Family time & the Binky Fairy

Saturday we went to the Children's Discovery Museum. Eric has never been there and the kids love it. This is Luke 'waving to his fans', Emily taught him this!!!
Chef Mason making a 'pizza'.
We took them to the park in the afternoon, Ty loves the climbing wall. On Sunday afternoon Eric took him on a long hike to a waterfall, he especially likes hiking now because his aunt Jill got him a camel pack.
So, the Binky Fairy.....I decided it was time to get rid of the binkys so a few weeks ago we started telling the boys about the Binky Fairy (thanks for the idea Tash!). For those of you that don't know, the Binky Fairy is closely related to the Tooth Fairy. You set you binkys outside (mine decided to hide theirs under the car) and the she comes and takes the binkys away for little babies who need them and she leaves big boy treats in their place.
Our Binky Fairy left big boy undies, playdoh and fruit snacks. They were very happy with the gifts and they went down for their nap and at night time great. They only asked for it a few times and followed it up with 'bye bye binkys'.
It was at 5:30 this morning that they would not go back to sleep!!! Hopefully they will sleep in a bit later tomorrow, would make getting ready for work a little easier than having two little ones 'help' you. Next step-big boy beds!!!

Good Friends

We cancelled our Big Bear trip for the weekend. Too cold up there and too nice down here. So instead, Vern, Peyton & Drew came over Friday afternoon for a playdate/happy hour.

Drew does not seem to discriminate between the twins...
Peyton & my skinny white boy. They are 100% boys! They love to play video games, play rough & run around yelling. So funny to watch them play.
Vern & me enjoying our 'playdate', aka 'happy hour' for us!!

Fishing Lessons

Ty loves to practice casting in the pool and the twins love to do anything and everything Ty does so Ty decided to show them how it's done. Very funny how Luke stayed to 'practice'!!

The Birthday Party that almost was...

My boys LOVE Shrek so I decided to go with Shrek colored balloons, a way over-frosted cupcake cake from Walmart with Shrek toys on it and Shrek decorations, Shrek favors, etc...you get the point. With the party just one hour away, 11 of the 15 balloons had popped (lots of splinters in the ceiling from sandblasting) and I had both boys at Urgent Care with a yucky case of Hand, Foot & Mouth, not to be confused with (as Eric was telling people) Hoof & Mouth. It is a highly contagious virus that produces fever, mouth, hand & foot sores. Poor babies, Luke has been so miserable with the mouth sores, so hard for him to eat. Mason is still as good natured as always. Anyways, with their little surgery last Monday and then getting this, which lasts about 7-10 days, it has not been the best week for them. The surgery turned out great and they are doing awesome with that. I have decided to reschedule their party for Sept 30th, same time. At least they are too young to be disappointed, it was Ty that was super sad about not having his buddies over. We ended the day by blowing up the bouncer Tasha brought over, they had a blast and even Ty decided the day was not a total loss. (Mason is in green, Luke in yellow.)

The LA Galaxy Game

For Julie's birthday this year, Tash thought it would be fun to take Julie to a Galaxy game since they are both obsessed with David Beckham. It was so much fun!!! We drove out to Redondo beach on Saturday and had lunch at a great restaurant on the pier. The weather was wonderful and it is always nice to go out to eat and not have to worry about people throwing food, using the bathroom 4 times, whining, etc....
The Galaxy won, which was nice. It was a bummer not seeing Beckham or Donavan, as those are the two faves of Julie & Tash. We moved towards the end of the game and sat in a section with diehard fans who were so much fun.
Tash & Becks
Tasha has this thing about guys in kilts. She always wants to know if they are a 'true Scot'!!! Julie Donavan.

Boys will be boys

Drew and Luke last week.....

Last Saturday Eric picked up Ty's friends Peyton & Dean and we had them over for a play date. I had it all planned out, first a movie (too hot to swim in the afternoon), then some pizza and a swim. They had their own plan, first wrestling then jumping off Ty's top bunk, more wrestling, eating and then swimming, splashing, and of course-more wrestling. Vern came to pick up Peyton and as you can see, Luke began entertaining Drew.
Drew and Mason a few months ago......which one will she choose?

The long ride home.....

After the wedding, Emily, Iven, the twins & I flew home. Eric and Ty went up to Eric's grandmother's cabin up north. The weather wasn't so good but the fishing was. Ty caught a few big northern's and lots of sunnys and perch off the dock. Even Cali is interested!
They got stuck in some traffic in Colorado on the way home so they pulled off and went for a little exploring and hiking.
A bluff in Utah.

Ty asked the whole trip, 'when am I going to Las Vegas' so they stopped there on the way home so Ty could get his fix.

Minnesota Vacation

Mason & Jessi at the park on Lake Calhoon, Minneapolis. Our friends Zack & Jessi just moved into an awesome older home 1 block from the lake.
Mason enjoying the lake, he does love the water!
Eric's sister Jill got married while we were in Minnesota. The wedding was so fun and so casual. The boys wore filp flops and enjoyed playing pool at the reception.
This is the new extened family. Proud mom Karen, her husband Tim, Jon's (and now Jill's) girls Alaina & Julia, Eric's twin sisters Jill & Kari, Kari's husband Jake & their two sons-Will & Nate. Jill looked absolutley beautiful!!! This is one of my favorite pictures of the day, Luke & Grandma Karen.

Grandma Karen's Cabin

Mason diggin the pontoon boat.
Lukey trying his luck at fishing....
Ty & Will in the paddle boat, I thought there was going to be a lot of paddling in circles but they were actually quite good at it.
Ty & his cousin Will. Ty just adores Will, he is 8 months older than Ty.
All of us sitting on the swing outside the cabin. That night there was a huge storm, Eric saw a tornado on the lake and we lost power. It was actually kind of cool to have candles lit and look out the windows at the rain and lightening on the lake. The coolness factor evaporated quickly when we learned that no power=no water. We left to go home early the next morning!!!

Boundary Waters

The Boundary Waters is an area between Minnesota and Canada. It has tons of lakes and Eric has gone every year for as long as he can remember. He took Ty last year at 3 1/2 and they had a blast. This year it was Eric, Ty (4 1/2), Cali, Tony & his dog Makiba, Dane (who Ty decided was his new best friend) and James. Throw in 2 canoes, back packs and 4 nights in the wilderness and you have some major fun for boys, big & little!!!
A big catch after a long day.
Showing off the catch again.
Camping dogs, Cali & Makiba.
I have never been there, but the pictures I have seen are incredible. No motorized vehicles, no litter, no noise, sounds good to me!

Ty & Eric's drive from Palm Springs to Minneapolis

Eric, Ty, Cali and our friend Tony took 5 days to drive from Palm Springs to Minneapolis. This is Ty's second summer trip with Daddy. They had lots of fun stops along the way, very brave of Daddy to take a 4 year old on a month long trip!!

Ty trout fishing in the Owens river. He loves to fish, just like his daddy.
A very COLD lake in Yosemite, Daddy & Tony were a little too chicken to get in the water too.
Day 2 in Lake Tahoe.
Day 3 in Jackson Hole Wy. Ty, Eric & Tony met up for dinner with our friend Sarah who lives in the desert but is from Jackson and is getting married there next summer. I can't wait to go and see how beautiful Jackson is in person!!!

More beach...

My favorite picture of Luke at Mission Bay. There is a little beach area and a huge playground and a big shady grass area for picnics.

Mason soaking up some sun on PB.

Pacific Beach Week

Lukey was not so fond of his first venture at the beach. He would not let Eric put him down at the dog beach in OB. (He eventually lightened up!)
Mason on the other hand, loved the beach!
Ty had so much fun boogie boarding, he is a little fish.
Throwing the smack down at each other.
The house we rented had this awesome wagon, perfect size for towels, toys, and 3 little boys. Perfect since the twins fell asleep every day on our way home. The house we rented was a mere 3 blocks from the beach and 5 from Mission Bay. We had lots of friends come visit and can't wait to rent it again next year!