Thursday, October 4, 2012

First Day of School 2012!

It gets harder for me to believe each year how fast my babies are growing up! I remember like it was yesterday taking Cameron to Kindergarten and now he is 3rd Grade! If that wasn't hard enough for me Ashley started Kindergarten this year! I treasure each year as it goes by as I know they are starting to speed up!!

Cameron started just a couple of days before Ashley this year so I will start with him first!

Mr. 3rd Grader!
 
Breakfast with sis!
 
"Mom please can we go now":)
 
Cameron and Ashley
 
 
Ashley's first day of Kindergarten!
 
So cute!
 
Relaxing before school!
 
 
Ready for the walk across the street to school!
 
My two babies!!
 
Ashley and Mrs. Leeper!
 
No crying mom!

Nana and Papa!

Since we have moved to Colorado my parents have come out for 3 weeks each summer to come and visit with us. It is so much fun having them here and I treasure the time I get to spend with them when they are here. They now have their own routine when they come, made up with trips to Starbucks, golf, the library, the bookstore and they find fun side trips for exploring. Jeff and I also got some date nights as well as an overnight out for our anniversary! Mostly I love just having my parents here and just hanging out! It always breaks my heart when they leave! Here are some pictures from their visit!

My dad loves projects and this time he decided to enlist the grandkids! Here are Papa, Cameron and Ashley moving rocks to create a new look for the yard! It looks great and they all did such a great job (especially in the heat).

Papa and Ashley (note Ashley's cheerleader outfit and sun hat)!
 
The crew on the second day gathering rocks!
 
 
Papa and Cameron:)
 
Nana and her fashionista twin Ashley!
 
Cameron and Papa hanging out!
 
My brother was on judging one of the episodes of the Glee Project and we all got to camp out and watch Uncle Ross! So fun!!
 
The crew! We love you!!
 
When my parents were here Jeff and I got away for a overnight out to celebrate our 13 year Anniversary! I am so thankful to share my life with my best friend and that we still have as much fun together as when we first met! We had a great weekend out in Boulder, I told my mom that we are going for two nights next year:)
 
 
 
Relaxing and hanging out; ahhhh so nice!:)
 
 
We stopped at this beautiful European shop in Boulder and actually got to look around (something we would have not been able to do with kids:)
 
Can't wait to see you all at Christmas!
 
 

 
 

Sunday, August 26, 2012

Road Trip 2012

Go fill up your coffee because this is going to be long post!!! So many fun memories, I couldn't leave any out!!

Our summer trip this year was amazing! We got to see family, friends and experience so many great things! 10 days, 7 states equals a blast!

After heading through Wyoming, Utah and Nevada we headed into to California and the Bay Area for our first stop!

We had the best time with the Cintels/Nortons! From camping in the backyard, Talbot's toy store, a trip on the train, Gilroy Gardens and just lots of family hangout time it was in one word, perfect! The cousins loved every moment of the trip and Jeff and I loved that we got to hang out with our cutie nephew, Myles!! I just loved each part of the four days we were there, can't wait until the holidays when we get to all be together again!!! Love all of you!

Every time we head to Grandma and Grandpa's, Grandpa puts together a scavenger hunt for the grandkids! When they find all of their clues they receive a very special prize, a gift card to Talbot's Toy store!! Check out these cuties on a mission!

Finding clues!

Excited for more!

Myles and Ashley hunting for clues!

Ashley and Cameron helping Myles find his last clue:)


At Talbot's!
Who is having more fun, Uncle Jeff or the kids:)

Waiting for our favorite train!!

We then headed back to the house for the afternoon and some backyard fun!

Trucks and Dirt!

Myles and Cameron!!:)

Then it was time to celebrate Cameron's birthday with a big dinner and a special Grandma strawberry pie!

That night we camped in the backyard! This is the best kind of camping, outdoors but if you need to use the restroom you just go in the house:)


The next day we headed on the Caltrain down to Palo Alto for the day! The Caltrain is not only one of Cameron's favorite things but my nephew Myles loves it!!!!  It was so cute to see all three of the cousins excited about the entire experience!


Ashley loves her cousin!!

Uncle, Cameron and Myles checking out the sites!

The gang!

My two cuties!

Grandma and the kids!

Look at this cute couple!!

Myles after some peanut butter ice cream, yummy!!

Sometimes you just want to take it easy and get a ride:)

The boys discussing fun adventures!:)

Daddy and Cameron!

Love!

The next day we headed off to Gilroy Gardens! A great kid's amusement park about an hour south of San Mateo! My sister-in-law Jen, has been taking Myles there for a while and we were so excited to finally get to experience it! We had such a great day! Cameron and Ashley got to ride a roller coaster and Cameron even went on a ride that I myself would not have gotten on! I was so proud of him!


Ready for some fun!

Ready for the rides!

Ashley enjoying her first ride of the day!

Auntie and Cameron on the roller coaster!

Ashley and Auntie!!:)

This train was not as big as the Caltrain but just as fun!!:)

After a great day we headed back to the Norton's house for some pizza and smores! It was a great way to end out the day!
 Look at these three!

This should be an annual photo! The kids love Xena!

On our final day in the Bay area we decided to take the kids up to the city and then over to Marin for a little sightseeing!

First stop was Candlestick Park!! One of Cameron's favorite places. The guy in the ticket area even gave the kids lots of 49ers treasure! So fun!

Cameron in the zone!

Jeff and I love the show Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives! Jeff was so excited to check out Tommy's Joynt since it was on the show! It has been around forever and serves some pretty big portions! It was yummy. I am hoping we can see some more places from the show!

We then headed over to Marin to check out the Bay Model and Sausalito! It was a beautiful day; perfect for crossing over the Golden Gate!





Our last stop was at the Marin Marine Mammal Center! They take in sick seal lions and seals and nurse them back to health! Ashley loves seeing anything to do with animals so this was a special treat to see them on the mend!

We had the best time in San Mateo!!!! Filled with new memories and adventures to come:) Can't wait to see you all at Christmas! 

We love you all!!

Back on the road and down to SoCal! First we were meeting my brother at Downtown Disney for the night for dinner. When he got there he said instead of going for dinner we were going to the park!!!! What a special surprise!! It was an amazing night running around Disneyland until midnight! The kids loved every minute of hanging out with Uncle Ross at Disney! It was really cute to see their faces light up with every ride. Cameron kept smiling at my brother and saying it was the best night ever!! They have already started planning all the rides they want to go on next summer:)

Checking out the sites and sounds of Downtown Disney.

Cameron's favorite place, the Lego store:)

Heading into the park:) I don't have a picture of me jumping up and down:)

Ashley and Daddy on Pirates!

Cameron and Uncle Ross before the Haunted Mansion! My brother's favorite!

After Splash Mountain, Ashley did great! I got soaked:)


 


Me and my brother:)
Uncle Ross and the kids in front of Small World!

The next day we headed down to our old stomping grounds in San Diego to see some of our friends! We first stopped off for lunch with the Ricchio's! We had a great time! We headed over for some park time before we had to leave! We miss you guys!!:)

Look at these cuties!

Best Buddies!

Ella and Cameron:)

Love ya!

We then headed over to our great friends the Weber's! It just happened that they were moving on the same day we were visiting! I was just glad we got to see them and hang out for a little bit!! We miss you guys and can't wait to see you in December!

The gang:)

Pierce and Cameron playing Star Wars!

The girls! So cute:)

We had one last stop on our grand tour, Arizona!! Before we headed off to see my best friend Liz and her family we stopped for the night in Palm Springs! With my parents in Denver at our house it was funny to be hanging out at there house without them:) Off to Phoenix!

We decided to stay at a resort with the Dunnigan's! Sean found a great one and we got to hang out at the pool all afternoon!

Ashley and Cameron loving the pool!

Miss Cara!

Look at these cuties trying out their skills at Pac-Man!

A serious game:)

The girls had a blast hanging out and playing dress up! So cute:)

Cameron and Connor!
Miss you tons already!! See you at Christmas:)

To say this trip was a great trip would be a major understatement! We got to see and do so many fun things! The best part was seeing all of you! We love you all and can't wait for our next road trip!