Parsons 411

cookie decorating

2012-02-11T21:04:00.000-08:00

The Valentine's fun kicked off this week with a little cookie decorating with some friends from Addison's school. The kids were super excited to have full reigns of the icing and sprinkles and ate more than their fair share of sugar!

Camera dump catch up

2012-02-09T10:39:00.000-08:00

Our week has been less than extraordinary around here. We had just gotten over bronchitis and Catergory 5 colds, been given a glimpse of what normal life was like and returned to school for a day or two when the next bug hit. The worst kind of bug.

So I haven't blogged much because no one wants to hear about all that.

So instead I've been playing catch up....like finally finishing my Blog book from 2010 that only took 10 months to complete. I'm taking a breather before embarking on 2011.

In the meantime, I emptied my camera and found some pics to share.

Like this little guy.

and this picture that reminded me of a little "adventure" we had last weekend.

We had a free Saturday (we thought we were just getting over that little bug), so we decided to plow through naptime and go explore some different areas. We headed to Coronado Island.

Andy had some work to do, so he decided to stay in the car with the kids while I explored the grounds of the Del Hotel.

I get a call about 30 minutes later to hear that our car is completely dead.

"Where are you?", I asked?

"I don't know....way too far for you to walk....I don't know what I'm going to do....kids are crying....I got to go...."....Click.

My phone was almost dead as well. So while I was cursing the fact that our AAA membership had run out, I tried to think of what else I could do. About nothing.

In my husband's words, it was "way too far to walk"so I decided to take in a few moments of peace before my next phone call.

The phone rang about two seconds later.

"Would you just come to the car???!!! I need help!"

Um, I thought you said it was too far to walk....where are you?

He yelled out two cross streets before hanging up.....as I heard kids crying in the background.

I turns out that he was just a quick 3 block walk away......and was maaayyybe being a little dramatic.

When I got to the car, Addison was bawling and in a panic because..."the show is broken".....nevermind the fact, that the car won't turn on....she was only worried about how this would affect the completion of the movie she had been watching.

The movie she had been watching......

The movie she had been watching running down the car battery for the last 45 minutes.

Andy said he was trying to save gas.

Lesson learned.

All turned out fine when we flagged down a kind man who helped us jump the car and were up and running minutes later.

The next day we got ready for a friend's Super Bowl party. I was so excited to be getting out of the house and socialize after been "sick bound" for what had seemed like forever.

And this girl looked healthy, right?

Let's go watch some football!!!!.....er, commericals

Still looking pretty healthy, huh?

We got to the party and had only been there about 30 minutes when Addison threw up all over my friend's parents' bathroom.

UGH.....for so many reasons.

So our week consisted of more stay at home activities, and lots and lots of shows.....& Clorox.

and just when Addison had FINALLY got back to normal,

it hit this guy.

here we go again

2012-02-03T14:42:00.000-08:00

This girl can spike 104 fever like it's nobody's business.

Here's to a weekend of Disney movies and Childrens' Advil.

Just another SoCal Saturday

2012-01-28T21:29:00.000-08:00

Yes, I'm going to be obnoxious....

We just don't have a whole lot going on, which has been so nice.

After naptime today, we headed to the beach and stayed until the sun set on another beautiful Saturday.

Beautiful

2012-01-22T16:06:00.000-08:00

Thank you God for creating beauty all around us.

Or maybe I was just so excited to be out of the house.

Either way, our little hike this morning was gorgeous.

You can't stay in PJ's forever

2012-01-20T16:50:00.000-08:00

Back in December, I was wishing for lazy days. Now we are trying our best to soak them up...and still kick this cold being passed around our house.

The kids have pretty much recovered, but now Andy and I are on the tail end of it.

Today was one of those days when I had no intention of getting out of my pajamas.

And neither did they. They love these days, but we're all getting a little stir crazy around here.

So Andy called around noon and asked what we were doing.

I contemplated telling a little white lie but confessed that we were being extremely lazy.

Like we were on the second Disney movie of the morning.....and I had read about 20 posts in my new favorite blog The Momastery.

Well I didn't tell him all the lazy details, just the part about still being in our pajamas.

He asked if we wanted to meet him at a little Taco joint for lunch.

I contemplated the effort it would take to get all three of us out of our pajamas and to turn off Toy Story for about 3 seconds before deciding that yes, we needed to get out of the house.

This little taco joint had a pretty nice view.

and on a side note, if you look closely, you'll see that G is eating Chick Fil A instead of Bull Taco.

This would be from my haul made the other night when the closest Chick Fil A to us (20 minutes away) sent out a text that if we got there before 7pm, everything was by 1, get 1 free.

I'm sure it was intended to bring in families for dinner, but I took full advantage of no fine print of a limit and ordered $50 in chicken nuggets. After I paid my $25, I then went home and put them in bags of 10 to freeze for later dates.

One of my finer moments in deal finding, if you ask me.

Back to our lunch date.

Doesn't he look thrilled?

I'll take what I can get to get a picture of myself with my kid(s).

So needless to say, around here, it's been about the perfect Friday.

All smiles....finally!

2012-01-18T15:19:00.000-08:00

We are going on DAY 8 of housebound cabin fever.

We finally got a break yesterday ...not when Graham was diagnosed with Bronchitis, but with the antibiotic that came with it.

Fever is gone, sweet personality is back...except for the fact that he is currently screaming in his room refusing to nap.

But earlier at least, he was finally all smiles.

and this girl is in a better mood too.

But oh goodness, you would not have wanted to be around her a couple of nights ago.

Andy kept saying at the time we needed to get the video camera because her antics were one for the record books.

It all started because Andy told her to get out of the shower.

The nerve...

You know when your words come back to haunt you later?

She was crying like crazy, and Andy told her to get out...to which she responded...

THAT. IS. NOT. AN. OPTION RIGHT NOW!!!!

Then he headed downstairs for dinner...without holding her hand.

She stayed at the top of the stairs for a good 25 minutes yelling for him.

Then we heard....

"DADDY!" "I"ve told you a thousand times....HOLD MY HAND."

Needless to say, he did not hold her hand and little miss took a nice long time out in her room.

But today, we were finally back to smiling around here.
and venturing outside to play

feeding fish...

and working on getting back to the land of the living.

Sunset date

2012-01-14T20:52:00.000-08:00

Has sickness hit your house yet?

If you've got anyone under the age of ....oh, what does it matter.....I'm sure you've been hit in some way or another. It's that time of year.

I had been cautiously optimistic that our house had evaded it.

Then Wednesday came. Addison dropped first and Graham was about two days behind her.

So we have been house bound and house crazy ever since.

When you can't go anywhere....school, the gym, MOPS, church, ....I even felt rebellious heading to Target yesterday....you get the crazies.

By 4:30 today I needed out.

What can I get at the store?

Oh! I most definitely need to get out for green onions!

Yup, that's it. I took Graham (1 kid less makes all the difference) and headed out to the fruit stand.

On the way home, I noticed that the sun was on it's way down...and it was gorgeous!

So G and I headed to the beach to get a closer look.

My cute date!

So Andy' and my date night might of gotten canceled tonight due to the crud,

but my impromptu beach date almost made up for it.

An Adventure....as in Adventureland.

2012-01-11T21:55:00.000-08:00

Today I did something I've been meaning to do for a while, but was too scared to.

I took the kids to Disneyland ...wait for it.....

BY MYSELF.

We started with a healthy lunch....at McDonalds.

Does it bother anyone else that McDonalds sells 20 McNuggets for $4.99?

That's less than the 10 pack, by the way.

Well it's disturbing, and I have slight mommy guilt because of it.

After lunch, I crossed the first hurdle of parking, and riding the shuttle with double stroller and cute 3 & 2 year old.

So far, so good.

We headed to California Adventure and the ride Addison had been talking about all morning was closed....so onto some obstacle course.

Then it was onto Bugs Land to ride Flyk's Flyers. Addison was excited.

Until she wasn't.

Muppet Vision 3D was next.

Followed by the carousel.....we tried to knock out all the rides that Andy detests.

And then onto the Tea Cups....

looking brave...

Addison took over the wheel...

and Graham was no longer brave.

A few more rides to go!

We stopped by to see Rosetta & Tinkerbell before heading out.

All in all, the day went much better than expected!

The kids were WORN out and slept the whole way home.

Nicely done, Disney, nicely done.

Fine, eat it for breakfast

2012-01-09T15:26:00.000-08:00

I realize the following picture has nothing to do with this post. However, you always come across things when you finally empty your phone of pics. This was one of them and how we spent New Years. Mainly because I told Andy he couldn't take my car on his road trip to Arizona (I've grown quite fond of the van). "I mean, what if I go to the beach or something?" Knowing full well this would get him because the only thing he would dislike more than driving ~~my old~~ his 2000 4-Runner is the thought of sand being in it when he returned.

So I kind of had to go to the beach then.

Oh, and also having nothing to do with this post....

Here is my $20 find at Anthropologie yesterday.

It was one of those pieces that I looked at and said, "I can't decide if those are really ugly or really cute and I can't leave here without them". The later won out and I went home to see what I could put together with them.

I think I'll keep them. And this is a reminder to let my legs see the light of day more often before summertime. Holy whiteness.

And now finally, what this post is all about. My picky eaters.

Addison has always had a selective palate.

I mean to the point that now I believe there are three things that she'll eat.

Macaroni & cheese, peanut butter, and yogurt.

That's it.

Graham is a little bit better, but not much.

So last night while fixing up a staple of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, I decided to be really crazy and throw some ham and peas in there too. I know, delicious, right?

Well, at least I could tell myself that I was giving them a "balanced" meal.

They would have nothing of it. Wouldn't touch it.

I held strong and said that was what was for dinner.

Addison was willing to go hungry until breakfast....which made me remember a moment from a year ago that has stuck with me.

My sister-in-law, Sarah, and her family were out to eat with us while visiting in Houston. Her youngest, Iris, is Addison's age....almost exactly. She had finished her macaroni but still had broccoli on her plate and was in no hurry to finish it. When she declared that she was done, Sarah said calmly, "Fine, you can eat it for breakfast." Iris replied under her breath, "I think I'll skip breakfast"....then begrudgingly, Iris ate the broccoli.
Better warm and at dinnertime than staring cold broccoli down at 7am, right?

I was so impressed and tucked that away for future use.

Future use came last night.

"Oh really? You don't want any of this delicious throw together all in one dish? Fine. You can have it for breakfast."

"Ok, I'll have it for breakfast", Addison happily replied.

Well this morning, Addison bounded down the stairs and asked for her usual cereal.

I kindly reminded her of her menu choice she made last night.

(I even warmed it up for her!)

They were NOT EXCITED.

After about 20 minutes, Addison finally ate her 5 bites.

Graham was holding out.

But after a threat of time out (since taking away his cars & milk wasn't working), he finally at his quota too. And all was good again.

Now, while we're on the subject of food....

Let me tell you that I am a fan of this book.

We made a recipe from it last night....fajitas from the Tacos al Carbon recipe.

You might as well call this recipe...."Homesick for Lupe Tortilla".

The marinade for the steak was ridiculous.

And even though I would HIGHLY suggest buying the book,

here is the marinade we used last night.

I let the skirt steak marinade for about 6 hours and then rinsed it before grilling.

Ri....diculous.

Tacos al carbon
Ingredients:
2 pounds skirt steak
Juice of 4 limes (about 1/2 cup)
4 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup cilantro
1 jalapeno
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon black pepper

Enjoy!

Resolutions & looking back

2012-01-03T22:30:00.000-08:00

I wasn't going to do a resolutions post this year, but while working on our blog book for 2010 (little behind), I came across my resolutions from last year.

And holy cow, for the first time ever....

I completed all three!

Looking back....

2011 Resolutions

1. To lose 20 pounds I can say that as of December, this goal was completed. My success was mainly due to Weight Watchers, but I think part of the reason it's worked is because I've still allowed myself all things in moderation. Putting clothes on that you haven't worn in years helps keep you going as well! As does being able to take advantage of a sale at Anthropologie in a size that sounds familiar....kind of like an old friend. I'm not counting points every day anymore, but I am loving finding new recipes on skinnytaste.com, heading to the gym when I can, and looking to lose about 5 more pounds over the next month or so. It feels SOOO good to NOT have losing weight as one of my New Year's Resolutions for the first time in as long as I can remember.

2. To potty train Addison I dreaded it. It's done (except for pull ups at night). I want a few months reprieve before heading down this road with Graham.

3. To live in the moment (enjoy our time in California)

I am so blessed to say that this goal was reached ... and then some.

I can't believe that we are 1 1/2 years into our 4 year commitment here.

There are days when we hope that 4 years gets extended and days where my heart gets happy thinking about eventually returning to Texas. But no matter what happens, or WHEN it happens, I can honestly say that we are LOVING our time in San Diego.

Looking forward

Resolutions for 2012

1. Be on time.

I am always running late. I feel like it takes 15 minutes to get anywhere, and so plan accordingly....not accounting for traffic, speed limits, or stoplights. I actually spent some time on Google to other day researching tips on time management. So today, I told myself that we had to leave by 8:30 to get Addison to pre-school on time. (It starts at 9). We left at 8:40, which was much improved from the 8:58 departure many mornings. We arrived at 8:54. I said, "Addison! We're early!" She responded, "What's early?" In her 3 1/2 years, she may have never heard that word. This resolution has been long overdue.

2. Read more

This used to be a big time love for me....until kids, blogging, Pinterest, and reality TV took over.

I have a bookshelf with over 20 books I have been meaning to read (and are supposed to be great), but haven't done it yet. I want to be realistic, so I'm aiming at reading 1 book a month. And gossip magazines don't count.

3. More Quality Time with Andy

Date nights are hard to come by. Kids take up a lot of your time & energy. But next to my relationship with God, which absolutely needs more time, this one is the most important.

a conversation with Addison

2012-01-01T22:26:00.000-08:00

Trying a little something new.

Yes, it's from Pinterest.

No, I didn't change any answers.

And yes, I may be loving this new tradition.

Ringing in 2012

2012-01-01T22:19:00.000-08:00

My parents generously scheduled their departing flight on New Year's Day so they could watch the kids while Andy and I got out for some adult time.

Well, I don't know that they did that intentionally, but we sure took advantage of the free & available babysitting on NYE.

This group of beautiful girls that I've been blessed with here love to throw a party.

Especially one with a theme.

We were all just excited to be able to get out on New Year's, but Amanda & Karen took it to the next level with Fondue & New Years around the world.

We were supposed to bring an appetizer and bottle of wine from our assigned country.

Our country was Brazil.

and I am a total slacker.

I printed off a pic of Brazilian wine and taped it to my Malbec.

Hey, at least I got the continent right.

I made a spicy black bean dip from my new favorite cookbook.

But I was at least kind of authentic because Brazil is famous for black beans.

Or so I learned yesterday on Google.

Amanda & Karen of course went ALL out.

I really don't know where they find the time.

Karen has a NEWBORN, I might add.

They had fun facts from each country that we were supposed to pay attention to so we could attempt to win a fabulous prize basket.

Unfortunately, by the time the game came around, the wine was beginning to take it's toll.

Even my bonus points couldn't help me.

There was a LOT of laughing though.

I really don't even want to know what these guys put in the fondue pot to get it going, but they were over here for a while.

Hard at work

Got it Matt!

Joy & Karen

Then it was Andy's turn to take the camera.

Happy New Year!!!!!

Thank you friends for the best New Years Eve we've had in a long time.
Hope that 2012 brings everyone lots of joy and time with those you love.

Some people we love came to visit

2012-01-01T15:26:00.000-08:00

Christmas this year was a little different without my parents.

There were no Brandy Alexanders on Christmas Eve, mainly.

It was special to get to start our own traditions with our own family, but I was in a little bit of Merri & Jerry withdrawal. Luckily, they came to visit on the 27th.

Addison pretty much welcomed them at the door with her new Pretty, pretty princess game.

Poppy was even down to play.

This girl took the crown though.

There was a lot of snuggle time with Nana (especially between the hours of 6 and 8am when she let me sleep in!) That was a true gift. Oh crap, I'm getting teary eyed just looking at this picture because they left a few hours ago.

Let me take a second to talk about how much I love my parents.

There is something amazing about seeing your own parents love on your children, while loving on you at the same time.

I am at a stage in life where I'm fortunate to be in this "middle place".

A place where I can love, & cuddle with my own kids, feel like I've finally grown up and am officially in the trenches of adulthood, no longer "playing house", but can still be enveloped in a hug by my mom and be transported to any year of my childhood where that hug always made everything feel better.

I don't get those hugs as often anymore, living so far away.

That's what makes saying goodbye so hard.

But I do get the gift of having coffee together in the morning, running errands, taking the kids to the park, making dinner together, and enjoying a glass of wine with some of my favorite people....for several days in a row.

It is such a gift, to both me and my kids.

Speaking of that glass of wine.

I think we may be well on our way to perfecting the art of wine tasting with kids in tow.

Some of the key ingredients include snacks, toys & sippy cups.

What?

I love that less than an hour from where we live, there is this.

and these two had fun!

We stopped at a favorite little winery in Temecula, Hart Winery before heading to lunch at Wilson Creek.

Oh, and go ahead and add Iphone to that list of tools that makes this kind of outing possible.

Then we made the best discovery ever.

A winery with a playground.

Yes, it's amazing. Wilson Creek just got moved up to the top spot.

Kids played, Grandparents relaxed after lunch, and I began planning our next trip out here.

Christmas in Pictures

2011-12-30T16:14:00.000-08:00

I'm a little late in getting the Christmas post up. Doesn't Christmas already seem like it was weeks ago?

I had to ~~beg~~ , ~~try really hard not to get in a figh~~t, ok, maybe we did get in a little heated discussion

for Andy to finally take down the Christmas tree today.

We decorate so early because I'm so anxious for the holiday (November 20 this year), that by the time Christmas comes and goes, I'm ready to get everything down on December 26 at 8am.

Not everyone in this family shares my urgency.

Here are Addison & Graham when we got home from church on Christmas Eve.

The elves had come and stuffed their stockings while we were gone, but it took the kids almost an hour and a half to even realize it.

Then she got a little excited when she found the note our Elf, Nio, had left.

While I'm on the subject of Nio, it's taken Addison a while to get used to the fact that Nio no longer lives at our house.

At least not until next December.

She just stopped asking to go look for him every morning.

I don't think Nio understood the term, "stuffers".

I don't have many pics from Christmas morning this year, but I do have a few to document one of Addison's gifts from Santa.

She has been asking for purple Tinkerbell skates since September when she saw them at Target.

Ever since her first ride Christmas morning, she doesn't ask for them anymore.

I think we need more practice.

And I don't have the pictures to document, but Graham clearly understands how presents work now.

I think he got a crash course between his birthday and Christmas.

If we weren't watching he would have opened everyone's gifts under the tree.

His vocabulary has sky rocketed in the last month.

Some new words he learned last week were:

"open this please"

"Daddy, open present"

"more"

"mine"

and finally, we did teach him "Baby Jesus".

I think he will be participating in advent next year to learn what this holiday is truly about a little more.

The Minivan Express

2011-12-22T22:10:00.000-08:00

I have had a love/hate relationship with Pinterest in 2011.

Today, I have lots of love for it because it helped make a favorite tradition of ours even better.

We love to go look at lights every year, but this year we hopped aboard the "Minivan Express."

Aren't all you non-minivan drivers out there a tad bit jealous?

That's a whole other post in itself.

We told the kids it was time for bed around 5:45. Luckily, they can't tell time and it was dark so they were none the wiser.

However, we had yet to feed them dinner, so they must have been a little confused.

When they went upstairs they found Golden "Minivan Express" tickets under their pillow.

Addison was very excited.

She became even more so when we told her we were going to Chick Fil A, and then to look at Christmas lights!

Graham was so happy he fell over.

Or something like that.

First stop on the trip....Chick Fil A!

Our home away from home.

Santa Cow was there, but the kids wanted nothing to do with him.

They were more interested in the nuggets and who could really blame them.

Then it was time for chocolate milk and cookies in the car.

I don't know what she's doing here, but I think she was squinting because of the flash.

After stopping off at Starbucks, the Minivan Express took a tour of the best lights in San Diego.

Seriously, I don't know how these people do it.

It takes my husband 4 hours to hang one strand of lights on the garage.

Which he didn't do this year because I didn't want them left up there until July like last time.

Ahem.

I loved seeing the palm trees all decked out.

California Christmas

Some of the houses had their lights set to music.

You would turn to that station on the radio and the lights would "dance".

I really can't imagine their electric bill.

As we got closer to home, the kids were almost racked out, but we took in one more house.

This house is actually around the corner from us.

It's amazing because they go so far as to create an entire window shop scene in the window complete with fish swimming in the water.

The Minivan Express pulled into our driveway and Addison yelled, "Hey, why doesn't our house have lights?!!" "We need lights!!"

Because my dear, your mom and dad are lazy.....and we want to be able to pay our mortgage.

I leave you with our favorite house. They have an entire YouTube channel.

Please take a second to watch.....it's absolutely mind blowing.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Holiday happenings

2011-12-21T22:04:00.000-08:00

It's catch up time.

We've been having some December fun.

Like pajama breakfasts with friends.

My friend Paige and I threw a "Stuff your Stocking" party last week.

It was a much smaller scale favorite things party.

Each person was asked to bring three $8-$10 items....and a stocking.

Joy must have had high hopes.

There were so many good stuffers!

We had a surprise guest who showed up to drop off the goods!

I must have been really good this year because I got a Starbucks card, a yummy Voluspa candle,

and now have a new favorite Victoria's Secret find.

It was so much fun, and I wish I had more pics to share, but we were too busy chatting, eyeing the goods, drinking mulled wine and eggnog, and sitting on Santa's lap.

Paige must have been REALLY good because Santa stayed the night at her house!

and the next night....

and probably is still there actually.

We've been trying to do "special" things this month.

I had really lofty goals, but have settled for fun things like bubble baths.

Which suits these two just fine.

Yesterday we did finally get to see Santa.

A few weeks ago we went to see Santa at the mall, but were kindly asked to get out of line once they found out we weren't willing to pay for the $ridiculously overpriced photo package.

Thankfully, Santa also visits the gym.

For free.

Addison was excited to see him and tell him what she really really wants for Christmas.

I hope he can come through on the Tinkerbell roller skates.

Graham was not so excited.

In fact, I look to be the most excited in this picture.

Santa didn't ask me what I wanted for Christmas.

Which is probably just as well since he just brought us a new Koi pond motor.

I miss the days when I got to ask him for roller skates.

2011 Christmas Card

2011-12-21T20:01:00.000-08:00

For the book....

Merry Christmas from The Parsons! We hope that you are having a wonderful 2011! It’s hard to believe that 2012 is right around the corner.

We have officially settled into to our new normal this year, and are finding it easier to call to San Diego home…..I mean, how hard can it be? The year round gorgeous weather, driving home from work looking at the ocean, and building amazing friendships have made it pretty easy. However, missing friends & family draws us back to Houston at least a couple of times a year…..that, and Tex-Mex food.

Graham just celebrated his second birthday! He’s a “bull in a china shop” as Andy lovingly refers to him, but a pretty cute one at that. Although he’s quite the mover and charmer, talking has come a little more slowly. We’re hearing new words every day, but he still refers to his sister as, “Ass”…not getting the rest of her name quite yet. It makes us laugh every time. The boy is OBSESSED with Cars, airplanes, trains; pretty much anything that moves on wheels.

Addison is full of personality! She is 3 ½ going on 13. She LOVES her new school and seems to be making lots of new friends. However, if you ask her who her best friend is, without hesitating, she’s say her brother Graham. She also loves to tell him what to do, take whatever he’s playing with, and wants to marry him someday, so there are a few “kinks” to be worked out in the relationship. Addison is very into crafts, puzzles, and princesses.

She asks to go to Disneyland just about every week. While, we haven’t been able to fulfill the weekly request, we have gotten a lot of use out of our family pass, since Anaheim is just an hour away. This bodes well for Addison.

Andy and I finally got to get away for a long weekend thanks to his parents in October. We drove up to Santa Barbara and spent 3 glorious days segway driving, sightseeing, and wine tasting. We ended the weekend with a day at Disneyland WITHOUT the kids. Andy has met a great group of guys, which works out well for me since their wives are some of my closest friends out here. He’s working on planning more golf outings, poker nights, and down time in the coming year. Good luck on that one. No really, he deserves it and needs it! Especially after that Iowa State game.

I am loving the sweet friendships that God has blessed me with out here, but sometimes struggle to balance that with nurturing lifelong relationships back home. Fortunately, my friends understand what a busy phase of life we are all in. Thank goodness for blogs! I still love to work on our family blog, http://parsons411.blogspot.com/, but it has taken a little bit of a backseat in the past few months while I spend time getting my new photography business off the ground. It’s exciting and scary, but I’m really enjoying the experience I’m gaining by practicing on such cute families!

If you are looking for some sunshine, please come visit us! We welcome visitors as long as they stash away Chuy’s Creamy Jalapeno to bring with them. We wish you and your family a wonderful year ahead filled with love and God’s blessings. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

With love,

Andy, Melissa, Addison & Graham

The little lamb

2011-12-18T14:08:00.000-08:00

Addison's pre-school had their Christmas program last Thursday.

Her teacher checked with me a few weeks ago to make sure that we were going to be in town the day of the program because Addison was picked to be the lamb and would stay on stage as part of the Nativity.

I have to be honest and say this surprised me.

Addison is not quite a performer in front of a crowd.

A few weeks ago when I picked her up from school, the pre-school director was trying on her costume.

Addison gave me a look, like....."I have to wear this?"

I thought she looked pretty cute but I did have some flashbacks to Ralphie from a Christmas Story coming downstairs in the bunny outfit his aunt sent him...

I think Addison could identify with him a little bit.

I did get her to smile for right before the program started.

Andy came from work to watch and Graham occupied himself on the phone for much of the program.

We talked about buying the $20 DVD of the performance so we could show the grandparents what a cute little lamb we have.

But instead they will have to just enjoy these pics, because I think we'll save the $20 and tell you that she was just a very sweet, QUIET, lamb.

Who stood there looking really cute, but was not so much into the singing.

Or the gestures.

Or the costume, for that matter.

Once her class was done singing, she remained on stage and played the part of the lamb very well.

And then we got to give Miss Amy hugs, wish her Merry Christmas

and headed to lunch with daddy.

We justified a special lunch out by the $20 saved on the DVD.

Thank you Addison!

Back to the good stuff

2011-12-13T22:15:00.000-08:00

I've been feeling stressed lately.

It's expected this time of year, but I've been a little convicted about what I've been stressing about.

My stresses include: present buying, gift wrapping, lack of cookie baking or gingerbread house making,

not getting around to doing all the stuff on my Pinterest board labeled "Countdown to Christmas"...

Really?

And those are just the stresses and convictions that I feel ok typing.

Ok, I'll put it out there.

I'll admit that I have lost it more than once when Graham's train set has been destroyed by him PLAYING with it. It's been driving me crazy that the playroom is a wreck and my house is right there with it.

I've lost it this week with my kids.

LOST it....more than once.

I'm the crazy lady who is yelling at my kids for not picking up their stuff, and to leave me alone for one stinkin' minute so I can spend time on Pinterest finding some "fun activity" we can do together.

Messed up crazy lady.

That's me lately.

So after conviction set in.....

and God had a little heart to heart with me...

I've been a little emotional realizing how QUICKly these kids are growing up.

I'm not getting this time back.

And time with me is what they need.

Not Pinterest activities....although I do love 'em.

So I'm trying to take a step back (away from the computer, for one)

and spend more quality time amongst all the craziness of this time of year.

Last Thursday I dropped Addison off at pre-school and instead of taking Graham on a gagillion errands minus one kid....I took him to the park for some one-on-one time.

We weren't there long...

Because he wanted to go ....

look at this.

And so G and I walked on the beach by ourselves for a few minutes.

We looked at waves, and really just took in all in.

And it was the best time I"ve had in a long time.

I know he probably won't even remember it.

But I will.

A lot longer than I will some of the other stuff I've been spending my time on.

Introducing....

2011-12-09T14:17:00.000-08:00

My other little project. =)

It's official. Here's the website. It's a work in progress, but please go check out my latest session.

It may be my favorite yet.

http://www.melissaparsonsphotography.com

And if you really are feeling generous, add it to your blog list. I'm so appreciative of your support!

A girlie right of passage

2011-12-08T15:05:00.000-08:00

A few months ago we were still battling one of the last stages of potty training.

I was at my wits end since we started potty training almost a year ago.

I had tried classic bribes.....M&M's, ice cream, little toys....no luck.

So I introduced a sticker chart and dangled the reward of getting her ears pierced upon completion.

Andy was supportive, but did question....."don't you want her to be a little older?"

My answer was..."she will be."

It's going to take months to complete this chart (it had 50 stickers).

Well apparently, it only took a couple of weeks.

Bribery at it's finest worked.

And so on Monday, we picked up Andy for a lunch break and headed to the mall.

Addison was excited but as soon as we got into the store, the nerves kicked in.

Here she is giving me a look when I asked if she wanted me to hold her hand.

She's already embarrassed by her mom and she's 3.

Getting ready....

making the marks.

She wanted purple earrings (her current favorite color), but had to settle for pink.

They did use purple mark her ears, so that helped.

And then it was time!!

And she barely flinched! Seriously, this was it.

She's one tough cookie.

Now I will say this is the same girl who will fall on the floor and bawl when her brother takes a toy, but at least for certain things, she's tough.

Pretty ears

And apparently, she also aged 3 years in the process because she looks SO BIG to me in this picture.

I think she was still in a little bit of shock.

I told her to smile for me and I got this natural look.

She does LOVE her earrings and wants to show everyone right away.

So we stand one for one with potty training with one more to go.

Might have to figure out some different ~~bribes~~ rewards for the next child.

TWO!!

2011-12-04T16:48:00.000-08:00

Graham turned TWO on Friday and what better way to kick off a birthday weekend (because we always try to stretch birthdays around here), than to have daddy stick around the house and make breakfast?!

His main birthday gift this year was a Thomas the Train set.

I got this set almost two years ago at a resale in Houston, and have been so excited to pull it out.

Since it was used, it came with no instructions for set up. This wouldn't have been too bad, but it had several pieces of sets thrown in, and the detail frettin' person that I am was stressing the night before about how to fit it all together. And why do we have 50 other pieces left over?

Andy assured me that my 2 hours of stressing was wasted time since our two year old would "deconstruct" it in two minutes flat.

I hate to say that my husband was right, but it was a definite waste of two hours on my part.

Yesterday was the party.

Pinterest has done nothing in my effort to simplify.

We introduced a few people to our love of Chick Fil A.

The twenty minute drive requires a little more effort than the 2 minute one in Houston, but those nuggets are always worth it.

Nuts & Bolts snack mix

"Leaded fuel" for vintage cars.

And we needed it. It was so chilly and windy and the hot coffee hit the spot.

I don't know that I'll ever have a birthday cake again.

Donut cakes (especially those made from VG's)

have a new spot in my heart.

The donut tower also fit into the theme with "Luigi's spare tires"

and dipsticks...

When Graham arrived, he made himself right at home by the nugget tray.

And if you were looking for him at any given time during the party, you could probably find him with some kind of food in his mouth.

Chick Hicks chicken nuggets & Mater's tater chips

More love for the donut cake

Digging for the good stuff...

and when Graham wasn't by the food, he was most likely here.

The park was great. I think it would be hard to convince my husband to ever have another kid party at the house because clean up was a snap and there was plenty for the kids to do.

and no fretting over mess....

so this guy was happy.

This boy does not love the camera.

Or standing still

I love that I got this one.

This is the same girl who loves to snatch his toys,

and get her way with her brother,

but she can be so sweet sometimes with him.

He wanted nothing to do with her help, however.

And for my little guy...

Graham, you are one car lovin' * no, CARS obsessin' *juice drinking * big boy bed sleeping * independence seeking * sister following * airplane pointing * food loving *even broccoli eatin' * momma huggin' *goofy face making * show requesting * bull in a china shop runnin' * won't stand still for a picture * slightly slow in talking * but best laugh in the world * donut loving * still referring to your sister as "ASS"....please don't stop this anytime soon * helper lovin' * TWO year old!

And my favorite TWO year old, at that.

We love you Bubbas!

Here are his two year old stats:

Height: 36.5 inches (90%)

Weight: 30 pounds 9 ounces (80%)

One more

2011-11-30T23:11:00.000-08:00

I promise I'm in the process of moving my little side project over to another blog, but in the meantime, here is one more really cute family. This might have been my favorite session yet. Annie told me about this park, and boy did she deliver! The color was beautiful. So San Deigo does have seasons after all!

I've never seen so many smiles!!!

Reclaiming space

2011-11-27T20:40:00.000-08:00

My blog has been serving as transitional space for my little photography start up.

I've had so much fun playing around with a few families the past few weeks.

But when I took a look at my own photos for the month of November, there were few and far between to say the least.

Yesterday, I had one of my favorite photo sessions ever with Annie and her family.

I will be posting a few to share soon, as I make the transition to my new blog, but I decided to have Andy meet me up at the same park with the kids so we could try to get a few photos as well.

While I absolutely LOVE taking other peoples pictures, getting my own family pictures done is about

3,546 on my list of favorite things to do. Why is it always so hard to get your own kids to cooperate?

So while our family pictures are a work in progress, I will share a cute little one I got of two of my favorite people yesterday.

See that $#&@ eating grin?

She's got that one perfected.

Girl is up to something.

And I will be posting lots of fun Parsons happenings over the next few days, because SOMEBODY is turning TWO!!!!

I can't believe it.

some volunteers

2011-11-26T22:46:00.000-08:00

I'm working on creating a separate blog to share pictures of other cute people that I happen to take.

But for now, I'm giving you a peek at a cute family who volunteered to let me practice on them....on Thanksgiving day...nonetheless.

These two girls love each other so much, they couldn't stop hugging, loving on each other, or yelling.. "best friends forever!!" when I told them to smile. What a gift to have that kind of friendship & love built into your family.

She makes me laugh

2011-11-21T21:36:00.000-08:00

I had to tell a few Addison stories from the weekend that I don't want to forget anytime soon.

Friday night

I decided to take Addison for a mommy/daughter date to Sea World. Andy was having poker night with the fellas, Graham was going to bed at a reasonable hour, and Sea World was holding a Christmas kickoff party for the season passholders. Since my daughter does NOT go to bed at a reasonable hour, I figured this would be good fun.

How many season passholders could there be? I mean, we'll practically have the whole park to ourselves! Most kids go to bed by 7, right?

Apparently not.

The parking lot was the fullest I've ever seen it and I seriously thought several times about turning around and calling it a night before we even committed to parking. But since Addison was so excited about Sea World...we had been talking about it for weeks, I figured there was no turning back.

It was cold, dark, and CROWDED.

We rode Elmo's flying fish, waited in line for 3D Polar Express before deciding to try out the new "big" ride Turtle Reef. She had passed the 40 inch height requirement a few months earlier but because I always had Graham, it was a no go. The wait for the ride was 30 minutes, and she did great...mostly because she was so excited about riding it. I kept saying....only two more rides until us....only one more ride until us....she was holding out.

Then the guy wanted to measure her. I was proud to see her pass the 40 inch mark by a good two inches...why is he even measuring her? Oh. Because they changed the height requirement to 45 inches and forgot to tell anyone. So after waiting in the cold for 30 minutes, the guy tells me she's not tall enough. He's telling me this and I am a little frustrated.....and her reply is....

"OH NO!!! I'm SHORT!!!"

We called it a night and went back to the warm car, driving through Chick Fil A for a milkshake. I could have skipped Sea World, gone through the drive through, and the girl would have been a happy kid.

SATURDAY MORNING

I was getting Addison ready for a make up dance class Saturday morning. While putting on her tights, my daughter who appreciates everything to be in order (much like her father) realized there was a slight pull in her tights.

She started crying and would not let up. Andy was trying to reassure her that it wasn't that bad, but she kept crying and could not be consoled.

Finally, we asked her...."Addison! What is wrong??"

She replied, "Now I can't fly like a fairy."

Here goes nothing

2011-11-15T15:44:00.000-08:00

Photography has always been something I've loved. I love to take pictures of my kids, beautiful things, and moments that I want to make sure last a little longer.

Taking a picture is like creating a piece of artwork. It's beauty and appeal is subjective to whoever looks at it. As a mom, any picture that I take of my kids is beautiful to me, albeit not a "great" picture all of the time.

Turning this hobby into something a little bit more has been something I've been wanting to do for a long time, but it's a little scary. Or a lot scary. It's hard putting your work out there for others to critique.....especially if they're paying for it.....oh, the pressure!!! I like to make people happy.

So it's a good thing I'm starting out practicing on my friends. All fun, no pressure! Karen was kind enough to let me do just that with Baby Cooper this past weekend.

Thankful

2011-11-12T16:12:00.000-08:00

Last night we joined 8 other couples for an adults only early celebration of Thanksgiving.

It was one of the greatest evenings that both Andy and I will remember for quite a while.

There was one kiddo there, but 10 day old Cooper was more than welcome.

I sensed a bit of baby fever from quite a few of the girls.

And my husband held on to him for over an hour.

I'm just saying.....

Karen got to enjoy her first glass of wine post baby and we all know what a big celebration that is!

Paige and Frank went all out, roasting the turkey,opening their beautiful and SPOTLESS home, and setting two beautiful tables to accommodate everyone.

The food.

Oh my goodness the food.

Andy and I are still raving about it today.

He said that he weighed himself after work (who does that by the way?)

and weighed himself again after dinner.

He gained 8 pounds.

Sitting around the dinner table, we had the best time.

Let me just say it has been a LONG time since I have shared dinner with this many friends and no kids, maybe over 3 years. That's how old Addison is.

Stew and Andy made quite the cleaning team.

Why doesn't this happen at my house?

My favorite part of the night was after dinner.

We all went into the living room and went around, sharing what we were thankful for.

It's the kind of activity that you hesitate doing together because it sounds "cheesy" and cliche, but it was an amazing thing. Every one of us is so blessed.

We all agreed that life is hard, but God is good.

Our cups runneth over.

I've said it before and I"ll say it again.

Andy and I are both amazed at how God has richly blessed us with friends and relationships.

The kind of friendships that feel like they've existed for years instead of months.

We are so thankful.

Dear Encinitas,

2011-11-06T13:54:00.000-08:00

Dear City of Encinitas,

On Friday night, November 4, I ventured out in the rain to join friends for a birthday dinner. This was a big feat in itself, seeing as how:

(a) I have two small children, and don't get out much.

(b) am still recovering from foot surgery and find it hard to find something to wear that coordinates with a big black ski boot. My closet and I just can't compete.

I pulled into the dark, wet parking lot of 3rd Corner restaurant and tried to decide where I was going to park to avoid traipsing my big black boot through the rain. I was so relieved to find another car about to pull out of a space about 10 spots away from the restaurant.

Bingo! I put on my blinker and waited. I parked my sweet mini-van, and quickly left, locking my car and hobbled quickly through the rain. I couldn't seem to find my umbrella because to be honest, I don't know if I own one.

I met my friends, had a nice birthday dinner, and parted ways to drive home and go to bed. It was late (9:30), we were tired, remember, we don't get out much.

Well, on my car there was a ziploc bag with a little note on my windshield. I opened it, to find a $348 parking ticket. WHAT!!!?? $348. Let me say that again....THREE HUNDRED AND FORTY EIGHT DOLLARS.

For parking here.

In a handicap access loading zone.

Herein lies the problem.

Do you SEE anything that would lead anyone to believe that this was not an ok spot to park?

No sign.

No visible lines.

Not even any visible signs that indicate handicap parking in anywhere close to this spot.

Believe me, if I would have known, I wouldn't have parked there.

I feel for those people that find it difficult to walk far.

And I would like to thank my friend, Annie, for having the thought of taking these pictures after I pulled out .

I was a little upset Encinitas.

Looking forward to further discussing this with you.

Built in babysitter

2011-11-05T15:39:00.000-07:00

We've reached a point in parenting when we don't have to always be "on".

Addison is usually more than happy to lead Graham around to whatever she would like to be doing at the time, and he (most of the time) is a willing follower.

Last night, I was getting ready to go out for a friend's birthday (more on this in an upcoming post)...it did not end well,

but as I was getting ready, Andy was also busy. I came out of our room and heard the kids in Addison's room. As of late, Graham is barely allowed to step across the threshold of that room without a screaming protest on her end, so I was curious as to what they were up to.

I found this.

She was just "reading" away to him and he was content as could be.

ooh, they caught me!

Then this morning around 8am (we're blessed with sleepers), I heard Addison get up and go get Graham, then whisper to him....

"Shhh...they're still asleep. Let's be quiet and go downstairs and watch a show."

To which he responded, "CARS!!"

Addison replied, "No, Cars is sick Graham, let's watch MY show."

I enjoyed a few more minutes of peace before crawling out of the bed to go show her how to work the DVD player.

Partly for her, and partly for me.

That may easily buy me 30 more minutes next Saturday.

3rd time's a charm

2011-11-01T16:32:00.000-07:00

Last night Addison changed her mind about her costume for the 3rd time.

For 2 months all she talked about was Sleeping Beauty.

This worked out fine because we had her in our dress up drawer.

I did splurge on a crown and shoes.

When they arrived, she decided that Sleeping Beauty was so last week and the Little Mermaid was more her style.

So I bribed her with an Ariel costume to do something that we've been working on for almost a year now. Details aside, we are now finally FULLY potty trained and she wore Ariel to the party on Saturday.

Then yesterday, she decided she was over that too, and asked for Tinkerbell.

She pulled that one out of the dress up drawer as well, so whatever works.

Justin Bieber was exhausted after wearing his costume all day to work (OH YES, he DID)

so he went incognito to Annie's Halloween party.

The kids had lots of fun burning off some energy before Trick or Treating

Ryder was an alien from Toy Story and I couldn't get enough of his hat.

I don't think he could either.

Autumn was representing Toy Story as well.

I had bought Graham's Halloween costume months ago on Ebay and was so excited about it since he has been obsessed with Cars for just about his whole 2 year life.

It just really didn't go over so well.

So luckily, we found a last minute fill in.

He hated this unitard about just as much, but he was pretty much out of luck.

I know I'm his mom, but I think he's pretty darn cute.

He has also started to do the au natural "cheese" face.

I told them to hug each other, so this is contrived, but they really do LOVE each other.

I love how well they play together and when I asked Addison who her best friend was, she told me "Graham".

And Addison is pretty much Graham's only friend at this point, so that's a good thing.

Then five minutes later, I caught this one real quick because I hadn't told them to do anything and they were just lovin on each other unsolicited.

Makes my heart melt a little bit.

I mean, she is loving on him, right?

It kind of looks like a choke hold now that I'm looking at it closer.

Quick group shot before the trick or treating festivities began

and then it was game time.

Hope you guys had a great Halloween!

Around here

2011-10-30T16:18:00.000-07:00

October has been a month of visitors. Over the last 23 days, we've had company for 19 of them. But I'm not complaining! For real, both of our families have been an absolute God send while I recover from a third and (hopefully final) foot surgery.

Last week my mom was on duty and I'm sure she's probably still sleeping, trying to recover. We carried on with our normal routine and she was able to go watch Addison's dance class with me. This was the first time that we were allowed inside the studio since she started about two months ago. I honestly didn't have that high of hopes after "Annie" camp this summer. But the girl did good!

She is in the Pixies class this year, which is a group of 2-3 year olds.

We're taking baby steps after she scrubbed the floor the entire performance of Annie.

I was so proud of her though, actually following directions and paying attention to the teacher even with an audience.

She looks so big next to these little "pixies"!

After dance class, we headed to a small pumpkin patch to try to grab a few photos.

I just never works out as planned.

My kids had no interest in the pumpkins whatsoever.

The tractor was much more interesting.

But I went ahead and planted Graham for the token picture.

and then we headed home to something more his speed

Cast of Characters

2011-10-29T23:34:00.000-07:00

We got to try out our costumes early this year.

In random order......

The Little Mermaid...

Lightning McQueen

& Justin
Justin Bieber.

"Baby, Baby, Baby...."

Justin was really proud of his outfit.

And I would be a Bieber Fever groupie.

You see those silly bandz?

Graham was a little embarrassed.

I don't know if it was the site of his parents or the unitard they forced him to wear that did him in.

This cute chick, Amanda, put the entire party on with Tracy.

I thought I liked doing parties, but this girl is amazing.

She thought of every detail....including her Barbie Make Up doll outfit.

We were pretty proud of our outfits, but didn't take the cake by any means.

There were several winners.....

Eric, you did good!

It was fun seeing the families that dressed in theme.

Star Wars...

The Flintstones

Addison comparing shoes with another mermaid, Eva

Batman & Robin

Looks like a safari

My son was easy to spot.

He would be the one with the food.

I think he ate about 56 candy corn.

I'm quite sure the "guess the candy corn" game was null and void thanks to this guy.

Annie "Jessie" and I

My two little loves the day before at ANOTHER party thrown by Amanda for her daughter, Autumn.
I think Amanda's going to sleep for three days after this weekend.

The Montgomery's pulled off Toy Story quite well.

And I really don't know what to say about this pic

Isn't Justin underage?

Just sayin

Thanks so much for hosting Amanda & Tracy! We had a blast.

***I would also like to say that I'm not too sure about this new posting editor****

So confusing getting the pics, captions in order....I think it's back to old school for me.

3 day weekend 3 years in the making

2011-10-22T13:56:00.000-07:00

We all know how important it is to steal time away with your spouse whenever you get a chance. We also know that's so much easier said than done. In the last three years, Andy and I have taken time however we can get it....a rare babysitter for a date night, a date night "in" once the kids go to bed or even just dropping kids off at the church nursery for an hour...we will take what we can get.

But a whole weekend away by ourselves hasn't happened since before I was pregnant with Graham.

We were so grateful that Andy's parents were up for a challenge (and it was a challenge), of watching our kids last weekend for three days so we could do just that.

We made a pretty quick drive 3 hours north to Santa Barbara. We had never been there before but had only heard good things.

We are not so much fly by the seat of our pants people.

We had spent hours on Trip Advisor and YELP planning every last minute of the 3 day weekend.

Starting with lunch at 3 Pickles where Andy said he may have had the best sandwich of his life.

Then we headed straight to our Segway tour.

Texting instructions to his dad, I think.....

I think we pull of the helmet look nicely..

So.much.fun.

This tour was one of the highlights of our weekend.

It was called the beach tour, but not only did we get to check out the beautiful beaches, we got to see some fantastic real estate and I gathered a little Hollywood scoop as well. Since Andy refused to do the TMZ tour I wanted to do, this was an added bonus for me.

Speaking of real estate....

if you ever bought a beanie baby, you helped pay for this $450 million estate.

YUP

$450 million. That's 4 of Tiger Wood's houses. Unbelievable.

I got Kardashian wedding scoop and found out where O lives.....both highlights of the tour.

Looking up at Monteceito Country Club, part of where "It's Complicated" was filmed.

After the tour, we checked into our Bed & Breakfast, James House.

I then stalked Oprah.

This was as close as I got.

Wine tasting!!!!

In downtown Santa Barbara, they had this little winery row, where you could go do several tastings next door to each other.

It was still only 4 o'clock on Friday. It's amazing how much you can fit in with no kids.

Dinner at Opal, where we ran into friends who were also in town from San Diego.

Well, "ran into" is pushing it....we orchestrated a meetup with Emily & Chris, since we found out they were visiting that weekend as well.

The next day was a wine tour. It was great...Brian picked us up from our B&B at 10am and we explored the Santa Ynez valley for the next 7 hours.

You might as well have called this the "Sideways" tour because we saw lots of spots from the movie that made Pinot rise and Merlot farmers want to throw in the towel.

Brian, our tour guide, showed us some clips from the movie before going into a winery where it was filmed. So fun!

The Samford Estate

This guy, Chris, works at the winery and the writer of Sideways liked him so much, he wrote him into the movie.

Getting a little "education"

Beautiful!

The second stop was our favorite! We had lunch, did some tastings, and just took in the view.

And....I pretty much don't remember much about the last stop, but I'm sure it was fun too.

Sunday on our way back down to San Diego, Andy and I tackled Disneyland WITHOUT kids.

45 minute lines are not so bad when you can sip on a drink, not wrangle kids, and get to ride something besides Teacups.

We had a blast!

Proudly displaying all of our "fast passes".

We officially Disney dorks.

2 1/2 days away with just each other was such a gift.

This stage of life that we're in is wonderful in so many ways, but so challenging as many of you can attest to.

We're so blessed that we were able to get away and refuel.

Andy's family stayed on this week to visit and help while I got my third foot surgery (and hopefully the last). They left this morning and my mom arrives tomorrow morning.

Doctors orders say that I am to stay on the couch for 4-5 days and not do much.

Those are tall orders when you have a 1 and a 3 year old.

But thanks to amazing grandparents, friends that have stepped in to help, and a rockstar of a husband, I have been able to do just that.

and four days on the couch is almost as nice as a 3 day getaway to Santa Barbara....at least for me, Andy may feel differently. =)

We love visitors!

2011-10-18T14:50:00.000-07:00

It's been almost a year to the day that we've lived here now in San Diego.

I've said it before, but one of the perks about living here is that people actually WANT to come and visit you. I mean, I would hope that the appeal of spending quality time with the Parsons would be enough to tempt those friends to get on a flight with kids, but who am I kidding?

It helps to have things like the beach, Sea World, a really cool zoo, Legoland, & Disney on our side.

Last week, our old neighbors, The Kemmerly's came out for a long weekend.

We squeezed a whole lot in just a short amount of time.

I borrowed some of these pictures from Kurt, and love that he shared them...especially this one.

Doesn't this face just say, "stinker"....I mean, cute stinker of course.

I almost peed my pants when I saw this one.

What is Miss Sass doing?

Holy cow this girl...

Addison had an absolute blast hanging out with Margeaux for four days.

Another way to see the zoo....

This helps, since we have seen it 15 times since we've been here.

I kid you not. We have more than gotten our money out of our annual pass.

Then on Sunday we headed off to Disneyland.

It was so fun seeing the whole place decked out for Halloween.

Not so fun dealing with "fall break" crowds.

The Kemmerly's treated us to Breakfast with Minnie, which was so fun.

Addison was all about seeing the characters.

Graham wasn't so sure....

I mean, to the guy's credit, I've never introduced him to Winnie the Pooh, so for all her knew this was just a really tall creepy yellow bear who didn't talk.

Dale from Chip n Dale played a little hide & seek, and Graham started to warm up.

Addison really enjoyed Minnie. When we went last year for her birthday, she honestly didn't even know who Minnie or Mickey were.

But we've racked up a lot of hours of Mickey Mouse clubhouse since then,

so she was well prepared.

We plowed through naptime.

another "celebrity" sighting

spent some time at California Adventure

and while not the most natural smile, we're working on it.

Instead of her saying "cheese", she is now just "showing me her teeth"

Whatever works.

Graham was a little overwhelmed by Buzz, but at the same time probably trying to figure out which button to push to get him to actually speak.

and then for the real celebrity sighting.

Graham is OBSESSED with Cars.

They are building a "Cars Land" at Disney, but it won't be ready until next summer.

He just saw the sign and went ballistic.

I don't know how we'll ever get him out of the park when it does open.

Since his birthday party this year is going to be cars themed, I though I could maybe snap a quick pic for his invitation.

The bottom picture is what I got when I asked Andy to help me "situate" him.

and looks like I'll still be working on that invite....

riding the Nemo submarine

we had split up with the Kemmerly's the majority of the day so they could do everything on their list. One was visiting the Bippity Boppity Boutique, where Miss Margeaux got made over into Sleeping Beauty. When we met up with them on the bus back to the parking lot, Addison was in awe and just kept telling Margeaux how beautiful she looked. So cute!

We had such a great time with Kurt, Trina & Margeaux.

October is the month for company. Andy's parents got here last Thursday and will be here through Saturday and then my mom comes on Sunday!

We are so thankful that our family is willing to travel....

not just because we miss them so much but more importantly, our kids LOVE getting to spend extended time with their grandparents.

AND.....

those wonderful grandparents were willing to keep our kids for three days so that Andy and I could get away and spend some much needed time with each other.

It was amazing....post to come soon!

Camping at the beach

2011-10-12T14:03:00.000-07:00

A few months back some of the dad's started planning a camping trip.

They wisely decided this would be a guys only trip, but even better, decided to include the kids.

I was TOTALLY supportive of this.

Us girls showed up to bring the pizza and s'mores supplies, take some pictures, and then kissed the boys and oldest kids good night.

We did get to all hang out and enjoy the sunset, which was gorgeous as always.

Pizza came from Giant Pizza, and they weren't lying ...it was huge.

Graham's car obsession has carried over to airplanes now. Ever since that tour we took of Palomar airport a few weeks ago, the boy points out every plane he sees or hears.

He loved getting to run around with the big kids, and when I wasn't tackling him to ensure he didn't run head first into the ocean, he was a piece of cake.

Trina, Kurt & Margeaux joined us. We had just picked them up from the airport a few hours earlier, and so they were kind of forced to "camp" for an hour or so before we went home and crawled into warm, DRY, clean beds.

I don't think they minded.

It's so funny to watch boys vs. girls.

The boys loved nothing more than diving head first into the sand, while the girls preferred to construct neat sand castles and wanted to wash off their hands as soon as they were done.

Another example of the boys' love of sand

The youngest ones had fun playing and then we took them home to dry cribs.

Partly for their benefit, but mostly for the benefit of their dads.

Multi-tasking at its finest.

Reason #4, 285 why I really like living here.

And then, it was time for the moms to leave and the real camping to begin.

"See you later ~~suckers~~ dads!"

But if camping really is your thing, which it IS SO NOT mine....

What better place to camp, than here?

This guy

2011-10-10T22:35:00.001-07:00

This guy came running into the kitchen today grinning ear from ear. I greeted him warmly and went back to cleaning. Then I snapped back to reality and realized that it was in fact nap time, and THIS GUY had scaled his crib, opened his door, climbed down the stairs and declared that naptime was officially over.

And, I'm off to work on his big boy room.

Just the Girls

2011-10-10T22:16:00.001-07:00

My blog has had to take a back seat to life lately.

We have had a crazy, busy, but fun few weeks.

I'll be catching up over the next few days, and then my blog might get some love again.

Thursday night Addison and I had a date.

She was very pleased when she found out that it was going to be a "girls only" night,

meaning not Graham, and not daddy.

She made that clear plenty of times.

She became even more pleased when she realized that we were going to the "Disney Show".

Although, you can't so much tell from the smile in this picture.

Ah, love the natural smile. We actually made great strides in this over the weekend.

Onto the show. We had great seats, especially since we got them super cheap!

May have been because it was a 7pm show on a Thursday night.

But then again, we're talking about my kid, so this was not really so much of a problem since sleeping is not one of her favorite things.

It is mine, for the record.

The show was UH...mazing.

If Treasure Trove comes to you, go see it if you're a Disney fan.

It was pretty incredible.

I was picturing a little ice skating to Disney soundtracks.

It was closer to a Broadway show.

Maybe that's a stretch, but remember, I don't get out much, so I was impressed.

And seeing Mickey & Minnie was good prep for the weekend to come....more on that later.

It was great to just have some one on one time with Addison.

I think she was more excited about the show than having deep discussions with mom, but it was so nice to get to talk to her without the crazy distractions of life going on.

When Toy Story comes in January, it may be little man's turn.

An (Almost) perfect weekend

2011-10-03T21:40:00.000-07:00

This picture was taken at 9am Saturday.

I was not wearing that smile (or that shirt) 4 hours later.

Yes, the only downfall to the weekend was that the Aggies forgot my birthday.

Everyone else made it beyond wonderful.

Saturday, after we all decked out in maroon anticipating a win, we headed to our favorite donut shop.

Behold. The most amazing donut ever.

Thank you VGs for introducing me to the maple donut.

Clearly this guy is a fan as well.

Then we enjoyed some good playtime at the park.

See? Andy even supported the Aggies for a few hours.

This guy makes me laugh....and makes me crazy at times, let's be honest...but mostly laugh.

Then, let's just fast forward 4 hours or so.

I may have actually shed tears over the game.

Good thing, I got to meet some great friends to celebrate Baby Cooper!

Me, Amanda, Jamie, Karen (Cooper's momma), Amanda, Soula, Annie, & Paige

at the nail salon...., super place for a shower

Those same amazing friends worked with my husband to create a surprise birthday date just a few hours later.

Friends that are not only willing, but won't take no for an answer, to taking your kids so you and your husband can get a night out, are pretty amazing.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, Andy and I have been beyond blessed with the relationships & friendships we have formed in just under a year.

God is good.

Andy and I went to eat at an amazing restaurant in Balboa Park.

The whole area was gorgeous. Besides going to the zoo, I haven't spent much time in Balboa, but I believe I will be back...a lot.

And the weekend just kept coming.

A few families got together for a football watching party.

I have to say, that besides checking my fantasy score....

I didn't watch any. But I did get to hang out with my girlfriends and their cute kiddos.

Birthday have perks.

Dad steps up and is pretty much on "duty" all day.

I have an awesome husband.

Then we ended the weekend by heading to the beach.

The part of the beach where you can sit on a bench, take in the beautiful view, and leave sand free.

Some friends had told us about this phenomenon called red tide.

I don't know much about it other than it means in a nutshell there are a bagillion (plankton?)

in the water that give off a chemical reaction when the waves crash.

It's a little hard to see, but it may have been on my top 10 list of coolest things I've ever seen.

When the sun went down, all of the waves "lit up", and turned sparkly before giving off the bright blue light.

It was so awesome.

When I was younger, I remember how old "firty free", as Addison would say, seemed.

My mom was 33 when she had me.

But I am so blessed and thankful for where God has me and the family he has blessed me with.

I think I sometimes worry or spend way too much time thinking about what's to come,

instead of enjoying the moments that are so fleeting.

So this year, I'm looking forward to living in the moments...

Because it all goes by too fast.

The one with no pictures of my kids

2011-09-30T22:25:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I went back to Texas...

wait for it...

BY MYSELF.

It was one of the best weekends of my life. No lie.

Now I love my kids and I may even love my husband more after last weekend since he was the one that made it all possible.

But it was a little piece of heaven to go back to Houston, and spend 72 hours with friends, family, good food, shopping, and no distractions.

I even had 3 hours to myself at Market Street.

I'm anxious to see what this store turns into...

The weather was toasty, but nothing like what I was afraid it might be.

On Sunday I was hanging out with my mom and she commented about what a gorgeous day is was.

I looked down at the car thermometer, and said, "Mom, it's 98 degrees!"

She was like, "I know!"

But really, the weather was beautiful.

After spending some time with my parents on Thursday night at Carrabas, I got to meet my sister in law & niece at Starbucks, and then headed up to the Woodlands and connected with Sheila & Becky.

And I got to love on little Davis too! I hated that it took me 5 weeks to meet this little punkin.

Long distance sucks.

After doing some shower prep on Friday with Sheila, we headed out to Grimaldi's that night.

It was amazing....two of my closest friends in one of my favorite spots ever. Oh, and there was red wine....and no kids.

Saturday, it was all about celebrating Jacqueline and Mark's two little miracles.

Words cannot express how happy I am for them. I have been waiting to help throw this party for a long time.

Because Mark & Jacqueline had kept the gender of their twins to themselves for 8 weeks (rock solid discipline), we used the colors blue, pink, and green to decorate.

Becky made adorable invitations and print outs to go with the theme.

I was almost in tears when this picture was taken.

The football one below me.

A&M played OSU....and lost.

It was a good thing that Andy was in California because the thought of having to lose and look at his grinning, obnoxious, orange clad self would have been too much.

Then it was time for the big reveal!!!

Mark & Jacqueline hadn't even told their families what they are having.

We were all in suspense. I had been trying to (over) analyze everything she's said for the last two months.

I went ahead and chose my pink clothes pin (we had to guess) and waited...

Unfortunately that Houston heat sucked the helium out of their reveal

but it was still awesome...

black balloons? WTH?

Nice try. We know you're not waiting until December.

Tell us already.

Let's hear it for the BOYS!!!!!

and then there were lots of hugs and happy tears!!

Mark & Jacqueline, we are so happy for you!

Want to get away?

2011-09-21T15:42:00.000-07:00

This morning we went with some families from our MOPS group to our local airport for a special behind the scenes tour. It was awesome, thank you so much Tami for putting it together!

The kids got to check out the airport fire equipment

This picture was taken about .05 seconds before he Graham realized it wasn't my leg he was holding onto.

Graham was glued to the wheel of the fire truck and taking his pretend role very seriously.

Our next stop on the tour took us to the gate.

Our tour guide told the kids to pretend they were going on a trip with mom and dad....

and this thought alone was enough to give me some anxiety. I think traveling with kids under the age of 4 is #2,324,893 on my list of favorite things to do.

Then we checked out where the luggage gets screened and someone in our group set off a siren with flashing red lights that momentarily stopped the tour.

As I looked around for which kid of mine to blame, I realized that the red button might have gotten pushed by yours truly while trying to capture a picture. Oops.

Next we got to go see an airplane taxi and land.

It was a little loud, but very cool.

Addison was excited. Graham was hungry.

It was such a great 45 minute tour and I think we all enjoyed it.

I even got inside information that Casey Anthony did NOT land at this airport, despite all the media hype.

Good to know. I mean, I wanted to get the most out of my airport tour.

So even though today we just got to pretend we were going on a trip.....

tomorrow I will head to the airport BY MYSELF for a weekend trip home to Houston.

I cannot wait....bring on the Tex-Mex, family, friends, and all the magazines I can read alone on a 3 1/2 hour flight with no toddler to be seen.

First Day....Finally!

2011-09-15T20:46:00.001-07:00

I feel like pre-school should have started a month ago....

because it pretty much did for everyone else.

However, Addison's first day was Tuesday and I can't tell you how excited we ALL were.

She had started pre-school last year in The Woodlands, but I had to pull her out after only 6 weeks when we moved. She has talked about it ever since, so this girl was MORE than ready.

Monday night the doorbell rang and The Back to School Fairy had come to visit!

That fairy knew Graham would flip a lid if she only visited Addison, so she gave the little guy something too.

I was too busy trying to document Addison running around and pulling out her coloring books and shoes, that I didn't realize until too late that Graham had wasted no time shoving fully wrapped Starbursts into his mouth, chewing, and swallowing them...wrapper and all.

That fairy might benefit from a parenting class.

Tuesday morning we took some first day shots and Addison made sure Graham knew that...

"It's MY first day of school, NOT YOURS, MINE."

My little pre-schooler......only two more years until Kindergarden.....time stop, please.

Addison helped put together a little gift for Miss Amy, her teacher.

I took a gamble and prayed she liked coffee.

Isn't it the universal rule that ALL teachers like coffee?

Addison was a little shy when she first met Miss Amy, but talks about her all the time now.

I'm so excited for her to be at a great school with wonderful teachers.

I'm sure that Tuesdays and Thursdays are going to be the highlight of her week.

Girls Weekend!

2011-09-15T13:07:00.000-07:00

About three months ago, I happened upon my old neighbor, Ashley's, blog.

She talked about a fantabulous girls' weekend, and instantly got me thinking.

This we must do.

It's good for the soul to go away with your girlfriends.....sans kids and husband

And I am very thankful that my husband (and my 7 other girlfriends' husbands) were willing to help make it happen.

So last weekend we headed to Palm Desert (outside of Palm Springs)

I can't remember the last time I rode with girlfriends in the car (without car seats)

Me, Paige, Annie

I forget that we pretty much live in the desert. It doesn't really feel like it because the weather is so mild where we are, but we definitely drove through some honest to goodness desert.....and made a pit stop at the outlet malls.

Then we kicked off the weekend at Tommy Bahamas....I heart this place.

Karen, Amanda, Me, Amanda, Annie, Jamie, Paige

Ahi Tacos, yummo

When we got to the house late Friday, we wasted no time throwing our stuff down and getting hard at work being lazy.

Annie stuffed our bags

with lots of fun stuff

and we broke out our new wine glasses, made especially for this occasion by Amanda & Jamie

So Saturday morning, I thought we were all going to sleep in.

That's what you do on vacation, right?

Well, at 9:00am I woke up to seven girls taking my picture....they had already been on a Starbucks run, a real run, and a golf cart drive ....al by 9am.

I'm blessed with sleepers, so waking up at 9am was actually only about an hour later than my usual wake up time.

I was feeling seriously lazy and unproductive.

But it was VACATION.

and then after a little shopping break

we spent the rest of our day here.

Taking Ashley's lead, we split the meals up, so you only had to cook once, and got to vedge out and relax the rest of the time.

I haven't eaten this well in a long time....

Team lunch

Soula & Annie

Amanda popping the champagne for breakfast

more vedge time.

I think I actually read 5 magazines last weekend.

That had to have broken some sort of record for myself.

My fellow dinner teammates

Amanda & Paige

games & dance parties at night

Karen & Annie

I told Andy the best part of this whole trip in my opinion was the gift of eating and carrying on a conversation with girlfriends with no interruption of kids.

and pool time.

Lots of pool time.

And then on Sunday, we finally had to pack it up....

and head home.

Thanks girls for a fabulous weekend!!!

I can't wait to start planning next year....

because this is going to be an annual trip, right?

Best Friends

2011-09-07T11:56:00.000-07:00

My best friend, Jacqueline, and her husband Mark (who I both went to high school with) came up to stay for a week at Laguna Beach for their BABYMOON!!!

I am over the moon that they are expecting TWINS in December.

In fact, I'm heading to Houston in just two short weeks to help them celebrate and I cannot wait.

I was giddy to get to drive up with Andy and spend some time with them on Sunday night.

They were staying at Surf & Sand resort. This is the view from their hotel room.

You felt like the waves were going to crash right into their hotel room. I was a tad jealous that they had nothing on the agenda besides relaxing, reading, and eating. That is my idea of paradise.

It was SOOOO great to be just a short drive away from Jacqueline. Andy and I have nothing to complain about living out here, but the hardest thing by FAR as been being so far away from people I care so much about. I hate that I won't be able to be at the hospital and hold these precious babies shortly after they arrive.

I have made wonderful friends here. God has richly blessed me with people who I can relate to so easily, laugh with, and feel like I've known for so long already instead of just a few months.

However, that just isn't the same as being with someone who has experienced the last 15 years of your life with, knows you backwards and forwards, and that you actually HAVE known forever. I just love this girl.

We walked about a block from their hotel and ate here.

The food and view were incredible.

and Andy and I got to experience a little bit of old school, time with friends.....without the kids around. It was NICE.

Today I'm actually heading up north again to Newport Beach with the kids in tow and no Andy to join Mark & Jacqueline at their second stop on their babymoon. I figure they might as well get some practice with two rambunctious kiddos. It's good training for what's to come.

Wild Animal Park

2011-09-06T19:39:00.000-07:00

With our zoo annual pass, we also get access to the San Diego Wild Animal Park. This isn't one of those parks where you drive around in your air conditioned car and take in the wildlife....this is like another zoo with five times the walking space in the middle of the ~~african safari~~ San Diego desert where you almost sweat yourself to death.

Maybe I'm stretching it a tad, but I don't like to sweat and it was hot. Africa hot.

On our way...

The poor guy was so stuffed up he could barely breathe, so we decided not to drop him off in the church nursery, but instead take him to Africa.

Good parenting 101.

I will be first to say that I was acting like a two year old most of the time, complaining about the heat, asking when we could go home, and begging for a snack.

Andy kept threatening to turn around and leave, and I was like, "Yes! Good idea."

See these threats work with the kids, but not with me so much.

However, we had just invested $$$ in parking and Andy wanted to get his entire $7's worth of fun.

Then we happened upon this.

I mean, I'll admit, he was kinda cool.

and huge

And Andy was all....

"See, aren't you glad we didn't leave?"

And I was all grumbly, but not willing to admit the lion may or may not have been worth the $7.

But THEN.

We went down the Gorilla path.

Get ready for absolute preciousness.

Do you see the little baby gorilla?

I almost fell over myself and the little kids trying to get a closer look as well.

So yes, Andy.

We more than got our $7 worth of cool experiences.

Even if it was still Africa hot.

Ahem. 83 degrees.

But it was humid yall.

Week with the Rodgers

2011-09-06T13:56:00.000-07:00

Last week we were so lucky to have our friends, The Rodgers, in town visiting from Houston.

Ashley and I have been friends since sophomore year at A&M, and I was so happy to get a chance to hang out with her, Ben, and little Presley for four whole days.

We showed them some of our favorite spots in San Diego.

It was a beautiful, clear, day and you could see for miles from the top of Mt. Soledad.

I didn't have Andy with me to help corral the kids for a photo op, so I did my best by asking Addison to hold Graham's hand for a picture.

The following is what I got.....

She takes direction seriously.

The next day we headed to the zoo. We have definitely gotten our money out of that annual pass.

These make me laugh....

haven't quite mastered this concept yet

Thank the Good Lord that Andy got to join us for this afternoon. Having two kids on my own going 90 to nothing all day was wearing me out.

Presley got up close, real close to the hippo

Not pictured is out trip to the beach, because that was .....

well....

a disaster and way too much work.

I am beginning to hate sand as much as my husband.

The next day after our second trip to Pannikin coffee, we headed to the park.

The swell was huge last week.

The surfers were so excited to be taking advantage of these 10-12 foot waves.....apparently caused by a winter storm off the coast of New Zealand (fun fact for the day)

You might remember that Andy tried surfing a couple of weeks ago....when there was not much of any waves. Well, he was bound and determined to continue ....

until he saw this

This was a picture taken last week off the coast in Encinitas (about a 5 minute drive down the beach from Carlsbad)

That's a great white shark people. Swimming right by some unknowing surfers.

After more than 4 shark sightings in the last week on the coast, Andy has said his surfing days are over.

We will be enjoying the view from the safety of dry land, thank you very much.

When dad's away, we do messy

2011-09-03T23:25:00.001-07:00

A couple of weeks ago Andy was in Houston for work and it was just the kiddos and I.

We did ok. It was nice to have relaxed schedules, and extra time to pour into one of my latest obsessions, Pinterest. If you haven't checked it out for, do it. Just be forewarned that you will be sucked in.

I've found lots of fun ideas to do with the kids and decided to do one of the messier ones while Andy was gone.

It was in everyone's best interest, really.

Addison was in heaven. She has asked to do it again every day since then.

We have not, but I'm thinking I might have to break out the vanilla pudding soon.

And then we decided to torture Graham.

I mean the NERVE.

To put CHOCOLATE PUDDING on his high chair.

What are you looking at?

Once he checked it out though

he was all in

not so much with the painting though

why paint, when you can eat?

oh so behind aka wine tasting with kids 2 weeks ago

2011-09-01T13:20:00.000-07:00

Man, I've let the blog go.

That's because we've been hosting friends in town and going 90 to nothing all day long.

Good times, but I must be getting old because I'm exhausted.

Two weeks ago when Mark & Crystal were in town we decided to spend the day in Temecula, which is about a 45 minute drive inland for us.

It's wine country light.

We had heard about it, but never been because who takes kids wine tasting?

Apparently, we do.

First stop

We loved this place. It was cute, and quant, and had good wine.

Oh, and they didn't judge us for bringing these two along.

We parked the mini van right up by the door, put the CARS movie on, and enjoyed our tasting.

Then we drove around a bit and took in the scenery.....not too shabby.

Mark & Crystal had a private tour here.

They didn't pay for a private tour, but here's a tip.....go on a Tuesday.

No one was there.

It was a great day.

Adults were happy.

Kids were happy.

And we got Golden Spoon on the way out.

Can't get much better than that.

The "Mother Ship"

2011-08-23T21:30:00.000-07:00

Last week Andy and his brother, Mark, decided to check something off the bucket list.

Surfing.

After doing some extensive research (2 minutes on Yelp & Google), Andy called up the San Diego Surfing Academy.

He talked to the owner of the establishment and got some basic information and was given directions to meet him the next morning at a cross street near a local resort.

"Where exactly should I meet you at the resort?", Andy asked.

"Well, we're not really part of the resort.", Pat, the instructor said.

"Just meet me at The Mother Ship."

and he hung up.

So a couple of hours later, Mark & Andy found themselves here.

and met Pat, their instructor.

Whom Andy insisted looked "just like" the Dos Equis most interesting man in the world.

"No seriously, you have to put his picture there, because that was our guy".

Crystal and I decided to give the guys two hours to brush up their skills before meeting them at the beach to document.

That and we had two kids to handle.

One which nearly gave me a heart attack that morning.

Hint on which one: Her

Oh look! There are the surfers!!!

My kids were neck deep in sand in about 2.5 seconds.

They weren't really appreciating the surfing lesson so much.

And oh my Lord, THIS girl....

I really can't even talk about it.

Let's just say that she picked up a flat beach rock the size of a dinner plate and chunked it into the sand pit, missing her brother by less than an inch.

Oh, and her brother had a little accident in the car and after searching high and low, I realized that I hadn't restocked my emergency set of clothes in about a year, so he ended up wearing this.

Look!

They caught a wave....kind of.

That night we went to dinner at Poseidon to celebrate Mark's birthday.

And while we're on the subject of eating....

we had to document our team effort best dinner ever from the night before.

One more Mark & Crystal post to come.....

Wine tasting.

FYI....it CAN be done with kids in tow.

Rumor Has it

2011-08-20T22:36:00.000-07:00

If you've been following my blog for even a little while, you probably know I'm a HUGE Adele fan.

On the brink of obsessed would be a fair assessment.

Andy and I had the luck of catching Adele in concert almost 3 years ago before she had become the goddess that she is today. Back then I snagged tickets for $27 and we got to see her in a room with 500 other people.

The Script opened for her. We had never heard of them, but bought the cd because we kinda liked them too.

Fast forward three years and I was scouring Craigslist back in June, actually considering spending $750 a ticket, which they were going for at the time.

I may LOVE Adele, but I ain't crazy. Or rich for that matter.

Well, I have never been so excited to hear that her concert got cancelled back in June.

This meant that I had a second chance to score tickets because the venue had changed to Open Air Theater, which held 6,000 instead of 2,500 at Humphrey's.

I read Ticketmaster tutorials online for a week before they went on sale.

I was NOT going to miss my second chance.

I sat at the computer and hit refresh, while putting in first available, any price starting 5 minutes before they actually went on sale.

When the clock hit 10:00, my refresh revealed "go time".

I did my thing.

There were none available.

The tickets were SOLD OUT.

within the 2 seconds it took me to refresh.

I was sick.

I hit refresh again and again and again.

And finally.....

some not so fortunate person had released their tickets...

and Andy and I SCORED.

So I interrupt our run of family events to bring you pics from the BEST CONCERT OF MY LIFE.

Well, second best to 3 years ago.

You really just couldn't beat that one.

After a forgettable opening act, my girl was on

**Side note...

Thank you Annie for letting me borrow your lens!!! I just don't think my little prime would have cut it.

and I loved every second of it.

Can I tell you that my husband tried to talk to me about football season road trips while ADELE was sharing background on her songs?

Really?

Silence please.

The hugeness of the moment must have escaped him.

When we got home at midnight after the concert, Adele's third biggest fan was still up in her room. I guess she couldn't sleep wondering how the concert was going.

So we shared with her as well.

And if you are a fan as well....which, how couldn't you be...

Here you go....

(Press pause on my music in the right hand column so you can hear her in all her glory....unless of course her song is already playing...then let it play out out of respect before beginning the live show.)

You're welcome.