Melissa’s Blog

I am trying to get in workouts with our busy schedule. I think I figured out how to do it, at least on Mondays. We went to my workout place (can’t confuse it with the kids’s gym). The kids had fun. Justin told the person watching him when they left, thanks Ashley-I love you and will you marry me? It was so adorable. Nicole didn’t want to leave. We met some of our My Gym (kid’s gym) friends at Chick-Fil-A. The kids had fun playing. Nicole almost had a fit leaving as she was having so much fun in the play area. Justin didn’t mind as he was so excited to go to My Gym. The kids had so much fun at My Gym. They did the space flight and the kids were all smiles on it. Nicole loves to follow Luke around in the class and sit by him. Sometimes he is not paying attention and Nicole follows. After I felt like the kiddos needed a little rest, so I let them watch some TV; the usual Curious George and Thomas. After I gave the kiddos a bath. Nicole was pretty whiny in the tub.I am trying to help her not whine but it is definitely work in progress. After bath we had a snack and went outside. It was really cold, but the kiddos had fun driving their cars. Grandma/pa came over as well. The kids were happy to see them and played with them for a bit. The kids played with their chairs and pretended to go to Disney, also pretended that it was raining. I love the imagination. We went and played upstairs for a while then read books and told stories. Justin fell asleep during the stories and Nicole is still awake-ugh.

Bret had to work this morning for a bit. The kiddos and I ran to the grocery store. They wanted to ride in the car cart, which should mean I should shop faster. However, anytime I stopped the kiddos would get out of the cart, then back in, etc. I got so many groceries. By the time we got home dad was done working. I needed to go to Grammy’s to get my camera, so happy to have it back. So we stopped at our favorite sandwich place, Little Pickle, and took it to Grammy’s. The kids played for a while, Justin rode the tricycle. After we headed to a theater in Westminster to see the musical, Cinderella. It was put on by kids. Justin and Nicole seemed to enjoy it but they were getting restless as were we by the end. Nicole was trying to dance on my lap like they were dancing on stage. After we played outside the theater, there was a play structure. The kiddos needed play time and they didn’t mind the cold. They had fun climbing up the slides and going down them too. We grabbed dinner on the way home. Nicole is pretending it is her birthday. We made it worse by giving her a birthday crown. So I think we have sung happy birthday at least 20 times and she pretends we are her candles, so she blows us out. Justin played trains and then we all read books. We headed upstairs where the kids were still wanting to play. They played doctor with us, played in the tent room, etc. We only had time to read two books and tell two stories. Nicole is loving this book called Stellaluna and Justin is loving the Curious George books. Sounds pretty quiet up there. Now I can go download pics since I have my camera back.

This morning we tried to get the kid’s passports but the place ended up being closed. So we went through the drive thru Starbucks and over the train tracks. Justin loves going over the tracks. We got home and the kids played well together. They grabbed their chairs and walked around with them pretending they were at Disney. They went on all the rides, such an imaination. Then Nicole and I went to a friend from pre schools party, Grace. It was at Olivia’s Dollhouse in Tustin. So girly! Nicole was really shy for a bit. Finally I talked her into dressing up, she was Sleeping Beauty. She got sparkly nail polish on but didn’t want any make up. She did get her hair done and she looked so grown up. Nicole was really excited for the tea party. She poured her tea and ate little sandwiches and hot dogs. She loved the desert the best and who can blame her. She got a little of everything, cotton candy, gummy bears, m&m, cake, etc. She saved the wrapped candy to bring home for Justin. Then Grace opened all her presents. Nicole was so excited for Grace to open her present, she held it in her hand just dying for Grace to call her, so sweet. Nicole had a great time and it was a really cute party. Justin and daddy went in dad’dy car-a big thrill on its own. Then they ran some errands to find a new router. They went to Circuit City and Costco then headed to the pizza place. Justin had a blast playing games and especially the driving game. So cute when Nicole got home she couldn’t wait to give Justin the candy and they shared it. Nicole got some makeup and they both put makeup on (Justin you may kill me for writing this). The kiddos watched some TV. After TV, we painted on the easel in the garage. That didn’t last too long then the kids rode their bikes. It was cold out though, so they didn’t ride too long. We gave the kiddos a bath. When we got downstairs we took the huge Kota box and let the kiddos play with it. I had to pretend to be a dinasour. They both started filling the box up with toys, that will be fun to clean up! The kids were starving for dinner, I don’t think either one of them had any snacks today. After dinner Nicole wanted to play My Little Pony, Justin cars. We opened two toys from Christmas, some pop magnetic dart thing and he doctor kit. Who knew they loved playing doctor so much. When we went upstairs the kids were in crazy good moods. We made forts in their rooms out of sheets and read books in the fort. Nicole got stuffed animals to put in the forts. Thankfully the kids went right to sleep tonight. They almost had a fit though when we took down one of the forts.

This morning I was debating what to do, Disney, storytime, etc. Luckily since I couldn’t decide the rain decided for me. I went to my workout place for a quick workout. I am always amazed at how well the kids do at the child care; they are always so happy when I come get them. We made it to storytime at the library. It was cute, all about whales. I feel like I haven’t been able to take them to a storytime in a while. They loved the rain, kept on getting under the umbrella then running in the rain a bit, silly. Vena and kiddos were at story time so we invited them to come play. The kids all ate lunch together. My kiddos were asking for mac and cheese yesterday so they got it for lunch. We are bringing a meal to a friend who had surgery, so the kiddos helped me make some brownies for them. The kiddos wanted to watch some TV, their favorite these days-Curious George. We were in the house all afternoon. I had to make a meal for a pre school friend who had surgery, so the kiddos helped me make some brownies too. Going stir crazy in the house we played Candyland and Chutes and Ladders. The kids did pretty well. Nicole tries to cheat and they have to keep spinning the spinner until they get the # they want. We played trains all around the couch.Well I must have been bored too as I made a huge track around the living room floor, we had fun playing trains. When dad got home we were hiding, the kids love that. We went to drop off the meal I made for my friend and ended up going to Mimi’s for dinner. There was a deaf person sitting close to us and Justin says why is that guy not talking? I don’t Nicole and Justin were interested in my explanation. We go thome and they were fun and hyper. We played drive thru in the empty bedroom upstairs, the kids hid in their tent, and were just so giggly and play ful. They didn’t even want to stop playing for books, so we let them play and only told stories tonight. Nicole asked me to tell stories about her books so it was kind of like reading. They stayed up a little late tonight but are sound asleep now.

So cute this morning, the kids woke up at the same time. All of a sudden you heard Nikki say hi Justin and vice versa. When I read this in time I may say how can that be cute but it really was. The kids were busy using the rocket launcher thing in the house this morning. Too cold to use it outside. I am sure it will be the greatest thing ever when we take it outside. This morning the kids slept in a bit then they had to eat breakfast and off to pre school. I ran to the gym and Coscto. In and out of Coscto within 15 minutes without kids, but I did miss them. Dad stayed home a bit for the life insurance guy to come. I love picking the kids up from pre school since they are so happy to see me and have so much to tell me. We came home and had lunch. The kids didn’t eat too much so they must have had a big snack at pre school. Then I gave the kiddos a bubble bath. They were so excited to have a bubble bath. They pretended the bubbles were snow. They watched a little TV and their friends came over. They played really well. I played football and catch with the kiddos. Nicole swung in her swing a bit. I didn’t plan dinner, so we walked to the pizza place. The kids were in the Bob stroller with their flashlights. So cute to watch Justin drive the games at the pizza place. He is just big smiles the entire time. They played air hockey too. We walked home and the kids ate their dinner in the stroller since they were too busy playing games to eat. Nicole put her baby in her crib (by her bed) and she was a good mommy. She gave her a blanket and turned the mobile on. The kids were pretty hyper tonight. I still hear them talking upstairs, hopefully they will be asleep soon,.

This morning we were out early for the kid’s checkup. They were the best kids ever (no shots, thank goodness). They actually had fun at the doctors. They colored on the paper while waiting for Dr. K. They thought it was hilarous to try and hind from the doctor. They are healthy and happy kids. Here are their weights and height:

Nicole- 33lbs, 38 1/8″, Justin-31lbs, 38 7/8″

After I ran to Wal Mart since it was right there to get a few things. Then we headed to the Mission Viejo Mall. We played in the play area a bit then ate lunch. The kids were starving and loved their free samples of lemonade. We walked the mall a bit and were excited to go play on the lights. But the lights were gone; the kids were so sad. So we went to the toy store and the kids played with the train table. We came home and the kiddos watched Curious George then it was time to go to open gym at My Gym. They had a great time. This was the 3 and under play and one kid jumped on Nicole in the ball pit and another pulled her hair, poot thing. On the way home we stopped at the organic fruit stand. We got lots of fruits and veggies. We also walked by the farm so the kids could see everything that was growing. They were so excited to see strawberries and brocoli. They also played in the dirt with rocks. But a good time was had by all. After dinner we made another drive thru out of megablocks and a parking lot. I love this pretending stuff. We read lots of books and thank goodness the kiddos are sound asleep.

Barack Obama sworn in as the 44th President. The pre school had on the speech but too hard to even look at with the kids. This morning we got ready for the cleaners and headed off to pre school. The kids were so happy I was working. Justin brought his “Murdoch” train to share. I put it in quotes as the train’s name is actually Molly. When I told him the name he said he was just pretending it was Murdoch. Nicole brought her Abby Cadaby costume. I love watching them share-it is so cute. The kids got nice and messy today and had fun. We came home to a clean house, I love that! The kiddos played trains for a bit at home. Justin helped me put the GeoTrax back together too. I gave the kiddos a bath, it had been 3 days so it was time. The kids wanted to be naked for a bit and played. Nicole pretended the towel was her car seat. Finally we went to the mall. I needed to do a few returns. I was a little hesitant as it was getting late in the day but it went really well. The kiddos pretended to ride on the quarter machines, played in the lights, went in the Disney store, rode a car, etc. The kids were great at the mall. We came home and made dinner. After dinner we just played with the kiddos. Dad played store with Nicole for a bit. Justin and I used Lincoln Logs and made a drive thru. Nicole started to play too. It was funny Nicole’s car was taking a long time at the drive thru so I got all these other cars and put them in line waiting too, the kids said it was a traffic jam. Bret came over with the police car, so silly. We went upstairs and the kiddos played with the minivan and tractor on out bed. Nicole gave daddy a haircut and Justin gave me one. We read some books and the kiddos are sound asleep.

Bret is off from work today. The kids have been a little more independent today, but still a bit needy. We just played at home in the morning. Both kids wanted to wear their goat shirts. We played trains, dollhouse, crystal climbers, laptops….We met Paula and gang by the train path so the kiddos could ride bikes. They love watching the trains too. After we went to our My Gym class. The kids had a great time. Nicole had a little trouble listening as she was distracted by a little boy name Luke. She was doing everything he was. When the instructor asked the kids what their favorite movie was Nicole said “we don’t watch movies”. Justin’s turn and Nicole said he doesn’t watch movies either. We met dad at In N Out Burger for lunch. We were hungry. After we went to the Toy store to try and look for dollhouse stuff for Nicole. We had no luck but the kiddos played all throughout the store. We got home and the kiddos watched Curious George and Sesame Street. The kids seem to really like Curious George these days. Justin was bored of Sesame Street, so him and daddy headed to the park. I waited for Nicole to finish watching and went to meet Dad and Justin. Nicole saw Abby Cadaby that she wanted to put on her costume, so cute! The kids rode their bikes a bit. Nicole fell so we just sat on the grass and hung out. I told her lots of stories and talked about how I used to fall off my bike. We then headed to the play part. Nicole was into making cupcakes and cakes out of sand, we were mixing, adding ingredients. Justin and daddy were having fun climbing rocks. After we went out for Chinese food and went out for frozen yogurt. The kids were so excited for their treat. They even drink the last drops out of their bowls. We came home and went upstairs. Justin seemed very hyper but both kids went right to sleep. I am so confused since today is Monday and Bret is off.

The kids have been pretty needy and want a 100% of our attention. Nicole wanted to roller skate around the house while Justin just wanted to wash daddy’s car (use the hose). We are thinking about what to do in our house next, we can’t seem to get the living room to look the way we want it too. So we went to Barnes and Noble at the Spectrum to look at some pictures. Of course it didn’t help too much. Then we played at the Spectrum and did a couple errands there. After lunch it was so warm that the kiddos were able to play by the fountains by the food court. They both loved it. It was amazing to see how much they loved it compared to last year. They got soaked. Luckily we bought 2 pairs of jammies at Carters so we had some change of clothes. When we got home we decided to fill up the jacuzzi again. Justin helped dad with the jacuzzi and Nicole helped me put the laundry in the washer. Justin helped too with the laundry, put everything in the dryer. While the kiddos watched TV, I went for a bike ride. We went and washed daddy’s car. The kids loved it. After Justin drove his car and Nicole played with a ball for a bit. Nicole got her car too. But then dad got his Trikke and I got my bike, so Nicole got her bike too. We went up and down our street, Justin in his car and the rest of us on our bikes. After dinner, the kiddos wanted our undivided attention. It has been this way all day. So we played trains and store. We went upstairs and did our normal bedtime routine and the kids are sleeping now.

We love Saturdays. We went to the model train thing in Costa Mesa. Justin just loved watching the trains. It is a great long ride, the kids loved it. Then we needed to get something from Grammy’s house so we headed over there and brought our lunch. The kiddos played, rode trikes, and tried roller skating for the first time. Unfortunately I left my camera over at Grammy’s so can’t post pics. Justin was crying over silly things and fell asleep in the car and Nicole did too. Dad ran into Circuit City to use a gift card before they go out of business while I stayed in the car with two sleeping kids. I finsihed making a big cupcake cake for Vena’s birthdayand the kids got some cake. We talked to Lisa, Todd, Grammy, Meghan, and Henry via the computer. So funny when they saw each other on the computer screen everyone got pretty quiet. Then we gave the kiddos a bath and looked at old pics while they were bathing. Of course the kiddos needed our undivided attention so it wasn’t working out too well. After bath we wanted to head over to Victoria and Todd’s, however, the kids wanted to do a lot at home. So dad and Justin quickly played with the hose while I helped Nikki roller skate. Our kiddos were so needy and just wanting to play with us the entire time at Victoria’s. Nicole loved playing with Penny’s dollhouse and loved the people. There were 2 babies + cribs, plus a mommy and daddy. Of course I played the role of mommy, finally I got away for a bit by saying mommy was out playing Bunco. It was cute but I wanted to chat with some friends. Justin was playing with Penny’s tools and asking daddy what he could screw. We came home and the kids just wanted to play at home. We went upstairs and put them to bed at 8:30. I keep hearing Nicole every now and then but I think she will be asleep soon.