A dream is a wish your heart makes

We have decided that as long as our girls are small, there is no more fun family vacation than a trip to Disneyland/World. This year the Easter Bunny brought us tickets to California so we skipped a week of school in late April/early May and found our way to the Happiest Place on Earth for a week of magic.

I am not sure which of the four of us was most excited to get to Magic Kingdom but we made quick time of it. We left Houston just after 8am and walked thru the big Disney gates before noon. From that moment on we spent multiple fabulous days enjoying all things Disney. We ate churros, pretzels, popcorn, corndogs, tacos, frozen lemonades, more churros and drank lots of soda. We rode ride after ride after ride and enjoyed the short lines of mid-week crowds. We saw Princesses galore stopping to take a photo with Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Tiana, Ariel, Jasmine, Snow White, Belle, Merida, etc. And received pages and pages of autographs of everyone from Peter Pan to The Mad Hatter and Alice. We watched parade after parade and danced with street performers and animals.


Olivia was particularly fun this trip because she knew all of the stories and was so excited to see all of her favorite characters. She was close enough to 40" that we could sneak her on a few big rides and after Splash Mountain she screamed That was awesome and I am never going on it again! We stayed at the amazing Disneyland Hotel so thankfully we were close enough to run home for a nap and a couple days we did just that. On those days we were able to stay up late for Fantasmic and also Wonder of Color. One super tiring day you could have found all four of us crashed asleep for a mid-day nap at the hotel which I am pretty sure has never happened before in 7 years.

Isabelle was finally tall enough for ALL of the rides so she braved the new Matterhorn as well as California Screaming. We dined with the princesses one afternoon and had Disney Magic Makeovers at the famous Bibbity Bobbity Boutique another. Olivia picked the Princess Makeover of course while Isabelle chose the Disney Popstar instead. They both felt so beautiful all day long and strutted their stuff for all to admire the rest of the day.

Tara was already out West for a business trip so we convinced her to stop by Southern California before making her way back home. We love the odds of 3 adults to 2 children and were happy to have Aunt Tary join us for a few days of fun. Sadly all good things come to an end as we've learned before and before we knew it, it was time to head out of Fantasyland and back to reality. (A lot less magical.) We had missed as much as school as we could get away with and Ben needed to get back to work to fund our future trips, so we made our way back to John Wayne Airport and were back home sooner than we liked.


Every single day since we have been home the girls have mentioned the trip in some form. Olivia asks me what my favorite ride is at Disneyland or Isabelle reminds us of something we did while at Disney. The girls "play" Disneyland often and pack their real suitcases full of their real clothes atleast weekly. We are so grateful that we have the means to make these special memories and already are tossing around ideas for our next trip to The Happiest Place on Earth!

You are never too old to wish upon a star. - Walt Disney

Rush Spring Soccer

Isabelle loves to play soccer. She may not be the fastest on the team, or score the most goals, but she is a little soccer star. She decided to play in a new, more competitive, league this Spring and had a great experience. She didn't know any of the girls on her team but soon made fast friends and looked forward to her practice and games every week.

I am not going to lie...it wasn't always easy for Ben and I to watch the games. It is sort-of a mystery why Belle loves the game so much when she is so uncompetitive. I guess we have taught her to take turns and be nice to everyone too well. Ha. She learned so much this season though and loved playing forward and even scored two goals in a single game one week.

Olivia usually ate snacks and spent the game digging in the dirt with sticks, etc. Whenever she got a chance she rushed out on the field too and kicked the ball into the net. She asked multiple times to be on her own soccer team, so most likely this fall we will have two soccer champs in our home.

My girls are a perfect mix between sugar and spice. They love to run and play sports...but often are found doing it in a dress. I love watching them do things that they love.

Creekfest 2013

Every Spring the PTO hosts a huge fundraiser for the school. It means tons of work for mom ( and by default dad ) but it is a big success for the school and so much fun for the students, so I guess all the work is worth it. It begins with a Creekfest Race each year where the students raise money from sponsors and run a race during the school day rather than do their typical schoolwork. It is always a fabulous morning and this year didn't disappoint. Isabelle called her Grandparents and Aunts and convinced them to sponsor her and then rocked her mile race. She is a good little runner and always enjoys being physical and active.

After all the kids cross the finish line tired, so hot, sweaty and proud, we celebrate that evening with a HUGE school-wide family party. There are bounce houses, exotic pets, hair painting, BBQ, face painting, pizza, photo booths, trampolines, the Sugar Shack, raffles, etc. Olivia ran from one thing to the next owning the school like a big girl while Isabelle spent almost the entire night rocking out with the DJ and even getting picked to dance on-stage. After a long, very profitable and super fun day, we all four crashed into our beds tired and full of sugar. It is an event that everyone in Creekside Park looks forward to every year, especially the treasurer, and one that as parents we are proud and happy to put in the record books for the year. We are thankful to live in such a fun and supportive neighborhood and love to support the school and the programs Isabelle enjoys so much.

1st Grade Program

First grade is sadly coming to an end which means it is Spring Concert time. Isabelle had been singing the songs for weeks at home so by the time it was the big performance, Olivia was singing along. Alee and Leo joined us for the day performance and Grammie came, with flowers, to the evening performance. Isabelle was thrilled to be picked for a special part as a dancer and danced her heart away when it was her turn to shine. Isabelle has been blessed with good friends, good teachers and a wonderful school. Now, if we can just figure out how to get time to slow down this summer.

Time MARCHes on

With Spring Break, Easter and Belle's birthday March quickly passed us by like usual. We enjoyed coolish temperatures for Texas which we always enjoy and lots of days playing outside. Olivia continues to dress fancy multiple times a day and I am already starting to get cold feet about sending her to preschool in the fall a few days a week. Isabelle is booked and double booked daily so we just try to keep up with her and her schedule and love the quiet moments we get to spend with her in between the commotion. Three months down already in 2013 and all of the anticipation and excitement in the world for what the coming months have in store. March was in like a lion and out like a lamb....or something like that.

Little bunny foo foo

I have officially decided this year that Spring is my most favorite season of all. I love the holidays. I love the weather. I love the blossoms. I love it all. Easter is definitely one of the highlights of Spring and we enjoyed a WARM holiday weekend as a family this year. We celebrated with our fun neighborhood playing games, eating snowcones and of course hunting for eggs at an Easter Party. We colored eggs on our back porch and ate egg salad sandwiches for multiple days. We wore our new Easter Dresses from Grammie to church and I even matched the girls this time. And thankfully, the Easter Bunny visited us and left us amazing baskets filled with treats, toys and clothes. We were lucky this year too and the Easter Bunny left some special Mickey Mouse shaped eggs that led us on a treasure hunt all around the house where we found Disney shirts for all of us and the treasure at the end which was a 5-day trip to Disneyland in May! Thank you Mr Bunny!


I love this season and all things becoming new again. What a blessing the Savior's resurrection is. I love sharing this joy with those I love most.