jc's first trip to the city by the bayyyyyeaayyy

Ok, I'm pretty sure that song is actually about Boston but for the sake of this post, it will be about San Francisco. We went on a quick trip to San Francisco for the weekend with our best buds who also have a little bundle of joy. He's only six months younger than JC so we hope that they will be best friends... well they really don't have a choice in the matter so they better learn to like it. Just kidding.

Actually, maybe I'm not.

The guys had a convention to attend and that was the main reason for the trip. I really feel super lucky to live so close that we can visit a city that people plan a vacation to and be there within an hour and a half. If traffic isn't horrible. I always forget that San Francisco is kind of a big deal until I get there and there are 902375987123 tourists there. I've visited the city a handful of times and I definitely have not seen half of it. There's so much to do there and I look forward to going back again when the babies get older. There isn't a whole lot for two mommies to do while pushing strollers to keep themselves entertained but we managed.

On the first day, we dropped off the guys at the convention and made our way to the hotel. TRAFFIC WAS CRAZY! I felt bad because I made Jessica drive but she managed ok. I would have been in tears about ten minutes in. Little did we know that there was a Giants game and it was Gay Pride weekend. As you can probably imagine, Gay Pride weekend in SF is a pretty big deal, to say the least. Luckily we were on the other side of town as most of the festivities but it was still pretty crackin' at Fisherman's Wharf, which is where we spent most of our time.

We managed to get to our hotel pretty much unscathed (unless you count the taxi driver who pulled up next to us and yelled at Jessica for about five minutes before we even noticed). We packed up the babies and headed down to Pier 39. So. Many. People. If you've never pushed a stroller around in a busy crowd while trying to keep track of your friend who is also pushing a stroller, then you have not experienced hell my friends. Everyone hates you. You can't stop and look at stuff because then you're blocking the whole sidewalk. Some guy almost curb stomped JC when he wasn't paying attention and almost stepped IN the stroller. I may or may not have yelled at him.

Our hotel was really close to the piers so we made it to our final destination pretty quickly. I was a little disappointed because all the sea lions were gone from Pier 39! Ok not ALL of them but like 90% of them. I guess it's their breeding season so they leave to get their business done and then come back after July. It was all good though. We walked around, did a little window shopping. Managed to take one photo of JC and myself.

it was so windy, as you can see by my hair

We met up the guys for dinner at Rainforest Cafe. I wish I had more pictures of that but JC seemed genuinely entertained by his surroundings. I really like that place.

The next morning, Jessica and I braved Pier 39 again to visit the Aquarium of the Bay. We left earlier than the day before so the crowds were a lot better. By the time we got to the aquarium, JC fell asleep. I was happy because I knew he needed a nap but disappointed because I wanted him to see the aquarium.

JC having the time of his life {taken with my iphone}

Jessica's baby Damian was having so much fun though! He loved the aquarium, especially the tunnels where the fish are swimming all around you.

Damien put himself into this position, I think he's got a pretty good idea {taken with my iphone}

Right as we entered the last part of the aquarium, JC woke up. So we were able to go back down to the tunnels and let JC experience them.



This might be my current favorite picture of JC and myself. Not only because it looks like we are traveling through time and space but also because I look so stoked to be there and JC could really not care less. He really did like it though, I promise.

All in all, it was a fun but exhausting trip. We did a lot of walking, which included some ridiculously steep sidewalks while trying to get to Ghiradelli Square. And we had to pick the guys up from their convention which involved more driving which involved almost running right into all of the Gay Pride festivities and having to turn all the way back around because it was blocking half the city. It was definitely an experience but it will be fun to go back when JC gets a little older.

week in iphone pics, w.6

A little late but here's last week in iPhone pictures!



I couldn't even tell you what we did on Monday. Apparently I didn't have time to take anymore pictures besides this one. But it is really cute so I think this is more of a quality over quantity type situation. Oh wait, I remember. We went out to dinner with Charles's dad and sister for a belated Father's Day meal. Buuuuut I didn't get any pictures of that.



Tuesday, we played in JC's room for a little bit. We usually play in the living room and just bring out a few toys but every once in a while I'll let him just go crazy in there. Those books were only some of the carnage left in his wake. When Charles got home from work, we went over to his mom's house for dinner and JC rocked in this little rocking chair.


Wednesday, JC enjoyed some daddy time with the guitar. He puts his hands up in the air sometimes. Super pretty sunflowers I bought at Trader Joe's. And I made some yummy spaghetti for dinner. Sauce and garlic cheese bread from Trader Joe's as well. Love that place!



I have definitely been bit by the little Suzy Homemaker bug lately. This is some banana bread that I made late Wednesday night. Got the recipe from Grumbles & Grunts. Turned out super delicious and JC loves it! It's great to keep him happy while I take a couple minutes to throw his yogurt/fruit/cereal together for breakfast. And I feel like it's sorta good for him. I hit the treadmill for the first time in AGES. I made Charles move the damn thing into our bedroom a few months back because I was convinced that I would run on it if I could watch TV. Didn't happen. It was really hot this day and I was sweating just sitting on the couch. So I figured I might as well do some productive sweating. And I made some pretty simple but yummy chicken for dinner. Some banana bread leftover from snacktime in the background.



Friday brought another good morning workout. It made me feel brave enough to venture out to Costco, my arch nemesis. Then we came home and had a Nicki Minaj dance party. And when Charles came home, JC gave his best Billie Joel impression.

We had a great time in San Francisco over the weekend also. I have a couple pictures that I think are halfway decent that I can share next time. I got to go figure out dinner so I can keep up my good housewife act.

because everyone loves a baby eating spaghetti

Tuesday was spaghetti night. We all love spaghetti night around these parts.











Obviously.

So my lovelies, I leave you with that for the weekend because we are going on another little mini-trip tomorrow! We are San Francisco bound but we'll be back late Sunday. We'll see how the boss handles this trip. Hopefully better than Fort Bragg. Have a good weekend everyone!

wednesday wishes: goals for the rest of the year

I was inspired by Silly Grrl's blog the other day and decided that I wanted to sit down and make a list of goals for myself for the rest of the year. No pressure goals that if I don't accomplish, it's not the end of the world. Well, some of them would be a big deal if I neglected but others aren't so bad. I realized that I usually have a running list of "things I need/want to do" but I stop there. I don't like to formally give them titles like "goals" because then I feel pressure and anxiety about completing them. After reading her post, I realized that it's ok if I don't complete every goal I have within a certain amount of time. Or it's ok to say "I don't really care about that anymore" and just walk away from a goal. And I can add goals too. People change their minds. It's ok, really.

1. Make a conscious effort to be healthier. I have horrible eating habits. I don't exercise at all. Unless you count carrying around an 18 pound baby occasionally. Charles and I both want to start The 17 Day Diet but until we are both ready to buckle down, I am just trying to take some baby steps towards a healthier lifestyle. We have both stopped drinking soda and amped up our water drinking habits. Desserts are usually a daily occurrence here so I've tried to cut that out. Also just trying to eat smaller portions. I tried to start going for daily walks with the baby and the dog but I was deterred on Monday by the direct sunlight streaming down onto my little guy's face. Our stroller seriously lacks adequate sun protection so I looked on Maclaren's website and found that they sell a big sunshade attachment so hopefully that will help in the walk department.

2. Take a graphic design/web design class. I'm signed up for a Photoshop class in the Fall! I'm waitlisted so I'm crossing my fingers that I'll get in but I feel good about it. I'm actually really excited now after talking to my soon-to-be mother-in-law because she might be able to watch JC on the day that I would go to class. That was my big deterrent to taking the class.

3. "Finish" JC's room. Of course, his room will never be "finished" but I would like to at least get some of the pictures that I have hung up on the walls. We have some kind of phobia to hanging things up on the wall around here. I think because we had to spend a lot of time removing wallpaper, texturing, and painting most of the walls we are little gun-shy when it comes to blemishing our fresh walls with nail holes. I know hanging up a few things will really change the look of his room. In my dream world, I would also refinish his two dressers buuuuuut one step at a time here.

4. Learn to sew. This has been a goal on my list for a loooooooooong time. I finally sat down with my sister AND Charles's sister to try to teach me but we determined that the sewing machine I have is straight bootsy. So, I have to fix it or get a new one before I go further.

5. Open an Etsy store. Ever since I started knitting almost five years ago, anytime I show someone my finished product I get the comment "Oh wow! You could sell this!" It's always been a dream of mine but selling something handmade is difficult. Especially something like knitting, which in my case, takes a looooooooong time to complete a project. I've been brainstorming about ideas for items to sell that won't take three years to complete.

6. Start saving money for a down payment on a house. Buying a house is a real option for us in the very near future so we really need to do this. We have a little bit saved from my tax return but we need more. So we need to stop spending... a little difficult with a wedding coming up but if we can just save a little bit more, I'll be happy.

7. And last but definitely not least, plan our wedding. We are finally getting some forward progress in getting this wedding off the ground and it is really exciting. I really can't look at wedding stuff for more than thirty minutes at a time because I get overwhelmed. I'm currently awaiting the arrival of a contract for the venue that we picked out and once that's done we can FINALLY set a date.

Linking up my post with Brooke at Bright Wishes.

week in iphone pics, w.5

Whoo hoo! Five weeks of iphone pictures! I'm a little late buuuuuut I've been busy. Here we go.



Sunday: First day of our trip to Fort Bragg. JC at the Mendocino Botanical Gardens, livin it up. My little beach bum hanging out on the sand.



Monday: Day 2 of our Fort Bragg trip. We purposely rented a room that had two bedrooms so we wouldn't disturb JC because he goes to bed earlier than we do. He woke up at 7 am, which is really early for him, and he was scared so we brought him into bed with us. I was surprised he fell back asleep but he did and it was awesome. He never sleeps with us anymore. I even managed to get up and take a shower without waking up either of them. And a picture of me wearing the wrong kind of shoes to be walking on a grassy beach path.



Tuesday: First day using the baby pool! It was so cute, I really wish I would have got a bigger one though so I could fit too. And some more baby creepin'. I couldn't help taking a picture of the baby monitor to capture that baby booty.



Wednesday: I think we were watching Yo Gabba Gabba. And I made dinner! This is a big deal. It's spinach lasagna rolls. They were pretty good. Got the recipe from my new favorite recipe blog, Six Sister's Stuff.



Thursday: All the toys in the world and a water bottle is what he found most entertaining. This is what happens when you let your mail pile up for a few days. Buuuut I did get my iphone case that I won from The Crafty Nest!



Friday: Another day hanging out in the backyard.



Saturday: He was getting down playing with his laptop. I tried to get an action shot but of course the one time I want a blurry picture, I can't get it.



Sunday: Father's Day! We went to the Cajun Festival in a nearby town. It was fun but SO hot! I felt bad because poor JC was in the sun most of the time. I like my stroller but it definitely lacks adequate sun protection. We ended up making him a mohawk with the water we put on his head to help him keep cool.

Speaking of Father's Day, we had a nice, mildly eventful day. Those are the best kind, I think. I woke up with JC and we made waffles and eggs for Charles, while he slept in a little bit. I NEVER make breakfast, at least not for us. Then we brought him the shorts and t-shirt we picked out. Then we got ready while JC napped and we drove down about half an hour away along the river to go to the Cajun Festival. It was a nice drive. We hung out there for a little bit and then just came home and relaxed. Charles grilled some steaks for dinner. Now I'm not a father, but if I was, I would totally approve of this day.

Linking up with Amy at A Good Life.

hanging out at the beach & nye ranch

After we visited the Mendocino Botanical Gardens on Sunday, we checked into our motel, got comfy and ate some yummy Mexican food for dinner. We asked the lovely people at our motel's front desk if they had any recommendations for easy beach access. A quick drive down Main Street took us to a pretty nice little beach to hang out and play in the sand. We weren't brave enough to enter the water, it's pretty cold still! But the sand was nice.


Oh and I almost forgot, we got ice cream! Super awesome ice cream at this place called Cowlicks. I managed to not get sand in it.



I love Northern California beaches but I could definitely do without the excess seaweed. Ew.





JC was having fun playing with the sand. It was the first time we let him just go to town in it.





I still spent a good amount of time trying to keep sand out of JC's mouth. Keyword: trying.



So I loaded up this post with pictures from the beach on Sunday because we were so excited to see Nye Ranch on Monday we neglected to take any pictures. Blog fail. Charles took some videos but I look pissed off in most of it because he was taking too long, inmyopinion. So if you want to see pictures, visit their site.

Buuuuut, we did visit Nye Ranch on Monday and it was pretty awesome. To be completely honest, we weren't "blown away" at first. In fact, it took me a couple of days to fall in love with it. The house is older and pretty "rustic". But it has SO MUCH room for people to sleep which is really what we want the house for. And it's on the beach. And they will let you have a wedding there. Check, check, and a BIG check.

After coming home and thinking about it, we decided to make it our venue! I cannot even halfway express how incredibly exciting this is. I know we can make this house super cute. I say "we" but Charles has already bowed out of this responsibility. Luckily, I have really creative friends/family (I'm talking to YOU Kristen!) who I know will have tons of great ideas. I'm not sure if we will have the ceremony on the deck overlooking the ocean or actually on a bluff at the beach. Both are viable options, I guess it depends on how "rustic" we want to be. It's not a short walk to the beach and it's through a grassy walkway so we'll have to see what we are willing to put our guests through. By the way, did I mention that they have ALPACAS. Three of them to be exact. We are currently in process, talking to the owner of the house so we can get a date set. But the plan is for the beginning of May next year. SO EXCITED!!!! To quote JC, we are "happy happy happy!"

mendocino botanical gardens

On Sunday, we drove up to Fort Bragg to check out some wedding venues. Our first stop was the Mendocino Botanical Gardens. I wasn't exactly sure what to expect when we got there, but it was pretty awesome. Charles who is my gardening/photography nerd was in heaven. Warning, this post is VERY photo heavy. All photos taken by Charles except for the one of him, I took that one!



They had some of the craziest looking plants! Some of these things look like they belong on King Kong's island or Little Shop of Horrors.









The succulent/cactus display was our favorite. Some of these plants were HUGE!





This place literally was amazing. It felt like I was walking in Bambi's forest. It was breathtakingly beautiful. And we hadn't even seen the ocean yet!



JC was semi-interested at first.



Then he fell asleep. This NEVER happens. He had to be pretty tired to fall asleep in his stroller, especially while I was pushing him through bumpy, gravel trails and on bluffs overlooking the ocean. He really couldn't care less.









This is the Event Lawn. They had several spots at the gardens that were set up for weddings. We really liked the Dahlia Garden but they said that it's not normally in bloom until July and we want to get married in the Spring. This lawn was huge and it's what we would have chosen for the reception space if we did the ceremony on the bluff. But it really seemed way too big for the intimate wedding we have in mind.



This is the bluff area where they have wedding ceremonies. I really liked it and there were several spots that could work. And the views were awesome.





But ultimately, it wasn't exactly what we wanted. We want a house. So the search continued... dun dun dun!

btw, if you're feeling generous, click the little banner below to give me a vote. it will just help my little blog go up the list on a blog directory so i can get more readers. thanks!

it's one of THOSE times

I have so much to write about but the one thing that sticks out foremost in my mind is how irritable my little baby man has been over the last few days.

{JC looking not so stoked to be visiting the Mendocino Botanical Gardens}

I think it's a combination of a few things that have manifested themselves in such a way that JC, who normally is a very mellow, happy-go-lucky baby, has undertaken this tantrum-throwing, pissed off at the world mentality.

One: We have been completely booby free for about three days now. Monday morning was the last time I nursed. He has seemed generally not-quite-right since we started the weaning process a couple weeks ago. I really thought that he was ready. I could barely hold his attention long enough to finish eating most of the time. He just wanted to play. But now that it's gone, he definitely notices. To be honest, I'm a little sad too. I thought I was completely, 100% ready. And I am ready but I could totally see why mommy's continue nursing past one year. It didn't help that as we got towards the end of nursing, he was being extra cuddly and sweet. Like he knew that his nursing days were numbered.

Two: Teething. We officially have THREE teeth! Maybe even four. Last time I checked the fourth one was barely hanging in there. His right top front tooth and his two front bottom teeth are officially making an appearance.

Three: We took a road trip to Fort Bragg this past weekend with a four hour drive there on Sunday and four hour drive back on Monday. JC generally does not like being on car rides this long. Even if we stop, he is just ready to be done with it. Which I can respect, because that's how I feel. I still need to write about our trip and the wedding venues that we checked out but one milestone of the trip was that we had our first meltdown in a restaurant. He's usually really good in restaurants, eats whatever, or just plays and has a good time. At breakfast on Monday we had to take shifts. I had to walk around on the street while Charles tried to scarf down his breakfast and then we switched. He was fine once we got outside and looked around but he wanted nothing to do with sitting in a highchair or being in the restaurant.

Four: He didn't sleep very well on the trip either so the last couple of days we've been laying low at the house, letting him catch up on his sleep (three hour naps y'all).

Five: I think a lot of it too is that we are both new at this whole only eating solid foods thing. Before we stopped nursing, I'm pretty sure JC was never hungry. He ate every 2 hours, whether it was nursing or solid food. Now, I'm not sure if he's hungry or just cranky or bored or teething or God knows what else. I try feeding him and he straight refuses everything I offer, throwing it on the floor, screaming and crying. I have to pick him up and calm him down before we even try another option. I did read in Baby 411, my baby bible, that it is very common for babies to become very picky eaters as they approach their first birthdays. It said basically that they will adopt a toddler diet where they will eat well once every three days or eat one good meal within a 24 hour period. It had some good advice like offering three options to eat and if he doesn't want it then don't make something else. He will eat when he's hungry. I know this probably sounds like common sense to most people but I need instructions like this. This was reassuring after we both had a meltdown during lunch today. I made sure that I made his beloved veggie pasta while he was napping so it was ready to go as soon as we woke up. He wanted nothing to do with it and was mad about it. Ok, let's try some spaghetti, you love spaghetti. Throws it on the floor, slamming his hands on the high chair tray, tears rolling down his cheeks. At this point, I was in tears too. This was exactly how breakfast went and I was frustrated. I grabbed some bread and he ate two pieces of plain bread. While he ate that, I managed to make a quesadilla and he wolfed that thing down. But it was a rough thirty minutes of crying, appeased, crying, happy, crying, ok I'll eat this and now I'm full and content.

Luckily, throughout all this, JC still finds ways to be the most adorable being on this planet. He just recently has started playing peek-a-boo with him being the initiator. After his bath today, he was pulling the towel up over his head and I'll say "JC where'd you go?" and he'll wait the perfect amount of time and pull the towel down super fast with a big grin on his face. And I'll yell "Peek-a-boo!" and he'll laugh and flail. So cute. After both of his naps today, he just wanted to snuggle for about fifteen minutes before we did anything else. When he rests his little head on my shoulder I will stop whatever I'm doing and relish in that moment.

Well, tomorrow is a new day so hopefully I will wake up to a happy baby. Wish me luck!

{Please pray that this drooly mess is what I see tomorrow!}

week in iphone pics, w.4

I'm super excited because tomorrow (or, as of this very second, today) we are going to Fort Bragg to look at possible wedding venues!!! Ahhhhhh!!!! I can't believe we are actually making some forward progress on this wedding business. We are going to visit the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens and this rental house. I feel really good about both of these places but I'm secretly pulling for the house. Ok, it's not really a secret. We are leaving tomorrow and coming back on Monday so it will be a quick trip but I'm hoping we'll be able to hang out on the beach for a little bit. I went a little beach crazy at Target this week. As you will see.



JC being HELLA cute munching on some Cheerios and watching Sesame Street, it was so cute to have him sit still in my lap for a few minutes. Surprisingly, he actually made contact with most of his Cheerios. Tsunami was happy to eat the ones that didn't make the cut. After Charles got home from hanging out with the guys for a little bit, we had a dinner date at BJ's.



That is what was left of JC's first peanut butter and jelly sandwich and I've been a major creeper of JC on the baby monitor while he's sleeping. So cute with his baby booty up in the air.



Putting in his audition for Stomp and my first attempt at a recipe out of Deceptively Delicious. JC gobbled this up by the way. But when I tried to use the remaining filling the next day on a tortilla as a quesadilla, he wanted nothing to do with it. Side note, Charles originally purchased this to cook for me while I was pregnant. I have the worst eating habits.



We went to Borders and got JC "Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See?" and "The 17 Day Diet" for the fiance and myself. Oh yeah, it's going down. And the highlight of my week, JC and I hung out in the backyard for a minute while Charles cooked dinner. He was being so adorable. The last picture is probably my current favorite picture of the little man. He has just started reaching for things that are ridiculously out of his reach. He was trying so hard to reach for the moon. So. cute.



Some more baby creepin. My little thumb sucker.



My hauls from Babies 'R Us and Target. JC discovering the dryer for the first time.



We didn't do anything today besides tons of laundry and go for a quick walk around the neighborhood. We are so lucky that this is literally in our backyard.

Wish me luck that we find our wedding venue and in turn, set a date!!!

Linkin up with Amy from A Good Life