swimming lessons

we started swimming lessons last week. we are taking them at the same place. the rose bowl aquatic center in pasadena. this year mason and dahlia are in separate classes. dahlia is in the preschool class and mason is in the school age class. i was worried they would be sad but they didn't mind at all. i think it is actually good for them. maybe they will focus more and not be distracted by each other.

they loved the classes. they got right in the water without any complaining. mason's class seemed to move a little quicker than dahlia's even though they are the same level. maybe they just take it slower with the younger kids. they both are doing really well. they are so confident now that they want to swim without any floaties at all when we are in our friends pool. it is great. now i need to get connor in a class. maybe i will sign him up for a saturday class. he is still too young for the classes without a parent in the pool so it would have to be a weekend class. it will be so nice to have them all swimming.

aquarium of the pacific

another outing to the aquarium. this time it was super busy. i forgot about the summer crowds. we still had a good time though because we got to touch a moon jelly and see the penguin exhibit. the moon jellies were so cool. so soft. we didn't stay long. jen met us there with her kids and had to work later so we only had a couple of hours to look around. we spent most of the time outside by the shark touch tanks.

after we left the aquarium we went to orange county to swim at christina's house. i was pretty exhausted but the kids really wanted to go to the pool so of course we did. they swam for a few hours and then we stayed for dinner. whew. i forgot how much work summer is. man i need a vacation from all this time off of school.

beach day

jen and i were very brave and decided to take the kids to the beach all by ourselves. it turned out great. instead of walking we drove and parked at the beach. it is only a short walk from jen's house but there are lots of stairs involved and it is just too difficult without the men along to help us. i figured the seven dollars to park the car is well worth it to not have to carry a heavy stroller up and down stairs while making sure three little kids don't get run over by cars on pch.

the kids had a blast. mason, dahlia, and bodhi wanted to spend all their time in the ocean running and jumping in the waves. connor and kira were happier playing in the sand by our towels. jen and i split up and i was on wave duty while she watched the little ones playing in the sand. we stayed for over two hours and then it was time to head home. we gave the kids bathes and ordered pizza for dinner. what a fun day. everything turned out so good i can't wait to go again.

visiting friends

we went to my friend carla's house this weekend for her son zander's birthday party. he just turned three. they had a swim party at their new house. we had so much fun. we stayed all day. all my kids were loving the pool. they had heated it so it was super warm. mason and dahlia didn't want to get out. we had to drag them out when it was time to sing happy birthday.

after cake the kids went outside to drive zander's battery controlled car. connor was so excited. he loved the car. my kids are always sitting in these cars when we shop at toys r us but they never get to drive one. what a treat. we stayed super late but the kids were still sad when it was time to go home. i hope we get to visit again soon for another swim date. happy birthday zander.

we heart summer

the kids goofing around in the backyard pool. these are my favorite summer moments. i get to grab a book and lounge in a beach chair while i watch them play. it is impossible to do without a smile on my face.

cherry time

we went cherry picking today. yay for cherries. we went to the same place. villa del sol in leona valley. i forgot what a long drive it is. it is 65 miles from us. i took my three kids and met my mom, two of my sisters, and their kids there. we picked cherries for almost two hours. we had to pull my mom out of there. she would have stayed and picked for another two hours. she loves to pick cherries. so do i. it is really fun. dahlia and mason picked almost eight pounds. yikes. i don't know what i am going to do with all these cherries. i also bought some of their local raw honey. i bought it before and it is really good.

as soon as we got home dahlia insisted on sorting all the cherries by type. rainier in one bowl and bing in another. so cute. then she had me pull out the cherry chomper from last year and pitted enough so we could make a cherry cake. whew. i was so tired. i really didn't want to make a cake but she insisted. we made our usual cherry crumb cake and it is super good. really though just the cherries by themselves are perfect. hurray for june cherry picking.

fathers day

we celebrated fathers day at my sister christina's house this year. we usually get together at my house but after hosting mothers day i was happy to take a break. it was a fun day. it was super hot out. miles and i brought our big blow up pool and set it up in the backyard for the kids to swim. they had a blast splashing around.

my dad bought christina a new grill so we could cook some steaks. i'm not sure how she managed to get a gift on fathers day. lucky girl. for some reason i ended up cooking again. hmmmm. my mom asked me to cook the brussels sprouts and salmon while my brother grilled the steaks and corn on the cob. christina made her yummy salad. everything was delicious. my dad had his birthday two days ago so we sang happy birthday to him. i brought a cake from portos that was definitely not as good as my homemade carrot cake. next time i will definitely bake my own.

the kids and i made our homemade barbecue sauce again this year for the dads. all three kids colored pictures for the labels. mason did the writing. i think they look so cute. we also surprised miles with a car washing kit. hint hint. now i just need to get him to use it. i hope all the dad's had a great day.

hello summer

today was the last day of school. it was actually kind of sad. when i picked up mason after school a bunch of the kids were crying. they all love their teacher. they were all so sad to leave her. mason's teacher said that mason was tearing up too. he seemed pretty down. she has been his teacher for two years now and he is really attached. i don't remember the kids being so emotional last year. it was really sweet though. they are all such nice kids. i am sad to have the year end. i have been kind of depressed about it all week.

when we went home we surprised mason with a big sign that said hello summer. dahlia and i painted it this morning. the kids got to run through it and tear it. i spoiled them and had little presents for them. we had fun the rest of the day. i took them to gym class and then jen, bodhi, and kira came over for dinner. i am sure when we don't have to wake up mason early tomorrow he will be happy it is summer.

planting seeds

the kids got these "green toys" pots and seeds in their easter baskets and have been waiting to plant them. i have been so busy i just keep putting it off. today dahlia decided that the seeds needed to be planted so we did it. it really didn't take that long. i don't know why i waited to do it.

mason and dahlia both wanted to plant the sunflower seeds. they love sunflowers and are always trying to get me to buy them at the market, even when i think they are not looking so good. connor planted zinnia seeds. i hope they grow. i don't have much luck with seeds. lets hope the kids have a green thumb.

almost summer

we are super excited for summer around here. the weather has been really warm and today we set up the blow up pool after school. dahlia and connor had a great time swimming while mason and i watched. after swimming we all enjoyed some super drippy watermelon. yes. it is definitely feeling like summer.

show week

mason, dahlia, and bodhi had their end of the year gym performance at the little gym today. they call it show week. it is really cute. the parents and siblings get to go into the gym and sit and watch each kid do their routine. there is a floor, uneven bars, and balance beam routine.

they all do the same thing and it is really cute to watch. they get so excited to see you in the gym watching them. they start off the show playing music from the olympics and introducing all the children. they come running out and do an assisted flip.

at the end of the show they had all the kids come up one at a time to the podium and receive a metal. dahlia was beyond excited to get a metal. she kept saying "i can't believe i got a metal." mason was asking me if the metal was real gold. so funny. i just love these little kids. they did a great job. i am really looking forward to another year of gymnastics and watching their skills develop.

precious

i was looking for dahlia and found her napping in her bed. she never takes naps. it was just so cute i had to take a picture.

kidspace

jen came over with bodhi and kira and we took all the kids to a children's museum in pasadena called kidspace. they have a free day the first tuesday of the month from 4 to 8. we got there at 4:15 and it was completely packed with kids. it was very overwhelming to try to keep track of my three. they all seemed to be running in different directions.

luckily it was really only the first room that was crazy. that was the room with all the climbing towers and tunnels. there was a second room called the nature exchange filled with shells, rocks, fossils, and dead insects. the kids loved this room and had a great time looking at all the different shells.

after the nature room we went outside to explore the grounds. they had gardens that we walked around and outdoor climbers that they had a great time playing on. there was lots of water play areas but luckily the kids didn't play in these. i hadn't brought a change of clothes for them so i didn't want them to get wet.

before we left there was a short concert of polynesian music in their outdoor amphitheater. they also had dancers doing a traditional polynesian dance. it was really cool. i loved the music.

i would definitely go back there for another free day. the crowds were a bit of a drag but it was a really fun place for the kids.

crafting at home depot

dahlia and i woke up super early on saturday and drove to orange county. i took zena and dahlia to home depot for their monthly kid's workshop. they have this super cute program where the first saturday of the month they have a free kids craft. the kids get an apron and a kit with wood pieces and nails to put together.

this month it was an organizer that dahlia is using as a jewelery box. i helped the girls glue and nail the pieces together and then they got to go to the painting table to paint and decorate the box with stickers. they had so much fun. zena has been going for the last three months but this was dahlia's first time. next month they are building a wooden truck. i am definitely going to bring mason along. he will love it.