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This morning Thomas had a pretty nasty fall on the travertine floors inside our house. He had a similar fall about a year ago but recovered quickly from that one despite the large knot on his forehead. This morning's fall took a few hours to recover from. There was a lot of crying and whimpering, a little nosebleed, a large knot on the forehead, two hours of lying down quietly by himself and cancellations of all our fun plans for the day. The doctor said he looked just fine and since he isn't exhibiting any of the telltale symptoms of a concussion, we should just keep a close eye on him and that he'll be just fine. He seems to be fully recovered now.

Art Splash!

These aren't the kind of chalk drawings kids do on sidewalks! Today we stopped by Art Splash, an annual fundraising event for local arts education. It was the first of two days and we got there late in the afternoon so most were almost halfway finished with their piece. Not only were there numerous chalk pieces like these, but nearly all forms of artistic expression were represented here today -- sculpture, performance, music, even food!

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no stage fright here

This evening Mike's work had a great party down at the beach (the row of lights above and to the right are from the Oceanside pier). There was everything from street tacos to Italian ice, drinks for everyone, balloonists, airbrush tattoos and lots of fun things to do and see for everyone. About halfway through the evening some employees participated in an air band competition. Mike didn't get up on stage this year, but another one in our family did. Not Meredith as you might have guessed, but Thomas. Yes, Thomas! Maybe it's the superhero cape he's been wearing everywhere that gives him the confidence or maybe it's just one of those 4.5 year old things that happen all of a sudden, but he wanted to be onstage. When the kids started dancing onstage he immediately got our attention and said "I want to do that". He then jumped up and made a beeline for the stage. I'm not kidding. It was very out of character for him but so fun for Mike and I to see. In the photo above, Thomas and Mike are returning to where we are after Thomas' second time up on stage dancing like the silly kid he is.

kids in the tub

Our post-beach cleanup? A long, cool bath with popsicles!

Meredith at sunset

The first time I saw this child I thought she was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. She still is.

Lovey

Yes, it's a new and different fish this week. Echo didn't fare well and gave up after just five days with us. I have a good feeling Lovey, his replacement, will last longer. Thomas has been surrounding Lovey's home with photos of our family and friends so Lovey will get to know us better. The passing of Echo didn't seem to phase the kids. Maybe because he wasn't with us for very long? I told Thomas the fish wasn't feeling well and needed to go back to the pet store. His response? "I think he's DEAD." I was surprised by this and asked if he knew what that meant. He said it means Echo is tired and sick. Yes, it does.

bread and tomatoes

Last night the kids and I made bread. The kids were very helpful and had a lot of fun with the project. After we got all the ingredients measured and mixed up, I gave them each a little dough to knead and shape themselves. Thomas said his felt "soft like a stuffed animal and sticky like fruit leather". Meredith wasn't crazy about the stickiness.

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Our little tomato plant is turning red! Last week I picked up this little guy from Trader Joe's. We have avocado, lemon and orange trees and the kids have been enjoying watching the food "appear" and then grow, but it's a slow process. The tomato plant is perfect because every day we check it and every day something is noticeably different. They are looking forward to tasting their first tomato and I'm guessing today might be the day!

she's looking for her sheep

With Halloween approaching quickly, there's been much talk lately concerning costumes and what the kids want to be this year. A mama in our playgroup had this adorable Little Bo Peep costume that she no longer needed so we snatched that one up for Meredith. Not sure yet what Thomas will be as it changes almost daily, but Superman, Batman, Transformers... those kinds of characters come up over and over again.

Meredith & Ava

Meredith loves dance class (ballet and tap combination). Wait. That is an understatement. Meredith loves loves loves dance class. Seriously. She took classes last spring and through June but we took July and August off since we were traveling and Thomas was out of preschool. Last week her dance classes began again and every single day since then she's been asking when she'll get to go. She practices dance steps and positions at our house and while we are out in public all the time. She was very excited to go back to dance class again this morning. In her class of maybe 8 two year olds, she's pretty much the only one who is actually following direction, smiling and really trying every step. It's amazing to watch this little 2yo do her thing -- the teacher and all the other moms get the biggest kick out of her. And this morning she was equally excited to see that not only was Grace joining her again, but her little friend Ava, too. Fun!

Echo

Henry. Echo. Lovey. Love Fighter. Colorfully. The kids can't decide what his name should be, but they did make the decision this morning to pool their money - thanks, Grandma! - and purchase a Betta together. I'm calling him Echo because I like it the most of all the names I'm hearing. After several hours of being carried around town (and to dance class!), the little guy is finally in his new fish home and seems pretty content. Hopefully he'll last awhile -- and if not, then hopefully he'll give up before the 14 day guarantee is over so we can quickly replace him with another Betta.

When the Elephant Walks...

M - When the Elephant Walks from c on Vimeo.

Meredith with one of our favorite books. I love this age when they begin "reading" books. It cracks me up every time I hear her say crocodile...

Autumn in Orange County

Today we headed up to Dana Point for their annual Tall Ships Festival. It's kind of a funny name, really, given the heavy pirate presence. Something like "Pirate Festival" would have been a better name. Our own little pirate came wearing his pirate hat and both kids were accompanied by their stuffed pirate ducks. Afterwards we continued north along 101 and found ourselves in Balboa Island (Newport Beach). It's a dense community - the most dense in O.C.? - and a fun spot to walk around. Before leaving we each picked out a special treat for the drive home. For this mama, it was the frozen chocolate-covered banana -- yum!
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Note: We found Autumn on Balboa Island today (above)!

Dana Point, California

Make-Your-Own-Pizza Night

The kids loved Make-Your-One-Pizza Night this evening. They wanted to sample all the toppings available -- raw garlic!? - and had a great time nibbling away at their creations as they were making them. And afterwards? Thomas gobbled down more than half of his pizza. I'm guessing Meredith filled up while creating her masterpiece because she didn't eat as much of hers. We should make this a regular (monthly?) night at our house.

34"

Meredith has reached a milestone! During visits to Legoland she always wants to do the "big kid rides" but accepts that she isn't old enough for some and just isn't quite tall enough for others. However, yesterday's visit to the park was extra special for this little lady because she is finally the magical height of 34". I think the Adidas sneakers gave her that extra lift she needed. She was all smiles riding several of the "big kid rides" for the very first time. Our visits will never be the same again!

favorite time of year

This is definitely the best time of year in San Diego County. The tourists have gone home and the kids have gone back to school which means all the fun spots are no longer super busy. Rides at Legoland have very minimal wait times (if any!) and the weather is still really warm (85* today?). We joined two mama friends and their children for one of our best times at Legoland today. All five kids had a blast and were so well-behaved. We all usually leave after 2 hours, but stayed for almost 6 hours. Meredith and Sophia were perfectly paired and didn't want to say goodbye at the end. Thomas had an equally great time riding many of the rides with Chase and his mama -- one of which none of us had been on before. You'd think that after a gazillion trips to Legoland we would have seen and done it all, but there's still something new with every single visit. Amazing.

Happy Birthday to him!

Today is our favorite guy's birthday! The kids have been so excited about this day. They made special birthday cards, picked out cake plates they thought he'd like (Meredith's Princess-themed choice lost to Thomas' Transformers-themed plates), and helped me fix up a cake for him this afternoon. The second he came in after work both greeted him with exclamations of there being a birthday cake for him in the refrigerator. They could hardly wait for dinner to be finished and the birthday candles lit. So fun. We love you!

the secret park

This morning we took the girls out to a hidden park -- ssshhh, don't tell anyone. Signs are posted everywhere listing the things that are not allowed and dogs is one of them. But it's a lovely little gem with a clean lake, water fountain features, a smooth (paved) trail that encircles it all, lots of open green grass... and all just 3 short miles from our house! We aren't telling anyone about it because we all enjoyed it so much and only a handful of other dogs and their people were there this morning. We'll be there again next weekend.

Labor Day weekend

Labor Day weekend, 10am in San Clemente, California. The beaches are already humming with lots of activity. We didn't go up for the beach today, but to hit the farmer's market/art faire and pick up some yummy treats. One of these treats are garlic pistachios from the peanut dude. Yummy.

San Diego Zoo

The new Elephant Odyssey exhibit at the San Diego Zoo has been open for a few months, but with the summer crowds we stayed away until today. It's a beautiful exhibit and expansive - covering not only elephants, but all the animals past and present that lived in Southern California. There are also some fun areas for kids sprinkled throughout and great viewing spots for all the exhibits. Today was still a busy and warm day (holiday weekend), but the summer crowds are definitely thinning as schools resume and visitors go back home. We're looking forward to more outings to these top destination spots in the coming months!