Life with Dylan

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  • Bon Appetit!

    Who knew Dylan would be such a natural in the kitchen! I know he loves food, but what a surprise when I took him kicking and screaming to Sur la Table that he was the one not wanting to leave the store. Mom look at this … oh, Mom we need one of these … Hey Mom, what’s this? The child was simply in awe of all the cooking and baking supplies surrounding us. And I was ecstatic that my son was just like me … at home in the kitchen!

    Our small purchase from Sur la Table …

    Dylan actually came home and read this cookbook like it was a chapter book. The funniest piece of newly acquired knowledge was when Dylan said, “Mom, did you know you can make fried chicken?” Yes dear, you can make almost anything. Not all food comes pre-made from the deli. His response, “Well, you can’t make cheese unless you have a cow. So can we just buy the cheese from the store?” 

    Reading to me the ingredients and what we should make first. Together we made a grocery list and viola … good home-cooking. 
    Homemade Chili 

    Buttermilk Biscuits ‘cuz Dylan doesn’t like cornbread

    Now for the next meal Dylan informed me that I was a nerd in the kitchen. What? Yes, my son called me a nerd because I have so many gadgets, bowls, dishes, ramekins, and other cooking things. The plus side is he told me this was a good thing.

    Before adding the sauce

    I must admit … Amazing dinner!
    So we’ve done home cookin’ and Chinese, so what’s next  … Italian of course! Dylan just loves his plain cheese pizza; however, I will take artichoke hearts, spinach, mozzarella, and a little balsamic/olive oil mixture over cheese any day.

    Pizza Margherita

    My favorite … White pizza

    As Dylan likes to say Mama Mia … mmmmmwah and Bon Appetit!

  • A New Year Brings New Pets

    As you may remember, Dylan lost his beloved friend Swim last February. Swim was a part of our family for almost 5 years and to this day Dylan still cries about him. After many talks, Dylan and I decided that Swim would not want him to be sad and that by getting a new fish did not mean he was replacing Swim. (Because we know nothing can ever replace that first beloved pet) Swim was such a happy fish, mainly because of the excellent care he received from Dylan, and even though he is in Heaven waiting to see Dylan one day it is time to move on.

    Now choosing the new fish was not an easy task. The new fish could not be the same color as Swim because that would be too sad for Dylan. Two pet stores and almost 2 hours later we finally had our new family members. We have made it past the critical first three weeks and are now ready to share these friends with you.
    Meet Fireball, Sea Baby, and Neptune.

    Fireball lives in Dylan’s room

    Sea Baby lives in the hallway

      

    Mommy’s Fish Neptune lives in the kitchen

  • Wii Love Christmas Morning!

    We wait all year long for this day to come and the night before is filled with so much excitement that it is hard to sleep. The anticipation of Santa’s arrival and whether or not he had been good enough all year long was all Dylan could think about. The only thing Dylan asked for this year was for Santa to bring him a Wii. He told me and Grandma that he didn’t want anything from us, just the Wii.

    7am and all smiles!
    Gummy Bears from Dylan’s Candy Shop in NY

    LEGO Hero Factory from Mom …
    And what could this be? It says To Dylan, From Santa
    As much excitement that Dylan had for this moment, my excitement and happiness was 10 times more. Being a parent and seeing your child’s face on Christmas morning as they open “the present” from Santa makes all the temper tantrums, fighting over homework, sleepless nights, and doubting your capabilities as a parent simply disappear. 
     Dylan is so happy that he actually had tears in his eyes

    I asked Dylan why he was hugging me and thanking me. He said, “because I am so happy and I can’t hug Santa” … if he only knew!

    Now I must share a little secret. About a week before Christmas Dylan came walking out of his room crying late at night. He was so upset that he couldn’t even talk. He was convinced that he had not been good enough all year long and that he “did not deserve” to get a Wii from Santa. Once he calmed down a little, he told me Remember when I didn’t listen to you, and when I had to go to the principal’s office, and when I didn’t clean my room … he went on and on. I tried to assure him that those were small things compared to all the good things he had done and that it was up to Santa to decide if he deserved a Wii. He decided to leave Santa a present with his cookies in hopes that he would earn some bonus points. I have never wanted to tell him the story of Santa so badly as I did that night.
    Now you understand why the tears came Christmas morning. ❤

    Yes, the clock on the DVR says 9:28 am  Presents are opened, Mom has her coffee, and Dylan is setting up the Wii

  • Dylan’s Annual Gingerbread House

    As you may remember, last Christmas Dylan made his first gingerbread house. This year, he wanted to make it all from scratch! (Guess he has been spending too much time in the kitchen with Mom, more on that in another post) So needless to say, we made gingerbread (not the kind from a box) and we rolled it out, cut rectangular shapes, and even a chimney. Although this was not going to be a 3-D gingerbread house, Dylan was set on making it as realistic as possible.

    Homemade royal icing, M & M’s, Skittles, Tootsie Rolls, Candy Canes, Gumdrops, Licorice, and Mom’s homemade chocolate Snowman and Santa made this gingerbread house complete. Oh, and it was delicious!

  • Our Christmas Card Photo Shoot

    This year we decided to go with a photo card and who better to take the pictures than our favorite Aunt Stephanie.
    Forget the perfectly posed portrait, we like candid, laughing, this is who we are pictures!
    No Dylan, don’t smile, don’t do funny faces, don’t make bunny ears behind Mommy’s head … yep, threw those rules out the window and had a blast just being us!

    And here is what we got …

     For some reason, I adore this picture. Maybe because the expression on his face that I love so much was finally captured on film.
     He may be 60+ pounds, but he will always be my baby!

    And here is the completed project …

  • Something Had To Give …

    There come a point in time when you have many so many things going on, deadlines to meet, papers to write, laundry to wash, and as hard as you try to keep all the balls in the air sometimes something has to give. Unfortunately, the ball that I just couldn’t keep in the air was our blog. So, finally someone told me that they have been checking our blog and it still shows Dylan’s birthday from July 2010.

    Once again, I will do a quick recap and try my best to keep up. I promise once school is done in May I will have more time. At least I hope so! In a nutshell, here is what we have been doing:
    DYLAN – excelling at school (2nd grade now), advanced to Wolf Cub Scout, started after-school tennis and science classes, loves reading and of course playing his video games!
    MICHELLE – still working for the Newport-Mesa Unified School District, still attending University of Phoenix (BS in Psychology), running a successful business (Shel Cosmetics), single handedly keeping Starbucks in business so I can stay awake on a mere 4 1/2 hours sleep, and of course raising the most wonderful child on God’s planet!

    OK, now for the pictures to get you all caught up …

    Dylan caught a fish!
    Just another summer day at Disneyland …
    First day of school, not a happy camper to get up at 6:30am after sleeping til 9 all summer

    The cutest Anakin Skywalker for Halloween
    Mommy and Dylan self-portrait after Aunt Stephie’s Engagement Party!
    2nd Grade School Picture

  • Dylan’s Birthday Surprise

    Wow, I can’t believe my little boy is already 7 years old. Where did the time go and why did it have to go by so fast? He has grown into such a remarkable and special boy … I am truly blessed to have Dylan. Although his birthday party is not until Saturday the 17th, we spent his actual birthday together having a mommy and son day. We started by going to see the Disney Ocean’s movie which was absolutely amazing … the cinematography alone blew my mind. The fact that Dylan wanted to see a documentary about saving the world’s ocean’s is just so surreal to me, but he has always been this way. I have raised a boy who cares for the planet, the animals, and the environment in general … would I have it any other way? Hahaha, those of you that know me well are laughing too.

    Later in the day we went to Ruby’s for his birthday dinner. I swear if he could eat at Ruby’s every day he would be the happiest kid ever. Especially since he has discovered milk shakes! I surprised him with a special Ruby’s sundae after dinner and the look on his face was priceless.

    Gotta eat the cherry first ….
    then some whipped cream …
    Yep, he finished the whole thing!!
    Happy Birthday Dylan … I love you more than anything in this world. Although you will only hold my hand for a little while, you will hold my heart forever. 

  • Shooby-Dooby …

    Nothing beats the afternoon blahs like a trip down to the island. Amazing how much fun you can have just going to lunch …
    A simple drive down to Balboa Island, a ride across the ferry, and a short walk down to the Newport Pier. All so we could Shooby-Dooby, Down to Ruby’s for some good food and laughs. Dylan was happy to use his certificate he won for being the Top Otter Log Reader in his class, and I was happy I didn’t have to pay for his cheeseburger!

  • School’s Out for Summer!

    I can’t believe another school year has come and gone so quickly! My little boy is now officially a 2nd grader and I am so proud of him. Dylan’s reading, penmanship, and math skills are above average and he seems to amaze me every day with his wit and knowledge.

    Dylan receiving his award for reading 4,950 pages during the school year.
    Top Otter Log Reading Award … 
    Proud beyond words!!

  • My Deepest Apologies …

    Considering it has been almost 3 months since my last post, I must admit I have no excuse except that I have been extremely busy with work, school, and life in general! I will try to get caught up here with some of the highlights and promise to do better over the summer.

    The Cub Scout year ending with an overnight camp out and I sent my little guy off with Grandpa …

    Then it was time to earn his official Tiger Cub Rank!
    As May came to an end the Southern California weather began to warm up and we both needed to escape the hectic day to day life that can becomes so crazy. Being true to our Beach Baby roots, we headed down to Little Corona for some impromptu fun in the sun after school!
    No idea why this picture came out purple, but I absolutely love it!!
    June came and Mommy turned 40 … WOW!!