Yosemite 2008

 

Yosemite is our favorite place to camp! This summer we enjoyed the company of our good friends, the Hanshaws! It was a beautiful, fun-filled week! We were so glad to have them join us!

DAY 1: Monday July 28 - This is the day we arrive and set up camp. We enjoy the gorgeous surroundings and just take it easy. Isn't is just amazing??


Here is where we are camped - off to the right where the kids are playing.


Here is a view of our campground from higher up- Glacier Point

DAY 2: Tuesday - Our traditional hike to the top of Vernal Falls. It's 3 miles round trip, and a tough uphill climb. All the kids did amazing! (not one complaint!) The views are just breathtaking! We splashed in the pools at the top of the waterfall and had a great time!

 

DAY 3: Wednesday - This day required an early wake up call (who does that on vacation??) and we drove to Bass Lake where we rented a ski boat for half the day. The lake was beautiful and so warm! We skiied and rafted and REALLY had a good time! We had a kid-sized wake board too, but no takers.... maybe next year? That evening we biked to Curry Village to the pizza parlor for dinner, a tradition of ours while in Yosemite.








DAY 4: HALF DOME!! As if the recent trip to Mt. Whitney wasn't enough, Jason & Tim got up early and hiked to the top of Half Dome. Another thing Jason has always wanted to do... just needed a willing companion. They made this hike in 6 1/2 hours, where average time is 11-12 hours. (bragging just a little!) This looks so scary to me! At the final part of the hike they provide a pile of gloves and you climb straight up the rock, with only a rope-cable to hold on to. Great job guys!! While the big boys were gone, the rest of us rode bikes, went to the visitor center, played in the river, etc. (remember, you can see the photos larger by clicking on them!)





CRAZY!!!!


DAY 5: Friday - We took in another tourist spot when we went to Glacier Point - it has breathtaking views of Yosemite. Later we went for ice cream, rode bikes, rafted, and just enjoyed the elements and nature!







DAY 6: Saturday - Our friends packed up in the morning to head home. We had another day to stay. The boys enjoyed more water fun, including some fishing (unfortunately there were no catches).


Some of our fun moments:

Mt. Whitney

Jason has always wanted to climb Mt. Whitney, but never had anyone to go with him (especially me!) He finally got his chance when a group of guys from our ward decided to make the trek together!



The group included Devin Wilson, Jason, Mike Adams, Barry Middlebrook, friend of Mike's, Jason Clinton, Tim Hanshaw, Devin's father-in-law, and Justin Murray.

 

They climbed to the trail camp their first day and camped there. They got up the next morning and made it to the top! What an amazing view!



Mt. Whitney is the highest summit in the contiguous United States w/ an elevation of 14,505 feet. Their total climb time for this 22 mile hike was 11 hours!

Birthday Parties!!

As promised, here are more pictures of the different events where we celebrated Alli's 2nd birthday.

 

A few weeks before her birthday, we celebrated with the extended family at a pool party for Alli & her cousin Gavin, both turning 2. It was a lot of fun!





Our Birthday Diva!




While at the party, we had an UNINVITED guest!! Luckily my husband does "snake removal" often in his job when people call 911 for a snake in their yard. I know he does this at work, but it was a little freaky to watch him do it in person. Ugh!




Cousins having a good time!

On Alli's actual birthday, Daddy was out of town so we couldn't do her real family celebration. I owed the boys a trip to the bowling alley, so we just went that day. It was Alli's first time bowling and she LOVED it! She amazed us all as she carried the ball herself. (We always do say that she is freakishly strong). She thought it was the coolest thing! We all had a great time!



That night, Grammy came over and we had ice cream sundaes with candles on top! Make a wish sweet baby girl!

On Saturday, Nana & Papa came to spend the day with us. We went to Fo-Fo Figgily's, an indoor play place. It's full of slides, tubes, all kinds of fun places to crawl and things to do. It was our first time there and the kids had a blast!

Happy Birthday to our baby girl!

Alli is TWO!!

Today Allison turned TWO!! Here's a picture I snapped of her this morning.
We celebrated with more than one event so there are more pictures to come at a later date...

You're a Grand 'ol Flag...

It has now been one year since I started this blog. It's been a fun resource for sharing our happenings (good & bad). We especially enjoy having this outlet to hear from friends and family near and far! Thanks everyone for your love and support!

 

We celebrated for two days, only one of which I have pictures though.
On July 3rd Daddy took us to Zuma Beach and it was gorgeous. I forgot my camera.
Later that night we went to Arroyo Vista Park for the annual Moorpark 4th of July fireworks show (always held on the 3rd of July.. not sure why). I forgot my camera.
On July 4th we got up early and went to the ward pancake breakfast. yummy. The kids brought bikes and got to ride around with their friends too. It was a great start to our day. I forgot my camera.
Later that evening we went to the Fire Station to have a BBQ dinner with Daddy. He cooked and that was a nice treat for me! I had my camera, but forgot to take it out of the car. In my defense, they got a call before we finished eating and never came back. Not many photo opportunities.
After leaving the fire station, we went to a chapel in Simi Valley for their annual events and great view of the fireworks show. I have to say, it was one of the best I've ever seen. The finale was like none I've ever seen before. It was exciting. And guess what? I remembered my camera and was able to get one family shot. I sure blew it! But the memories are still there. It was a great celebration for us, and remembrance of our liberties and freedoms we enjoy in this country!

Sequoia 2008

The General Sherman

 

June 22-27, 2008.
We spent a week in Sequoia and it was GORGEOUS!! We loved leaving the heat wave here in Moorpark, and spending a week in the 70 degree mountains!! We did the usual camping things... bonfires, s'mores, hiking, biking, fishing, etc. We went to the General Sherman, Grant's Grove, Hume Lake and just had a good time. It was so fun to be with good friends, the Gredings, for their first time in the beautiful forest. We also brought our best buddies Andrew & Jake Schimelpfening. They spent Mon - Thur. with our family and my boys couldn't have been happier! It was so great for them to have playmates the entire time! They all got along well and loved sleeping in a big tent together all week. Another successful camping trip!

Thanks for coming Dave, Rebecca & kids! It was a blast! You're the cutest family!


We love you Schimelpfenings! We're so glad you could join us for a day of sight-seeing, fishing, & fun!!! Thanks for letting us have your boys all week! That was the best! (and a million thanks for being Holly's personal chauffeur! hee hee)

Our Graduate!

June 13th, 2008.
This is the last day of school as I'm dropping the boys off. This is also the very last time they will all attend the same school together... sniff.. sniff. I had to commemorate this event with a photo of these 3 unwilling participants. They wouldn't pose for a picture or even slow their walk for Mom to get sentimental and crazy with the camera. Little stinkers. Even still, this picture says it all.

 

Darren has had many accomplishments lately, but this one I'm super proud of! He graduated 5th grade and goes into Jr. High next year! He was one of the top in his class with straight A's and on the GOLD Honor Roll! He is a good student and I hope he continues to love learning. You've worked really hard this year.... Great job Darren!

Santa Barbara Zoo

 

I neglected to post this last month....
Blake & Ryan had a final first grade field trip to the Santa Barbara Zoo(June 2nd). I was so glad that I was able to go as a chaperone, and their teachers put them together in my group. It was a beautiful day in Santa Barbara and we had a really nice time! The zoo is so small and under construction, so we got through it pretty quickly. The kids had lots of play time in the park area with their friends and teachers. Thanks to my friend Nikki for taking Allison the WHOLE day so I could attend this event with my boys! It meant a lot to me, but even more to them!

Emergency Room Visit

I've always been surprised (and extremely glad) that we have not been to the E.R. more often than we have, considering we have 3 active boys! We've only been twice! So Jason was a bit baffled last night when he spent 4+ hours in the E.R. with his little GIRL!




Here's what happened: Alli was in the backyard while Daddy watered the grass and Mommy was inside making dinner. I heard her cry and looked out the kitchen window to see blood streaming down her face, starting from her eye area. (That is not a pleasant sight for any parent to see) The dog was standing right next to her, so I screamed for Jason. At first I thought the dog got a little excited and jumped on her which scratched her face. Luckily, that's not what happened. She fell and hit her head on the iron bench which happened to be next to the dog. Anyway, Jason quickly tended to her wound and assesed that it needed stitches.

She did pretty good during it all. She's in a stage right now of loving to put Band-aids on all the time, so that's all she kept saying... "Ouchie.. Band-aid!" The bleeding stopped and she settled down. Jay took her to the ER. He could tell she was a little uncomfortable, but she did good. When they finally were taken back to a room, she said things like "Daddy.. I no like it. I want to go to the other room. I want to go over there." She knew something was up and wanted out of there. Once she got the novacaine shot, things were a little better. She came home in a good mood, and has been her happy self today. She's a little black & blue on her eyelid. I'm thankful it wasn't worse and she has bounced back well. I'm thankful for her Daddy's experience in such matters and his love and care for her. Hopefully, it will be a long time before the ER sees us again!



Here are updated pictures taken Tues. after the doctor took her steri strips off.
Eewww! My poor baby! If you click on the pictures, you can see it up close (if you want to)

D.A.R.E.

 

Last night, Darren graduated from a D.A.R.E. program at his school. For the past 12 weeks, a police officer (Chris Love) has come to the school every Thursday and worked with the 5th graders in a D.A.R.E. program teaching them the dangers of drugs/alcohol, etc. I am very impressed with amount of time, focus & attention this program was given. The kids really learned a lot, and were challenged to always stay away from drugs/alcohol. They had a big "Culmination Ceremony" last night where awards and certificates were presented to the 5th graders. The principal, MUSD Super-Intendent, Mayor, & Chief of Police were there to shake hands and help present awards to the kids. What great support from our community leaders! I was impressed! And great job to Darren for making the D.A.R.E. commitment!

Arrow of Light Award

 

Darren is a Weblos in Cub Scouts. Tonight was Pack Night and he earned the highest possible Cub Scouting Award... the Arrow of Light. We are so proud of him and all his hard work to achieve this! What made the presentation extra special for this award is that our meeting was held at Daddy's Fire Station. I'm sure that will help it be memorable for Darren. He also earned a special award and patch called the "Super-Achiever Award" for earning all 20 Activity Badges BEFORE earning his Arrow of Light. Great job Darren! I have had the pleasure of being the Weblos den leader since Darren has participated, and have enjoyed this experience with him. Boy Scouts... here he comes!

"TOP CHEF"

I expect that one day Allison will become a great chef. She LOVES to join me in the kitchen with whatever task I am working on. She loves to watch me cook, but loves even more if she can join in. Every time I'm at the counter, she pushes a chair into the kitchen say "Help Mommy cook" or "Help kitchen Mommy." It's just the cutest thing, unless I'm really busy or in a hurry. (which is always) Many times I have wanted to take a picture, so today I had Jason take some while she helped me make muffins. She is growing up so quickly and has her own distict opinions of what she likes and doesn't like. This is one of her likes. I hope she always enjoys it.

Father-Son Campout!

I love the Father-Son Campout! I think it's such a great opportunity for Jason and his boys to bond. What a great annual tradition! This year's outing was this past Friday night, May 23-24th. Why then, do you ask, is this empty picture here at the top of my "Father-Son Campout" post? It is there because there is nothing else to represent that wonderful outing. My husband and 3 boys went to the campout. They pitched a tent. They built a fire. They roasted marshmallows. They played. They got rained on. And is there ONE single picture of any of that? No. I personally put the camera in the car. I gave instructions that pictures must be taken for our family photo scrapbook/blog/etc. And yet, there is not ONE picture. What is a Mom to do?

Angels Fans!

For Blake & Ryan's birthday, they wanted to go to a baseball game. Angels are their favorite team and lucky for them, their Uncle Mike (now their favorite uncle) has front row season seats at the Angels stadium in Anaheim. He sent them tickets to an Angels vs. Dodgers game on May 16. They have been wanting to go to a game for a long time and they were so excited when they got the tickets in the mail in a birthday card!



The game was great! It's always more fun when your team wins! And as a bonus, on Friday nights they have a great fireworks show when the game is over. Thanks Uncle Mike, Aunt Tammy, & cousins for a really fun time! The boys (all 4 of them) had a blast! Mommy had fun too, just no one thought to take a picture of her!

Mamma Mia!!

Jason had to work the entire weekend of Mother's Day. Bummer. But he sure made it up to me! He left me flowers and a card which had tickets for the following weekend to see Mamma Mia at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza! We went to dinner at PF Changs and walked over to the theater. This was no second rate show.... it was Broadway quality! We had the best time!! It was a fantastic production and I'm so grateful for the thoughtful gift from my hubby! Thanks for a great evening honey! (and thanks Mom for babysitting.... again!)

As for my actual Mother's Day... my boys sure stepped up to the plate with Daddy gone. I got up to get ready for 9am church, and got a knock on my bathroom door that "breakfast is ready." Darren had got up early (he NEVER gets up early or easily so I know that was a sacrifice) and made me waffles (EGGO brand) with cut up strawberries, cinnamon roll, and scrambled eggs. So sweet!! All the boys helped serve and cater to me with juice, napkin, whatever I needed. They continued their doting behavior throughout the day. Darren took charge of wrapping a couple gifts and having the kids all sign the card. I really felt loved and appreciated by my sweet kids. It's nice to know they still love me, even after all the mistakes I make as their Mom!