California, Part 2 - Mendocino

After leaving lunch in Tiberon, we started the three hour drive north to Mendocino.  After getting up so early and flying out, this drive is kind of tough.  There are a lot of winding roads through huge forests and along the coast; the end is definitely worth it!  I love this town.  I would gladly spend many, many days here.  I was sold as soon as the innkeepers said temperatures are 45 to 75 year round.  How perfect is that? 

We made it!

I truly can't decide what my favorite thing about Mendocino is...see if you can help me decide.  Is it the adorable Agate Cove Inn where we stay?

 Is it the comfortable seating with fireplace in our room?

 Maybe it's the sunset view from our room's back porch.

 The amazing homemade breakfasts are a definite plus.  This picture is me enjoying hot chocolate with breakfast.  One morning we were given a delicious blueberry and cream cheese bread pudding, southwestern quiche and melon, and the other morning it was a poached pear, potato quiche and fresh peach slices.  Again, homemade and delicious.

 Who am I kidding?  You know laying in a hammock and enjoying this view has to be one of my favorite activities!

 We couldn't get over the view; this is what we looked at from our breakfast table.  We enjoyed wine and cheese outside in the Adirondacks here one afternoon too.

 How can you not love the gardens around the Inn too?  I love the soothing sound of this fountain.

 The garden statues are adorable too.

 The flowers are like nothing I have seen.

 How beautiful is this?

 The wildflowers are pretty awesome too!

 So that's just at the Inn.  How can you not love that place?  Then you head into town.  By the way, it's where the tv show "Murder, She Wrote" was filmed if you're familiar with that.  Isn't it a quaint little place?  We visited lots of cute shops...the bookstore, the jam shop, the holiday store; I love it!

 I loved these flowers outside one of the shops.  Aren't they cool?

 Ryan found this beautiful flower too.

 We enjoyed several good meals too.  One dinner was at Albion River Inn and the other was at 955 Ukiah.  Both very yummy!

 Mom and Dad loved it too.

Such a great place to visit.  I truly can't wait to go back someday!

California, Part 1 - We've Arrived!

Our trip finally arrived!  Back in 2005, Ryan and I travelled with my parents on a California vacation.  Soon after we returned, Ryan and I begin talking about how fun it would be to go back.  So, in June, we surprised Mom and Dad for their birthday; we are treating them to a return trip!  They couldn't believe it!  It thrilled us to see how excited they were, and we have had fun making plans ever since.  Finally, on Saturday, August 25, the four of us headed out West.  We had decided to follow pretty much the same path that we had taken before since Mom and Dad have made this trip several times and have always loved it.  We arrived in San Francisco, headed up to Mendocino for two nights, drove down to Napa for three nights and then ended with three nights in Sausalito.  It was an amazing trip!  

 

We arrived in San Francisco after a nice Delta flight.  Ryan and Dad picked up our rental car, and we headed across the Golden Gate Bridge to Tiberon.  This is a beautiful little town that sits right on the bay.  On a clear day, you have a beautiful view across the bay of San Francisco.  We headed straight to Sam's Anchor Bar.  It doesn't look like much when you arrive; in fact, you walk through a bar to get to their balcony.  It's worth it though because the views you can get are wonderful.  Unfortunately, it was a little overcast when we arrived so our bay view wasn't fantastic, but it was still a nice day to be out.  We all love the cool bay weather!  Here's the view of the marina while we were eating.

 Leave it to California to provide some unique entertainment while you enjoy a meal!  While we were eating, a man strapped on his jet pack backpack and start swirling all around the marina.  It was pretty fun to watch; we haven't seen anything like it before!

 This last picture is purely in because of the giggles it gave Mom and me.  When we left Atlanta, it was hot.  We knew it would be cooler on the bay but everything was packed and we didn't have everything within easy reach.  Ryan, Mom and I threw a little jacket on, but Dad couldn't find his so he put on what he had.  A long-sleeve gray shirt covered up by a short-sleeve red shirt topped with a green sleeveless vest.  It cracked us up, so I had to snap this picture and post it just because it makes me smile!

After lunch, we started the drive up to Mendocino.  We're officially on vacation!

Happy 34th Birthday Ryan!

Happy 34th birthday to my wonderful husband today!  So how did Ryan spend the day?  He started out by having breakfast with his best friend, Brian.  From there he came home to hang out with Mia while I went to work; they played all morning and then enjoyed Steak and Shake for lunch.  After picking Lily up from school a little while later, the three of them went to Chuck E Cheese.  Not the place you would expect an adult to spend a birthday, but he knows how much the girls love it, and few things make him happier than seeing his girls excited and loving life!  I came home after work and we gave Ryan his birthday present: 4 tickets to an upcoming Braves' game.  This is Chipper Jones' last season and Ryan really wanted to see him play one more time.  I was able to get some great seats just up from 3rd base!  After that, we fixed a quick dinner for the girls, and then I headed out with Mia to her soccer practice while he took Lily to hers.  It was after bedtime by the time everyone got home, but I gave the girls showers and dried their hair and let him relax.  The girls have gone to bed, and Ryan has run to Dominos to pick up a pizza for us.  Maybe not the most exciting birthday he has had, but a nice one.  Here's to another great year!

15 Years

Wow.  Ryan and I met each other 15 years ago today.  We have his friend Kyle to thank for the introduction.  See, when I started at Samford, I knew two people.  However, both of them were in sororities, and with Rush going on, they weren't supposed to talk to me.  So, one week into school, I didn't have many people to talk to.  I had checked my mailbox and was on the way to my Pre-Calculus class that morning.  Ryan and Kyle were in that class as well, and Kyle and I had been assigned to work together in a group.  I ran into them on the way there, and Kyle and I started talking (yay, I had someone to talk with!).  He introduced me to Ryan, and the rest, as they say, is history.  We went on our first date later that evening after the Samford / Furman football game.  Never would we have imagined that evening what life would be like 15 years later.  It's better than we ever could have imagined.  As we have said many times, we may not be perfect, but we're perfect together.  God had a plan, and we are so grateful it brought the two of us together! 

Cute Picture

I thought this was a cute pictures of the girls that Ryan snapped with his phone this evening.  After dinner and a visit with Meme, we decided to let Ryan treat the girls to frozen yogurt while I ran into Publix for a few things.  Needless to say, they were pretty happy with that choice!

One Thumbsucker is (Mostly) Done!

Both of my girls are thumb suckers...always have been.  An ultrasound picture showed Lily sucking her thumb.  I couldn't get either of them to take a pacifier; their thumbs have always soothed them.  There are some definite pros to this when they are younger, but now, ugh, it's just frustrating!  We have been trying to figure out what to do to get them to stop.

 

We made a discovery with Mia.  If she wasn't holding Glowie (her Glow Worms, of which she has three), she didn't suck her thumb.  It is only when she holds Glowie.  So, about a month or so ago, a new rule came into play: Glowie must stay in bed.  No more car rides or playing in the playroom...only bedtime.  For a couple of weeks, Mia tried to sneak her out every now and then, but mostly she stuck to the rule.  And you know what?  She hasn't been sucking her thumb.

 

So, a few days ago, Ryan and I upheld our end of the bargain for when the girls stop sucking their thumb.  We took Mia to the Disney Store at Town Center and told her to pick out whatever she wanted.  We figured she couldn't pick anything more expensive than braces!  While she walked around and pointed to everything (seriously, everything) in the store and said "I want that," she gravitated to a few items that we rewarded her with.  First, a little plastic Minnie Mouse camera.  Second, a Captain Hook dress-up outfit (they had just brought out all of their Halloween costumes), Third, a pirate sword and hook.  Fourth, a set of interchangeable hooks for Captain Hook.  Here she is all decked out!

She loves it!  I have to say, she's pretty stinkin' cute too, isn't she?  She has carried that sword around all evening today.  She even took it when we went to visit my grandmother.  She loves pretending to be a pirate!

Now, I realize that she holds her Glowie and sucks her thumb at night, but I'm okay with that.  It's comforting and it helps her sleep.  But during the day, there's no thumb coming near her mouth, and I love it!  Yea Mia!

First Day of School!

Summer came to a close this week as school started back.  We had a great summer, but I think we're all glad to be back into a routine.  About two weeks ago, Lily received a postcard in the mail letting her know that Mrs. Worrell had moved up to Kindergarten and would be her teacher.  Lily could not have been more excited!  Several times during the summer she said she didn't want to go to Kindergarten because she wanted Mrs. Worrell to be her teacher again.  When we gave her the good news, and she got over the disbelief that her dreams had come true, she literally fell over backwards with excitement! 

Last Thursday was "sneak-a-peek" so we all went to the school to see her room, take her supplies, catch up with old friends, meet new families and of course, give Mrs. Worrell a big hug.  I'm not exaggerating when I say Lily stayed by her side the whole time.  She just wanted to be near her.  I made her give Mrs. Worrell a break when it was time for the school picnic, but that wasn't easy.  After the picnic, Lily and Mia chased Mr. Worrell around in a game of tag; at one point, they chased him back into the classroom, and he was locked in the class bathroom!  He was a great sport, and we appreciate the love both Mr. and Mrs. Worrell show to the girls.

All weekend, Lily couldn't wait for school to start.  On Sunday afternoon, she made this card for Mrs. Worrell.

 On the inside she wrote (translated): Dear Mrs. Worrell.  I hope you are excited too.  See you soon."

 She couldn't wait to give her that card and a big red apple (Mrs. Worrell's favorite snack) on Monday morning!

We snapped a few pictures before heading out, and this one is my favorite.  I made a sign that says "First Day of Kindergarten.  When I Grow Up, I Want To Be:" and then I filled in Lily's answer: "A Babysitter."

 Of course, we had to snap a picture with Mrs. Worrell once we arrived!

 Monday was a half-day for the whole school.  Ryan and I picked her up, and we surprised her with a lunch date at her favorite restaurant: Veni Vidi Vici.

 The first week has gone great for Lily.  Tuesday was a half day as well, and then she has been going full-time (until 2:40) since Wednesday.  When I asked her on Wednesday what her favorite part of all-day Kindergarten is, she quickly replied "lunch!"  Last year they only ate snacks since she left at noon, but this year, she loves that I pack her a lunch each day.  I'm glad one of us loves that!

Mia started to school (2 day a week, Parent Morning Out program) on Tuesday.  I will be honest, I was terrified of how it would go.  Mia had a horrific experience at "school" last year; it was so bad, we pulled her out mid-year.  Unfortunately, when you mention "school" to her, she thinks of the bad experiences she had.  She would get upset, ask if the same kids would be there, say she doesn't want to go, etc.  Last Thursday was her "sneak-a-peek" as well.  As we walked in, she started crying and begging Ryan and me not to leave her.  She refused to talk to any of the adults.  I pulled the lead teacher aside at one point to explain what happened and let her know that this is not typical Mia.  I did not have very high hopes for the first few days.

On Tuesday morning though, we saw an answer to prayer.  Mia was excited and happy about going to school.  I made a sign for her like I did for Lily that said "First Day Of 3 Year Old PMO.  When I Grow Up, I Want To Be:" and Mia responded "A Real Superhero."  She also told me "You can call me Captain America then."

 She loves getting to carry her bag!  She is also very excited to see what I pack for lunch each day.  She has requested strawberries each day.

 When I picked her up on Tuesday afternoon, Mia was happy as can be.  She told me how much fun she had coloring, and she enjoyed watching Veggie Tales because it was too rainy for the playground.  She couldn't wait for Thursday to arrive so she could go back! 

I surprised Mia with a trip to a new yogurt shop to celebrate her first day back at school.  Ryan then surprised her later in the afternoon with a Daddy Daughter date to Chuck E Cheese.  Needless to say, Mia was quite happy about both of these treats!

I think this is going to be a great year for both girls!

Mia Melts My Heart

Mia made me melt the other day.  She found a little bunny sticker, and she brought it over to me.  She said "I'm giving this to you because you're the best mommy in the whole world."  I couldn't help but scoop her up for a big hug!

Lily's Writing

This picture may be a little difficult to read, but I wanted to share it.  Lily and Mia set up "school" this morning (by dissembling the fort they had built yesterday...love their imagination!), and Lily wrote this by herself for Mia.  Here's the explanation of what's on the picture:

I asked Lily why there were all the "v" letters across the top; she told me those were checkmarks that she gave Mia each time she answered one of Lily's questions.

Under the checkmarks is a joke that Lily wrote out.  Here's how it went:  Knock knock. Who's there? The kid.  The kid who?  MIA

Here is Lily's phoentic spelling of that joke: Ka Nock Hoo ther Cid the cid hoo MIA

Then there are four questions listed out that Lily plans to ask Mia.  Those questions are:

Wut Doo You Doo Wi You Et  (What do you do when you eat?)

Wut Doo You Doo Wi You Ceen  (What do you do when you clean?)

Wut Doo You Doo Wi You Reed  (What do you do when you read?)

Wut Doo You Doo Wi You Play  (What do you do when you play?)

I love that Lily is working so hard on her reading and writing skills!

White Water Fun

We headed back to White Water today with our friends, Julia, Vivi and Claudia Rohan.  Vivi is six and Claudia just turned three, so the girls are at great ages to play together.  What a fun day!  Finally, Ryan and I remembered to bring a camera, so we were able to snap a few pictures too.

Our girls before heading onto the playground.

Claudia having fun on the splash pad.

Vivi (with Lily getting ready to go behind her), Claudia and Mia having fun on the little slides.

Our girls in the wave pool.

Julia with two of her girls (Evelyn stayed at home since she's just over 1) in the wave pool.

Mia was worn out!

This was a great day.  The girls had a lot of fun playing with one another, while the three adults enjoyed catching up.  I hate that summer is coming to a close quickly, and these fun, lazy days will be gone for awhile.

NSB - Other Happenings

I've added a few other pictures from our time in New Smyrna that didn't fit into the last two blog entries.  In addition to all the family, pool and beach time, here's some of the fun we had.

Sid organized a family tennis tournament which Caroline and Brandon eventually won.  There were 18 people who played which made for lots of fun smack-talk!  I didn't play on Monday, but Emily had to leave town early to get back for cheerleading camp, so I took her place and played with Sid against Robin and Michael.  I grew up playing tennis competitively, but I probably haven't played since I was 16...that's been awhile.  I had forgotten just how much fun it is!  Here's a picture Ryan took from the 4th floor grandstands.  That's me on the near court in blue.

Lily made this trophy for me to celebrate our victory.

A picture of all the great-grandchildren in attendance for hot dog day (one of my favorite days of the year).  We had a few families who weren't able to make it down this year for various reasons, so this isn't all the kids, but it's most of them.  Such sweethearts!

Mom and Dad with their five grandkids.

All of us that were there this year.  A smaller group than usual, but we had a great time!

Sweet girls loving on one another.

On Thursday evening, Ryan, Liz, the girls and I headed into Daytona Beach for dinner at Bubba Gump's.  Honestly, Mama's Southern Fried Shrimp is one of my favorite meals to eat, so we took advantage of being so close to one.  Delicious as always!

After dinner, we headed next door to the movie theatre to watch "Ice Age: Continental Drift."  It was a cute movie.  Both girls love the Ice Age series, so we knew we had to go see the 4th installment in the theatre.  This was such a fun evening.

Here's Mia showing off her treasure map that Ryan made one morning and part of the treasure she found: gold chocolate coins!

Lily with her treasure map and coins; both girls loved that Ryan hit treasure in the condo and then had them find it!

One evening, I took the girls out to the beach where they had a great time playing with glow wands from Kelsey's birthday party.  Lily's was pink with a heart at the end while Mia's was blue and looked like a pirate's sword.  They chased each other around while pretending to be Captain Hook and Peter Pan or Wendy.  They laughed a lot when I pretended to be the alligator who chomped after them.  They loved waving the wands around so Bama could see them up on the balcony, especially since she was waving a regular glow stick back towards them.  I love just playing and having fun with these two sweet girls!  Their laughs make me smile!

NSB - Family Fun

While we were in New Smyrna, we seized the opportunity to visit with some of Ryan's family who live nearby. 

On Monday afternoon, we drove up to St. Augustine to visit our cousins, Emily, Brian and Kate.  The girls were so excited to meet Kate, who is 2 1/2 years old.  They loved playing with her toys, and then they were thrilled to get to play in the swimming pool at their house.  Of course, Ryan and I loved watching the girls play together and catching up with Emily and Kate.  We enjoyed dinner together, one (or two) of Emily's oreo cupcakes and then headed back down.  This was such a fun afternoon and evening.  We're working on convincing them to move up to Smyrna so we can hang out together more often!

When we left New Smyrna on Saturday morning, we drove over to Lakeland so we could visit with Grandpa Hooks and Lois.  They both seemed to be doing well, and we thoroughly enjoyed our visit.  We spent a lot of time talking about travel which is something that excites all of us.  They have taken some amazing trips!  Now if we can just get Grandpa to write that book he keeps promising, so we can learn more about his fascinating life!

I know they loved their visits with the girls, but I think we wore them out!  Several times they noted how much energy these two have!

We were so thankful to have the opportunity to catch up with our Florida family!