Day three, Hollister California

So, day three of our adventure led us back to Hollister, not the store with the anorexic models in "hip" clothing, but the REAL Hollister where REAL people live - the place we LOVED for almost 3 years! Big S had one very special friend during those years - they met the very first day of preschool which just also happened to be 9-11. Needless to say, it was a much different day for the kids than it was for the adults, but that's for another post. Anyway, before we moved, we took the girls to Build-a-Bear and had them each make a bear, then they recorded a message for each other and put it in their bear -now how darling is that? For the last 6 1/2 years, Big S had squeezed that bear and heard her friend's voice say "I love you S"! How rockin!!! Anyway, in the last year or so they have emailed back and forth a bit and since it just happened to also be Big S's birthday, the one thing she wanted to do was see her friend! So, we headed down to Hollister and met up with them for lunch at a pizza place - lunch lasted 3+ hours!! Her mom and I chatted like we always used to and Big S and her friend took about 5 seconds to warm up and then the 6 1/2 year gap melted away and there they were, best friends again!! It was better than I could have hoped for! Now, there is also a little brother involved, who is younger than Little G and he was a complete trooper! All those girls and him - thank goodness for the arcade!! The kids all had a great time!

air hockey rocks at any age!!!

last time they had their picture taken together they were 4 1/2 - neither look much different, just bigger!!

When lunch eventually ended, Big S ended up going home with them for a sleepover - just like old time! Ok, so she would rather spend her birthday with her best friend than her family - I knew the day would come, but this was so special that I would never have considered saying no!! Some friends are true friends no matter the time or the distance - I think these two have that type of friendship - lucky girls! Now perhaps they'll replace the old picture that they both still had up in their rooms with this one!!

Day two, Santa Cruz California...

We started out the day slowly, Hubby left late last night to connect with some golfing buddies for two days - see ya! The girls and I slept in and had hoped to connect with some friends from the old days, but not feeling great, we reluctantly decided to lay low at the hotel and later took a ride over to Santa Cruz to see the sights. Our intent was just to have a nice drive, but when we crossed over the mountains, it was so beautiful that we had to get out and walk around a little bit. That's when this happened! It may not look like much to you, but it was about the size of a ping pong ball almost immediately after I fell, I mean after the road jumped up and tripped me! In my defense, the lady at the store where we stopped to buy cheapo towels and get ice for my knee told me it happens a lot because the pavement is uneven and there are gaps between the asphalt and the track that run down the middle of the road. She said the week before some guy kissed the road after his motorcycle flipped him off in the same spot - maybe I could make some $$ off this moment of humiliation! Actually, no one seemed to notice my laying in the middle of the road or if they did, they didn't think I looked bad enough to stop and see if I needed help, so maybe I should feel too embarrassed or maybe the folks in Santa Cruz just aren't very nice. Either way, it hurt like the dickens and looked really ugly - two + weeks later it still isn't totally healed. Poor me!

So, while the girls frolicked, I sat on a towel and this was my view...

and this...

and this cute little thing stuck close by to make sure Momma was ok!

these two had no problem wandering off and letting me fend for myself! I guess one out of three isn't bad :)

They did tiptoe a little into the water, just barely! I would say the swimsuits were unnecessary - they could have rolled up their pant legs for as far as they got in!

the ocean is still the ocean I guess! Little G looks like she might get bold, but faked me out!

Of course getting the sand out of the nooks and crannies is important business!!

The boardwalk looked like fun, but we just watched from the street - my girls are no daredevils! Maybe next time!

Big S took my camera on the ride back to Morgan Hill and caught this view as we headed back up over the mountains near Watsonville...

she really couldn't get over how cool the hills looked - we don't have hills of any size where we live!!

we thought this raspberry farm in Watsonville looked really cool!

It was the end of a beautiful day that started out kinda yucky. We were sad that we missed out with a day at the waterpark with our friends over at Cheaper Than Therapy www.themomjen.com but it was a good day none the less!!

The first day of school....

Little S got creative with breakfast this morning!! How cute is that?

Big S started middle school today - she was soooo excited! She's so grown up now! Apparently it's cooler to carry a tote than a backpack, but at least she found a cute one!

Little G was ready for school when Big S's bus came 55 minutes before hers did!! Some people are just plain crazy I guess ;) Third grade, how did that happen?

Little S was ready to go to 4th grade with her new pink elephant lunchbox! The eternal elephant lover, she didn't care what age group they were marketing to - she wanted that lunch box and of course I couldn't say no!!

Our bus stop is a little smaller this morning - there were 4 kids missing who will be there tomorrow, so the chaos will continue at the end of our driveway for another year! This morning all parents were there, dressed for work or at least their day - it will probably be a week or two before we start showing up in pjs and the dads are pretty much done for the year now!!

Bye Bye kiddos! See you at 2:50pm!! Have a great school year!!!

The house did seem quiet, but there's so much to do - so much blogging, I mean laundry, cleaning and organizing, to do that they'll be home before I know it!! Let the fun begin!!

Day one, Monterey California

So, our California adventure began with a super late arrival into San Francisco, an 1 1/2 hour drive to Morgan Hill to our hotel (home base for several days), and crashing since it was 4am body time by the time we saw a bed! The next day we got up and headed south to Monterey to one of our favorite stomping grounds - the famous Monterey Bay Aquarium! The kids didn't remember it at all, but they used to just sit and stare at the different displays for hours when we took them there years ago!

There was a new seahorse exhibit that we all thought was super cool!!

Shockingly, this is a seahorse - crazy weird looking, it totally looked like a plant even up close!

We couldn't get enough of the sea otters! They were so darn cute! They were bathing and washing their faces just like our cats do - we decided they were really sea cats not sea otters!!

The girls were totally digging the sea otter feeding!!

This is one of my favorite pictures of the day!

This guy was super ugly! We loved him!

Of course I can never get enough of the jelly fish exhibit! Monterey did a phenomenal job when they created this!

Aren't they cool?

We met up with my parents and aunt at Bubba Gump's for dinner that night - another favorite haunt of ours - there is ALWAYS a wait but plenty to do on Cannery Row while you are waiting! Aren't we a cute little family? It was freezing that day - heavy fog kept it from even getting into the 60s!

Big S trying on Forest's shoes for size! Good thing they've seen the movie!

My mom (on the left) and her sister - don't they look a lot alike?

Some of the old "apartments" on Cannery Row from the glory days of sardine canning -they were super small, very basic and not very comfortable looking.

If you haven't ever been to Monterey, it's a must see if you are in the region! We always loved it there and will return again at first chance!!!

More to follow tomorrow...

tomorrow is a new day...

Yes, it is perhaps a bit early for us to be discussing this, but I have to share, that tomorrow is in fact the first day of school for my 3 crazy girls! Big S has a double-whammy since it's also her first day of middle school! Before everyone collapses from shock, our last day of school way May 29th, so we did get about 10 weeks off - fairly normal length of time off these days for the kids although it still feels short to me! Anyway, school supplies have been purchased, backpacks and lunch boxes ready to go! First day of school outfits clean and layed-out for the big day and for Big S, locker all set up, organized and decorated as well as location and combination memorized! The first bus comes at 7am.... the second 45 minutes later! Then my life of meeting begin! The life of an over-volunteering mom! And the 2009-2010 school year begins!

Summertime realizations...

As summer comes to an end, ok, not actually summer, but summer vacation, I can look back on the last 10 or so weeks and acknowledge a few things....

1. summer goes by too fast if you over-schedule

2. summer goes by too fast if you under-schedule

3. I wouldn't mind summer vacation ending if the weather would just continue indefinitely!

4. it is really hard to get back on a school year schedule if you have slept in all summer and are also jet-lagged!

5. fruit flies are super impossible to get rid of and once you think you've succeeded, they return

6. summer isn't as carefree as it was when I was a kid

7. summer blockbuster movies all come out at the same time and it's usually not the week when it's raining and you have nothing planned

8. Blockbuster is my best friend on rainy summer days

9. I hate doing laundry and housework even more during the summer

10. no matter what I promise myself, we never get to the pool as often as I want to

11. it is impossible to visit everyone you want to in just 10 weeks - even is you could convince someone else to pay your travel expenses

12. ice cream containers have gotten WAY smaller than they used to be and a family of five can kill one pretty quickly!

13. there is no such thing as a well scheduled summer

14. quarter midget racing is way cool and super fun to watch!

15. even if you get around to planting your garden, if you're never in town, it doesn't do well

16. what I find interesting and fun isn't always the same as what my kids would find interesting and fun!

17. what the kids find interesting and fun often surprises me

18. thistle is impossible to kill or even control when it takes hold in your yard

19. it's hard not to enjoy the "fruits of the Napa Valley" when visiting AND celebrating a wedding!

20. I love summer!!!!!!

I know that you have all missed me! I was out of town for a couple weeks - vacation and my baby sister's wedding - all of which I will share with you in great detail, do not fear! We arrived home at 1am monday night/tuesday morning and had to be at the middle school for 6th grade orientation tuesday morning! I have felt like I was swimming underwater for the last couple days with my jet lag - the girls on the other hand were wired for sound! Of course there is NO interest in getting up in the morning and bedtime has not adjusted either, so we are battling jet lag and trying to get on schedule for school which begins in 6 days! Big S created a plan for getting herself on schedule for her 6am middle school mornings - we suggested that she was a little ambitious and this morning was confirmation of that! If anyone has any miracle working plans for getting kids back on a school year sleeping schedule in less than a week, by all means share your wisdom! I promise posts full of our Cali vacation and baby sister's fabulous wedding soon!!!!