Leapin' Lizards !

So Brooklyn was out bug hunting in our yard again the other day when we spotted a cute little lizard. My first instincts were for her not to touch it but my dear advisor ( Madisons therapist ) Tina assured me that it would not bite. So I told her to go for it ( not thinking she would actually catch it ) and sure enough it stopped stiff and let her pick him up. It was fun to watch her explore it first hand by tugging at all its body parts (thankfully in a gentle nature- all parts remained attached ). After all her curiosities with it were finally met, she sweetly let him go and off he ran into our flower pot. I assured her that she now had a pet lizard and we decided to name him Louie. I am liking the fact that we can have this array of animals that live great harmonious lives in our yard while giving us brief moments of entertainment yet we do not have to feed them or worry about whether or not they have met their demise. Unlike the 3 cats we have owned since living here. Yeah, we are SO done with cats. Who needs them anyway with a squirrel named Sammy (living in the neighbors pine tree ) a few lizards living in our flower beds, and the unfortunately animals we would rather do without.... the gophers , the cayotes and feline eating owl we have parading in the night. Then ofcourse who could forget the memory of the gopher snake we encountered a few years ago in our yard. Yep , don't care to see him again ( unless he actually gets the gopher that is currently making holes in our front yard ... then he is welcome to briefly visit !).

Belated Birthday Blog

So a few weeks ago ( Yes, I am still behind ), I turned the big 29. Unfortunately this is the last year that I can say that I am in my late 20's. Jake and I would have liked to celebrate by doing something special and more lavish but instead kept it boringly predictible this year. But who is to say that next year, being the big 3-0 cannot be exciting and lavish, right ? So anyway , we had a good night going out to one of my favorite restaraunts called Louises Trattoria . It is a nice Italian restaraunt in Westlake Village ( others around Southern California ). We had fabulous italian food and great adult conversation. I look back at the whole day and wonder if I kind of spoiled any chance for surprise being as I had already ordered my gift and Jake pretty much knew where I wanted to go for dinner. I have chose this place in the past for a few birthdays because everytime we do date nights we tend to go Mexican, Thai or a main favorite of ours... California Pizza Kitchen (CPK). So he knew right off the bat that when it is "my night" I was going to choose Italian. I am sorry but it is literally in my blood ! Oh and by the way, for those whom are interested, my present was a Hoover Steam Vac Dual V carpet cleaner. Jake was not excited about it being my birthday gift but I assured him that the convenience of clean carpets made me very happy ! He did however surprise me later with a nice decor piece for our walls but I couldn't help but return it when I could not decide where to put it. He tried, right ? I can really kick myself for being so dang particular sometimes ! Oh well, spontanaity and surprises will have to come in my 30's. Right now it is all about convenience and predictability !

Minivan Mama !

So the time has finally come. A few weeks ago ( maybe even a month now !) Jake and I took a big step and finally bought the dreaded minivan. To be perfectly honest, I have been ready for one for over a year now. But that is not to say that that was always the "PLAN". Back in August of 1998 as we were on our second or third date we were laughing about the whole minivan stage of life and both SWORE that we were never going to be minivan owners. Nope, we both agreed that we were definately more SUV type people ! We had this discussion before we even talked about getting married ( even though we both knew that there was something great happening ). We happen to be having this discussion because our dates always entailed a white Ford Astrovan Minivan that was Jakes mode of transportation at the time. He was working in Costa Mesa for Airborne Express and had been given this hideous van as a company car. It served its purpose but was definately not a "chick magnet" by any means.
So what is this fine vehicle of choice you might ask ? Well it is a brand new 2007 Slate Green ( I refer to it as Pewter Gray ) Honda Odyssey EX-L ( because we decided leather was a MUST with our kiddos !). I have been admiring them from afar and at last have one of my own. I have to say though, I thought for sure that my first drive home in it would be filled with excitement and joy , but was surprised to feel mixed emotions when actually owning one. I had this brief feeling of sorrow for the death of the "young mom " had come. But thankfully by the time I got home, I had happily embraced the "soccer mom" image . Who couldn't embrace it with all that the minivan has to offer these days. The automatic doors, the in-floor storage, the fold down seats, the built in sunshades , and all of the sudan like ammenities! The convenience and space are well worth it ! I no longer dread the thought of a family roadtrip . ZOOM ZOOM ZOOM ... because we got the room !

Moorpark Funky Days !

So this weekend I decided that I would show a little Moorpark "pride" and take the girls to what is called "Moorpark Country Days". So I packed up all of the goodies that I needed for a typical outing and off the four of us went ( the fourth person being my babysitter, Vanessa , since Jake usually is working on the weekends.) I had high hopes for this so called "Country Days". I was envisioning pony rides, carnival booths, cotton candy and maybe even a little petting zoo. As well as lots of bushels of hay spread about to give it that country feel . To my dismay there were no pony rides ( although they did have a horse drawn carriage circling surrounding streets... not sure how much that would've cost though!) There were a few small vending trailers that were serving soft serve icecream and other carnival type treats . There were about 4 or 5 carnival game booths, 3 or 4 Huge bouncy houses ( that satisfied Brooklyn for a measily 7 minutes that I purchased for $2... Worth it though). There was a parade that was anything but impressive and I had to laugh at the several people that brought their beach chairs and probably came early to get a front row seat for the festive feel a parade usually creates. But overall I left ( after about 90 minutes ) feeling disappointed that the city that I have grown to love was so lowsy with their festivities. I did not feel the sense of Moorpark pride that I was expecting from those around me. I did not feel the cozy country feel that I was envisioning these past 5 years from the long time locals. I hear stories all the time about how the town started and how the roads were not even paved and the 23 freeway did not even exist until about 15 years ago. I am thinking that they are going to need to change the name in the future to avoid being misleading . The only thing I can think of that comes to mind is " Moorpark Funky Days" because that sums it all up.
So what did I get out of it all ? An hour and a half with my girls and an affirmation that next year when I want to feel the good ole down home feel of being in the Country here in Moorpark, I should just head to one of the local farms that are already set up year round with pony rides, petting zoos and home grown crops for sale. That is the genuine Country part that I love about Moorpark .

Sweet Routine

So every night, as most families probably do, we have our routine. It is pretty clock work. It goes something like this... The T.V. goes off at 5pm sharp , we eat dinner ( which usually consists of simple kid favorites like grilled cheese and tomato soup or bean and cheese quesadillas, but I am working on changing that up ). Then after dinner comes baths for both the girls ( sometimes together upon Brooklyns request) complete with hair washing ( that is another thing I am trying to start doing every other night rather than EVERY night ). Then we head downstairs for blowdrying ( I know some moms are getting exhausted just thinking about all the fuss! ) Then we clean up all of the toys for the night ( complete with singing the clean up song ofcourse :0) ). After that is complete we enjoy a small scoop of icecream , head upstairs for brushing of the sugar bugs followed by family prayer time. Then as we finish tucking Madison into bed and give her kisses goodnight comes one of the sweetest moments I hope I never forget. I turn off her lights and hear my sweet little Brooklyn say " It's Okay Maa Maa , it is not scary, we will keep you safe Maa Maa . Ni Night sister. " I cannot even tell you how much that sweet, thoughtful dialogue she has come up with warms my heart ! She is such a great protector and friend to her big sister and it is my biggest prayer that she will always be that loving and compassionate towards Madison . These are the simple moments for me that make motherhood so sweet !