No More Training Wheels!

This weekend was really great.  The whole weekend! Friday, Shane got off work early. We picked up Natalie from school and went straight to Costco. That in itself is fun for me. :) After Costco we grabbed dinner and then took the girls to the park. Shane decided it was time for Natalie to learn to ride her bike without training wheels. I was so shocked. She picked it up so quickly! She was riding after just a few tries. She just couldn't figure out how to stop. She would be doing great and then just stop peddling, fall over and cry. 

 The next morning we split up. Shane took Heidi to run some errands and I took Natalie to the mall to buy her some winter clothes. That girl is getting taller and taller everyday and none of her clothes fit! I waited as long as I could to get her some warmer clothes and finally decided to go once I got a great coupon for Crazy8. We found so many cute outfits and had such a great Mommy/Natalie morning. We stopped by Starbucks and sat together talking while she ate her cake pop and I drank my coffee. It was just perfect. Then we met Shane and Heidi at Five Guys for lunch before heading back to the park. Heidi didn't like that Natalie got to ride a bike without training wheels and she didn't so we took hers off too. Seriously...she picked it up right away too! Both of the girls did really great! 

 Cake pops at Starbucks and a full bag full of clothes. :)

 I forgot my sunglasses at home so I borrowed Heidi's

 Lunch with Daddy

 Heidi with no training wheels!

Then this morning we took them to a different park. This one had paths for them to bike on instead of just grass. Natalie did not want to go on the sidewalk! She was scared to death of falling and getting hurt. Shane worked with the girls and after about 20 minutes they were racing down the sidewalk! I have to say it's a weird feeling to teach your first born (and second) how to ride a bike. It made me feel so old! My girls are so big!

 After naps I was feeling kind of blah and decided to go for a run. We put the kids in the car and drove across the street to the highschool and used their track. Shane and I ran and the girls rode their bikes. So fun!! The girls went around and around. They didn't fall much and when the did they just got back up and kept going. When we were done we pulled out some kites from the back of the car. The girls were so excited! They have never flown kites before...me neither actually! Natalie's kite worked perfectly but the one I got Heidi just didn't want to stay in the air. 

 Natalie went first and her's was really easy

 It stayed up in the air the whole time!

 Heidi was next but her's didn't work so well

 I got a good picture from the 2 seconds it was in the air :)

We had so much fun together. My girls would say..."This was the best day ever." 

October in a Nutshell :)

I've been so bad at blogging lately! I love to take pictures of the girls and our life....usually with my phone. But when I actually have the time to put them all on here I usually find other things to do instead. :) So...here is a recap of the month of October.

 Our oven broke the day before Heidi's birthday. It took 2 weeks for an oven repairman to come see it and only 10 minutes for him to tell me it was fried and that I should buy a new one. Yikes! Our new one is pretty cool though and very pretty. :) It even has convection which I have no clue how to use!

 I also made strawberry jam for the first time. I didn't have all the canning equipment to cook it so I made freezer jam. Don't think it turned out how it was supposed to but I'm not really sure because I never made it before! It tastes good but it didn't really set. I will definitely try it again though!

 I love instagram! It takes my adorable pictures of the girls and makes them even cuter. :) 

 Natalie learned to tie her shoes! They are having a contest at her school right before they take Thanksgiving break and if you can tie your own shoes you get a prize. She really really wanted to learn and get her prize. :) I showed her two times and she figured it out. For some reason...probably from watching too many movies...I thought it would be a long drawn out process involving tears. Thankfully, not for us!! 

 A girls night that ended in ice cream at Baskin Robins. Yum!

 I looked over and Heidi was laying on the floor, singing to Violet. So cute!

 Shane and I went on a date night last weekend. We went to the ceramic art place and made Christmas stuff. The whole place was empty and we had a great time. Then we went to Bonefish to use our gift cards and had the best dinner. We both got specials instead of our usuals. Shane got seared tuna and I got panko orange roughy topped with crab. YUM!! 

 And while we were gone Gracie was the best babysitter ever!  

 We had family dinner night the other night and my mom made a lasagna big enough to feed a small army! Seriously...there were 13 people and we only ate 1/4 of the pan! It was amazing!!

  

 The weather has been absolutely amazing around here lately! The girls play outside whenever they can. There is seriously nothing sweeter than to see them swinging together. It makes a momma's heart happy!

 Today, Heidi and I met my parents at Steak N Shake for lunch. It just opened and none of us had ever been to one. It was super busy but it was much better than I thought it would be. I thought it was like a McDonalds but it was much better. We had a really nice time. :)

 We went to the pumpkin patch tonight after Shane got home from work and my camera battery died after ONE picture! I couldn't believe it. So messed up!! At least the one I got was a good one! I used my iphone after that because Heidi was feeling like posing for me. She kept running around to different spots asking me to take her picture. I love it when my girls are like that!

I made the best dinner ever tonight! I found the recipe on pinterest...what do you know?? It's called Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos and they are super easy and super yummy. I also made some pretty awesome guacamole too. Avocado, purple onion, tomato, cilantro, sour cream and kosher salt. :) 

Honoring Uncle Reuben

Shane and I were able to go out to California for Uncle Reuben's funeral this past weekend. (Thank you Aunt Marilyn!) It was such an amazing time and I am so happy we were able to go. We were there for the beautiful ceremony at their church and then after that we went to the cemetery where he was to be buried. I think that was the most special part for me. It was a military cemetery and 6 marines carried the coffin to the site. The Major escorted Marilyn and we all walked behind them. The marines all saluted the flag that was draped over Uncle Reuben's coffin. There was so much honor and respect given by these young men who didn't even know him. After they folded the flag and each saluted it again, the Major got down on his knee in front of Marilyn and thanked her for her father's service to his country and said how sorry he was for her loss. It was so moving and so special! Everyone was in tears. We all saluted the flag as they played the military taps and then they did a 21 gun salute. I only knew Uncle Reuben for a little over 10 years but he was a great man and and he made my life better for knowing him. 

 These Marines came to the church to pay their respects.

 

 Justin, Joel, Jon, Josh, Rich and Shane carrying the coffin into the church.

Sabrina made this poster of Uncle Reuben. 

After both ceremonies we had a great time being with all the family. So many people that we hardly ever get to see! We stayed up late talking and having fun. The next morning Shane, Joel and I woke up early and went to see Isabelle play soccer. So much fun!! She was awesome and did amazing. :) Then we went to brunch at this place in Old Town Pasadena. It's called Barney's Beanery. Kind of a hole in the wall sports bar but seriously...the best omelette in the whole world! I don't even like eggs and I haven't been able to stop thinking about this thing since we went! If you ever go...get the California omelette...A-MA-ZING!! :) Anyway...you know me and my food. It makes me very happy. :) Speaking of happy...we also went to In N Out, Chipotle, Del Taco and Thrifty's for some ice cream. :)

The best combo ever! 

I also snuck in a super quick visit to see my best friends brand new baby. So cute!! 

Mermaid Birthday Party

I had so much fun this year getting ready for Heidi's birthday. Pinterest made me crazy! There are so many fun ideas on there. Some were too expensive or took too much time so I kind of took all the ideas I found and made my own stuff. It turned out great!

I found some cool clip art online and made her little invitations

 I found these jellyfish on pinterest...they turned out so cute!

 I wanted it to feel like we were under the sea so I hung blue and aqua streamers on the ceiling. I hung blue balloons, little paper fish, and jelly fish from the ceiling. 

 I made the paper fish out of cardstock. This guy is my favorite. :)

 I used seashells that the girls had collected from the beach this summer and glued them to a wood frame from Michaels. Then I just spray painted them white. I wanted everyone to have a cute picture of Heidi to take home with them. :)

 I'm so proud of the cake I made. I love the look of fondant but that takes WAY too much work for me. I found a recipe in a Glamour magazine for a strawberry cake with real strawberries inside and decided to make a checkerboard cake with that and vanilla cake. I used whip cream frosting for the filling and buttercream for the frosting. I put graham crackers in a food processer and used it for sand. I used the clip art I found online and printed it on cardstock, then I cut it out and just stuck it to the cake. I also found cute little candy eyeballs for the fish and used pearl decorations for the bubbles. 

 This is the back

 I found this cute pirate map at the Party Store. I hung it in front of the fireplace and it was a great back drop for opening presents. :)

 Natalie, Heidi and Nokie

 Natalie loved all the gifts Heidi got. :)

 We got Heidi a bicycle for her birthday and she was so excited! 

 She said this was her favorite part of the day...when everyone sang happy birthday to her. :)

The cake turned out really yummy. I'll have to post the recipe for the strawberry cake soon!

With my girls.

The party turned out to be so fun! The kids had a blast. We had really good food. Shane grilled hot dogs and we had a ton of fun toppings. My oven broke the day before the party so I had to make the side dishes and then run them to my families' houses to bake in their ovens. Even with all the craziness, it was a really nice day. I love celebrating birthdays. I love making a big deal out of them. It's important to me that my kids know how special they are and how happy we are that they are in our lives!