Bryn is 4!

So...Bryn turned 4 last week, which was absolutely fabulous. She starting requesting and announcing a Monkey birthday cake before I even knew about it. My cake skills are poor, so I think I did alright. Bryn has been 'saving' a pink cake mix for this occasion for about 3 months. It was great to FINALLY get to use it :)

We were going to have her party at our house, but decided to ask a couple in our ward (with a killer pool) if we could have it at their pool. Thankfully, they agreed and it was amazing. Not only did all the kids have a great time, but I didn't have to plan any games or activities (which is why my 9 months prego self liked the pool idea so much). I'll be forever indebted to our ward friends that let us use their pool. It made a 4 year old's day (and mine) for sure!

Here is Bryn scoping out some of her gifts wearing a new swimuit from Grandma and Grandpa.

Wade is hilarious in the pool. This was a new one for us though. Normally he just wears the life jacket, but...he decided...just to be safe...to have the life jacket, pool noodle and a tube around his neck. He was quite content..and fairly safe too!


To top off the day, we went as a family to see the new Shrek movie (3D style). It was great fun! Happy Birthday Bryn!!!



There are many things that make Bryn especially cool (besides the 3D glasses). Here are some:

She is quick to give up a fight and find a solution. This is amazing to me for her age. She compromises well and comes up with solutions much better than I would (as long as she is not tired).
She is a very happy girl (granted she has enough sleep). It is hard to not be smiling when you are around her. Plus, she has great jokes.
Bryn is very athletic and coordinated. She rides her 2 wheeler like a champ and is currently working on mastering the jump rope.

We also re-celebrated her birthday yesterday at Grandma's and Grandpa's which was entirely too much fun. Who doesn't love beating Tinkerbell to death?? Bryn finished her off with a few kicks to the gut. Take that Tink!

Arroyo Grande Strawberry Festival

We also went to the Arroyo Grande Strawberry Festival this weekend, which was fun and a little crazy. One of my favorite vendor booths had this:

They had really cool African (from the Ivory Coast) wood art. I especially like the giraffe. Brandon was quick to spot this one. If only we had the $1250 to buy it for Rixa.

There were plenty of 'name' booths, where they would put your name on something. And fortunately for Brandon, his name was displayed at most of these booths. We almost bought this one:

I think my absolute favorite booth was the soccer collies. Wade could have stayed here all day. And yes...he is wearing a pink hat.

We happened to be there during a demonstration, where they let kids go in the goals and the dogs would score on the kids. Great fun. And it made we want to get a border collie.

We ate lunch at the only shaded place we could find...behind the dumpsters and past the port-o-potties. Somehow it wasn't stinky and no one threw trash on us. The girls did find some killer flowers though.

When I asked the girls what their favorite part was, they said...without question....THE BUS RIDE! We parked our car at one of the 'free parking lots' and then bussed into the event. Next time, we'll just stay on the bus for 3 hours.

Bob Jones Bike Trail and Memorial Day

We started Memorial Day by heading to the Bob Jones Bike Trail in Avila. It's a 2.3 mile paved trail that goes right to Avila Beach. When the girls figured out how to ride 2 wheelers a while back, I thought it would be a great trail for them to ride on with Brandon (since I can't really ride a bike right now). So, we decided to give it a try. I dropped them off at the trail head and they successfully biked in.

This was Bryn's first time going on the 16 inch bike for an extended trip (she has been using a 12 inch bike from some friends, but we gave that bike back on Sunday). Still she did great.

Brandon's parents got to the trail ahead of us and I met them near the end of the trail. We all walked back on the trail till we found the troops. Then Grandma and Grandpa helped them walk their bikes across the bridge to the trail end.

Wade chilled(as usual) in the iBert. The kids then played at the Avila Beach playground for a while before we went home to get ready for a killer barbecue at the Grandparents. It was a most excellent Memorial Day!

Grandmother Song

I taught the girls this song today to help cheer up gma after her mouth procedure. Next time I'll give her the heads up that the song is 3 verses.

Lost my Key

We went to Morro Bay with some friends this week. It was SUPER windy and sand was flying everywhere. Still we hung out on the beach for about 20 minutes. We got back to the van, loaded in and got some food. Then I went to start the van, and my van key was GONE....only the van key. The remote was still there. WIERD ALERT!
We spent some time scouring the beach and van and everywhere in between with no luck! So, I called Bran and he was there faster than AAA (maybe). Since we cut his work day short, he decided to stick around and we headed to the playground, where it was still windy, but the kids didn't care.

So, if you happen to be in Morro Bay and see a Honda key on the beach, pick it up...it's most likely mine.

Get Up And Dance

A while back Myriah got a great exercise video from Netflix. Naturally we (meaning the kids) had to try it out. Elle got really into....Bryn not so much and Wade tried his best.

Who can resist Paula???

Nice work Wade.

Montana de Oro Hike and Sandspit Beach

Finally, Brandon didn't have to work on a Saturday (this has essentially been his first Saturday off since we moved here in September). We orginally planned to go to the Wildflower Triathlon, but we found out that it cost $15/person, so we decided against it. Instead, we went on a very family friendly hike and to the beach. Here are some pics. You can see more in my facebook album.

A nice older couple volunteered to take our picture all together. This is near the beginning of the hike.

Elle took this picture and it's actually on one of the juts that walks out to the ocean, but at the beginning of the jut.

You can go down to one of the secluded bluff beaches and search in the tide pools. We were there when the tide was high, but a guy told us that when the tide is low you can walk out about 20 meters farther than we were able too...we'll definitely have to come back!

Sandspit beach was pretty sweet. You've got to walk about a quarter mile from the parking lot to the beach, but it was totally worth it. There was hardly anyone there (at least it seemed) and the sand was hot and it was beautiful. The kids could probably have played there for the rest of their lives, but we left after about 2 and a half hours. Don't you hate it when you put both legs in the same hole of your swimming suit??