Sascha's June Ballet Recital and Father Daughter Dance

Once you started softball, it seemed like you were getting really bored in Ballet, but we stuck it out for the rest of the year... even though a few of the times you mentioned that you didn't want to go anymore.
When it was time to sign up for recital, we talked to you and asked you specifically if you wanted to keep dancing and you said yes, so not only did we sign you up for the recital, we signed you up for the Father Daughter dance. Daddy has been waiting to do this with you for over a year, but I kept telling him that it's best we wait till you are 5 or bigger, and after you said you didn't want to go to class, we thought this might be the last opportunity, so we decided it was time. The recital also fell on the Father's day weekend which made it even more special for some family time afterwards.

Starting in May you had 5 separate rehearsals for you and daddy to learn your dance. It was a cute little jazz number to a song called "Do you love me?"
This was definitely a special little time for you both. Daddy would get off work early on Friday, pick you up from school and take you to your favorite dinner place... which was Panda Express (just about every time!) and a 7 Eleven Slurpie. Cameron and I came to watch a few times, and when we didn't you would come home super happy and wanted to practice, so you'd show us your new moves and Cameron and I loved watching you guys try so hard.

You and your class did very well. Daddy even busted out some Michael Jackson moves on stage. I think he might already be choreographing a little dance for your wedding. It was so so sweet to watch you both on stage. Such an awesome memory!

After the recital we went out to celebrate with all the family.
   

Easter Egg Hunt Celebration

I have a few forgotten posts which I meant to put up months ago... so yes, just getting around to it now.
And considering I have been terribly unorganized about my photos, those will have to come later. I decided that instead of waiting to post until I get the pictures organized, I'll just be posting with out them and later on, I figure I can always add them.

So the annual tradition of the Easter Party has continued, and we had a blast at the Smith's house doing the egg hunt. This year Cameron was fully aware that he needed to go after the eggs, and he did just that. He wasn't afraid to climb up the hills, or check out under the bushes. Both kiddos really enjoyed the party and the actual egg hunt itself.

Easter day was spent coming back from our Big Bear trip, so we had barely any time to prepare for it at home. Once we got home, I quickly put together their baskets, and daddy hid the eggs in the back yard while I attempted to distract you at home. So the easter bunny came even though we were out of town and the kiddos were happy.

The funniest part of the whole easter egg hunts is that the kids enjoyed it so much that after they were done and opened all their eggs with goodies in them, Sascha begged to have another one and then another one. So we hid the eggs outside again, and then we moved the hunt inside and did it a few more times. I am pretty sure we did more than 5 egg hunts

The Winter Holidays - 2012

Oh the holidays... the busiest time of the year! Not only do we have the holidays, but we have 3 birthdays to celebrate in the month of December and a dance recital. All great things, and we tried to enjoy them as much as well possibly could.

My birthday was spent in LA this year because Jeromey's good friend Martin was getting married that day, so the kids stayed at the-in-laws and we headed out to celebrate Martin & Jacy. After the wedding, everyone went out to LA Live area where we spent most of our evening. The next day J once again had a few plans for us, but the rain put a little damper on things. We still went out to hike to the top of the Hollywood sign... and we kept hiking and hiking... still couldn't see it because it was terribly foggy and sprinkling the whole time. We got to the top to see a few letters, and absolutely no view. A bit disappointing to go all the way up there and not be able to enjoy the view, but we tried. 

We went to a few places like Christmas Card lane and a few streets in Poway to check out the Christmas lights which the kids loved. It reminded me of how magical this time of the year is for them. How much they believe in Santa...and how fast that will change in just a few more years, so we better enjoy it now. 

We brought out the Elf on the Shelf this year... and it was MAGIC. J put it up on the clock and both the kids stood there and awe staring at it for good 5 minutes. The next 25+ days were all about coming down the stairs to see who can find the elf first! They LOVED the elf... who's name is Troy. Sascha would talk to Cameron and tell him about the elf, and Cameron would come to me and ask about the elf. It almost started to feel like the elf was part of our family in some way... that's how much attention it got. Of course every night we'd have to get creative and find a good spot to put him in to still keep him out of reach. The elf had a fun run at our house.

Daddy's birthday was a bit uneventful this year... as most years since it falls on Christmas Eve... but he seems to like it that way, so his birthday morning was spent with us having breakfast out, and doing some last minute Christmas shopping/wrapping, then had a few fiends over for a playdate to celebrate and before we knew it Christmas day came. 

We left carrots and cookies with milk out for Santa and the kids were in bed. Sascha even drew a cute little pictures for Santa. Daddy rang the bells and stomped on the roof which actually woke up Sascha. I went up to her room to check on her while he did it and she pretended to sleep, I gave her a kiss and said do you hear that? She opened her eyes wide and said "Yes mommy, it must be the reindeer  I have to be sleeping so that Santa can come in the house!" and she hid under her covers. Oh my heart melted just a little bit more when I heard her say that. 

In the morning the kids slept in... yes... slept in! They did not rush down the stairs, we had to wake Sascha up.We woke up, then Cameron, and then we got Sascha up (she really likes to sleep... and to no surprise was not waking up early since going to bed late the night before) But she was sure eager to get downstairs to the tree. 

In a matter of 10 or 15 minutes the living room looked like a tornado went through it, but it was pure joy to see their eyes light up while they opened their presents and looked inside their stocking. We didn't go overboard this year. They each had a gift from Santa (Sascha kept asking for a Princess Helmet, and Cameron didn't ask for anything but Daddy found this blow up guy to aim and throw balls at). I am pretty sure they would be happy with any gifts!

Every year we realize that we only have a few more years where we see this holiday magic in your eyes... we take it in, and try to capture it in photos and videos because we realize oh how quickly you both are growing up.

Halloween Party

The Smith's hosted their annual Halloween bash, and we finally came in full costumes. Yes it was a bit last minute, daddy was still working on putting his costume together right before we left, and even though it may look impressive in the picture, we didn't do a very good job of making it comfortable for him to walk in... or even stay put, so most pieces came off shortly after the photos were taken. It was so fun for the kids to see us dressed up, and I think will definitely do our best to try and dress up with them at least while they are small. It was also fun to have a family theme this year. Daddy definitely encouraged it to Sascha by having her watch the Wizard of Oz. She also had a good time walking around Party City to get accessories for all of our costumes. I had a hard time finding red sparkly shoes for her, and ended up ordering them online and luckily they came right in time for her first dress up at the School Festival so all worked out in the end. Sascha was Dorothy, Cameron  was a little Scarecrow, Mommy was the Wicked Witch, and Daddy was the Tin-man. I was not planning on putting the green paint on my face, but of course was encouraged by Tin-man himself since he was putting silver paint on his face. I put some one and showed it to Cameron to make sure he wouldn't get scared and he just laughed pointing at my face. I think Sascha was more scared of my green paint than Cameron.

Before we left our house for the party Cameron managed to open a mini snickers bar and shove the whole thing in his mouth. Once I noticed it was too late... so this is how we find out that he is NOT allergic to Peanuts like we thought he was. So yay, we didn't end up in ER and got to enjoy our evening at a friends house and going trick or treating. Definitely a huge relief to not have to worry about a peanut allergy!

So all ready to go we joined our friends at their house which was decorated even more this year than the previous. Their inspiration came from the tv show "The Walking Dead". It looked pretty awesome! There were a lot of kids this year... what a challenge to try to do a group photo, but of course we attempted anyways! After taking photos of all the kiddos and the families, we were off to go Trick or Treating.

I am always a bit strict with the candy and was worried the kids will want to eat all their candy right away, but it really wasn't a problem. I let both of them eat a few out of her bucket and told them they can have the rest on another day. I did go through the buckets once they went to bed to sort the good stuff out, and get rid of the not so great candy, but they pretty much forgot about it the next day...so not much to worry about.

Grandpa David, Baba and Deda came to see us walk around in our costumes. Cameron went to all the same houses, he did not want to be carried around, and wanted to go everywhere by himself. He did fall a few times, but dusted himself off and kept on moving along... seriously? Like a little man that he is... he didn't get scared and did not want our help with anything, even carrying his bucket which was getting heavy from collecting all the candy. (More pics to come)

Pumpkin Patch and other Fall Festivities

Our annual tradition of going to the Pumpkin Patch continues. Instead of Bates Nut Farm, we finally made it to Oma's Pumpkin Patch this year. I actually ended up up taking a day off work to take the kids w/a friends playgroup. Once again we went on a HOT October day, by no means did it feel like fall, but we made the best out of it. The kids weren't thrilled to take many photos, but I managed to get at least a couple. Our hay ride went right through the farm and we got to see a 2 day old little cow.

We followed up that visit with another visit to the Pumpkin Station, full of rides, and jumping fun. The kids had just gotten hair cuts right before we came, so of course I had to a lot of photos. Cameron was even willing to get into the jumpies this time, he is no longer scared. The giant slide was Sascha's favorite, she had a grin from ear to ear going down every time. They loved the train ride as well as the rotating swings. They had just gotten their hair cuts before we got there, so they looked so pretty cute with non-messy hair and matching pumpkin shirts.

Another fun outing we had was to the Del Sur Festival, I think this is our 3rd year that we had come, and every year we have such a good time enjoying all the rides and hanging out w/the Slavin Family. Sascha and Matty were now old enough to ride a few of them on their own or together which was a lot of fun for them. I took both kids on the Ferris Wheel. Cameron got impatient and tried to get out, and I must say he could have totally slipped under the bar so I had to hold him tight and keep asking him to wait... patience is not something an almost 2 year old has much of, but I think he did enjoy the ride and the view from the top. You also got to pet a few bunnies and ride a pony.

Pics from the Pumpkin Patch with my friend's playgroup


 

I just liked this serious expression on your face (taken by a photographer at the festival)
 

Family photo

Back yard campout with friends

This June was our 2nd annual Campout at the Smith's place. Such a great idea, so much fun for the kids, and great memories were definitely made. We ended up sharing a tent with Amber's family since their tent was huge, so we didn't even have to break out ours. The kids started off by making "pet rocks", played at the water table, hiked up the back yard slope and searched inside the treasure box filled with gems and fake bugs, which was at the top of the hill. We had a delicious pot luck dinner, followed by s'mores. Both Sascha and Cam loved the s'mores. It was Cameron's 1st s'more and Sascha had 2! It was time for Cameron to go to sleep which he did without much trouble, while the older kids put on head lamps and went to "explore" on a night hike.

Sascha had her sleeping bag and went to sleep without any problems (such a big girl!). She wasn't scared like last year when we had to convince her that it would be fun. This time around she was excited.

A few of us stayed up and chatted around the fire before calling it a night. Good times!
Cameron woke up unusually early, probably since he's not really used to sleeping outside. We enjoyed breakfast and a nice swim in the pool before heading back home (less than a mile away from the Smith's).
Always so much fun, and after this Sascha has asked so many times "Daddy, can we go exploring today?"

Somehow I failed to get any photos of us as a family, must remember to do a better job next time.

But Here are a few of all the kiddos and our tent set up.

Cameron enjoying a piece of pizza with Kingston and Kasia in the wagon


Sascha and Paloma sitting on a bench inside the garden


Kids patiently waiting around the fire to get their turn at making a s'more


Here is one of all the girls and the kiddos around the camp fire


Here is an awesome video that our friend Herbie made

Enjoying the small things

I have been following Kelle Hampton's blog for some time. Something draws me to it, I get inspired to go out and do more things with my kids, to be more creative, more patient, to live each day to it's fullest. Yes it sounds a bit cliche, but it's true in so many ways. It's no secret I feel guilty to be a working mom, the fact that I don't always get to pick up my kids from school, and do all the things I want to do with them on a daily basis, but I think we do our best, and make the best of the time we do spend together.


I read this article today written by Kelle, and I decided I must have it on my blog TODAY. It doesn't matter than I have about 5 or 6 unfinished blog posts waiting for photos or just time in general to sit down and finish them. I had to do this one now. I want to remember these 6 things to follow.


1.Create Mantras!

I create new mantras every year and I repeat them to myself whenever I need to hear them. After Nella was born, I owned the word "Capable." I whispered "You are capable" to myself, I wrote about it, I believed it, I lived it. This year, I remind myself to "Breathe Compassion." I practice it with my husband, my children, my friends and when I'm ever faced with negativity, it helps so much to know that I am in control of my own response, and I can always be compassionate.

2.Give Room for the Low Points!

As a naturally positive person, my first response to feeling sad or discouraged is often to push those feelings away. But then they just dwell and build. I've learned to give a little hug to all of my emotions, to be aware of what I am feeling and take ownership of what I can do about it. Crying is good sometimes. So is sharing a vulnerable moment with a friend. And then, I move on.

3.Tell What-Ifs to Take a Hike!

Dwelling about all the bad things thatcould happen in life is pointless and destructive. I am a far more productive person when I believe the best and when I don't waste time worrying. Do challenges lie ahead for all of us? Most likely, yes. But I know I am equipped to handle them. My dad always tells me, "Don't let your worries for tomorrow rob you of the joys of today." There is so much truth in that statement.

4.Enjoy the Small Things!

It started as the title of my blog for me, and it's become a way of life. I am very aware of all the things in our life that make it rich, and I make time to think about them, talk about them, write about them. We tend to think big and flashy for the rock star phrase "Rock your life," but really it's about the little moments. Make time for fun and friends. Drink good coffee, cook with the good dishes. Find a signature perfume and own it, splurge on flowers. Let your kids help you bake and don't worry about the mess. Tell people you love them. Read to your kids. Sleep under the stars. Plan trips. Don't ever be too old to skip.

5.Dream Big!

Talk about your dreams—places you want to go, jobs you'd love to have, people you want to meet. My friends and I play a game called the "If" game, based on a book called "The Book of If." I used to take that book everywhere, pulling it out and asking questions like "If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?" "If you could have any job, what would it be?" Not only is this a fun way to learn more about people, but it makes us realize "What are we waiting for? Who says we can't do these things now?" Write your dreams down and look at them frequently. Find ways to create action plans for the ones that are important to you.

6.Do Something for Someone Else!

Always. Think about others and find ways to help, encourage, be there for people. It's life changing. It's empowering. It affects you just as much as it does the person you are helping.

Obviously these aren't my ideas, but they ring so true for us. I agree 100% with every single one of them, and want to remind myself everyday to live by these simple principles. 

So this Saturday we "Enjoyed the small things" and loved every moment of it. We had a spur the moment idea to grab the kids and go to the beach. Yes it's less than 15 minutes away from us, and we just don't do it enough. The kids didn't even have dinner. I quickly sat them down with a few random things to eat, and some packed snacks and we were headed out the door! My parents joined us too. I am pretty sure they had just as much fun as the kids. 

We set up our blanket and a few chairs and walked barefoot for as long as we could with running in and out of water. At first both Cameron and Sascha weren't too excited to be touching the cold water, but then it became fun! We'd run towards it, and as a wave would come in, we'd start running away. Both of them were wearing clothes and they both got wet. 

Sascha, Baba and I collected fun shells and pretty rocks and put them into a mason jar until there was no more room. We got back to our blanket, had a quick snack and it was time to head home. I loved every minute of it, their sandy dirty feet, messy hands, all totally worth it. 

I love that they are holding hands here... even though it lasted a few seconds and they couldn't' wait to get free to run around

I love this photo of Cameron's sandy feet, even though his face is funny in it because I had just given him some crackers to snack on. I love our San Diego weather and living so close to the Torrey Pines beach. I love to watch and enjoy these sweet times between daddy and Sascha (she wanted to hold his hand or my hand while we walked), I love her sweet innocent smile and the hair in the wind, while she holds on tight to a jar full of shells. We went home and spent another hour washing and organizing them the next day. I love, love, love my  family and these precious little moments we get to spend together.

Padres Opening Day

Considering how much daddy loves baseball, he doesn't usually miss this day. After we started dating, we have always gone to opening day together, we even took Sascha when she was 4 months old, but sadly I haven't been since. So this year we decided we were going and were able to score some really great tickets on the roof of the Western Metal Supply Building with food and drinks included! At first we only had 2 tickets, but slowly we were able to get 2 more thanks to our aunt Fran (Grandma Laurie's sister). We took Aaron for getting straight A's last semester, and because he loves baseball (it's his last year playing for Little League and he's super into it), and we also took my dad who is learning more and more about the game now that his grandson is so amped on it. Also it was his 65th Bday just a few weeks ago, so a perfect opportunity to treat him to this Opening Day Experience. We all got off work early and headed down to Petco Park. We even got lucky with a free parking spot (that has never happened to us on Opening Day, but then again I don't think we've ever gotten there before 2pm either)

We watched some batting practice, ate food, and before we knew it the game had begun. Unfortunately the Padre's lost, but I think we all had a really good time at the Park. 

It was a gorgeously perfect day to be outside!

 Group Shot of the 4 of us

And the rest of the photos also taken with my phone and modified with Instagram

Halloween

Finally a Halloween post, which really seems like forever ago now. I have almost forgotten all about it in the midst of birthdays and birthday parties and all sort of other things going on in our lives. So this will be a quicky and a total picture overload.

We had a great time going to the Smith's Halloween Party in our neigborhood. We have taken a photo of Kingston and Sascha dressed up on Halloween since they were small, and this is our 3rd year celebrating it together and it was bigger than ever. Lots of friends came over and played until it was time to go trick or treating. Sascha had picked out her costume long ago and requested to be Rapunzel from Tangled, so no surprise there. And I already wrote before about the costume she picked out for Cameron - Spiderman. He was an adorable Spiderman.

This year Carolyn & Angelina joined us with grandpa & Judy, so they got to go around the neigborhood together. Sascha had a great time going door to door asking for candy, looking at the decorations and getting spooked. We had a minor meltdown right in the beginning because she decided she didn't want to walk like everyone else, and wanted to get on the wagon which I took back, but once we got past that, it was a great time. Cameron stayed behind and hung out with me and the girls. When everyone got back, it was time to open some candy. Surprisingly Sascha didn't try to devour her whole bag, she took her time and after about 2 items we tried to cut her off. It wasn't very successful, and I think she had at least 2 or 3 more packages. Sugar overload!!! Especially since you refused to eat anything before hand!

Afterwards you were very aware of where your candy stash was and would ask for a treat for days! I took a lot of the candy out, but told you that if you are a good girl and eat your dinner, you will be able to have a treat. The bag is actually still there, and you remember about it from time to time.

It was a fun night. Her are a few photos:

Sascha's preschool also had a Halloween festival a few days before the holiday, so the kids got dressed up a few times and had a great time!

You also got to do a little trick or treating and dressing up when Grandpa & Grandma took you to Sea World. The same weekend as Disneyland! What a lucky girl!

Of course we did our annual pumpkin carving night at the house. It was a lot of fun this year. Sascha was not too interested in getting her hands dirty, but she helped me carve a few pieces out.

Pumpkin Patch and Del Sur Festival

We made it out to a pumpkin patch this year, and took a drive to Bates Nut Farm in Valley Center. It was once again a very hot day. Not sure why we always end up going there when it's super hot, since it kind of takes away from the whole feeling of being fall and starting to get cold. That's definitely not the case here in San Diego. We met up with the Bickel Family, and Sascha and Sadie had a fun day playing in the pumkin field, running through the hay maze, looking at the animals and even feeding a few goats themselves. Cameron had fun looking around and taking it all in. He took a nice nap in the stroller. I took a lot of pictures as usual!

Two weeks later we went to the annual Del Sur Festivale with the Slavin's, it was a lot bigger this year and Sascha had a blast. She decorated a pumpkin with Rachel, played a few carnival games that won her a ducky and went on 2 rides with daddy. She wasn't afraid of anything, she looked forward to the big Ferris Wheel and when they finally got on, she had the biggest smile on her face. Despite the fact that we were all getting cold, and her sweater was wet so we had to take it off, she decided that she really wanted to go on the rocking boat. Even daddy got a bit motion sick after that ride, but not her, she put her hands up and loved every minutes of it. Walking back to our car we watched some of the performers on stilts which was also pretty cool.