back for round {2}

i didn't quite get my fill of california from my last trip out there, probably because the beach was constantly overcast, so

i decided to take the kids and go back for a long weekend in attempt to get some good beach weather.

thursday my mom had my brothers kids, so we all went out to la to the natural history museum. i had never been there, so i was actually really excited to go. the place was massive, and was absolutely amazing.

it was built in 1913, so the architecture was so beautiful, and the exhibits were so life like and so visual. berkeley loved seeing all the animals, and couldn't stop talking about the dinosaurs. she was entertained all day, and couldn't stop talking about every animal that we saw.

beckham was a gem the whole day. he started getting sleepy and asked for his blankee and just nestled in his stroller.

he was asleep in minutes.

then we went to the beach twice. the first day we went to newport and the weather was beautiful. we met up with my friend jade and her little girl. berkeley found some friends of course and played all day. beckham didn't quite know what to do with himself because he was so tired, so half the day he just wandered around aimlessly holding his blanket.

the second day we went to the beach, we went to manhattan beach in la. it was overcast....so lame. we went with my mom and 2 sisters. we stayed for about 2 hours and i was freezing the whole time. it was still fun to go though, and let the kids play.

i dont even know what to say.

words cannot express how bizarre this was.

berk found this hat in my sisters stuff and she said it was her magician hat, so she added a magic wand, and naturally, she went ahead and took the whole charade to the beach.

me and jade and our darling babies who are only 1 day apart.

such a fun beach day.

love her.

my sweet berkeley started her 2nd year of preschool today.

she is only going 2 days a week, thanks to her mom, who signed her up too late, and couldn't get her into the 3 days a week class.

she is so excited, and this year she is in the same class as her cousin clay.

she's so glad to be back in school.

painted nails for the first day of school.

berkeley drew these this morning. my heart just melted. little kid drawings i think are basically the cutest things ever, especially when they come from your own kids, and even more especially when its our family!!

love her.

this gal.

while in california i got to see this girl.

luckily, the day i locked my keys and phone in the car......with my kids in the car as well, she was there to help me.

since the kids were inside, i decided it was considered an emergency, so she called 911.

5 minutes later at the mainplace mall parking lot, we heard sirens coming from a big red fire truck.

it took 3 fireman about 10 minutes to open the car.

i was humiliated the entire time.

the kids were fine, and had no idea what was going on.....

luckily.

thanks rae for helping out!

california trip

after the fabulous big bear trip, me and the kids stayed in california at my parents for another week and a half of non 100+ degree weather.

we stayed for about 10 days, and my sister danielle

and her family stayed at my parents as well....so it was a little squished, but good squished.

im pretty sure while i was there i put 500 miles on my car just driving in southern california.

i hate the traffic so much i now refuse to drive on any freeway between 4 and 6 pm.

we went to the beach 4 times....3 times of which were overcast. grrrr.

ate tk burger and rubinos pizza. my favorite beach food ever.

i drove down to carlsbad and spent 2 glorious, perfect days with todds sister.

i went to downtown la for a night on the town with my sister whitney.

i went to my bf's birthday party on the beach and enjoyed a nice bonfire.

i visited my grandma.

i saw lots of movies.

i went to the gym with my sisters.

i saw old friends.

i went to a waterpark, payed way too much, held beckham for an hour while he cried, couldn't find berkeley in the sea of people, and then left after an hour.

terrible.

i forgot the battery for my camera, so i was only capable of taking

crappy pictures from my phone.

ate multiple bean burritos from my favorite place senor peppers.

i fell so unbelievably hard onto my elbows and forearms on the walkway at my parents house while holding berkeley in my arms. i was in so much pain and shock i was shaking, almost passed out, and got sick to my stomach in a matter of seconds.

and i got to be in beautiful weather with my kiddies and my family.

i already miss it, and every day i consider getting in my car

and driving right back!

my sweet grandma

tanner was beckhams best friend

yummy dinner

todd has been doing a summer school class that is monday-thursday 6-8pm, so me and the kids are on our own

for dinner each night. i dont want to cook a full on meal, because the kids could care less, but i dont

want to just feed them mac and cheese every night either. so i have started to think up simple, easy,

and "trying to be healthy" meals. i copied this one from papa murphy's gourmet veggie pizza,

and i just put it on pita bread instead.

(a pita pocket is only 160 calories!!!)

tomato sauce, cheese, cucumber, tomato, white onion,

spinach, and artichoke.

i absolutley loved this meal, and to my surprise both

of my kids ate it.

i always feel a little bit better about myself when i know my

kids are eating good things.

date night

after being away from todd for almost 2 weeks we had a much needed date last night. luckily for us we were given d-back tickets on the 5th row behind home plate! we took the dixon's with us and had a great time eating lots of overly priced food, listening to crazy drunk people, and enjoying each others company.

love summer.

big bear {2010}

my parents took our whole family to big bear lake, ca this year for our big family vacation. we had the most AMAZING time. i grew up going to big bear about 3 times a year, and i had not been back since high school, so i was very excited to go and show todd and the kids where i had so many fond memories. the first night we got there we had a fun time discovering there were bats in my parents cabin. todd, being the animal catcher he is, started trying to capture all the bats. He set up traps, and tried to use raid to get them out. i don't even know if they were actually successful getting them out or not!

highlights include:

painful family pictures

rummikub tournament

pool tournament

volleyball game

nertz

apline slides

bike rides

the AMAZING weather

house on the lake

dinners with everyone

talent show

pin the tail on the donkey

the bats

golf

the beatles....over and over and over

swimming

falling down the stairs

fireworks

2 desserts each night

waiting for the fireworks

watching fireworks from our deck

lots of games

fruit basket tipped over

my talented brothers at the talent show

volleyball....yes, my brother in law is in fact wearing what looks to be a woman's tank top

alpine slides

berkeley insisted on taking woody with her each time