Natalie and Annette's Mommy

Balboa Island

2011-08-04T11:01:00.000-07:00

We had a great week last week with James' family on Balboa Island. The girls loved staying up late, eating all the candy they wanted, and being with their cousins 24-7. We were lucky that the weather was so perfect. We couldn't have asked for a better Summer vacation!

Dad Turns **

2011-05-30T09:02:00.000-07:00

We were able to go out for my Dad's Birthday to a great restaurant on Del Mar in San Clemente. Highly recommend it. It was so nice to celebrate my wonderful Dad, we love you!! And my cousin made an awesome German Chocolate Cake for dessert, his favorite. Such a nice evening.

Easter '11

2011-05-14T15:34:00.001-07:00

Photo Assignment 5 - "Quiet"

2011-04-16T08:51:00.001-07:00

I took this after I had play group at my house with 7 adorable three year olds. I just thought the mess was a very telling picture, quiet after the storm. I love how I got the fuzzy effect in the background, I don't know if I've ever done that with my camera. I put it on ISO 400 and cloudy setting. It was interesting, because I took a few shots on manual and then also one on auto setting, and there was a huge difference, the manual ones were much warmer and the lighting was better. I guess I'm learning something...thanks Beth!

Love These Girls

2011-04-14T14:34:00.001-07:00

Last week we went to La Quinta near Palm Springs for some R & R. We stayed at an awesome place that had rows and rows of hammocks. I just love these pictures...love these girls.

Photo Assignment 4 - "Out"

2011-04-12T19:33:00.000-07:00

I had a lot of fun with this assignment. I asked the girls if I could take some pictures in Grandma's backyard, and they had a lot of fun doing the different things I asked them to do. "Okay, now skip toward me." or "Talk to each other, pretend I'm not here." and "Look up at me...closer...closer...that's too close!" All this was done at about 3pm in shadow. I used 100 exposure and set the camera to daylight mode (I have a point and shoot).

Photo Assignment 3 - "In"

2011-04-10T20:37:00.000-07:00

For Assignment 3, we were supposed to try taking a picture inside using just natural light. My Mom will probably be calling me soon to remove this photo, but actually, I like it a lot. I think the composition is really good (not that I meant to do that), but to me, it's interesting. And Mom, you look beautiful, love you!! I didn't do any tuning at all to this photo, and I think the light is just perfect.

Photo Assignment 2 - "New"

2011-04-10T20:22:00.000-07:00

Here are three pictures for my next assignment - "new". This is my niece, Hailey Anne, she's 6 weeks old. I really enjoyed being able to hold her this week, she's still so little! I'm curious to know which one of these pictures you like the best, leave a comment and let me know. I think my favorite is the first one...

Photo Class

2011-04-10T20:05:00.000-07:00

My friend Beth organized a free photo class this month (link on my sidebar). Since I got a new camera for my birthday, I thought I'd give it a try. It's just a point and shoot, but I still have a lot to learn about taking pictures. The first assignment was "old". Here is my picture:

We were out of town for Spring Break this week in La Quinta, which is close to Palm Springs. Since I didn't have most of my possessions with me, my mom and I went out to scout out something old. We came across this cute little restaurant, the Homestead, and found some fun things on the premises. We had a great time taking pictures of Annie and her cousin Lizzy, and this old wagon that was part of the grounds. Here are some other fun pictures we got (just for fun)...

Coolest Cake Ever

2011-04-04T20:44:00.000-07:00

It's my London double-decker bus cake. Made by the oh-so-talented Jodie and so thoughtfully commissioned by James. I had a hard time cutting into it, it was just so cute! But it was worth it, the chocolate cake with caramel flavored frosting was divine.

Here's James and I on the bus:

Annie's Curls

2011-02-23T09:00:00.000-08:00

We have 1 o'clock church this year, so we have a LOT of time before church. This Sunday I decided to put Ann's hair up in sponge curlers before church. When I took them out Natalie exclaimed, "She looks like a different kid!" I thought so, too, it was a fun change. And by morning, it was back to being straight, without any water!

Happy Valentines

2011-02-15T19:22:00.000-08:00

So these are the cards Natalie made for her class this year, she made 30 of them! And she loved doing it, in fact, she had them done by the end of January, she was that excited. She's a crafter, that one. Unfortunately, she missed her Valentine party yesterday because she came down with the stomach flu...poor thing. And then she gave it to me--blah! Hopefully, the worst is over. My Mom came over today and sanitized my house for me, she's the greatest!!

Picked this Up Today at the Library...

2011-01-11T13:11:00.000-08:00

I'm pretty excited to read it, we discussed it at our book club last night, and it sounds like it has some pretty good advice. Have you read it? I'm curious to see what people think of it. I can't wait to get to the chapter on what to do with sassy 5 year olds and whiny 3 year olds. :) My children are not difficult mostly, but there are situations that come up where I'm at a loss on how to deal with it, so it will be great to get some good ideas!

2011 has not been good to us...

2011-01-10T15:54:00.000-08:00

...so far. However, I am completely optimistic that it will be a great year, and there's nowhere to go but up! Unfortunately, after Christmas we were hit by a bug. And from what I hear, we were not alone in this! Natalie had a temperature of 103 for four days!! Poor little thing, I have never seen her so sick. Here is what we did New Year's Day at our house:

And then, as soon as Natalie was getting better, Annie got worse. And then, I got worse. And then, James got food poisoning or something. Today is the first day that things are looking up, and I actually got out of the house today for a good three or four hours. Yay! We are on the mend, and can't wait to be healthy and active again. At least we weren't sick for Christmas, right?

A Very Merry Christmas

2011-01-09T16:02:00.000-08:00

Our big surprise this Christmas (courtesy of the great-grandparents):

And let me just say, good thing we opened the box Christmas Eve fairly early, because it took us a good hour and a half to put this thing together. It was a huge hit with the girls, thank goodness!

And here is our tree with all the presents under it. I love Christmas trees, especially the lights. It was a great Christmas, I thoroughly enjoyed it, and the girls came away with some nice things, including Leapsters, Barbie's, American Girl dolls (we love Grandparents), a trip to Balboa this Summer (really, we love grandparents), and some new games. 2010 was a great year!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-24T12:54:00.000-08:00

Hope you have a wonderful holiday!

Grateful

2010-12-06T12:57:00.000-08:00

I know Thanksgiving was last month, but I'm feeling so grateful this holiday season. Especially for my family, I'm so lucky to have my two girls and a wonderful husband. I also am very blessed to have wonderful parents who live close by and are so selfless, and some pretty cool brothers and in-laws too. And I'm grateful for good friends, near and far, I really do know some quality people. And I don't know how often I can say this, but I'm grateful for trials that make you realize how very much you do have, and help me to appreciate these things that much more. Hope everyone is having a happy holiday season and holding those you love a little closer. :)

Overheard...

2010-11-03T10:20:00.000-07:00

On our way home from Chili's, it was dark outside.

Annie: I spy with my little eye, sum-ting...black!

Natalie: Is it the whole world?

Annie: Yea! It is!

Happy Halloween!

2010-11-02T11:39:00.000-07:00

And...Happy November, can't say I'm too sad that Halloween is over. :) It was fun, but seemed to be never ending with all the parties and such! Annie is our little ladybug, and Natalie is a Barbie Musketeer. Pretty cute! James and I were the original mouseketeers, which was totally lost on our babysitter and nieces and nephews, guess they're a little young to know anything about that!

Three's A Charm

2010-10-14T09:49:00.000-07:00

Our sweet Annie turned three yesterday. I have pretty much been thinking of her as a three year old for the last 6 months, mainly because of her height and vocabulary. But now it's official! We are so glad that Annie is a part of our family, we love her so much!

She's one of a kind, our Ann girl. Her favorite color is red, she is going through a Barney phase right now, she's a champion whiner, loves to pretend, loves her sister (except when she's being teased by her),

loves nursery and preschool, loves jam sandwiches (just jam!), chocolate (like her daddy), does some great donkey kicks but still can't do a somersault by herself, loves to paint with watercolors, is scared to go anywhere by herself, sings in the car, and makes us laugh every day...multiple times.

Happy Birthday James!!

2010-10-11T09:30:00.000-07:00

So James' birthday was actually yesterday: 10/10/10. Pretty cool, huh? I feel pretty dang lucky to have such a great hubby. I don't like getting all mushy on blogs really, but I'll just name one thing I love about James: he's just so very nice to everybody. He really is the most thoughtful guy I know, a cut above the rest. :)

And he is a fun guy to go to Disneyland with, and eat giant corndogs with, have you tried these at Disneyland?

If you know James at all you will know he's a big fan of chocolate (to put it mildly). I made him a Coca Cola Cake for his birthday, it was really good, if I do say so myself. Check out the recipe on my cooking blog.

Annie Got A Haircut

2010-09-30T13:17:00.001-07:00

And I think she looks really cute.

Annie's First Day of School

2010-09-14T12:33:00.000-07:00

Annie's turn has finally come. I'm so excited about Annie's preschool teacher this year...she's awesome! She homeschooled her four boys until the 8th grade, and now they're all grown up so she does preschool out of her home. Annie was so excited when I picked her up today, and she has yet to put down all of her little projects she did today. Yay Annie!!

First Day of Kindergarten

2010-09-08T15:50:00.000-07:00

Natalie was so excited to go to school today, she must have asked me 10 times this morning if it was time to leave for school yet. Unfortunately, school was only 1 hour today, and I was with her the whole time. When I told her it was time to go home, she looked at me and said, "What?! Already?" Tomorrow is really her official first day, I know she's going to love it!

Labor Day

2010-09-06T20:01:00.000-07:00

We spent our Labor Day with cousins. My girls love their cousins...a lot. I barely saw them today. We also consumed about a million calories, what is with three-day weekends and stuffing your face? Blech! What a way to bid Summer goodbye. I'm so ready for you Fall. How did you spend your Labor Day?

By the way, the girls crawled in to these themselves. My 5 year old and almost 3 year old do not sit in high chairs anymore...if only I could contain them that easily.

By the Way...

2010-09-02T10:44:00.001-07:00

I cut my hair. And colored it. Hallelujah!

Before: bland, boring, yucky ends

After: blunt ends, styled, more put together

One Sandy Chick

2010-08-27T20:08:00.000-07:00

I have one girl who tells me she doesn't want to go to the beach because she doesn't want to get sandy, and another who...

Basket Liner Tutorial

2010-08-24T11:17:00.001-07:00

Go check out my basket liner tutorial over at Noodles & Milk! Sabrina was also nice enough to do a feature on my Etsy shop, Honeyjane. Pretty exciting!

Grandma's Dress

2010-08-17T19:46:00.000-07:00

My mother, Natalie's Grandma, is an amazing seamstress. She taught me to sew when I was about 10 years old, she made me Easter Sunday dresses, she made my wedding dress...just very talented. She pays attention to detail, so her end products are impeccable (wish I had inherited this!). I was amazed by this dress she sewed Natalie for her fifth birthday. It's gorgeous, and we both love it. Thanks Grandma!

A Party Fit for A Princess

2010-08-13T13:07:00.000-07:00

Natalie has been planning her 5th birthday party since October last year. Every week, it was a different party - a butterfly party, Chuck E. Cheese, Barbie Three Musketeers, etc. Finally, the last couple months she settled on a Princess Party. So we decorated in pink and purple (Natalie is all girl!).

The girls decorated their own crowns with foam stickers as everyone arrived. These crowns are just foam sheets cut in the shape of crowns, hole punched in the corners, and elastic threaded through the holes and then sewn securely.

Natalie made this rainbow decoration for the party, so of course I had to find a place for it amid the pink and purple. Turned out cute, I think.

For the party favors, I just took plain brown bags and glued scrapbook paper to the front to make them pretty. I filled each one with crayons, a notepad, a pencil, a japanese eraser shaped like a high heel and some candy.

I got Natalie a special birthday crown from Claire's to wear to the party. All the girls came in princess dresses...so cute!

Princess Annie

While the girls colored princess pictures and finished up their crowns, I had two Young Women from our ward come and paint the girl's nails, put makeup on, and put stick-on earrings on(Thanks Brynn and Cass, you're the best!!). Then, I took a picture of each girl after their makeover.

For snacks, I had mini bagels with strawberry cream cheese, yogurt stars from Trader Joe's, Kettle Corn, and pink lemonade.

After makeup, we went down to the garage to play Pin the Crown on the Princess, and The King Says (Simon Says). The girls waited so patiently for their turn.

"The King says everybody smile"

Candy for everyone, we didn't want anyone to feel bad for not winning!

Then, back upstairs for cake and ice cream. The cake was supposed to say "Happy Birthday Natalie", but this is what we got...oh well!

Caught ya Ann!

And then opening presents, all done!

I thought this picture was adorable.

I think the girls had a great time, I'm happy with how it turned out and can't believe my little girl is five years old!

This Little Girl

2010-08-08T16:29:00.000-07:00

Is not so little...she's 5. Happy Birthday to our sweet girl, we love you, Natalie.

I Love to see the Temple?

2010-07-31T13:24:00.000-07:00

Typical Annie, scrunched up face for the camera.

Typical Natalie, her posed open mouth smile (maybe she wants us to think she's laughing?).

Ah, that's better, a smile from our Ann girl

Word to the wise: if you want to go see the temple on a Sunday (at least the Newport Beach temple), just know that the grounds will not be open and you'll have to peer at it from behind the gate! Oh well, it was still nice to go see the temple.

Happy 4th

2010-07-13T11:33:00.001-07:00

How was yours?

4th of July Headbands

2010-06-30T18:05:00.000-07:00

I decided to be festive and make the girls some headbands for the 4th of July. I got the pattern for the white part of the headband here. And then picked out my own fabrics and added the "flowers". Very easy, and fun!

Princesses and Aliens

2010-06-29T11:09:00.000-07:00

Natalie loves to draw. Every day we acquire between 3 and 10 new drawings. They are so cute, I have a hard time parting with any of them. Here is one of Snow White, Cinderella, and two aliens.

Purl Soho

2010-06-22T13:09:00.000-07:00

So I'm in love with this blog called The Purl Bee, and I just HAD to go visit their new shop in Soho while I was in New York, "Purl Soho". I think I have a new favorite quilt shop. I bought some fabric to make skirts for the girls, and I can't wait to get started after my sewing machine comes back from being serviced. The cool part is, they have a warehouse in Tustin, and you can call and make an appointment to shop there. I'm so doing that.

Liberty of London fabrics. At $35/yard, an investment, but wouldn't these make the prettiest dresses?

I could browse these books for hours. So many cool projects!

Don't You Love It When...

2010-06-21T13:01:00.000-07:00

this happens? So sweet. And peace and quiet in the car for a good 20 minutes. Ahhhh.

This Crazy Girl

2010-06-18T12:36:00.000-07:00

Is being potty trained. Yikes! So far: 3 accidents, lots of sitting on the potty, no successes on the potty. She just can't seem to figure it out quite yet. We'll get there (hopefully sooner rather than later).

Poolside Baby Shower

2010-06-16T22:20:00.000-07:00

My good friends and I threw a baby shower for our friend, Melissa. Melissa has two boys and this baby is a girl, so we were so excited to throw her a girly shower. And on top of that, she is one of the sweetest girls you'll ever meet, we wanted to make it a special night for her and let her know how much we appreciate her friendship. We decided on a red and yellow theme, and used a favorite poolside location in our neighborhood. It was a really fun evening, and we're so excited to welcome Missy's baby girl (hopefully soon ;)...

30 Rock

2010-06-12T08:38:00.000-07:00

After a little shopping on 5th Avenue, my Mom and I ran into Rockefeller Center. Very cool. We decided to visit "Top of the Rock" to get a view of Manhattan, it was awesome! I highly recommend it if you're visiting the Big Apple.

Down below, where the ice skating rink is (during Winter), right now there are a bunch of restaurants, and we had lunch there, which was very nice.

View from the plaza, Rockefeller Center was actually built during the Depression and was considered a very risky project.

Up at the top!

The Chrysler building, which we mistook for the Empire State Building, but were later corrected on a night tour of the city. :)

The view looking down, isn't that cool? (The big building in the distance is the Empire State Building).

The view on the other side-Central Park. It's so huge!! I believe I heard it was almost 900 acres!

It was a hot day, so I thought it was cool that you could see all the sunbathers (look closely) on this bit of Central Park.

Inside "Top of the Rock"

And finally, the Empire State Building, good thing I took a picture even though I didn't realize what it was!

We're back!

2010-06-09T10:22:00.000-07:00

Got back last night at 12:45 AM, what a trip! New York did not disappoint, we had a wonderful time, just me and my Mom.

I'll Miss These Three...

2010-06-03T21:39:00.001-07:00

When I'm walking around Central Park in New York City this weekend. Love and kisses, see you soon!

Covent Garden/St. Paul's Walk

2010-05-31T20:58:00.000-07:00

You thought I was done with the England posts? Nope, just took a little break, still have a few more, so just sit back and enjoy...

So if you've been to London before, chances are you've been to Covent Garden market, it's a great place to visit, it kind of reminds me of 3rd Street Promenade, British style. This walk took us to the market, but then showed us the area surrounding, which ended up being quite interesting.

Here is a playground just around the corner from the market. Looks pretty normal, but it's built over a graveyard (the sign tells you all about it), so that makes it a bit more out of the ordinary. Just one of the many sinister spots in this great city.

After going through the Somerset House, the walk took us to this alley, we thought we were maybe going the wrong way...

...but lo and behold, a Roman Bath tucked in near the dead end. I'm glad we didn't get mugged while traipsing up this sketchy place.

And if you bend over, and look through the foggy window, you can catch a glimpse of the Roman bath that was found in this basement sometime in the 1800's, and has been called that ever since, although it's not for certain that it is, in fact, Roman.

Along the Thames, there is a monument called Cleopatra's Needle, it is the oldest monument in London, dating from about 1450 B.C. Sphinxes flank each side of the needle, and here, I'm pointing at the shrapnel that hit the statues during World War I, still there for all to see. I am still amazed at how much of this city was destroyed by bombing in the World Wars, sad, really.

This is the Water Gate in the Enbankment Gardens. The Embankment was constructed around 1870 and just to give you an idea of how much work was put into building the Embankment, the banks of the Thames used to lap up to these steps, where the Archbishop of York used to live. The Thames now runs about 100 yards from the gate.

Lunch at Strada, I put this picture in to give you an idea of the view: the front of St. Paul's Cathedral.

St. Paul's, the last time I was here, I was watching the Lord Mayors parade where they break out a really cool golden coach that the Lord Mayor rides in.

Trafalgar Square, surprisingly very busy for the middle of March

Me and the hubby

This street was a bunch of booksellers, selling old books. Pretty cool, I'm sure my Dad would have loved to browse through these shops. Just a little street tucked into the hustling bustling St. Paul's area.

This street survives from the 1700's, you can tell from the bowed glass in the downstairs windows. So friggin' cool!

Who knows what this street looked like 300 years ago, I would love to know...

And finally, Benjamin Franklin's house. He lived here for much of his later years, and it's the only residence of his that is still standing. They did an awesome job of restoring the house, much of the original features are still in existence. And I learned this interesting tidbit: if you want to tell which structures are reproductions and which ones aren't in London, look at the brick on the outside. The buildings with darker brick (probably from pollution), are the originals. You can see a reproduction building to the left of Ben Franklin's house in this picture.

Build-A-Bear

2010-05-22T16:42:00.000-07:00

Grandma Sue took all the cousins to Build-a-Bear while on our trip to Utah. Natalie and Annie loved every second! We had such a great time, and now have a bear named "Sparkle" and a horse named "Shiny". Natalie told me she never wanted to leave Utah, I told her she wouldn't be able to go to Disneyland whenever she wanted if she lived in Utah. :)

We had fun...

2010-05-21T11:31:00.000-07:00

Hanging with these dear friends in Utah (even though it was FREEZING...what?) a couple weeks back. Pictures courtesy of Natalie. We miss you, Kelley!

House of Blues

2010-05-19T14:29:00.000-07:00

For my 30th (sob) birthday present, James presented me with tickets to go see Ben Folds at the House of Blues in Downtown Disney. We went Friday night, and it was AWESOME! I loved it, thanks for the superb present, hubby. It's a pretty small venue and we stood just right above the pit, and I had the good fortune of standing behind a girl that was probably 4'11", yes! So there was no tippy toes or looking around people's heads or anything the WHOLE concert (a first!). I recall several years back going to a John Mayer concert (at the Greek, love that place) and seeing a clear view of the stage, that is, until a guy with a ginormous fro sat exactly right in front of me, blocking the entire stage. Such a bummer. Anyway, Ben was great, as usual, it's always a good show with him. The opening act was very entertaining as well: Kate Miller Heinke, she was pretty good, I definitely thought she brought an interesting flare to her performance.

And in case you wanted an extreme close up of James and I, here you go!

I have to say, there was one depressing part of the evening: in line to get into the show, a girl was coming around looking at id's. I forgot mine in the car and was about to say so, when she slapped an over 21 band on my wrist without even asking for my id!! Do I really look so old that I don't even need to be id'd? I guess so! I might add that she was checking everyones id before and after us, I was seriously bummed about that.

Angels Game

2010-05-14T11:22:00.000-07:00

We took the family to the Angels game the other night, it was quite the night! We decided it's something to do about once a season or every other season...

As you can see, everyone looks very excited to be there, especially Paige who is playing on the iPhone.

Of course, the girls (and James and I) stuffed their faces with some of the unhealthiest foods this planet has to offer!

The hubby and me

Our little angel fans

Gotta love seventh inning stretch

The Princess and the Pea

2010-04-28T13:53:00.000-07:00

We picked this book up the other day from the library. It's by the same girl who does "Charlie and Lola". Such a cute book, if you have little girls, try this one out.

Nothing Better Than...

2010-04-27T10:23:00.000-07:00

A day at the beach. I heart Coronado.

Picnic at the Park

2010-04-26T14:57:00.000-07:00

About a month ago, we decided to head across the street and have a little picnic.

There's our house in the background, home sweet home.

Don't bother me, I'm eating. Pirate's booty, no less.

Annie's favorite thing: the swing

Nap time, at least for five minutes.

Pretty Natalie

The hubby and me.

Dinner Out at the Pub

2010-04-21T16:54:00.000-07:00

We were so excited to be able to meet up with our friends, the Ashton's, while in London. And if you haven't seen Shannon's blog, you need to go to it...now. Her photography is stunning. And so interesting. Shannon picked a great pub, the Engineer, it was probably my favorite place we ate at the whole time we were in England. Of course, we had to order the fish and chips with mushy peas. The peas, not my fave, but everything else was so good! And for dessert, another classic English dish (so I'm told): sticky toffy pudding. If you haven't tried it, you need to next time you have the chance. I can't stress enough how delicious it is. A truly memorable evening in beautiful Primrose Hill, I want to live there in my next life. Oh, and thank you Shannon for giving us the experience of driving through London. We were so often using the underground, it was great to see London above ground and see how everything connected.

I apologize for these very subpar pictures of myself, but I had to document the food

Hampstead Walk

2010-04-01T10:17:00.000-07:00

This was probably my favorite walk that we did on our trip, it was very interesting to roam through the neighborhoods in Hampstead, a very beautiful part of London. We ate lunch in Primrose Hill before we headed over to Hampstead. We sat next to a nice older English couple who struck up a conversation with us (since we were sitting literally inches away from them), and that was nice to talk with some of the locals. It was also nice to hear they thought we were on our honeymoon. :)

At the beginning of the walk we walked to Hampstead Heath (if any of you were fans of Notting Hill, this was the where she shot her period film and where Hugh Grant's character listened in on her dialogue). We climbed up Parliament Hill where you can see one of the best views of London from afar.

Parliament Hill

The duck pond in Hampstead Heath, backed by some nice flats

The other view from Parliament Hill, notice the rain clouds looming, it did rain that day, and luckily we came prepared with our umbrellas

While roaming the streets around Hampstead we came upon this, I love that you can find little bits of history down any old street in London

The door of the parish lock-up, one of only a few left in London

The street we found the parish lock up on, I just thought it was charming

The High Street in Hampstead was very modern with great shopping, including this awesome candy shop that we spent way too much in. Their Sticky Toffee filled chocolates were well worth it. And thanks to the random person walking out of the shop right when we took the picture.

Other interests in Hampstead: the house where John Keat's lived and fell deeply in love with his neighbor, Fanny Brawne, tragically he developed tuberculosis and died at age 25, Fanny Brawne never married.

Daphne du Maurier's house she grew up in, wrote "Rebecca", and let me tell you, she was certainly well-to-do.

A house owned by Admiral Barton, who was known to shoot cannons from the roof to celebrate royal birthdays, a tradition that later led author P L Travers to base Admiral Boom's house in "Mary Poppins" on the property.

Inns of Court Walk

2010-03-27T09:50:00.000-07:00

We set out for our third walk on a nice sunny morning. It took us through the Inns of Court, definitely not something we would have found just wondering on our own. It was right off of the Strand, a very busy, bustling street in London, but as soon as you walk through to the courtyards, it seems a long way away because of how peaceful and quiet it is. The Inns of Court are where lawyers (or barristers) have their offices (or chambers). And like everything else in London, they've been there for a very long time, and have a lot of history attached to them.

A house we passed before going into the Inns of Court, with a weathervane representing the vessel that took Christopher Columbus to America, just another quirky thing we thought was cool.

Temple Gardens

Just a courtyard we found particularly charming

Temple Church, originally built in 1185, and most recently made famous by its appearance in "The Da Vinci Code"

The end of the walk took us across to Fleet Street and to this creepy courtyard, which is where Victorian legend (or is it?) Sweeney Todd would slit the throats of his unsuspecting customers and drag them to the Bell Yard where they were then put into Mrs. Lovett's meat pies...yummy!

Day 2 - Westminster Walk

2010-03-24T11:07:00.000-07:00

We started off Day 2 going to Leicester (pronounced Lester) Square to get half price theater tickets for "Oliver".

Just outside Leicester Square Tube station, pretty busy intersection.

You've gotta love London's underground system, go anywhere you want in the city, and who knows what interesting person you'll be sitting/standing next to each time

A walk past Westminster Abbey, we didn't actually go inside this time, but thought it warranted a couple pictures!

I had a book that took us on "walks of London" and it took us to some beautiful neighborhoods right next to the Houses of Parliament, and pointed out this sign, it was a bomb shelter during WW II. James and I couldn't believe how many things we discovered were destroyed by German bombs in London, it's quite astonishing really.

Jewel Tower, kind of hidden across the street from the Houses of Parliament, but very cool. Built in 1365 to house the King's wardrobe, must have been quite the wardrobe!

The moat and quay that protected the tower still remain

And at the end of our walk we passed through Horse Guards Arch and were right on time (to the minute) to see the Horse Guards come out and do their thing. We stayed for a couple minutes, and then were on our way again.

Kensington Gardens Walk

2010-03-21T16:02:00.000-07:00

After 20 hours of traveling, we made a quick stop to our hotel to drop off luggage, then headed out the door to do a walk I remember doing every week while in London at study abroad. Each Sunday I would get to walk through the beautiful Kensington Gardens to get to church in the Hyde Park Ward. I couldn't wait to see everything I remembered so fondly, and it didn't disappoint, it was fun to show James all the little things along the way.

Palace Court, the BYU center in London, such a beautiful street.

The Italian Gardens right at sunset, created 1860

Another view of the Italian Gardens

The Albert Memorial, in all of its gaudily ornate splendor

Why I loved these gardens, beautiful!

The Elfin Oak, little elves and gnomes are carved into the tree to make it feel like a miniature fairy land.

And finally, the LDS chapel on Exhibition Road. When I was in London last, I taught the 12-15 year olds Sunday School, hard to believe those girls are now in their mid-20's.

We're Back!

2010-03-19T14:45:00.000-07:00

Eight days went by way too quick. The trip was wonderful, can't say enough about it. You'll probably be sick of it when I'm finally done posting about it...but sorry, I don't care! :)

Bon Voyage

2010-03-08T21:48:00.000-08:00

Leaving for London tomorrow, we'll miss these cute faces, but are excited to eat tea and crumpets after a stroll through Hyde Park. :)

City of Angels

2010-03-01T14:26:00.000-08:00

James and I went up to L.A. this weekend to have lunch with my dear friend, Brittany, and her husband, Steve. We decided to meet up with the girls and my parents later at the Grove and LACMA. What a fun day! I hope we get to go again soon, there is so much to see and do up there.

LACMA, Urban Light Sculpture

Me and Britt. Doesn't she look great, she's almost 8 months pregnant!?!

The Grove

Johnny Rockets

And the Countdown Begins...

2010-02-26T14:10:00.000-08:00

10 days until James and I will be hanging out here.

Fun with the Camera

2010-02-23T12:36:00.000-08:00

I don't claim to be a photographer, I don't have a nice camera, I have way too many hobbies already. But I would LIKE to take good pictures. I ADMIRE those who are extremely talented at it (have you visited some of my links on my sidebar, I'm jealous, let me tell you). Anyway, here are some pictures I've taken recently, not great or anything, but I like them.

Table Runner. Check!

2010-02-22T14:02:00.000-08:00

It's always nice to cross something off your project list. I pieced together, quilted and bound my table runner. It is done! I quite like it, too.

These Girls Love to Sing

2010-02-20T15:07:00.000-08:00

And they've got soul.

My First Ever Tutorial - Jewelry Organizer

2010-02-10T08:16:00.000-08:00

This jewelry organizer is perfect for those who don't have a lot of horizontal space for their jewelry and don't have a huge amount of jewelry either. It involves no sewing or measuring, just a pair of scissors and a glue gun. So here goes with my first ever tutorial!

Materials needed:
Old unused frame(s)
Fabric scrap a bit bigger than your frame(s)
Batting scrap a bit bigger than your frame(s)
cork board (I got a 12x12 sheet at a craft store with a sticky back)
glue gun
straight pins

Steps:
1. Pick out a frame. I picked diploma frames, they were being stored in one of my closets! Take out the glass and backing (but save the back, you'll need that).

2. Use the back to measure what size the cork board needs to be. Cut to size.

3. Make sure the cork fits nicely into the frame, not too loose, not too tight.

4. Pick out your fabric, and iron it, you don't want creases or wrinkles!

5. Put your cork on top of your fabric and cut about a 2" border around the cork board.

It should look like this!

6. Do the same with the batting, I used a pretty thin cotton batting on this, but I actually think a little thicker one might have worked better. Just use whatever you have on hand though.

7. Place the fabric, right side down, on a flat surface. Place the batting over that, then the cork board right side down on the batting. If it has a sticky back, take the peel off, if not, just use a glue gun for this next step. Stick (or glue) the corners down first.

8. Stick (or glue) the long edges down now, trim the corners with scissors so they're not too bulky.

9. Repeat steps 7 and 8 with the fabric layer. (In this picture I forgot to take the sticky back off, so that's why it looks different)

10. I glued the back of the frame on as well, you can do this, but you don't have to. I did, because it was cardboard and kind of flimsy.

11. Stick it in the frame and secure! (No glass)

12. Now the fun part, stick the straight pins in (get them in there good) and organize your jewelry! Make sure the pins are angled down so your earrings don't slip off. I had to be careful and put heavier necklaces balanced with heavier bracelets on either side, but if you have a sturdier frame then the one I used, it probably won't matter. I hung mine in the closet, but it's cute enough to hang in the bathroom or even the bedroom!

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial. Let me know how I did! :)

A Lovely Afternoon

2010-02-09T10:49:00.000-08:00

The girls and I went with my good friend Katie on a sunny afternoon to Baby Beach in Dana Point. I loved having the beach all to ourselves, what a wonderful way to spend a January afternoon.

More Snow Pictures

2010-02-01T07:57:00.000-08:00

While we were in Utah, we went up to the Park City cabin and had a snowman building contest with all the cousins. James, as expected, was really into it and created this guy. The kids helped him out and put on the face and other accessories.

Julie girl, she's the sweetest girl you'll ever meet. Natalie and her get along so well, finally Natalie has someone that won't argue with her when she tells them exactly what she wants them to do.

Pretty girls: Whitney and Jane

Cousin Alex, finally not the only boy anymore!

And the best part about playing in the snow...coming back inside to warm up!

Snow Pictures

2010-02-01T07:55:00.000-08:00

Snow pictures always turn out so cute, it must be the light reflecting off the snow. Annie is wearing one of James' hats he had growing up.

Quilted Table Runner

2010-01-25T15:07:00.000-08:00

For Christmas, I got a gift card to a fabric store from my in-laws, so I decided to start something I've been wanting to do for awhile: a table runner. Over the weekend, I started the project, and here are the three squares. I really love the fabric from the Paula Prass line, Woodland Delight. I read somewhere once, that when quilting from one fabric line, throw in some other fabrics that complement the line, to make it more interesting. So in each of the squares, there is one fabric I found from my stash to mix things up a bit. Can you tell which fabrics I threw in? Do you think it adds or takes away from it? I think I like it, but I'm not sure yet.

New Blankies

2010-01-08T14:14:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure if I ever posted these, but here are some of the most recent blankets I have made for the shop and for gifts.

I was running low on boy blankets, so I made this one up a couple weeks ago...love it!

Love this fabric, my Mom gave this one to a friend:

Who doesn't love pink and green?

This one I affectionately call, "the graph paper baby blanket", obviously one of my favorites

Stripes, I just love stripes.

Have you Heard of Ben Folds?

2010-01-06T13:41:00.000-08:00

Most of you know that I am a big Ben Folds fan: ever since I saw him perform at the Horde Festival in 1997, I've been hooked. I was so excited to see that he was a judge on "the Sing Off" last month, an a capella group competition. After watching the show, it just confirmed for me what an amazing and talented person he is. I mean, he really knows his stuff! If you haven't heard his music, I strongly recommend you give it a try. And if I can't convince you, check out this video of his mad piano skills. The video shooting isn't great, but you get the idea. If you don't want to watch the whole thing, just fast forward to about 3:20 and you'll get the gist. This is one of his classics "Philosophy", I never get sick of it!

Girly Girls

2010-01-05T14:09:00.000-08:00

The week before Christmas Natalie was invited to a birthday party for her friend, Stila, and they got to get their toenails painted. I brought Annie along for the fun. Annie picked out brown for her polish.

This was the look on her face the entire time she was getting her toes painted.

Nat took to it like a fish to water, anything girly, this girl loves!

Despite this look on her face, Annie really was excited once it was all over. Of course, two seconds later it was totally smudged, but it was fun, nonetheless!

A Very Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T22:08:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas! I just wish James didn't get the darn flu on the 23rd. Wish I had more time to write, but we're heading out to Utah tomorrow at 6 am, and we've got to pack the car up!

Merry Christmas!!

2009-12-21T21:22:00.000-08:00

From our family to yours...don't be offended if you didn't get one in the mail, this is as good as it gets this year. Look for a card from us next year! =)

Picking Oranges with Grandpa

2009-12-08T12:42:00.000-08:00

My parents have an orange tree in their backyard and the girls love to go out with Grandpa and pick oranges off the tree. They are so yummy, my girls always have at least two apiece. Grandpa took all the grandkids out to pick oranges on Thanksgiving before the feast. We love Grandpa!!

That's a lot of girls!

Cute Annette

Sweet Natalie

The single boy, Brady, he puts up with a lot

Natalie's Letter to Santa

2009-12-04T17:33:00.000-08:00

Right before writing this letter, Natalie informed me that she had changed her mind: she no longer wanted a pink crayon from Santa, she wanted a Barbie. I'm thinking Santa can handle both those items, after all, she's been a pretty good girl this year.

Tired

2009-11-03T21:36:00.000-08:00

This is what happens when you have 1:00 church and miss your nap. She must have played hard in nursery.

Halloween '09

2009-10-31T15:38:00.000-07:00

Here are the fairies. At times I was cursing myself for deciding to make their costumes, but after all was said and done, it was worth it...I think.

October Giveaway Winner

2009-10-27T07:53:00.000-07:00

The winner of the mascara and eyeliner is Brooke! Thanks for entering, and congratulations Brooke, just comment on this post telling me which eyeliner you would like from my website. Thanks girls, try again in November.

October MK Giveaway

2009-10-20T18:13:00.000-07:00

For this month's giveaway I decided to give one of Mary Kay's most popular items away, an Ultimate Mascara in your choice of black or black/brown. And then, if you head on over to my website and choose a favorite eyeliner, I'll throw that in too.

Just leave a comment on this post, and you're entered.

If you facebook about this giveaway, I'll give you two extra entries, just leave a comment telling me you did it.

I'm excited to see who wins!

Vote for Jodie!!

2009-10-20T07:58:00.001-07:00

Hey all. I'm so excited for my friend Jodie, she's one of the finalists in an awesome giveaway where if she wins, she will get to take three people to Disneyland and they have some special things planned just for them. That would be so dang cool! But, she needs votes in order to win. So please go here and vote for Jodie!!

Annie's Two!

2009-10-15T20:45:00.000-07:00

Annie had a great birthday full of presents (and a jealous Natalie, "I don't like it when it's not my birthday"), yellow cupcakes (the frosting color reminded me of deviled eggs, I've got to go brighter next time), a big crumbly mess on a good friend's floor (sorry Jodie!), and a trip to Disneyland with lots of carrying by Daddy. We love our Annie.

Can I Help You, Mother?

2009-10-09T15:11:00.000-07:00

Now, if I can get back to what I was doing.

My New Discovery

2009-10-08T14:20:00.000-07:00

My sister-in-law, Whitney, has been digitally scrapbooking for awhile and when she showed me her scrapbooks, I decided I wanted to try it out for myself. I was so excited when I found out Stampin' Up just came out with a digital studio, so I installed it and I am having so much fun with it. Here is what I spent some time on today, pretty cool.

Does anyone else do this?

2009-10-02T17:16:00.000-07:00

Fill up a shopping cart on-line and then never check out? I just like to pick out what I WOULD buy and sometimes that's enough to kick the shopping craving.

And in case you're wondering, here's what my fake shopping spree at Shade looked like:

I Don't Know What She's Talking About

2009-09-21T22:17:00.000-07:00

Natalie at dinner: You know what? Two of us match. I'm just like Daddy and Annie's just like Mommy.

Us: Why?

Natalie: Because Daddy and I keep our face clean when we eat and Mommy and Annie are messy!

So I quickly grab a napkin and wipe the mayonnaise off my face from the hamburger I'm eating (in my defense, there was way too much mayonnaise on that burger). How is it a four-year-old can be that perceptive?

By the way, it is a joke on my side of the family how little James' uses his napkin any time we eat. It's always neatly folded on his knee before, during, and after a meal. I don't know how he does it. This in contrast to my 3 or 4 (okay, sometimes 5 or 6 if we're eating out) napkins crumpled up and strewn about my place setting in a haphazard manner. I've got a small mouth, really small.

Giveaway Winner

2009-09-21T07:51:00.000-07:00

The winner of the lip gloss and clutch is ... Christine! My lovely Aunt in Salt Lake City. I'll be sending your gift in the next couple of days. Thanks to all who entered, and come back next month for another giveaway. I will be doing it on the third Tuesday of every month.

FYI, I use random.org to generate a random number to decide who will win, it's completely impartial, although I think it fitting a mother of 9 won, she deserves a little lip gloss in her life =).

I'm in Love...

2009-09-18T08:52:00.000-07:00

with these fabrics. I can think of so many cute things to make with them. See the complete line here. And the designer's blog here. (Love the playmat she has made)

What I Found In Natalie's Room Upon Waking Up

2009-09-17T08:04:00.000-07:00

A table set for Minnie Mouse. Complete with blankie (used as tablecloth), picture of Natalie in a Minnie dress, tomato, and bottle. Pretty dang cute.

Giveaway

2009-09-15T10:36:00.000-07:00

I decided to start doing a Mary Kay giveaway every month. This month I'm giving away a lip gloss and clutch for your purse. The one pictured is called Beach Bronze and is really neutral. But I want you to decide which color you would like (provided I have it in my stock). So go check out my website and leave a comment telling me which shade of lip gloss you would like if you win the giveaway. I use Coral Rose pretty much everyday and I love how it's not sticky and stays on well, it also has a light vanilla scent. Just leave a comment on this post by midnight on Sunday and you're entered! I will announce the winner on Monday. Good luck!

First Day of School '09

2009-09-09T14:31:00.000-07:00

I know most of your kids have already started school, some like a month ago, but it really was Natalie's first day of school today, I'm not even late on getting these pictures uploaded. She is in afternoon pre-school (12:15-3:45), so she had to wait all morning before we could finally go to school. She was a little hesitant, which surprised me, but I think overall she's really excited. I know I am! Hopefully the sisters will miss each other so much that there will be no more fighting...ha! Although the only one that did cry today was Annie. She was so sad, she cried all the way home. I'm not sure if she missed Natalie or just wanted to be part of all the action. Poor thing.

Life is Good

2009-09-06T21:54:00.000-07:00

Two cute girls. Fabulous hubby. Three day weekend. What more can a girl ask for?

Going to be Missing This

2009-08-31T13:05:00.000-07:00

What can be more fun than going to the beach with friends? I'm excited for school to start (and so is Nat), but I'll be missing this.

Flip Flop Skirt

2009-08-28T13:59:00.000-07:00

My friend Beth sent me this new pattern that she's selling in her Etsy shop, Love September. I was so excited to try it out and I LOVE the result. A new skirt for Annie, in about one hour, and it's reversible, so it's really like two skirts. If you have a little girl, I totally recommend getting this pattern, it's so easy and the possibilities are endless. The pattern includes size 12 months up to 5T, so it is sure to get a lot of use. Good job Beth, I love the new pattern! I'm going to work on one for Natalie this afternoon...

Preview of Cousins Camp

2009-08-14T08:23:00.000-07:00

We're back from Cousins Camp, we had a great time.

Spending time with the cousins

We had a birthday while we were there

And tried some new things

And got a little dirty

We're glad to be home, but we sure do miss those cousins!

Summer Suppers

2009-07-21T14:30:00.000-07:00

I'm just wondering what you guys are making for dinner these days. It's so hot, I hate turning the oven or stove on, especially if I have to hover over it. Just looking to get some ideas on easy dinners that are family friendly. Sometimes it's nice to get suggestions that are tried and true instead of endlessly perusing my cookbooks and magazines.

Leave a comment...please!

Family Pics

2009-07-19T08:18:00.000-07:00

Thank you, Jennifer, we love our pictures!

Bathing Beauties

2009-07-15T17:42:00.000-07:00

Swimming at Grandma's

Cousins Brady and Abby, we had such a blast having you guys in Cali!

Tiny Dancer

2009-07-14T17:42:00.000-07:00

Nat girl had her first ballet recital. She was the first number, followed by 2 1/2 hours of other kids dancing. As for myself, I like watching ballet so it didn't bother me until hour 2, I can't speak for James though. I do know that my nephew Jason had his Nintendo DS on almost the entire time...except for when the tumblers and hip-hop dancers went. I also have a new respect for my mother coming to all my dress rehearsals and performances when I was in ballet and jazz growing up.

Natalie was upset when I got her from backstage because she "didn't get to bow".

My brother Andy, Natalie's cousin Lily, Nat, and I

Ice cream afterwards, the highlight of the girls evening I think.

Playdate Photography

2009-06-29T12:15:00.000-07:00

Nat had a playdate the other day with her friend Amanda. I let both of them take a couple pictures on the camera and was impressed with their abilities. I took this one:

Nat took these two:

Amanda took these:

Because, She's Cute.

2009-06-26T13:02:00.000-07:00

Lollipop = 20 minutes of contentedness

Dance Like You Just Don't Care

2009-06-24T12:26:00.000-07:00

Waiting for the parade to start at Disneyland.