Sunsets in Santa Monica

On Sunday, after church and talking to Nan and Pop and Dean, Jenny, Euan and Olivia, we headed out to Santa Monica.

We went with my parents, to meet up with my mom's friends at Ye Olde King's Head, the biggest and best English pub in the L.A. area. My mom's friend Jillian and her husband John are English, and he helps run the pub. They've been wanting us to come for years, and finally we made it happen.

We got to Santa Monica just in time to catch the tail end of the most gorgeous sunset. We've had a fire in the San Gabriel Valley this week; perhaps that's why the evening sky colors were so striking.

We had a fantastic dinner - Stace had roast beef, since it was a Sunday. Cora had fish and chips, and Violet shared my bangers and mash. Stace and I had two different kinds of cider, and my dad had a Boddington's.

At the adjoining British shop, Stacey bought a sticky treacle sponge pudding, Heinz baked beans, two packets of Hula Hoops and two sausage rolls - one for him, one for Keith.

We will have to go back again when Stace next needs his fix!

Saturday boats and bikes

 For Cora's birthday last year, my parents bought tickets to take her on a whale watch trip. But she and my dad were sick when the day came, and we weren't able to reschedule it last spring.

Thankfully, the company still honored the tickets, and the three of them were able to cruise from Oxnard's harbor on Saturday.

They had beautiful weather and a very smooth trip, on a 1944 vessel that was built as a patrol rescue boat.

Though the cruise earlier that day saw plenty of whales, this time they didn't find any. But, they did see a colony of California Sea Lions (or harbor seals - anyone reading this know the difference?).

They also got close to the beautiful Channel Islands.

 Love that gap-toothed grin, although she looks so much older and more grownup.



















They also saw a couple of tall ships out on the Pacific!

 Meanwhile, Stace and I enjoyed some special time with Violet.

We took her to Central Park, and she mastered her balance bike. She was having so much fun, gliding along, learning to put her feet up on the footrest while she coasted along.

Cora used the balance bike for about four months before she started riding a regular two-wheeled bicycle.

Alas, I think Violet might be too small for Cora's old 12-inch Hello Kitty bike for a while. Not that we're thinking about that yet! She's also growing up too fast as it is.

You can see her zooming here:

Later that evening, Stace read Violet a dinosaur book but Violet fell asleep. Then, Stace read his car book, until he fell asleep.

20 Marble Skating Treat

 Our winter weather has been so warm this year, we had to head to the ice rink to wear our scarves and gloves.

Cora has been asking about going back to the Ice Station, and this week she and Violet both had earned 20 marbles.
Fortuitously, our church hosted a family fun night Friday, where $5 per person covered our admission and skate rental. Nice timing for us!

Cora was so excited about getting back on the ice.

 This time, Violet also laced up some skates, for the first time.



















Because there were so many children, it took a bit of time before we were able to get a bar for Violet. But we had fun once we got one.

 I love these moments as a mother.

 Stace stayed on the side of the rink with the snow, mini saucers, where people had to wear shoes and not skates.
After Violet went around the rink a few times, she rejoined Stace for some snowball fighting. A good time was had by all.

Scooters Jungle, sick week

Tuesday and Wednesday were nice, normal days,
relaxing compared to our big Disneyland day.

On Tuesday night I had an ice cream date with Cora, after Violet refused to finish her dinner in time to make it a family trip. I thought Cora was so cute, dressing her bear Lacia in a matching sweater and scarf. I'm happy that she still loves make-believe and pretend play...

On Wednesday night I noticed myself coughing, which stood out to me since I hadn't had a cold. Thursday, I woke up feeling off, a bit sick, a bit headachey. We went ahead to gymnastics, but at the grocery store afterwards, Cora said she didn't feel great and wanted to go home.

After resting in the afternoon, we went to Scooter's Jungle, meeting up with Colleen, Lucas, Liana and Stace. Colleen took these photos the children having fun.

I felt worse and worse, and took Stacey's car home. I went to bed early, with a fever and nausea.
Cora also had a fever, and we spent Friday in bed, with fevers.

By Saturday, Cora was doing better, but I was a lot worse. I could barely sit up, but Stace helped me get ready to go to the doctor.

There, I tested positive for Influenza Type A, and received a prescription for Zofran (to stop the nausea) and Tamiflu, to shorten the flu symptoms.

Stace did a great job caring for the girls and the house Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, when he took a day off from work.

 By Wednesday, I was feeling more like myself. I can't remember ever having the flu like this; it's enough to make me think harder about getting a flu shot!

I'm pretty sure Violet had the flu also - by Saturday night she had a mild fever and cough, which lasted through Tuesday afternoon. Maybe Cora had it as well, or she had something else. It was sure over quicker than what I had. Stace stayed away from us, and took lots of immune-boosters, and seems to have avoided the illness.

The last photo shows a loaf of "crusty cob" bread Stacey made while running the house. He made his favorite cheese-and-onion soda bread, and then was inspired to look further into his bread cookbook and take on a full yeast bread. It was delicious!

A Delightful Disneyland Day

Disneyland! Monday was the long-awaited day - at least, long-awaited for me and my mom. We kept it a surprise for the girls. Days like this are ALWAYS best as a surprise, we've found. You don't want the supreme disappointment of building up the anticipation and then someone's sick/the freeway is closed/insert any other reason the trip couldn't take place here.

Partly as a Christmas gift for our family, my parents wanted to renew Cora's annual pass and buy Violet her first-ever pass. We timed the visit for a day my mom's pass wasn't blacked out over Christmas, the Christmas decorations and parade were still happening, and we had no other plans.

Unfortunately, a lot of other people had the same idea, and it took two hours from the time we drove into the parking structure to the moment we entered Disneyland Park. We had the parking line, the security line, the annual-pass/ticket line, and then the actual entrance line.

After all that, our first stop was picking up fast passes for Space Mountain, Cora's favorite Disneyland ride. You can see her carrying her bear around in a back carrier, which used to be Melanie's toy.

Then we watched the Captain EO show from 1986 - that was a trip, Michael Jackson in his mid-80s glory. Cora insisted he must be a girl.

After that, we took a ride on nearby Autopia. It was a crowded enough day that we did some of the little rides that we normally might skip in favor of the "bigger" rides.

Violet and Cora both enjoyed driving, but neither was very good at steering. It was a very bumpy (but laugh-filled) ride.

Then, we met up with Juliana, Maya and Natalia. They also have passes, and came for a few hours, partly to meet up with us. We did the Winnie the Pooh ride together - you know it's a crowded day when you have to wait 20 minutes for Pooh!

I didn't get any great posed shots in front of the landmark Disney photo spots, or the incredible Christmas tree, but I thought this Christmas-laden wagon was pretty sweet. Disney does such an amazing job with decorations, everywhere.

After saying goodbye to Juliana and her girls - Maya returned to school on Tuesday so they couldn't stay late - we headed over to Dumbo. That was Violet's choice, and here, she's very excited to be operating the lift/lower button.

Toward the end of our night, we went on Space Mountain. That's such a fun ride.

We also went on the Casey Junior train ride, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, the teacups and the Buzz Lightyear ride. So, despite the crowds, we fit in a lot.

Violet didn't fall asleep until we rested our aching legs in the theater showing "Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln," the animatronic show that's been redone in recent years. Cora was amazed at the life-like talking Lincoln robot, and she learned a lot of history.

We left the park a bit after 9, and after grabbing Wendy's for a late dinner/snack, we were homeward bound a little after 10. We had an amazing day together; thanks, Mom! The only thing that would have made it better would have been Dad and Stacey being there - they both had to work.

Celebrating good times

We had a good middle week of Cora's three-week Christmas vacation.

Besides celebrating the new year, we celebrated a new life - my oldest friend Kelly gave birth to Noah Stephen a couple of days before Christmas, and on Monday the girls and I went to meet him.

Friday was my birthday - the big

35. I guess I must be a real grownup now.

I had a nice, relaxed day. The girls slept late, and then Cora read to Violet - they're still sharing a bed - until 9 a.m.

After my brilliantly quiet morning, we worked together to clean the house, and then Melanie came over and we took a walk and played at the park.


In the evening, we went to Wolf Creek with my parents and Juliana, Daryl, Maya and Natalia. It was a very happy birthday to me, with people I love.

 I'm so thankful for these three!



















On Saturday, we went out to visit Rob, Michelle and Brooke in Camarillo. We enjoyed a nice evening, with the girls playing, and Rob and Stace playing the guitars.









My birthday celebration continued, too. After dinner, Michelle broke out an amazing cake from a "Nothing Bundt Cake" shop. YUM!

She also had this neat singing candle, that opened up into a flower and played a song.

I am truly blessed with such good friends, who are all so good at showing their love.

Busy Day

On Thursday, Stace was back to work, but Cora was off school and Violet was back to gymnastics class with Liana. Lucas was still off school too, so Colleen and I thought it would be nice to have lunch together after gymnastics.

Also, all four children needed haircuts, so we made appointments at Kids Cuts and Waves.

















Cora hadn't had a haircut since the gum incident in March, and for a couple of months she's been firm that she didn't want her hair cut. But, the longer it got, the more work it is to brush.

The last time we Skyped with Genia and John, Ave had had a haircut, and suddenly Cora was OK with having a few inches off. I love that positive peer pressure!

I let Cora have a treat, with a professional wash before the cut. She loved it! Cora used the grownup chair instead of one of the children's car chairs - she's growing up.
She was very positive about the whole experience, and later said she wants to have a hair wash and cut every month.

 Despite her expression, Violet was happy to have her hair cut, too. She always is. Thanks, Colleen, for all these photos!

 This was Liana's first-ever haircut!

After the hair salon, we went to William S. Hart Park to see the animals and play. It was a lovely Christmas Break day.