Melissa’s Blog

This morning I got up and took my new tennis shoes for a walk/run. The shoes are awesome. My Ipod though didn’t hold a charge but my feet were so happy I didn’t mind not listening to music. Nikki was really cuddly this morning. Justin was playing the Wii fit, some of those things are so funny. I laughed so hard when he was flapping his arms like a bird. We went to the library to return books and see some rail safety thing. The safety thing was terrible, the kids liked it but not worth going to. Picking out new books was so much fun. The kids can’t wait to read them. After lunch dad and Justin mowed the lawn. Nikki and I ran out to get a storage bin and get some fruit/milk at the grocery store. Dad and I have been trying to clean out things again and he listed some things on Craigslist. We decided to go to Lake Forest and take a walk through the woods. We did this once before and it was so much fun. The kids couldn’t wait to collect rocks and toss them into the stream. They loved making huge splashes but they would also cover their ears, funny. It was so nice and relaxing, the weather was perfect too. Of course dad and I loved the area so much with the woods we talked about moving there. It won’t happen but fun to think about. When we got home we made dinner. After dinner we made a banana desert. Add chocolate chips, graham crackers, and marshmallows and grill. YUM! We went to our neighbors to meet their new  baby, oh so cute. I loved holding her. It was nice to catch up with our neighbors. Nikki loved helping with the baby, feeding, getting her pacifier. Justin was happy watching TV. When we got home Nikki pretended to be baby Sophia. We read lots of books and off to bed the kids went. Justin has this new thing when he kisses our noses, he gets them all wet, yuck.

Today we stayed home most of the day, it was really nice. The kids played really well this morning. They have really been into trains lately both Geotrax and the train table. I don’t think Justin ate breakfast until after 10:00 and was in his jammies until after lunch. We did lots of coloring with markers. The kids moved their pencil table into the play room and loved coloring on it. Nikki and I colored lots of pages together. We changes the pics on the kitchen cabinets too. We had lunch and finally got ready to go. I have had on my list for the longest time to get new tennis shoes and we made it there. Now I have no excuse not to exercise. We also did a few other errands. I got some storage bins for some of the kid’s toys. Also the kids have been wanting a wheel barrel for the sand. I never thought we would find one but we did. Nikki used it as a stroller then a wheel chair for her baby. We decided to head to ghetto park as the kids wanted to use the wheel barrel. Justin walked it there and pretended it was a tractor. Nikki wheeled her baby in the stroller. We met some friends at the park and the kiddos had a great time. They played in the sand for a while, collected some type of crab apple or something like that….Justin got a stick and hit the tree branches to knock off the crab applies while Jane picked them up. Oh and Justin decided to wear his shorts backwards, so funny. I am so glad we ended up going to the park, Bret came over to meet us and our friends. Before we knew it though it was 6:15. So I prepped dinner but no time to cook it. We ran over to Woodbury for dinner. The kiddos played on the lawn, tag. When we got home the kiddos went in the back yard and played. They were playing with water and it was cool out. Finally we got the kiddos upstairs in bed.

I am enjoying summer so much with the kiddos. I may be sad when they go back to school but the break sounds nice too. Yesterday we went to the movies to see Curious George. It is part of the summer free movies series. I thought Curious George would be innocent enough. Nikki was sad when the man with the yellow hat got annoyed and frustrated and sent George back to Africa. Nikki cried but then the man with the yellow hat realized he missed George and got him back. Justin sat on my lap for most of the movie, I loved the cuddle time. We did some shopping after the movie then just enjoyed the rest of the day. We played on the greenbelt and got Justin’s rocket out.

Today is seeming to be a mellow day as well. Dad is working from home. I tried to convince the kiddos to go to the work out place. They were too happy hanging out at home so I let it be. They were playing trains for a while this morning. They were laughing and having fun together. Then they came over to say they were bored. We got out lots of their toys. After lunch I wasn’t sure if I was taking care of T or not, so we were ready either way. While waiting we went into the garage and the kids played out there. I started organizing. We have so much crap but it is so hard to figure out what to get rid of or not. The kids did the rocket and played frisbee for a bit. We came inside and made a big Geotrax track. The track is in the way of walking and under bar stools. Dad stayed home all day working but came down a little early. The kids were all about daddy, it was so cute. Somehow they ended up getting into a water gun fight. We realized the kids needed to get some energy out. We walked over to Blue Gum Park. The kids were having a great time, running, sliding, etc. We then headed to a buddy from pre school’s birthday party. It was at their community pool. It was a little cool out but that didn’t stop the kids from swimming. Luckily there was a jacuzzi there too. It was a nice party. We were able to give the kids a shower there which warmed them up too. But they were freezing when they got out. We brought a blanket and tucked them into the stroller and walked home. It was my turn to visit Justin first. I found his light up ball and we had fun with that. He was letting his bunny, Easter watch the fireworks (thats what Justin called the light show).

This morning was pretty uneventful. We got ready for the cleaners, taking sheets off beds, cleaning up toys, etc. It was so great to come home to a clean house. Then we were off. I am determined to finish up Nikki’s bed. So we stopped to get another curtain and I am still looking for thick purple ribbon with a wire. No luck yet. We headed to our friends for play group this morning. Nikki started the “I’m bored” thing. She did settle in and play. Justin was playing with all the toys, inside and out. I am now thinking maybe Nikki gets overwhelmed with too  many people. It was a nice play group, chatting with the other moms. We stopped on the way home to get lots of necessities, toilet paper, etc. The kids did pretty good shopping. But they did say they rather shop with me than be in school, so that was nice. We came home and the kiddos played and played. They helped me wash the back windows. I think they got tired of it as before I knew it they were upstairs playing. It was so nice to get the house looking great inside and outside. Dad came home and we had dinner. Then dad and I finished out back while the kiddos played trains. Nikki came out to help hose off the garages. The kiddos did some gardening with me too. They also started to make a mess with the dirt and tried to get in the mud. Normally I don’t mind but since it wasn’t bath day and the house was just cleaned, I didn’t want them to get muddy. Well the watermelons are taking over our garden, we have one big one and three small ones starting. We got the best peach off our tree tonight before the rats. We went upstairs and read library books. Kiddos are fast asleep.

Today was a take it easy day. We played at home and I heard I’m bored way too many times. We played and read. I also tried to organize some stuff. Nicole picked out a healthy snack of carrots, so proud of her. I decided to go to the gym today-finally. The kids were thrilled to go. I could barely run. Then we did an errand. Justin picked out a car for either his b-day/holiday present. I just decided to buy it in front of him and put it away. We came home and had lunch. We did lots of laundry today. I did some gardening. Justin was busy outside seeing what would float and would sink. Nicole wanted to play Thumper. I act out big floppy dog and she acts out Thumper, great fun! We decided to go swimming. The kids are just amazing me at how well they are swimming. Justin’s confidence is going up and he practiced floating on his back. We stopped at the little farm by our house on the way home. Got lots of fresh veggies and fruits. When we got home Zoe the dog was on the greenbelt, so the kids played ball with her for a bit. After dinner the kids were playing really nicely. They were coloring, playing outside, etc. I went for an early walk with my friend. On the walk I got stung by something, OUCH! I got home and the kids were still playing outside. We went upstairs and got the kiddos ready for bed. They were really tired.

This morning I woke up at the crack of dawn and couldn’t go back to sleep. I came down to watch TV. On my way up, Nikki was coming down. She asked me to watch TV with her. I think I surprised her when I said yes. We just cuddled and we both loved it. Finally I took a shower then surprised Nikki with alone time. Her and I went to get bagels together. We ate bagels together and brought some home to daddy and Justin. It was really nice and I know she loved it as much as I did. Dad and Justin went out to get coffee together. Then we got ready for swim lesson. Finally I brought my camera and got some cute shots:

The kids did great at their lesson. Nikki loves showing off how well she can swim. Justin is a little more cautious but does go out far with his kick board. We hurried out of there, packed up a cooler, then headed to Duffy boats. Alan rented a boat for Roberta’s birthday. It was great fun. The entire family went. Justin and Nicole both loved driving the electric boat. Justin did have a smiley face the entire time he drove. Uncle Alan helped the kiddos drive. I can’t say enough of how much Justin loved driving. Grandpa got a little sick when Justin kept making the boat go in circles, with the help of Alan. We had lunch on the boat and just went around Newport Harbor. We hope to do it again as it was relaxing and fun.

After the boat we came home and relaxed a bit. Then we walked over to Heritage Park for a show with the Pacific Symphony. It was cute as they had projects for the kids. The kids made a tamborine, got to play with a lot of instruments, etc. We did bring Justin’s remote control boat to use in the lake so we went over to do that after we had a picnic dinner. Then we noticed the new park was finished so of course we had to check that out. We went to listen to more music and played a few games then we headed home. Nikki said she can’t wait to be a grown up so she can stay up as long as she wants. Both went to sleep pretty easily, they were tired.