Ella is FOUR!

Just yesterday...or 4 years ago.

February is here.  Birthday month is now 3/4 of the way finished.  Ella had her 4th birthday (February 13th)--she was very excited about her birthday this year and very into it for weeks (if not months) in advance.  When we were out and about she constantly added to her birthday wish list ("I want this for my bird-day").  Her list must have had 100's of items...that were forgotten within 2 minutes of adding it to her list.  Now that her birthday is over she's still seeing objects of desire and already creating a list for her next birthday.  Oh my.  

What we DID get her was a new bike.  Well, a "new" bike in that it's Chloë's old bike from when she was 4 (thank you, Heather!).  We decked it out with a babydoll (or stuffed animal seat) and some streamers for the handlebars.  Looks good as new!  Ella isn't QUITE riding it all around at this point--but we just need some more park/bike exposure time.  It has been pretty wet/cold on weekends lately.  

Luckily, we did have decent weather for her birthday party--which was a pretty casual affair.  Bagels/fruit/coffee/juice at the park.  

Here are some pics:

Ella is my baby...it's so hard to believe that back when Chloë turned 4 I had THREE children YOUNGER than her.  THAT IS JUST INSANE.  ABSOLUTELY CRAZY.  I cannot even imagine having 3 children younger than Ella right now.  Not even going there.  

Christmas Re-Cap (Better Late Than Never)

Not necessarily in chronological

order:

Owen, Eli & Ella did the Santa Run in Pacific Beach- the 1K race for kids. Their first registered race!

Pre-Race Photo

We had a sneaky Elf visiting us this year!  

Posadas Fiesta at the kids' school

2nd grade cookie exchange

Also was pajama day and the last day before 2 week holiday break

Rancho Bernardo Winery Christmas Event

Christmas Eve

(my loves)

Christmas Eve with Auntie Heather

Friends & neighbors stopped by 

Neighbor buddies!

Christmas morning at the Hines household

Making caramels with Grandpa

Holiday Lights with Grandpa & Gramma

Christmas Eve Eve Party at friends' house

Ella & Gramma pose in red

Decorating ice cream cone Christmas trees

Coming down on Christmas morning

Looks tasty!

Chloë as a frog!

Wow--is this really a 3rd post in one sitting!?  I'm on a roll, people!  A delirious roll, but a roll, none-the-less!  Go me:).  This one will just be pictures for the most part.  Chloë has spent all Mondays since September in an after school enrichment program called Park Dale Players.  Basically, an acting group.  It's the first year they have offered a program at her school and it's for 2nd graders and up only.  They spent all semester preparing for a play--only on Mondays for an hour and 1/2 each session.  The final performances were this past Friday & Saturday night:  "An Animal Tail"...and I was BLOWN AWAY...such a great play, cute storyline, and the kids did amazing!!  I was so proud of all of them and especially my baby girl!  

Just after the final performance!  With some 2nd grade buddies.

Lizard, Frog, Squirrel, Tiger

Proud brother :)

Proud Momma :)

Proud Papa :)

Precious Time with Ella

Some of the time I'm feeling like I can't believe Ella ISN'T starting kindergarten and full-time school next year (she still has 1.5 years) and the other part of the time I'm in shock that she will be starting so soon (because we all know that that 1.5 years will FLY by and be nothing more than a teeny blip on the radar of my child-rearing years).  As the 4th child I feel that she's always been dragged around with me on errands, running the older kids to and from playdates and activities, and just an extra appendage of my body, at times.  Soooo, lately I have been trying to really ENJOY my time with her whenever possible (meaning whenever possible that I am able sit still and really grasp the magic of it all...=rare!) and to do and really breathe in all the little mommy & me activities that I do with her.  Which honestly is NOT a lot.  The running around, riding in the car, doing multiple Target/ grocery store runs with me each week is a (large) chunk of her life.  However, I couldn't pick a better wing-girl for these menial day-to-day tasks.  This girl is a JOY.  A complete sweetheart and my little buddy.  I adore her more than words can express :)

Making muffins

Painting

Christmas art project 

(Haha--the 3 above pictures were all from ONE morning back a few months ago.  I had to document my Super-Mom-Ness and the fact that we WEREN'T at Target spending too much money...instead I was being momma of the year!!  See those pics?? PROOF!!  Right?!)

Mommy & Me Cooking class at the new local market: Lazy Acres in Encinitas

A Weekend with Owen

*Apology in advance..it's 10pm and I've been up since 4am.  My eyes are burning as I stare at the screen and I keep nodding off as I'm typing this.  I should just stop and go to bed...but if I do that I'll NEVER get a post done.  This is THE time I have.  It is what it is.  It's just unfortunate as I know my brain is half-asleep and therefore my writing suffers, my grammar suffers, and it's just putting the words out there versus actual entertaining writing. Like I said, it is what it is.  I'm powering through this.

It all started with Ella going with me on my trip to Portland & Seattle back in early Fall 2016.  She pretty much HAD to travel with me as Myke works full-time, the older 3 were in school full-time, and we had no one who could watch Ella while I went away.  I hadn't realized that taking my youngest along with me would spark such a jealously among the others.  Now they all wanted "a trip with mommy".  Myke and I chatted, pondered and eventually decided that it could be a good thing for us to do more significant one-on-one time with the kids than an occasional run to Target or the even-more-rare one-on-one dinner out.  I loved the idea of getting to know my kiddos a little better and having that special time with each one.  They're growing up so fast and the time is just slipping away in a haze of busy-ness and obligations and school and homework and dinner and piano and softball and dodgeball and swimming lessons x4 and....need I say more?

So I took Owen on a little getaway overnight to Knott's Berry Farm last month.  It was short and sweet.  We headed up Saturday morning, spent the day a the theme park, stayed in the hotel next to the theme park and headed home the next day.  We had a blast.  We rode rides, I tricked Owen into a going on a roller coaster (by pretending we were in line for a different easy-peasy baby ride that was right next to the roller coaster and then quickly throwing him into the seat and locking the lap bar before he could protest too much), we watched "live" Charlie Brown shows (Knott's Berry Farm is Snoopy themed), we bought silly souvenirs, we ate at the hotel restaurant, we lounged in bed eating candy apples covered in M&M's and watching cartoons, we took a dip in the hotel's hot tub, we played arcade games and won Shopkins stuffed toys.  We had fun!  (Or at least I did...and I THINK he did?!!  Looking at the pics below makes me question that a bit!)

Owen was LESS of a fan of characters than I really realized.  This was right when we got to the park and he was NOT excited AT ALL about meeting Snoopy.  

Finally would only look at the camera when I held him.  

Snoopy's Chair was cool, though

Again, I'm HAPPY and he's NOT so much...but the roller coast was fun!! 

(for me!)

We were FIRST in line for this carousel ride and I told Owen he could pick ANY animal 

he wanted to ride.  He picked the granny sleigh!!  Wha?!?!

He's such a big adrenaline-junkie!

Hot tub time in January!

Better Late Than Never...

Mammoth Mountain- Thanksgiving Break 2016

Hiking in Encinitas (November 2016)

Happy 2017!  Should my New Year's Resolution be to blog on a more frequent basis?  Nah!  Why get all crazy like that.. Here are some pics from November 2016.  Myke had a week off at Thanksgiving (thank you Apple!!) so we headed to Mammoth Mountain.  It was a first time for all of us and we completely fell in love!  So gorgeous there.  The air is so crisp and clean.  Ahhhhh...!!  We got

 to get in our snow fix, as well.  We had awesome snow and fun times at the ski lodge.  Chloë took 2 days of ski lessons and is a complete natural on the slopes - like her daddy!  Ella took a morning lesson the 2nd day and had a blast--which prompted Owen to take a lesson that afternoon.  It was so great to see my kiddos having fun and trying out skis!  I've NEVER EVEN tried skiing myself!!!  Can you believe it??   I do want to try--but this trip it was just not in the works.  And I was OK with that.  I had a BLAST just being there.  Eli LOVED LOVED LOVED the gondola to the top of Mammoth Mountain and the views from up there were breath-taking.  We are already planning/scheming for another Mammoth trip. Probably won't be until next Fall/Winter though :(