Living in Paradise

We are lucky enough to live in paradise. Tonight we decided to go down to the beach and have dinner. Beach + Pizza + Family = Fun. One of our favorite things to do is go pick up a pizza and bring it down to the beach . We sit on a lifeguard stand and take in the beauty. There was one time that we saw a pod of about 7 dolphins just off the shore.
Pizza...Yummy Yummy!!

After dinner it is time for fun.
Cherish and I played tag.
Izzy played in the sand.

What a beautiful place we live.

OPPS!!!

On my way out the door to go to Cherish's kindergarten performance I grabbed my camera bag and threw it over my shoulder. Unfortunately The bag was open and the camera flipped right out. It wouldn't turn on after that so I had to take it down to the service center to get it repaired. It stinks that such a silly little thing can have such big consequences. I guess once I get it back I will be more careful to make sure the bag is closed properly. Meanwhile I will have to do with a little point and shot that sometimes just decides it doesn't want to take a clear pictures.

A Trip to the Back Bay

We are so lucky to live in such a wonderful area that has such beautiful things for us to enjoy. This summer my goal to enjoy some of these areas more often.
One of my personal favorites is the Back Bay. It is a nature preserve in Newport Beach that is just 2 miles from our house. It is filled with hiking trails and there is a path that Jose and I both enjoy running.
The girls and I enjoy walking along the path and looking for what ever wild life we can find. We have seen lizards, bunnies and a vast assortment of birds. On some of my early morning runs I've even seen coyotes and a bob cat.
There is a learning center located here that has many fun activities for the kids to enjoy.
It is definitely somewhere we will be frequenting this summer.
Anything we can do to get out of the house. Plus it is beautiful and reminds us just how blessed we are.
I love my girls.

In His Dreams Jose is Kenyan

Today was the LA Marathon. Jose has done it again. We are so proud of him and all of his hard work. I am always amazed by just how emotional it is for me to watch him complete his goal. The Girls were very excited to wait for Daddy to pass by us.The finish line was right in the middle of Downtown LA it was a little crazy and stressful to try to get there. All in all I was pretty lucky I found a parking garage right next to the finish line. When I got outside I realized that if we wanted to see him before the finish line we were going to have to go over a block and down about five blocks and then cut back over.
Cherish is the one who spotted him. I think I would have missed him if it hadn't been for her. He came running over to us and gave Cherish a kiss.
Jose you are amazing.
Cherish wanted to get her Daddy flowers. She picked out some great ones. They smell really good too.
Cherish took this great picture of us.
Victory!!! Nothing feels better than success.
Jose said that at about mile 16 he was questioning "why on earth am I doing this?" The answer... nothing feels better than when it is all over. It is an emotional high.
Afterwards we went to Mesa Grill (a family favorite). If you are looking for great BBQ this is the place for you. Our fav is the family platter. It includes salad, potato chips, pulled pork, tri-tip, ribs, chicken, hot wings, corn on the cob, corn bread, Rosemary potatoes and baked beans (which we always sub for Mac and Cheese). If you haven't been you should check it out.

The Next Great Hockey Player...She Already has the Smile

Cherish has had a loose tooth for weeks now. She has been pulling and pushing it every chance she gets. She asked to have a whole apple in her lunch everyday because she wanted to loosen it up. At her soccer game last week the coach told her to keep her hand out of her mouth because she was running down the field with her hand in her mouth playing with her tooth.

Today Cherish and Jose were both determined to get the tooth out. Jose pulled and pulled and then pop...out it came and the blood started to flow. Funny enough Cherish didn't mind, she was so excited the tooth had come out she was jumping up and down. I love her little smile.

My Little Clutz

Izzy is my little clutz. Everytime I turn around she is falling AGAIN. This last weekend she fell a ton. In one weekend she chipped both of her front teeth and bloodied her nose and lip. At least they are her baby teeth. She will only have them for the next 4-5 years.

Here is how her teeth used to look. She sucks her thumb all day long. I can't imagine those sharp teeth feel very good.

Jog-A-Thon

This week Cherish's school had a Jog-A-Thon. It was so cute. Each class was assigned a state that they learned about and did a report on. Cherish's class was New York. Cherish had a lot of fun learning about New York and can't wait to go. Before the jogging started they had a parade of states. I love her teacher. Cherish has been very lucky to have such a wonderful teacher this year. Not just anyone would dress up like the Statue of Liberty.Cherish was pretty impressive during the Jog-a-Thon. She ran with such determination. They ran for 20 minutes strait. She only walked a couple of times and each times.
She ran a total of 42 laps and she did it with a smile on her face.