On Saturday Tash & Zolt had a big birthday fiesta will all of the fixings for Gillian's (Tasha's mom) 60th. It was made extra special by her brother Justin, who flew in from England to surprise her for the occasion.
Tasha's dad Gordon & his wife Allison also were here visiting from England. Their vacation plans fell in line with Gillian's birthday so it was a perfect way to celebrate with everyone & Tasha was in heaven with her whole family around.
Today Emily, Iven, Julie & I went to Fantasy Springs Casino to support Mark in his 3rd year at a cooking competition. There were 15 chefs, 5 each for appetizer, entree & dessert. There was also unlimited champagne, which is always nice. The food I tasted was incredible, every chef needed to incorporate dates in their meal, I never knew they could be so good (or so well hidden!). Mark did a Thai soup with mushrooms & a shrimp 'date' skewer. For anyone who knows me, this was heaven for me, I LOVE cooking and food. We all had a blast and Mark-we had a unanimous vote on the way home and you win our people's choice-hands down!!!
On Thursday my cousin JR & his wife Heather came over for dinner with their 3 adorable kids. They are in town from PA and Heather & I have been friends since I was 14 so it was so great to see them. I am lucky enough to have my aunt & uncle winter out here so I get to see relatives I probably would not see for years. Nathan (2) loved the water feature of our pool and kept going from spout to spout tasting the water. 
This is Tyler (8 & huge!) He & Ty had a great time swimming & playing basketball.
This is Kelsy, 5 & super cute. I love the way she posed when I asked to take her picture. 
Em & Luke doing a typical twin wave which is just sticking you hand out in front of you, kind of like 'stop'.
Last night our fab neighbors Keri, Nikko & Roman came over for pizza & movie night. They just moved here last year & Roman is only one month older than Ty & they love each other. (By love each other I mean the love-hate-like-miss-hate-love that 5 year olds have for each other, the kind where they can fight one minute and then whine like babies at the prospect of leaving each other the next).
Tasha's brother Justin came over from England this week to surprise their mom for her 60th birthday. We had them over Tuesday for some dinner, drinks & fun. It didn't take Justin long to get into the Southern Cal mentality!
As usual, Auntie Julie getting her 'workout' in with the kids. They love playing monster with her!
Yesterday Em & Iven took Mason & Luke to the Living Desert. It is the perfect time of year and they have a great butterfly exhibit that the boys loved. 
Iven told me Luke got a kick out of pushing Mason in the cart and then letting go and screaming with laughter as Iven had to run & catch up with it. They love their 'I-I', it's aways 'Hey Wa, watch this, hey Wa see this?' Luke's new thing is when he gets up from his nap he goes & hangs out with Iven in his room. 
On Saturday Eric, Ty & a bunch of other people went camping in the Chocolate Mountains. Ty LOVES to go camping with daddy and they had a blast. There were 2 other 7 year old boys there so Ty had someone to play with and lots of hiking & jeeping. They got back Sunday night stinky, dirty and blissfully happy. Mason, Luke & I had dates of our own. My cousin is in town with his family so my aunt had us over for brunch with my parents, it was so fun and their kids are so cute, hopefully we'll see them again & I'll have my camera. On Saturday night we went to Posa's for the UFC fight which is always a good time. Sunday was a walk to the park in perfect weather and a Pel's for the ride home.
Obviously mom was not along on the camping trip because this would NOT have happened. And after daddy told me the ride ended in a ditch with most of his right shoe being burned thru by the bottom by the pipe, hopefully my reproachful look (and a bit of well formed words) will deter him from attempting this again in the near future without proper training!!! Ty of course thinks it's a great story. 
On Saturday the Posa's & Julie came by for some afternoon fun. We recently got a pool cover which is a huge bonus for spring & fall. It cost less than 2 weekends of heating the pool and we can leave it on every day. Only downside- a little difficult to pull off by myself. After the swim & dinner Zoe, Mace & Luke sat up on bar to watch a little tv. Next to Luke is his rock 'milkshake'.
Ty & Zachy did some night swimming. With Zachy it turned into night skinny dipping!!
Eric with Zolt & Mike after a day of golfing.
This past Sunday really was a true 'Sunday Funday'. We had a wonderful, fabulous, yummy brunch (along with champagne and tequila) at the Sickenberger's. They win host prize of the year!! Not only do I enjoy their food as much as I do, I just love them. We are so lucky to have such great friends!!!
Luke 'motorcycle man' Hershberger.
My girls.
Our attempt at a self portrait. Please ignore my giraffe neck, we had the giggles and this was probably picture #5 we tried. 
On thursday our neighbor set up his water slide for the boys, they had a blast!!! I can see how our summer is going to play out, a little sliding, swimming and then snacking. We are so lucky to have such wonderful and fun neighbors.
The boys running to the fun....
On Sunday Eric & Ty went with some friends to a place called Ladder Canyons. Eric and I went years ago and it was so cool. There are all sorts of canyons, caves and different ladders to get between them. Eric said they have replaced a bunch of the old wooden ladders with rope or aluminum ladders. They all had a great time & I can't wait until Mace & Luke are old enough to go. 
On Saturday we went to Mikey Marks' 7th birthday party at Pump it up. One of the most ingenious places to hold kids birthday parties. 2 huge rooms with different jumpys, slides, obstacle courses & a room for pizza & cake-and the best part-you don't have to clean you house for the party!! Ty loves it but Mason & Luke are still a little iffy about the slides. Lucky for them big brother was willing to help them out each time. I even got into it and raced the obstacle course a few times. But I lost-each time-to Eric, to Mike & to 8 year old Sydney.
Ty has the biggest crush on Sydney and wants to sit by her, play with her, drink whatever she has. And she's pretty indulgent of him, I guess he likes the older ladies.
Ty & the birthday boy, Mikey.
On Friday night our good friend Teri (I met her 14 years ago in Dekalb IL and she now lives 2 miles away!) had us, the Posa's, Julie, Emily & Iven over for a swim and dinner. She is one brave soul to have us all over, especially as I remember how her place looked when we left despite the attempt to clean up. She has a heated pool so the kids all went swimming and we hung out by the pool drinking her famous margaritas and talking. She made a wonderful dinner and we all had such a great time, she's a wonderful hostess and an even better friend!! As you see above, Zoe was having a great hair day!
Luke loves to help Teri 'arrange' her CDs.
My two handsome boys, I love this picture!!! Mason is getting so comfortable in the water (he's in front). We went to Julie's on Sunday and he is sticking his whole head under water & holding his breath. Luke is still a bit iffy about getting his eyes wet but he's getting closer!!