I DO NOT like Earth Quakes!

So, I think it's funny that the big question of the day has been "Where were you at when the earthquake hit??" So with all the Earth Quake hype today I thought I would put my two cents in and be done with it!

I'm TERRIFIED of Earthquakes. You don't even know. I have this over whelming fear that I'm going to be the one on the 6 o'clock news that has been squished to death and their pulling me out of the rubble. Now that I'm married and a mommy, this fear has just been magnified. I'm such a control freak and I hate that feeling of everything around me being completely out of control. I got this fear when I was 17 years old when the Northridge earquake hit. It hit at 4:45 am in the morning and I happened to be in the shower getting ready to start my day. I thought I was going to DIE naked, wet and in the shower! I remember screaming, jumping out of the shower (sopping wet with soap in my hair) putting my clothes on without drying off and running, down the stairs, past my Dad and straight out the front door. I parked my soapy wet self right on the drive way and didn't move for a while. I was so so so scared!

Today I was at Costco when THE earthquake hit. Not my idea of a fun place to ride out one of these movers and shakers thinking I'm going to be squished by the big tall racks that will domino their way through the store and hit me or having the roof collapse down on me. This may sound morbid, but unfortunately my fear is real. I hapened to be standing at check out while they were ringing up my items when it hit.. and I panicked. Poor Mason was on the other side of the check out counter behind the checker. I sprung around the counter and scooped him up out of the cart so fast, and then some guy grabbed my elbow and said 'Come on!'... and started scooting me over to a wide open area where there wasn't much over head. (HUGE lights and fans were swinging like crazy in there!)

I felt so dumb! I thought I was the biggest idiot in there.. I had tears running down my face, and I was hovering over my child, and shaking. I was paralyzed.. I couldn't move, and in my head I kept telling myself:

'Hold it together, you're alright, please don't let this be the big one, I don't want to be squished here, especially by THAT light or THAT fan. Hold it together for Mason.. he looks scared. Deep breath.. It's stopping... Good, I'm not squished! I'm okay...."

Then I started to look around.. so many people were screaming and RUNNING as fast as they could for the door, completely abandoning their carts. I thought to myself, so I guess I'm not the biggest idiot in here... there are still bigger ones than me. That's a good reality check! So I went back to the check out counter.. did a little small talk with the checker and laughed about how we shared a moment together. (He was as white as a ghost and literally quivering too!) We were both trying to compose ourselves enough to get back to what we had been doing before that little moment. I quickly paid for my items and ran so fast out of that place, never happier to see the sun! =)

Do I want to ride out one of these in Costco again?? NO thank you! It wasn't fun, but I think I made a little progress on one of my big fears today. Yay for me.

As for the next time one hits, I'd like to be in the privacy of my own home where I can have a mini break down all by myself with no spectators present to watch me lose it. THANKS!

Happy Un-Birthday to Mason!

I've been meaning to post these pics for a few weeks now, but keep getting side tracked. I figure now is a better time than never!

We have a fun little play group that gets together once a month. There's Stephanie & Diego, Amy & Kamryn, and Paige & Kameryn. We've done all sorts of things already, and this month was a birthday party since the Kam(e)ryns and Diego all turned 2 within a month of each other (Mason turned 2 in April - but he got to have a birthday too!)

Here's Diego enjoying his green cupcake, and Mason blowing out his candle with his cool sunglasses on and his rcorder in hand. (he loves both of those things - so so much!)




Stephanie put her pool up in the back yard and I brought over Mason's new summer toy- the water table and we let them have at it for a while

Here's the only group shot I got, and then the two Kam(e) ryns. (both of their girls are named Kamryn - but spelled differently!)




We had cup cakes and party bags and lots of other fun treats too! The kids loved their recorders and sunglasses.. those were huge hits! So fun!



Our little play group is spread out all over Orange County and the Inland Empire, so it's fun that we make an effort to try and do this once a month and get the kids together to play. (and some much needed mommy time too!) Stephanie was one of my roomies from "RedEye"... there were always 5 girls living there (kind of like a BYU situation) and it was always a blast! I'm glad that we've been able to stay in touch and I look forward to these play dates.. because not only do our kids get time to play, so do WE!

Wil-fur!

I took Mason to the Orange County Fair yesterday. My sister-in-law called me to see if we wanted to come since you got in free if you donated 5 canned goods. So I ran to the pantry, and headed straight for the fair with my cans in tow! I was excited that I would get to have a day full of adventure without having to fork out a lot of cash right off the bat.

As soon as we got there, Mason and I ran straight for the Farm animals. Mason couldn't wait to see the cows and piggies and lambs, and I couldn't wait for him to see them either. Debbie & Jeff met up with us there and we spent the majority of our time checking out the various different types of farm animals. They have Lamas, sheep, cows, pigs, horses, camels, goats... lots and lots of goats in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Baby chicks, rooo-sters (as Mason calls them). and lots and lots of Wil-furs. (Wilbur - from Charlotte's web!)

I think Wil-fur was Mason's favorite part. He ran from pen to pen exclaiming - "A-nuder Wil-fur! Look! Look! Mommy! LOOK! Wil-fur! A-nuder one!" I think my favorite part was when Mason looked up at me and said 'Charlotte?' He thought if Wil-fur is here... then where's Charlotte? So we tried to find a spider web, and sadly I coudln't find one. But we did find this momma pig who was loving her bath/drink of water... if you look closely you can almost see her smile. She was a lot of fun to watch getting her 'drinks'.

We also enjoyed a foot long hot dog, warm cinamon rolls, an ice cream cone and some lemonade!

I would highly recomend the OC Fair if you go on a 'free day'. I think next Wednesday you get in free if you bring a new or lightly used children's book. I can definately say you'll see me there. I'm not a fan of the carnival rides and games. I think it's a waste of money... especially when we can go to Disneyland any time we want to get our fill of thrills. But it is fun to go up the numerous isles of food, booths, crafts and of course farm animals. Did I mention the food? It's super expensive, but worth the fatty sugary overload once every summer!



Jeff and Debbie were a lot of fun at the fair. I'm glad they invited us to tag along! It was such a fun day and we can't wait to go back!

Ice Cream Heaven!

We have been having super fun July, with lots and lots of trips to the various ice cream shops in the area. I've stopped asking Mason what he wants to eat for breakfast, lunch or dinner because almost always his answer is ice cream! (and who can blame him?)


I love that Mason's mouth is so big in this picture you can almost see his tonsils!

Mason needed no extra prompting to get this shot.. he was determined to get the last drop!

Lynne, This dance is for YOU!

So I love that my son LOVES his Lynne-Y so so much! What makes me laugh is that EVERY single time he hears this song he screams - Lynne-Y's song! We can be in the car, the house, a store, whatever and whenever... he will stop, drop everything he's doing and begin to dance. She got him started on this because this song was on her cell phone and he would take her cell phone and dance while this song played away on her phone. She even blogged about it here.

So of course, there were not exceptions when we took Mason out for ice cream a few nights ago and THE song came on. Here's what he did:

Church... A safe place??

Before I get into the story, let me preface by telling you this little bit of detail:

My kid LOVES going to church. He asks me to go all through out the week. I love this, because I want him to want to be there. So by the time Sunday morning comes, and we start to put on our church clothes Mason starts his little happy dance. He says:

"YAY! Church today Mommy! Church today!"

He will skip around the room exclaiming this for a good 10 minutes. He then will proceed to help me pack his quiet bag and help me find his church shoes. Shane and I think this is so cute. It's not the first hour that he loves... It's NURSERY! Once we get there he must ask me every 5 minutes... "Nur-ser-y??? Mommy? Nur-ser-y? Sister Ponce? (his teacher)" Then when we finally start to sing the closing hymn, he's dumping is quiet toys into the bag as fast as he can.. patiently, but barely gets through the closing prayer and as soon as he hears Amen, he almost every time will explain - "GOOD JOB! Nursery? Let's GO! Nursery? Go to Nursery Mommy?"

So let me pick up the story from this point. We went through this entire ritual as before mentioned and I was gathering my things to go drop him off at nursery. He's practically dragging me down the isles and through the hall to get to nursery when all of a sudden... SMACK! He slams his head into one of the display boxes in the hall. He let out a good yelp, and I had to hold him for all of maybe 10 seconds... but then he instantly remembered where we were going and wanted to run into nursery, so I thought.... huh... he got over that quickly... must not have been to bad. So I followed him in and I went in to talk to his teacher, Sister Ponce, while Mason goes straight to the toys. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I see bright red on his church sweater. My heart drops and I start walking over to him. (by the way, he's happily playing on the floor with the nursery toys by this point... completely oblivious to the blood dripping down his head.) I'm trying to not make a big deal of it so I don't scare him, but I'm starting to freak out a little bit. I ask if someone can bring me a tissue so that I can start to wipe the blood off and the next thing I know I'm surrounded by a whole medical team. No Joke. I had two doctors, a few nurses, the primary president, the bishop's wife, and every mom who has ever had a kid split their head open before.

I guess if my kid had to split his head open, I can't think of a better place I would have wanted it to happen. I was already debating which emergency room was closest and taking suggestions from my group of concerned mothers when one of the doctors in the ward comes in with a full medical emergency kit he had in his car. Within minutes Mason's head was examined, cleaned, numbed, and glued back together. I hardly had a chance to think it all through before my kid was sitting there in front of me sucking on a lolly pop hardly phased by the whole ordeal.

Mason never made it back to nursery this morning. We decided it would be best for him to go home and take it easy. And of course, my kid kicked and screamed the whole way to the car... "NO!NO!NO!NO! CHURCH TODAY MOMMY!" Poor kid! He went through all of that and didn't even get to do what he had been waiting for all week.

Anyway... Again... I pose the question... Church... A safe place???

In this circumstance, I would have to say YES! (Although, I may have to petion for the removal of the bulletin boards in the hallways of churches.. j/k. =)

I don't think I could have found better treatment in an emergency room!! I knew there were a lot of talented people in my ward, but today I got to see first hand what a ward family really and truly means and I'm grateful to all who helped out in our family's little ordeal.

Here's a picture of my cute kid tonight!

I am Ariel!

You Are Ariel!

Headstrong and fiesty. You have a mind of your own that's full of romantic dreams about the world around you. Exploring exotic places is your ultimate dream, and although you can be a little naive you'll realize that there is something to be gained from your family's wisdom.

Which Disney Princess Are You?

4th of July

I love 4th of July. It's a close second to Christmas and the whole Holiday season as a whole. Last weekend went by so fast but we tried to enjoy every second of it that we could!

We started our 4th of July early by taking to Mason to Disneyland on Thursday night to catch their fireworks. I wasn't sure what Mason would think of it since the last time we saw fireworks he was pretty scared and kept saying "Too loud!" and "SCAREY!"...
This time he LOVED them and I was so glad. He sat atop of Daddy's shoulders and watched the fireworks in awe while I watched him love every boom & sparkle... and I was in awe of him. He watched wide eyed with excitement and every so often would exclaim 'WOW!' or 'Cool Mommy Daddy!'.

After the fireworks were over, Mason looked down at me (from Daddy's shoulders) and says. "Mom, Ice cream? Please, ICE CREAM! PLEASE! ICE CREAM ICE CREAM ICE CREAM!" (he's learned that repetition works to get his way!) So we broke down and bought him a chocolate covered ice cream on a stick. He loved every last drip and drop of it. I tried to sneak a few licks here and there and was told very matter of factly... "NO! MINE ICE CREAM!" So after a few attempts I decided it was smart for me to go back and get my own instead of fight my two year old for a lick... There was no way that kid was going to share it. So I snapped this picture to remember the moment. We really had so much fun as a family that night.

4th of July was awesome. We went to a patriotic show in the morning at church then off to the neighborhood BBQ & parade. Mason got to march in his very first one. I'm not sure that he cared, but it was fun to see all the kids and their bikes decorated so patriotically. That afternoon we went swimming and BBQ'd some more with family & friends. After all that fun and excitement of the day, and since we had seen the fireworks from the night before, we didn't feel the urge to rush out and see them again and actuallywent to bed early! (that's not normal for me!)
My favorite part of the weekend was taking Mason swimming. He's officially a big boy now. He is learning how to swim with floaties (I'm sad I didn't take any pictures!). I figured it was time to start teaching him the basics since he has absolutely no fear of the water, and that TERRIFIES me! He will jump right in without even thinking twice. So we put the floating devices on him and spent all day Friday teaching him how to kick and use his arms. He woke up on Saturday morning asking if he could go swimming. I tried to get him dressed and he told me, NO! Masey put on the Baby-Suit!". So we took him again on Saturday. Once in the afternoon and then again right before sun down.
It was all fun and games until... Shane jumped in and some how tweaked his foot on the bottom of the pool. He came up in agonizing pain. Poor guy! I didn't see what he did, but he said he was trying to get a laugh from Mason. (He'll do anything to make that kid smile!) At first it didn't seem like a big deal, but by mid-night that night he was in so much pain he woke me up and asked me to take him to the emergency room. After a long late night visit in emergency we figured out it WAS NOT broken, but that he did a pretty good number on it! It was black and blue and super swolen, so the ER put a half cast on his foot 'Just in Case' and also sent him home on crutches. He was less then thrilled! But he got some good meds to help with the pain. (This picture was taken on Thursday night - BEFORE the crutches, etc.) Anyway, he went to see a good friend of ours who's an orthopedic doctor a few days ago to get a second opinion and he let Shane take off the half cast and gave him a brace that he could take off and walk on. Shane said his foot has felt 10 times better once the half cast came off! I don't know if those things are made to torture or fix! Long story short, it was an exciting weekend. We wont let Shane's incident keep us from going swimming more this summer. Mason loves it so much and has asked me every day this week if we can get his 'Baby-suit' on and go swimming. (I love that he calls it that!)

Lisa's Wedding in Wisconsin

SO I have been having a hard time putting in words all the fun I had with my best friend's in Wisconsin so I thought these pictures would tell some of the stories I can't find the words to tell.

All in all it was a blast! It was fun to stay up late every night and giggle and laugh about old times with Jennifer. We spent a lot of time together and it was fun to walk down memory lane with her. It brought tears to my eyes to see my best friend Lisa marry her soul mate. I came home with sore legs from dancing EVERY song at the wedding. I haven't danced that much in years and it felt GOOD. We had a blast. It felt good to laugh, and cry, and just be me!

I've been friends with Lisa & Jennifer since the 9th grade. Their friendship has been with me through the best and the worst of times in my life and I'm grateful to have people like them in my life. Thanks guys!

I must be crazy...

I decided that I need to give my 1970's style kitchen a face lift before we move in. I'm going to start sanding down the cabinets today to get them ready for paint this weekend. I'm starting to get a little nervous about this project. It sounded kind of fun and I was up for the challenge, but now that it's here, I'm starting to wonder if I am a little nuts for signing up for the project to begin with. I know it's going to be A LOT of work! But anything that I do to it is going to be 100% better than the way it looks now. I can't mess up something that is already super ugly already! (I keep telling myself!). But in the end it's still has to function as my kitchen for the next while until we can save up enough to do the kitchen the right way. That's the part that scares me.

Wish me luck... here I go!