A Day at the Park

Disneyland!

We decided to take the kids to Disneyland the last Friday in February- it was Sienna's first time and Noah's first annual pass!!  Noah is exactly 42" now so he is tall enough for just about everything except Indiana Jones!  I can't believe how much he has grown, the last time we were here right before he turned 3 he was just shy of getting on the 40" rides and now he's onto the next level, crazy!!  We were bummed because space mountain was closed when we were over there but Zach did take him on Soaring Over California in California Adventure and he loved it!!  

Waiting for our passes =)

N for Noah!

Rockets!

Noah with his cousin Camden and friend Layne

3-D glasses on for Honey I Shrunk the Audience!

Me and Noah waiting for the coaster at Toon Town

Walking back to the parking structure after a fun day and night!

The next week I decided to take the kids back by myself and we did all of the smaller rides at Fantasy Land and the rockets- they both had so much fun!!  I can't wait to take Noah on my own so we can do all the big rides!! I didn't get many pictures this day, it's hard to get pictures when I'm holding a 22 pounder and keeping track of  an energetic 3 1/2 year old!!  

Churro break =)

Sienna's 1st churro- this got really messy!!

Valentine's Day Fun!

We had a lot of fun with Valentine's Day this year.  It was Noah's first year being in school and he was so excited to pick out valentines for all of his preschool friends.  He was BEYOND excited that they had NASCAR at the store so of course he picked those!  He had fun attaching the candy and drawing on them with crayons.  He is actually really good at writing his name himself but asked me to do it for him because he wanted to color.  We also baked and frosted sugar cookies for his preschool teachers as well as for Gramma Patti and Nana Rosa.  

 

On actual Valentine's Day Zach and I had reservations for dinner so we decided to take the kids somewhere fun for lunch.  Noah has been wanting to go back to "Riptide," a restaurant with teppan tables, since we first went there a few weeks ago and so we indulged him in that request.  He had fun watching the show with all the fun food tricks.

Dinner that night was at one of my favorite restaurants here in Ladera Ranch, "Infusions Restaurant and Martini Bar," with Zach's brother Aaron and our sister-in-law Michelle.  We were a little bummed that our favorite foods were not available since they had decided to do a preset Valentine's Day menu, but the martinis did not disappoint!!

January Beach Days!

This January has felt a lot like summer!!  The temperature has been up in the high 80's and we were able to do 2 full on beach days.  Feels so weird to go from taking down the Christmas tree to getting our bathing suits on!!  It's just one of the many reasons I love living in southern California.  I can't wait for summer this year- I'm hoping I can get Noah on a boogie board and Sienna will be walking!!

Sienna having a snack

Noah making his own little pool

Me and the kids at Huntington Beach

Me and Sienna at Aliso Beach

Zach and the kids at Aliso Beach

New Year's Eve 2008

Happy New Year!!!  Zach and I rang in the New Year in style this year at a swanky party held at the St. Regis in Monarch Beach with our friends and neighbors, Shannon and Ryan.  To be honest, it's not our typical thing but I have to admit, it was so fun to get all dressed up!!  Stacie was kind enough to watch the kids early in the evening and Papa Dave came over to do the overnight shift so would could stay the night- we had a blast!!  It was a fun night with lots of dancing (me and Shannon- not so much the boys!) and yummy champagne mojitos- my new favorite drink!!  

Me and Zach at dinner- Stone Hill Tavern, St. Regis Hotel

Me and Shannon at dinner

Zach and I waiting to enter the lounge where the party was held

Me and Zach with Shannon and Ryan

Champagne mojito!!

...and they just kept coming!!

My Birthday!

I turned 27 this year- woohoo, getting up there!  It was on a Monday and Zach's 1st day back at work from the long Christmas weekend so it was a little more low-pro than usual (no Morongo this year, snap!)  It was a beautiful sunny day so I decided to take the kids to the Irvine Spectrum and I spent the day meandering through the shops, having lunch and taking Noah and Sienna on the carousel (it was Sienna's first time on the actual horse!).  I decided on Outback for my birthday dinner and we invited family over for ice cream cake when we got home- basically the same deal we did for Zach's birthday.  So we get to Outback and it's a 45-60 minute wait!!  That plus the fact that Zach couldn't get his key out of the car wheel for some reason lead us to the pick up window to order to go!  It ended up working out perfect and we all got to enjoy our meal at our own pace at home.  I wasn't really expecting anything as far as a present this year aside from the usual flowers and card but Zach came out of nowhere with a surprise!!  When I saw the bag size I was thinking maybe it was this jogging arm band I had wanted but instead it was a....platinum diamond band!!!!!  I was beyond surprised and excited!!  Those of you who know the story of how my original wedding ring is now currently resting on the bottom of Lake Mead know I have been missing a "real" ring for a long time but this was the LAST thing I was expecting!  Wow, Zach really got me good!!

Hanging at Outback waiting to see if Zach can get his key out...am I a little dressed up for Outback Steakhouse?  Sure.  Do I care since it's my birthday??  NOPE!!

Me and my Sisi!

Carry out bag, ha!

Yum!

Diamonds are a girl's best friend!

Mint chip ice cream cake, my favorite!

Me and Noah digging in!

The Morning After (Christmas)

I love the day after Christmas because the social responsibilities are finally over and we can just sleep in and hang out!  Plus we finally get a chance to play with our new stuff!  It was too cold and drizzly for Noah to test out his NASCAR on Christmas so he was ready go the next day. Our street has two different grass islands that he likes to pretend are his race tracks.  Sienna was having fun playing with her very first dolly that she got from daddy and a new stroller walker- she's not quite ready to use it as a walker but it has fun toys on the front she likes to play with.