Tubbs is Eight...and its Grrrrrreat!

Happy Birthday my sweet little Tubby Wubbs! I cannot believe you are eight years old.
In my mind's eye you will always be two or three years old and my little bug. I guess its because he is the little brother...but lately I look at him and how much he is "filling out." He is a strong boy and he is getting so tall. He now weighs 81 pounds and he is 4 feet 4 inches.

Tubbs is my special little boy. He is very affectionate and tender hearted, but loves to laugh and have a great time. He reminds me so much of his daddy that it's a bit scary at times. Luke loves it because they are always laughing at the same things.
Tubbs didn't know exactly what he wanted to do for his birthday so he changed his mind several times. He also didn't really know what he wanted for his birthday. We asked him over...and over...and over. He really loves reading and was always asking to use my Nook to download books. So...we decided a Nook for him was the right gift. Tubbs was very happy. Thankfully Grandma and Grandpa Hogue went in on it with us. :)

He wanted to open his presents before school, so he started off the day a happy camper. Dad took him to McDonald's on the way to school for egg and cheese biscuits.

I picked him up for lunch and we headed to Yogurtland and McDonald's (again). It was a nice little lunch with my middle child....and we ate our yogurt first of course! :)

Tubbs picked his birthday dinner meal and we were all VERY pleased: BJ's.

The nice thing about celebrating other's birthdays is getting to enjoy all the delicious food!

Of course Tubbs was so full from all the treats/meals that by dinner he was having stomach aches. The poor guy got a full size pazookie to himself and he couldn't even eat half of it.

After we got home Tubbs hot the shower and got ready for bed. a busy day, full of calories and memories.

Tubbs had his little birthday party two days later and invited Bubba and his two buddies. They went to watch "The Three Stooges," went roller skating at Rollerama, and then climbed the rock wall at Action Sports. Busy day!

We love you Tubbs!

Eight things we love about Tubbs:

1. He loves to watch "Peppa Pig" with his little sister. He makes us think Wiggy is watching it, but he likes to turn it on, even if no one else is around.

2. His favorite meal is still a good cheeseburger. He has a very PICKY pallet and dislikes a lot of foods--particularly pasta.

3. Tubbs recently started Tae Kwon Do and he LOVES it. He begs to go to more than one class a day if his dad will take him. He also enjoys practicing his moves on his big brother.

4. He gets hot easily (like his dad) and likes to sleep with a fan blowing about 5 inches from his face.

5. Tubbs likes to ask questions and know how things work. I can always count on him to ask me things that at times I am not quite prepared to discuss. He keeps me on my toes and I have had to google a few things.

6. He still likes to snuggle up in bed with mom and dad still--even though he is a big boy. He always asks one of us to rub his back.

7. He will try almost anything. He enjoys climbing the rock wall at Action Sports, running with mom, and zipping around the front on his electric scooter.

8. Watching Tubbs laugh is funnier than whatever he is laughing about.

Easter 2012

Easter morning! You finally arrive.
The boys woke up around 6:30am and found their baskets. Then they woke up their sister who was sleeping in my bed, with promises of Cadbury Creme Eggs. (The Easter Bunny of course brings 4-packs of the delicious eggs every year!) Problem this year is that I underestimated Wiggy's ability to get the foil off the eggs...so quickly. She had consumed three eggs in less than 5 minutes.
Breakfast was served!!
I did try to serve the kids a real breakfast but it was eatn half heartedly. The kids had to wait for dad to wake up before they went to search for eggs. It was the longest two hours of their lives!!

 





















We took some family pictures before church. We clean up real nice... I think! :) We got the boys new suits a few weeks ago and they are just a tad too big...which is good because they are growing like stink weeds! :)

Wiggy lasted about ten minutes of Sacrament. She was borderline violent and I think her morning diet had come crashing down on her. Luke ended up leaving with her during Sacrament--and she fell asleep in the Jeep within seconds of getting in her car seat. Oh Wiggy!!









After church Luke's parents, brother and cousin Kylee came over for dinner. Grandma made a chocolate cakeand it was a hit.

Wiggy did model for us during dinner, with the help of cousin Kylee.

Easter Eve 2012

Saturday started out EARLY with our annual FARA Run.
Actually this year it was a WALK.
I ran it last year...but not this year. I was just too sick and out of sorts from not runnings in weeks. Funny how not running for a few weeks (on top  of being sick) makes me feel like I haven't ran in years.
I was very happy to walk it this year with JENNY! I haven't seen her in a few years and she was off getting married last year, so she missed it.
This year Jenny, her mom, and her youngest sister Kelly got to meet Wiggy girl. We even brought Jenny a cupcake to celebrate her wonderful news: Jenny is going to be a mama!! I am excited for her. We brought her a pink strawberry cupcake for luck! :)
Wiggy was happy when Jenny offered to share it with her.

The weather was perfect, so we made sure to have a nice long visit with Jenny and the girls. After we parted way Wiggy was able to play on the playground for a little bit.
After we got home from the FARA walk we headed home to the boys. I was exhausted from getting to bed late the night before and getting up at 7am. We cleaned up the house and boiled eggs. The kids were motivated to dye eggs, as usual. We kept it to a pack of 18 eggs. The boys managed to let the rest of us dye 1 or 2 and they split up the rest.
Happy Easter Eve! :)

Friday Fun Day

With all the sickness over Easter break we needed at least one "fun" day away before the kids headed back to school.
We met up with the Coburn family and headed south to LA for a day of adventure.
We left the house at 7:15am so it was an early start to our busy day.
First stop: the San Fernando Mission.
Bubba is in 4th grade and gets extra credit if they visit a mission. Pretty interesting--Bob Hope and his wife is buried there too.

 

After spending about 30-45 minutes walking around the mission we drove another 10 miles south to the California Science Center. We have never been there before and we have always heard good things from friends. The cool thing is admission is free...but they do appreciate a donation. It was $10 to park, but since admission was free it was a bargain. The kids had a great time exploring all of the different areas.

After we were done exploring we decided not to eat lunch at the Science Center, but instead walked down the street. It was a good find! They had pizza, Chick-a-Filet, and Chipotle. This selection made everyone happy! Bubba and I tried the banana pudding shake at Chick-a-Filet and it was delicious!! Of course I don't think we have ever had a bad shake from there! (I do think their peach shakes are my fave though.)

We were looking for something to do before we headed home. I googled a few things and finally we decided to drive over to "The Grove" about 5 miles away. Its an outdoor shopping area with a HUGE Farmer's Market across the street. The weather finally warmed up enough to take off our jackets and it was perfect.

After a few hours of strolling we decided to head home. Of course I had to take everyone to Sprinkles cupcakes first. Its a mandatory stop when we go to LA. I always check their Facebook page for their word of the day and I always get free cupcakes. Today I gave the word of the day and they gave me 5 free cupcakes. I was jumping up and down...it was pretty funny. This was Jenny's first trip and she thought I was nuts, until she tried a cupcake.

After getting stuck in some light traffic we decided to make one last stop for dinner....at Claim Jumper's in Valencia. We had nine people so luckily we didn't have to wait at all. (Pretty darn lucky for a Friday night.) We had a good time. It was the Coburn's first time at Claim Jumper, so they really enjoyed it.

It was a good time with great people. We need to make the trip down again. It was a fantastic day!!