HAPPIEST Place ON EARTH!!!

We just got back from a family Vacay in CALIFORNIA! It was FANTASTIC! The boys have been looking forward to this trip for quite some time now.
In March we were invited by Gramma and Grampa to go to DISNEYLAND & stay in their timeshare with them! We immediately jumped at the chance! What a perfect EARLY Christmas present to the boys! They have been so excited! Not only about going to Disneyland, but going with GRAMMA AND GRAMPA! Can it get any better???? Absolutely not!!!!
We started on the journey last Sunday. We got up bright & early... okay maybe not bright, it was 4:30AM. The boys were great troopers! They got up & were excited to go fly on an airplane! So off we went! We boarded our flight & took off at 7:15am. Jaker was awake for the entire flight! He talked and talked and talked to his Gramma and Grampa! He colored Pictures, read stories! It was great for him! Jokester did great too, he took a quick cat nap in the middle of our flight!
Once we landed we had a good 6 hours to kill before we could check into the timeshare. We stopped and had breakfast and then it was off to see the L.A LDS temple! It was beautiful! So clean, beautiful flowers, amazing trees, and the of course the calm quietness of the temple grounds!
We spent two days in Disneyland! The boys were in HEAVEN! Absolute EUPHORIA! Jaker had his favorite rides. Some I am quite surprised at because they scared me... but not my boy... he loved the scary stuff... like Tower of Terror (seriously this kid is a small version of his FATHER!), Pirates of the Carribean, the Madderhorn, Splash Mountain, and of course... STARWARS!!! Joker loved the Buzz Light Year Ride, Pirates, Teacups, and It's a Small World. Both the children LOVED meeting the characters. They had no problems waiting in line to meet their favorites like, Pluto, Mickey Mouse, Minnie, The Incredibles (who doesn't love them!), Sulley, and many others! They had such a great time! Disney was FABULOUS!
Then it was off to California Adventure! What an ADVENTURE! Turtle and the Boys talked me into going on this massive Ferris wheel. Anyone who knows me, knows I don't dig heights. I am not a fan, I can handle the scariest of roller coasters, but put me on a ferris wheel, and it's not pretty. Anyway, we get on this ferris wheel, and we decide the boys would probably be most entertained by a "swinging Gondola". Entertained they were! Holy Smokes! They were laughing HYSTERICALLY! They LOVED IT! I on the other hand was ready to toss my lunch... but at least the boys had fun! This Gondola swung so much that Jokester fell flat on the floor, but he was laughing so hard he couldn't cry! It was great! (Although I will NEVER ride a Ferris Wheel again!)
We spent a day on the beach. It was Beautiful. We watched a lot of surfers! It was fun to watch. It was great to take in the ocean air, and play in the sand. I have never loved having sand between my toes... but there is something about the BEACH.... the ocean beach... it's different. That sand is amazing! I loved it! We played in the water for a bit until it proved to be way over our heads. Jaker and I had a really scary experience, and let's just say, I will think twice before I EVER let the children play in the ocean, or myself for that matter.
We also had a fun filled day at Knottsberry Farm! I have only been one other time, and honestly it was so much fun!!!! It was great the day we went! We literally walked on to everyride! No lines at all! Jaker once again proved to be just like his father and wanted to ride all the massive Roller Coasters! The one he could ride on was quite intense, but boy did he love it! It was called the Sidewinder! We were able to see video of him during his ride, and he was just ROLLING with laughter! The boys loved the Log ride there. They were very excited to get wet... it was pretty hot that day!
All in all the trip was AMAZING! I can't thank my parents enough for inviting us to go! I know my boys will remember it for years to come! The boys are already missing their grandparents! We had such a phenomenal time!

Another First!

Yep... Jaker started his second Kindergarten at Little Learners Academy. Honestly, I am SO excited for him! He is going to learn so much with Miss Christiansen, and at the same time, he is going to have so MUCH FUN!!!! I am really excited for him. There are 14 students in his class. If that isn't the most optimal situation, I don't know what is!!!! He is already making friends in his new school, and he still misses his Mrs. Parker at Oakcrest! (He's off track.. yeah ALREADY!)

People think it is crazy to have him in two schools. I get reactions like... "Oh you must really be trying to ship him off." I assure you, that is not the reason at all! There are benefits to both schools.

Oakcrest Pros:

Going to school with friends in the neighborhood.

Becoming familiar with large crowds, and assemblies (which he is not too fond of.)

Getting extra help he needs with speech and occupational therapy.

Learning to adapt to a public school setting. (Heaven knows we can't afford Private school forever!)

Little Learners Pros:

Super small class size. (14 students in a class??? BEAT THAT!)

Musical based learning... Jaker digs it!

More one on one teaching.

Here is a picture of him at his new desk. He was able to choose where he wanted to sit. Notice he sat between TWO cute girls! He's a flirt, what can I say???

If I could be a personal spokesperson for Little Learners, I would. They worked so hard with Jaker last year and he made phenomenal progress! It was amazing to see the improvements in his speech, letter recognition, sounds, and socializing skills. I am so grateful that I am able to have him in there for another year. It wouldn't be possible if there weren't angels out there (you know who you are) helping us! THANK YOU!

We have Handrails!!!!

I am happy to announce that we have HANDRAILS!!! YAY!!!! Turtle has done such a great job! It is so nice having a perfectionist for a husband!

Facelift...

Just on the blog, not on me. Besides if I were to have any plastic surgery, I have a few areas that need more help (i.e toosh...gut.. you get the picture!)
I just found a new website that I LOVE! Its www.shabbyblogs.com. Have to admit, I love their styles. Simplistic, cutesy, feminine, and absolutely ADORABLE! I found some awesome backgrounds and voila... here's the new blog!
I put some tunes on from my younger years. These are songs that bring back memories. Some from when I was just little... you know the good stuff that my parents listened to. Neil Diamond, Air Supply... they always take me back to the road trips we had. My sister and I used to drive my parents CRAZY asking them to replay that song... after about 10 times of listening to the same song, we had to change it! I wish I could say I have outgrown the need to replay the same song over and over... but... NOPE! Still do it! Now I drive my husband crazy!
Other stuff reminds me of Jr. High and High School. Cranberries is huge! I loved them back then. I rediscovered this love last weekend when we were flipping through channels on the way back from Bear Lake. So I had to add them too! If you hate the tunes... sorry. I'm not changing them anytime soon!

Going through the archives...

Look how CUTE!!!

This is Jake when he was 18 months old. I had just put him in his crib because he was climbing up on the table. He was crying for about thirty seconds and then all the sudden I heard a big THUD! I ran to his room, and he was LAUGHING! He figured out how to escape the crib!