San Francisco

So a couple of days after Halloween we were able to take another trip, this time just the two of us.  I was actually just tagging along, Pat spent the day in a continuing education class.  So that left me exploring by myself from 8-5 every day.  Who knew that San Francisco was so easy to get around.  We rented a car, but next time won't.  Not only is there hardly any parking the only parking in most places was Valet and it cost a lot.  Even our hotel only offered it.  On the first day there we had great weather, I spent the morning at Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39.  Saw the famous Sea Lions, had a good view of Alcatraz, browsed the shops and got familiar with the area.  Then grabbed some take out and went back to the hotel to eat and rest my feet.  After that was all said and done I walked down to the Hyde Street Pier.  Got an even better look at Alcatraz, Coit Tower and the Golden Gate Bridge, and walked down the pier and looked at the restored ships they had docked there.  Hyde Street is a crazy street.  I think it is one of the steepest streets in all of San Francisco, but you can't really tell from the picture I took of it.  I met Pat back at the hotel after his course was finished and we went back so that he could see everything that I did that day, and so we could get some dinner. 

The Sea Lions

Golden Gate Bridge

Coit Tower

Alcatraz

Hyde Street

While we were there we wanted to see a Broadway show. I was very sad that Wicked decided to go on tour during the time of our trip but I wasn't disappointed in West Side Story. Even better I actually recognized one of the cast from the show. Well actually Pat did, and pointed it out to me. Neil from So You Think You Can Dance Season 3. He was my favorite on that season so to see him in person was pretty great! Might have even got his picture if we stayed after for the cast Q&A, but we didn't want to miss our bus back to the hotel. This was the theater where it was showing at.

I also spent the day at Union Square doing some shopping.  It was super easy getting there thanks to the front desk attendant at our hotel.  They actually recommended using the bus instead of driving everywhere.  It took only 15 minutes to get there and every store you could imagine was within a 4 block radius.  This was from the patio at The Cheesecake Factory in Macy's.  It was a great view and good food of course!

Our last day there I decided to find Lombard Street. You can't visit San Francisco and not see it in my opinion, but for some reason Pat was not that interested. After a quick stop at the front desk for directions, I was on my way. It wasn't too far, but what they forgot to mention was that walking up Hyde Street is like walking up the side of a mountain. But hey now I can say I did that too! I couldn't imagine living on this street and having a million strangers walking up and down it every day.  Still it was very cool to see.

After dinner and a movie (our plans to go on a sunset cruise didn't work out)on our last night we stopped at Union Square one last time. They had been working on it the entire time we were there so we decided to see what was going on. They had put in an outdoor ice rink and we missed it by 3 days. It would have been so fun to be able to go skating!

I have a list of things to do the next time that we visit, and hopefully it will be soon. It was such a fun city to visit, and surprisingly very family friendly. We might have to make it a family affair next time!

Happy Halloween

So this year because Halloween fell on a Sunday, we celebrated on Saturday at our Tri-ward Trunk or Treat.  I love this.  We attended our first one when we lived in Kentucky.  We actually had a Trunk or Treat every year, not just when Halloween was on Sunday.  I forgot how much I really enjoy it.  We went all out this year.  Even I dressed up.  But of course in our rush to get out the door I forgot to get pictures of the kids.  This is the only picture I have and I am not even in it.  My brother did take a picture and as soon as I get a copy I will let you all see it!  Pat had a riot, can you guess where he is in this picture?

Did you find him? He spent the entire night scaring the kids! Some left in tears, some wouldn't even come near our trunk, and some came back for more! The best was when he scared the parents! Can't wait till next year! Happy Halloween!

Dear Jessie please update me more often. From Your Blog

I am sure that all of you loyal readers out there are agreeing with the title of this post.  I don't know why but October seems to be my worst blogging month.  I know it shouldn't be because we have sooo much going on, so I will try to redeem myself with this quick post!  The first thing I have to tell about is Rawley's friend party.  I guess it was a good thing I combined some of the celebrating with Addy, because by the day of his party only 2 of the 5 friends he invited could make it!  I am feeling somewhat guilty for limiting the number of invites, but seriously who would want 10 or 15 six year olds running wild in their house for 2 hours?  Not me!!  We had a Mario themed party complete with pin the mustache on Mario, a gold coin hunt, a koopa stomp, and a little Wii of course.  The cake was not my favorite,  not only was my frosting sliding down the sides of the so called 1 up mushroom, but it didn't really resemble a mushroom at all!  Good thing it tasted good!  In fact the cake looked so bad I didn't even take a picture of it! I guess I will have to redeem myself one of these years! Anyone want a Mario themed party? I have to thank my hubby for the awesome Mario and mustaches. We just used a bit of poster tack on the back of them to keep the paint from peeling off with each try and it worked great!

Yesterday was Emmy's preschool Halloween party we went back for the last 20 minutes of class and played Halloween Bingo, danced to Dem Bones and then came home.  Emmy was Little Red Riding Hood.  This was actually her costume from last year, but she changed her mind last minute so she really didn't get a chance to choose anything else.  She sure makes a cute Red Riding Hood in my opinion!

Rawley went as Wolverine and Hadley wore her gi that she used for Judo.  Every year the school does a costume parade so we joined in the fun this morning bright and early! Here is Rawley.

Hadley's picture was so blurry I just couldn't use it! The lighting in the school hates my camera!


I also made the cupcakes for Rawley's Class party.  Brains anyone??

We have trunk or treat on Saturday! I will tell you all about it hopefully before we head to San Francisco for a kid free trip!

The Birthday Girl!

I can't believe she is officially 1!  The day came way to quick thanks to the weekend we had before, but nevertheless here it is!  I had to take her picture on the night before she turned 1.

The day of her birthday was crazy! We invited some family over to celebrate and last minute decided to include Rawley into the mix. His birthday is on Saturday, and it is also Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada. So we wanted to make sure that he got a cake and presents too! I think that Addy's cake turned out pretty cute considering I made it up on the fly. Rawley's was not really thought out, but he will get a better on for his friend party next week. Here is Addy's cake.

I think she was having fun opening her presents!

Have you ever seen a bigger surprised face? I think he liked it!

He got worms and dirt for his cake.

And we even got a birthday rainbow today!

We ended up having a great time, eating good cake and having good company. Glad that it all worked out, but I am still a little sad that my baby is not longer a baby! 

A Much Needed Break!

It feels like forever since Pat and I were able to take a trip minus the kids, so a while back some friends and I started talking about taking a couples trip.  After a bit of procrastination we finally made the plans and over this last weekend we headed out to Vegas!  It was nice to get to some warmer weather, spend some time with friends, see the sites and eat good food!  We aren't much for pictures!  I think we were dubbed the picture snobs actually, but that is alright!  We still managed to get a couple of shots in.  I can't believe how much has changed in the last few years.  I hardly recognized some of it.  City Center was crazy, the Fashion Mall was gigantic, and Freemont Street was super cool!  I had never been there before.

City Center looks way better when it is all lit up at night, but during the day it is still pretty cool.

The shopping was great! I found some good additions to my very lacking wardrobe, and got to spend the entire day with my sister Renee! Love ya sis! Next time it will be a trip to visit her instead of the strip.

By the end of the weekend we were very sleep deprived and missing the kids a ton. Can't wait to do it again! And thanks to my brother Brock and SIL Tasha, we will get to in about a month!

11 Months

So I know I kind of dropped the ball on this post!  But better late than never in my books!  Addy is officially 11 months old.  Deep down I was hoping she would walk the earliest, but looks like she will be the last one to do it.  She can sure motor on her hands and knees and I think that is why she has decided not to stand up and go.  That is good in a way and not so good in others, but until then I hope my arms hold out from having to hold her all of the time.  I also was sad to find that her first word was officially Dada, I came to know this when she stood up in the bath, yelled Dada and waved when she heard the garage door open!  She is also a very good helper!  She loves the dishwasher and this is what she does every time it is left open!

Love this girl! I can't believe she will be 1 in less than 2 weeks!

Still Waiting.....

for Summer that is! I know that the first day of Fall has come and gone, but around these parts we are still waiting for Summer. Even though the weather didn't cooperate for us we still tried to make the most of it. School is back in full swing. Even Emmy has joined in the fun twice a week. I know I already posted a first day of school picture, but this is her actual first day of school.

I also braved another party for Hadley! I feel kind of bad that she is the only one of my children with a summer Birthday, so every other year she gets to have a friend party. I have learned from previous experience not to invite a ton of guests, so this year I limited it to 5 friends. I think she had a good time and hope they all did too! Here are the cupcakes I made for her cake!

Hadley was also chosen to participate in our school district wide Terry Fox Marathon that was done to celebrate it's 30th Anniversary. She ran 1.5 km with the banner and 3 other kids from her school. They met in the gym and did a hand off and another 4 kids from the school carried it to the next group who were waiting 1.5km away. My pictures are not very good due to the awful lighting in the gym. But here is my best one.

I guess that is it for now! Another week and there will be a lot more to tell about, but until then you will have to wait!