around here | april

over spring break last week andrew had his eye check up. all is good and he just needs a slight adjustment to his prescription. the only problem was that we couldn't decide on the frames.

we had these delicious pancakes at bea bea's in burbank. they were pretty fantastic. the pancakes themselves were some of the best i've ever had. and then you add banana, peanut butter, whipped cream and crushed oreos and they are over the top. but be warned, our service was not the best. i guess you can't have everything.

we are all practicing baseball and softball. batting, pitching, fielding. it's a family affair.

and we are hiking. on good friday we met up with some friends and hiked to sandstone peak. i'm not sure how many miles we hiked but the first half was mostly uphill and hot - we started around noon. the top is the highest point in the santa monica mountains with a spectacular view.

we also went to our first seder dinner at our friend's house. i really enjoyed listening to the history and traditions that are celebrated during this time.  we enjoyed dinner and i tried matzo ball soup for the first time. it was my favorite part of the meal. if anyone wants to share their recipe i'm taking suggestions. or better yet send some over.

sofia and i went to see cinderella at cinepolis with my mom and sister. it was a birthday gift to each of us and i think it has changed us in the best way possible. she loved the reclining leather seats.

i loved the cheese platter that they bring right to your seat. bobby and i will definitely have to come back and enjoy a glass of wine with our next movie. (and we thought cinderella was so good.)

we had a lovely easter brunch at my sister and brother-in-law's house. i made scalloped potatoes to go with the eggs, ham, monkey bread and mimosas.

we've emptied out all of the contents of the plastic easter eggs...into our bellies.  we had a simple egg hunt at home. the easter bunny brought more legos and video games for the kids.

for dinner we had lemon garlic chicken that was delicious. such a great spring recipe to make again.

my mother in law brought pictures from when her family went to disneyland.  they grew up in orange county and were able to get to disneyland during the early years. i love these photos and seeing all of the aunts and uncles as little kids. can you imagine taking 6 kids to the park now?!

we are super excited to see the school's musical performance this weekend. they are doing shrek the musical. sofia will sing in the chorus and has a mini role as the young shrek. i had to dust off my sewing machine to make her a pair of plaid pants and a vest. thank goodness i have some skill with the machine and making basic pieces, with no pattern. just don't pull any loose threads...

during jordan's spring break he is swimming, playing drums and video games. yesterday i picked him up and took him and bobby to lunch at hugo's. i won a gift certificate last year that gave us two meals complete with appetizers. the spring rolls and the vegan nachos were amazing. the sauce on the nachos is made with cashews, instead of cheese. even jordan loved them.

around here we are taking breaks, making progress, and having fun!

around here | january

it's hard to believe this month is almost over.  january was filled with so many exciting moments and i hope that will mean the year will be just as exciting.

i rejoined weight watchers and have been working on being aware of what i am eating.  i loved this graphic that they post in the meeting room about being realistic.  i can always use the reminder.

i am back out running again.  official training doesn't start for another week but the pre-training will get my heart in shape for our first group run.  starting over is so hard.

enjoying this breakfast lately; oatmeal with blueberries, bananas, almonds and honey.

we celebrated january birthdays with the brockett's.  this time around it was mostly the cousins that gathered.  love this amazing family and the time we get to spend together!

we were at disneyland on sunday for jordan's parade.  there were no crowds so we were able to get on lots of rides quickly.  the weather was so nice and so far none of us have gotten the measles.

the kids did a great job marching and playing.  this parade was extra special because they played once upon a dream while our band director proposed to his girlfriend right on main street. you can see the parade here.  go to 2:30 to see the proposal.  it was so cute.

andrew got to invite a friend and they rode star tours 3 times which made them happy.  

our school is having a read-a-thon.  sofia is enjoying reading and raising money for her awesome school.  on wednesday the school had a bagels and books morning for students and parents. andrew is reading lord of the rings in his humanities class.  we love reading.

sofia also had her class play this week.  she played sir gwendolyn and her quest was to restore good manners in the kingdom.  it was a very entertaining play and the kids were amazing.

photo by debbie ferris

and she's been playing soccer like a beast.  she is just learning the game but seems to have control when she gets the ball.  she loves being a part of the school team and getting to play with the older girls.

bobby and i are playing an ongoing game of phase 10.  it's very similar to a card game i play with my parents but it has a twist with skip cards and phases.  bobby started a spreadsheet on his computer to keep track of every game we play.  last game i lost by only 5 points!

jordan is gathering quite a collection of twisty puzzles.  he is looking forward to competing this weekend. showing off his skills and learning some new ones.

here's what i'm reading.  i follow her blog and have enjoyed her writing style for a while now.  her book is emotional, especially if you are someone that has struggled with weight issues and self acceptance.  good read so far.

in the clear by the foo fighters is becoming my anthem.  i've been listening to it on repeat lately.  i love that the music was influenced by new orleans and the video was filmed at preservation hall.  dear new orleans, i miss you.

it was a tough week.  i was at school, notre dame and cha, everyday for meetings and events, we had 3 soccer games and our first team meeting for softball.  so glad it's friday and we get to enjoy some much needed time off. have a great weekend.

around here | october

haven't been able to run for two days due to a strained muscle in my neck and shoulder - most likely happened in yoga on monday. hmph.  getting out the foam roller to massage it out.

there are still remnants from a good birthday.

the camaro is back and parked in our driveway.  i promised b that i wouldn't sell it while he is at work.

a few weeks ago b and i test drove some electric cars.  thinking of trading in our "gas guzzling" tahoe for something new.  not sure 100% electric is the way to go for the amount of miles i put on every day.

at our sophomore parent meeting they gave us (way too much) information on the college process.  i can't even think about it right now.

 our weekends go something like this:  friday night, football game. (let's not talk about the unfortunate defeat at our homecoming game against crespi on friday. but the halftime show was awesome!)
 

 saturday, band review in riverside or anaheim or tustin.  some combination of us attends.

sunday, early morning softball game.  lately the games have been at 8am.  she's doing great and loving it.

then it's confirmation class and church or dinner out with friends.

last saturday the boys and i went on a date to see whiplash at the arclight.  loved it even more the second time around.

i think it inspired jordan.

picked up the rosie project again (took a break to read wild) and i think it's so funny.  i have my next book lined up so i'm in a bit of a hurry to get through this - but i'm enjoying it.

organizing and purging my craft area.  and freeing up some creative space.

making good use of my creative space.

almost done with the craziness that is the combination of water polo and band season. i wonder if we'll miss it when it's all over. i'm pretty sure jordan won't.

finding inspiration everywhere i go.

around here | september

as september winds down and we head into the "busy holiday season", i realize that i didn't do a good job of documenting some of the fun stuff that's been going on around here.

i never posted the first day of school photo for these two.  he's in 7th and she's in 3rd and so far the year has been great for both of them.  he's on a block schedule and taking fencing as his elective.  she is working hard and loves her teacher.

the water polo team had their first game in the new pool.  and they won both games!

jord's been playing a lot more and the team is getting better.  he's scored 8 goals this season, a huge improvement from last year.

she started playing softball 3 weeks ago and is loving it.  we knew she would be good at it but we are so happy she is enjoying being on a team.  she's gotten some good hits and has the biggest cheering section.

another fun gig for encore at guitar merchant.  the kids get better every time they perform.

and of course there's football games and halftime shows.  the band is in transition with a new director but they are doing well.  first halftime show featured songs from pirates of the caribbean and indiana jones.  this friday it's avicii.

got over the hot days last week and enjoying the cooler fall weather, just in time for it to heat up again this weekend.

my sister and i took a calligraphy class and we are having fun playing around with our supplies.  i'll be ready to address holiday cards if anyone wants me to.

and then there was movie night at school.  such a great event on our beautiful campus.  there was a family picnic, games, cake walk, dance-a-thon and cloudy with a chance of meatballs 2.  this is the first event for the new pto board and they rocked it.

the band was asked to play at a taping of a reality tv show at notre dame.  the reveal is top secret but i'll share details when the episode airs.

i volunteered during the junior retreat at notre dame when they visited a senior living facility whose residents have alzheimer's and dimenstia.  it was tough to see but inspirational to watch these young kids help out with feeding, singing and talking to these adults.  their slogan for the 3 day retreat is "let's go make a difference." and i think they did.

bobby and i went to the 3rd grade parent social over the weekend.  the host family went all out with a seafood boil.  we had lobster, crab, shrimp, and clams.  there were biscuits, corn, potatoes and sausages.  the decor was perfect and we left with full bellies. 

working on some of these mini 4x4 albums to document our toronto trip.  and the gold one is for a getaway in november that i'm so excited about.

pushing myself to get back to working out.  i've got a good schedule of running and yoga.  now i have to add some strength training and other cardio.  it's hard to get motivated when i'm not training for a race.

looking forward to october.