A Weekend with Family

I'm getting behind in my blog posting just like I'm getting behind in all other aspects of life right now.  We are so busy it is crazy.

Memorial Weekend we went to Mortensen Manor to spend the weekend with family, but more importantly baby Sophie.  She was born May 10th and we were all excited to finally meet her. 

We were able to go swimming, eat lots of yummy food, have great conversation and just enjoy being together.  We also get to get lots of baby Sophie time which was good because she is moving to Texas very soon.

A Fun Weekend

Our friend, Heather, was having a party this weekend, except she didn't know she was having a party.  Her party was Saturday, but on Friday some of us went out to dinner with a friend, Melissa, who came into town on Friday.  So a couple of us girls went out for Italian food.  We had a lovely evening with some really great food and good conversation.  No pictures because Heather wasn't around to take them.

On Saturday we did chores and spent time together as a family, but Saturday night we went to the Party and enjoyed seeing the surprise on Heather's face.  She's going to kill me for posting that picture.We also enjoyed great food, dinner with good friends and dancing with a DJ.

We know we are getting older because at 10pm we were tired and wanted to get home and we thought the music was way to loud because our ears were ringing the whole drive home.  It was still a great party!

Damon was the photographer that night and that is why there are no pictures of us together.

Date night with the Kids

This past weekend was the Daddy/Daughter Dance. I decided to have a date with the boys too. So Damon and Lily went to the dance and the boys and I went out to dinner/dessert.

I didn't take any pictures with the boys that night.  We went to Pat & Oscar's for dinner and then Coldstone for ice cream after.  I had fun spending time with just them.

Lily and Damon went to school for the Luau.  They had dinner, watched some dancers and then danced the night away.  Damon said all Lily wanted to do was dance on stage with her friends.  It was the thought that counted right?

A good time was had by all. 

Mother's Day Love!

Mother's day is a wonderful day. We've had a wonderful weekend together celebrating. It's been so nice to spend the time with Damon and the kids. (I had this whole thing done and then blogger broke and I lost everything except the first sentence. grr) They spoiled me.

Saturday after our chores were done we went to the San Diego Zoo. The animals did not disappoint. The lions were great, we saw the most beautiful red bird. I think it was a scarlet Ibis. We loved spending the time with each other.

Saturday night we went to our church for a silent and live auction. The girls were raising money for girl's camp this summer. We won what we bid on so it was very exciting. We also got some cute pictures taken of us by our fabulous friend, Heather.

Sunday morning I awoke to the smell of bacon. Damon and the boys were making me an omelet. Yummy. I got to open my gifts from Damon and the kids and I was feeling the love. I loved the card, the drawings, and the Life Saver necklace. Damon shocked me the most with this...

and this.

Damon slaved over a yummy chicken Alfredo dinner. The kids helped make dessert. Yummy brownies, strawberries, ice cream and hot fudge. My favorite! Damon remembered when we were in Phoenix that I said how much I loved the Mary Coyle's dishes that they served their ice cream in. He went online and found them. Now we eat our ice cream in super pretty dishes and I get to think of Mary Coyle's and remember all the memories that I have of that place. It was really nice.

I love being a mom. It hasn't always been easy and there are times when it is down-right lousy, but my kids and my spouse enrich my life so much that I wouldn't trade this experience for anything.

A New Way of Thinking

During the break we had a lot of lazy mornings. They were nice. We would actually watch the news sometimes. We happened to be watching the Today Show and there was a segment on a family up in northern California that produces very little trash per month. That got me thinking... "How much trash do we produce each month?" It's a scary thought when you really think about it. We do our part, we recycle, we don't waste water and we don't leave the lights on.

Later that week Damon and I were really thinking about how we coul cut back on our waste. So we are embarking on a new phase. We aren't going to go all crazy, but we really are trying to unclutter our lives. The family the story was about talks about ways to get rid of the clutter in our lives. It's mostly just living more simply. Life has become so hectic because we have let it.

Now it's time to declutter all aspects of our life and return to easier times. #1- get rid of all things we really just don't use or haven't used for over a year. This involves going up to the attick and going through bins that have been up there since we moved here and haven't been touched since. That's 5 years, so obviously we don't need it. #2- clothes- we have so much in our closet that we don't really wear. #3- clean out stuff from the house- books, games, movies, dishes, all that extra stuff that we don't use, but we have.

After we have accomplished this (while the kids are gone so we don't hear any complaining) the next big step is to figure out how to bring less trash in. This is a harder step and will take more time, but I am sure we will find what works best for our family.

For information on how you can reduce the amount of "trash and clutter" you have visit the website at www.zerowastehome.blogspot.com This family really has figured out a great way to live. I hope we can incorporate some of it into our lives.

Spring Break week #4 the Final one!

PHOENIX or BUST!

I think this year's last week of Spring Break was the best! Usually it is the hardest, but since we decided to go out of town this week as a family it was great!

Sunday (4/24)- Easter. We didn't take any pictures, but there was lots of chocolate eating, basket finding and family time. All after a wonderful church service of course. There was also packing and getting ready for our trip to Phoenix.

Monday-we got up not to early and headed out to Phoenix. It didn't take that long to get there. We checked into our hotel, The Pointe Tapatio Cliffs and the kids went swimming. Then we headed over to my friend Kelly's house for dinner. We had a yummy dinner and the kids loved playing with her kids. After we left her house we decided to visit Mary Coyle's. It is a wonderful ice cream shop that I grew up going to since it was right down the street from my house. It moved locations, but it was still a favorite place of every ones. The kids really thought it was fun and that the ice cream was yummy. Adam wasn't able to finish his Jolly Green Giant, but I sure loved my banana split, which was oh so yummy.

Tuesday-we had all these fun activities planned and all the kids wanted to do was stay at the resort and swim at the pool. Fine by us. We played tennis and ping pong in the morning and spent the rest of the day at the pool. We went to target after dinner and bought a new game, Farkle. The kids have had fun playing that ever since. We also went back to Mary Coyle's for dessert. Still so yummy. Wednesday- spent the day at the pool again. Damon went to the driving range. That afternoon we took the kids back over to Kelly's and Damon and I went on a date. It was my month to plan the date and I didn't disappoint. We went to South Mountain and rode horses with a wrangler to the T-bone Steakhouse. It was a sunset ride and the Phoenix Desert did not disappoint. The Saguaro's were in bloom and we could see from the west valley to the east valley. It was really beautiful in a desert sort of way. Dinner was fabulous. We rode back with our wrangler, Andrew, at night and the desert was just as pretty in the light of the moon. We both really enjoyed our evening and the kids loved playing over at Kelly's all night.
Thursday-we went out to breakfast at IHOP and then over to the resort's sister resort that has a water park inside it. The kids loved that. We floated along on the lazy river, slid down water slides and swam under waterfalls. It was very relaxing. That night after dinner we took the kids on a tour of my old stomping grounds. We went to my high school, old house, old pool, Encanto, where I life guarded with Kelly, drove past were my old elementary school was, Encanto and ended up the tour at Mary Coyle's one last time. I still can't believe they are closing their doors after 60 years. It makes me so sad. It was such a Phoenix establishment. Lily ended the night in tears because she didn't want to leave Phoenix or all the fun we had been having. All of us felt that way.




Friday-The Royal Wedding. So fabulous. The pageantry, the city, the people, the history all of it was great. The happy couple both looked stunning. I loved the dress, hair, tiara, and everything. Kate looked beautiful, just like a princess. After we got back to San Diego and had dinner we watched more on TV. Lily put on her crown and insisted we call her Princess Catherine. It was pretty funny. She loved watching all the royal hoopla just like I did with my mom back in 1981. The drive home was fine. We stopped in Yuma and had ourselves some good ole fashion A&W root beer from the A&W place. Very yummy.



It was a great vacation full of laughs, good times, great friends and memories that should last. It was wonderful going "home". I am so at ease there and I always feel like I fit right in. I don't always feel that way in San Diego. It's hard getting back to reality as I know the busyness of school and life will soon take over again. It's sad because it is our last time of a full month off for spring break. Noah goes to a traditional schedule next year. It's hard watching our little family grow up, but at the same time we are happy that they are. 11 weeks til summer break!