Hollywood

Hollywood is such an interesting place. There is always so much to do and so much to see. This time, we went down and went to the Ripley's Believe It or Not museum. They had some really interesting things, I must say. So, here are a few shots from our day.

A statue of the tallest man ever to live - pretty amazing!

Ben doing his best imitation of Marilyn Monroe!

 

Gracie, enjoying the ride

 

Ben's First Day of Kindergarten

Ben started Kindergarten this year! It amazes me that 5 years went by so quickly. He absolutely loves it and is doing very well. His teacher's name is Ms. Kuhn, which we thought was interesting. She seems to be a great teacher and keeps the kids busy with art projects and homework every day. They go to the library every Friday to check out new books and Ben really enjoys that part of the week. When he first started, we signed him up for hot lunches, which he later informed us that he didn't like very much. So I make his lunch every night for the next school day and he seems to like that much better. Kinda made me feel good! Emma is watching her brother go to school every day and keeps asking when she gets to go to school. She misses him so much when he is gone during the day.

All ready to go!

Such a big boy! He just waved and went into the classroom. No tears at all!

4th of July

Everyone on our block got together for the 4th of July and had a huge BBQ. It was so much fun to eat and sit around all day! Our neighbor provided the fireworks -- he must have spent a fortune because they went on for over 2 hours! We got out the fire pit and had a few people over to enjoy the show. I didn't take many pictures, but got one of Emma that I just love.

Emma kept running with this little flag....so adorable.

Gracie turns 2!

June 28, 2012 sure came around fast!! It's hard to believe that Emma is already 2. She is our little spitfire and she definitely keeps us on our toes! She also thinks she's a comedian. She knows when she's funny and will do everything just to keep you laughing. She has a very big heart and is very compassionate...most of the time. She is definitely not afraid to say what she needs to say! She loves her big brother so much. They are the best of friends and when one is away for whatever reason, the other doesn't know what to do with themselves!

Having fun painting

At the Rainforest Cafe in at Disneyland for lunch

We decided to have the kids drive us this time!

Getting ready for her party

Singing happy birthday

This just sort of happened, but she let 2 balloons go at the end of her party.

Summertime Fun

Summers are great here. Actually, the weather is always great here! We are really enjoying California weather. Especially when we think back on those dreary Montana winters. So when it got really hot, we got out the pool and let the kids have fun. Ben had a blast wrestling daddy in the pool and getting sprayed with the hose!

Ben trying to dodge the hose!

Our little Gracie...

Emma has become quite the character lately. She has a funny personality and has us laughing all the time. She is definitely a girly girl - she changes her clothes and shoes at least a dozen times a day! She loves music and she loves to sing. She will grab anything and make it into a microphone! On this particular day, it was the piping to a slide, but it has been toothbrushes, hairbrushes, straws, markers....anything. And once she gets her "microphone" she just goes to town and belts it out!

The wheels are spinning. Here she is thinking, "Hmmm...this might make a nice microphone."

And....she goes for it. Yes, this is definitely going to be my microphone.

Nana, thinking she might hurt herself, tries to help out....well, you can see how that's going over.

Yes, the stage is where I belong!

Are you enjoying this performance as much as I am enjoying giving it?!

Ben Looses His 1st Tooth!

I think it was Ben's lucky day because he lost his very 1st tooth on St. Patrick's Day this year! It was very eventful! He couldn't wait for that tooth to come out so he could leave it for the tooth fairy. He was so excited when it finally came out!

Ben posing with his first lost tooth!

Ben turns Five!

His first cake

And....his  second cake.

 "Happy Birthday!"

We can't believe Ben is already 5! It's amazing how fast those years went by. He has grown so much and is such an energetic, loving, and smart boy. He loves his sister and is such a great big brother. We had a great time at the party with wonderful friends and family!

Wicked!

Me in the bathroom of the "W" next to the Pantages. It was a swanky bathroom! Look at that beautiful chair!

At the Pantages Theater before the show

Me and my Aunt Jackie after the show having dinner at the famous Pann's restaurant

My Aunt treated me to see Wicked back in January (yes, I am WAY behind on my blogging!) We had such a great time! It was an absolutely amazing show!! We went to the famous Pann's restaurant after the show for dinner. A few scenes from Pulp Fiction have been filmed here as well as the old TV show, Bewitched. It was a nice break for me since Mario had left for a class and I had been with the kids for a month straight!

The Beach!

Sibling adventures

These are the days of our lives! I often look back to see the two of them holding hands and it just melts my heart! Yes, they fight and get irritated with each other, but they really love each other and it's just so sweet.

Putting her hands out to say Grace before dinner.

Summer pics (that I forgot to post!)

Oooooops.....I totally forgot to post some pictures from summer. Better late than never, right?!
My "love"
Ben is a budding photographer - this was his idea!
A day of picking and washing oranges that are, yummy!
Ben giving Grace a lift

Just precious.

Potty Training!

I. cannot. believe. it. She is 18 months and already we are potty training her! She tells us when she needs to go and is catching on fast. Who knew it could happen this early?! Needless to say, we are so happy. {yay, Emma!}

She's got her reading material, and her bib. What else could she possibly need?!

So Silly!

Emma is our silly one....as you can tell. She does this one a daily basis and think it's so funny. I have to admit, I laugh every time! For some reason, she doesn't like pants on where they should be, but on her head instead. After every nap and every morning....she is pantless. She rips those things off and throws them out of her crib!

This girl is just like her brother - she can never eat enough apples!

Christmas

I am SO behind on my blogging! Last time I blogged, it was Thanksgiving! Anyway, this is how we spent our holidays. We went to Disneyland....A LOT! The kids had so much fun though, so it was totally worth it! Disneyland does some really cool and fun things for Christmas, so we couldn't resist! We went to see Grinchmas at Universal Studios and will probably do that every Christmas we're here. It was awesome! We did lots this Christmas season - my head was ready to spin off, but all in all, it was very productive! We made lots of cookies (and of course had to make Santa some!), made reindeer food, cooked a christmas ham with all the trimmings, got all the presents wrapped and stockings stuffed, and ran around doing all these fun things! It was truly exhausting, but all very much worth it! At Disneyland getting ready to see another parade.....
On the tram
One of my favorite pics of Emma - we took the train around

the park, which is something we had never done before kids!

Decorating the tree we got for only $30!!

The first year Emma has helped put the star on top! Checking out the tree.... Ummm, can you say CUTE??!! At Grinchmas
Our annual letter from "Santa"
Me and Gracie at the entrance of Grinchmas
Opening gifts - I think she gets it!
His big gift from Santa
Christmas at my house

She's a little rocker at heart. I'm not kidding! She loves
Pat Benatar, and just music in general and she sings WHENEVER
possible! The apple didn't fall from the tree! Ben with Uncle Jerry and his cousin, Calyn.