our last spring break. ever!

daron and i celebrated the last spring break we will ever have. technically it's his spring break since he is the one in school but his life is my life. married life, you know how it goes. in 2 months daron will graduate from USC and we will never be students again, kind of crazy and really really exciting. we will go back to the real world and won't see another spring break until it's our kids turn.

daron's parents originally were going to come out during the week of spring break to spend time with carter because they will be watching him for a trip daron and i are going on in may. then, daron's parents had the genius idea to rent a beach house in newport and make it a whole family affair! we hadn't all been together since thanksgiving so it was quite the treat. carter got time with his only cousin on daron's side, anderson. they were pretty adorable together. it made me really antsy for them to be old enough to recognize the other is there and that they have a playmate in each other.

daron and i were designated tour guides since we were the "locals." i quickly realized that driving to 42nd street and back home and following my parents on our family outings to the coast was not very conducive to learning about the city. but i have to say, playing tour guide really helps! our first day was spent at the california adventure park at disneyland. this was my favorite disneyland trip yet. carter clapped above his head the entire stroller ride to the entrance. i guess going weekly would make it familiar, huh? southern california has it's negatives (crowds and traffic to name a few) but living next the happiest place on earth ain't one of them! ;)

linnea using smarties to draw carter in. one smart woman if you ask me!

the grizzly bear rapids ride broke down while we were on it for a solid 15 minutes. what else to do besides snap a few pictures while we wait? i couldn't remember why i didn't like this ride until a huge wave of water crashed over me making me soaking wet. my shorts stretched out and i felt like i was wearing the diaper the rest of the day. then it all came rushing back why i don't like that ride!

the next day we spent the afternoon strolling around the irvine spectrum mall.

carter is obsessed with water. he tries to get in every fountain we pass. a few weeks ago i was with friends at the spectrum when i let go of my stroller to chase down carter who was just about to jump in the fountain water. i barely snatched him to see people darting out of the way of my run-a-way stroller. good times.

^like this!

^^my little fish

^that little smirk/smile over dad's shoulder. kills me every time.

below is documentation of us bribing carter for kisses in exchange for a cupcake. this kid will give you 1000 kisses if it means he gets sugar. 

i could not get over how cute carter was looking at his grandpa. daron and steve are having some serious conversation about real estate and then there is carter - grinning at steve like like he's about to give him a lollipop.

been trying to teach "arms up!" ^^on the disney land rides. 

i think we are catching on.

that evening, we headed to my parent's house for swimming and a bbq. summer is officially in the air! we stayed late playing games and eating campetelli cookies. 

the last morning was spent hanging out on the sand finding sea shells, digging holes and playing with our sand toys.

^a little artsy find while running along the water. people are so creative!

in the afternoon we went biking in newport and on balboa island. i grew up 30 min from balboa but had never had the famous chocolate covered bananas from dad's. i was pretty excited when i realized this was my chance! then i had one and was sorely disappointed, not even close to enough chocolate for me!

^of course carter was right there for anyone willing to share

^carter being so good thanks to the ice cream bar stick. whatever works, right!?

after balboa island, we biked the wedge where we played in the water. i don't know if i have ever seen carter so happy.

thanks again grandma and grandpa! thanks to you our last spring break was a memorable one!

A LITTLE BIT OF 2014

a few things we have been up to this year...

we enjoyed some grandpa and grandma lovin' time during daron's parents visit to california just after new years. i can't say enough how sweet these two are with carter.

we embarked on our first carousel ride. carter had a panic attack at the beginning but by the end i was peeling him off.

"teething, the pain that never ends!" i spent a lot time singing this little one-liner in many different tunes. carter's teeth come in soOo slowly. my mom came to the rescue giving carter things like sorbet and ice cream for breakfast. a perk you get when living with your mom is all of her genius ideas!

golden spoon dates. i can't tell you how happy it makes me to have a little sidekick when i get fro-yo now. i used to have to satisfy my craving all by myself but now i have a little buddy that likes it just as much as i do. scarrrrrrryyyy i know! ;)

i even share with him. i've grown up so much... sigh...

takin' advantage of 80 degree winter days (while the rest of the country freezes their buns off). i couldn't enjoy it as much because it felt so unfair!

some dad time. we can never get enough of him.

disneyland weekly. california, you spoil us!

my sister's surprise 30th birthday party. i always told my mom it was going to be really weird for me when shalice turned 30. it feels like yesterday that she was doing make-overs on me and my friends giving us all the best tips and teaching us how to pluck our eyebrows. oh, and my favorite - telling me (when i was 5 years old) "boys have two balls not one, duh." you gotta love older siblings ;) anyway, it surprised me when i didn't mind her 30th birthday at all, i actually sort of loved it. 

watched my child go from being a baby to a toddler. i kept trying to be sad about it but this whole toddler thing is way too much fun. 

quality papa time. i remember when my dad used to throw me in the air like that! sometimes i wish he still could...

being partners in crime yelling at the seagulls through the window. 

starting to show a whole lotta personality! 

playing peek-a-boo anywhere and everywhere - at church, the grocery store, in line for the rockets ride, through the window, below the bed, you name it - we've played peek-a-boo there.

giving the open-mouth-baby-kisses. possibly, my most favorite thing in the entire world. baby kisses have a way of making you feel so special. 

and finally (finally!) carter is starting to discover how awesome cuddling is. it's only for brief amounts of time but i will take what i can get.

becoming quite the helper.

eating kumquats in our birthday suit. a daily ritual really. for him, of course! i wish ;)

oh, my one documentation that the holidays existed. we gave carter a xylophone for Christmas and he decided about 2 months later that he liked it. better late then never, right!?

enjoying a quick get-a-way to palm springs with friends. palm springs is incredible but the company was even better. next time, i'll try and get a picture of our awesome friends.

me and this guy... we aren't so opposite anymore! i'm slowly entering the blonde world. i really like it! 

discovering sprinkles mini-cupcakes and re-enacting our first-year-birthday-cupcake smash. only this time it was while shopping. not the smartest idea i've ever had...

the before

and after...

(i'm not kidding when i say this kid smells chocolate from a mile away. a boy after his mama's heart. or very sweet, chocolaty tasting breast milk)

speaking of breast milk, we also started weaning. i'm crushed. he doesn't even notice. 

look at him. happy as a clam with his milk in a bottle. i only heard stories of it being hard for the baby not the mom!

riding the giant ferris wheel at irvine spectrum. definitely one of our favorite activities.

and lastly, another daily ritual - eating lunch on the steps.

some days we are lucky and we can snatch dad to come join us!

2014 has been so good to us! i was thinking to myself the other day how i could not believe it was already march. i was trying to remember what we have been doing these past few months but it all seemed like a black hole. one reason i love blogging is it helps me sequence my life better. i can recall events much easier and life doesn't seem as much of a blur. 

going through these pictures reminded me of how good this year has been. i look at carter's smile and it screams joy to me. i love it! 2012 and 2013 were stretching years for me. daron and i learned so much and went through so many changes. it's been fun to have a year that is low-key. life is predictable for the most part and just going smoothly. i am going to soak it all in before another set of growing pains.