Ellie's Birthday

Ellie turned 2 on March 20th! What a lucky girl she is...she had two parties. One with Bill's family & one with my family. We went to the beach, had a bon fire, & Smores. On Easter I had a Easter dinner, Birthday cake & Ice Cream. Yum! What a fun b-day!

Greg & Alycia visit Cali...

Greg(Bill's brother) Alycia, Gabriel, Sierra, & Sam came to visit. We haven't seen them in almost two years. We had a lot of fun while they were down. We went to Disneyland, to the beach, and had Easter on Friday so that the cousins could die Easter eggs, have an Easter Egg Hunt, & a big feast!

Day Hike

We love to go outdoors whenever we can.

Count your Blessings.

I just wanted to thank everyone for your prayers on our behalf while Bill was in the hospital. I know that the only reason that Bill is back at school, coaching soccer, and being a great dad is because of the faith and prayers of our family and friends.

Pumkin Patch!

On Saturday the fires and the smoke had finally cleared up enough to take the kids to a pumpkin patch. The kids had so much fun. Bates Nut Farm had hay rides, pony rides, and a maze. We looked for the perfect big mac pumpkin for over an hour. Ellie had a lot of fun riding in the wheel barrow. We finally found an 88lb pumpkin! It is huge. We also let the kids pick another pumpkin for carving tonight for Family Home Evening.

Ellie!

Here are some pictures of Ellie...She is almost 18 months now and becoming her own person. She is strong willed, full of energy and love.

Giants Game...

We went to Petco Park to watch the Giants play the Padres. Let's just say they lost...hopefully next season will be better. Everybody had fun! We went with my parents and my brother David. We had hot dogs, peanuts, cotton candy. We even got Free Padres hats...Anybody want one? Hehe. Just kidding. GO GIANTS!

Disneyland!

One of my kids favorite places to go. Our passes have been blocked all summer. So we went as soon as we could. Jared must have grown over summer because he can go on all of the rides except indian jones. So he went on Thunder Mountain Railroad (one of my favorites) and Splash mountain for the first time. I love going to Disneyland, especially while my kids are this age its so much fun experiencing it through their eyes.

Beach!

We went to the beach over Labor Day weekend. It was so much fun. Rachel and Jared tried boogie boarding, Rachel was catching her own waves, I would take Jared out and he would say"Turn me around mom...it's the perfect wave." Even Ellie loved the water, she got knocked over by a wave...Oops! It was just a nice relaxing afternoon.

Soccer!

We have jumped into soccer...Jared and Rachel are both playing soccer for the first time. Bill decided to volunteer to be Jared's coach and because Bill was Jared's coach I became team mom by default. So we are involved in soccer 5 days a week. Jared is having a lot of fun, especially showing off his battle wounds. Jared's last game he almost scored 3 times but barely missed, he also got shoved going after the ball and ended up on the ground. At quarter he came over and told me that he got grass in his mouth. Rachel hasn't found her passion for soccer yet, she played forward for two quarters and her coach said she did outstanding but Rachel said it was boring. If anybody has any suggestions on how to get her excited, I'm open for suggestions. Bill is enjoying coaching, the hardest part about coaching 4 & 5 years olds is keeping their attention for more than 5 seconds. Hehe.

Jared's 1st Day of School

Jared started preschool last week. We are doing a co-op this year. I am really happy with the moms that I am able to do it with. Jared is very excited and asks to go everyday. He is learning to write his name and loves to learn the songs.

Rachel's 1st Day of School

Rachel loves 1st grade. She is adjusting well to her new school. Miss Griffin(her teacher) is very positive and encouraging. When I picked Rachel up on the 3rd day of school I asked her how her day was, she said, "Mom...It was perfect, everyday is going to be a perfect day." Rachel is also learning to love reading.

Camping

We went camping at Sequoia National Park. We had a lot of fun, adventure, and and enjoyed getting away for a few days. My sister Chelsea came with us. A bear walked into our campground when we were getting dinner ready, I looked over and there he was! We were told that if we saw a bear that we should gather together and make a lot of noise...I think we went above and beyond what was necessary. Better safe than sorry, hehe. Overall everyone had a great time.

Rachel's 6th B-day!

Rachel just had her 6th birthday. She was so excited, she has been counting down the days since the beginning of July. Rachel was spoiled rotten for her b-day!!! She had so much fun. I am so proud of the person she is becoming.

Ellie!

Ellie hates water...If water comes anywhere near her she screams. Here are some pictures of Ellie trying to stay dry.