Beauty School Drop-out?

For the past month or so Landry has been in love with my bathroom cabinets. He loves to crawl on in and take out every last curlng iron...which I never knew that I had so many until he pulled them all out...my straightener, hair dryer, and anything else he can find. Often times he will drag his "treasure" down the hallway...so if you stop by and see a hair dryer in the middle of the hall...you know Landry was at work. Well, this morning he made his way down the hall, into my bathroom, and went to town. After a few minutes I heard a bit of a crash and didn't really think much of it. I thought he was using the curling irons as swords...which he loves to do...so it wasn't until about 10 minutes later that I discovered this:

We {heart} Santa Cruz!

Well, the title about says it all! Of course when I say "we"...I mean "I" because the enthusiasm I got from the Mr. was this..." ya, it was a good time." Side note...sometimes I really wonder...how in the world the two of us make it work. I mean, I am on cloud 9, bursting with smiles, excitement, joy, carpe diem...we just had a fabulously relaxing three days...and his response is "ya, it was a good time." hmmmm.

Back to the fabulous time...in my mind, it was just that! We got all packed and loaded...which with a small child it is always much more of an adventure...long gone are the days of just throwing in two suitcases and an ice chest of snacks, and we're off. Nope, its more of a game of Tetris, Rubik's Cube, and Jenga all at once. :o) Anyway, once that adventure was complete...we were on the road to Santa Cruz!

Handsome was a champ and slept most of the way there. He even got his very first Happy Meal toy...minus the Happy Meal. Yup, he used his charm on a very friendly, older gentleman that worked at the McDonalds in Los Banos...before you know it...the kind gentleman brought Landry a toy truck...so sweet!

Here is the view from our room:

Yup...we were right across from the beach...which was AWESOME!!! As you can see we were also well within walking distance to the wharf and the Boardwalk. Can I just brag about the fact that this room was EXTREMELY well priced and we were very Eco-friendly...we never drove our car! Yup, once we parked it...it was parked until we left on Thursday...AMAZING!

On the first day we rode this darling trolly...

to Downtown Santa Cruz. Now, we did splurge a bit on the ticket price so that we didn't have to drive the car and pay for parking...are you ready for the price...$0.25 per person. Yes, we were able to fit that into the budget...$0.75 each way...which came to $1.50 roundtrip. I know, I couldn't believe that they charged us for our sweet child either...but they did. :o) Can you believe it? One quarter. One quarter bought us a ride, on this adorable trolly, to charming Downtown Santa Cruz...loved it!

Landry and I on the trolly.

After spending the afternoon in Downtown Santa Cruz, we came back to our room, rested up, and then headed to the Boardwalk and then to the wharf for some dinner.

Everywhere we went people commented on Handsome..."oh my goodness, look at that baby," "he is so adorable," "look at that cool lil' dude," "I have to get a picture of that!" Yup, in one store we actually had a lady who asked if she could take his picture. Honestly, who wouldn't fall in love with this:

The next day was beach day! Of course...it was the coldest day we were there! Oh well, we still made it work...it was a bit chilly for my taste but the people watching made up for it. :o) All I can say is that there are a lot of people out there with a lot more self confidence than me...more power to them?!?

Since our room was right across the street from the beach it was so nice to be able to just take our gear and go!

Me and Landry...as you can see..going to the beach is serious business!

 Chad and Landry...watching the volleyball players.

 My two boys!

 Thank you, Amy for the beach gear!

 Landry actually got in the sand this trip...sandy hands.

 Time to do some exploring...

 Or sea gull chasing!

 But...Landry's favorite beach activity...eating animal crackers!

As you can see...he likes to leave a little bit behind for later!

And of course the only way to finish a day at the beach is...

with a nap. :o)

That night we went out to a restaurant on the wharf that has a Wednesday night special...full lobster dinner fo $11.95. Here is a picture of my first lobster dinner:

and of course...I have to post one more picture of Handsome...as you can see, he has a "thing" for sunglasses!

Like I said, it was so nice to just get away, relax, eat good food, enjoy some cooler weather, and have fun. So, Santa Cruz...if I have anything to say...we will be seeing you again next year! :o)

Whimsy Wednesday - KitchenTowels

I know that most of my creations are designed for children and babies...but I do stuff for big kids, too! Here are two sets of kitchen hand towels that I have created.

As always...let me know if I can create a custom design for you! Oh, and if you get a chance...check out my Facebook page and "like" it! :o)

Mommy Moment Monday - Dental School

Shhh....it's not really Tuesday...it's still Monday...somewhere...maybe?

You know that you are a mom when you find your toothbrush looking like this:

 Lovely...isn't it!?! All full of frozen blueberry waffle, carpet fuzz, lint, and who knows what else!

You may remember this picture...

when Handsome was a mere 9 months old, he discovered his love for the toothbrush. Clearly, the love affair has deepened. When he can't reach his toothbrush...he goes searching for mine, pulls it out of the bin in my cabinet, and takes it...well...everywhere!

Playing in the family room...

  Climbing into his chair...

And as you will see...it is even necessary to have your toothbrush in hand when you take your very first steps! Yup...FIRST STEPS!!!!!!

Sorry that the video is sideways...I took it on my phone and can't figure out how to get it to turn around! :o)

Teacher Tuesday

So, I went back to "work" yesterday...summer school. Yup, I signed up to teach summer school...8 whole days...ha! :o) Since I was kind of caught up in the fact that I was "back in a routine" I completely forgot about my mommy moment. As luck would have it...I had a great moment in the classroom today and thought that I should share it with you all...hope you enjoy!

Just a little background...my students are children that are going into 3rd grade. They are enrolled in summer school so that they can hopefully better their skills in reading, writing, and math. Here goes nothing:

A student was up out of his seat for the 456,789 time this morning.

Me: "Sit down...S-I-T...sit"

Student: "How rude! I'm not dumb you know!"

Me: "I never said that you were dumb. I simply asked you to sit down...again."

Student: "Well, that's what you spelled to me...dumb."

Me: "No, actually I spelled sit...not dumb."

Hmmm...what are your thoughts? Irony? If the shoe fits?

Whimsy Wednesday - No Whimsy!

So, I have waited until now to do this post because...I have no new whimsy to share with you today. Bummer...I know that you were all waiting on the edge of your seat for today's whimsy. :o)

Instead, I have an update for you...a certain little man turned 14 months today! It has been kind of funny because I originally was going to stop the monthly updates. Mainly because I don't want to bore you all with pictures of Handsome, also I don't want you to be calling me names as I continue to give monthly updates, plus...I just thought it was time to stop. To my surprise, there are a lot of you out there that actually read my little ol' blog! Many of you have asked where the monthly updates have gone. I have to say that a.) I am very flattered that you continue to read my blog and b.) I am even more flattered that you want to know more about Handsome. So, I am left with nothing to do but...continue the posts...kind of. Your wish is my command...plus, as my aunt suggested...I love the idea of an 18 year old Landry sitting on the couch next to Lion. Ha! :o)

I think I will give you an update every couple of months...because...the picture taking...well...its becoming a bit of a challenge. Here is how tonight's shots played out...

We started off pretty good...notice we can't just sit next to Lion...nope, we gotta cuddle him.

 A bit of a cheesy-squinty smile...

 And then we realized...Jeopardy was on...you think I'm joking about the Jeopardy thing...nope...here is the proof!

 Mom tried to move Lion down...and then we decided to try and get some toys...

 Then we spotted Mom's laptop and headed out the other direction...

 This is where it went downhill...tried to play with Mom's laptop and got ourself in trouble...

 Still mad...

 Not happy about being told no...

 Even once we are down and set free to roam...we are STILL mad and we are going to let Mom know about it!

So, as you can see...it is quie an adventure. Did I mention that this all happened within about 4 minutes...the entire time I am trying to get Landry and Lion together, camera set, and picture taken. So, to all of you that always see our "chill and low-key" baby...here is proof...he is not always that way!

Fourth of July Festivities

You probably already know but...4th of July is one of my favorite holidays...right behind Christmas! I love the food, weather, fireworks, decor, festivities...and of course, the fact that it is the day I met my man. :o)

Every year we celebrate with our friends at the Netto House. We enjoy a day of fun, games, swimming, bbqing, and of course...FIREWORKS! Each year I am in charge of a dessert. Now, you know that I am not the best cook in the world. I try. Really hard. But I have given in to the fact that cooking just isn't my thing. Baking however...I love it! I think it is because I get to be artistic and creative...which is always a plus for me. Moving on...here was my dessert for this year:

 I am also very proud to say that my dessert always has red, white, and blue...and I have never repeated one...yup, pat on the back for me! :o)

Here is Handsome...enjoying the pool!

That is Chad's foot...not mine. :o)

 Getting ready to watch the fireworks...you can see that my child has inheritated the Lofgren sense of enthusiasm...not the Kruser side. :o)

 I was a little nervous about how Landry would do with the fireworks this year. Last year he slept through the entire thing but I was certain that wasn't going to happen this year. Add to it that he HATES loud noises...I was thinking that one of us was going to be inside with a screaming baby. But...have you met my child...he is amazing...really...amazing. He watched every single firework! Sure there were a few times he got a bit nervous and cuddled in real close...but not a single tear or cry. AMAZING! Have I mentioned that Handsome is amazing?

Studying the action..

 Fireworks are serious business...

 "Mom...what are they doing?"

 No, I was not texting...that is actually my camera...I was trying to get profile shots of Landry but he wasn't really having much of it...thank you Kelley, for the shots from your phone! :o)

 As you can see...he wasn't totally loving it...but very interested by everything.

"Aren't we done yet?"

 "I see you trying to take my picture...don't think you're getting away with something!"

 Family shot

 The fireworks

 What appears to be a new annual tradition!

 Kelley having fun...

 she REALLY loves America!

 and of course...our annual girls picture with our sparklers!

Thank you Nettos, for another great year...can't wait for next year...and yes, I already have an idea for next year's dessert! :o)