First Train Ride, Trip to Zoomar's

Yesterday we went on a fun little adventure with a few friends from our homeschool group.  Noah rode a real train for the first time and it was so much fun watching his eyes sparkle with excitement.  Sharing firsts with children is definitely one of the best parts of parenting.  You get to experience something that by now, as an adult, you have taken for granted, all over again through your child's fresh, innocent eyes. 

The reason we decided on a trip to Zoomar's petting zoo is because Noah is really intrigued lately with animals, especially little ones he can hold and touch.  Boy did he get his fill yesterday!  It was really weird because the night before, he asked me to tell him a story and I happened to make one up about a little bunny who was so hungry, looking for food, when a little boy found him and took him home.  Little did I know, Noah would find a bunny house at Zoomar's and spend 45 minutes gently petting, holding, and feeding bunnies.  That was all he really wanted to do there.  That, and ride on a cool oldschool teeter totter with a bunch of sweet kids.  I think I'm clairvoyant or something, in regards to the bunny story, because I had no idea they would have bunnies at Zoomar's!

I was secretly really proud of how gentle Noah is with little animals.  Some of the other kids were really rough with the bunnies and treated them like objects.  Noah was really gentle the whole time and very concerned about the bunnies' well-being.  Not that I'm taking credit for his actions or anything, but I do feel like we try to instill and model a certain level of respect for all living creatures.  So it was heartwarming to see that yesterday. 

I love our little family adventures! 

Christmas in Mammoth

We just spent nine days in Mammoth, enjoying a white Christmas and many fun activities!  We bought Noah a cool new sled and had lots of fun in the meadow pulling him around and we all, including Noah, attempted snowboarding on the sled.  We spent way too much money at Sledz, where Noah and Simon shot down the mountain on an inner tube together.  They both had a blast:)  Mammoth got about a foot of snow while we were there, so Simon enjoyed some fresh powder on his snowboard.  I stayed behind this trip as funds were low.  I did, however, try cross country skiing, which was a ton of fun and a really good workout. 

We also rented a little snowboard (so cute!) and took Noah up to the mountain, found a small hill, and let him go at it.  He rocked on the snowboard!  He was totally fearless and really wanted to feel it out on his own.  We're going to get him a lesson next time we're up there to teach him some basics.  It was a lot of fun watching him tear it up on his little snowboard.  We also did the usual gondola ride and ice cream at the village.  Simon and I also had some alone time, enjoying crisp winter walks together and indulging in Irish faire at the Auld Dubliner, our favorite restaurant in Mammoth.  We were lucky to have Uncle John's girlfriend Cynthia come up on Christmas Day.  Noah loves her and loved bugging her and Uncle with endless requests to play with him (which they thankfully welcomed and accommodated:)

All in all a pretty fun trip as usual!  We're so lucky to be able to spend time in Mammoth with our family.

Summer in Mammoth!

This post is a little late, but I really want to blog about our summer fun in Mammoth!  We stayed for a week in August and had a blast.  Simon and I went mountain biking (we biked alllll the way down Mammoth Mountain!)  We paid for a two hour long lesson with a pro, which was totally worth the money...he took us to the head of the lines and actually stayed with us for four hours total.  It was grueling and very technical, but totally worth it. 

Noah loves Mammoth...he asks to go nearly every day and always has a blast.  A few weeks ago, he was sick, and do you know what he said would make him feel better?  Going to Mammoth!  This year was special because he was old enough to take part in some of the mountain activities like zip lining and rock wall climbing.  He was so fearless!  Until he got to the top of the rock wall and then looked down.  He had a look of panic.  I don't think he was paying attention to how high he was going during his ascent.  Of course we also rode the gondola (which Noah *loves*) and ate way too much ice cream. 

We are so lucky to have Grandma and Grandpa's condo to stay in and that they freely give their time watching Noah so that Simon and I can have some fun couple time.  We couldn't have gone mountain biking or out to dinner at the local pub without their help watching Noah.  We can't wait to go back in a few weeks for Christmas!

Disneyland!

So we broke down and got annual passes to Disneyland. We were going quite a bit the past month, averaging twice a week! The ticket attendants never believed Noah wasn't three, although now we actually do need to purchase a pass for him since his birthday already passed. Noah loves riding the train, visiting Goofy's house, riding Pirates of the Caribbean, the Rockets, and Dumbo. He's been on Pinnocchio, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, the Tea Cups, and I think that's it so far. Oh yeah, he *loves* Tarzan's tree house. That exhibit will give you some buns with all the stair climbing!

He's actually tall enough to ride almost all the rides, but I don't know if he's emotionally ready. We took him on a small roller coaster in Toon Town, but I think it slightly freaked him out. Maybe because daddy told him to hold up his hands? I think that made him feel insecure. I know it makes me insecure on rides when I hold up my hands.

So we are Disneyland locals for sure now!

Farmer's Market

Every Thursday, Noah and I head on down to the Costa Mesa Farmer's Market. We both love our trips there. We start out at the Kettle Corn stand, head on over to the hummus stand, and then load up on fruits and veggies, sometimes eggs. Then we stroll over to Centennial Farm and visit the goose and windmill, enjoying the rest of our kettle corn. Noah's a little apprehensive around the loud honking goose but is intrigued nonetheless. If it's open, we visit the farm, or else Noah pushes the stroller back and forth around the fairgrounds. After the farmer's market, we head to a park and enjoy our hummus and fresh pita bread. Yum! We really enjoy our Thursdays and look forward to the farmer's market every week:)

That was easy!

So Noah is potty trained! Whew! After he turned three, I decided it was time. We had read lots of books, talked a lot about using the potty, and he dabbled in going pee in the toilet here and there. So basically I just told him we weren't going to wear diapers anymore (except during nap and night time) and he was down. He did ask for diapers here and there, but I prompted him to just go in the toilet. After a few accidents the first few days, and some delays in going #2 on the toilet, he got it. Just like that. No rewards, lots of praise, and a few accidents and then two weeks later, we are fully potty trained. I guess you would call it potty learned. So the combo for us was: Noah was ready, I was ready, we put slight pressure on him, and we took the diapers away completely. Now he can hold it like a champ and go anywhere. Even went #2 at Starbuck's the other day. I have to admit, I thought it would be a lot more time consuming, stressful, and drawn out. Not so! Congratulations big man!

Three!!!

Did I mention Noah turned three? "I'm a big boy" is his favorite phrase. Let me tell you a little about his birthday...

We had a little pre-birthday celebration at the Waldorf school. It was so sweet...I was a weepy mess and Noah was so proud. He happily followed Ms. Uschi to his little "throne" and wore a beautiful handmade flower crown along with a little cape. Ms. Uschi told a traditional Waldorf birthday story, detailing how he made it to Earth, while Ms. Rusty played beautiful music on her guitar. Then Noah paraded in front of his classmates, was given a handmade birthday card from Ms. Uschi, and all the children brought Noah a flower. He happily accepted them. Sooooo sweet. I had to explain to him that my tears were tears of joy, as he was quite concerned that I was crying. Then, after blowing out the candles, he devoured the cupcakes I made for the class. He was pretty stoked on those cupcakes!

So that was Friday. I spent most of the night baking his cake after he went to bed that night. Noah wanted a "chocolate cake with white frosting, with hotwheel cars and m & m's". So that's what he got! I'll post pics later. I also spent the better part of the night decorating with some cool hotwheels decorations I found...a Happy Birthday banner, Hotwheels hanging cars, a Hotwheels sticker book and tatoos, along with the traditional birthday ring he just loves playing with every year (and blowing out the candles over and over again).

Might I add that this year was so much fun, as Noah is fully aware it is his birthday. Weeks prior, he was telling everyone his birthday was coming up, holding up three fingers as he professed his age of coming, and waking up most mornings wondering if it was indeed his birthday.

So Saturday he woke up to his little decorations, to which he replied over and over, "Wow! Wow!" Then, to his delight, I made him pancakes with vanilla ice cream on top. Could this day get any better? Yes! He opened his new all natural wooden tool set and Daddy showed him the ropes. Then, our neighbors, the Currens (Jen, Gavin, Tegan, and Camryn), came with us to the Waldorf May Faire. Noah ate cookies, made a paper kite and ran around with the kids. Then it was nap time so he could rest up for the bonfire later that evening. We headed to the beach around 6:00pm with our neighbors and grandma and grandpa. Noah had fun with the girls (as usual!) and roasted hot dogs and smores. He loves bonfires as do we!

Then we headed home for the final treat of the day...mama's homemade cake (Noah couldn't believe his eyes and couldn't decide what to focus on...the cars, m &m's, or frosting, so he dove right into the frosting, took off a few m&m's, and rode the cars through the frosting!) We all sang Happy Birthday and he blew out the candles on the cake and the birthday ring. After inhaling the cake, he played with the kids and his new awesome tree fort (from grandma) then settled in for a long, well-deserved rest.

Happy Birthday sweet boy! We loooooove you...you brighten our lives. xoxoxoxoxoxo

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