Stitching finished...finally!

The 5th graders have been learning a lot about Colonial America. One of their big projects this trimester is to learn and stitch the 13 colonies. They had to trace an outline of the colonies, and then pass a test to make sure they know them all. Once that was done, it was on to the stitching! Zoe has been working diligently...at school, at home, in the car to and from dance, at basketball games, etc. Basically, any chance she had, she took advantage of getting a few stitches in. She was so happy to finish it tonight! My overachiever finished over 2 weeks ahead of the due date. :)

Relaxing...

We have been enjoying a lazy, relaxing Sunday. Our weekdays just seem to get busier and busier, so we try to take advantage of some down time when we can get it! Coopers basketball team pulled off their second win of the season last night in a very exciting game. There were only 5 kids there, so they played the whole game without subs, and Coop scored 7 out of the 15 points scored. He was thrilled, and these boys deserved the win. They fought hard!
So today we had a pajama day, which was nice when the rain came in. We were treated with a beautiful rainbow in the sky...
We have truly been spoiled with amazing weather the last few weeks!

Of course, what would be a weekend at home without a little baking. Jenn gave me a great recipe for smores cups, and I couldn't wait to make them!

They were easy and delicious! The kids and I couldn't get enough. :-)

Field Trip Day!

We couldn't have asked for more beautiful weather for Cooper's 3rd Grade field trip to the Santa Rosa Plateau this year. I was happy to be picked as a chaperone to enjoy the day with Cooper. Since this is the last year that they go on destination field trips, I want to take advantage of it!
We arrived at the visitor's center and broke into groups with the other 2 classes we were with. Cooper was happy to have Westin in his group, so they hung out while waiting to get going.
We walked a hiking trail for about a mile and a half that circled us back to the center.
We had a wonderful and sweet guide, Pat, that stopped periodically to teach the kids all about their surroundings. They learned about the many varieties of plants and animals in preserve, as well as some of the native history.

Cooper took the camera for a while to get some shots too, including some of the fallen trees from the recent storms.

Many of the bridges have been damaged or washed away, so we weren't able to go everywhere we usually go, but the kids thought it was neat to see the debris and some of the streams.

Our group:

We headed back to the visitors center to look at the displays before enjoying our picnic lunch under the beautiful oak trees.

It was a great day, and fun to spend some extra time with my little guy.

Bring on the beach!!

Who knew that one of our best beach days would be in January?! The weather sure has changed around here. We were enjoying the 80 degree temperatures and decided to take advantage of it while in Newport and hit the beach. It was picture perfect and beautiful!!

The kids started out playing in the sand, digging in the sand, playing smashball, and throwing the football.

They moved on and had a great time climbing on the rocks. They found tons of sea anemones and even some big starfish.

They decided to brave the cold water temperature and run in!
What a fun, unexpected day! Hope this is a sign of many, many beach days ahead!

Ducks Game!

It sure has been the month of sporting events around here. Since we are in the middle of a 4 day weekend we headed to Newport for a night to spend with Grandma and Grandpa. Grandma bought some tickets to see the Anaheim Ducks play at the Honda Center and we were all excited to go see another game!

Outside the entrance there were lots of kid friendly activities set up, including jumpies and slides.

They got to practice shooting some pucks too. Zoe was the first to jump in and give it a try (that girl is always up for anything fun!)


It was time to head inside to see the Anaheim Ducks take on the Edmonton Oilers.
We went inside and made our way up to the "nosebleed" section again! Fortunately, Grandma's neighbor gave us 2 season tickets for 2nd row seats, so each kid got to spend one period of the game sitting up close!

The pre-game opened with a warm up on the ice and a beautiful rendition of the Star Spangled Banner.

The kids were excited to cheer on the Ducks!

Jax started out first in the second row...

Followed by Cooper...

Zoe and I got the last period...

It was fun to see the action up close. It was exciting to see the players slammed up to the glass in front of us too!

Hockey is such a fast paced, fun sport to watch. We really enjoyed the game and the Ducks pulled off a 3-2 win. The goalie even had to be taken out for some stitches to his neck, but returned just 3 minutes later.
Thanks for the fun night Mimi and Gramps! We sure had a great time!

More basketball...

Cooper really loves basketball, it is definitely his favorite sport to play. I haven't been taking too many pictures of his games though. For some reason, my camera doesn't do well with the lighting in the gym, and the action is hard to get! I wanted to get a least a few to document his experience this winter though.
This season his team has been struggling a lot, but he is learning a ton and is playing well. We took a brutal beating tonight, but Cooper played one of his best games ever and he played harder than I've ever seen him play before. He's working on being more aggressive on the court and is really focusing on guarding his guy and breaking away for a shot.


Cooper was disapointed after the big loss, and he was thoroughly exhausted!
Here's to hoping our season improved a little!

Kings Game!

It sure has been a fun and busy week around here! Cooper was invited by his friend Westin to go see the L.A. Kings play at the Staples Center tonight. He was so excited, and couldn't believe he was heading back to L.A. for the second time this week.

They had a great time and were very spoiled by getting to watch from a VIP suite! Cooper thought the couches, chairs, tv, and mini kitchen were pretty cool. It was definitely better than the "nosebleed" seats we were in for the Laker game, and he loved the snack cart that came around and the private concession stands with no lines!

Carynn sent me a few pictures throughout the night. I loved this one at the end showing how happy the boys were that the Kings had won!

Coop got home a little after midnight and was exhausted, but exhilarated, and wanted to tell me all about it. What a fun night...thanks Kanows!!

People's Choice Awards 2011!

I was so excited to be heading back to the People's Choice Awards again this year as a seatfiller. There is a lot of standing around and waiting before the show starts, a long walk from the parking garage to the theater, and some stressful moments inside trying to figure out the seating, but it is an absolute blast to be there in person!

(Joy, Erica, Jenny, Jenn, me, Vicki)

Last year the casting company was very strict about cameras, we were absolutely not allowed to bring them in or take any pictures. I guess they gave up on that, because there were a ton of people taking pictures this year. Unfortunately I only had my phone camera, so I wasn't able to get any good shots. I was a little bummed since I was so close this year, but we had a fantastic time.
Blurry picture, but I had to document how excited Jenny and I were for the show to start! We had just come down from a higher section in the theater to get right up front. We were trying to maneuver around and get the best seats possible and we were feeling pretty nervous about it!
The show started with a flash mob dance that we had quickly tried to learn in our seats. Wish I could have recorded that! We got to move around and rush up towards the stage, and I was dancing just a foot away from Taylor Swift...it was very exciting! The first presenter was Jennifer Anniston and she looked amazing...

We were surprised to see Elton John come out as a presenter...what a thrill! He gave an award to Taylor Swift...
There were so many celebrities there, including presenter Queen Latifah, Johnny Depp, Conan, Zach Efron, Selena Gomez, the Kardashians, Adam Sandler, Kate Walsh, Neil Patrick Harris, Julie Bowen, Taye Diggs, Ashton Kutcher, Katy Perry, Natalie Portman, and many more! Of course, my favorites were the Twilight Cast: Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, and Kristen Stewart. They were sitting in the front row, center stage. At one point during a commercial break, I decided to walk up there to get a closer view. They are surrounded by security, but I was able to get within a couple feet of them before being turned away. It was very exciting, and made my night!
Overall, we had a fantastic time! It was a very long day and we were all exhausted, but it was worth every minute. I was smiling ear to ear all evening and was giddy the whole time. I know they are just regular people, but it is still a thrill to see them in person and I get quite star struck. It was fun to come home and watch the show on TV and catch some glances of us in the audience!