Christmas Visits

One of the joys, for me, during Christmas is the opportunity to visit with family and friends. At the beginning of December my sister-in-law and her family came up to visit and enjoy the town's Christmas activities. Mark and the kids rode the "train". Then the kids climbed through a train bounce house, ran through some "snow flurries" and pet a few barn animals in the petting zoo area (Ira was particularly fond of the chicken).

Train Ride

The weekend before Christmas my cousin came up from Orange County to visit. It was great seeing her--I last saw her when Emma was a baby. Ira made fast friends and enjoyed rocking out to the music video for Ghostbusters with her! My sister and her husband also made the trip up and Ira got to open a couple early Christmas gifts. Emma missed the opening of gifts because she was taking a much needed nap.

Presents!

Just after Christmas my high school friends and I had our usual holiday gathering. This year we met at a friends place in LA. I will not go into details of our trip down. Suffice to say, after over 4 hours traveling and numerous pit stops we made it. I didn't do too well taking pictures, but Ira took a few at dinner. The kids loved the walk to the Chinese restaurant--that is something I miss no longer living in a city. I loved the strolls I would take with Ira when he was a baby.

Christmas Recap

Since I wasn't blogging at Christmas time I figured I would recap some of the more notable days and even include pictures! We did not do a lot of decorating this year because I had my hands full with Sean. Mark always insists on a fresh tree and it was mid-December before we got around to getting a tree ("we" as in Mark, Ira & Emma). I think they picked out a great tree. It then took another week before we got around to putting the ornaments on. Ira would ask everyday if it was time. I finally got a couple ornaments out for him and Emma to put on to satisfy them until daddy's day off. We also invited my in-laws over for the decorating because my mother-in-law is a pro at decorating a tree.

The in-laws with Emma.

Ira hanging ornaments.

Which one next?

The completed tree.

The day before was our church's Christmas breakfast. The kids had a great time. Ira was one of the wise men in the children's nativity reenactment. We were also treated to a great Christmas hula. The kids favorite part? Receiving bags filled with candy from "Santa's Elves".

Our Little Wise Man

The REAL Wise Man

Emma!

Hula Christmas

Treats!

This year Mark and the kids decorated a gingerbread house. This is the second year we decorated one (we cheat and buy the pre-made house kits; last year's house kit was a gift from a friend--thanks Cing!). I was taking care of Sean so I didn't get to really participate in the decorating (and after seeing the final results I don't know if I would have admitted I had helped even if I had! :p). Mark decided that next year we would buy GOOD candy to use on the house, but the kids seemed to enjoy stuffing themselves with the BAD tasting candy anyway.

It all starts off well...

Final Product!

I will continue with Christmas adventures in my next post!

Alive!

It has been nearly a year since I last posted on this blog. We are alive and well! Much has happened in that time. For one, we added one more to our family--a beautiful little boy. I also decided that I would be more open about names and perhaps graduate to posting pictures!

So here is the BIG REVEAL: My name is Mariann. My husband is Mark. Our little ones are Ira (4 years old), Emma (2 years old), and Sean (our happy 3 month old).

I think I will still stick to writing more than posting pictures just because I am so horrible about taking pictures, but when they are available I will add them to my rantings. :)

So, welcome to the evolution of our blog! I hope these changes will make it much more fun to view for all our family and friends!

Family Trip! Part 2

So... it has been several months since our family trip to San Diego and I guess I have been trying to put the second day behind me. One thing I forgot to mention was at the end of the first night. I had forgotten to bring any type of bedtime story books for my children. And bedtime without story time does not happen in our family. I think my son would have rebelled.

So we stopped at a Target near the hotel and picked up two books. One was a book I've wanted to buy, but considering the number of children's books we own, I couldn't bring myself to buy it until now. The book is Where the Wild Things Are. I was so happy to have an excuse to buy it! Plus the kids LOVE it, just like I thought they would.

So the next day ended up being an early morning for everyone. My husband, son, and I were happy to continue sleeping, but my daughter made sure everyone was up early. So we all trudged down to get some breakfast (we always make it a point to stay somewhere with a continental breakfast--I'm sure other parents can relate). After breakfast we headed back upstairs and prepared to leave for the day. I was excited because all the grandparents were coming down to meet us at the Wild Animal Park.

We made it in good time to the Park, but had to stand in a VERY long line in order to get replacements for our lost season passes. When we last moved we misplaced them and had to get new ones. Already the kids were anxious and a bit grumpy (okay, I was a little grumpy too). My daughter had fallen asleep during the 20 minute ride to the park (she definitely woke up too early) and was not happy to be woken up while being moved to the stroller.

My husband learned that the grandparents would arrive in 30 to 40 minutes so we hit the petting korral first. This is a great place to just hang out since the kids love being able to touch the animals. Then we met with the grandparents and made our way to the tram. Along the way we stopped at Lion's Camp. I think it is the neatest exhibit. Seeing the large male lion only inches away is an awesome feeling.

By the time we were in our seats for the tram ride my daughter was incredibly crabby. She was ready for a nap, but it seemed that each time she neared sleep the sun would hit her face and she would wake up or I would get a cramp in my arm and have to move her. My son was having his share of problems--wanting to stand where he shouldn't or take pictures with daddy's camera, hanging it over the side of the tram. It was only lunch time, but I wanted to go home.

Of course we couldn't go home without feeding the lorikeets (as my son would tell anyone) so we head up to get some food instead. I am so grateful for the new elevator system at the Wild Animal Park and the view from the landing deck is unbelievable! Unfortunately, the kids were not willing to enjoy anything so we continued to the restaurant for lunch.

Ah lunch... lunch entailed drinks being knocked over, screams and fights. My husband could tell I had had it and did his best to help out. Finally things seemed to calm down a bit. Near the restaurant was a new playground area so we took the kids to burn off some steam. They seemed to have a great time in the playground but then fought over the buttons on a little safari ride on car that grandpa so kindly paid for them to ride. Then we loaded them up and took them to feed the lorikeets so mommy could go home!

Both kids quickly fell asleep as we began our trip home. We had to stop in Corona for gas and, of course, the kids woke up. We knew they wouldn't sit for much longer without a stretch and it was nearing dinner so I suggested we hit the Rainforest Cafe at Ontario Mills. I told my son we were going somewhere special for dinner. His response? "Somewhere special? Maybe McDonald's?" Out of the mouths of babes...

The kids were very happy to experience the Rainforest Cafe. My daughter was a little nervous during the first mock thundershower (we were seated near the gorillas), but they loved it. Thankfully the restaurant was not busy so my husband and I could take turns leading the kids around the restaurant to look at all the mechanical animals and aquariums. At least the kids enjoyed a small version of an "animal park" for the day!