Beckett and Lily share their first, and very splashy, bath.
I don't think Beckett will have the same trepidation towards the pool this year.
Baby Charlie's blessing last Sunday.
Don't worry, the Brennan Brothers aren't sourpusses, they just have BRACESSSTHSS.
Big baby.
Kneeling on the ground taking pictures of Beckett getting into the pantry. I pretty much can't, not, photograph him doing something. Trying to figure out "shadow issues,"I snap a picture of myself against the same background and don't realize until AFTER going through the pictures, that I put my chin in the formula powder. The ominous can to the left really should have clued me in.
Elliott and I have been watching the Harry Potter's. We are in the middle of the fourth movie. I can't remember what happens after that one, so it's been nice to have an exciting show to look forward to! We've also been sleeping a lot. We've been getting a solid 7-8 hours a night but can't seem to shake the slight sleepy feeling. We are pretty busy, I suppose, but I like to think of it as devotion to the slumber. A little too addicting I think.
My impending workload for the upcoming weeks of school.
My completed Spring Break List (note the Beatle's magnet below)!
This pair of new UGG's I am bidding on over at ebay. I had hoped to wait for the Nordie's Anniversary sale, but I soon realized they are a one-season make. Boo. Anyway, I borrowed my mother-in-law's pair for an afternoon in Utah and fell in love. Clearly, she is one, fashionable mother-in-law too.
I am so excited for the currently ongoing "21 Days of Beauty" at Ulta. On Friday, they are selling Too Faced Lash Injection at $5 off. That's when I'll make my move.
This Song.
Ignore Drake. And the partying.
The thoughts of going "back2school" easily become nullified when repeated every 8 weeks. Different classes bring new faces and the uniqueness and fun of those personalities. Classes within my "cohort" bring familiar faces that make me grateful to get to see them for more than just a brief stint.
Before Spring Break started, Elliott and I made a list of everything we wanted to do and I'd say that we made a pretty good pair to get it all done. The list is finished along with the break and, subsequently, the school must start, exercise reconvene, dreams of Disneyland be tucked away for another time, and Elliott&Alisa slumber parties must be bumped to weekends only (we just can't be up at midnight all the time watching mockumentaries of Ke$ha on our phones). I always feel somewhat of a sense of loss when breaks and vacations end, but am usually eager for "real life" to start so I can power through (making an effort to still enjoy each moment) and eventually make it to the next break, knowing I will appreciate it much more if I complete my tasks. I enjoy and thrive on a busy life, though it's probably nowhere near as busy or hectic as most other's. I thrive even more on planning out the future and am very much so motivated when I have a visualized objective (short or long term) I'm working toward. It's not always a great "hobby" as I usually fall in suit with the phrase, "Don't put the cart before the horse." Regardless, I am an individual predisposed to impatience, and programmed with a personality to move, work, and progress.
I think we're celebrating by going to Pei Wei. According to some: Sprinkle's is just "too far." Plus I already went my "one time" this month. What are these impositions on Sprinkle's? Really, there shouldn't be any.
Elliott and I had never been to the zoo together, much less taken Beckett (though, if we're honest, the kid really didn't care). As part of our Spring Break extravaganza, we went. Simple as that. The zoo is a pretty fun place to get a good leisurely walking workout on. Though sadly, but expectedly, many of the animals were either curled up or hidden away sleeping. As we left the zoo suffering heat stroke and dehydration, we were grateful for our brief moments of cool weather that morning and especially grateful for our ease in finding a parking space. Seriously, it was an animalistic sight in itself seeing cars circle around with nowhere to park, waiting to lunge any minute on an open spot. That peace being said, it was great and we saw most everything we wanted.
I so desperately wanted Beckett to be able to touch a sting ray that I may have accidentally, though unknowingly, dunked his WHOLE face into the pool for a quick second as I reached his hand forward. At least he touched it (don't worry, it wasn't with his face)! Plus, he was clearly DONE with the heat from the previous picture that I actually did him a favor.
Now, the initial drive to make it to the zoo started a good 9 months ago when the Koala exhibit came to town. Lucky for us, we made it just in time before they left to... another zoo? The Australian Outback? Meh, probably another zoo for future gawkers like myself.
We REALLY WANTED TO SEE THIS:
BUT INSTEAD SAW THIS:
We bonded, him/her and I. He/She looked at me; followed my every move despite the surrounding crowd. Maybe he/she knew I had been thinking about him/her for the past nine months. Maybe he/she knew we made a 3D model of his/her relative. Maybe he/she just knew I had that special love for the koala.
Brianne and Trevor invited us to Disneyland with them and the whole SmileLines staff this past week because that's the kind of dentist he is: awesome in every way.
We left Beckett (again)and had a marvelous time (again).
Our nieces and nephews were easily the most fun part of the trip--especially since they were old enough to actually ride things and walk. We stayed at Disney's Grand Californian just so that we could still enjoy the magic while we slept--though seriously, I was up at 4:30am jittery and excited because I WANTED MY DISNEY RIDES AND FOOD NOMNOM.
We got to spend so much time with Brennan and felt pretty cool he wanted to hang out with us. That boy is a riot and the sweetest around.
Max and Claire--stinkin' cute. PS, that Toy Story ride is incredibly fun and tension building. I JUST WANTED TO BEAT ELLIOTT!
Elliott and I clearly need some help with our background face awareness:
My face is just screaming a whole lotta MEH. Meanwhile, Brianne, you should be in some sort of dental ad. Convenient!
And boom goes the dynamite--speaking of, we learned that Claire knows all the words (and dance moves) to the "Dynamite" song (Taio Cruz). We also learned that Bella knows how to accessorize better than I can ever hope to.
Elliott calls out to his brother from the bridge on Small World. Kinda like Romeo and Juliet.
Party in the front.
Party in the back.
Party in the front.
Party in the back.
Thank you Trevor and Brianne, it was Unnnforgettable.
Beckett is learning about taking it slow with solids.
Yesterday morning--as in, 2:00 in the morning--we returned from our trip to Disneyland *sans* Beckett. It was the right decision. We had such a hysterical and fun time with everyone--more pictures to come soon.
Speaking of, yesterday I ventured onto Picasa to load a few pictures only to find that several folders--containing a combined 600-700 pictures were missing. I thought that Picasa possibly deleted them because I was running low on space (though I didn't think that was possible). I may have thrown a tantrum and cried a little. Elliott had actually neglected to tell me that he moved the pictures to a completely different un-Picasa-related folder, so my mini-heart attack subsided, but I stand by my tears and fit about the photos. Really, I have thousands of pictures, none of which are professional looking, but, they are mine and they are priceless. I have the same feelings of loss when I go on a vacation that isn't "Digital SLR camera appropriate" (i.e. Disneyland!) So many awesome opportunities when I find my hands immediately going L7 to create a pseudo Kodak moment. I decided from this last trip that I need to be on the look out for a great point-and-shoot to tuck away in my purse for times when the bulky camera just isn't practical.
Back to the actual point, we left California a night before everyone else so that I could attend the last day of my first graduate class (bright and early at 9:00am--caffeine please). My classmates are amazing, and it's unbelievably helpful and fun to be in a program with people who share similar personalities and goals. I'll be even busier with school as I will be taking two classes at a time for the next three months. In the meantime, I will still remind myself to sit back and smell the flowers (convenient, since Elliott bought me some yesterday) and enjoy my cookies a very good friend from school got for me to bring to our class potluck, knowing I would be home too late to make anything! They're Trader Joe's no less--how did she know, I wonder?! And yes, our teacher is a firm believer that potlucks should be held at the end of every course.
By the way, the cookies are best when eaten like Cookie Crisp.
Beckett, we are still debating whether or not to take you to Disneyland next week. You can't walk yet, but you sure are perfecting that stand. You have like 15 teeth coming in all at once so you have been a bit under the weather, but so sweet and so happy still. You are large and slightly awkward, but perfect as is. Sadly, I didn't even realize that the cupcake I got had PEANUT BUTTER in it (a major no-no for babies)... So you can't have it.
Not that I really bought it for you since it would have taken you 6 hours to slowly mash it down, but still, it would have been nice of me to share.
