Auntie Ashley Visits Us!

Like Father-Like Son

Step back about 30 years ago to find this gem....

and now join me for the surprise I found in the kitchen today!  

It's true people-history DOES repeat itself :)

A Whole Lotta

Puppy Lovin goin' on!

Oh how we love this big cuddly guy. Look at this face-how can you not?

My Name is NOT Buddy!

It's.....SYNDROME! Meet Dash & his arch nemesis Incrediboy a.k.a. Syndrome-this famed hero and villain frequent our trampoline for "duel" quite often....

oh to be a kid again :) Do you think they'll remember these times when they are older?

The Grass is Greener

No other way to put it-sometimes, the grass just really is greener in someone else's yard :) Once in a while it's nice to have a break from the same scenery everyday and have a playdate elsewhere.

And how much do I LOVE the new shirt dress on EmmaLee? Bunches! Super cute isn't it? How creative-hugs to Grandma for it.

{Fun.Fun.Fun}

Hot & humid today-so out came the inflatable waterslide (for the 3rd summer now). We LOVE LOVE LOVE this contraption! It's the ultimate "at home" summer entertainment! Got it for our preschool splash day 3 years ago, on littletikes.com. They were having an end of summer clearance. BEST PURCHASE EVER! :) It never disappoints-we are wearing this sucker down to the ground....

Bryce is not exactly a "fan" yet, hopefully this sucker will still be standing when he decides that sweating in your birthday suit is actually NOT the most comfortable way to go! lol :) Until then-he enjoys strippin' down to the bare minimum and watching everyone else from the sidelines.

Home Again

As they say-all good things must come to an end-yet the final day of our trip came WAY too fast. We had a brilliant breakfast at the Chateau this morning. The BEST morning meal I have ever had. 2 thumbs up! We bonded best with our chef, Kate, who we got to chatting with and she showed us around to see some of the things Tori & the kids left behind when they moved out-so fun if you are a fan J We even got a  “Tori journal/notebook” as a memento. Kate was a real sweetheart.

That's some of Dean's leftover food from the fridge-what a freakshow I am huh? Good times though. :)

I am so grateful for the amount of nostalgic "memory lane" moments I was able to have in 5 short days...smells of crisp air sweeping off the ocean, soft warm So Cal sand between my toes, smelling the Madrona trees first thing in the morning, gazing at all the tiny bouganvilla flowers & enjoying the perfect weather EVERY day! Does a vacation get much better? 

Though it was a whirlwind trip-it was so refreshing to go back home for a bit. Can’t wait to bring Mike and the kids to stay a little longer next summer! Thanks for the memories and spontaneity mom! I love our adventures!

Exploring old & new TeriTORI.....Day 4

Day 4

This morning we had an oh so yummy hotel breakfast of Biscuits & Gravy (my very favorite breakfast food), before starting back down 101. Mom insisted on driving this time (she thought she was giving me a break….you can stop laughing now, if you have guessed what happened next J) I said “stay on this road , hwy 101, until  it connects to 1-5 south..” FAMOUS LAST WORDS….Let me add that this connection takes place in the middle of Hollywood., CA!!!! Enough said huh? As I watched the exit for 5 south pass by on the right (after I told mom to take the next right), she argued that I told her to “stay on this road”, which apparently to her meant, “just continue straight until you eventually hit MEXICO!” Lesson learned: my mother is extremely literal. So after a 30-minute detour in the middle of L.A., we finally get onto the 5, only to face traffic that started 20 minutes prior! GRRRRRRRRRRRR J Yep-it always makes you feel happier knowing you would have missed it if “someone else” was driving-did I mention it was L.A. traffic????? Like nowhere else in the world J Lucky us. lol.  Luckily we were heading to a favorite childhood spot, called Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlor, so I chilled out a bit  (being lost makes me NUTS!)  Mom admitted that I inherited my dad’s sense of direction, for which I am blessed. I rarely get lost, hardly ever need the use of a map, and without a panic can get myself “un-turned around” if I need to. Thank heaven for that!

Farrell’s was TERRIFIC! They still do HUGE birthday bashes, have the barrels of candy I was so fond of as a child (especially the glass jars full of various sized jaw breakers), a piano that plays by itself and an old time band that puts on a little show for the “birthday” person. I LOVED every minute. 

Hit up another fav. Spot for lunch-Hot Dog on Stick for a  Pepper Jack cheese stick & limeade before the most anticipated part of our trip….staying at Chateau Le Rue! 

Mom & I are suckers for Tori Spelling and LOVE watching the show “Tori & Dean”, so staying here was a MUST! It was terrific. Serene and tasteful beauty-what else would you expect when Tori Spelling was the designer? We stayed in the carriage house, and can’t wait to go again someday. 

Old Town Temecula is not far away from the B&B in Fallbrook, so we headed up for a snack & some touring. Mom thought I’d like it because it is a western town. She was correct. LOVED it! Thanks for the idea mom.  Especially loved the bbq place with peanuts & straw on the floor! We’ve gotta bring Mike here next summer!

 






It was so nice outside in the early California evening, so we spontaneously decided to go downtown San Diego to my most beloved Imperial Beach, which is connected to the Hotel Del Coronado.  A walk on the beach,  & surrey bike ride on the boardwalk is SO much fun on southern California nights J Seriously….nothing compares.

The only thing that would have made it better would have been having my poobee there to love on while the sun set on the shore. L 

On the way back to Château Le Rue, we grabbed some cannolli and a pizza at Filippi’s and some ice cream at Thrifty’s too-because no trip to  San Diego is complete without a stop to these spots (oops….sorry again Mike-lol)

It's Insatiable....it's INCREDIBLE

Bryce is COMPLETELY obsessed with Disney's Incredibles...

I'm not exaggerating-he has the ENTIRE movie memorized and asks to watch it 387 thousand times a day. He gets really excited when we show him the youtube video of the Pixar parade at California Adventure and tell him that he'll get to see it at Halloween! I'm working hard on making the kids a surprise set of jammies for our trip-Incredibles track suits. I found a gal on Etsy that will make you personalized "Incredibles" type shirts with your initial on it-which are too cute. Mike is TOTALLY up for wearing a "Mr. Incredible" shirt too-so I guess we will be "THAT" family this year at Disneyland...at least we have the excuse that it is halloween while we are there. ha ha ha