Zoe's First Soccer Game

Zoe is #2 (her favorite number) on the Blue Sonics team. Her first game was at 8:00AM this morning. The other team we were playing was short 4 players, so Zoe and another kid had to go over and play for their team for the first quarter. Being that this was her very first game, she played well. It was neat to see her out there, not afraid to try and compete with some kids that have been playing for years. She is definitely not used to all that running though...I think we need to do some sprinting drills!

(Warming up)

(Playing on the opposing team)

(Running her heart out, going for the ball)

Great job today Zoe!!

A Nice Day...

(Cooper, Taylor, Zoe, Mitchell, Marley, and Allison)

We met up with Jenny and Teri and the kids for a fun day today. We headed up to the Santa Rosa Plateau for a short hike to the vernal pools.

When we got out of the car, there were caterpillars everywhere! The were crawling all over the ground. So Zoe picked one up and named it Fuzzy Bob and carried it with her almost the whole time we were there.
We were then on a quest for the water snakes we had seen last year in the spring. It was a little disappointing at first because we couldn't find any, but as the weather warmed up they started coming out.

After that, it was time for lunch! We went to Wendy's to eat and visit some more. Thanks for the fun day ladies! :)

Hooray for Hollywood!

Joe had to head up to Los Angeles today for his weekly doctors appointment, so the kids and I decided to join him so we could do a little sightseeing. While Joe was getting his physical, we went down the street to The Grove to walk around for a bit. The fountains are beautiful and Zoe's favorite part is the American Girl store. We went in for a few minutes, but Cooper was not very happy to be there, so we didn't stay long. I also love the old Farmers Market that is there. There are so many little food vendors with delicious meals, baked goods, and treats.
After Joe was done, we met up with some old friends of ours, MaryLou and Danielle from Colorado who are temporarily living in the LA area. We hadn't seen them years, so it was great to visit, even if only for 1/2 hour! I can't believe I didn't get a photo!

Now it was time for the tourist part of our day! We drove over to Hollywood Blvd. to see Mann's Chinese Theatre. The kids aren't really old enough to know a lot of the celebrities that have their hand and foot prints there, but they enjoyed seeing them all and measuring their own feet against theirs.

(Zoe found the cast of Harry Potter)

(My week of Mary Poppins continues...I found Julie Andrews!)

(Cooper liked the Lion-Dog statue that guards the theatre)

Walking around Hollywood Blvd. was quite an experience. Let me just say, there are a lot of strange people in this world! It was fascinating to walk up and down the street. There were lots of people dressed as characters and would ask for $ to have your picture taken with them. Cooper was very impressed with the Star Wars guys, so we gave in!
We also got to see a lot of the celebrity stars on the ground. The kids found a few they recognized too. Cooper liked this Godzilla one!
Next to the Kodak Theatre (where the finale of American Idol is filmed), we found a Nestle Toll House Cafe. Really, what could be better?! We were able to make up our own ice cream cookie sandwiches! Yummy!

(Joe and Cooper got the big ones, Zoe and I stuck with the minis!)

Our next outing took us to Griffith Park. It was nice to see some greenery again and the wide open spaces! You could spend a lot of time there riding bikes or running the trails. After driving around for a bit, we decided to head up the Hollywood Hills to the Griffith Observatory. On the way up we saw some stunning homes and the Hollywood sign!

The observatory was a really neat experience for the kids. They loved the huge pendulum in the entry, all the exhibits, and the huge telescopes.

In one area, they had a huge display of all the planets. Each planet was separately shown with its individual information such as the temperature, the length of a day and year, etc. They also had a scale at each one which you could stand on and it would tell you what your weight would be on that planet. On Pluto, Zoe only weighed about 6 lbs! I think I would like to live there!

(It was a bit overcast, but the views were still beautiful!)

Overall, we had a great day in L.A. The drive home was really long though! We made a quick stop at A&W for dinner, and made it home in time for bed. Hopefully we can go back over the summer and see a few more places!

Disneyland!

Grandma and I used our passes and took the kids to Disneyland for the day. Being that it is spring break, it was pretty crowded, but we still had a great time!

(For Cooper's souvenir, he wanted a Goofy hat, so here he is with the hat and Goofy statue!)

After all of these years going to Disneyland, Zoe finally wanted an autograph book so she could get the characters to sign it and take pictures. So we spent the day in search of characters in between the rides. Her first character was Goofy (which made Cooper very happy!).
One of Zoe's many favorite things about Disneyland is getting to buy the big pickles in a bag. She just loves them!
In the afternoon we stopped and had a great lunch at our favorite restaurant in New Orleans Square. My mom and I always share the blackened chicken caesar salad and the monte cristo sandwich. Our other favorite is the dessert beignets. They are served with a raspberry jam sauce and a vanilla creme...yummy!!

(Before)

(After!)

We did go over to California Adventure Park for a while. The kids spent most of time doing the rock climbing wall. They sure do have strong little arms!
Grandma decided to head home in the late afternoon, so the kids and I went back over to Disneyland for a few more roller coasters. We hit the matterhorn a few more times and thunder mountain railroad. Throughout the day, Zoe got the autographs of Goofy, Mickey, Cruella DeVille, Alladin, and Minnie. We were still searching for my favorite though. So as we were in line to get Cooper some hot chocolate, we finally found them...Mary Poppins and Burt!
Thanks for a fun day Grandma!

Birthdays...

Our first weekend of spring break was spent at Grandma and Grandpa's house. We went to Benihana's for dinner to celebrate Grandpa and Uncle Jeff's birthdays. The kids had never been to that restaurant before, so they were very excited to have the chef cook right in front of us!

(Zoe loved the fried rice!)

(Chef making SpongeBob out of the fried rice!)

Now, Cooper is the pickiest eater ever! He really only eats a select few things. So every time the chef put something on his plate, he gave a weird grimace. He did try a piece of the teriyaki corn and a piece of chicken, but didn't eat any of it. So he was thrilled when dessert came and it was a scoop of chocolate ice cream! :)

Afterwards, Grandpa and Uncle Jeff opened their cards and gifts.
Happy Birthday Dad and Jeff! We love you both!

New Karate Belt...

(Cooper and Miss Stephanie, one of his instructors)

Cooper had a karate belt ceremony tonight and he did awesome! He is almost through his Champions program and I could really see how much he has learned. They did "attack" demonstrations with the kids to show what they're learning about defense strategies and fighting techniques.

(Cooper getting ready to "fight" Mr. Gomez)

I am so proud of you Cooper!!

Zoe's first soccer practice

Zoe decided to try a new sport, so she had her first soccer practice today! She was really nervous and had butterflies in her belly all day. She didn't know anyone on her team, but Coach Chris was very welcoming and made her feel great. Zoe was such a trooper and got right out their to do her drills and running. This is a whole new thing for her, and I was so proud to watch her out there trying so hard. Unfortunately it was 88 degrees outside, so an hour of practice and running in the heat gave her quite a headache, but she's anxious to get back out there for her next practice!

Can't wait to see your first game Zoe!