July Recap

Since I started blogging mid-month, I wanted to recap the awesomeness that July was:

07.01.17 - Derrick turned 4 months!

07.03.17 - Derrick with Shamu

07.03.17 - I made this super cool 4th of July wreath

07.04.17 - Our first 4th of July get together at our house

07.06.17 - Kidspace Museum in Pasadena

07.11.17 - Beach Day for Reagan's 3rd birthday

Sleeping baby on the beach

07.13.17 - Merry-go-round at South Coast Plaza

07.14.17 - Waterplay in the backyard

07.15.17 - We have a roller!

07.15.17 - Irvine Spectrum outing

07.19.17 - Lots of grandma and grandpa time

07.22.17 - Camping!

07.25.17 - Hanging out at Downtown Disney

07.27.17 - Stanton Central Park

07.30.17 - Heritage Park in Cerritos

We can definitely say that July was a productive and fun month. Can't wait to see what August brings!

The Countdown Begins!

One week from today and I will be prepping to go back to work. I thought I was ready, but now that the time is getting nearer, the more sad I get. I'm really going to miss my time with the kids and Rikki.  The kids are all at really neat stages and I've been enjoying being part of their every day.

My three munchkins!

I'm excited to go back to work, but a big part of me is nervous.  There have been so many changes since I've been gone that I'm not sure what I'm coming back to.  My role and the role of some of my staff have changed so now there are new things to worry about.  Two people have left so I now have to get to know two new people on my team. I'm sure things will work out fine, but it will be a transition to come in just as we're starting our busy season.

This weekend, we stuck true to our pact of not spending money.  We celebrated Uncle Rommy's birthday at his house.

We also took the kids to Heritage Park in Cerritos and then to get frozen yogurt at the mall.

Playground fun

Such a pretty park

Lexi walking to the fort

One of the village buildings

Olivia is finally comfortable on the big girl swing

One of the many areas to play

Enjoying their yogurt at the mall

More playtime at the mall

At the end of the day, Olivia expressed how this was "the best day ever!" which reminded us that we don't need to spend a ton of money to make our kids happy. How blessed are we to have kids that are just happy to be with us!

10,000 steps

Now that I've been blogging, it has gotten me think about all different goals and milestones I want to achieve. I want to look back and see where I was and how far I've come.

Here are some of my health goals I'd like to achieve on a daily basis that will hopefully get me to a happier, healthier me! I chose these goals, because they seem easy to attain. I've fallen off the wagon many times on my weight loss journey, but these goals seem reasonable and don't focus more on healthy habits rather than the weight.

Health Goals/Habits:

1. Wear my Fitbit tracker
2. Hit 10,000 steps a day
3. Track calories 
4. Drink 60 ounces of water a day

Looking forward to creating these healthy habits!

Financial Goals

Rikki and I are pretty lax when it comes to our budget -- we pretty much buy what we want, when we want. We bought our house about 8 months ago and even with a big chunk going to the mortgage and the added utility bills, we still don't really budget. We bought brand new furniture and appliances, built an awesome deck, made some minor renovations, and started to decorate the place.  We did it all so fast, faster than we anticipated.

Fast forward to today and I'm wondering where all our expendable income went. We're doing fine, but our financial cushion just isn't looking as healthy as it once was. I'm sure that will all change when I go back to work, but it got me thinking about budgeting better and setting the path to our financial and life goals.

Here are some of our financial goals:

1. Be 100% debt free
2. Pay house off early
3. Retire early
4. Buy investment properties
5. Put more in our travel account
6. Invest more in stocks
7. Put more in the kids' college funds
8. Have a bigger emergency fund

Luckily, we're not completely off in these goals. We have at least taken the steps to set up these accounts, but we definitely could do better.  So starting today, we decided that we would be more mindful of our spending. We probably spend $50-$200 a day on random stuff (curse you, Target!) on top of our normal spending of gas, food, groceries, etc.  That seems crazy pants!

So today, I'm proud to report that we spent NOTHING! We'll see if we can keep this up. Stay tuned for the updates!

On a happier note, we took the kids to the park today and they were happy that they climbed the chain ladder.

Daddy pushing the girls on the swings

Olivia is always happy to be at the playground

Alexis celebrating her climb to the top

We had a pretty fun day without spending any money. I think this will be good for us!

Happy 95th Birthday, Grandma!

Today would have been my grandmother's 95th birthday. I have a really hard time talking about her because I get really emotional about her.  In fact, the reason I stopped writing on one of my former blogs was because I was writing about her on her death anniversary and I couldn't get myself to finish so I just stopped blogging altogether.

Before Grandma died, she kept bugging me to have a baby -- nothing would have made her happier --  but I wanted to be married for at least a year to enjoy being a newlywed and transition into married life.  Unfortunately, she died in December of 2010 and I had my first child in August of 2011.

She would have loved being around my children. They would have brought her so much joy and she would have brought so much joy to them.  Every single time I think about what could have been with her and my kids, I feel so heartbroken and I break down in tears. I really wish she would have been able to meet them.

My beautiful Grandma.

Grandma in Maui. She was so happy to touch the waterfall.

Grandma was always a highlight of Christmas.

I was so sad when Grandma died. She meant so much to me.  Even after 6 1/2 years, it still hurts and I feel like that piece of me is missing in my life.  But I find some comfort thinking that she is watching over me and my kids. I see so much of her in them - their infectious laughs, their reactions, and their ability to make friends wherever they go.  I hope that my kids continue to have jolly spirit that she had.

I miss you, Grandma.

Derrick's Well-baby Visit - 4 months

Today I took Derrick to his 4 month well-baby visit (he's actually closer to 5 months, but this was the only time we could see the doctor).

Height: 33.6 inches, Weight: 16 pounds 13.5 ounces

He is doing well and has reached all the milestones that he's supposed to at his age: holding himself up, rolling over (he started last week), following you with his eyes, following sound, etc. The doctor showed me that he has two bottom teeth already! Time is going so fast!

After his appointment, we took the kids to Downtown Disney to eat and walk around.

The kids saying "Gorilla!" instead of "Cheese!" at Rainforest Cafe

The five of us

At the World of Disney Store - the cutest Yodas you'd ever see!

Outside the Lego store with Lego Olivia and Friends

Lexi asked us to take this picture

With just a little over two weeks left of my maternity leave, I'm really going to miss going on family outings on Tuesdays and Thursdays! 😢

Our Sequoia Camping Trip

This past weekend, we went camping with the Rikki's family in Sequoia. They have ownership at R-Ranch in the Sequoias so we were fortunate enough to partake in the amenities that they had there. Here are just a few highlights from our trip.  For all the pictures, click here.

Our cabin for the weekend

Olivia and Alexis' bunk bed - they ended up sleeping on the floor, though!

The lake at R-Ranch in the Sequoias

On our first day there, we took a hike through the Trail of One Hundred Giants.

Sign that starts the trail

At the entrance

The paths are all paved so it was easy to navigate with the baby so if you have a stroller or can't do an advanced hike, this is for you!

Rikki pulling Derrick in the wagon

Look at those roots!

Lots of huge trees

The girls got tired towards the end so they hopped on the wagon

We also spent lots of time at the pool:

Family time at the pool

Derrick chillin' in his pool float

The girls enjoying their time in the pool boat

My cute men!

At night, we headed to the bonfire pits near the lake to make smores:

Bonfire time!

Smores!

We also tried our hand at archery. It was our first time trying it. While some of us shot the arrows, the rest brought the mahjong table and played! We pretty much played mahjong in between all the other activities we did. Such addicts!

I at least made it to the target!

Looking good!

Bringing mahjong anywhere!

The girls swinging in the nearby playset at the archery range

The girls had such a good time, they cried when we told them we were going home. Looks like we'll be making this an annual tradition!