Happy Halloween

We had lots of fun this year for halloween. I managed to not spend a dime on halloween costumes. Lilliana decided she wanted to be a ninja and a power ranger (both of which we already had a costume for), and Mark was a train engineer - and a wonderful friend gave us the hat! Lilliana got to go to the pumpkin patch twice (once with her class and we went as a family a week later).

Halloween night was lots of fun. I only made it around the block and then went home to hand out candy. The kids, Jim, Grandpa, Papa, Nani, and Nona kept going. Mark was really excited to get candy, but got a little scared at some of the houses where the person who answered the door was all dressed up.

Then when the kids got home they had a lot of fun handing out candy. Mark had to make sure everyone got some candy and wanted to answer the door each time.

Kindergarten

First day of Kindergarten! Doesn't Lilliana look so grown-up? I know everyone says this, but I can't believe she's a kindergartener. She's been so excited to go. All the other kids in the neighborhood started school in the middle of Aug, and Lilliana's school didn't start until after Labor day. She's been very anxious to go and asks me everyday if it's a school day. She's also wanted to start wearing her uniform before school started. I'm excited to not have an argument over what she chooses to wear each day!

Family Vacation

This year for our family vacation we got to spend some time at the Russian River with Jim's family. We had such a wonderful time. There are all kinds of fun things to do with the kids. One day they had a kids carnival with a huge slide, bounce house, games, cotton candy, popcorn - you name it. The best part was the games and things only cost .05 so you could have fun all day on like $2! That's my kind of fun :) The next few days we would go to crafts in the kids center, play at the park, and go to the beach. There were lots of other kids there to play with. Jim's cousins Hannah and Nick were really sweet to play with my kids all the time and let Lilliana tag along with them.

One day Jim decided to rent a canoe for he and I and Lilliana to go down the river...it was supposed to be a nice relaxing afternoon on the river. The last time Jim did this was in high school (over 10 years ago) and apparently there was a lot more water in the river. So that meant that there was literally NO current in the river to help move us along. Oh and did I mention that it was ridiculously hot that day? Oh wait and towards the end of the "ride" the wind picked up and was blowing against us. I think this was my most favorite activity (insert sarcasim here).

Overall though we all had a wonderful time making memories together. Mark kept asking for weeks afterward when we were going to go back to the cabin. Lucky for us Jim's mom invited us to come back up again a few weeks later for a few days :)

Thanks Kathy for helping to make our summer vacation awesome!

4th of July

The week of 4th of July we spent at Seacliff beach with my family. I know I've said it before but when you have kids, RV "camping" at the beach is the only way to go. The bathroom is right there, there is shade when you want it, a fridge for keeping food cold, you can put the kids down for a nap if you need to...it's perfect!

Lilliana and Grandpa played a bit of baseball and she actually got pretty good a hitting the ball. Mark was more into playing golf or hockey with the bat and ball :) They both had a great time playing in the water and sand.

We love spending time at the beach together.

Gilroy Gardens

This summer we bought passes to Great America, but they also got us into Gilroy Gardens. So the kids and I went on a weekday to check it out. Can I just tell you this place is wonderful for younger kids. We had such a lovely time. The rides were perfect for my kids. There was plenty of shade, even on a hot day in Gilroy I didn't feel super hot. They really had a wonderful time. Mark's favorite ride was the train - I think we rode it 3 times. Lilliana loved the hot air balloon ride which they both wanted to ride again and again (which we could since there were NO lines). My stomach could only handle that ride about 2 times in a row. I was a bit worried about going to an amusement park with 2 kids by myself, but they both did really great staying right with me.

There was one area that had a waterfall that you could walk behind. You did get a bit wet but it was nice a refreshing. Mark was too afraid to walk through on his own so his big sister picked him up and carried him through. It was really sweet to watch her take such good care of her little brother.

It was an awesome day. One that we will repeat a few times this summer since we have passes!

Poem Recital

Towards the end of the school year Lilliana's class all recited poems that they had memorized. Lilliana did a WONDERFUL job reciting Teddy Bear Teddy Bear with her friend Sean. (Movie to come when I have time to upload the video).

Here she is with her best friend Oliver. I still can't believe I convinced her to let me put a hairbow in her hair! She tells me that she and Oliver are going to get married, he will change his name to Pojda and then they will live at our house. :)

Chicken Pox

My poor baby boy came down the the chicken pox. He actually fared pretty well. There was only 1 day were you could tell he was sick (other than the spots). That was a very LONG night to say the least. But he recovered and now has a lifelong immunity.