Abigail and Me

Michael and I met Annie and Abigail at the Shoppes today for lunch and book shopping. I just now realized that the last time we visited the shoppes, he was wearing the same shirt! I guess we have to do more Michael shopping or laundry more often. Anyway, the two kids had a lot of fun together. Michael chased Abigail around Barnes and Noble, held her hand and pulled her to go this or that way. They also shared a grilled cheese sandwich from Panera. It was too cute! They each went home with a new book. Michael picked out Little People's "Let's Go to the Farm". He now reads it everyday. His favorite page is about the different shapes. He can match shapes; if you show him a square, he will show you where the other square is, and so on.

Warming up to my friend Abigail

She likes me! Reaching in for a kiss...but only going 90

Michael: Alright! I got her!
Abigail: What do you think you're doing?

OC Fair 2010

We decided to head down to the OC Fair to see some farm animals and grab dinner. Michael was able to touch a cow and a snake this time. For dinner we had corn on the cob (twice), chicken and al pastor tacos, and shrimp cocktail. Mommy couldn't have any sweets or fried food because that kind of food just irritated her throat. (She had a cold) Everyone else had the Australian battered potatoes, cream cheese on a stick, ice cream and other stuff. What else is there to do at the fair besides eat? We also watched the pig races and rooted for lil "Sourdough Jack" who came in at a close 2nd. Michael had a great time at the fair. He and daddy will pose at the Aussie battered potato cutouts every year.

So happy! Oh my, look how much he's grown

Australian Potatoes 2009

So cute!

Isabel's Bday at the Shoppes

We went to the Chino Hills Shoppes to celebrate Isabel's birthday. Michael is now the 2nd boy of the crew! Yay, Luke doesn't always have to hang out with just the girls anymore! First, we had lunch at Panera where Isabel opened her Hello Kitty presents, and the kids followed each other running in circles around the tables. Charlotte and Michael didn't quite grasp the concept and ran along in the opposite direction. haha. Then it was time to splash in the water fountains. Michael normally loves playing with water, but this time he seemed kinda scared. It may have been the cold water splashing him in the face and shooting up his nose. He would only go in if I held his hand and went with him. So being the brave mom that I am, I held his hand and got a little wet. It was a hot day so I knew I was going to dry off quickly. After all that wet fun, we got a group picture where Charlotte and Michael needed to a snack in order to stand still.

Isabel, Katie, Luke, Sophie, Abigail, Adelyn, Charlotte, Michael

Luke and Michael

Michael getting comfy with his new pal Luke

Let's be safe and not play in the water

Choo Choo & Chuck E Cheese

It was another hot day so we decided to hit the mall again. I think we went to the mall 5 times within 8 days because its been so hot! So we walked around and let Michael ride the train a few times. He smiled at all the parents that were standing against the railing, and they all smiled back. It was so cute. He really grabs people's attentions.

What a good boy!

It was almost dinnertime, so we spontaneously decided to go to Chuck E Cheese. Yes, it was still hot outside. To our surprise, the place was pretty empty for a weekend. I remember back in the day when Chuck E Cheese was the place to go, but now I guess most kids are busy playing video games at home...or this place has just gotten too expensive. Anyway, Michael and Daddy shared 35 tokens which lasted them 2.5 hours. Yes, I said shared. Jason played basketball and guitar hero a few times while Michael drove Chuck around and played skeeball.

Pretend City

We played pretend with Kathy, Vincent and Ethan at Pretend City! We went grocery shopping, rode a firetruck, splashed around while catching fish and lobsters, built a house, pet a baby chick, and did some gardening. The boys danced around on stage while shaking their musical instruments too! Michael has this special love for water and we saw that, and so did everyone else, at the water table/marina. Thank goodness for ponchos! Other kids backed away as Michael splashed away. They looked at him like "What is he doing? That's not how you go fishing!" haha. We loved Pretend City and will definitely go back again. All of Michael's blogger friends should get together and play pretend.

Fire, we're on our way!

I caught a lobster with my bare hands!

Michael pet the chick much like Lennie pet the dog

Ethan, Where's Michael???

Peek-a-boo! There he is!

We saw my fruit bowl in one of the exhibits. Should I be flattered? Or is it only good enough for a toy? haha

Disney Night

At sunset, we headed off to Disneyland for some dinner and fireworks. It was the perfect night; not too hot and not cold enough to wear a sweater. We rode only one ride - the Casey Jr. ride, and then met up with Adelyn and her cousins for Family Fun Week. We're not quite family, but she and her cousins sure treat Michael like he's a part of them.

Daddy, I'm tougher than you. I'm not afraid.

Ok, nevermind. You win. This ride is scary!

My Two Favorite Things

Michael's two favorite things have been Mickey Mouse and any ball! Whenever he sees anything round, he'll point to it and yell out ball. Today we went to the Disney Store and let him pick out what he wanted... He went straight for a Mickey Mouse backpack and a princess soccer ball. All the Disney workers watched him run around the store with that backpack. He was so adorable in it, but I'm not the kind of mom that will buy her kid everything they get their hands on. How sad huh? You can't even put anything useful in it, so I thought it wasn't a good buy. It must be that practical shopper in me. Thank goodness his daddy was there. He asked Michael what he wanted and ended up with beanie plush toys of Tigger and Pooh.

How about two Mickeys for balance?

Duck Duck, Splash! 7/15/10

It was Day 2 of this heat wave, or should we say summer weather, and we went over for some splashy splash fun at Grandma Joyce's house (Grandma Joyce is Adelyn's grandma). There were so many kids, it reminded me of my family since I have a ton of cousins. The cool thing was that these kids were so friendly with Michael. They loved Michael and Michael loved them. We hope this won't be the last time they hang out this summer.

Michael sharing the ducks

First Scorching Day...But all Smiles 7/14/10

We've been getting by this entire summer without a/c because the heat has been tolerable, up until this week! You know it's pretty hot when you're sweating doing absolutely nothing. So we escaped the heat by going to the Main Place Mall. Since Michael loves trains, we decided to let him ride the one inside the mall. It's a small track and it doesn't go that fast so we figured it was safe. I was worried that he'd stand up because he stands up in every ride at Disneyland. But in case he did, the train operator said she'd stop the ride and let me go on with him. To our amazement, he did soo well! He rolled is arms in excitement and pretended to toot the horn every time he heard a "toot toot" or is it "choo choo"? We had to buy 10 rides for $10 because he didn't want to get off... (That's a good price since one ride is $3)

The heat makes my cheeks turn pink

Keep My Money Safe, Piggy

Michael is already becoming quite the saver! He pointed to his piggy bank, that was on top of his cubbies and stuck his finger in the coin slot telling me that he needs money to put inside of it. He emptied my wallet (filled with coins) and transferred them into his piggy bank. Once he finished, he went searching for more... thank goodness Daddy had a whole bunch of coins in his truck. Yay Michael, I hope you stay smart with your money. Save big for something good one day.

He uses his middle finger more than the index finger to pick up things

On a side note, we made Alton Brown's Baked Mac n Cheese. We modified it a little bit for Michael and added spinach to make the dish a little healthier. The verdict? Thumbs down - it lacked flavor. The best part of the dish was the panko breadcrumbs sauteed with butter. I would add panko to everything if I could!

A Big Red Shiny Firetruck 7/07/10

I see a firetruck, a big red shiny firetruck! I see a firetruck coming down the street...and there's a noisy siren wailing on that truck!

The Sarte family, Michael and I visited Fireman Uncle Johnny at his firestation in Gardena. Jordan has been raving about how his Uncle Johnny was a fireman so we all took a trip to the station. The kids got to try on his gear - boots, jacket and helmet. We all played in the firetruck and went for a spin in it around the block. Is that legal? Fireman Carnero, Jordan, Daryl and Michael all wore the headphones while we went for a joy ride. It was really cool. The boys totally loved it. Michael pretended to drive too, as he loves things that spin. When it was time to say bye-bye to the firetruck, Michael got really sad. Maybe he'll want be a fireman too?

This isn't a firetruck but it's pretty fun

Michael & Fireman Uncle Johnny

Roger that Captain

Michael driving the firetruck

Cousin Jordan and Wes