The Happiest Place on Earth

At the end of February we were so excited to be going to Disneyland for the boys' birthdays. Wouldn't you know right before we left Landon ended up with croup. He hadn't been sick for a long time, so of course he had to get sick right before we were leaving. We weren't going to let it slow us down, and we headed out for our 3 days of Disneyland. Landon likes to play Bradley's GameBoy and calls it his "DS". That along with a few movies and we were there!

We only went to Disneyland for the last half of the day when we got to town. Landon was doing the whole bark-cough that comes with croup and it was driving me crazy. I felt SO bad for him.

After going on lots of rides we headed back to our hotel. Here's Landon playing his "DS" in bed while Brad watched.

He played until he just couldn't play anymore! Isn't this precious?!

My favorite part of our hotel was the balcony with the cool view of Disneyland at night. So once the boys were in bed Frankie and I would go out there and relax together. Frankie was wearing the robe that the hotel provided...so hott. Oh and I have to mention El Juapo (I probably spelled that wrong, but it's a Three Amigos reference). I kept calling Frankie El Juapo because he forgot to trim him 'stache before the trip so he sported this super thick one! We got a lot of laughs out of it. Good thing Frankie's a good sport!

Day 2 started at California Adventure. We went on Woody's 3D ride for the first time and LOVED it!!! And another one we never even knew was there is Soaring Over California- totally cool!

Landon was telling Frankie something really important on Heimlich's ride.

I rode with the monkeys on Casey Jr.

Landon was NOT happy about being the passenger...

...He wanted to drive! And Bradley was nice enough not to fight him for it.

We always take a picture in front of White Rabbit's door. I love these boys!

Knock, knock Mr. Rabbit!

On to day 3. We started out in California Adventure again. We love the little thing with Crush from Finding Nemo. If you've never done it, you HAVE to. It is so funny and cute. My boys were practicing their UFC moves while we waited.

I got them to stop long enough for a quick smile...and isn't it cute??

Landon really liked the Carousel. Can you tell??

Bradley and I went up into Tarzan's tree house while Frankie took Landon on the Jungle Cruise for the 100th time.

I LOOOOVE this picture of Frankie and Landon on It's a Small World.

And I loooove this picture of Bradley. He looks so old to me.

We had a really fun trip. I love Disneyland so much! Since I'm from Anaheim I was very fortunate as a child to go all the time. I think that's why I have such a connection to the Happiest Place on Earth. Just the smell alone puts me in a good mood. We got onto everything multiple times and didn't have to wait long. We did notice that it was busier than it usually is this time of year and that's because of the free admission on your birthday. Anyway, Landon was much better by the last day in the park. But then on the day we were coming home, I woke up with a fever! I'm all better now though. We also got to go visit my Grandparents which is always fun. But I'm bummed that I forgot to take a picture of them with the boys. Darn! Next time.

My Baby is 2!

Landon turned 2 on February 21st. It's hard to believe it's been 2 years since he joined our family. We are so glad to have him! I thought I'd write some things about my 2 year old.

-He LOVES his big brother! He does everything Bradley does (good and bad).

-He says everything (good and bad).

-Toy Story 2 and Shrek 2 are his favorite movies right now and he watches them over and over. Thank goodness I like them too or I might go crazy.

-He sings the Rhianna song Disturbia, "Bom bom bee dom bom bom bee dom bom..." and it cracks me up.

-He thinks he's really cool when he has his hands in his pockets.

-He's got killer dance moves. Seriously.

-He sleeps in a big boy bed now and thinks he is SO COOL. But that's 'cause he is.

-He goes pee on the potty and has even done #2 a couple of times.

-He loves tattoos. He's always got some on him.

-He loves to go to the gym playroom. And they love him. After being there for 2 hours we get in the car and he says, "Lets go gym, Mom."

-He loves his new black and white checkered Vans that we got him for his birthday and even will take naps with them on. He'll ask you, "Like uh my new shoes??"

-He is as stubborn as they come.

-He's got a temper. Watch out!

-He loves it when we read books in his Buzz Lightyear tent.

-He loves horses so we drive by and let him say Hi.

-He only naps for once a day for an hour and a half- bummer for me.

-He's the craziest, sweetest, most lovable little chunk of love!!!

He is such a special edition to our family. We couldn't imagine life without this little fellow. He keeps us entertained and on our toes. Happy 2nd Birthday Landon!!!

Landon Matthew Farina February 21,2007 Fresh out of the oven!
I had to throw this in here. Bradley was so excited!

Here's the little guido in a wife beater, hands in his pockets ('cause that's cool), tats, doin' a little dance. That's Landon.

Toopid Mow-on

Today I was watching Landon playing with some Spiderman and Sandman action figures in the playroom. He was making them fight. Then I heard him say to Sandman, "You bad guy. You toopid mow-on." If you can't figure out what that means, he said stupid moron. I couldn't help but laugh to myself because I'm totally guilty of him learning that phrase. That's because when I'm driving I say that a lot to all the toopid mow-on's that drive on the Vegas streets. This boy does not miss a beat. He keeps me on my toes constantly. As much as he runs me ragged, I'm glad he's not a boring kid. He definitely does not lack in the personality department.
Here's some pics of the little guy. This is him trying to drink the last of the yogurt.

Oh, I love the look on his face in this picture. He was vewy sewious about the yogurt situation. And I love that there's a ring of yogurt on his face.

Update

It's been awhile since I've posted anything new. (I think I start every post with that sentence.) So I'll just give a little update of what's been going on.
- Bradley is almost done with basketball- thank goodness. I'm glad he's trying new things, but I'm excited for baseball to start. And the 9am games every Saturday are cramping my style.
- Landon is going to turn 2 in a few weeks and I can't believe it. He is such a big boy. It just doesn't seem like it's been two years since he became a part of the family.
- Tomorrow I turn 27. I'm officially going to be in my "late 20's". I don't know how I feel about it. It's weird for sure. I don't feel like I've been out of high school for almost 9 years.
- I've lost 24 lbs. since November! It's been a lot of hard work, but so worth it. I look at going to the gym as a job. I don't make excuses not to go, I just do it. I LOVE the way I feel after an intense workout! I'm kind of addicted. I still want/need to lose more so I'll keep you posted.
- We're going on a Disneyland trip at the end of the month and I can't wait!!! We LOVE D-land!!! Landon will be able to enjoy it a lot more this year. He is OBSESSED with Buzz, Woody, BullsEye and anything Toy Story, so he's going to LOVE those rides. Let the countdown begin!
- I told you last fall that Frankie was 2nd in wine sales just before the Napa trip, but at the end of the year he was #1 baby! He sold over $80,000 in wine! I'll cheers to that! He also had the most covers (meaning he waited on the most people last year). He doesn't mess around, yo! At the Christmas party at his restaurant almost every (you know there's some haters, sippin' on that Hatorade) bus boy, kitchen worker, and other waiter's had nothing but the best things to say about him. I'm so thankful to be married to such a hard worker.
- I don't think I ever posted about this, but a woman opened her car door into my driver door in Bradley's school parking lot A MONTH AGO, and I'm still waiting to hear if the "investigation" is complete. Yeah, it's being investigated because this woman LIED and said I ran into her door. Impossible! Anyway, I refuse to pay because I know it's not my fault, so I have to wait to see if they deem her at fault. Whatever happened to accountability?? Argh.

Well, that's the update for now. I'm sure I'm leaving things out.

Brotherly Love

About 2 weeks ago we had just finished eating dinner and Bradley went and laid down on the couch. Landon got out of his high chair a few minutes later and walked over to where Brad was. Then Landon says to me, while pointing at Bradley (who had fallen asleep), "Mom, look uh Bradley. He s'eepin'..." Then in a sweet high pitched voice he says, "So coot (cute)." If that wasn't cute enough, then he climbs up next to him right in his face, and stares at Brad with his big blue eyes. He starts rubbing Brad's cheeks very soft and keeps whispering, "Bradley s'eepin'....so cute." It was SO STINKIN' PRECIOUS!!! You know I had to bust out my camera to catch the moment. Then he started hugging and kissing Brad.

Then he kept scooting closer and closer until he was practically on top of him.

Finally I had to remove him because he was trying to sit on top of him! This was definitely one of the cutest things ever! I showed Brad the pictures the next day and we got a good laugh out of it. These boys may fight, but at the end of the day they are each other's best buddy.

Belated Christmas Post

It has taken me so long to finally post pictures of Christmas. I promise I won't write too much, but be prepared for lots of pictures. The ornament Bradley made for us. These are my favorite!

The grandkids (minus Scotty's cuteness) after Christmas Eve dinner at Dustin and Leah's. It was so yummy. Props to Leah for the delicious meal! Then we head over to my mom's to open presents.

The kids assist Grandpa in the huge task of passing out all the presents.

Landon and Scott having a pretty serious discussion.

Dustin and Leah (who celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary on New Year's Day, HAPPY 10TH ANNIVERSARY!!!)

Typical Tyler picture. Gotta love him. We all show love in different ways.

Riley eager to open her stuff.

I just told him to smile and this is what I got. What can I say, he's a man of many faces.

Another man of many faces. Brad loves Star Wars. (Notice our big, crackling fire in the background?? We were so warm and cozy! haha)

Grandma and Grandpa Great got Bradley a Yankee jersey for his Build A Bears. He has been wanting this for awhile, so he was so excited!

Does this lovely decorative hat look familiar to anyone?? It was a White Elephant gift at the Cousins Christmas Party and (due to its popularity) it reappeared on Christmas. My dad scored this beautiful work of art from Dustin and Leah. So funny!

My dad was nice enough to pass it around for everyone to try on.

Bradley loves Bakugans. I have no idea what you do with them, but he was so glad to get them.

Christina was Frankie's secret santa this year. She took these pictures at Yankee Stadium when they went in October and framed them for him. The pictures are SO cool. I think Frankie had "something in his eye" when he opened this. He really loves it.

Santa was clearly happy with the Pepsi we left out for him and left lots of loot for the boys!

Nothin' wrong with a little chocolate for breakfast on Christmas, right?? Landon's eating some candy that Santa left in his stocking, among the Christmas morning mess.

Bradley was SO excited to get his iPod shuffle from Santa! I love when he's singing along with it and I can hear what he thinks they are saying in the songs!

Landon (making another funny face) with his lovely stroller that Santa left for him.

Bradley and his beloved Star Wars gifts.

On Christmas we went to Frankie's sister, Tony's house. Here's Landon with his cousin Angelina.

JamiLynn (looking way too old) and Bradley

I hope that wasn't too long. It's so hard to narrow down all the cute pictures. Bottom line- we had a great Christmas!!!

Tagged!

My best friend Amanda emailed this to me and I am tagging anyone who wants to, to post it as well. I know I still need to do a Christmas post. It's coming, I promise.
1. What is your occupation? Stay at home mom= housekeeper, referee, shoulder to cry on, Dr. Mom, laundry pro (or maybe Frankie just says that so he doesn't have to do it...hmmm..."But YOU do it so much better than ME."), chauffeur, and bill payer. You get the picture. Notice I didn't say chef! haha!
2. What color are your socks right now? no socks, just some sad feet that need some attention
3. What are you listening to right now? Bradley snoring (feel asleep in my bed), and the dryer. The job never ends.
4. What was the last thing that you ate? A steak salad from Cafe Rio...same as you Amanda!
5. Can you drive a stick shift? I have, but not very good
6. What color would you be, if you were a color? a pretty green
7. Last person you spoke to on the phone? my mom, but had to go because my kids don't allow me to have conversations on the phone. haha
8. Do you like the person who sent this to you? The most!
9. How old are you today? 26
10. Favorite drink? Hands down, Pepsi. The nectar of the Gods!
11. What is your favorite sport to watch? Baseball- Yankees Baby!!! Or any sport Bradley is playing.
12. Have you ever dyed your hair? What woman hasn't??
13. Pets? A fish, not a fan of pets...
14. Favorite food? My momma's chicken divan. It's a family favorite!
15. Last movie you watched in movie theater? I think Step Brothers. I can't really remember. I can't wait to see Mall Cop.
16. What do you do to vent anger? A long, drawn-out, play-by-play phone call to Amanda who always listens and makes me feel better for being crazy! haha!
17. What was your favorite toy as a child? I would have to say a Barbie that had a peach dress with a shimmery bodice. I think my moms still got it stored in the garage.
18. What is your favorite, fall or spring? That's a tough one. They are both my favorite. Fall because it's a break from the scorching heat of Summer. Spring because baseball starts.
19. Cherry or Blueberry? Cherry
20. Do you want your friends to do this too? Yeah!
21. Who is most likely to respond? Leah
22. Who is least likely to respond? hmmm...
23. When was the last time you cried? About 3 a.m. this morning when we couldn't get Landon back to sleep (he never does this!). It was more like a delirious whine "I just want to sleep..."
24. Who is the friend you've had the longest time that you are sending this to? Amanda! We're totally BFF's. Ask Bradley.
25. Favorite smell? Frankie before we go on a date. Bow-chicka-wow-wow!
26. Plain, cheese or spicy hamburgers? Everything is better with cheese! (I stole your answer Amanda because I couldn't agree more!)
27. Favorite Car? My Tahoe, it's big and sounds beefy! haha!
28. Number of keys on your key ring? 2- car, house
29. Number of years at your current job? Almost 8 years...crazy
30. Favorite day of the week? Thursday- Frankie is off and we get to hang out and play with the kids.
31. How many states have you lived in? 3- Utah, California, and Nevada
TAG YOU'RE IT!!!