Aquarium of the Pacific June 2009

Amanda and I met up at the Aquarium in Long Beach to take the kids on a fun outing. Bennett and Sam and Max thought this place was great. Bennett and Sam have been there a few times before, but Max was really fun to watch! The kids loved the touch pools the most and got to touch sharks and stingrays. Funny thing was that the guides tell you that you have to touch everything with 2 fingers so the sharks, etc, 1. don't eat your fingers, and 2. you don't scratch them. So Bennett and Sam went around all day holding their 2 fingers up ready to touch whatever they came across! Too cute.

Bennett and Sam in front of the Seal Lion exhibit.

Amanda, Bennett, Max and Sam at the Stingray petting pool. (Note..Sam has his 2 fingers ready to go to touch the stingrays!) :o) Max just loving the first touch pool of the day.

Bennett getting to touch a shark. The guide was holding the shark up so that Bennett could touch him.

Bennett's reaction after touching the shark!

Bennett's First Day of Preschool

Today was Bennett's first day of preschool. It is a summer school at the same preschool that he will be going to in the fall. He was super excited to go to school and play "with the guys" he said. Guys just means kids in general to him. :o) He did really well when I dropped him off...a little hesitant at first, but was ok after a few minutes. I think I had a harder time leaving him than he had with me leaving. :o) I hope he has a great time today!

Just the cutest kid ever.

I just loved this picture so I decided to put it up. Bennett is getting ready for a bike ride with Daddy and he has on my sunglasses with his skater helmut, and he loves just giving the thumbs up signal lately. Too cute.

Legoland June 2009

Dan, Bennett and I drove down the 405 to Legoland in Carlsbad, and it is possibly the coolest place ever for the age 2 to 8 age bracket. We had a blast! Everything is geared toward the younger kids (but enough fun stuff for the older ones too!) We really had a great day. So much to do that we really only got through half of the park. Bennett loves Legos because he and Dan put stuff together all the time, but he just loved this place for all of the rides and attractions that were geared towards his age. Loved firetrucks, airplanes, trains, rollercoasters, cars, cars, cars!

Bennett hanging out with Thomas the Train.

Dan and Bennett on the Safari ride. (Coolest part of this ride and a few others was that they have little areas for the kids to play with Legos while the parents wait in line. Ingenious I tell ya!)

Bennett letting it all hang out in the curve! These were the cutest cars...the kids totally drove them independently...of course their top speed was like 3 mph, but still...so cool. The funniest part was that there was a stoplight on the track, and Bennett stopped at it every single time he went around the track....good habits start early I guess! :o)

Thumbs up on the airplane ride.

We heard about how he squirted the frogs and alligators the whole way home. :o)

Just getting into the park...so much to see...have to take it all in!

National Train Day 2009- Union Station

Who knew that there was a National Train Day? I didn't. My mom saw it in a paper and told us, and off we went! They had a whole celebration at Union Station downtown so we decided to take the Subway in so Bennett could have his first ride on the Subway. He LOVED it. Union Station had a bunch of festivities..bands, model trains, tons of free stuff, and big trains on display. We got to eat lunch across the street at Olvera Street...good Mexican food!

Entrance to the Subway (on the way home ...I forgot to take a picture when we got on at Universal Studios)

Bennett's first ride on the subway...of course he found a bunch of girls to flirt with on the way there! That's Bennett for ya! Riding back to the car with Grandma and Grandpa.

One of the trains on display...Bennett loved climbing all over that thing.

Ardis, Nick, Dan and Bennett at Union Station.

Some Artwork on the side of one of the Amtrak Trains. Makes me want to go to the beach! Or listen to the Endless Summer Album from the Beach Boys. :o)

Disney had a train there that they had on display that was a promotional for their new movie "A Christmas Carol". Neat train...but they had fake snow blowing and Christmas decorations up around it and Christmas carolers singing....hard to get into the Christmasy mood when it is 90 degrees out!

Our adventures at California Adventure!!

We had such a blast at California Adventure this week. We met up with Amanda and Joe and Sam and Max and it was Sam and Max's first time ever to California Adventure. All 3 of the boys were in heaven all day...such a fun day.

Bennett being shy about taking his picture with his favorite Disney characters EVER!

Sam, Bennett,and Max sitting on the tractor seat bench. Sam and Bennett on an old farm truck near Bugs Land.

Joe and Max looking at the Ferris Wheel.

Dan, Bennett, and Sam watching a ride at Paradise Pier. Must have been interesting. :o)

Dan showing off that he can carry more than one kid at a time. (Can you say sore back the next day!)

Bennett and Dan playing in the Brother Bear Wilderness Area in the Tree Log.

Sam donning his 3D Glasses for the Toy Story Mania ride.

Bennett playing peek a boo with his 3D glasses and a cute girl in front of him. The flirting has started at an early age. :o)

Bennett and Sam on the Heimlich Caterpillar ride.

Amanda and Max watching the bumper cars.

Video of Sam ridin' on the tire swing.

Part 1 video of Bennett and Sam excited to ride on a ride in Bugs Land.

Part 2 of the above video. The kids just loved the whole day!

Day Out with Thomas the Train 2009

Two things that Bennett loves and cherishes in this world are cars and trains. Loves trains! So we took him to the Day Out with Thomas the train in Fillmore. He thought it was a blast. Such a great day! We rode the big train that they hooked Thomas up to for about a 20 minute ride up the tracks, then played on the multiple tables that they had set up with Thomas tracks. I think this day might have been the most perfect day ever for Bennett. He was in Heaven!

Easter 2009

This year for Easter we went to Amanda's house for Easter brunch and an egg hunt for the kids. This is the first year that Bennett really got any of the concept of hunting eggs. The older kids helped him out. He TOTALLY got it when he opened them up and there was candy inside....then the whole next week he wanted me to hide eggs for him again. I'm not fallin' for that trick!! :o)

Margaid, Sam, Flynn, Bennett, and Max. Ready to hunt down those eggs.

Margaid and Flynn and their mom and dad Lisa and Brian are family friends that drove in from La Quinta for the weekend to celebrate Easter.

Bennett finding his first egg...with a little help from Dad! Me and Dan in our Eastery colors. :o)

Ardis, Nick and Dan.

Amanda, Ardis, Nick, Dan and Me.

Bennett showing Cheryl his new eggs!

Hanging Out.

We were hanging out with the family one night and the kids were very cute. Just thought I'd put a couple of pics up.

Bennett giving Max a hug...or a chokehold...you decide. :o)

Smiley Max.

All the kids were watching Veggie Tales in the Living room...they all have to sit the wrong way on the back of the couch!