Until Next Time Mickey....Homeward Bound

Knowing what awaited us, preparing for the drive home was simultaneously excrutiating and relieving.  Excrutiating only because we knew Simon was far away from a nap and relieving because we survived the trip.  The four of us had a blast and I continue to be impressed with how well the boys did.  I saw a lot of my husband in Dominick and Simon and I saw a lot of my boys in Nick.  It's nice and therapeutic to get away from the routine and submerge yourself in fun, magic and imagination. Seeing the sparkle in your children's eyes, hearing the excitement in their voices and being able to share that with them is beyond description.  Many memories were made, many pictures were taken and many laughs were shared during those three days and I will cherish it always.

Needless to say, we made it home safely.  Simon wasn't sure what to make of it all once we arrived, I am pretty sure he thought we moved to the hotel.  When he first saw his room he said "my bed" "my toys", silly kid.  We look forward to our next trip to the Magical Kingdom and in my opinion, it can't come soon enough. 

Below are some additional pics I want to share.  Enjoy.

Mickey Mouse (Day 3)

In full Disney mode we sprang out of bed on day #3 ready to take on California Adventure.  Since CA opens an hour later than Disneyland, I had the opportunity to follow through on a promise I made to my 2 1/2 year old niece, Aryanna.  I vowed to get Tinkerbell's signature and have a picture taken with the fairy.  My boys were not too thrilled about the idea of waiting in line to see Tink and they were less enthusiastic when I told them (Dominick and Simon) that they too would be photographed.  The picture came out adorable, despite the look on the boys' faces and Dominick asked Tinkerbell for her autograph for his adorable cousin.

After our adventure in Fairyland we walked across the way to California Adventure.  CA has a different feel then DL, not as magical but very movie studio-like.  Our first stop was MUPPETS 3D. We all enjoyed the antics of the wild offspring of Jim Henson.  Next we visited Monster's Inc, went on to Bug's Life and then we found what we had all been waiting for...TOY STORY!

 

Toy Story was one of the main appeals of California Adventure. Both boys enjoy all the characters and I was excited for Simon to see the life size versions. Of course, when we are finally able to get up close and personal with "Army Men" as Simon refers to them as and Woody, the kid would not wake up.  So we did the best with what we had to work with.

Our next stop was the giant Carousel. It was a little intimidating to me but I braved it and it was actually kind of cool. We saw the whole park from way up high.

Dominick loved the Hollywood Tower of Terror! He went on it twice, once with me and once with Nick.  At lunch we had some hot dogs at Award Weiners. Stood in a ridiculously long line for the Toy Story Mania ride, but it was worth it.  We finished off the day watching the AMAZINGLY GREAT Pixar parade.  After the parade it was time for the park to close. Both my boys, after three days of shenanigans, were starting to feel the effects. We walked toward the park gates, meandered through Downtown Disney and boarded the shuttle wishing the Disney parks a "see you later".

Mickey Mouse (Day 2)

A caveat:
With this being our first trip away from home with a toddler and a 10 year old, my husband and I were destined to learn a few travelling/lodging lessons. 1) Spend a few bucks more for the family hotel suite, kids in another room. Between Dominick's snoring and sleep talking and Simon's constant shuffling in the porta crib I did not reach my full resting potential, although Nick seemed to do fine. 2) Always stay at the hotel with the free deluxe breakfast, it was a lifesaver. 3) Don't overpack the toys, the more you bring the more you are searching for when it's time to go.

With tickets, camera, diaper bag, stroller and kids in hand we boarded the shuttle bright and early Monday morning and headed for Disneyland.  We weren't the first family at the gates but we were close enough.  Nick and Dominick waited in line and I let Simon run off some post breakfast energy in the Disney plaza.  Our early arrival paid off, the first sight we saw as we passed the gates and walked under the overpass was none other than the big mouse himself. I ran (yes, actually ran) toward MM and we were the first family to get our picture taken with him.

Our next stop was the Disney train, circling us around the park as Dominick picked out the rides we would go on. We stopped for a few more photo opps on our way to Fantasyland to begin our ride riding.

We went through Fantasyland hitting every ride we could. Not one line seemed too long. Dominick waited patiently and Simon did his best.  I was impressed with Simon, he did not get scared by any of the rides and even appeared to enjoy them.

Tomorrowland was next on our list.  Nick and Dominick headed toward Space Mountain while Simon enjoyed a nap in his stroller, a result of standing in the very long "Small World" line.  The two of us sat and enjoyed the sun. I was disappointed when Buzz Lightyear came strolling by since Simon was still asleep and not able to say hi to his favorite space ranger. When the little guy did wake up we made up for missing Buzz by battling Zurg with Buzz in Astroblasters. Afterwards it was lunch time then Toon Town where much fun was had.

After Toon Town it was off to Adventureland. Dominick and I braved Indiana Jones and the four of us visited the Caribbean and saw some pirates (3 times). Simon was not scared but remained wide eyed during the ride.  Nick and Dominick naievely rode Splash Mountain while Simon and I went to Winnie the Pooh's birthday party.  We hit a few more rides and then it was time for the Christmas Parade.  We were a little late to the game so didn't get the prime seating on Main Street but we were able to see the action. A lot of my pictures of the parade didn't turn out so great, here is one of us waiting for it to start.

When the parade was finished we headed toward the gates to make our way back to the hotel. But not before Nick and Dominick visited our 16th President.

And so concluded our Disneyland day. Tired, overwhelmed and excited for the next day we boarded the shuttle and off we went.  The boys slept good that night, and I did a little better as well.  We would do the same thing all over tomorrow, only at a different park.





Mickey Mouse...Here We Come (Day 1)

3:00am is a very quiet and dark time. It is an hour of sleeping and dreaming especially the Sunday after Thanksgiving.  Not many things will get me out of bed at 3:00am, a barking dog or a crying baby make this very short list. But the morning of November 28th, 2010 I was awakened by the alarm clock.  For a split second I wanted to reach over push the OFF button and continue my peaceful slumber and then I realized the reason for this very early wake up call - DISNEYLAND!!! As painful as it was getting up that morning nothing could diminish the excitement I felt knowing that in several short hours myself, my husband and our two boys would be standing ear to big ear with everyone's favorite rodent, Mickey Mouse. As a result of night before packing and preparation the four of us were out the door, in the car and on the road by 4:00am, our target hour.  Both boys were essentially put into the car still asleep and, luckily, so they remained for the next three hours. 

At 7:00am we arrived at our 1/2 way point, Kettleman City, just as Simon was waking up and Dominick was starting to ask when breakfast was.  With our sweatshirts on and Simon still in his pjs we enjoyed a nice McDonald's breakfast before we hit the road for the last leg of our trip.  Traffic and weather cooperated, for the most part.  The Grapevine had me a little on edge since it was raining/snowing as we made our way through.  We arrived at our hotel at 11:00am, 7 hour drive not too shabby. The boys did great. Simon started getting impatient toward the end but he made it.  We spent the afternoon of our first day in Huntington Beach. The beach was beautiful but boy was it windy.  We enjoyed some hot dogs, visited Jack's and had a sundae at Ruby's.  A great afternoon. 

                    





After a few hours in Huntington Beach we headed back to the hotel to check in, unpack and relax for a little bit before we headed to Downtown Disney.  Both boys were doing extremely well.  Simon was getting a little antsy, between the car ride, his stroller and the hotel room he was ready to get down and run around.  Dominick, upon hearing about the Lego Store in Downtown Disney, was equally as eager to get moving.  We loaded ourselves onto the shuttle and made our way over.  With all the Christmas decorations, lights and activity we knew it was just a glimpse into what the parks would offer us the next two days.  We wandered a little bit, made a few purchases and headed back to the hotel for dinner, showers and sleep, after all Disneyland was waiting for us when the sun came up the next day!



Gobble Gobble Turkey Day 2010

For our family, as with many other families, Thanksgiving marks the true start of the holiday season.  It is a day for reflection, worshipping and spending time with loved ones.  Food, football and relaxing are also part of the festivities and help make the day that much better.  Our 2010 Thanksgiving was spent like many other Thanskgivings past.  We went to church Thanksgiving morning.  Went to Nick's parent's for Thanksgiving lunch and then went to my sister's house for some more food and visiting.  We missed our niece, my sister-in-law and brother-in-law this year as they were visiting other family members.  But we enjoyed spending time with Nick's Aunt, Uncle and cousins from Iowa whom we haven't seen since our wedding.  All in all it was a wonderful day.  The only thing that really stands out as ironic/funny this Thanksgiving was the fact that, despite the two elaborate meals we enjoyed and all the sweets and appetizers, Simon decided he was going to eat dried Apple Jacks and a banana for his holiday meal.  I don't know why Simon chose not to partake in our meal time festivities but as time passes and he gets older I understand less and less why he does the things he does.  Oh well, he sure did miss out but Dominick consumed enough for the both of them. 
The next day I went off to work, leaving Nick, Dominick and Simon nice and warm in their beds to enjoy their lazy day together. Thanksgiving weekend was nice especially since we had a trip to Disneyland waiting for us right around the corner.  Details of our trip to the Happiest Place on Earth will be available in my next post!

Gobble Gobble.

Ghosts, Goblins, Superman and Dragons

Despite Halloween falling on a Sunday this year with work and school waiting for us early the next morning, I think we maximized our spooky night festivities. The past several Halloweens have been a mystery for me because we go through the obligatory preparation (costumes, trick or treat bag, dressing up, meeting at Grandma's) and we embark on our hour to an hour and a half trick or treat adventure.  We finish the night with a giant bag of really good candy that Dominick never eats.  Dominick has never been a candy eater, at least not in the first 10 years of his life.  We trick or treat for the sake of trick or treating.  It is fun to dress up and walk around asking for stuff and watching people give it to you because socially they have no choice.  It's a fun evening, I love how much Dominick enjoys it and love even more that he has never had a cavity.  This year's routine was not any different than years past except now we have a VERY mobile toddler added to the equation.  As usual we had pizza at Grandma's, helped the boys with their costumes and with trick or treat bags, light sticks and strollers in tow we set off.  Our little people trick or treat crew consisted of a 10 year old (Dominick), 7 year old (Ashton), 2 1/2 year old (Aryanna) and two 19 month olds (Simon and Brooklyn).  The five of them were accompanied by 9 adults.  Dominick and Ashton are old pros so other than the standard "don't walk through the grass", "don't forget to say thank you" and "look for steps" we let them loose but kept a close eye on them.  The littler ones still needed coaxing, handholding and doting parents right next to them so we could hear all the "look how adorable", "very cute", "two pieces for you for being so cute".  Of the group of five little ones wondering around I think it is safe to say that Simon owned the night.  After the second house he had the drill down pat.  Knocking on doors, saying trick or treat, grabbing candy out of the bowl, walking in houses and saying thank you, Simon was the trick or treating king.  Nothing scared him and the dark did not intimidate him. The stroller was just for show and was utitlized very little.  We did have one incident that involved a steep driveway and ended with a big bump on the forehead but other than that the night was a success.  Dominick and Simon made out like bandits and they were both so adorable in their costumes.  Simon did eat more candy than Dominick did or has.  I have since disposed of all the Halloween loot. Can't wait to see what next year brings.

From My Baby Boy to My Little Boy

I was ecstatic to see that Simon had a nice head of hair when he was born.  I know a lot of parents have bald babies but I selfishly wanted my baby to have some hair on the top of his little head and Simon did.  As the months passed Simon's hair grew and lightened in color.  By the end of Summer/beginning of Fall Simon had almost blond hair and gorgeous curls.  I love my baby's curls and swore I would wait as long as I could before I cut them.  People would comment on Simon's hair, how pretty the curls were and I was told by several people "do not cut that hair, the curls won't grow back".  I didn't want to cut Simon's hair because I knew, in an instant, he would transform from my baby boy to my little boy and sure enough that is what happened.  I finally came to the decision to have Simon's hair cut.  The curls were getting a little out of control, strangers were referring to him as my daughter and Simon was constantly brushing his hair out of his face.  On 9:00 am October 30th at 19 months and 11days of age I took Simon in for his first haircut.  Nick wouldn't accompany me, he thought Simon would throw a fit and be uncooperative so Simon and I ventured out on our own.  My baby was a trooper.  Simon sat in his little fire engine, watched Blue's Clues and had his paci for comfort.  I watched the transformation take place, from the first cut to the final blow dry, taking plenty of pictures along the way.  Before I knew it we were done and Simon was still Simon, albeit a little more groomed.  I kept his curls, they will always be a tangible reminder of my baby boy.  I am very happy with Simon's haircut and do not regret it.  His hair suits him, making him look like such the little boy that he very much is.  The 1st haircut is one of those monumental moments in parenting that could either be a wonderful experience or a disaster. I am happy to say our moment was wonderful!  My baby boy, curls or no curls, will always be my baby boy.

The Before Picture

     The First Cut

The After Picture and still as handsome as ever!

And They All Come Tumbling Down

I consider our little family a healthy family.  We don't, by any means, eat all the fruits and veggies we are supposed to and, to be honest, we lack in the physical activity department.  When I refer to healthy I mean we tend to have pretty good immune systems.  Dominick has been sick a handful of times during his past 10 years. Simon spent his first Christmas very sick with a stomach virus and had croup before he was a year old. Other than that my boys, in particular, are fairly sturdy.  So it was to my great surprise that in the early morning of October 22nd both my boys managed to become inflicted with a stomach virus complete with all the usual physical reactions.  This was the first time both my boys were sick at once.
At 5:30am when Simon first started throwing up in his crib I agreed to let Nick stay home and take care of him while I went to work.  An hour later when Dominick complained of a stomach ache and then proceeded to follow in his brother's footsteps I knew this was a task for mom.  The day progressed like any sick kid day would.  Dry cereal and water, lots of dirty towels, dirty sheets and dirty clothes, long naps, races to the bathroom and whiny children.  Finally, at about 5:00pm, I started to see the sunlight.  A few hours had passed without incident and both boys were up and showing signs of energy, I was feeling optimisitic until....it was mommy's turn.  Sure enough, the next six hours belonged to me, enjoying the lovely gift my boys were kind enough to share with me.  Needless to say, we all survived.  Saturday was a better day.  I even took the kids to the pumpkin patch between rain showers so they could finally get their Halloween pumpkins.  Simon lost any weight he gained over the past month and Dominick and I could stand to lose a few so no complaints here.  Nick never got sick but I am not surprised.  As a parent one of the worst things is to see your children in pain. One of the most important jobs as a parent, especially mommies, is to know how to comfort/hold/kiss and cuddle with your babies no matter how old they are or how sick they are.

It's The Little Things

I am overjoyed to be the mother of two terrific boys.  As much as I love them and adore them, I can't help but think their sole purpose in life is to entertain me.  I know I can sit back and observe my children and within a short amount of time one of them will do something that will make me chuckle.  At 10 years old and 19 months old Dominick and Simon definitely provide moments of frustration, anxiety and despair but overall I can say we are generally kept entertained by their antics.  This thought is very present in my mind today because over the course of 12 hours two little things, little acts performed by my children created a sense of pride and a "Hey mom, you are not doing that bad of a job after all" feeling in me that I will hold on to forever.  In sequential order, the two moments are detailed below

1) Simon - 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, October 19
            I come home from work around 6:00 and Simon is running a fever.  I give him some Advil and he starts to cool down and show some signs of activity.  I finish up dinner and put him in his highchair but I can tell he really has no interest in eating. Normally I would coax him a little and "battle" with him until he eats some portion of his dinner but knowing that he doesn't feel great I let it go.  After dinner is done and I am cleaing the kitchen Simon starts to fuss, Nick gives him some fruit snacks.  Nick opens the pack of fruit snacks hands them to Simon, who has already made his way up onto the dining room chair to eat his snacks at the table.  Fruit snacks are Simon's favorite!  I watch Simon carefully dump out his fruit snacks onto the placemat which he has moved in front of him.  OK, I think, easier for him to access them, makes sense.  And then I watch him do something that most men, let alone 19 month olds don't do on a regular basis.  Simon stops eating his snacks, scoots himself off of the chair, grabs his empty snack pack, walks over to the kitchen garbage, opens the lid, drops the pack in, walks back over to his chair, climbs back up and starts eating again without skipping a beat.  For whatever reason that sequence of events amazed me!  I should know now not to be surprised at anything Simon does but I think it is our jobs as parents to be continuously impressed with these little minds that God created.

2) Dominick - 6:45 a.m., Wednesday, October 20th
      Morning routines are crucial and staying on schedule is a must.  We have our routine down pretty well, I get the boys up, Dominick gets dressed while I make breakfast.  After breakfast Dominick takes his dishes into the kitchen and sets them on the counter. He then feeds the dog, gets his backpack ready, brushes his teeth, does his hair and then he's done.  During this time I am usually helping the baby eat, getting him dressed, putting stuff in the car, cleaning up the kitchen from breakfast.  Dominick stays on track for the most part and never takes on anything additional unless I ask him specifically which I try not to because we are working with a short amount of time as it is.  This morning was different, I am not sure why, maybe at 10 he is maturing, maybe he is seeing me do a lot of the work that he thought he should help out as well.  Whatever the reason or motivation I didn't question it.  I am preparing Simon's diaper bag for daycare, Simon is still in his highchair and Dominick just carried his dishes into the kitchen.  The butter and knife are still on the counter from the english muffins I prepared.  I watch as Dominick picks up the tub of butter, puts the lid on, puts it inside the refrigerator and puts the knife in the sink.  He then walks back to the dining room table and pushes in the chairs and goes about the rest of his routine. Again, I stand amazed at my child. Not because what he had done was so extraordinary or difficult but just because of the mere fact that he did it, without being asked and without a need for recognition.

I will, in some part, take credit for the habits my children are developing.  We like order, routine and tidyness in our home and I am glad my boys are picking up those traits.  I do know, however, that my boys have the opportunity and the will to defy everything I do or say so I am incredibly happy that things I find important are important to them as well.

Pumpkin Patch # 1 2010

For our family the month of October includes many trips to the pumpkin patch.  This October is turning out to be a little busier but we have a few more weekends to meet our pumpkin patch quota.  Dominick has become an official member of Fog Willow in Wilton, that was our first trip this year.  Keema Family Pumpkin Patch in Elk Grove is also a favorite.  Owned by friends of the family Keema is very country like with a corn maze, animals, hay pyramid and great people!  Dominick's birthday weekend consisted of a trip to Fog Willow with my husband's siblings and our 18 month old niece.  Below are some pictures.  Last year's pumpkin patch pictures were so easy to take as both babies were sill somewhat immobile and generally stayed put where we left them, this year not so much.  My sister in law and I tried to get some cute pictures, but after a certain point we take what we get and be happy with it.

Simon and his cousin Brooklyn

Dominick conquering the hay pyramid.

Simon wasn't too sure about the animals this year

Dominick and Ashton

Belated items contd.....Park Trips

This spring and summer Nick and I were determined to spend every available opportunity OUTSIDE.  We have acquainted ourselves with a number of Elk Grove parks and they are beautiful.  We have our favorites and we have our staples, mainly because they are close to the house in case a toddler meltdown occurs.  Nothing is better than watching your children run, jump, climb and test their physical abilities in the freedom of the outdoors.  Dominick's park favorite is the bars, not monkey bars, but the pull up style bars that he can swing around on.  Simon loves the slide and anything with steps or that he can climb.  Parks and slurpees, what a great family tradition.  Below are some snapshots of our recreational fun.