Male Bonding and baseball

Last weekend Ryan, Riley, Jim and Lucas all went down to LA for a little male bonding time. Oh, and they also went to a Dodgers vs Giants game at Dodger Stadium. This was Riley's first time seeing a professional baseball game and he went decked out in Dodger blue!.

The guys got to LA early on Saturday, checked into their hotel and spent a few fun hours playing in the pool. Then it was time to head out to the game. At the game, the boys each had a Dodger Dog. Riley was very proud that he finished the whole thing! Everyone really enjoyed the game, even though the Dodgers lost. Riley said the highlight of the game for him was when one of the Dodger's players hit a home run.

The weekend ended with more time at the pool before heading home on Sunday. I think they all had a great time and it was a good opportunity for some daddy/ son quality time and a little male bonding!

Meanwhile, back at home. Jenn and I took Bella and Christopher to dinner at a local pizza restaurant that has video games and then Jenn took them to see a movie. After all, they deserved to have a special night too!

Bieber Fever!!

Yep, it's true. Bieber fever has hit the Swarthout house!

Both Riley and Bella are big fans of the teen sensation so we had to get them tickets to go see him in concert at the Mid State Fair. It was the first concert that either of them had been to. I was excited to see what their reaction would be, especially since I knew the audience would mostly be made up of screaming teenage girls. We invited the Climers; Jenn, Lucas and Christopher to go along with us and got seats in the grandstand area.

All 4 of the kid were pretty wide-eyed when we walked into the arena and they saw all the people. There were girls everywhere with Justin Bieber shirts and other accessories. It was pretty cute. After getting some icecream, we took our seats. I was so happy that our seats were in the grandstand and not on the floor. I knew it would be impossible for the kids to see over the people in front of them if we sat on the floor.

Two bands sang a few songs each to warm up the crowd and then Sean Kingston came out. The kids know a few of his songs. They got excited when he played songs they knew. Bella was actually standing on her seat, waving her arms, jumping up and down and singing. It was so cute. The people around her were laughing at how such a little thing could get so into the music.

After Sean Kingston, there was a break before the big JB came on. They actually had a countdown on the screen. When the time got close, the crowd started going wild!! I mean, WILD! I have never heard something as loud as that audience when he came on stage!! Bella joined in with the crowd chanting, "Justin, Justin, Justin". Riley, Lucas and Christopher just looked like they were in a daze, not really sure what to think of it all.

Unfortunately, JB's first few songs were songs that we didn't recognize. I think the kids lost a bit of their enthusiasm at that point. Riley started to really become affected by the screaming so we put earplugs in him. Bella was still dancing to songs she knew but I could tell she was fading fast. Needless to say, both of my kids fell asleep toward the end of the concert, though how they could sleep with all the screaming I will never know. We left before the concert was over.

All in all, I think the kids, especially Bella, had a really good time. Here are some pics and videos so you can see for yourself. I took these with my cell phone so please forgive the poor quality!

Happy Birthday Bella!!

My darling, sweet girl had her 5th birthday last week. I honestly can't believe Bella is 5 and on her way to kindergarten in the fall. Where does the time go? Bella is such a girlie girl. She loves clothes, and is very picky with what she wears. She loves to get mani pedis. She loves her stuffed animals, barbies, polly pockets and littlest pet shop. She loves to sing, dance and wants to be in movies. We call her the next Hannah Montana!

Here are some pictures of her actual birthday and her flower themed birthday party. Enjoy!

Another fun weekend with lots of family and friends

We had company galore this past weekend! Ryan's two brothers, Jeff and Todd, along with Jeff's daughter Dakota, Ryan's dad, Pat, and step mom, Leah, and Carrie's husband Billy, all showed up last Friday for a visit. Billy wins the award for who travelled the farthest, having come from New Zealand!

We had a pool party on Saturday topped off by a delicious BBQ with everything from sausages, to hot dogs to BBQ chicken and steak. There was something for everyone!

Sunday we all went to Lake San Antonio with the Climers for a little fun on the water. The weather was perfect for a day at the lake; HOT! We all had fun riding the jet skiis (even though Bella and I got stranded in the middle of the lake and had to be towed back to camp) and for Billy, this was his first time on a jet ski! We finished out the day with dinner at Big Bubba's Bad BBQ, a tradition for after lake days.

We were all exhausted after this fun- filled weekend with family (try saying that 3 times fast). But, we don't get to see them often enough so we enjoy every minute we can with them!

Here is a slide show of our two fun days!