Ok, so finally, here is evidence of my time in Laguna Beach, CA. I have been here since Saturday night, and will be leaving tomorrow morning.

I have been staying in a Penthouse Suite. It is nice, but I must be spoiled because I don't think it is the nicest room I've ever stayed in (shout out to LaPlaya in Naples, Florida!!). however, the view is spectacular. These were all taken standing on my balcony:

Ok, ok, I have also been working.

Blah, blah, blah. More resort pictures, please....

Here are some shots from outside the meeting room:

Here is a view of my room from the pool area - it's the one at the top left:

Here is a sunset we watched at one of our receptions:

Today (after my visit to the spa!) I had lunch at the resort restaurant, here are some pictures of the view from my table:

Out:

and up:

and down:

Yum!!! Kobe beef! It was delicious.

After lunch, I took a walk on the beach. Beautiful.

Came across all these amazing houses down the beach from the resort (the pictures don't really do them justice though)...

Does someone ACTUALLY live there?!?!

YUP!!!! Wow. More beach walking...

And finally, I put my feet in the Pacific Ocean for the first time.

So now I will relax and enjoy my final evening in Laguna Beach. Get my last (hopefully) good night's rest before heading home to my beloved boys (all of them!). I am anxious to get home.

But first, one more glorious sunset....

Ahhhhhhhhh...........

Happy Birthday, Tyler!!!

So I know we celebrated last week, but today is Tyler's actual birthday. He's 2 today!!! So hard to believe he is 2 already. I remember where I was at this hour 2 years ago. I was at the hospital, spending time with him, while frantically trying to find a local social worker to do our pre-court evaluation for the adoption - something I didn't know about ahead of time and I was in a panic and very upset and waiting for Mitch to arrive and all I wanted to do was hold the baby and concentrate on him. It was all very frustrating! I remember basically falling apart while talking to a nurse because it had been such a looooong emotional day and I didn't want to deal with anymore legal mumbo-jumbo, I just wanted to be a mom. She was so sweet (as were all the nurses there). She made some phone calls for me and was really trying to help. Of course, it was late on a Friday, so it was hard to get anyone on the phone. Luckily, one of our attorneys (yes, there was more than one!) knew someone and set everything up for us. And as we now know, everything worked out just fine!!

So here we are two years later. We've watched this itty-bitty baby grow and thrive and just try to keep up! We imagine such wonderful things for his life, and try not to think about what might have been for him if he hadn't ended up with us. We're so grateful to have him, and so fulfilled in our love for him. He is such a special little guy. I wish for him every day only the extraordinary, but more than that, I quietly thank him for the extraordinary gifts he has brought to our every day. Happy Birthday, my angel baby. Mommy loves you.

Heading out

I have a cute video of Evan at lunch today, but it was too big and wouldn't upload. So here are some shots from this week of my boys looking sporty instead:

I leave this afternoon for my business trip to California. I'm going to miss my boys... ESPECIALLY now that Tyler is giving REAL kisses!! It's the cutest thing. I guess I'll have to stock up before I go!!

I'll try to find time to post from Laguna Beach so everyone can see how beautiful it is.

Now THIS is what we've been waiting for!!!

Who knew we'd have to wait until March to get a major snow storm??? They started talking it up on Saturday for the first time. Usually, they start talking up these storms a week in advance and then they never happen. So we figured since this seemed so last minute that it actually might happen!!

It started late afternoon yesterday, and by morning we had probably 5-6 inches. It was hard to tell because it was very windy so you couldn't tell which areas were true snowfall and which were just drifts. Anywho, it was a decent amount!! I was hedging my bets all day yesterday that we wouldn't have to go to work today. In the past, after shutting down for a storm that didn't produce much, the Federal Government declared that they would not shut down again for anything less than 5 inches of snow. My office follows the schedule of the feds. They were predicting 4-8 inches in the district, so I was certain we would be staying home. I even put the laundry off figuring I'd be able to do it today.

When I awoke at 4:30 a.m. and saw the amount of snow, I immediately logged onto the computer to get the operating status of the federal government. Delayed opening, with unscheduled leave. What?!?!? All this snow, every county in the surrounding states are closed, and the feds are staying open?? Unscheduled leave means you can take a vacation day without prior notice. Well, I don't have enough vacation time to play with, so I had to get myself ready to go in, albeit late. I was pretty upset, thinking about sitting in my office while Mitch and the boys got to play in the snow. :(

I showered and dressed and put make-up on. I cleared the ice and snow off the car.

At about 8:30 a.m., Mitch had the kids strapped into the car, ready to take me to the train. I was putting my coat on when my cell phone rang. It was my office manager saying they had decided to close the office in spite of the federal government!!!! Yay!!! So I finished bundling up and headed outside to play!! The boys had a great time, as evidenced here...

Don't worry, I eventually got Tyler to agree to put his mittens on!

For some reason, Evan doesn't mind his mittens...

Tyler's car doesn't have snow tires, but it performed pretty well!!!

As you can see, the boys aren't wearing snow suits. I had snow suits for them. And boots. But I returned them 10 days ago because I thought that all chances of snow were gone, and they wouldn't fit them next year! Luckily, I have a pair of hand-me-down boots from cousin Nathan. They're 3 sizes too big, but they worked in a pinch today! :)

Then Mitch got the sled ready - the sled we bought the last time they said we were going to get a lot of snow...What fun!!! And good exercise for me! I was running up and down the street in the snow pulling the sled for a fair amount of time. I felt like I was part of some sort of reality show competition!! Whew!!!

A neighbor of mine emailed me a picture she took of us out her window. Thanks Blanche!


It was still very windy, and quite chilly, as you may be able to see from the red cheeks!! So we headed inside to dry off and warm up!

Later in the day, Tyler enjoyed watching the plow through the window. He's fascinated with vehicles of all types, which I suppose makes him a typical boy!

It was a good day. The boys had fun outside, and I was so glad I didn't have to miss their first big play in the snow. They also napped well and played well, which is always a treat. That reminds me, I must include these precious pictures of Tyler greeting Evan after his morning nap:

Awwwwwwwww!!!

It was probably only about 5 minutes before he pushed him down and pulled his hair, but it was nice just the same!! :)