Knott's-Thanks Grandma!

Grandma Darlene used to work for Knott's Berry Farm and received some free tickets here and there.  Philipp, Fred, the kids and I got to use the last 4 tickets there were for a wonderful day at Knott's.  The kids did every single kiddie ride they could. Joseph was fearless. He went on everything he was tall enough for.  Theo went on anything he could and loved it, too. We were there from opening to closing and saw lots of shows and had a great day.  The kids favorite ride was the log ride, which they had never done before. Even Theo and I went on it, too! That was fun since that is one of my childhood memories, too.  Thanks, Grandma Darlene for making such a fun day possible for us.

The Dangerfields Come to Town!

 We had a fun last minute visit from Aunt Kathy and cousin Julie.  My kids love Aunt Kathy. She is like a surrogate Grandma to them when she comes.  They also loved Julie and had fun bonding with her.  Having Kathy and Julie here was a vacation for me. Warren was out of town that week so the girls stayed up late talking, watching fun movies, having frozen yogurt and analyzing life.  Aunt Kathy spoiled us and took us out to eat every night.  Kathy and Julie were also there for my Young Women evening on "Being Beautiful"- which was the culmination of several months of hard work, so it was great to be able to share it with someone. 

The waves were wild at Huntington that day.

We cashed in some free kids meals awards at Rainforest Cafe  in Downtown Disney. The kids loved the rainforest atmosphere.

A spur of the moment treat: Kathy and Julie had a friend who works at Disneyland and was able to get them and Rebecca in for free for the afternoon.  Rebecca got to go on the new Ariel ride, something she's been wanting to do.  Joseph and Theo got lollipops as their "consolation" prize. 


Thanks for coming Kathy and Julie! You're welcome to stay with us any time. We love you!

Growing Pains

I know I haven't posted all summer. Did you miss me? Probably not. You were probably enjoying summer as much as I was.  But summer has ended, school has started and brought with it (ironically) the hottest weather of the summer. 

Rebecca started third grade and got off the bus proclaiming: "I LOVE my teacher!"
Joseph started Pre-K at Rebecca's school. It was a miracle that he got the very last spot they had to offer. He was very nervous but let me go without a problem, so it was successful!  

I love my kiddos.  It made me emotional to let each one of them go.  I'm so glad they're a part of my life.