Friday, January 23, 2009

Gotta love California.....

Well, we came home from the beach Thursday, and left for the snow Monday. The kids have been begging to go to Big Bear since before Christmas. This year, they all had season passes so we knew we needed to go! Louie had 4 days off so we headed up to the mountains with our dear friends, the Modugnos. We had a fabulous time. Josh and Jacob needed a quick refresher course on snowboarding but Jeremy retained everything from last year. Julia took a few runs to warm back up to skiing, but once she did, she was back to skiing faster than me, on bigger slopes than me. I think it's just that it is so scary to fall as an adult and kids think nothing of it. I feel like such a chicken when I ski with them! This year, however, I could not ski, because I am 19 weeks pregnant. I actually enjoyed dropping them off, watching them, having quiet time while they were all there, and picking them up after the fun! Overall, a great trip. We are so blessed!

I don't know why, but I love how cute the kids look all bundled up in their snow get-up...sometimes they can hardly move because they have so many layers on! :)

So cute!

Jeremy snowboarding (picture taken from the lift)!
Jeremy and Josh:
Daddy and Josh on the lift!
All the boys taking a break to eat the lunch we ran up to them.

This lot is across the street from the cabin....(snow summit is in the background). They had so much fun sledding in the afternoon, after snowboarding and skiing!

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Carpinteria!

Louie has been dying to go camping ever since we got the RV at Christmas. I realized I had to give in or he might explode! So, we went for a quick 2-night trip to Carpenteria! Everyone had so much fun and no one wanted to leave. We LOVED all the grass and trees around our camp for the kids to play...but, if there were hook-ups in that section, it would have been perfect!

Below is a picture of the centerpiece that Julia made from flowers in our backyard, and replenished with flowers around the camp. she also added a seashell border for extra decoration...she felt every table should be "pretty"....even a picnic table at a campsite....so precious!


This was the tree right behind the RV, where we kept out bikes and the table we BBQ'd on!


This picture was taken just after we parked and set out the mats and Sophie's little play pen (that she refused to be content in).
This is the view out the front window...the beach is just beyond the grass.
Daddy and Julia heading out to the water....
Julia playing T-Ball!
Josh and Julia loved climbing all the trees around our motor home!
We all rode our bikes into town for Mexican food!
S'mores for dessert when we got back to camp.



Saturday, January 17, 2009

Tis the Season....A little Late!

Christmas is always my favorite time of year. We had a special time again this year but it is always so crazy because we have 3 separate celebrations! Julia got an "elf" for her birthday that was supposedly sent from the North Pole. The funny thing is....in our home, we have never "believed in Santa". However, at the classes Julia goes to, lots of the kids had these special elves. They supposedly come to visit for 10 days from the North Pole and get up and get into mischief at night when everyone else is sleeping. So, one night she "had a snowball fight" and Julia woke up to cotton all over her room. One night she "got into the treats" and there were candy wrappers all around....you get the idea. Well, next to her new American Girl Doll, Noel became her best friend. Those 2 girls went with her everywhere. She started crying uncontrollably 2 days before she knew Noel would go back with Santa....made me wonder if it was worth having her visit. Anyway, the picture below is Julia sound asleep with her 2 friends on the night she knew Noel would leave. The funny thing is, when I went to get Noel to pack away for next year, I found that Julia had tied her to her so that she couldn't leave! The next morning she explained to me how tricky or strong elves were. She was sad for days and is counting down to her visit next year.

Christmas Eve morning, we wake up and have a special breakfast and do "Christmas" as a family. We want "our" celebration to be the 1st before they are bombarded with gifts and attention at 2 other homes!

Then, Christmas eve, we go to Louie's parents' house to celebrate with his family....this is always when they have celebrated so that worked out well for us when we got married.

Finally, Christmas morning, we go over to my parents' house for breakfast, presents and we have a mellow day and usually hang out all day until after dinner. Louie worked Christmas day this year, which was sad, so it was that much nicer to be able to just hang out!