Open Gym at the YMCA

I love the YMCA. We first became members when we lived in LA and were broke. Their policy is that they don't turn people away and so they only charged us something like $15 a month for a membership. Parker had a hard time with me leaving him in the child watch for the first few months, but there was a woman in there who knew Parker and what would get him to stop crying (being held constantly) and so she would sit down and literally hold him the entire time I was gone. I could go on and on about my love for the YMCA. They are so family oriented. Their gyms and group exercise classes are top notch, but they equally focus on programs for children. Parker has participated in their soccer and tball (free!) programs and has done swim lessons too. When we moved to Orange County from LA, I literally based our apartment search on proximity to a Y.

Every Wednesday and Friday our Y opens up the gymnastics area to young kids and they all run around and play on the equipment and generally act like they've died and gone to heaven.

Lately Parker likes to set up obstacle courses and pretend he's a ninja warrior. Kate likes to spend her time in the ball pit and doing somersaults down the wedges.

Mormon Battalion

For park group last week we went to the Mormon Battalion.  We've been many times before, but the kids really love it.  In fact, on our way home Parker asked if we could come back the next day and the next day and the next day after that.  It was especially fun because it was "family day."  The new directors at the battalion are trying to reach out to military families in the area and share with them our military history.  They encouraged everyone to bring a picnic lunch and after the tour we all went to a grassy area behind the battalion and had lunch.  The sister missionaries played games with the kids and the director brought dessert over.  We heard about it through a woman in our stake whose husband is a clergyman in the military.

Happy Haircut

Every time, literally every time I cut Parker's hair I vow that the next time I'll take him to a salon and let someone do it that actually knows what they're doing.  And then a few weeks pass and he needs another haircut and I think that it will just be easier if I do it, and hey, I'll save some money, and oooh! maybe we can go out for ice cream with the money I just saved.  Anyway, I figured that I'd had a pretty good five year run and it would be good to see how a professional does it so I can take notes.

I knew that it would not be a happy, fun day at the salon. Parker does not like getting his hair cut.  He's not necessarily scared of the clippers or scissors, it's more that he doesn't like the itchiness of the cut hair on his skin.  We've tried lots of things to alleviate the problem, but nothing works with 100% efficiency.  So, I bribed him with a Happy Meal if he got his haircut at a salon.  We made it through the parking lot and to the door of Great Clips before he lost it.  Tears, screams, falling to the ground.  It was not pretty.  Finally he sat in the chair, but was still crying so I had him sit on my lap.  Once the stylist started cutting his hair he did a great job!  No more tears and he held so still.  I was hoping to take a picture of his first real haircut while it was happening, but it was a little difficult with him sitting on my lap.

But here are some after photos!  Yay McDonalds!

Playing in the Snow

A few weeks ago we headed up to the hills to play in the snow.  I love that we can enjoy beautiful, warm weather here almost year round, but when we want to build a snowman we can be playing in the powder in just 45 minutes.

Parker loved the snow and especially sledding.  Kate was not really a fan.  She didn't like walking or even standing on the snow, I think because it made her unstable, so I had to hold her or have her sit on my lap almost the whole time.  Parker is kind of a timid guy and Kate is so easy going, I actually thought their reactions to the snow would be the opposite.

It might surprise you to know that the population in Southern California is quite dense and in this land of eternal sunshine, opportunities to play in the snow are few and far between.  As a result, the mountain was packed. There wasn't really a destination or a parking lot or anything- people just parked on the side of the road and hiked back into the mountains a bit. Luckily we got there early enough to get a parking spot, but as we were driving home the highway was backed up for miles.

We're Moving!

Again.  People, it's just too much.  In our eight years of marriage, this will be our seventh move.  Parker has never lived in a home longer than 16 months.  I hate moving.  I hate that it turns me into a mean mom and a ball of nerves.  But, we're getting kicked out, so what can you do?  Our landlord is selling the townhouse we're living in, and although they did offer to sell it to us, we're going to continue to rent at a different location.  One thing that makes it a bit easier is that we're moving into a house!  With a yard!  And no shared walls!  And a driiiiiiiveway! Paul finally has an excuse to be mad at me for throwing away his yardwork parachute shants (pants that zip off into shorts) all those years ago.

Before I start the ghastly task of packing all our belongings into cardboard boxes, we made a movie so we can remember the wonderful 16 months we lived here. It's a long one; I tried to go slow to avoid the feeling of seasickness.

New Year's Resolution Complete! Happy Christmas Card

I had only one New Year's Resolution for 2015 and that was to send out a Christmas card. I love getting Christmas cards- I love seeing our family and friends' year in recap and it's nice to know that we were thought about during the busyness of the season.  It came down to the wire, but we got it done and I'm so happy we did!   If you're reading this and didn't get a card from us, send me your address!  Who knows, maybe I'll send one out this year too.

As for resolutions this year... I haven't made any yet, but I'll get around to it eventually. Paul is anti New Year's Resolutions.  I think he doesn't want to set himself up for failure.  I, on the other hand, love New Year's Resolutions!  And I'm okay if I break them before the Christmas decorations come down.  The point is that you've reflected on your life and really considered what you could do to make yourself a better person or reach a lofty goal and that in itself is awesome!

Last Day at SeaWorld

Today our season passes to SeaWorld expired.  There have been rumblings that they're going to do away with the Shamu show, so even though the kids and I went to SeaWorld two weeks ago, we felt that we needed to go see the Shamu show as a family to give it a formal farewell.  It's crazy how much Parker and Kate have grown this year!

TODAY: 

LAST FEBRUARY:

 (This is a really weird picture of Kate, but I wanted to use it for reference.)

TODAY:

LAST FEBRUARY:

When we first got our passes, we had some trouble redeeming Parker's preschool pass (kids two and under are always free, but in order for three- to five-year-olds to get free passes, you have to register them online for a preschool pass at the beginning of the year) and so the lady who was helping us gave us four vouchers for complimentary trays of fish to feed to the sea lions.  We redeemed the vouchers today and fed the sea lions.  We learned that you have to be fast or else the birds will swoop down and steal the fish right out of your hands!

We have LOVED visiting SeaWorld this year!  Parker will miss the sharks the most, for sure.  It's his number one request when we go, and we often went through the exhibit multiple times.  I'll miss the Sea Lion and Otter Show and Paul will miss the churros.  Kate is just happy to be along for the ride and will probably miss getting out of her naps for a full day of fun.