IT'S A GIRL!

I knew it all along. I feel no surprise from this news, but I do feel alot of happiness. I am excited for Julianna that she can have her sister. It did make me sad though when I told Elijah, he looked at me with disgust and said, " But I wanted a brother!" I know he will get over it, but I was hoping for a little happiness coming from his direction. Oh well, I was going to disappoint someone I guess. So, I am in for many fun and terrifying moments with my second girl. I do hope that she is a little calmer than my first girl. We will see. I am sure Julianna will teach her everything she knows. Heaven Help Me!

Halloween Already??

Ninja Master



It was our ward Trunk or Treat. I was really excited to see my kids in their costumes. Julianna had a choice of 3 costumes that I had for her. I asked her which one she wanted to be. It was the cowgirl without any hestitation. Boy, did she pull it off. She looked adorable. The great thing about this costume was it was from a garage sale that I got last year. It was three buckaroos and it was the best costume. It cam with the vest, skirt, hat, arm bands, and handkerchief. It was the best deal. Best of all she won the costume contest. We arrived 5 minutes before the contest was finalized. Is this girl going to have all the luck. I am going to call her Lady Luck from now on.



And the winner is...

Birthday, Again??

As many know, my birthday follows Sean's four days later. All I really wanted was a cozy robe from Costco. Sean decided to give me a Big Burrito( a Chipotle gift card), a communication device, faceplate for my guitar, and lastly my fluffy comfy robe. It was a nice because I needed all those things and he just knew it. Well, I could have done without the faceplate for my guitar, but I think Sean would strongly disagree.
It is too bad that birthdays lose their luster when you get older. I worked all day like I usually do on Tuesday. I did go to my favorite San Fran treat, Boudin's to get my clam chowder. That was a treat. But, for the most part it felt like any other day. I loved when I was younger, I woke up feeling completly different all day. It was the greatest feeling. It is too bad that those feelings just get numb when you reach my ol' age of 31. Gosh, I am getting up there.

Mr. Jack O' Lantern!

Mr. Jack O' Lantern is very round and fat
He has a yellow candle lit right beneath his hat.
It makes his face look happy and very, very bright,
When he winks his eye and smiles on

Spooky Halloween Night!
(Music Makers Favorite!)

We had a blast on Family Night carving our pumpkin. It was something I know I haven't done in a long time. There is something really relaxing about putting a knife in something and making it something fun to look at. I was pretty proud of our creations. Elijah and Daddy worked on Mr. X ( I think you can figure out which one is that) and Jules and I worked on Starr and Mr. Doodles. It was great snacking on M&M's and carving out masterpieces with them. I really do love the holidays. It is great to start the memories and really see the kids enjoy them.

Downtown Birthday Festivities!

What a fun day Sean and I had on his birthday. I was so excited to be able to do fun things and pull out fun surprises. I don't know what it is with me and surprises. I love to do it. It is almost more fun than getting presents. I said almost.
We had a great day starting off at IHOP for breakfast. It was the one thing we were able to do with the kids. They thought it was pretty cool to have four different syrup choices. Elijah tried the strawberry and blueberry. I have got to give him props for trying new things. He is not one to do that. He is alot like me in that way. He likes what he likes and doesn't try to go outside of that circle. He did go to the good ol' fashioned maple syrup thougth.



After breakfast, we picked up our babysitter and went back home. Sean and I jumped on our bikes and traveled downtown.

It was cool because I kept where we were going a secret until I didn't know where to go. I still didn't tell him the exact location until we arrived at Crocker Museum of Art. I hadn't been to an art museum in forever and I thought it would be a nice change from our usual movie date. Maybe it will make us more intellectual. We need all the help we can get. We spent a couple of hours there and decided our brains were going to explode from all the beauty. We rode all down the streets of Sacramento. We rarely get to tour that area. It is absolutly beautiful there. If I had a ton of money, I would live there in the fab 40's area. It is so Father of the Bride. The houses are picture perfect. Covered with trees and every house is different with so much character.


We passed by the State Capitol and wanted to take a pic of the the both of us. Sean asked some guy and he blatantly denied our request. So we flew solo on our Captiol photos.


We rode up to a resturant called Crepeville. It was a place that one of my clients told me about. It was DELICOUS! I got a chicken pesto crepe and Sean got Salsa crepe. It was really tasty. To top it off, Sean got a dessert crepe with bananas and Nutella. Sean thought he died and went to heaven. I was not into it, but if it made him happy that was what the day was all about.



They only thing that was hard was riding back home with a huge pit in my stomach. I think we rode about 20 miles that day. It was so fun to have a day just for us. I really do like my husband. Without kids and the stresses of work really does do something for our relationship. Not that I would give up either for the fun I had. It just makes you realize that taking those ditch days every once in a while really makes you realize that you do have that love and attraction for your other half. I know Sean enjoyed himself. The one thing I love about my hubby is he freely expresses his gratitude and it really dosen't take much to get it. All I had to do is get on a bike.

Eight Eyes??

My son loves seeing glasses. I don't know what it is but he always wants to wear them. When I was shopping for Sean for his birthday, I saw these glasses that were a little smaller so they tried them on and were hooked. It is almost amusing to someone who has perfect eyesight to envy someone who does not. Of course I had to buy some for Julianna as well. They both look pretty cute in them, I must admit.

Happy Birthday, Sean!

What to get a man who has everything? I dwelt on this birthday more than I thought I would. I didn't think we would make a big deal this year due to the fact that we got our new computer. But, there is one thing for sure, I like a good surprise. So, even though I didn't make a big deal out of some birthdays, I have chosen to make a big deal out of this one. So, Happy Birthday Sean!

I AM KIDNAPPING YOU FOR THE DAY! THAT'S RIGHT! YOU ARE NOT GOING TO WORK TODAY! DON'T WORRY ABOUT A THING! I THOUGHT A DAY OF UNDIVIDED ATTENTION FROM YOUR WIFE IS THE BEST THING I CAN GET YOU!

WHAT KIND OF DAY ARE WE GOING TO HAVE, YOU MIGHT ASK? WELL, A DAY OF EXPLORATION! A DAY WHERE WE JUMP ON OUR BIKE TO EXPLORE THE NATURE THAT WE ARE SO BLESSED TO LIVE IN. A DAY THAT WE CAN EXPLORE ART IN IT'S MOST BEAUTIFUL FORM FROM PEOPLE THAT KNOW WHAT THAT IS SUPPOSED TO LOOK LIKE. A DAY THAT WE CAN TRY NEW FOODS AND SEE THINGS IS A WHOLE NEW WAY. THAT'S RIGHT! I KNOW THE BIGGEST COMPLAINT THAT YOU HAVE OF ME IS THAT I TEND TO STAY WITHIN CERTAIN LIMITS. WELL, NOT TODAY. EVERYTHING WE DO TODAY WILL BE NEW TO BOTH OF US! SO, HERE'S TO NEW EXPERIENCES AND NEW MEMORIES!

I LOVE YOU SO MUCH! WITH EVERY PASSING YEAR I FEEL SO LUCKY TO HAVE SOMEONE BY MY SIDE WHO IS MY BEST FRIEND AND PARTNER. THINGS MAY GET ROCKY, BUT I KNOW YOU WILL ALWAYS BE THERE. NO MATTER WHAT! THAT IS THE GIFT YOU HAVE GIVEN TO ME EVERY DAY OF MY LIFE.

LOVE YOU,

COCO

Tribute to My Greatest Girls

Last night I was fully taken aback by my two friends, Beth and Jasmine. I have never met such caring, thoughtful people in all my life. They have truly given me the true gift of friendship. I feel so lucky to have them in my life.
Last night I had a date with Sean to go to the Temple. We had planned this early in the week so that we could be prepared when our date night arrived on Saturday night. We were planning to go to dinner at Mikuni ( my favorite sushi bar) , but at last minute decided to go to Chipotle, (my favorite Mexican fast food) . I was fully anticipating a night with my hubby and burritos, as I walked in the restaurant to only be surprised by my two other favorite people, Beth and Jasmine. They were dressed in dresses which was suprising to me and asked them if they were going to the Temple as well. They proceeded to tell me that they were kidnapping me for the night for my birthday. I was so confused. I looked at Sean and wondered if he was o.k. with this. He had a huge smile on his face and said that it was fine and that they had planned this all along. I was touched by so many factors of this event. First, that my hubby would give up a date night to share me with my two friends. Second, that they had planned this so carefully so I wouldn't find out. Thirdly, that they treated me to an awesome night of Filet Mignon and Tunes of the musical "Little Shop of Horrors," which is one of the musicals I grew up with and knew every single tune to. It was so much fun. I always have a great time with them and this night was no exception. I enjoyed it maybe for the simple fact that I may not have this for very much longer. Both Jazzers and Beth are in very transitional times in their life. I don't know how much longer it will be the way it was last night. The three of us have been a tight knit group since early this year and I know that the great things can't last forever. I know they may move on to different places, but the one thing that I pray for is that we will never lose what we have. The easiness of our friendship. The fun things we always do together, dinner at great resturants, yummy yougurt stops, delicious See's treats that I am now addicted to, road trips that leave us laughing so hard our side hurts, and watching our guilty pleasures on T.V. I have never had so much fun in my life and I have these two girls to thank for every minute. I have a promise that no matter where you both end up, I will do my part in keeping us as tight as we are today. I love you both and thank you for your unconditional love and friendship. You are truley the BEST!
Europe 2011!!!!

FOUR!!!

This was indeed a jam packed day. Julianna had a birthday party in Roseville, so I thought it would be a good opportunity to spend time with our son which doesn't happen very often. It is so weird when you have more than one child, you get so used to life with two. You are wired to have eyes in two different directions. Well, it is so nice to go to one child for an hour or two to experience some one on one time. I thought it was even better that both daddy and mommy were there to enjoy that time. Well, we thought mini golf would be a thing that would be fun to do. Elijah has never been and we thought it would be a good time to try since he seems athletic enough to get it. Well, the first couple of holes were a little rough, but by showing him how to hold the club, he quickly got the hang of it. By the 10 hole, he got a hole in one. You heard me, a HOLE IN ONE!!! I was shocked. Sports is his thing. He picks up everything. I love to see him grow into this independent kid who is bright and eager to learn new things. I am so proud of him. It was truly a great afternoon to be able to focus only on him. I love you, Elijah!

Children's Celebration at Fairytale Town!

Thank goodness for this stroller. I love having something I can lock the kids in when there are millons of others to watch out for. This is a dear friend Abella. Isn't she a doll?
Fun, Free, Fairytale Town


We could not get Jules off the Crooked Mile. When she has a little freedom, she runs wild with it. We are trying to work on that.


I have heard that there is a day that Fairytale town let people in for free, but either I didn't know about it or I just convinced myself that I didn't care enough to go because everyone else would know too and why would you want to go with everyone else in Sacramento. Well, I decided to join the rat race and go on Children's Celebration Day. It was nice that it was free. Everything was free too. So, to have a activity that was free and fun for the kids was an easy win for me. I am not a huge crowd lover. Usually that place is dead and can be pretty uneventful, but not today. It was actually a little stressful trying to keep an eye on your kids making sure that you don't lose them in the crowd. That is the part I hate, but when you see the look of thrill on their faces, it all seems worth it.
I actually have wonderful memories of Fairytale town when I was young. There wasn't many times that we hung out with my grandparents by ourselves, but when we did we would always take a trip to Fairytale town in Oakland. In one of thier rooms, they would have a drawer and we would find the magical keys that you would put in the machine to tell you the nursey rhyme or tale. It was so much fun. I can't believe how old that place is. Some things trannscend through time. I like that I can take my kids there for the same fun and magic.