Tilden Park

Last Friday, the kids and I went with Heather and JD to Tilden Park in Berkley.  If you've never been, it's a great place to take your little ones.  This was our second time, and the kids loved it just as much as they did the first.  We rode the steam train, twice, played on the playground, fed the farm animals celery and lettuce, and rode the merry-go-round, also twice.  The kids had a blast, and it was wonderful being out of the heat.  On the drive up, there's an area to your left, where you can enjoy a stunning view of the San Francisco Bay.  Wish I'd captured it, but there's always next time.  Here's what I did capture!

That last shot of Ryan has to be one of my favorites of him to date. It tells such a happy story. Love it. It was a really great day. I am so glad Heather lives less than an hour from us.  We've enjoyed so many fun times in the two years we've lived in Ripon. Thanks again, cousin, for a fun last summer outing! 

May 2011: Vegas

The majority of May was spent visiting family outside California.  Susie, Lori, and baby Katie had purchased tickets to fly to Vegas to visit Jeff, Allison and Grant, and since we didn't want to miss out on any fun, we decided to join them!  The timing was actually perfect because I'd been wanting to get out to Utah to see my family anyway, so it just worked out to make one big trip of it.  Jeff and Allison, who for roughly five years had lived in Vacaville (of all places - thank you, Air Force), were reassigned to Vegas within weeks of Neil's move to California in the summer of 2010.  It's so funny and sad at the same time that we missed living within two hours of each other by only a matter of weeks.  But, that's life!  Anyway, I think everyone (with the exception of Dave, Jared, Brad and Courtney, who were not able to come and who we missed) was excited to get to Vegas to see Jeff and Allison's new digs and to spend time with one another!

Our traveling adventures began bright and early on the morning of May 1st, when we hit the road for the anticipated eigh-hour drive to the desert.

Ryan, our little travelin' man.

The drive was thankfully uneventful and relatively pleasant.  Upon arriving at Jeff and Allison's, we were greeted warmly by all.  Then, not a minute after entering the house, I received a text from my "Uncle Alfred" announcing Osama Bin Laden's death.  Not exactly the ideal topic of conversation to kick off a family vacation, but still very good news to hear!

The following morning, Jeff and Allison both had to work, so the rest of us entertained Grant for a few hours.  I also took a run, which was actually quite miserable.  The heat and dry air threw me for a loop, but the change in scenery was interesting.  And now I can say I've run in the desert while watching the Vegas strip.  :)

Grant and Katie

That evening (or possibly the following - I can't remember now), Jeff made his famous, amazing, delectable, heavenly, I-could-literally-just-eat-it-and-nothing-else-and-be-totally-satisfied fried turkey.  And it was, as usual, everything I hoped and dreamed it could be.

Catching up with cousins!

After dinner we drove to a park nearby and let the kids wear themselves out.

Love those bottom teeth! 

Sweet Lori and Katie

Ryan brought his plasma car, which quickly became the popular item, not just among the kids.

Over the next couple of days, we just hung around and relaxed, rotating between the basement full of toys, and the back yard, which was any child's paradise.

Silly kids.  Not sure what I think of Chloe's pose.  A little too Marilyn Monroeish.

And oh, dear daughter, who's 5 going on 16.  What joyfully dramatic adventures lie ahead with you.

Relaxing with my stinkers.

Our original plans with Neil's family consisted of a couple days at Zion's National Park, from where we would part ways and drive on to Salt Lake. However, when we left the early afternoon of the 4th, Jeff's land cruiser overheated about 40 miles into the drive. We stopped at a gas station to better assess the situation, but it was quickly determined that we weren't going much further.  With two vehicles jam-packed with camping gear and food, we really didn't want to turn back and go home.  So instead, we camped at a State park within about 10 miles of our location. It was called Valley of Fire, if I remember right. Wasn't exactly Zion's National Park material, but it actually turned out to be quite beautiful. I know, gasp!  Me, using the word beautiful in a sentence about camping. What are the odds? :)

It was HOT and we were all exhausted by the time we got in and found a good campsite, so initially we held off on unpacking the cars and instead grabbed our camping chairs and took a rest in the shade. 

Chloe and the boys had a ball playing in the red, sandy dust and climbing rocks.

Shortly after cat naps, we did a little hiking up a large rock structure.

Here's a view of our campsite from said structure.

After dinner we did more exploring and playing...

Allison looked great with her tiny 7 month baby bump.

It's incredible to me the intricacy of these rocks.  They really were beautiful.  And the kids couldn't get enough. 

That night after dinner, we had hot chocolate and sat around the campfire. Neil and his siblings talked about camping trips of years past, which there were many of, I hear.  It was really neat listening to the stories and I can easily see how such activities could create lasting memories and bonds between siblings and loved ones.  Neil has said again and again throughout our marriage how much he enjoyed those times with his family.  I look forward to creating similar memories with our kids as they grow.  It was a pleasant, and relatively warm night, enjoyed under the stars with good company.  The following morning we ate, packed up and drove back to Jeff's.  This had not been in our original plans, but the thought of spending a full day in triple digit temps with no water did not appeal much to us.  Upon arriving home, we migrated to the pool, where we pretty much spent the whole rest of the day.

With the kids fully engrossed in the many fun activity choices before them and plenty of adult supervision to go around, Neil and I were able to slip out for an hour to go see the Vegas temple. I LOVE visiting temples, and was really excited for the opportunity to see this one.

It was wonderful to walk around even for a few minutes and feel of the sweetness that abided there.

Driving home, we passed this mammoth of a plant.  Looks like a big creepy spider!!

That evening we went back to the park and played one last time.

Oh what laughs these pictures will bring when Grant and Katie are teenagers!

Later that night, after kids were in bed, Neil and I snuck off to Walmart to buy Jeff a birthday present and ingredients for my special queso.  When we got home we presented Jeff's gift, which was the glorious game of Mexican Train, then proceeded to play it while enjoying the yummy queso.  Not far into the game, it occurred to me that today was Cinco De Mayo.  Made me laugh.  What a more appropriate way to (unintentionally) celebrate this holiday than with a game of Mexican Train and some chips and queso.  :)  I think I was more entertained by this realization than anyone else.

The following morning, May 6th - Brad and Courtney's 2nd anniversary and my Aunt Valeri's birthday, we said our goodbyes and hit the road, Salt Lake bound.  It was a really fun visit with Neil's family, and we were sad to go. Not too sad, however, because we knew we'd all be together again only four months later on the glassy waters of  Lake Powell.  Thanks again for hosting a great vacation, Jeff and Allison!

New nephew and a birthday wish

I've been awaitin' for Jared and Lori to hurry up and get a picture on their blog so I could steal it for this post!  Not that they've had anything better to do this week than write blog posts.

On Saturday evening, the 18th of February, 2012, a perfect little boy entered the world...

Tyler George Croft

 ...weighing a hearty 5 pounds, 14 ounces, and measuring a lengthy 19.5 inches. 

Just LOOK at this sweet, sweet family!

Jared and Lori, and "Baby Katie," who's not much of a baby anymore, we are so thrilled that Tyler has arrived, safe and sound.  I sure hope I get to hold him before he grows too much!  Congratulations!!

And on a side note, but absolutely, positively worth the mention (!!!), I would also like to wish my brother-in-law, Brad a very Happy Birthday, tomorrow!

Brad & Courtney - Lake Powell, Sept. 2011

The 24th is definitely a great day to have a birthday!  Trust me, Neil and I have years of experience behind us!  :)  Brad, we hope this is a memorable one for you!  You and Courtney have reached many well-deserved milestones this year, and have some awesome adventures ahead!  We can't wait to see what's in store for you both!  HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Man, I married into a great family.  Okay, thee end. 

Week in review (January 1-7)

WRITTEN SUNDAY, JANUARY 8th.

I've been back from Utah now for one day shy of a week.  It's always nice to get away, but man, it sure feels good to be home, too!  I also have to say that it was nice getting home and knowing I still had a solid week left of Chloe's break before the normal routine started up again.  Even still, I'm not sure I'm ready for the craziness to begin tomorrow morning. Unfortunately, ready or not, here it comes! 

First off, here are a few more pictures of Ryan on his first day as a Sunbeam (last Sunday).  I snapped these right before Primary began. More on our Utah trip eventually. 



Our week was pretty uneventful.  The weather was nice, so the kids rode bikes and played outside, and Neil and I got some yard work done.  It's looking like we may be turning our sprinklers back on next week, which is just a puzzling concept to us.  I guess we're still in the mindset of Coloradans, who have a solid three months before they'll even be thinking about sprinklers.  In addition to soaking up some warm, January sunshine, the kids played super heroes with their capes and masks, taking turns playing hero, villain, and victim, which, by the way, was and is absolutely hilarious.  They're pretty dramatic.  The dialogue they come up with constantly has me giggling to myself.  Must be all those old school super hero shows they watch on "Neck-fwix," as Ryan calls it.

Confession: these were actually taken the week of Christmas, but since they so accurately depict what these two look like when they play super heroes, and since I didn't happen to capture them in action this week, I just decided to throw these in.  Yes, Ryan is wearing Chloe's mask, and no pants.  And his shirt is on backwards (over the top of a pajama top).  Stylin'.

Chloe broke in her puppet theater, which I'll blog about in my Christmas post.

And among other things, the kids played legos (a favorite of both), marbles, and trains.



Here's a video Neil took of Ryan playing with his Marbleworks set the other day.  Neil is the first to admit that he loves the thing as much as his son does!

Saturday afternoon, we drove to Pleasanton to celebrate a post-Christmas with Scott, Heather and JD.  It was comfortable and relaxing, as always. 

The kids took turns driving the ATV and loved every minute of it.

Chloe jumped on the indoor trampoline (left) and all three kids played in the shower (right).

Heather is becoming more like a sister to me these days.  I love having family close, and I love how our relationship has blossomed.  It's strange because she's nine and a half years older than I, and while we've always stayed in touch (hello, we're family!), we've never been in the same stage of life or had much in common.  I'm sure she'd agree.  But I still remember when she called me to announce she was pregnant with JD, and how fun it was that I'd just barely found out that same week that I was pregnant with Ryan.  I guess that was the beginning of our bond - being pregnant at the same time and then delivering our boys just 5 weeks apart.  Then, of all places, Neil's job, just before the boys turned two, moved us less than an hour from Heather.  Really, who would have even imagined that happening?  It's fun.  Another perk to having her and Scott close is that I get to see my Uncle Jim and Aunt Karen (who live in Oregon) and come out to visit a couple times a year, as well as my other cousin, Misty (who lives in LA), who also had a baby boy just six days before Heather had JD, and also Tanya, who's in San Diego.  It's a true blessing having family close-by, seeing them regularly, and building memories together.  It has definitely made the transition of moving here easier.

Today was a lazy Sunday.  We were terrible and didn't go to Stake Conference.  Ryan had a particularly rough night last night, crying out a handful of times, which made it difficult for me to sleep soundly, and then coming in at 4am requesting to crawl into bed with us, which I naturally said no to (mean mom).  Then came a good, long meltdown right there on our floor, followed by getting Ryan settled back down again and, eventually, asleep - on our floor.  Then he was back up before 7 and still obviously tired and in need of more sleep.  The kids got up and entertained themselves downstairs while Neil and I stayed in bed for another hour or so.  Between Neil's back hurting (once he was up) and Ryan's constant meltdowns over anything and everything, we just decided to stay home rather than fight Ryan to sit still for two solid hours.  We turned on the NFL playoffs, and enjoyed a quiet Sunday at home.  The Broncos beat the Steelers unexpectedly, which was awesome (so happy for Tim Tebow), we had a yummy dinner, and, best of all, the kids were in bed by 7!

Eating apples and edamame with "chopsticks" (aka straws).  On Friday night, we cashed in a gift card to a local sushi restaurant here in Ripon (with Richie and Christie, who gave us the gift card for Christmas), and there was some leftover edamame that we brought home.  The kids LOVE this stuff and eat it like candy.  Chloe was nice enough to let Ryan wear her bracelet while they enjoyed their grub.  Again, stylin'.

CLASSIC QUOTES OF THE WEEK:

Me: "Chloe, please go finish your applesauce."
Chloe (groaning): "Why do I have to do EVERYTHING around here!?"
Apparently I ask too much of my six-year-old.

Chloe (while trying to get Ryan to be patient while she put together a toy for him): "Hold your horses, Ryan!"
Ryan: "But I don't have a horse!"
The boy makes a point!

It was a good start to a new year!  I can hardly believe we're already into 2012!