Memorial Day at the Beach

We celebrated our gratefulness for all those who have served our country in the military by spending the day at the beach!  After breakfast out as a family and nap time, we met some friends from church at the beach!  It ended up being a great beach day!

 

Faith received a boogie board for her birthday, and today was the first day that she was able to put it to use!  Without ever having boogie boarded, she did really well!  And she had a ton of fun on it!

 

When not riding the waves, the kids enjoyed building sand castles and finding sand crabs with their friends!

 

Olivia really had her first ever beach day!  Last summer she went a handful of times, but it was before she was walking!  She absolutely loved it!  Even the cold ocean water!

 

She would crawl in and out of the water!  It was the funniest thing!

 

A true beach bunny becoming one with the sand!

 

Shane enjoying the water!  After getting knocked down by a wave early on in the day, he claimed he was never going in the ocean again!  That lasted an hour!

 

Towards the end of the afternoon!  In the background of the picture is the Ventura pier.  I think all three kids are going to sleep very well tonight!

Olivia the Wild!

In a few days our sweet little Olivia will be 18 months!  In many ways it is really hard to believe that she could be that old already!  And on the other hand, it's not that surprising given the way she shows us daily how much she is getting older, knowing more, and communicating more.  It seems as though she is adding to her vocabulary daily, and even saying short little phrases!  Today we were looking for one of her shoes and she asked, "Shoe...where go?"  I just love this age as kids seem to take that level of interaction to the next level!  It is truly amazing to think about all the she has learned in just a mere 18 months!

But of course as she grows older, the list of things that I worry about her doing (actually I should say attempting to do and getting hurt!!) also grows!  A few months ago we put a chair in front of the ladder leading up to the clubhouse as she figured out how to climb that.  Where there is a will there is a way, and little Livvy now climbs the slide to get to the clubhouse!  She can no longer be left to roam a bit in the back while I make dinner, or put away groceries, or whatever small task it is that needs to be done!  Naturally, she is quite proud of herself!

The trampoline is also a place where she likes to play.  She is yet to be able to climb up there by herself!  On Friday she did find an interesting place to climb...the toilet!  As in she climbed inside and was standing in it!!  I was so thankful there was just water inside, and that she was not wearing pants or shoes!  While she is not ready to be trained (and there is no way I'm ready for that!!), she is very interested in the toilet.  Since the toilet incident on Friday, I have been in the bathroom with her where she tells me she wants to use it and I think that was why she climbed in!  There is never, ever a dull moment in our house with this child!!

 

Proof that she is not crazy all the time!  Her love of books continues to grow too!

 

And she tends to be more mellow in the morning!  She loves to cuddle with Shane on the couch and watch their favorite morning shows!

 

One last picture!  On Tuesday and Thursday mornings we go to a cross fit workout for moms at our church!  It's totally perfect as the big kids play (after they do a short workout!), and the babies all hang out together in their strollers.  Next to Olivia is her buddy Santiago, who she calls Ago!  They often cheer us on as we struggle through the workout! 

Mother's Day

Being a mom is no easy task, and so it is always wonderful when the hard work, sleepless nights, meals prepared, activities planned, classes taught, and so on are appreciated.  While my family did spoil me with love, flowers, cards, and gifts, I am most thankful that they not only show their gratitude on Mother's Day but the whole year through.  Steve is especially good at that!  I am one lucky mom (and wife!).

 

This year after going to church on Sunday morning, we spent Mother's Day with our friends as they recently put in a new pool.  The weather was perfect for swimming, and it was a treat to spend the day with good friends.  Plus, the men planned and prepared a great meal for us all to enjoy!

 

Olivia enjoyed the water and had fun playing with everyone!

 

Shane is ready for the water!

Zoo Field Trip!

Since Southern California is experiencing yet another horrible heat wave (90 degrees or more for three days straight with no AC!!), my motivation to accomplish anything around the house is depleted!  So, I decided that it was a good opportunity to catch up a bit on the good ole blog!

 

Last week Thursday we went to the Santa Barbara zoo for the day with Shane's preschool.  During the school year it is harder for us to get up to the zoo as we are busy with other commitments, so it was the perfect excuse to go once again! 

 

Right when we arrived we found some of Shane's closest friends at school, so we were able to walk around the zoo as a group.  He had a blast with his buddies, and it was enjoyable to watch them interact with one another!  As a special treat, we went on the train ride!

 

Everyone brought a picnic lunch!

 

Olivia did well at the zoo as she spent most of her time in the stroller!  But she was excited to run around at lunch, and of course to eat a sandwich just like all the big kids!  We are all looking forward to many more trips to the zoo in the near future as our activities start to wind down for the year!