Celebrate Good Times!

Since moving back home, we've been busy celebrating a lot with friends and family.  It's been such a busy few months, we're just now getting around to writing about it.

Two weeks after the big move, we left the kids at home with Grandma and Aunt G and flew back to California - Southern California - to celebrate Joey's 40th birthday.  Joey and Tara planned a great get-away weekend full of gorgeous views, great food and wine tasting.  It was a nice weekend away, and it was great to forget about all those unpacked boxes waiting for us at home!

We took another break from unpacking and organizing to celebrate Easter weekend.  Our townhome is right next to Parker's big O'Brien Park, so we were able to walk there for the Easter egg hunt.  The boys had their game faces on, and they had a great time.  TJ even won a prize in one of eggs, which made his day.  After the park, we drove over to get the boys' picture with the Easter bunny.  TJ, who has always loved E.B., was super excited.  Frankie, on the other hand, not so much!

Frankie's crying didn't seem to bother the Easter Bunny, he still spoiled the kids the next morning, filling up their baskets and leaving each a much-wanted Stuffie!  Frankie was so excited, he started walking that morning!  Now, we can't keep up with the crazy guy.

Later that morning, we drove to Colorado Springs to have Easter lunch with Grandma, Pa, Aunt G and Pat.  Good thing it was a buffet, because little Frankie was heaven!  That boy can eat, and he loved every bite!

After Easter, things started to slow down a bit, but just a bit.  We've spent a lot of time being together as a family, as well as spending time with Grandma, Pa and Aunt G.  The boys are adjusting to their "new" school, and we're loving this slower pace of life.

It was so nice to be able to hop in the car and drive down to Buena Vista to celebrate Mother's Day.  Grandpa put together a nice turkey dinner and we were able to visit with Uncle Carl and Aunt Jane, too.  The only problem with being in Colorado, is it snows, even in May.  That weekend, we had a big snowstorm, so since Mommy's in charge of weather, we had to head back home early in case she had to work.  TJ decided to stay a few more nights with Ga & Pa, so they gave Mommy her gift early.

TJ and Baby Frankie ended up giving the sweetest gift.  Months ago, Mommy told TJ a story about how she lost her favorite lovey, a pink and white stuffed puppy named Pinky.  TJ's response was, "Mommy, I'm going to find you another Pinky."  And he did!  It was most wonderful gesture from the littlest little man!

The snow melted later that week, and it's been warm weather ever since.  We're enjoying walks to the park, the Farmer's Market and the H2O'Brien water park!  It's going to be a great summer!

Frankie's First

Frankie's first birthday came in the middle of our family's big move back to Colorado.  Still, we tried to celebrate in style, even if it was on a smaller scale.

We held a mustache bash for our little man.  Mommy & Grandma made mustache candy, while Grandma cooked up pulled pork and Mommy baked two dozen cupcakes.

Grandma & Aunt G were already in town helping us pack, and Nana, Uncle Joey and cousin JoJo flew in from LA to help Frankie celebrate.  Frankie's amazing babysitter, Natayla, and her kiddos also joined in the fun as well as a few other friends we made during our two years in San Francisco.

It was a beautiful, unusually sunny day in Daly City, so the kids had a great time playing outside and on the swing set.  When it was time to sing Happy Birthday, Frankie had the cutest smirk on his face -- it's like he knew it was all for him!

Frankie wasn't too sure about his cupcake, so the cake smash was pretty uneventful.  He was definitely more interested in opening presents and playing!!!  After some more playtime with friends, it was time to say goodbye.

The next day was Frankie's actual birthday.  We spent it having pancakes with family at the Boulevard Cafe, and then Frankie had his one year checkup with Dr. Berston.  The little monster was 24 pounds and in the 76th percentile for weight and the 70th percentile for height!  We're still not sure where he gets it from!

That afternoon, we said goodbye to Nana, Uncle Joey and JoJo, and Frankie went to spend the afternoon with Miss Natayla while TJ went to his final basketball practice.  This was Frankie's last day with Natayla, and we were so sad to say goodbye.  Frankie loved her, which meant, so did we.  She took such amazing care of our little man, loving him and spoiling him rotten.  Saying goodbye to her and her family was the hardest goodbye we had to say.

Frankie's first year was a whirlwind.  We can't believe what a wonderful little personality he has become.  He loves playing with cars -- tractors seem to be his favorite -- and balls.  But most of all, this baby loves to dance.  He loved swaying to the music Sasha and Julia played on the piano, and he loves dancing to any kind of beat.  He is so silly!  He is a little chatter box, too, and he's got a little (sometimes a lot) of attitude thrown in.  He is pretty wild -- he loves to crawl up on TJ's toddler bed and go to town, jumping and making lots of noise! He is smiley, smart and very very cuddly.  He is quite the mama's boy, and he adores his big brother.  Happy birthday, little man!  We are so happy to call you ours!

Bye Bye Bay

Last month, we began our "farewell tour" of the Bay Area.  After living two years in the City by the Bay, it was time to return home to Colorado for a new adventure and to be closer to family and friends.  San Francisco was an amazing experience, both personally and professionally, and while we are grateful for the time spent there and the lessons learned, living in one of the most expensive cities in the country was difficult.
We definitely miss those who helped care for our two boys, as well as the friends we made, and we definitely miss the amazing views.  We all had favorite spots, TJ especially, so before we left, we made sure to say one last goodbye to places and faces.

We started two weeks before Moving Day, with a going away ice cream party for TJ and his preschool friends.  His closest pals, Gabby and Mila, were there.  A few of their other classmates joined them for a lot of sugar, playing and noise!  It was great to see the friendships TJ made while at Ms. Irina's school -- I know he misses them.

TJ's favorite place in the SF was definitely Pier 39.  We had a routine every time we went there:
Eat at Bubba Gump's
Ride the Carousel Twice (he almost always rode the zebra with the blue reins)
Say hello to the sea lions
Get a bucket of donuts
Our goodbye trip there was just the same as our first trip there.  Grandma, who is quite familiar with this schedule, joined us as well since she flew in to help us pack before the move.  It was a great time for sure!

For about six months, TJ had been asking to go see a lighthouse.  Every weekend, we talked about doing it, but either the weather was bad, a kid was sick, or we were just too busy.  Finally, on our last weekend in SF, we knew it was now... or never.  Aunt G had made into SF a few days ahead of Frankie's birthday, so we loaded up two cars after gymnastics and headed to Point Bonita lighthouse across the Golden Gate Bridge in Sausalito.  It was a gorgeous day and a beautiful hike to the lighthouse.  After checking it for a little while, we parked in an open area and had a picnic.  It was the perfect memory for our family to make before making our way back to landlocked Colorado.

After the excursion, it was a week blurred with goodbyes, tears and hugs.  TJ had his final gymnastics and basketball classes, and Mommy was able to hang out on his last day of school to watch his music class, then come back later for a going away party there complete with cupcakes!

Before heading to SFO to fly to DIA with Grandma, TJ had to say goodbye to his pink house. They stayed

at Grandma & Pa's house for a few days while Mommy and Daddy finished work, packing and driving to Colorado.  It was so great to be reunited March 30th.

Now that we're back in Colorado, we're slowly settling in.  Mommy still has a little unpacking to do, but all the boys' stuff is out and in full use.  They are sharing a room, and so far, so good.  They both started school this week, and while there's definitely an adjustment, each day is a little better.  We can't wait to have everything unpacked, pictures on the walls and a sense of home to help us feel more grounded.