A Few More Days with Family

We have had a wonderful time visiting with Dad and Aunt Georgia. I will be sad to see them go tomorrow. However we really enjoyed the time we had. We went to Geoffrey's in Malibu on Thursday night... what a great experience! The view was gorgeous and food was excellent. I am not the biggest fan of mussels however the appetizer that they prepared were delicious. The drive along the Pacific Coast Highway was just beautiful.

On Friday, we spent the evening with Brian and Joanie Malley... We were excited to see them. Brian was my Uncle Paul's best friend growing up and Aunt Georgia was over joyed to see them. Dad hadn't seen them since Aunt Georgia's 80th birthday. It was great for us to connect with close family friends so that we will have support and friends in the area. Today we went over and for a barbecue and to go swimming. The boys had a great time in their pool and hot tub! We can't wait to catch up with them again in the next few weeks!

Memorial Day Weekend

Well it has been pretty busy here... we are so excited that Dad and Aunt Georgia are here visiting for the week. Riley and Wills have been asking everyday for a week when they would arrive. We have been spending most of our time at the house however we have made several trips to the beach, Santa Barbara, and tonight we are planning on having dinner in Malibu overlooking the water.

Here are a few pictures from the Farmer's Market.

We bought this red onion and look it is almost the size of Wills' head.

Here are a few pictures at the house on Saturday. We just stayed home, had a barbecue and swam in the pool.

Here are a few pictures from the beach on Memorial Day in Port Hueneme.

Knox is walking...

So over the last few weeks, Knox has been taking a few steps here and there. I can't believe it! His birthday is on Tuesday... it doesn't feel like it has been a year. I feel like he is growing up so fast. I took this video yesterday morning. Yea Knox! We are so proud of you...

You Are Anything But Ordinary...

So I was looking though a gallery at Two Peas in a Bucket for some inspiration for a scrapbook layout. I came across a layout by Ali Edwards and I absolutely loved it. The circles were such a cute idea. So I thought I could adapt this idea and create a layout that highlighted circles too.

I made this layout for Charisse for Mother's Day... I am going to frame it in a black high gloss frame and I think she will love it!

Journaling: It is hard to believe that we have grown up and have children of our own. It seems like yesterday that we were playing at the cottage on the beach collecting sea glass. Now here we are. You have grown into a strong young woman and a great mother. I am so proud of you and how you have raised your two beautiful girls. I always knew you would do great things. Charisse you are anything but ordinary... I love you.

While I wasn't brave enough to use paint, I did use the Cricut Cartridge Mother's Day Bouquet to cut out perfect 2" circles from various patterned paper and I even used the negative in the layout as well. I also love the wings and the iridescent circle paper that I put just below the picture. It gives the layout such a playful look...

National Scrapbook Day

For National Scrapbook Day, I thought I would share a layout I made this morning... I love this picture. There is a little bit of a glare since I took it through a window, but I love it just the same.

At first with this move, I was worried about working from home... however I think that this move was a blessing. I have been able to spend every day with the boys. I have lunch with them and I am able to be there for the important and everyday moments - everything from Knox's first steps to seeing the boys get home from school and helping with homework. It is hard to believe how fast these moments go by and when I look back on their childhood, I will be happy to say I was there.

Happy Mother's Day

I just wanted to say Happy Mother's Day... we are celebrating with a quiet Sunday at home!

Cory and the boys made breakfast this morning. Then we spent most of the day playing in the yard and watching a few movies. The boys got me the cutest card... I just had to share it with you.

"Mom I can't imagine what life would be like without you."

"I'd probably be eating candy I got from a stranger, talking with my mouth full, and walking around with sharp objects while I sit too close to the TV in yesterday's underwear. Thanks and Happy Mother's Day!"

Here are a few pictures from this morning.

London Royalty

With the Royal Wedding last week, I thought it would be a perfect time to share my favorite photos from my trip to London with Dad back in 2004. We had a wonderful time seeing the sites and enjoying the culture.

I have always been fascinated with London. On the cover is a picture I took of Big Ben.

This is a picture of our hotel, the Langham Hilton in downtown London. We were right around the corner from all of the shopping and I felt like we were in the middle of the city. The hotel was gorgeous!

I put a picture of the view from our hotel room. You could see a beautiful park just outside our window. We also went on plenty of tours of the city. My favorite was a trip to Kensington Palace where Princess Diana's lived. It was much larger than I expected. The grounds were gorgeous and there were beautiful flowers and landscape everywhere.

We visited several other places as well... we had a private showing of the crown jewels, toured the Tower of London, had lunch at the Ritz and we rode the London Eye. The view was spectacular!

We finished up the week with a bus ride to the theatre for a showing of Mama Mia. This was several years before the movie and it was awesome!

It was a great trip and I was so grateful that my dad took me. It definitely was a trip of life time and I would love to go back.