not quite as I had anticipated

We have some friends who surprised their son with a trip to Disneyland a few weeks back.  They were so excited and the day ended up being somewhat of a bust due to two fussy kids.  I texted her, "Isn't that always how it happens?  We build up this awesome experience with our kids in our minds only to be disappointed because it doesn't go how we had imagined??"  :)

Along those lines, remember that adorable doll house I found for super cheap on Craig's List for Kendall's birthday?  Guess how many times she has played with it since she got it two weeks ago?  Two.  Yep, two. I've noticed that her choice for pretend play is more with scenarios, rather than having a doll in each hand.

For instance...she LOVES it when I get down the bag of random party items (leftover napkins, cups, streamer, etc.).  She'll spread them across the room and talk to imaginary people about her party she is having.

She likes to find bags or bowls and fill them with random things, all the while talking to some imaginary person about her "store" or some other scenario.  Here she is with my old purse, some notecards, and lottery tickets (she loves to snag a few every time we go to the store...go figure!).

Let's just say I'm REALLY glad that dollhouse was only $30.  But I'm sure this is just a phase and hopefully she'll put it to some good use in the future. :)

snapshots of the past couple days

Yesterday I wanted to take the kids to Chuck E' Cheese since our last attempt didn't end well due to the car chase ending right in front of the building.  However Kendall has an eye infection so I didn't feel quite right having her little hands all over the games.  We settled for a beautiful hike up in Oak Glen. The weather couldn't have been more perfect. 

This afternoon we headed out to the desert.  First stop was Costco for lunch and a few groceries.  Best sample? Chocolate Mousse Cake. I think it's a tad tacky to go back for a second sample...however...ummm...I guess I made an exception for this cake.  Yum!

  

It was a hot one so the kids needed lots of water/shade breaks during their bike ride...

...however it wasn't too hot for some wrestling :)

currently...

Current music:  The other day my mom, Chris and I were talking about which concert we would go to if had the chance.  My choice?  Zac Brown Band.

Current guilty pleasure:  Cool Whip.  This stuff has been making nightly appearances in my Skinny Cow concoctions.  I just CANNOT let myself think about the ingredient list.  I know it's terrible and I heard a rumor once that the stuff actually is black during the first stage of production. Blek!

Current nail color:  I NEVER paint my fingernails because I bite them too much.  My toes are purple. :)

Current Drink:  As always, homemade hot cocoa.  Chris recently asked me if I thought I was addicted (due to my 3 cups a day).  I said I wasn't since I can easily not have it when we are out of town or I'm gone all day. An "addict" can't go a day without something, right???

Current Favorite Show: Sunny Anderson's Homemade in America

Current item on wish list:  For a few years I've wanted to find a cute jumpsuit.  I have yet to find one that is flattering.  Not sure what it is about them but I just think they are so cute.

Current Blessing:  Our health.  We rarely need to go to the doctor, which is so helpful considering our health insurance deductible! :)

Current annoyance:  Cam's dislike of cheese.  It sure makes meals for him more tricky!

Current food experiment: I blogged about these a while back and made another batch yesterday.  I ended up rolling them into balls since the dough came out a bit sticky.  I then rolled them in graham cracker crumbs to form "Chocolate Chip Healthy Balls".  The kids approved. :)

disneyland

Yesterday Chris had a meeting out in OC, so he dropped us and my parents off at Disneyland and then met us later.  It was perfect weather and we enjoyed what could be our last day until we are blacked out for the summer.

All six of us actually agreed that the highlight of the day was taking the Monorail to Downtown Disney and going to the Lego Store.  I LOVED seeing my little guy sooo excited to look at the boxes of the two sets he wants.  He's been watching Youtube vidoes of them being put together and he finally got to see them in person. :)

past few days

*Friday I attended Cam's Mother's Day celebration at school.  I've heard that many children on the Autism spectrum have difficulty showing emotion or even feeling emotion.  It was so sweet to me to see Cam's face throughout his class' presentation.  He was soooo happy and proud to have me there and would have been devastated had I not.  Sure made me feel extra good. :)

*We had Kendall's T-ball party yesterday. Overall I would say she "kind of enjoyed" the season. :)  Both Chris and I have talked about maybe taking a year off and trying something else. Last fall my mom's group had an outing to a gymnastics place.  Kendall STILL talks about it. Hmmm...we'll see.

Here they are after her trophy presentation...a highlight of the entire season. :)

*This morning started out with my sweet family walking up to Starbucks (while I stayed in bed and relaxed) and returning with my request, a Hazelnut Macchiato. After church we headed to my parent's house for lunch. We had a fun time and are looking forward to a relaxing evening before the week begins.

*I made homemade Cheez-its yesterday with all whole wheat flour (as opposed to 1/2 and 1/2).  I was glad that the kids didn't notice. :)

*Zoe, it was so nice of you to repay our kindess of allowing you to stay in the garage for a while (due to her recent spaying) by chewing up Cameron's bike helmet.  Guess her chewing stage will never pass.  Grrr....

randoms

*I recently found a stash of Chuck E' Cheese coins and decided to take the kids today.  As we got closer, I realized that the three helicopters I had noticed in the sky were hovering right over the building.  Cops were everywhere so I obviously decided to forgo our trip (later I fond out there was a shooting/car chase).  Cam was quite understanding.  Kendall...not so much.  :(

*After we got home, Kendall made a beautiful display of snow out of the T-ball trophy boxes I had just brought home.  This was super fun to clean up. :)

*Chris and I rented Jack Reacher the other night.  It was awesome.  Awesome.  One of the best movies we've seen in a long time.

*My mom bought a Perfect Pancake pan for my birthday that I have fallen in love with.  I use it to make sandwich bread as they are the same size as "Sandwich Thins" (that you pay WAY more for at the store).  Plus I can make my dough as healthy as I want.  Love this!!

*Last night I went out to dinner with the girls from my moms' group table.  We had such a great time.  I always enjoy my tables, but some years you just REALLY click.  This is one of those years. :)

randoms

*The other day we were at Costco and came across something new...deep dish ready to bake pizza.  We didn't get one but man did it look good.  We are both thick crust fans. :)

*Friday Chris took the kids to Disneyland for some daddy time.  I was able to get a lot done at home, which was very nice.  It was hot, a little crowded, but they still had a lot of fun. :)

*Saturday afternoon we went to Hemet to pick up a bike for Kendall I found on Criag's List.  They had told me it was a 16" but it ended up being 20".  However they felt badly about us driving all the way there so they gave the 20" to us for free!  Now we just have to store it :)

*Later we used the last of our Red Robin gift card (sad!) and went to dinner.  Here is Kendall with her birthday ice cream.  She is so funny because she'll get excited about them singing to her, yet when they come to the table, she stares at me gets super shy. :)

*Sunday night my parents came over to celebrate with us.  Their gift was the dollhouse I found on Craig's List a while back.  Kendall is not the "Oh, my gosh!!! AHHH!!!" type girl when she opens presents, but you can tell by her expression that she loved it. :)