Preschool Party

Today was Moira's last day of preschool before her birthday and our trip to Texas, so Ian and I brought pink cupcakes to her class so she could celebrate with her school friends! I really enjoyed seeing her in a classroom setting and watching her interact with the other little kids. She loves preschool so much, and I'm glad we have her in such a great program! Ian seems ready to start going himself too... now we'll just have to see if Mommy is ready yet! ;) Here are a few of the pictures I got of them at her school today:

Everyone singing "Happy Birthday" to Moira!

Moira and her pink cupcake - she insisted they be pink!

Ian "spying" on Moira's preschool!

Moira playing in the "cabin"

Tomorrow we leave for our trip to San Antonio and we all can't wait to get there and see all of our family! We have all sorts of fun activities planned, like a Princess birthday party for Moira, a night for the adults at The Melting Pot, and a trip to Landa Park. I plan to continue posting to our blog while we're there, so check back soon for more pics and updates on our vacation! :)

Picture Day!

I took the kids out to get their pictures taken today. The pictures turned out pretty darn cute, in my opinion, but they sure were a handful to manage together! The photographers did a great job though, and we got some cute shots. And, of course, being the sucker that I am, I purchased the cutest collage they put together of the two of them! Now, this is the first time I've spent the money for anything like this (not that it was that expensive) but I think it will be well worth it! :) We'll be mailing pics out to the family after we return from our trip to Texas, but here's a sneak peak of the collage! Enjoy! :)

Our 4th of July Week

I hope everyone had a happy 4th of July! We spent the day with the Hunke family having a BBQ (we always make *way* too much food when we get together), playing around on the trampoline, and then went to watch the city fireworks once it was dark. The kids always enjoy playing with Kindra and Benjamin and they're so good with our 'little ones'!

Diane and I had a chance to get together and stamp on Tuesday while the kids were playing and the bigger kids (our husbands!) played a round of golf. I'm just so excited about all the new goodies in my Stampin' Up! catalog... which Mr. Brown did indeed bring to me last Thursday! ;) Here are a couple of cards we made together that night, with one of my new sets. I can't wait to get the rest of my new goodies in the mail!

Tonight, Diane offered to watch Moira and Ian for us, so Collin and I are going to see Transformers! He, of course, is thrilled about getting to see the movie, while I'm looking forward to having my hubby all to myself!

Artichokes?!

We live in such an awesome place! On our drive to the park in Lompoc today, we passed by the many produce and flower fields surrounding this little city, as we usually do, but something about the drive today hit me. There on the side of the road were tons and tons of artichoke plants! When most people think of artichokes, they think of those little jars of marinated hearts... and here I am looking at a field of artichoke plants! How cool is that?!


Now, I love to eat artichokes, but until recently, I had no idea how to cook them, extract the much sought-after 'heart', nor did I even understand what an artichoke was! It turns out there are two common types of artichokes, the green (which you typically see) and purple, which seem to be growing in popluarity here in California and have a bit nuttier, earthier taste.

The cool thing, that I did not know about artichokes, is that they are really a thistle plant, related to the sunflower. When they're past their prime for harvesting and eating, they actually flower into a breath-takingly vivid purple - which is exactly what the field of artichokes we passed today is doing! Now, I have no idea why the farmer of this particular field decided to let them bloom (as they're no longer good eats) but they're just stunning to look at. Since this sight took my breath away, how could I not share with you a glimpse of something you don't see everyday... unless you live in Lompoc!