How lucky am I??

This is how we spent our Friday and Saturday afternoon!

(Manhattan Beach and Santa Monica)

You all should know by now...

...I can't resist a good tag!!

I just did a 25 Random Things about myself tag on facebook, but what the heck...

8 Shows I watch

1. Lost--best show EVER.

2. Y&R--don't judge me.

3. 90210--once again, don't judge me (I'm a succor for highschool shows/movies)

4. The Office--who doesn't watch it? So funny--I love Michael Scott:)

5. American Idol--Mike's fav.

6. Desperate Housewives--what can I say, I'm a desperate house wife.

7. Friends--that show will never get old for me--LOVE IT!

8. I sometimes watch Diego, Hannah Montana, The Backyardigans, Wizards of Waverly Place...with the kiddos.

8 Restaurants I Love

1. Outback Steakhouse--cajun chicken and shrip...to die for!!

2. Olive Garden--alfredo sauce, nough said.

3. Applebees--fajitas, yum!

4. Dragon Fort (Canada)--lunch specials:)

5. Cheescake Factory--um...cheesecake--white choc. macadamia nut.

6. Rossines (Monterey)--california club sandwhich.

7. Quiznos/Subway--quick and yummy and cheap.

8. Brick Oven (Provo)--Lisa remember "The Natural"?!

8 Things that happened yesterday

1. I worked my butt off at the gym

2. Mike got home from work late...grrr.

3. Miley got locked in the garage (all night--so sad).

4. Tyson went to sleep with Jordan, then with us--he's not feeling well.

5. We drove to the beach, but couldn't get out because Tyson fell asleep.

6. I actually had time to read my book.

7. Our neighbor called the cops on some guys who were trying to break into a vacant house one street over.

8. I watched Lost and then had nightmares about it.

8 Things I look forward to

1. The weekend...ahhh!

2. Dinner tonight (it's Jordan's pic and she asked for french toast, bacon and cantaloup--so yummy)

3. Lisa and Jason visiting and going to Disneyland!!

4. Jordan's Baptism.

5. Going to Santa Monica pier tomorrow (as long as Tyson's feeling better).

6. Valentine's Day

7. Jordan's 8th Birthday (Feb. 9)

8. Summer break when I get to go home...I mean my Canadian home:)

8 Things on my wish list

1. New wardrobe...did I mention how out of style I feel here in LA?!

2. A bedroom set--I've been waiting for a LONG time for this one.

3. Our hot tub to work.

4. 30 lb weight loss--or more.

5. My entire family to visit.

6. Tyson to feel better.

7. More Money...who doesn't want that?

8. A maid...oh and a chef too!

I tag anyone who wants to do it:)

Thank you...for hurting me.

A lot of you already know that I joined the YMCA. So far I am loving it. So, here is my "thank you" (to the YMCA--if that wasn't obvious).

Thank you for...

...including day care in your monthly premium fees (nothing compares to "free" babysitting).

...having classes that make me SORE.

...for being wonderfully located, so I drive past you all the time (reminding me that I should be working out).

...having a little window into the daycare so I can peek in and see how happy my little boy is while I am exercising.

...finally giving me some instruction on "the ball" (I love that thing).

...having swimming lessons, hip hop, ballet, and gymnastics for the kids (reasonably priced too!).

...having sports for 3-year-olds.

...teachers that make classes entertaining.

...being the gym that half my ward goes to:)

...a change room that is clean.

...smutty magazines that give me tips on how to dress for a "hot date."

...having awsome babysitters so Tyson actually gets excited to stay there.

...never being TOO busy.

...motivating me.

The World is My Oyster

Anyone who knows me knows that I would never seriously use a phrase like "the world is my oyster", but the other day that is all I could think of to describe how I was feeling.

I have been struggling with the fact that my kids are growing up and I don't have a "baby" anymore. I have actually been feeling that way for a LONG time, but I couldn't decide whether or not to have more kids. Anyways, I just woke up the other morning (I shouldn't say I just "woke up", I've actually been praying about this for some time) with the realization that it's okay if I don't have any more babies. I was a person before kids!! Remember that? There is more to me than just having babies!! I can do or be whatever I want to!! Who knows, I may one day decide we need to have more kids, but for right now I am 100% content with enjoying the family I have! It feels good to just be at peace about the whole thing.

Here's my big kids pretending to be babies--don't ask me why the boy is the one in pink

Only in LA

Since we've lived here, a few interesting things have happened...that I think wouldn't have happened elsewhere (at least not in Marina).

Only in LA...could my children (especially Jordan) become completely and utterly OBSESSED with limos.

Only in LA...could I be approached, on my very first outing with the kids, by a "child acting agency."

Only in LA...could we go to TGI Fridays as a family and spot Ruben Studdard from American Idol (Mike still doesn't believe that it was really him--but I SWEAR it WAS).

Only in LA...could it take 1hr to get 9 miles (note to self: never go on the 405 during rush hour).

I'm sure there are more...and plenty more to come.

(I was laying on the trampoline, looked up and saw this--I had to take a picture)

President Barack Obama

I haven't watched the actual Inauguration yet (aparently Diego is more important), but what an exciting day! I admit I don't share the same views on every issue with Barack Obama (although he would have had my vote hands down--if I was American and allowed to vote), but I believe he is a good man who wants what is best for our Country. I also believe he is more than capable to be our President. Let's see if he can fix some of the mistakes that were made these past 8 years...

New Car---CHECK!

We are finally back to TWO cars!! We ended up getting Mike a car instead of me, just to save a little money (for now--it is so expensive to move!!). We'll have to save before we fork out money for a bigger vehicle for ME. Anyways we got a 2004 Mazda6, with only 39,000 miles...so we feel like we got a pretty good deal:) So, no more driving Mike to and from work every day!!!

Up Late for NOTHING

I had this great idea to make a DVD slideshow for Jordan's baptism. Sounds like a good idea right? Well, here's what happened:

I thought of this brilliant idea at around 10pm.

I couldn't remember what website I had seen a cheap way to do it.

Around 10:30pm I finally found the Costco site that I remembered.

I spent a good hour picking pictures and putting them in the slide show.

I went to add music and I realized I had to choose from a list of songs (I couldn't upload my own), so after searching through MANY songs like "Zipadeedooda" I found one that would work.

I watched the preview and it was completely LAME.

So NOW I am on a mission to find a way to make this DVD slide show.

Wish me luck!

Please if anyone knows any good software or websites to do this, let me know (I need a DVD that I can play on the tv not just something I can watch on the computer).

Here's a cute pic of baby Jordan I found when I was looking through pictures for the slide show (3 or 4 moths old)

Start School---CHECK!

Today was the girls first day at their new school--and I forgot my camera (What kind of Mom and I, right?!). I was a little worried dropping them off this morning, but both Kya and Jordan came home very happy.

Kya's teacher said she cried a couple times because she didn't know how to do a few of things that the other kids were doing. Kya did say though that she loved everything about her new school, especially her teacher. What a big girl!

Poor Jordan looked so scared when I dropped her off at her classroom. I was sure she would come home crying. But she came home so excited and happy. She made lots of new friends and loved her teacher. She is a bit concerned that she was put in the wrong class because it was so easy (we are going to make sure she is actually in a 2nd grade class tomorrow).

Tyson and I went to the gym, played trains, cleaned the house, and picked up the girls!

New Kitchen Table--CHECK!

We finally got a kitchen table and chairs!! Yah!! I was having a hard time with the prices of brand new dining sets and I didn't want to get a Walmart special (fake wood/piece of crap). Finally I found something on Craigslist that I really liked.

We picked it up today:

Oh and did I mention it was 75 degrees here today?!:

Oh, and school starts tomorrow---YIKES!!

Monthly Resolutions

Okay, so normally I make New Years resolutions in January and forget about them by April. This year I thought I would do things a little different. I am going to set a "resolution" for each month of the year.

My January goal is to get back into a diet and exercise routine (along with 90% of the world). With packing, moving, unpacking...and the stress of this past year I have really got out of the swing of things. So here we go...wish me luck. Oh, and any tips and/or advice about what has worked for you would be great:)

(Picture courtesy of Tyson)

My February resolution is: Save Money/Stop Spending (stay tuned)

Brrrr....

Isn't it supposed to be warm in LA?! Here's our first LA "beach" experience--not exactly what I envisioned (this is Redondo Beach by the way):