Universal Studios

We were due for a vacation so we packed up and headed to my brother Jeff's for the Memorial Weekend.

Friday we did Universal Studios with all 9 kids and had a blast. My favorite was the tram ride through the studio lots. Everyone got to ride, even the little ones, and they all loved the 3D King Kong with dinosaurs coming at us at all angles. We saw Jaws, Wisteria Lane, Norman Bates from Psycho, who came after my 4 year old nephew Noah, and we were almost flooded out due to an explosion in an underground Bart terminal. I am sure there will be a few nightmares as a result, but they all seemed to love it as long as you held them tight.

Water World show. These were the brave ones hoping to get wet, and they sure did.

I love getting Sean together with his cousin Mason. They are so funny together. Both very stubborn and we hear them often yelling at each other, "It's Mine!" "No, It's Mine!"

Sean was quietly thrilled to find his two favorite things. Bubble Bee transformer (above) and Scooby Doo (below).

For those planning a trip. Take swim suits for the water area (we did not, and wished we had). There is not a ton of things for the younger kids but it worked well for us to trade off hanging out with the little ones. The park is smaller then I remember as a teenager but still a fun day.

My Dad

He's been on my mind.

Today he is having surgery on his spine in hopes it will alleviate some pain he has been having for years. Along with the back pain, he also suffers from Parkinson's Disease. Aside from all this he deals with, he is still so much fun to be around and probably the smartest man I know. Growing up I loved to hang out with my dad, and still do. I always thought that Heavenly Father gave me the funnest dad, and that I got lucky in this department.

After his 8 week recovery, I selfishly need him to move in with us so he can do all the home improvement on our house. I think he is willing, but my mom is another story.

Recycled Water for them, BIG trucks for us.

The city of San Francisco is installing a new Recycled Water System for the local Golf Course by our house. Currently they us tap water to irrigate the golf course and are working to reduce the water waste by installing this system. I am all for cutting down on water waste and haven't really minded the dust and mess going on around our house. To make it all more bearable, in the evenings, we've turned the parked trucks into a playground for Sean and Andrew. I have never seen this 2 year old smile so big. Maybe someday they will leave the keys in one and we will take it for a test drive.

6:30 AM

This is what 6:30 AM looks like in my house, SpiderMan mask and all. This boy starts early and goes until bedtime at 7:30.

I know you are jealous.

Mother's Day

This year my Mother's Day was spent with my 3 favorite boys.

It was a great day that included breakfast and lunch, some time at the beach, and a new set of kitchen knives. I think all the cooking they did was really an excuse to use the new knives. I am considering us all lucky no one lost a finger among all the excitement.

My only hope is the knives will bring more company in the kitchen to help on days other then Mother's Day. Chances are the newness will wear off and I will be cooking solo again soon. I guess I will just enjoy it while it lasts.

Lesson Learned?

I have been meaning to get a back up hard drive for my MacBook. I have been saying for years, "I will get one." This week I learned the hard lesson of what happens when you don't have a back up. Your hard drives blows up, and you loose it all, literally. Gone are all the pictures from the last 5 years. Gone are the hundreds of dollars worth of iTunes downloads. Gone is the family calendar and all my contacts to go with it. Gone are the family videos, especially the ones from the Philippines. Gone are all my files, spreadsheets (I love spreadsheets), and music Tom recorded. The one good thing is I still have the blog.

I cried a little in the Apple store for about 10 minutes.

Then I got a new hard drive installed, re-installed all the software, and now I am starting from scratch. It is sort of liberating, and well I am feeling a little like I have just been spring cleaned. I am sorta liking it, and just might not get a back up hard drive after all. Maybe a good wipe out every 5 years is a good thing.

If you get a chance, send me an email so I can re-enter your email in my contacts. I am getting a little lonely not knowing anyone's email addresses.

Under the Pew

This is how Sean survived this past Sunday's sacrament meeting. What is it about hiding under the pew at church that is so much fun? I remember doing it as a kid feeling like no one could see me if I was down there. These days, not only do people know you are down there, there are cameras everywhere for evidence.