Shayla turns 9!

  9 YEARS OLD! 

9 years ago at 8:19 am my baby girl came into this world!  From the get go she was transverse (sideways in the womb) and despite multiple attempts to help her turn -from a medical procedure to acupuncture to laying upside down on an iron board while holding ice to one side of my stomach and a speaker playing music to the other - she would not budge and so came into this world sideways via c-section!  The doctor said that means she would be either very stubborn or very laid back and not easily ruffled.  It seems she is both of those!

Just as she came into this world different than most, she already seems to be leading a life on her own terms  - she is determined and smart and a bit too sneaky sometimes! She is kind and passionate and sensitive and strong at the same time.  She has these characteristics that are still being molded and strengthened so that she will be a leader someday, a friend always, and an example to others throughout her life!  I have no doubt of that! Shayla, I am not exactly sure what the world has in store for you, but I have an idea what you have in store for the world – and watch out world because this girl will bring goodness to all those she touches!

 

She made me a mom and that’s the greatest thing I could ever be or ever hope to be and brings me the greatest joy and hope! As I was making her annual birthday slideshow/collage, I just loved seeing most photos had an animal, tree or something outdoorsy in it!  That is my gal and she is a product of nature and her heart is bigger than I often recognize! And I look forward to the many adventures in store we have together with our family as we continue to explore our amazing world together!

HAPPY 9^TH BIRTHDAY TO OUR BLESSED AND BEAUTIFUL SHAYLA!  

We love you to the moon and back!

More pics of her year here!

https://goo.gl/photos/s8EQdDuDsgoTqRU18

Mitchell turns 6!

 What - how can my little baby boy be 6 already!  Mitchell turned 6 on Feb 26!  And we had a great week celebrating his birthday! 

He is 48 inches in shoes (haha which I know as he can now ride most of the rides at the amusement parks! yay!).  

6 things we love  about my 6 year old!

1. He is all boy - loves to wrestle, climb trees, play in the dirt, play with transformers, legos, cars, etc!
2. He is a great friend to all - has several best friends (see birthday interview) and truly does love them all equally!
3. He loves to play games - he could play Uno all day long if you let him! 
4.  He loves to sing - he will walk around singing and humming a song that was on the radio or from church or from his school play (Lion King) as the latest favorites!
5. He loves school - he is the math whiz in his class (even with the 1st graders) and loves math and science and reading the most and is starting to read more and more!
6. He is a snugglebug - always giving me hugs and kisses and love! I cannot get enough of our sweet Mitchell!

Waking up to birthday door and presents! 

Opening morning presents! 

Wearing his new spy glove and PJ for PJ day at school on his birthday!

 

After school ice cream with his buddies! 

For his birthday evening we went to Toys R Us with his gift cards where he got Legos and Skylanders and then dinner out - his choice - hot dogs! 

Silly faces! 

Then on Saturday off to Universal Studios to celebrate his birthday some more! The new Transformers ride was so awesome and he was just barely tall enough to get on! Yay! 

And so excited to meet Megatron!

An added bonus - they opened Harry Potter World for guests to preview (supposed to open in April) so we got to explore Harry Potter world and the kids loved it - but I may have loved it more!

Welcome to Hogsmead!

Minions ride! 

Still not too big for a piggy back ride!

Then one more celebration!  His two best buddies have a birthday within a week of each other so we decided to do a party for the kindergarten/1st grade class to celebrate these three best friends!

Mitchell, Aubrey and Todd!

What a fun pool party with all their classmates!

My two luau kiddos enjoying the party!

We are so beyond blessed to have Mitchell in our lives and I cannot wait to see what the future has in store for him!

Here is his annual birthday interview too!

https://youtu.be/8OhsM-j2hQw 

Jon turns 40!

Jon turns 40!!!

Not one to desire a large shebang for his birthday, but still desirous to celebrate, we took off on a new adventure to celebrate Jon turning 40 this year!  What a great excuse to try new things and visit new places and help Jon feel loved!  Jon loves history and travel and new places, and as his birthday is in fall, we thought it would be nice to soak up some fall sights as well! So off we headed to Philadelphia, New York City and the Poconos!

And we are off!  

Our parents were so gracious to help watch our kiddos while we went on our trip!

As we had a short time in each place we wanted to make the most of it!  We started in Philly with a walking tour (Urban Adventure tours!) of all the historical sites in Philadelphia - from Betsy Ross (alleged) house to Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell.  It was neat to sit where Franklin and Washington sat in Christ's Church and see firsthand more examples of the impact they had on not only on our nation but on the birth of democracy!

Here we are in the oldest still inhabited street in the nation - Elfreth's Alley

The Liberty Bell

And of course the Famous LOVE Statue in JFK Plaza 

And we did an insiders tour of the Masonic Temple which was really interesting!

That evening we went to an evening museum night at Philadelphia Museum of Art - amazing - and had dinner across from the Eastern State Penitentiary which was all decked out as a Spooky house for Halloween.  Very spooky! 

View from the Rocky Steps from the Philadelphia Museum of Art at night! 

The next day after exploring Reading Terminal Market for some yummy philly cheesesteaks - yes they had a vegetarian version - and yummy Beiler donuts and chocolate, we took the Amtrak to Penn Station New York!

In New York, we went out to Ippudo for Ramen and off to see "Spoiled Rotten" Broadway play!  It was very entertaining and well done play!

Jon and his favorite airplane!

  We started the day early at 7:30 at the Empire State Building and were not disappointed!  We loved the early views with no crowds there yet!

Then we explored the Intrepid Air and Space Museum and got to see the Shuttle Endeavour too! Its still hard to belief this thing was in space!

We visited the 9/11 Memorial which was very sobering to say the least.  Our tour guide was a boat captain that took many people from downtown to Jersey that day and had a cousin die on 9/11 so she had some stories to share and they were very touching.  She told us about the Boat Lift on 9/1 which was a pretty amazing feat - check out this Youtube video about it - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDOrzF7B2Kg. 

Then, after the memorial, we were buoyed up by the sight of Lady Liberty! 

And then we went over to the Brooklyn Bridge and explored Brooklyn and had some great Brooklyn Pizza at Juliana's Pizza and some Shake Shack Ice Cream! What a view of the city!

And of course a bit of Double Decker Red bus to get around (cheaper than taxi!) but those streets were packed!  Was faster to walk than do the bus or taxi! 

Goodbye New York!

 Note - NEVER EVER schedule a Amtrak train out of NYC Penn Station into Jersey on a Friday night at 6 pm around rush hour of people trying to get home!  It was a MAD house and they are not very clear about how and where to catch your train - but we found it! 

Hello Poconos!  

We stayed at Villa at Fairways and entered a Fall wonderland! Our little place for a few days.

Here in East Stroudsburg, PA, Jon turned 40!  We spent the day at Treetop adventures climbing through the trees and doing obstacles!

It was so pretty and such an adventure! We celebrated Jons 40th with a yummy dinner in Stroudsburg at a restaurant called Garlic!

The next day we went hiking and exploring the beautiful Bushkills falls!  Loved it! 

Such beautiful fall colors!

Then we said goodbye to Pennsylvania and headed home!  It was a great trip and memories to last a lifetime - or at least another 40 years!  Now I need to start planning my 40th birthday trip! 

And because we took so many more photos as well!  Here is a link to more photos from the trip! Enjoy!

Mom's Birthday Celebration...

...that means my birthday celebration! That's what happens when you get older, you become "mom"!  AND I love it! I love celebrating as a mom, but also as a friend and a wife!  So this year I had a fun extended birthday celebration as a mom, wife and friend!

Birthday celebration with my kiddos!  I went to LA to meet up with a high school friend Christie and go to the Griffith Observatory!  A cool place to go!  I was surprised how busy it was, but it is so great so I can see why!

A birthday visit and gift from my close gal pal Franny!  

Thanks for the cool painting even though I am holding it upside down!

On my birthday night, Jon and I headed to Pantages Theater to see the Phantom of The Opera which I have always wanted to see!  The music was the best part and we had great seats!  It was a wonderful show!! 

Red carpet...

The group of friends who joined us! What a fun group!!

More party peeps! 

My bestie Heather and I  

Then I had to squeeze in one more birthday celebration - shared with my friend Sierra and others- a day at the pool and a ride out to sea on a sailboat!  It was a gorgeous day for both and always fun to spend girl time with this group! 

Bonnie and Larissa

Woohoo! This is how we do birthday!  Here's to another great year!!