Happy October

It's hard to believe that October is already here. The girls and I were excited to start putting up all of our Halloween decorations. We decided to try something extra fun and did Jack Skellington manicures. I think they turned out pretty good considering the kids's nails are tiny and it was my first attempt. I think I can improve for sure.

This last weekend both of the girls had games. First it was off to softball to see Claire play. She is getting really good at defensive plays. I had to snap a picture of her at bat with the palm tree in the background. We have been comparing the different types of palms here lately. I love that they are everywhere. After her game we headed home for a brief break before watching Grace play. Her team did great and Grace did amazing. She played goalie for the second half and didn't let anything get by her. She was aggressive and did a great job. Goalie makes me a bit nervous as I worry about her getting injured, but she really did make it look easy.

The next day after relaxing at home, we ventured out to a local farm/pumpkin patch. We saw cows, donkeys, sheep, and a llama. We browsed all of the pumpkins and the kids had fun climbing on trees. There was a small playground area and some panning for gems. We rode the tractor hayride and called it a day. It was fun to get out and explore our area.

Hiking, Running, and Relaxing

This last week was a lot of fun! Wednesday was my birthday, and it was a really great day. Chris took the day off of work and we headed out to an amazing breakfast after dropping this kids at school. I had this super tasty french toast with sautéed banana and some kind of caramel sauce on top. It was a top 10 breakfast for sure. After stuffing ourselves we shopped and enjoyed hanging out together for a few hours. The kids got out early from school that day so we drove up to the hills near our house and went for a hike. The area is called Brushy Peak, and as you can see there is a lot of brush. Not much else out there. We did see little prairie dog type things and some nests for owls. We got a great view of our valley and of the windmills. It felt good to be outside. Afterwards we were starving so we hit up Red Robin for my birthday burger. Unfortunately, the meal was pretty terrible. We stopped at the store for some brownies, and then the kids and I relaxed in the hot tub while Chris baked them. It was a perfect day!

On Friday the kids participated in their schools' main fundraiser. It was called the Fun Run. Basically a jogathon. Of course my three kids all wanted me to see them, and naturally they all had a different assigned time to run. I was at the school standing in the sun for several hours. They did awesome though! Each lap was a third of a mile. Neil managed 6 laps, Grace and Claire each did 11! They worked so hard.

Friday was also the first day that we had Grace's new reading glasses. Just a few weeks ago she started complaining about some blurriness. I got her right in and turns out she could benefit from a little prescription when reading. She picked out a cute purple pair and loves them!

Saturday was busy with both softball and soccer early in the morning. We divided and conquered and it all worked out. Grace got her first goal of the season and the team finally pulled off a win! Later that evening we had a small block party with the neighbors. One of them had bought a giant inflatable screen for projecting movies on. So after plenty of outside play time with bikes, scooters, and even a go cart we settled in to watch a movie in the grassy area next to our house. We had a popcorn machine out there as well as lots of other treats. Pretty fun night in the neighborhood.

On Sunday we had the chance to meet up with some good friends of ours who were driving through on their way to Disneyland. We met them at the gorgeous redwood forest at Muir Woods. The trees up there were breathtaking. So huge! We did the short touristy hike; which was perfect with all of the kids. It was so nice to be in the trees again. I loved it! Big difference from our last hike.

Afterwards we got together at our house for a BBQ dinner before they had to continue on their way. It was so great to see them! Can't wait til next time.

Down by the Bay

This weekend we decided to check out the Golden Gate bridge. To reach it, we had to drive through the heart of San Francisco. As you can imagine, that was less than fun. When we finally reached our destination everyone was quite happy to get out of the car and find a place to eat our picnic lunch.

It was a really fun area to be. It's a huge park with a tiny beach, tons of grassy areas, and lots of bike/walking paths. We looked through a small visitor center and then found an open picnic table to chow down.

After energizing ourselves we walked towards the bridge. It was the perfect chance to try out my new Fit Bit. We did lots of walking. There were plenty of great photo opportunities along the way. Forgive the plethora of pictures. It was a beautiful day.

(ready to get my steps in)

We had a great time watching the big waves roll into the rocky shore. We even saw a couple of sea lions. There was a small pier that you could walk out on and see the bridge from the water. It was really gorgeous up close.

Our destination was Fort Point. It is the brick structure that you see in the pictures just below the bridge. It is the only all brick fort on the west coast, and was designed to defend the bay from invaders. The Fort itself was pretty neat to walk through. There were several floors with different exhibits about the past as well as how they continue to maintain the bridge today. I thought it was pretty interesting. On top of the fort was where the cannons used to sit. We were able to walk up there for some truly amazing views.

It was a perfect day. We did tons of waking, but it was great. The weather was gorgeous. It was only a tad cold on top of the fort, where the wind was pretty strong. It would be fun to go back with bikes, shade, and food to BBQ.

New state, new school, first day

We are the Cheetahs! All 3 kids in the same school. I never thought this day would come. All those years of diapers, babies, pre-k stuff.....over. I have to admit that I do feel some sadness about this. As I watched a couple of other kinder moms bawling their eyes out, I felt a moment of tears. This was my baby. No more first days of kindergarten. Our lives have forever changed. It is hard to say goodbye to stages of life.
I am also excited. This marks the beginning of a new stage. One where all of the kids are in school. When this stage ends I will be VERY sad. But for now I am ready. Ready to celebrate each day as much as possible. These kids of mine are all amazing individuals and I can't wait to see the great things they will do. Here's to another great school year. For us, it means a new state, new school, and meeting new friends. Although it is hard at first, we are staying optimistic.