I think I'll miss...or not

It's moving weekend here on our front and things have been a whirlwind of packing, cleaning, and goodbyes. As moving goes, this has been a fairly smooth process. But as the dust begins to settle and we wave farewell to our home for the last time, I realize there was a lot to this place that I'm going to miss, and a few things I will not.

I'll miss my house. For sure. It's a funny thing really because for the 3 years that I've lived in it I've thought it was just an okay house. I liked it fine but looked forward to when we would get to upgrade. I envied all those who have moved in the last year and the newness of their homes and their adventures. And now that it is unexpectedly my turn, I realize that I love this little house of mine. I'll miss the office desk for sure. I love the organization that it provides. I'll miss my ample cupboard space in the kitchen. I'll miss my island. And I'll miss the bathroom that I put all that thought into. I'll miss my high ceilings, and my 3 car garage, and the open view in the backyard despite the fact that we never got around to landscaping.

I will not miss the 4 freeway. Nightmare. It has been under construction forever, and I think it's got forever left. I can't stand that drive and will never miss not having to make it every time we want to go over the hill.

I will miss the medians and tree lined streets. We have pretty roads here. Beautiful in fact. Most of the major streets have beautiful medians that are filled with vegetation and trees. It makes for a lovely drive when you are running your ump-teenth errand.

I will not miss the crime rates. It isn't a safe community. We were broken into twice, and it just isn't a fuzzy feeling when you get those neighborhood watch emails on a weekly basis informing us of whose house was broken into and what fishy activity was spotted. The high school is rotten strait through, with little hope of improvement. And the overall feeling of Walmart (one of my faves) is a little sketchy. In fact, I've transferred most of my shopping needs over to Target because it just feels nicer.

I will miss the people. I've met some great people here who have been so friendly to us during our stay. I have nightmares that I won't make any friends in our new home because they all have their family around and set friends that I just won't fit in. It's a little crazy I know, but it is a real fear that i have. So I'll miss the familiar faces and the "I fit here" feeling that I have.

I will not miss the prices. We're moving in a good direction on this front. Our gas will be cheaper, our housing will be cheaper, a gallon of milk will be cheaper! It's going to be great and I am really looking forward to seeing the numbers drop.

I will miss the weather. It is beautiful weather here. I know that our new home has all 4 season, but having not lived in the snow, with the exception of my few college days, I am a little nervous just how cold it is going to get. The roads are always clear, the sky is almost always blue, and that's just a lovely thing.

I will miss our location. I grew up here so there are so many things that I did as a kid that I was wanting to share with Mark and our family. The beach for example. I will miss the beach. Not that I ever went while we lived here, but the knowledge that I could if I wanted is something that has to be left behind. And San Francisco. The Big Trees. Santa Cruz. 6 Hours to Disneyland. It's just been a good place for us to live and we didn't get to do all the things I wanted to. Sure there is lots to do in Utah and I will love the outdoors there as much as I've loved them here, but I don't know there like I know here. So that I will miss.

I will miss my mom. It is so weird leaving her. I have just gotten so use to having her right around the corner, and had planned a life with her in it. Cooking classes with Grandma. Playdates. Dinners and watching our favorite shows together. Scrapbooking parties. I just always had her in my future plans because we hadn't planned to move. Now that we are at this junction, I realize that I have to learn to stand on my own again. It's rough and I wish I could just take her with me.

It has been a good run here in Antioch, California. We feel so blessed that we were sent here for this jaunt in time, and look forward to our many adventures in our new home. To the one person who I know lives out there (Diana H.) I will be in touch because I need a friend.

Goodbye California, Hello Utah!

Blogbook 2012

 I am in love with my Book this year! It turned out so very cute - and since it was shipped to my house and promptly put into a packing box, I must share the darlingness of it with the world.

Presenting - the Morrell Bunch 2012.  Here is the cute cover. I wish I could say I made this myself - but I didn't. Several years back I purchased a set of 12 pre made pages that are all in the same color pallet. This makes my books uniform; because I'm crazy like that. But I do modify the pages a little. When we were first married, we made "Creating Eternity" our ... mantra? if you will. And so I put that on all our books. And the title I had to change because it said Happiness is You or something that didn't encompass our entire family, so I changed it to the "is this". And bingo - great cover.

You open the book to my "title/cover page" where I put our family quote for the year. I always try to find something uplifting that we put on our fridge & on our annual family goals, so include it in our book since we try to think of it often during the year.

 And here are a few of my favorite pages - in no particular order.

I just love scrapbooking. Although I tried to offer my services to others, it has become apparent to me that it isn't as high a priority for others, enough to spend money on, as I thought it might be. So, instead, I find myself throwing myself at friends to let me do a book or 2 for them. It's a passion of mine, a perfect past time activity, and something that I enjoy looking back on over and over again. Thanks for letting me boast of my work from this last year; cuz I'm obsessed with it's cuteness.

Park Visits

I finally got out of my house and took Cameron to the Park. The weather was nice enough that I didn't feel like I was going to freeze, and with a combined bonus to burn some calories on my walk over, it was a win-win. And it was a smashing hit.

Cameron wasn't too sure what to make of the swing the first go around. But after a few moments, he must have caught on that this was like a ride and starting smiling it up. By our second visit, he knew what the swing was and enjoyed his little ride. It was only after we were done that I noticed the sign stating that the swings are for children 24-28 months. Um - we're close enough. whoops.

 The slide was also a big hit. He rode the small slide on his own (sort of) and the big twisty slide with dad. It was really cute!

The biggest fascination was with the sand pit. Cameron does this cricket thing with his feet, and in the sand pit, they were going WILD. Different textures and feelings. The sand was just perfectly warm, with the cool winter breeze - it was wonderful. Until he figured out how to put the sand into his mouth. We then had to find a different activity!

I really enjoy taking Cameron to the park and am really looking forward to going many more times. Hopefully, in our new home, there will be lots of ladies my age who I can meet there so we can chat and have a little social fun. But if not - at least I can work on my tan which is a top priority this summer! The pasty skin has to go!

Be My Valentine

 I am in love. And it is so fun. I love being with my cute little family and LOVE being a wife. It's so awesome in fact, that we are celebrating Valentines day every month this year. I'm super excited to have a reason to eat chocolate and go out to fancy meals with my man on the 14th of each month. Don't fret, I will not blog each Valentine celebration, but since this month was the national holiday, I thought I'd include what we did for memory's sake.

Thanks to pinterest, I started off the morning with these darling Heart pancakes. So cute right? I was glad I took the picture before flipping the cake over because once the heart side was cooked - it came off the pan flattened and a sad brown color; barely noticeable with the rest of the cooked cake. Note to self - try again next time. But they were delicious and worth the shot.

 The rest of the day was business as usual until 3:00 when Mark came home from work. It was a tradition in my family growing up that mom would put our Valentine treats and small gifts on our dinner plates; and we would all share in the love just before the meal. Its a good memory for me so I wanted to carry it over to my family. And I just LOVE decorating up my table with the fun Holiday themed things to look at during the day. Since our family can't quite make it to dinner to open our fun gifts, we modified it slightly and went with an afternoon opening celebration.

 

This year, again thanks to Pinterest, I did the cute "24 ways I love you" card for the Hubs, a jar of cinammon bears, and a small package of much needed new clothes. He got me an oversized candy card! Which was perfect for me because a) I love Candy. 2) I've never received one before. and D) I lived the most boring Teenage Life known to man and didn't even have a chance to be wooed for Valentines day. Ever. Oh, but that wasn't all folks. The real gift was a shopping spree for new jewerly and accessories.  Since our robbery 3 years ago, I have only had 2 earrings that I interchange (one that I found on the floor of a classroom I was subbing one day. Lame.) and was in dire need of something flashy and fantastic. So off to Charming Charlies we went and Mark indluged me in an array of newness that I just adore. Followed by some Chinese take-out and we've got ourselves a simply terrific day o' love. I did get the little man some bubbles and bibs for his Valentines day treats, but failed to wrap them cute or add them in the photo op. My bad.

 

 To the one who makes my heart dance. He did take me to a very fancy restaurant for our actual love celebration, and despite that most of our meal contained strong amounts of delicious Garlic, it was a delightful evening spent with my man. How lucky I am to find my perfect match who listens to me, knows my choice even before I do, lightens the responsibilities I carry, fights for his dreams, laughs at my jokes, encourages me to break out of my shell, gives me confidence, and romances me like we're still dating. Love that man of mine.

And rather than create an enterily new post for this little bit of news:

My baby has his teeth. He has had them for quite some time now, but the posting is a little behind and I'm just going through my list. He started out with just the one, but the second bottom tooth popped up right after. He wasn't a terribly cranky boy - although I was worried that he would get addicted to the pain meds that I felt like I was pumping into his system every day. "Baby's crying - give him the drugs!" It seemed like a good solution at the time. :)

Such a big boy this little man is. And yes, we get too many compliments as we running our errands about how stinking adorable this boy is. Love him too.

Jelly Belly

 Another beautiful Saturday gave us reason to get out of the house and take a tour of the Jelly Belly Factory; home of the famous Jelly Belly Bean. Now - when I was a youngin', my mom took us to the factory a time or two and I distinctly remember walking on the factory floor. I could have reached out and touched those giant silver mixing bins if I wanted to. Too bad that's not considered safe or sanitary anymore.

The factory was a little underwhelming. It's one of those things that you forget how not exciting it is until you return again. The catwalk above the factory leaves you feeling removed, and the video tour leaves you feeling confused. Not to mention that they start the tour with packaging. Seemed odd to me. But alas. The beans were great. We purchased the Belly Flops - which I always love - and a few particular flavors to fit my fancy. Specifically the sours are Delightful - and the 7Up flavor, lime, and root beer were among the top choices.

I guess Cameron was a little worn out and bored by the end of the afternoon. I thought it was just darling how he had leaned forward and was relaxing on his blanket in his stroller. Please don't pay attention that he was not strapped in - but the cute photo op would not have happened if we were those careful parents. Cute kid.

 Yet another thing to check of the list. Granted we're cramming in more than we should here at the end of our California days. But at least we're getting it off the list.

An Evening Stroll

We were delightfully pleased when we were invited to join my mom and Joe in the city a few weekends back and jumped at the chance to go one last time. It's amazing to me how much I begin to feel "I should have done" and "we never did" now that we are on our way out of the state. Sad. So going to the city at this twilight hour was a perfect check off on my ever growing list.

We decided to take the BART over to avoid the stress of driving and parking, and landed right at Union Square in the early evening. The line for the trolley cars wasn't terribly long, so we bought our tickets and waited in the line among the street beggars and performers. It was a bit of a sensory overload, but fortunately we found ourselves boarding the trolley quickly. I was disappointed that there was no room on the outside of the car as that is pretty much the whole joy of the ride, but whatever - at least we experienced it.

Our first stop was Ghirardelli square. Got us some free samples as we maneuvered in the very crowded little store there. Not sure the free sample was worth it, but there you go. Mark had to drive the buggy with Cameron in it - and THAT was an experience. But we kept saying it was our practice run for Disneyland. {Turned out that Disneyland was less crowded than the City. Wouldn't you know!}

After our short visit there, we crossed the street at just the perfect hour. Twilight was just hitting the city and the colors were amazing. The weather was clear and not too chilly so we enjoyed a romantic stroll down the warf and ended up at Pier 39 for dinner. I wasn't too impressed with my fish tacos, but the ambiance is irreplaceable. The trip back was mostly uneventful. Cameron slept perfectly in the stroller leading me to believe that because of the the lay down feature, this investment was the best purchase of my life!

I do love San Francisco and am sad to be leaving such a beautiful and tourist-y city. I feel a little like our bait to get people to want to visit us is in an ever-downward spiral. Our all time high, being Disneyland - to a mediocre San Francisco - to an all time low - Orem, UT. Sayonara to the hope of house guests. Guess we'll have to be visiting you from now on.

Sample Saturdays

There is something fantastic about visiting Costco. It is like a little day date that requires little travel and technically no expense. Until you fill your cart with whatever deliciousness you choose. But - that isn't the point. The point is that Costco is a very real part of our lives. So when Super Bowl Sunday was upon us, we knew of no better place to go than Costco to hit up their Sample tables!

Sure, it was crowded beyond belief, and maneuvering that cart was something of a skill. But the sample ladies were out in full force! Every finger food and BBQ delight was there for the testing. And we partook. And loved it.

And we can't make a post about our Costco Sampling without me mentioning (again) that I use to work for WDS as a sample lady. And it was lovely. And yes, I did get many comments like "aren't you too young for this job?" Being that I was still in High school, I was definitely the youngest on the team, but contrary to popular belief, there is no age limit saying that you have to be an old lady to work there. Oh good times. The best part of the story is that when I was applying for the position, I thought I was applying to work for Costco - the warehouse. So you can imagine my surprise when it all came out what my real job was and that I didn't work for Costco - just in Costco. Funny life.

So there it is. My post about Costco. I love it there. And I love that we make plans to go as a family - mostly to enjoy the samples. Awesome fun and semi-cheap date.

Buddies

Nothing is quite as cute as watching Mark be a dad. He is so attentive to his little boy, and just loves hanging out with him. He is more than willing to change a diaper, monitor a feeding, get up in the night, or just hold this little boy. He gets him dressed every Sunday morning, bathes him most nights, reads him a story before bed, and sings their "buddy" song often. It is clear that Cameron knows his pops! Love these men of mine.


(I am so far behind in my blog posts. I've got a list of post from December that I'm still trying to get up. Although I try not to do more than 1 post a day, I may have to make a bit of an exception these next few days to try to get them all up.)

Seven Months

25 pounds

30 inches

** only sits. no crawling, scooting, or even tummy motions. just sitting. very curious about all the toys around him. (but not enough to move when he flings them beyond reach).

** eats everything. I use to be great at making all his food, and then I used the store stuff for a vacation one time. big mistake! now I only half-effort it.

** Sleeps okay. it seems right after i posted about his not good sleeping habits, he started sleeping until 6am. so, thats good.

** starting to learn how to clap. its so cute. leans in for kisses.

** two bottom teeth are here.

** knows when its time to get out of his car seat. its my favorite when he sits up and reaches after the straps are off.

** happy. everyone always comments how happy he is.

** big. shopping in the 12m section now. thanks to aunt tess who stalks his drawers full.

** sits in the shopping cart all on his own and loves it. I can't get him in fast enough when he sees it coming.

Believe me when I say my son is growing and growing! It is crazy fun to have him around! 

Our Happy Place

 In case you live in a cave, we LOVE Disneyland. There is so much love there, that the thought of going makes my heart skip with glee. There is no way that a post could do justice to the amount of fun and delightful-ness we had on our recent venture there, so I will sum it up with a few of our favorite pictures.

•  Cameron's "First Ears". Best 20 bucks spent in the park. Could NOT get enough pictures with them. And sadly we are now big headed about "how adorable" our son is because of all the comments these ears generated.
• We took Grandma. Best decision yet. Cameron Loves his Grandma!
• Really great first encounter with the characters. Cameron wasn't quite sure what they were, but he liked their company enough for photos. 
• We especially enjoyed eating ~ as usual. Although are disappointed that they have changed their recipes/chef's since our last orders and so the meals were just not the same.

•  Got to visit with some old co-workers which was delightful. Reminded that we do not miss the drama of that job!
• Took me some warming up to get good at Toy Story Mania again. But by our last ride I was up to my 295,000 points again. Mark and I did our homework and read about how to get all the bonus secrets and that made the game all that much better. I am obsessed!
• Mom and Joe watched Cameron for our Date Night in the Park. Love that man of mine!
• Maybe it was King Arthur's sword, or perhaps the carousel. Maybe both, but for some weird reason Cameron was sick when we got home. Curious.

•  Cameron LOVED the carousel. And not just the taste of it mind you - he was all smiles the entire ride. Oh my tender heart.
• Cars land is as amazing as I expected. The Radiator Springs ride is wonderful! Thank goodness for fast passes and single rider lines. Not sure I could handle a 90 minute Que.
• We always love the soft serve ice cream in California Adventure and a walk down the pier. 
• Ruby's diner was visited as well, although their menu options have changed which made my little heart cry.
• The new decor of California Adventure is impressive and I like it way much!

 "What do you mean we can't come back? I

 don't ever want to leave!"

•  So we got Annual Passes because we just have to take this guy back again and again.

Such a delightful trip. Seriously, hopefully the pictures explain how much fun we had because I just can't think of enough words to describe it all.

Eyes Wide Open

I just need to come clean. My son doesn't sleep well. All those posts and comments and moms who rave about the methods and books and techniques they've used to create their beautiful bundle of Zzzz's is not working for me. Here we are, just shy of 7 months old and the babe is alert and attentive at 400 hours every morning. Occasionally surprises us with a midnight greeting as well. I've tried snuggling, white noise, feeding, not feeding, ignoring, earlier bedtimes, late bedtimes, baths, books, I feel like I've tried it all. 4am just what I get.
Perhaps I'm the only one who can't seem to get it, but I'm not hiding under my roof about any more. We are early risers up in these hills. Lunch is served at 9am. Don't be late.