electricity

*I like to have the kids make fun posters to hang around when it's one of our birthdays. Yesterday I had the kids make some for Father's Day. One of the cutest things about Kendall is that her posters rarely make sense nor pertain to what we are celebrating. I often have to write what it is next to it. In her words this one was a, "Guy playing with electricity but then he got into the electricity". Happy Father's Day, Chris! Ha!

*We made Chris a special Father's Day dinner of homemade mac n' cheese. The recipe is more like a casserole (that you cut instead of scoop). Funny thing is that both my kids didn't like it. However they gobble up mac n' cheese when it's my healthy kind (milk, whole wheat pasta, cheese). Love it! :)

*Right now I'm catching a few minutes of Felicity while I wait for the kids to wake up. I think one of the reasons I love it so much is that it takes me back to college and the care free life I lived. Hey, let's go to the beach today! Okay! Let's go shopping! Okay! I don't feel like doing anything, let's watch a movie in the middle of the day! Okay! 

*Last night we started Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit. We are almost done with it and it's such a great movie. I haven't seen one this good in a while.

camping

Last night we conquered our first camping trip as a family. We spent one night in Big Bear with my parents and the kids loved it! I know it seems like a lot of packing/prep for one night, but it was kind of an experiment since we had never done it before. 

We were most concerned about the sleeping, which went better than we had expected. It wasn't perfect as Kendall decided to wake up in the middle of the night and not go back to sleep for a while (she was right next to Chris so he got the short end of the stick sleep-wise), but the kids loved sleeping in the same tent as mom and dad. 

I also liked being all together in the tent. My other highlight was the early morning when it was freezing and we were all huddled around the campfire drinking hot chocolate/coffee. 

A marathon game of Monopoly.

Relaxing while the adults set up camp.

A walk down to the lake.

Smores!

We ended our trip down the mountain at In & Out. Both kids requested that we stay another night, confirming again how much fun they had. :) It was a great 24 hour getaway!

ice cream!!!!!

Today was our first day of summer and we celebrated by making homemade ice cream. The kids loved it. We do not own an ice cream maker but I don't think I ever will buy one after this recipe. It is SOOO EASY!!! I just can't seem to get over how simple it was and how great it turned out!

So here is the recipe I used with her fancy and professional picture.

I changed it only in that I used regular Oreos. However I will say that I think I will omit the almond extract next time. It's way too powerful of a flavor for my tastes (the kids didn't seem to notice).

We invited the quadruplets from across the street (here are half of them) to join us. :)

 We will definitely be making this again and coming up with new things to put inside.

summer

*Chris went up north yesterday to be with his family as his mom received a heart valve replacement surgery this morning. Our prayers were answered and the surgery went well. :)

*Tomorrow is Cam's last day of school and then summer begins! We've already been enjoying the hot weather, including juice pops I made using a mold from the 99 Cent Store.

*Still loving our Harry Potter reading times before bed. :)

 *The kids love for me to drop them off a block away from our house and let them run home.Here is Cam one street over (Kendall lagged a little behind).

*I've long wanted to try yoga. I've been browsing Amazon to see which DVD's are the highest rated. I'd like to do it at an actual studio, but getting to a studio and finding the time for that probably wouldn't happen.

*I've been having such a fun time with my kids the past few days. Even going to Costco is more enjoyable with them. I love how they beg and beg to go "into the cold" (dairy room).

vegas

Yesterday Chris and I got back from a really fun few days in Las Vegas. We went with our friends, Jeremy and Ana. We stayed a ways off the strip and only ventured there once for dinner. We got an awesome deal through Groupon and would definitely stay at The Aliante again. :)

Some highlights...

*Talking, talking and more talking. Ana is one of those friends that truly invests in you as much as you do in her. Love all our talks. :)

*Ana treated me to a massage for a belated birthday present and I can't tell you how amazing it felt!!! Thank you!!!!

*Relaxing by the pool. The guys golfed early the first morning and Ana and I headed out to the pool. We did this again the second morning and I think we would both agree it was a favorite time of the trip.

*We had some super yummy food. My favorite will be no surprise to anyone as it was had at The Cheesecake Factory. It was the second time I've branched out from my usual and wasn't disappointed.

and lowlights...

*Jeremy felt super sick the first night, but luckily he felt almost back to normal by the morning.

*My headache decided to flare up more than normal. I'm soo over it. So over it.

*The first night we had a dinner that bombed. It actually turned out to be the joke of our trip but we were soooo not impressed with Burgr!!

Here we are before the aforementioned bad meal at a different restaurant getting drinks and appetizers. 

 It had been a long time since I'd seen the fountain show at The Bellagio. How amazing. :)

So despite a few lows of the trip, I think the highs definitely outweighed them. :)

new phone

*Kendall's swimsuits she wears are hand-me-downs. One is too small and one is so stretched out that it is borderline immodest! :) We went to pick out a new suit today and she was beyond excited.

*I blogged about these Chocolate Peanut Butter Sandwiches a long time ago. They are amazing!!

I made them again and decided to make them much, much smaller as they are quite a hefty/dense dessert. Bite size is really the perfect size. :)

*I love this hot weather.

*Tonight for dinner I made this for the kids. I love how much they love it and the fact that I can actually call it a very healthy dish (milk + whole wheat pasta + cheese).

*I recently got a new phone. It's not a Smart phone, but I'm very excited to have more memory. I was having to delete texts just to take a picture on my last one. 

harry potter

*This past school year a couple friends of mine and I took turns teaching our three little girls. We each rotated weeks and taught them how to write their letters. Yesterday we had a little graduation to celebrate their times together (Kendall ADORED "preschool playgroup"). We got the families together for a picnic and ceremony where they each received a certificate and  a round of applause. :)

*Today we went to the Palm Desert Street Fair. It was hot, but fun. The kids each got $5 to spend and they enjoyed picking something out. They each got a matching wallet and a frozen lemonade. :) Afterward we headed to Barnes and Noble for some reading time and then to Costco (of course!) before heading back home.

*Cameron loves for me to read to him each night before bed. Last week I decided to give one of my my all time favorite series, Harry Potter, a try. He really likes it and it's fun for me since I haven't read the books in years. :)

*I've finally decided that buying regular sour cream is just worth the extra calories. It's one of those foods that I can tell a big difference in the flavor vs. the low fat version.

*Last night I ran into a screaming Kendall only to find out she simply needed to go to the bathroom. When I told her this morning that from now on she can just get up and go like a big girl, she informed me that she would rather get me up. How thoughtful.