Things I Use Thursday

Some people have Must Have Mondays or Friday Favorites, but I am going for Things I Use Thursday. Does it have a ring to it? Maybe a little. Anyways, you know how people seem to always want to look in other people's medicine cabinets? They want to see what kinds of things that person uses on a day to day basis and what not. Well, I have always had that curiosity, but have never looked. I don't like to be a snoop, but oh I would love to! Anyways, I thought I would do this in reverse. I'll let you in on some of the things that I use and would love to hear what you use or if you have any good secrets. This week: beauty!

Carmex-A must have. It is like a cure all and the best part is if you put a little on before bed, your lips are super soft in the morning!
Lash Blast Luxe Mascara-I got that in my stocking this year. It is just like the original Lash Blast, but they put shimmer in it. I think it is cool.Burt's Bees Orange Facial Cleanser-A couple weeks back, I ran out of face cleanser and wasn't sure which to get since the one I used to use isn't sold in stores anymore. In the mean time (this is so bad) I was using hand soap. Well, I just happened to pick up a magazine that reviewed this cleanser and since it was cheap and at Target I picked it up! It smells great and feels good!
Neutrogena Micromist Sunless Tan-Easy way to look like you have seen the sun. Just don't over do it girls, we don't want to look like we are from the Jersey Shore!Almay Clear Complexion Foundation-My skin normally stays pretty clear, but once in a a while it flares up, so I use this to try and keep it as clear as possible. It also helps to heal the skin after and evens out the tone so you don't have a red spot there forever.
So that is is ladies. Now that you have looked in my medicine cabinet, you get to spill it too!

A Quick Getaway

Chad had today off and since Micah is a typical boy and loves trains, we decided to be a little spontaneous and took a train ride down to Solana Beach. Funny enough, this was the first train ride for all four of us. Neither Chad nor I had been on a train before, so this was our little adventure. We hopped on the train in San Juan. While we waited, Brooklyn decided to become a free apartment guide magazine. We almost boarded the wrong train...whoops! We made it on the right train though and about 40 minutes later we were in Solana Beach. We jumped out and knew nothing about where we were or what to do, so we wandered around. Luckily we ran into some friendly locals and they were nice enough to give us pointers on where to go! We stopped at a local cafe to eat lunch, headed to Fletchers Cove to let the kids play on the playground and at the shore, then headed out for gelato and our ride back home. It was a lot of fun for all of us!

Pretend City

Last night I got an e-mail from my good friend Carrie saying she was invited to go to an event at Pretend City and she invited us as guests! I said yes instantly. Pretend City is a hands-on children's museum that is like a mini city for them to participate in. They have a grocery store, farm, beach, post office, home, cafe, doctor's office, etc. We had never been before and heard so many great things. I was glad that the kids would be able to experience it. The place it pretty fun and they let the kids play and create like crazy. Here are some of the pictures from our time there.

Brooklyn hit the beach...
Micah was quick to find a car to drive around in...
He even used it to go through the drive thru...
Brooklyn found the stage and danced her booty off...
An hour later and Micah is STILL in the car...
Brooklyn and Logan at the water tables...
About a half hour later and Micah is in another car...
Brooklyn and Logan getting artsy, or in Brooklyn's case, destructive...
Eating at the cafe...
Finally Micah got out of the cars and was the checker at the grocery store for the last hour...
Thanks Carrie for inviting us, we had too much fun!

Combos

OK, so I have a few subjects to cover so here we go...

As an update, I am not going to be participating in that long team run. I found out we aren't going to be around, so not only am I not training, but I haven't gotten the stroller that I wanted either. Not much working out going on over here. I actually had a dream that I went to a gym last night even though I haven't had a membership since before Micah was born! Is that a sign? Maybe I should check into that.

I will be sending Micah to school this year. I have felt like such a mean mom this last week making him do a lot more on his own than he used to. Giving him verbal instructions, handing him his snack still in the wrapper, making him wipe his bum and so on. Poor kid, maybe I will go back to wiping his bum for a while longer for my own sake. It is just more sanitary! By the way, this kid showed me the other day how smart he is. I was reading him a Berenstain Bear book and it showed a picture of the inside of the body. I told him, "When you eat it goes down this tube into your stomach, then turns around in the small intestines and then the large intestines and then you poop." Then he says, "When I have juice, it turns to my weiner." I laughed so hard I was crying. Yes Micah, you are right. How bright of you to notice the difference!

Today, I went on a spur of the moment D-land trip. Al and I needed to get out and we had fun! Might I add, I earned my Disneyland Warrior badge today. You thought I got it on my last trip, right? Well, this time I have the wounds to show for it. I bought some new flats that are super cute for $7. I had worn them before, so I thought all would go well. Well, after walking to the park, around the park, through some of the attractions and then walking back to our cars, I told Al my feet were hurting. I thought I had rubbed some of the skin raw. Well, I didn't just rub them raw, or get blisters. Both heels were bleeding! I told Chad to take a picture to show the damage, but he wouldn't. It is too gross! So there you have it, my Disneyland Warrior badge has been earned!

Valentine's Day is coming up on us soon. I am scheming right now. I am hoping to make this a really good one for Chad! I also have an idea for Micah. Chad is in charge of taking care of us girls. As for the day of, I am not sure what to do. Is there anything that you are supposed to do? I was thinking about making them a heart cake or something. Not sure. How do you celebrate?

Hearts and Hand-me-downs

On Thursday we had a big package arrive at our front door. It was a Valentine's package from Ghee and Papa (aka Chad's parents). Brooklyn was napping when it came and I couldn't make him wait, so I let him dig right in.

Inside were little toys, a book and candies. They have been having fun with all of it. Thanks Ghee and Papa for the fun package!
In other news, Brooklyn has become obsessed with Elmo. That and Yo Gabba Gabba are her very favorites right now. Well, I remembered I still had this shirt:


I dug into my old clothes storage and grabbed it out, threw it on her and told her to look in the mirror. Her reaction was priceless! She danced in the mirror and kept poking herself in the tummy saying "Emmo, Emmo!" In fact, she loved it so much she wouldn't let us take it off for bedtime and slept in it!

To go or not to go...

Today I went to Micah's Kindergarten Round-up. For those of you who don't know, it is basically an orientation to the school, teachers and programs available. In the process they gave us about a millions things to do (i.e. immunization charts to fill out, physicals to do, dental appt., forms, PTA to join, early bird vs. late bird, and so on). I left feeling very overwhelmed. First and foremost, we are on the boundary of three schools, so I am opting for open enrollment to get him into the school closest to us since it is rated the highest. The school isn't impacted, so it shouldn't be a problem. This means I won't know until April if he is in for sure though.

Well, after the whole presentation, I wasn't sure if I should even put him in this year. Micah is an August birthday, so he will barely be five when he enters. Along with this, the teachers went over a check list of the many things they want the kids to be able to do before they get into kindergarten. They asked that they are able to take care of all bathroom duties, can completely dress themselves, can open all their own food containers/wrappers, can sit and focus for at least ten minutes, take verbal directions and use scissors. Well, I still have to wipe him, he can dress himself, but the button on the top of his shorts are hard to get, he has a tough time with opening things like granola bars (those things are tricky buggers), ten minutes of sitting and listening is a stretch, don't get me started on verbal directions and although he can use scissors, I don't think he can cut out a shape. Among my other concerns are the early bird vs. late bird option. 7:45 am is really early for us, but 9:45 am is wasting the day away. Also, Micah doesn't participate well in group activities. He likes to observe, but isn't much for doing the group thing.

Then there all his great attributes. If you have ever met Micah, you will know this kid is super social. He has no fear of coming up and making friends with anyone, I mean anyone. He isn't intimidated and is always complimentary. He is also very smart. In fact, when they gave us the sheet of what would be covered in the year and he knows 98% of it already and is doing some reading. He also has known his shapes, colors, letters and numbers forever. He just has a thirst for knowledge. He can articulate how he is feeling and won't hesitate to let you know. He writes his name even if it is in all capitals and as I found out today that is a no no. Whoops, I still think he is amazing! Anyways, so considering all of this, what would you do? I still am flip flopping, is this the year to go or not?

P.S. I realize I have about seven months before kindergarten starts, but I'm just trying to think it out.

Nachoooooo

Sometimes I like to wear stretchy pants...with Elmo undies on the outside!