Back.

My blog is dying. Maybe I should let it.
I just noticed that once I get a little behind, I get REALLY unmotivated and then months go by without a post.
So in hopes of keeping motivated I decided to start fresh with what is happening right now. As in, today. As in, the first day of school!

My darling Emily...(sorry, these shots stink. Right into the sun.)

This one is a little better...

My sweet Justin...

(I just have to say that starting 1st grade is such a big deal.

He is gone all day now! Not home by lunchtime like Kindergarten.

It was hard to say Goodbye.)

Eden sweating in her jammies.

We were in a little bit of a hurry and I didn't have time to get three kids ready!

Kisses...

Here they are, my two school-aged children.
I'm so glad they love school and so glad they are mine. :)

Happy 2010-2011 (school year) Everyone!!!

p.s. I hope to re-cap our summer sometime. Little by little. :)

Catalina

So, I would say this blog is 99% about our kids...there might be a picture of Dave and I here or there...but really, it's mostly about the kids. For good reason too, they are way cuter, funnier and more interesting than we are. At least I think so. Not to say I don't think Dave is cute or funny or interesting, I totally do! But when it comes to blogging...you know what I mean. :)

So, for today I have a post that is 100% about us. Not one picture of Emily, Justin, or Eden in it. But I have good reason for that too! Dave surprised me last week with a short, late anniversary trip to Catalina Island!!! Well, he almost surprised me...my sister accidentally let the cat out of the bag a couple of days before...but it counts. I really love surprises!

So here we are, Catalina Island!

It was absolutely gorgeous there! I couldn't even believe how pretty it was. It's just this tiny little island paradise. It was heaven.

The sun came out right as our boat pulled in and it couldn't have been more perfect...

Our first picture there, taken right after we got off the boat...

I'm a total nerd, but I had to show pictures of our hotel. It was so beautiful and nice.
We ate breakfast every morning overlooking the ocean from the little dining area in the picture to the right...

The grounds...

The flowers...
(really, I could have taken a million pictures of the flowers, there were so many beautiful ones!)

The trees...

The Sights...

The Beach!

So beautiful and relaxing...

What we did...

Snorkeling...

(The water was fr-eezing, but the wetsuits helped and it was AMAZING!)

Eating...

(I think I gained 10 pounds on this trip...there were so many fabulous places to eat and everything we tried we loved. This little cafe had out of this world salads and sandwiches.

Besides eating here we had amazing Mexican, Seafood, and Italian...)

We rented a golf cart and drove all around the quaint little city (town?) of Avalon.

The Zip Line!
O.K., this is one of the coolest things I've ever done...this zip line just opened up in Catalina about three months ago and it was awesome. So fun and scary and thrilling. I'll probably post a video some other time, for now...here's a dorky picture (of me) taken right before...


This is a terrible picture, taken right into the sun...but it shows one of the platforms we zipped on to and off of...it was so beautiful and scenic there...


Like I said, one of the coolest things I've ever done.
We also went mini golfing, did a couple of boat tours and one bus tour,
a little hiking, and even went out to a movie.



This last picture basically sums up the whole trip up for me...I was so happy to spend time with this wonderful man...he really is my best friend and I am so lucky to be married to him. I had the time of my life and am so thankful for every second we get to be together.
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

Birthday Girl

Today is Eden's 2nd birthday. This little angel has been on the earth for two years! It's wonderful and crazy and happy and sad to me all at the same time.

So here is a little bit about Eden, age 2.

Eden's favorite things: Stawberries (notice the red stains around her mouth in the above picture...strawberries), babies, dogs, ducks, shoes, dresses, "pincesses", dressing up, jumping on the trampoline, dancing, balloons, baths, swimming, lotion, sunscreen, brushing her teeth, "Yo Gabba, Gabba", "Little Einsteins", books, singing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" and "The ABC Song", listening to the Chipmunks CD, Neil Diamond, and the Beatles, going to the park, wearing her swimsuit, getting her toenails painted, playing with friends, going on walks, being bossy. :) She is sweet and stubborn and smart and funny and fearless and loving and is a complete bundle of energy and joy. I think everyone who reads this blog knows how much we all love her and how happy she makes us and has made us for the last two years. Words can't really express it. So happy birthday to our baby!

We love you Sweetheart!

Birthday Boy

Justin turned Six last Tuesday...and after all sorts of celebrating I am finally ready to blog about it. :) We'll start with Tuesday morning...Justin woke up to a breakfast of yummy whole wheat pancakes served on the special birthday plate...

(Sleepy, but excited)

Before heading off to school we let Justin open a couple of presents.

I included this picture mostly because it shows Eden wearing her favorite

accessory...Emily's underwear. (It's clean.)

No friend party this year, but we did do a pizza playdate

at the park with some of Justin's best friends...

Later that night we celebrated as a family at the Las Vegas Mini Gran Prix. Justin (being the awesome kid that he is) won an award in school where he received a full on party at this really fun Go Kart place in our area. It included pizza for the whole family, drinks, tons of tokens, and tickets to go on the cool rides and Go Karts there. It was seriously so much fun! Justin loved every second of it, we all did. It was a perfect way to celebrate Justin...

Merry-Go-Round...

Air Hockey!

Going down the Huge Slide...(so fun!)

Rides!

Eden really wanting to go on the rides....

(Poor thing, the only rides she could go on were the slide and the Go karts)

Our favorite part--the Go Karts. Emily was old enough to ride on her own and she was such a champ. Justin rode with me (which is why I unfortunately don't have a picture) and Eden rode with Dave. I can't even say how fun this was...we were all out there together as a family just zooming around. It was pretty great.

Justin riding the mini cars...he was way into it.

We celebrated one more time on Friday with all of our family here in Vegas.

Here's Justin with his Mario Mushroom cupcakes...

Who needs a friend party when we have so many awesome cousins!?

opening presents...

Justin looking at the scrapbook Emily made for him. :)

Our Birthday Boy!

We couldn't love this little guy (big guy now!) more. We are so lucky to have Justin in our family!