Monday, May 30, 2011

Our Baby turns 1

Chase's 1st birthday was bitter sweet for me. As fun and cute as he is, I was sad that his baby stage came to an end so quickily. I have LOVED every second of his 1st year and so many times I would will myself to store certain memories into my brain. Being this is the 4th time we have been through this, I know how fast it goes. And most likely (99.9%) he is our last which made the last year even more special and even more sad to see come to an end. On his birthday we headed to (where else?) the beach to celebrate and have fun with our little man.



He is definitely one of our kids.

He loves to be outdoors and on the go just as much as the other 3.

Ruby's was the perfect spot for a little celebrating.



Chase already knows how to throw tantrums because he spends half his time being suffocated with love and attention from his brother and sisters. I would throw a tantrum too if they were constantly in my face =)












His first words were Hi and Momma. I love hearing him say that and yell to me when were driving or when he wakes up or when he wants to give me something.

I am happy that he is a Momma's boy, no question.


Sunday, May 29, 2011

Field Trip

In April I was able to go with Taylor on her field trip to the Hidden Valley Nature Center. Such a cute fun placeTaylor's buddy for the day is the quietest girl in the WHOLE class which was perfect. Taylor likes to be the leader and this girl let Taylor lead her around. We went on a hike.Made necklaces.Were educated.Rotated through different animal learning stations inside the Nature Center.









Had lunch.

Pet a snake. I LOVE this picture!

Had a great day with a great group of kids.


I can't believe 1st grade is almost over. It has flown by. Taylor has grown up so much and has had a fabulous year. I'm grateful she goes to a good school with great teachers and parent involvement.

Disneyland + 7 kids + 2 Momma's = A good time!

While off track we headed out to Disneyland for the day with some of our favorite people. While the "taller" kids rode a roller coaster, Ashlyn, Miles, Chase, and I strolled through Toon Town. Ash was content as long as she had her lollipop.

The whole crew minus the babies that were strapped into the strollers.
After the Blumes left, we went to California Adventure and found the cutest show. Mickey gets his groove on in this one and we got to meet him afterwards. So fun!


Tuesday, May 17, 2011

1st Slumber Party

When Taylor was off track we let her have her 1st friend slumber party with best friend Paige. They were SO excited! We had dinner, did a little dancing, and had popcorn and a movie. By the time morning came, no one was asleep where they started. Andy and Ashlyn were forced to their beds after too many lectures from Mom. Paige slept comfortably in our guest bed and Taylor made her way back to her bed.
It was a fun experience. The kids loved it and can't wait to do it again. I cherish early bedtime a little too much so I am not jumping at the chance to do it again.....such a Party Pooper, I know!



















Impromptu Photo Shoot

I found the cutest invitations for Chase's birthday party but we needed pictures of him at the beach to put on them so we rushed out 1 evening for an impromptu photo shoot. We captured some great shots of our little beach baby.


So sad this picture is blurry, it is one of my favorites. We discovered if you give this kid his own bucket and shovel, he is one happy little dude.
Before.....

After..... notice who is running away.

"Give me back my shovel!!!" Happy once more....














The shovel stealer.

Its a good thing she's cute.




How old am I?

Back in March I celebrated my birthday. I think I am 33 now. Something happened after I turned 30, I can't for the life of me remember how old I am. I am probably trying to block out the fact that I am on my way to 40...when did that happen? Agh!

Anyway.....for years now I have wanted to go to the Carlsbad Flower Fields. I decided my 33rd birthday was the perfect occasion to go see the rainbow hill. I checked their website and was super excited to see that we were going at just the right time. The kids were excited, I was excited....now imagine my disappointment when we pull up to a brown field. Are you kidding? This can't be the place. I made Tyler drive up and down the street desperately looking for the rainbow of flowers. I was so sad to learn that the flowers were late bloomers this year and only a small patch were in bloom. So...so sad! We decided to go in anyway.

We took the tractor ride to the small patch of flowers.






We did the Sweet Pea maze.









Panning for Gold.


After the flower fields we went to the Oceanside Pier for dinner at Ruby's and playing on the beach.



It was a great day!