Spring Training

Michael, Riley and I had the chance to make it to spring training for the Dodgers down in Arizona last week. We had a total blast and stayed with my good friend Jen and her awesome family. It was so fun to see her new home, friends and incredible complex! They were the BEST hosts!

We threw on our Dodger jerseys (my hand-crafted Blake jersey) off we went! We went to 2 games on Saturday and the boys went to a 3rd on Sunday while I hung back to visit with Jen. For the first game we had lawn seats in the outfield and moved around the stadium a bit to some random seats. The night game, however, was a little bit better. Again, we purchased the cheapest seats we could get, but eventually made our way to some seats 3 rows behind home plate. A really nice man saw me creeping down the isle away from the guard and said I could get my friends and have his work seats. How awesome is that?! It was such a different experience being so close to all the players. I was certain this was going to be my chance to meet Casey Blake, but during the 9th inning all the starters headed to the locker room- LAME!

Ok Mike can make the most incredible CRAZY faces...doesn't he look awful?

Trying to get a picture out of the boys....sheesh!

Blake at bat :)

Manny

All in all, we had a great time and can't wait for opening day!

Disneyland

Last week Dayna suggested going to Disneyland for a quick trip. Now that she has season passes, they can run down there for half days and not have to make a huge, tiring day out of it. So Mom and I accompanied her and the boys for a fun day. The great thing about these boys is that they love EVERYTHING there so waiting in long lines for rides didn't happen! We watched the Jedi show, the parades down Main Street, ate some popcorn, took the train around the whole park and then a couple of rides. I just love these boys!

Visitors

Last week Michael's Aunt Margaret and Uncle Tim came into town from Michigan to visit. They stayed up at Nana's and Colleen's home in Ventura but we were able to meet up with them a couple of times. One of the outings we were able to make was the trip to the Villa. We had the most beautiful day and weather for the out-of-towners. We took a tour for part of our visit and saw some pretty interesting things.

I thought this little guy above was so cute!

I asked Michael if he would buy me one of these...isn't it pretty?!

This bronze above was found relatively recently in a fishing net off of the Italian coast. He is being fought over now by the Italian government and may be returning there soon.

The lovely Irene and Colleen:

Tim and Margaret



Nana and her kids

Michael starring down the statue

and us!

Wii Fit

For one of our wedding presents we received the Wii Fit to go with our AWESOME engagement present-the Wii- thanks Riley! I am absolutely thrilled about it!! I love it and think it's the best entertainer and it makes you feel like you aren't wasting time playing video games, but getting a workout! I thought I might share with you some of the fun times we have had together so far...

Michael

Dayna

Hadyn (by far the best at the ski jump)

Even Cannon gave it a whirl...and totally rocked it!

And Cannon's little helper.

What we really did on Valentine's Day

My sister came up with this great idea to surprise our boys with dinner on Valentine's Day. In preparing for this, we decided I would do the dessert, as my cooking skills are extremely limited, and she would make the main course. You might think that we could easily throw this together without a hitch, however it was on a Saturday and both were home from work all day. So with the help of the family...they had a fun filled Boys Day! Hadyn and Dad took them to breakfast, then to COC to ride the motorcycle and up to Costco. In the evening Dad asked for their help with going to storage and pulling some things out for D and G's move so that Dayna and I could start setting up. They fell for it all and were so surprised when they finally walked in on the scene. *Thanks for all of the help!!!

The main course was a thyme and lemon chicken with a Dijon glaze (so good Dayna!), almond asparagus and Rice-a-Roni (that was my contribution!)

Flourless Chocolate Cake

*Tara you must try this!

And the Happy Couples!!

* Thanks to our teeny tiny studio for squeezing us in- we just love you!!

And some food for thought...

"Girls, aim high, but do not aim so high that you totally miss the target. What really matters is that he will love you, that he will respect you, that he will honor you, that he will be absolutely true to you, that he will give you the freedom of expression and let you fly in the development of your own talents. He is not going to be perfect, but if he is kind and thoughtful, if he knows how to work and earn a living, if he is honest and full of faith, the chaces are you will not go wrong, that you will be immensely happy... True love is not much a matter of romance as it is a matter of anxious concern for the well-being of one's companion." - Gordon B. Hinckley

... I think we hit the target!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Check out what we did this holiday!

http://sendables.jibjab.com/view/86q3NHl61qBYjQ6l

The Honeymoon

Michael and I headed to the amazing Langham Hotel in Pasadena, Ca- compliments of Aunt Bridg and Uncle Tony. After relaxing there and enjoying our "Happily Ever After" suite, we headed to Playa Mujeres, Mexico. We cannot say enough great things about this place. Michael researched it and found this awesome 5 star resort- all inclusive. You can't beat it! They will literally get you anything you want anytime of day. The dining was excellent. Lobster dinners, the steak house, enormous buffet breakfasts and lunches, mid-night room service...the works!!

Here are some pix of the digs:

This is what we did most of the time we were there: