had so much fun last year in big bear we decided to go again this year. the place we stayed at last time was booked so we rented a private cabin instead. it was so nice. way nicer than the place we had last year. we booked it for two nights because one is not enough. i would actually say that two is not enough either. next year we should stay three!

our trip started off really bad because we got a late start and ended up having to drive in a snow storm. when we stopped to put chains on the car a truck slid on the ice and rear-ended us. no one was hurt and our car was drivable after getting a jump but it sucked to get in an accident. ugh. it was the longest drive to big bear ever. i was so paranoid after getting hit.

the rest of the trip was great. really fun. the cabin was huge. jen, ray, bodhi and our family were upstairs and christina, zena, doug, and susan took the bedrooms downstairs. we had a big crowd which made the trip even more fun.

there was a huge snowstorm on friday and most of saturday. it was so beautiful to see so much snow falling. the kids had never seen the snow fall. i loved it. our car was buried in snow! ray had to shovel a path from the front door. these are all completely foreign concepts to a southern california girl like myself. we didn't really do much on saturday because of all the snow falling but the kids were happy to play outside in the backyard and on the porch digging in the snow and making forts.

christina, zena, and doug were very adventurous and decided to get in the hot tub outside while snow was still falling. those crazy party people. later that night we all cooked dinner and had some wine while playing games. it was nice and relaxing.

sunday we all went sledding before it was time to drive home. we didn't have very much time but we got to sled for at least an hour. i got to go sledding this time since i wasn't holding a baby. yay. i can't wait to go again next year.

sleepovers

we have been having sleepovers at my sister christina's house every weekend. it is so fun. we have a new routine. we usually meet at church on saturday night and then go to her house for dinner. the kids love it. they play and then i give them a bath in her huge tub. all three at once! after baths we blow up the air mattress and set up our bed in the family room. so fun.

christina and i are always so excited for them to fall asleep so we can have some wine and watch the vampire diaries or a chick flick. of course we never stay up as long as we want to. we always seem to fall asleep on the couch. hmmmm, maybe we should have coffee after dinner instead of wine.

divers

my kids are so silly. i gave them my snorkel and diving mask to play with in the tub. i thought they would just use the mask but to my surprise dahlia put the snorkel in her mouth and was breathing under water. of course i was ready to rescue her if she inhaled any water but she was a natural. i was shocked. i don't know where she learned that. i think i need to get mason and dahlia their own diving masks and snorkels so we can do some real exploring in the water. i am so excited to have future diving partners.

elephants

they opened the elephant exhibit at the los angeles zoo. we have been waiting for this new exhibit for a long time. it is really nice. i read that they spent 42 million dollars on it. crazy. there are three elephants there. billy, jewel, and tina. we only saw two. connor loved the elephants. they were eating carrots and it was very cute to watch.

it was a great day at the zoo. we saw the lion and the bears. usually they are sleeping when we are there but i think because it was not a hot day they were awake. jen and bodhi went with us. i think this will be our last visit to the zoo before jen's baby arrives though. she was just too tired walking up and down all the hills.

elmo's world

jen and i went to orange county today. we took the kids to the discovery science center. it was super fun. they are having an exhibit called sesame street presents: the body. they had little sections with big shoes for the kids to tie, pretend sinks to wash their hands, and large displays to show what happens to food after you eat it. the kids loved it. i don't know if they actually learned anything but they had fun running around touching everything.

after the science center we went to visit my parents and drop off some valentines. we didn't stay long. we both wanted to get home in time to have a valentines dinner with our husbands. it was a fun day. i hope everyone felt a little love today.

run, tumble and roll

we had so much fun this weekend. we went to a friend's third birthday party at the little gym. what a cool place. it totally reminded me of another birthday party we went to a year ago at another gym. this one was a little different. the place was a lot smaller but they had two instructors that kind of ran the show. they had lots of interactive play rather than free time. so what they lacked in space and equipment they totally made up with the instruction. it was kind of silly and really fun. they had an interactive soundtrack that took you on a bear hunt through "caves" (padded tubes) and led you around the room. they also filled up a huge boat (air trampoline) for the kids to tumble and jump on. they loved it.

i was so impressed with the whole thing that i grabbed a bunch of brochures so i could enroll the kids later. i was very disappointed to find that enrolling both dahlia and mason would be almost $900.00 for 20 weeks. one class per week. while this doesn't sound too expensive (it works out to be $22.50 per kid, per class), we just can't afford it right now. maybe later. we did receive a free class coupon for the kids that i can't wait to use. i think it would be so great to get them in an organized sport or class. we just need to one that is less than $900.00!

heart mess

our family sat down together after dinner and made our valentines. this was lots of fun. miles even joined in. this year we decided to use heart shape paper and let the kids glue pom poms, pipe cleaners, googly eyes and other stuff to them. so fun. miles was making the kids laugh by creating various monsters with the foam stickers. we made a huge mess while working on them. pom poms everywhere. i bet i will be finding them for days. it is a good thing i had sense enough to not take out the glitter. while the end result is definitely not our most polished looking valentines they were all made with lots of love.

family game night

we have started a new tradition at our house this month. game night. i am so excited about this idea. i love playing games with the family.

the kids are really young and their game playing skills are limited but there are a few games that i think they can handle. we started out by playing candy land. so fun. i remember this game when i was a kid. i loved it. for some reason we were missing the red piece when we played (we found it under the table the next day) but mason improvised with a lego man. he was very excited to play.

don't be fooled. it sounds easy but candy land is a tough game. we kept getting sent back to the beginning with all the special cards. in fact, we finally had to call it quits without a winner. the kids had pretty much had enough. i think next week we will play chutes and ladders. hopefully it will go a little faster. game night was a big success though. i can't wait for the next one.

the big table

connnor has decided he does not want to sit in his highchair any more. he screamed when i put him in it at lunch time. he wanted to sit at the big table with mason and dahlia. it was so cute to watch him walk over to the table and pull out a chair. i served him his lunch with the big kids and he was just thrilled. yay. i guess now i can pack up that messy high chair. he is such a grown up.