November 2015

We switched things up this year and headed to Arizona for Turkey Day.  It was the first time we've been in the car with the kids for over four hours intentionally but here is the good news, we are now proud owners of our very own minivan so the drive to Arizona was a piece of cake. Next to moving into a home, moving into a minivan was a moment I have looked forward to for awhile now and it was everything I'd hoped it would be...but more on that later.  I'm going to try really hard for this blog post to be about more than just our minivan...fingers crossed.

Thanksgiving

We had such a wonderful Thanksgiving this year, spending time with both Scott's and my family in Arizona. We arrived in Mesa on Tuesday, just in time for me to sign some copies of James the Brave for Barnes and Noble Mesa.  It was a good excuse to have Paige and her sweet little ones and Stan, Monika, Ian and Isabelle to come and hang out for an hour.  I had such a great time seeing everyone and catching up with Paige.  Later that evening we met up with the Tao's for dinner and reunited with them the next day for some fun at the park and a visit to the Gilbert Temple.  I always love watching my kids play with their cousins which doesn't happen often enough!

Gilbert Temple

The next day we headed up to Payson with Stan and Monika and the kids.  It is so beautiful up there, Scott and I always feel so happy in the mountains, a trait I believe our boys inherited.  The cabin was full of all of my favorite people and the boys had constant entertainers in Isabelle and Ian.  James would have been content staying there forever.  While we were there we hiked, rode four-wheelers, cooked, watched movies, ate and ate and ate, played games, sat by the outside fire, roasted smores, saw a movie and oh yeah, celebrated Thanksgiving.  It was a great time to decompress and enjoy the family.

Foster and George, good buddies.

Zip Line

Archery

Annual Football Game, featuring Stanton's armpits.

Every serious hiker needs a walking stick.

We saw a Bald Eagle at the park, of course this was a big deal to me.

The Minivan
Okay, let's get to it.  So after much market research I found a great deal, we went down to the dealership and we bought the sucker.  That's pretty much it.  We love our van, which feels more like a spaceship and according to James, spaceships are our thing.

Overall, the month of November left me feeling incredibly thankful, which is it's job really.  It's all about counting blessings and showing gratitude.  How can you not be happy in November when blessings seem more abundant than ever.


Honorable Mentions:

1.  We celebrated Dia De Los Muertos with my family on November 1st and it was so much fun.  The Olsons made a grand entrance with Mariachi music and shakers.  All the boys had mustaches and sombreros and I was equipped with a unibrow and a flower crown.  Best November 1st I've ever had.

2.  The boys and I did the Give with Thanks Tree.  The idea is to preform an act of service each day and with each act of service you can put a leaf on the tree.  I love the idea and I think it will work even better next year when the boys are a bit older and can understand the concept a bit more.

October 2015

Us Olsons are very big on traditions.  We love to create new traditions for our family that our boys can look forward to all year long.  Many of our traditions take place in October which means that October is one of our favorite months of the year.  At the top of our favorite traditions is making a trip to Big Bear every fall.  The boys talk about it all year and so does mom!  The boys and I took a trip to the pumpkin patch with James' preschool.  I had a Barnes and Noble reading in Los Angeles and we celebrated Halloween.  It's a good thing October has 31 days because we needed every single one of them for all the fun we had.

Big Bear

It is not a lie when I say that I planned an hour by hour itinerary for our Big Bear trip at least one month in advance.  And planning the trip might have been the happiest hour of my life.  We hit up our favorite eateries like Get the Burger, Saucy Mama's, Big Bear Manor Cafe and of course the Sweet Shop.  And we visited some of our favorite spots like The Big Bear Zoo, Main Street, 5 mile walk along the lake and for the first time ever, we golfed at Cosmic Golf!  As much as I loved doing all these things, some of my favorite moments were spent cooking and baking at the cabin next to a fire and a movie.  Just being with the family in the peace and quiet of the mountains is always a nice escape from our scheduled lives.

Pumpkin Patch

We had been talking about the pumpkin patch for about two weeks prior to going and wouldn't you know it...Foster threw a tantrum the entire time.  But that's life right?  And even though the afternoon was a bit more stressful than I wanted it to be, when I look back at the pictures all I remember is having a wonderful time with my boys.  This explains why people say their kids never threw tantrums...you forget the tantrums!!!  I do love that out of all the pumpkins to choose, Foster chose the smallest one he could find.  Beauty is in the eye of the beholder!!!

Barnes and Noble Reading

I had such an amazing opportunity to read and sign copies of James the Brave at Barnes and Noble Santa Monica. We sold out of all of the copies in the store and it was a wonderful weekend. I went up early with Ani, Tess and Joe and we stayed right in Santa Monica. We had a yummy dinner the night before the reading and then we were joined by Meridith at the signing. It felt so nice to be surrounded by so many people I love for such a special event. 

Halloween

It is no joke how much I love celebrating Halloween with my boys. We visited the Halloween shop at least three times just for fun, the boys carried skeletons around with them the entire month and we were watching Halloween movies in September! We love it! This year the boys were Iron Man and The Hulk. I can no longer choose their costumes for them, they have very serious opinions of their own now. We had a wonderful night at trunk or treat with carnival games and dinner. We decked out our trunk as usual and the kids went home with plastic pumpkins full of candy. 

The night of Halloween, I made chili and had the family over for dinner and trick or treating. It was a magical night for the boys as it always is! 

Honorable mentions:

1. It was farmer day at James' school and he was so excited.

2. Took the boys to see Hotel Transylvania which was a blast. 

3. Our boys bring us so much happiness. Scott and I feel so lucky to be their parents. They are everything. 

September 2015

September

The month of my birth.  A glorious month that not only celebrates yours truly but is the beginning of the best four months in existence.  The month was BIG for us.  James started preschool. We went on a Disneyland vacation with the Olsons and Taos. Scott got a pair of new shoes (okay, maybe not the most important event of the month) but he did go on a Mancation!  Did you hear that Sugi?  And yes, I celebrated my birthday, did I mention it was my birthday? To top if off I had my first ever Barnes and Noble reading and book signing.  It was a darn good month.  

Preschool

I have been nervous for James to go to preschool since the day I signed him up for preschool.  I was so afraid his anxieties would kick in and he would not have a good experience.  Boy was I wrong (that is the first time that has ever happened by the way).  So the first day of preschool came and went and James has been a happy boy ever since.  He loves his teacher Mrs. Turner and asks repeatedly if she can come to his birthday party in January.  Does this mean I have to throw him a birthday party in January?  Everyday he comes home with new stories of what he learned and the friends he is making and it makes me want to cry for joy.  I love watching the social-side of him grow.  He is happier since starting school and that is all I could ask for.  

Disney

We had an amazing trip visiting Disneyland with Grandma Olson, Pop-pop and the Tao cousins.  Disneyland is our favorite place after all and it was even better experiencing it with family.  We were there two days, two very HOT days but luckily the first day the park was so empty we could pretty much ride whatever we wanted without waiting in line.  And another positive is Disneyland offers about 8 slushy flavors which came in handy.  It was so fun to stay in a hotel and watch Disney fireworks from the hotel window.  Nothing better than watching fireworks while in one's jammies.  On our second day at Disney the crowds were back for all of the Halloween decorations which were put up the night before.  This meant we got to ride the Jack Skellington ride of course which is now the boy's favorite Disney ride.  And after two years of being pass holders, Scott and I finally got to ride Radiator Springs Racers and it was so amazing, we loved it.  Before I close our Disney adventures I have to give a special shout out to my Ghirardelli chocolate malt that I purchased on my second day.  It may have been the most delicious thing I've ever tasted.  Thank you chocolate malt. And also a big thank you to Rob and LeeAnn for making this amazing trip possible!!!

After Disney we headed up to Santa Barbara to attend Davis' baptism.  It was so special that we got to be there for the baptism and spending all day Saturday in Santa Barbara with family was so wonderful.  Can't wait to go back!

Scott got new shoes

Mancation

Finally Scott got to get out of town without any responsibilities, just a pack on his back.  He went backpacking up the Kern river with some friends from work and even though it was a short trip he loved spending time outside.  Even if it meant catching no fish.  It's just a reason to go back.

My Birthday

My birthday was wonderful, Scott took me to dinner downtown and I bought some new shoes.  Really September was all about new shoes.  If you remember nothing else, please remember that.  But I have to say, the best part of my birthday was waking up to breakfast and a beautiful serenade of Happy Birthday from my boys.  Foster still says "Happy Birthday mommy" which I let him because really, I should be celebrated all year.  

Barnes and Noble Signing

It was an incredible day. I read my book and signed books and people actually came and bought my book!!! It was a high point for me and I'm so grateful to be doing this whole book thing. 

As an added bonus to this post I will include some photos of our first Padres game as a family. Now if that doesn't feel like a reward, I don't know what does.

And as a bonus to the bonus, I will add a photo of my new haircut because I have not posted a glamour shot in awhile. 

Okay, I don't know about you but to me September felt a bit long-winded. Like it just keeps going on and on and on and on and on and on............the end.