Friday Fun.....

There was a whole other post for Kids Space...here was the rest of our Friday: Swimming, a ride on the Metro to Old Town Pasadena, Dinner at Slaters 50/50, Memorial Park, and then we finished the evening with another Metro Trip for Ice Cream in South Pasadena. Good Times!

Cousin Love

They Are Here!

And on the Shamu plane to boot!

Getting Ready To Swim

I just adore these girls and their cousin friendship.

Brooke 1st Time Singing At Church

Brooke sang in church for the first time a few weeks ago. Becca made sure she had good placement (right in the center and in front of Sydney and Liz). They sang "God is so good" and "I've got the Joy Joy Joy Joy down in my heart"

Two Weeks Later....Sydney's Birthday Party Recap

Welcome Juneau!

The Vagabond Executive Tries Chai

Brooke Last Week

This girl is so cute

Tax Decisions

Which stamp should I put on my tax return? My choices? Freedom, Liberty, Justice and Equality. None of these seem right, I think maybe April Fools Day or Santa would be more appropriate. 

Lets narrow it down. Justice.....nope not picking that one. I don't think there is anything just about the current tax situation. Let's pay more taxes to compensate for out of control spending by our HUGE government. Equality.....absolutely not! There is nothing equal about 10% of Americans paying 70% of the taxes and then being told they need to shut up and pay their fair share.....Lets also not forget that 47% of Americans pay almost nothing. Liberty means freedom from arbitrary or despotic government....hmm, yes this is another terrible choice during a time where the government wants to reduce our rights to bear arms and force big government on us. So I guess the choice is Freedom...for now, we are losing it everyday.

And there you have it, the political post of 2013.

Prince Philip Encountered A Dragon

In the Thomas version of this fairy tale he escapes the dragon and then loses his feet to a ferocious dog.

Great Thrift Store Find

Yesterday I told the girls that I would go get them a dress after we went to Starbucks. Unfortunately for Sydney she lost that privilege when she decided to disobey me and unfortunately for Brooke they had none in her size. But the dress Liz got was so awesome! (Truth be told when I found it I couldn't have killed Sydney for not listening to me because it was that awesome). Most of the Orange County beaches were represented on the fabric including San Clemente and the San Clemente Pier. I am officially requesting the hand me down from Liz to Brooke.

New Universal Symbol

This area has just received a deep cleaning as a result of dog pee. Warning: Area may be wet as shampoo still drying.

Ouch FFD

I got bit by a mosquito 3 or 4 weeks ago and ever since the top of my foot has seriously been hurting. It is so tender to the touch that it hurts to wear shoes. Tonight the scab came off and this is what it looks like. What an ugly little scar.....and yes it continues to hurt.

My Latest Starbucks Country Mug, Qatar :)

After commenting on Mark's blog he sent me a note asking me if I still collected and displayed Starbucks mugs from other countries. When I said yes, he told me he would send me one from Qater. Low and behold, my mug arrived to my house on Monday and is now proudly displayed next to my other Starbucks Country mugs.Thanks, Mark! 

For reference: (1) London came from Larry, (2) Guadalajara came from Jose, (3) Berlin came from Brian, (4) Bangkok came from Brian (5) Prague came from James (6) Austria came from Laura (7) Hungary came from Jane (8) Puerto Rico came from Becca (9) Greece came from ?????-Man I feel terrible about this.....I owe you lunch at least (10) Qatar came from Mark (11) Mini-Australia (Not pictured) came from Jeff. Also not pictured is Pike Place (obviously not a country but a gift from Doug) and Jamaica (not Starbucks) came from Laura

JC Penney Strategy Fails

Shockingly, JC Penney's strategy about not having sales has backfired. Why this took a year to determine is ridiculous, I knew it would fail day one. Regardless, the CEO has been fired, the company has lost 25% of it's value, they are now known as JCP and they are bringing back one of their previous CEO's. Good Luck! Full Story Here

Stop and Watch the Butterflies

I am always in a rush, I rarely take the time to stop and smell the roses and I need to do this more. Yesterday while walking through California Adventure Sydney wanted to stop and watch the butterflies. She loves looking at flowers and there were several monarch butterflies that she was watching fly around. I could tell she was in her element, I am always pushing her to "hurry" even when it's not necessary. I need to remember to stop and watch the butterflies.

PS Whenever I ask Sydney what she wants to be when she grows up she says "I don't want to grow up, I just want to be a kid" Yesterday, when watching the butterflies she said "Mom, I think when I grown up I want to be a butterfly doctor"......My baby is growing up.

Ariel's Grotto

I had decided a couple of years ago that I would take Sydney to Ariel's Grotto for her 5th birthday so on Monday I took some time off work and took her to Ariel's Grotto for lunch. I was very underwhelmed by the entire thing. My expectations were not in alignment with the experience. The premise: You see Ariel and get to "meet" for her friends. I thought it would be similar to Pixie Hollow where the fairies spend time with you and talk as they go from table to table but all we got was "How are you today?", "Oh, Happy Birthday" "Lets take a picture together" and "Goodbye". I was pretty disappointed, I have heard others have gotten more time with the princesses so I am really not sure if we got the normal treatment or not. Still, Sydney enjoyed it-Happy Birthday to my 5 year old!

Family Games

Everybody loves family game night but Brooke needs to learn to keep her mouth shut :)

Poor Rachel

The headlines:

Drudge Report: It does snow in April....at least in Denver

Southwest.com: Travel Advisory-Denver Winter Warning

Accuweather: Blizzard aims for Denver

Denver Post: Denver braces for heavy snow

We Love Jane

Seriously, Disneyland?

Both of the "up" escalators were unavailable. Yeah, I opted for the elevator.

Happy Birthday, Sydney!

I can't believe you are 5! Is that how I am going to start every birthday blog for you each year? You are such a beautiful girl and my favorite thing in the world is being your mom! I love you so much and I hope your fifth year is the best!

Manatee Gray

Target apologized on Thursday for their color description on a plus sized dress. The dress was described as "manatee gray" for plus sizes and "dark heather gray" for smaller sizes.

Why I Should Have Costco Stock

Brooke's Car Seat Photo Shoot

Before and After (5 Year Old Shots)

Hockey Playoff Fun