Melissa’s Blog

I was so sleepy this morning. We stayed home and played for a bit. Then I needed a bunch of things so we headed to Wal-Mart. The kids were great except for the nagging can I buy something. They loved helping me find things and get things off of the shelves. Of course a 15 minute shopping trip probably took me an hour, but oh well. At least the kids were great and not having a fit. We came home and Justin asked me to color with him. So we colored for a bit. Then I decided to tackle the garage a bit. It didn’t need too much cleaning out just putting things away. We have a tendency to throw things on the ground and they collect until I finally can’t take it anymore. The kids helped clean out the garage by sweeping . They were also busy playing. They set up a crib for Huey, Duey, and Louie with cones and a towel. Justin got a bubble gun and was at it for a while. Nikki was chasing the bubbles for a bit until she got too sweaty. It is hot in the sun today. I also did some more laundry. We had to be home from 11-3 as that is the window the electric company gave us that they were coming to pick up our old fridge. They came about 1:00 so it wasn’t too bad. Nicole was sad to see the fridge go, silly girl. Where Justin and I just said bye crappy fridge. We ate a late lunch. Then we just hung out at home all afternoon, it was kind of nice. The kids watched two new shows, Dinasour Train and Arthur. I did some gardening in the backyard and washed the windows. I made it rain on the kiddos play house and they were loving it. They told me they were playing basketball in the play house. They kept coming out and saying it was raining so they would run back in the play house. We watered plants together. We decided to go on a bike ride. Sometimes it seems as if Justin will get riding a two wheeler soon but then other times he is leaning too much. The kids kept saying they were hot and tired. It was a little hot today or humid. When we got home the kids had a snack. They were mighty hungry as they ate as much off of the pear as they could. We decided to play Candyland outside and wait for daddy to come home. Plus it was so nice out. We played a new twist on Candyland. The kids picked two cards and decided which one would be better. They loved it! We played for a long time, then the kids spilled my water and got more interested in ice and water. Dad got home a bit late, we had dinner then I was off to the last pre school meeting. Dad played hide n seek with the kiddos. Nikki found him right away, he said how did you find me so fast and her response was I followed your toot! HA. I was glad I got home just as the kids were going to bed, so I could cuddle them.

I had a hard time unwinding last night but once I fell asleep I was out. I was working at school this morning. So funny dad had to leave early for training. So he opened the garage and guess who came running down the hall, Justin. Justin wanted to make sure to say goodbye to daddy, so sweet. I was blue mom today. Outside we ended up playing lots of games, red light/green light, Simon Says, etc. It is pirate week at school so the kids loved the pirate books and looking for treasure. Of course Nikki and Justin shared their astro blasters. I just had them make up their own clues. I loved watching Nikki and Justin singing in front of their class with just a few of their friends. We had fun at pre school today. When we got home the kids ate lunch and seemed a little sleepy. We looked through books and then showed them a youtube video on Buzz. We are definitely Buzz crazy in this house right now. Then I gave the kiddos a bath. At first Nikki wanted to go herself but then she invited Justin in with her. The kids stayed in the bath for a really long time. Then they were naked for a really long time. I went out to get a lemon off a neighbor’s tree and the kids followed me out, naked and all. I prepped dinner and then I took the kids to get haircuts. They look so cute. Nikki’s is french braided (like a headband) and Justin looks so handsome. Now that I think about it why didn’t I take a pic. We headed over to a friend’s house for a quick visit and we all went to the park. The kids had a great time. We got home a little late so we had a late dinner. Nikki was wired tonight and didn’t go to bed until 9:00ish, ugh. I feel like I haven’t stopped all day so I am going to relax.

Yesterday we spent the morning at home. I made a bunch of phone calls and got a bit organized. Then we headed to Disneyland. We met our pre school teachers there too, Ms. Donna and Ms Tanya. The kids were so excited to have their teachers there and the kids wanted to go on all the rides with them. It was a great day to go to Disney as it was cloudy. The lines weren’t too bad at all. Justin went on the Autopia first. He went with Ms. Tanya, Nicole went with Ms. Donna, and I rode by myself. I think this is the first time I have ever been on the Autopia by myself. It was nice having the pre school teachers there as they were helpful and the kiddos loved talking with them. It took 3 adults but we finally convinced the kiddos to go on Buzz Lightyear. The kids ended up loving it. I am so glad they tried something new. Justin even went on a second time. They loved the astro blaster gun thing, that I actually bought them for them. We went on the rockets too then headed to CA Adventure for a bit. Ms. Donna/Tanya did some wine thing so the kiddos and I headed over to a Bug’s Land. We went on the bumper cars (several times), the caterpillar ride, and the box cars. We also stayed to watch the parade. The kids loved having their astro blasters to shoot the aliens in the parade. We went back to Disney where we went on a Small World and the carousal. We didn’t get home till late. When we got home the kids got a little hyper but did crash. The kids were getting so sleepy on the way home. They loved being in bed last night with the astro blaster lighting up. Oh they also call the astro blaster-batter blaster. HA HA HA. It was a great day and I can’t wait to go back to Disney soon.

Bret started a tough week of training this morning. He left before Justin got up. Well Justin got up and came in our bed around 6:30 then fell back to sleep. We got ready for pre school. I dropped the kiddos off then  had to run to the dentist. Just a teeth cleaning that may turn into a crown. I am still clenching my teeth and pushing them into the gum and causing problems. The night guard is working but too bad I can’t wear it during the day too. I came home and had a little relaxing time before heading out to pick up the kiddos. It was pirate day at school. The kids went on a treasure hunt and made pirate hats, too cute. We came home and had lunch. It was a gloomy day today. After lunch the kiddos played while I tried to get organized with dinners this week, making my grocery list. I gave the kiddos a bath. They went in the bath together with a little fighting but then it got better. I think this was their first bath in 3 or 4 days, unless the jacuzzi counts. I caught up with an old friend and tried to talk while the kiddos were in the bath. I also started going through the kids clothes to get rid of things that don’t fit. I always try to get a few things done while the kiddos are in the bath. After bath the kids started drawing a bit then started throwing stuffed animals, pillows, and blankets down the stairs. They were laughing and having fun. We went to Whole Foods and did lots of grocery shopping. The kids were great but wanted to take their time and pretend to put more stuff in their cart. Luckily the samples help too. We came home and the kids tried jump roping again. I started dinner and dad got home earlier than I thought which was a nice surprise. After dinner our neighbor with Zoe came by. Zoe was chasing the crows and she obviously upset them as they were swooping down. Lots of crows. Nikki and I went up to play doll house and read books while dad and Justin played Wii. When dad and Justin came up we did car wash. Justin did naked car wash. The kids were laughing and having a great time running through the towels we held up. Justin loved having his light saber on in his bed in the dark. Nikki wanted to talk about bad things and have me scratch almost every part of her. Now to relax and watch some TV.

Everyone has been sleeping in lately. We will have to make sure the kiddos go to bed on time tonight since they have school tomorrow. We just took it easy most of the day. We read the paper this morning. Justin played Wii and Nikki and I went up to play doll house for a while. She had such a great time and so did I. We played in the backyard for a while. Dad and I moved the playhouse and table around. We want to make sure the pavers didn’t get too faded. The kids loved having the roof off on the play house and sprayed it with water. Dad and I tried to hide a few things to get rid of, basketball net and teeter totter. The kids found the picnic table and wanted to eat their lunch outside. We waited around for our new fridge. It looks really nice but now the rest of the kitchen looks even older. We are waiting for it to get cold before we load it up. The other fridge is just in the garage right now. The people that brought in our fridge pushed our coach way over. The kids got their blankets and pillows and made a bed. I then brought over the kitchen chairs and made a fort. The kids loved it and played in it for a while. They brought toys under there, snacks, and water. They played really well this afternoon, it was really nice. I have a little cold so I just took it easy today. Dad took the kids to pirate park for a while then I went over to meet them. When I got over there dad was teaching them tackle football. We all played in the sand for a while. It started to get cold so we came home. The fridge was ready to be loaded. The kids really wanted to help so I just decided I will work on it tomorrow. The kids were wanting to learn to jump rope so we worked with them for a while. So cute how happy they are when they do it! Justin and dad played Mario Cart for a  bit while Nikki and I went into my bed to watch TV. I ended up falling asleep. We did our usual night time routine and we are just waiting for Nikki to go to sleep. It is going to be a busy week for daddy as he has to go to training all week and I have a dentist app’t tomorrow, so not fun!

We put the kiddos Lego sets we got them together this morning. Dad helped Justin make his car and I helped Nikki make her dog house thing. This morning was supposed to be the kid’s last soccer game  but they now have extended it till next week. Nicole was very sad they didn’t have her trophy. Nikki looked like she was really having fun today playing. She ran so much she came over saying her belly hurt, probably just a cramp. Justin was a star too. He made a few goals. There was a kid on his team that was pushing and Justin started to push a little too. The kids played a bit after. The kids are really into bugs lately. They were looking for lady bugs and found a few. They also found a rolly polly and played with it for a bit. Nicole was heart broken we wouldn’t let her take it home with her. I think this is the first time they had held a rolly polly. On the way to the library we stopped at Lil Pickle for lunch. Then we went to Newport Beach library for a Sesame Street thing. It was really cute. It was a lot of activities, story time, and coloring. The kids played lots of games, musical chairs, red light/green light, and Elmo says. They also made some puppets. I am glad we went. The kids seemed to want to be home since we were gone all day yesterday. We got home and Justin wanted to play Mario Cart. Nikki wanted to play with her Legos. We all went in the back yard for a bit. The kids pretended their playhouse was on fire and used the squirters to put it out. Dad was on his laptop out there so the kids wanted to play on it, push keys, etc. The kids are really learning to spell words. They can spell hand, dog, mom…woo hoo. We did some gardening and the kids washed the windows. After dinner we went in the jacuzzi. The kids were loving it and were wild. They were pretending to be dogs and hanging all over us. When they got out they were hyper too. I am so glad Bret go the jacuzzi running as the kids have really enjoyed it. Nikki was really helpful today, wanting to help me with whatever I did. It was really cute. Kiddos are asleep and we are soon to follow.

Yesterday we went to Legoland. We took Grandma with us. I was told that Legoland you really needed an even number of people to go on rides. I found that to be true, it would have been really hard with me and just the two kids. The kids had a fantastic time. I think Legoland is their new favorite place. The lines for the rides were really slow and also the loading/unloading of rides. The kids were great waiting in lines. Nicole had so many favorites, she liked making trumpet noises with the musical water fountain, driving the boat,and driving the cars. Justin’s favorite ride was this sky ride where we pedaled together. He also really liked building a Lego car and racing it down the ramp. He would jump up and down as the car went down the ramp. We had a great day, but the park was only open from 10-5 so we missed some things. Here are some pics from our day:

I had a great time at Bunco. I so needed it but then went to bed too late last night. Today was a busy day for us. We needed to run out to get some stuff at Target. Luckily there was no line at the return counter since I had a return. Then we got bubbles for their last class for get ready for kinder and snacks for a friend’s baby shower. We had to stop at dad’s work to get the booster for the car. The kids were s excited to see daddy-they just kept hugging him, etc, It was sweet.  The shower was at a pool. The kids had a great time. We were a bit rushed though since we had to get to our get ready for kinder class. It was so hard to pull the kiddos out of the pool as they were having so much fun. Nikki put on a life jacket and loved the feeling that she was safe wherever she went in the pool. Justin was in a floaty just kicking back. We didn’t have much time for lunch so the kiddos had pretzels, crackers, juice box, banana, and cake. I was able to give the kids a shower there which was a huge life saver. I had no idea when else they would have gotten a bath. We were supposed to go to a library event but I was glad I changed my mind since we were already crazy. We were a little late to the class but not by much. I ran home to meet Roberta and T. I had TT (aka terror Tierney). But I love that she is being a terror in a good way. She is into everything and busy as can be. She loves showing off she can walk. Her and I had fun playing, she was into the kitchen and musical toys. I think she was looking around for N&J. We went to pick N&J up. The kids got lots of prizes in their class for reading so many books, etc. They came out with all this stuff. I loved looking at their journals. I will have to post some pics soon. We played outside the class for a bit in the play area. Nikki and Justin were riding bikes but Nikki was upset no one wanted to give her a ride. She was a little melty. We headed home and then grandma/pa came over. We didn’t even hear the doorbell since we were in the play room so T would stay in a safe place. I left to meet dad and some old co-workers at Red Robin. It was nice to catch up. Now it is all about the kids in conversation. It was nice to get out. The kids and grandma/pa went to Chick Fil A. Nikki seemed pretty tired when we got home but it still took her a while to go to bed. Now to get ready for Lego land tomorrow and relax.

I have had enough stress for one week and it is only Tuesday. Deciding whether to send the kids to kindergarten is a nightmare. Every time we talk to someone else we change our mind again. Anyway our morning started off good. I babysat for a friend from pre school and we all went to Blue Gum together. We met some of our play mate friends there too. The kids had a great time. There was a big hole in the sand and the kids just had a great time digging more and more. And pretending that it was their house. So cute. The kids played so nicely with their friends. This is one of the first times I have seen Nikki and Mikey play so well together-it was cute. They even kissed each other. After the park we headed home to eat lunch real quick then head to get ready for kinder. Bret and I had a meeting to see if they are ready for kindergarten. Our minds change depending on who we talk too. They are almost ready, just a few things we need to work on. I think those things just came about due to the kids being in their own classes. That dynamic has never occurred. The teacher asked Nikki what her favorite color and she said Justin’s colors. It takes Justin a little while to feel confident on his own but that is because he always has his sister. They both participate and do great at story time, just like they do at pre school. It sounds like though when it is something new they are a little reluctant until they get used to it. I even talked to the teachers more when I picked up the kids. They did mention when the two are together the confidence is higher. So Bret and I are back to square one not knowing what to do. But a lot could change in the next couple months too. I think we are going to proceed with the fact that they are going to kinder and see what happens. I am going to look into some pre-k programs just in case. I love ICNS but I think the kids would be bored there another year. During class the kids read a book called something like fill my bucket. It talks about emotions and how it effects other people. Justin came out and told me he loved me and that my basket was now full. They made baskets and Nicole’s said these things:

I will play with Jack (in her class), I will give my mom flowers, and I will give my brother a big hug

Justin’s said:

I can kiss people, I can cheer up a sad friend by making funny faces, I can say I love you

Also the teacher said Nicole has seemed to replace Justin with Jack in her class. She definitely needs her brother which I love and think is so sweet. The kids played outside after the get ready for k class. They made some baskets and rode bikes. After we were rushing around. We ran to Costco as I am snack mom tomorrow then we needed to get home to take a bath. However when we got home the kids saw some other kids playing football on the greenbelt. They came in and got their football. So we just did fast showers then dinner. The kids seemed tired again tonight. They must be busy growing again. We had a mellow night and the kids went to sleep.

Well the weekend of it all about me is over. I had a great birthday and mom’s day. The kids woke up this morning and played in Justin’s room. We had to call them down for breakfast. That never happens and unfortunately it happens on a pre school morning. I dropped the kiddos off at school. I hated to leave them after a great weekend with them. I did stay for a bit and read books to them. I came home while they were at school, did laundry, and hung out with dad (he is working from home). Grandma/pa were supposed to come over today. Grandma was supposed to babysit while grandpa and I went to the movies. However, both are feeling under the weather today. I hated breaking the news to the kids that they weren’t coming. But I decided to take the kiddos to CA Adventure instead. We came home and had lunch then the kiddos watched a little Blues Clues on daddy’s computer. Of course they pretended they were characters from Blues Clues. Justin really wanted to take the shuttle to CA Adventure. Since the stroller line wasn’t too bad we took the shuttle. It was fun exploring CA Adventure. When we first got there we went to the pier. The kids rode on the carousal there (under the sea theme). Justin got on a dolphin and Nikki on a fish. Then we headed over to the ferris wheel. The kiddos met a little boy and we ended up going in the same car thing. The kids all had a great time together. N&J weren’t too into trying new things. At first they said they didn’t want to go on the ferris wheel but had a great time. Justin wanted to ride the little roller coaster but I needed Bret with me to be able to do that as Nikki didn’t want to. We explored a bit and went into the tortilla and bread factories. The kids just loved looking around at the big roller coasters, the roaring rapids, etc. We saw some characters, Brother Bear and Koda (too scary for the kids) and Minnie Mouse. Nikki gave Minnie a hug and Minnie gave her a kiss, so cute. Then we headed over to see the animation area. The kids watched Crush’s show. I was so happy that they called on Nikki to ask Crush a question. She asked if the water was warm or cold? He asked her the same thing about the temp. She said it was warm. He asked her about Buzz Lightyear but Nikki doesn’t really know about him too much, so she says he goes to outer space. I was sad that Justin didn’t get to ask a question too. They didn’t seem to take as many questions as last time but the kids still loved the show. We looked around the animation area and the kids watched some things on the screen, they were so excited when they saw Lady and the Tramp. However, some things were scary for Nikki. We got a smoothie after. The only reason I mention this smoothie is the kiddos were nuts for it. I can’t believe how much they loved that thing. The kids wanted to see the parade, so we went and got a good spot. The parade was great and the kids loved it. Then we headed home. Nikki kept on complaining she was tired. We had a late dinner and then the kids got wild. They were acting out the parade. But they did go to bed once we turned out the lights.