First Day of School

Last week was Jimmy's first day of school. He is in first grade now and he seems to really like it. First grade just seems so much different than Kindergarten to me. It is like all of the sudden they are expected to be big boys and girls. It kind of makes me sad to see how fast he is growing up :(

Ben started Pre-K today. He is going to the same school that Jimmy is going to so it is really convenient for drop off. He is very excited to be a "big boy" now. They looked so cute as they were walking to school today.

Bye Bye Binki

I am happy to report that Luke has officially given up his binki for good! Whatever you want to call it, binki, pacifier, schnuller, comforter, soothie, germ magnet or bee-bee (as Luke used to call it), it has been a thorn in my side for a while. I have kind of had a love/hate relationship with it. Neither Jimmy or Ben were really very interested in their pacifier, which was fine with me, except on Sunday's during church it would have been really nice. So I didn't have any experience with having to take it away from a toddler who is very attached to it. Luke always liked his binki very much. When he was going through all of his surgeries and hospital stays it really came in handy and provided some much needed comfort for him. Ever since his surgeries have been over I have been trying to figure out how to break him of the habit. For the last few months he has only been using it at nap time or bed time and it usually made the bed time ritual go very smoothly. So obviously, I was expecting a few nights of screaming and hollering but surprisingly we had very little crying. One night I just decided to put him to bed without it. I said to him that binkis are for babies and now that he is a big boy he doesn't need it with him anymore. Then we found some stuffed animal friends to keep him company in his crib and he went right to sleep. I was so relieved that the whole transition was relatively painless. He hasn't even asked for it once since then. It was a very happy day in my house when I got to throw the germ magnet in the trash for good :)

Visit from Friends

This summer we got to have a visit from our good friends, Cameron and Shannon and their 2 adorable little girls. We know them from Ohio but they live in Indiana now. They were here in LA because Shannon's brother was getting married that week. It was such a fun day with them. We went to the Santa Monica pier and aquarium. Then we went to the beach by the pier. It was such a weird weather day because the marine layer stuck around till late afternoon and when it went away it was really windy and cold, so the beach was kind of lame that day but the kids really enjoyed visiting the aquarium and touching the starfish, sea urchins, sea cucumbers and lots of other slimy ocean creatures. They have 2 very sweet and calm little girls so hopefully they didn't too much little boy craziness that day!





They really were having a good time even though their faces don't show it :)

Sun drops

Jimmy said something kind of funny the other day. This is how the conversation went:

Jimmy: Mommy I know where gold comes from.
Me: Really, where?
Jimmy: It comes from sun drops - like rain drops but from the sun.
Me: Oh, how do you know that?
Jimmy: The voices in my head told me.
Me: You have voices in your head?
Jimmy: Yea, they tell me things a lot.

After that I just kind of ended the conversation. At first I was a little concerned that he was telling me that he had voices in his head but as I thought about it I don't think it's that abnormal. I mean kids have imaginary friends and stuff like that all the time. Maybe it's just Jimmy's way of explaining the way that he thinks about different things. Jimmy is definitely a kid with a vivid imagination so I'm not going to worry. I'm just going to smile and enjoy all of the interesting things that his "voices" tell him. Who knows I might learn something I didn't know before.

Dodger Game

While my family was here we got to go to a Dodger game. It was "Mormon night" at the game so we got a deal on the tickets. They were in left field so it was kind of hard to focus on the game but it was fun anyway. Last year we took Jimmy and Ben to an Indians game and Ben freaked out because it was so loud there. He is extremely sensitive to loud noises. So we spent the whole night with Ben up in the kiddie play area. Jim and I took turns with him so at least one of us could be watching the game. Needless to say, it was a frustrating night. So I was nervous to take Ben to the game this time but he assured me that he would be very brave. I thought that kind of sounded funny thinking that it takes so much bravery to go to a baseball game. But I guess when you think about it, being 4 years old with a sensitivity to loud noises and being surrounded by about 50,000 people could be pretty scary. But he did great. He was very brave indeed. The Dodgers were down pretty much the whole game and a lot of people were starting to leave. We stuck around, don't ask me why, because our kids were all over the place like wild monkeys, but we stayed anyway. At the bottom of the 9th there was a walk-off home run and the Dodgers ended up winning 5-4. The crowd went wild and then Ben kind of melted down. He had hit his end so we got out of there as soon as possible. But I was proud of him for sticking it out and facing his fears. Way to go Ben! When we got to the game I told him he could scream as loud as he can so he did. I think it helped him cope with it but I'm not sure that the people around us appreciated it.

This has nothing to do with the Dodger game but on Saturday after Pam and Bonnie headed home with their families, my parents came to visit me for lunch before their flight left. It was my birthday so they brought me a cake. I've got great parents. Thanks mom and dad!

Fun in the California Sun

Last week my mom and dad and my 2 sisters, Pam and Bonnie, and their families came to Newport Beach for a little vacation. This is one of the perks of living in LA. Everyone comes to visit! I love it! Anyway, we had a great time at the beach. We went to Newport Beach one day and Huntington Beach another day. We spent hours there and had a blast! We made sand castles, found all sorts of shells - even a couple clams that were still closed together. That was pretty cool until Ben threw it and broke it on the pavement :( We also found TONS of sand crabs. The best ones were at Newport Beach. We found some huge ones. Ben wanted to bring one home for a pet. I think that might be illegal so we just kept them in their home.

I have to say it is soooo nice to go to the beach when there are other people there to help with the kids. Usually when I go it is with a playgroup with other moms who are busy keeping track of their own kids. But this time there was a great adult to kid ratio. There was also their 6 cousins who they had a great time playing with. Cousins to play with and lots of adult eyes watching makes for a very relaxing and therapeutic (for me) time at the beach!

Maybe one day they'll actually use the boogie board the way it is intended to be used. But for now they are just enjoying the ride! I actually got out there on the boogie board but too bad there are not pics to show. I'm really disappointed about that ;) Especially since the waves definitely got the best of me. But at least I gave it a try.

We had fun building sand castles. Something about digging in the sand really is therapeutic for me. I loved it!

Here are the little architects. They were great little helpers! It took us a couple hours to put this together but it was fun!

So for the whole year that we've lived here, Ben has been pretty terrified of the waves. He pretty much kept his distance and just enjoyed staying close to the umbrella digging in the sand. This is how he started the first day we went to Newport Beach. He would inch up a little and as soon as he saw the wave coming he would bolt for the sand.

But he got much braver as the time progressed. Once he let the water hit his feet a few times he realized that he actually likes it and he had a great time after that. Thank goodness he's over that. However, that means that I will now have to keep my eyes open wide when I'm alone with the kids at the beach. Especially because Luke will run into the water in about 2 seconds flat. He doesn't bother waiting for me. Here are some pics of Ben getting more comfortable with the water. He's kind of hard to see but he's there.

I think my boys probably brought home about a pound of sand each in their hair, skin, and shorts. Thank goodness for baby powder. It works great at getting sand off of skin. I wouldn't dream of going to the beach without it!

Jimmy's 6th Birthday

Jimmy recently celebrated his 6th birthday! We had a pool party for him and his friends and had a great time! Jimmy is way into Star Wars lately so he wanted a Star Wars cake and decorations. It was a small and simple party but it was fun for the kids. As an added bonus Jim and I let him watch Star Wars episode IV on his birthday. We figured he is old enough for that now and he thought it was the greatest birthday present ever. He also got a razor scooter and rides it EVERYWHERE!