On a whim, I signed up for American Idol tickets online months ago. I didn't expect that I would ever actually get tickets, especially as the season was coming to a close. Late one night I checked my email before going to bed and discovered that our names had come up on the waitlist and we had tickets for the finale! I didn't think we actually could pull it off, especially since it was just a few days away, but we decided that this might be an opportunity of a lifetime and decided to give it a shot. Mike's mom graciously agreed to take time off work and come from Utah to stay with Brayden and Emma. Mike and I haven't had getaway just the two of us since Brayden was born five years ago. I called my sister, Ashlee - the biggest American Idol fan I know, or, more specifically, the biggest David Achuleta fan I know - and asked her if she and her husband would like to have the other two tickets. We were thrilled that they were able to join us and she was thrilled for the chance to see her "idol" in person. We decided to make the drive to save the cost of buying a last minute ticket. We arrived in SoCal in record time, especially without any kid-related pit stops. Mike, the Priceline Guru, found us killer deal right downtown L.A. at the Westin Bonaventure, a company that I used to work for. We drove around Beverly Hills and walked Rodeo Drive; strolled the beach in Malibu; saw the hand-prints at Mann's Chinese Theatre; walked the Hollywood Walk of Fame; and ate dinner on the Santa Monica pier.
The day of the performance, we stood in the ticket line at about 4 hours outside, and then about two more hours in the lobby of Nokia Theatre. While we were waiting in line, several news crews were interviewing people in line. I did not want to talk to any of them and was literally hiding behind Mike when one guy stuck a microphone in my face and asked, "So, OLDER people like Simon too, right???" I was STUNNED! Seriously, did that guy just call me OLD? I did not know how to respond! I think I said something like, "Uh, sure..." Gratefully, I think it was just a small-time Internet production.
After standing in line for so long, we were SO excited to be let into the theatre, which was quite impressive in person. Because we arrived so early, we were one of the lucky few to be allowed into the rehearsal performance. This was my favorite part of our whole trip. We were sitting directly behind the judges seats, about six rows back (in all the seats that the celebs sat in during the live performance). The rehearsal was almost exactly like the actual performance except they had a producer on the stage directing things as they should go, and they repeated a few sequences. The funniest thing about it was that they has look-alike judges standing in for Randy, Paula, and Simon. Paula's look-alike even wore a wig and gave the EXACT SAME LINES that Paula gave in the actual performance! The footage from the rehearsal performances is actually what they use for the recap at the end of the show. (If you noticed during David A.'s performance of "Imagine", there were stars in the background during the recap, but not during the actual performance. And Mike says you can hear me do a "WOO!" during the recap one of David C.'s songs. REALLY!) Nigel Lythgoe, the A.I. producer, actually sat one row behind us. It was so amazing to see the Davids perform in person! I swear I had eye contact with David C. a few times! I felt like he was singing directly to me! Well, maybe it had little to do with the fact that the teleprompter with all the lyrics to his songs was directly over my head, but who knows!
After the AMAZING rehearsal, we went to find something to eat before the live performance. We were starving. We had not had a thing to eat since 7:30 that morning, and it was after 4:00 p.m. by the time we got out of the rehearsal. We were told that there would be concessions available, but they had run out of food! We were not allowed to leave and they confiscated all the food we had at the door. So we subsisted on Sprite until that evening at about 9:00. Mike said we should have said a prayer beforehand and called it a fast.
The live performance was so exciting! We cheered ourselves hoarse for our respective Davids (for the sake of sibling rivalry, I claimed to be cheering for David C., even though I love 'em both). Our seats were still on the orchestra level, but at the back. After the show, we hung out for a little while and were able to get into a gated area near where the other Idol contenders were doing interviews. We were able to get quite close to them and got photos and video of all ten. We also took photos of ourselves on the "red carpet".
After a fabulous dinner at the Cheesecake Factory and a good night's rest, we said goodbye to my sister. The next day on our way out-of-town, Mike and I saw a sign for an "NBC Studio Tour" and decided to see what it was about. It wasn't terribly exciting, but we saw the sets for All My Children, Access Hollywood and the Tonight Show. But while our tour guide was talking to us, someone came up to him and asked if he could use us for a skit for the Tonight Show!!! The had us be in a fake crowd in a skit about exploding baseball bats in MLB. (They had a piece of a bat through the heart of a dead vampire sitting in the middle of us.) You could only see me for half a second, though, and only from the chin down. But it was sure an interesting experience! On our way out of the building, we walked right past "Ross the Intern".
It was such a fun trip, but I was so glad to get home to my sweet kids. I am so grateful for Pam (Mike's mom) for coming and watching Brayden and Emma and for my mom for watching my sister's kids, so that she could come. Without them, this trip would not have been possible.
Our new neighbors and friends, Rebecca and Taylor Konkin, invited us to go water-skiing them last Saturday. We had a totally great time attempting to ski, and the kids loved riding around in the boat. This photo proves that I actually got up on skis! I was excited. I stayed up for a bit until I (accidentally) went over the wake and had a rather painful landing. Mike showed off his slaloming skills. Thanks Konkins!
Brayden started Kindergarten this week! I cannot believe that my baby boy is truly old enough to be going to school. He has been quite excited to go to the "big" school with all the big kids. I am glad he was enrolled in preschool last year because I think really prepared him in many ways. I did okay leaving Brayden in class, (he was so brave and didn't complain once) but as soon as I walked out the door I got a little emotional. It was a moment, and I got over it, but it's kinda hard to see your kids grown up! Brayden felt a lot more comfortable when he learned that his good little buddy, Luke, is in his class. They even sit at the same table! Today when I got to the school to pick him up, Brayden and Luke were goofing around together and giggling themselves silly. Brayden said to me, "Mom, Luke is my best-est friend EVER!" I think he will have a great year.
This year we decided to try to grow a garden. I've always wanted to grow tomatoes. I love homegrown tomatoes. I've never successfully grown anything before, so I didn't think it would actually work, but it did! Brayden and Emma really got into it. Everyday they would run out back to check on the plants. They were so excited to see things grow, and to see the tomatoes appear and then change from green to red. Brayden would ask, "Are they done yet?" and "Are they tomatoes yet?" We also planted a few green bean and carrot seeds. I was really surprised when those actually grew! It was a really great experience for our family. I plan on doing it again next year, and even trying our hand at growing a few other things. 
We recently went to Disneyland with my parents, my siblings and their families. It was so wonderful to be able to spend time with my family and to see Brayden and Emma spend time with their cousins and grandparents. We had such a wonderful time! My sister spent many hours formulating a plan for us using a software program called "Ridemax" (which I highly recommend to anyone who will be visiting Disneyland.) Even though we went during the middle of summer, were able to minimize our wait-time and maximize our fun-time! Thanks also to Mike and Brian who ran around the park and got FastPass tickets for everyone. Brayden's favorite part was, by far, the Star Tours ride, as well as the Jedi Training Academy show. We tried to get him to go on some of the bigger rides like Space Mountain, but as it was kind of like trying to get a cat in a bathtub. Mike got waved off of Space Mountain, as he was physically trying to force hysterical Brayden to sit in the ride. Emma's favorite part was all the characters, especially Minnie Mouse. She LOVED Minnie! We went to a character dinner at Goofy's Diner and loved and kissed Snow White, Goofy, Minnie, Chip, Pluto, and Fairy Godmother. The highlights of the trip for me were seeing the kids faces at the character dinner and at the parades, and a really great Broadway-quality performance of Aladin, and couple really great rides at California Adventure, Soaring over California and California Screaming. After my brothers and parents had to leave, we went with Ashlee and Brian to Newport Beach for a day. We went to the beach and visited the beautiful Newport Beach Temple, which was paid for by the members in the area.
Since Christmas, Brayden and Emma have been asking how many days until their birthdays (Brayden actually got really good at counting backwards). Their birthdays are only a day apart and so we decided to throw them a "Star Wars and Starlets" birthday celebration! We had a water party with balloon lightsabers and a Darth Vader helmet for boys, and feather boas and star-shaped sunglasses for the girls. My friend Alison helped me make an invitation, and my friend Kerri made a two awesome signs as well as let me borrow her super fun waterslide. We had pizza and cake and ice cream. Except for the chaos that ensued during the gift opening, I think it was hit. It wouldn't have been the same without the kindness and generosity of my talented friends!
We have been so fortunate to have Brayden at two wonderful preschools this year. One was a neighborhood preschool with our friend, Alicia Dimmitt, and the other was at a local charter school. Brayden learned so much and enjoyed seeing his friends each day. I cannot believe that Brayden will be starting Kindergarten in a matter of months!
On a whim, I signed up for American Idol tickets online months ago. I didn't expect that I would ever actually get tickets, especially as the season was coming to a close. Late one night I checked my email before going to bed and discovered that our names had come up on the waitlist and we had tickets for the finale! I didn't think we actually could pull it off, especially since it was just a few days away, but we decided that this might be an opportunity of a lifetime and decided to give it a shot. Mike's mom graciously agreed to take time off work and come from Utah to stay with Brayden and Emma. Mike and I haven't had getaway just the two of us since Brayden was born five years ago. I called my sister, Ashlee - the biggest American Idol fan I know, or, more specifically, the biggest David Achuleta fan I know - and asked her if she and her husband would like to have the other two tickets. We were thrilled that they were able to join us and she was thrilled for the chance to see her "idol" in person. We decided to make the drive to save the cost of buying a last minute ticket. We arrived in SoCal in record time, especially without any kid-related pit stops. Mike, the Priceline Guru, found us killer deal right downtown L.A. at the Westin Bonaventure, a company that I used to work for. We drove around Beverly Hills and walked Rodeo Drive; strolled the beach in Malibu; saw the hand-prints at Mann's Chinese Theatre; walked the Hollywood Walk of Fame; and ate dinner on the Santa Monica pier. 
My parents came all the way from Utah to visit our little family. We were so thrilled that they would take the time out of their busy lives just to see us. Brayden and Emma were over the moon to have Grandma and Grandpa staying at their home. Brayden had been counting down the days for about two weeks. We spent a lot of time lounging around the house in our pajamas and enjoying the nice weather in our backyard. We even introduced Grandpa to the Wii. On Thursday, we wandered through the Farmers Market and ate at downtown restaurant. Friday we drove to Old Sacramento and walked through the shops before we had to drop them off at the airport. Their visit came to an end much too soon. I was so thrilled that my parents and my kids could get to know each other a little bit better. In fact, Emma refused her own mamma and insisted on only Grandma when she got hurt. Emma has already asked when they will be coming to our home again. 
We recently traded in our 1996 Honda Accord for a 2008 Honda Pilot! We decided that the sedan just wasn't cutting it anymore for this growing family. The Accord was very good to us. We owned it for nearly a decade, drove it for over 100,000 miles, and registered it in six different states! We just happened to sell it to our neighbor (who found us through Craig's List), so we still see it driving around our neighborhood.
The kids think that the Pilot makes a mighty fine playhouse. They love climbing into the back seat and stashing toys in the cupholders and cubbies.
Brayden came home from preschool on April Fool's Day and said, "Mom! Mom! We need to trick someone!" So we decided to make cookies with a little extra something in them (lots of salt and cream of tartar). They looked and smelled great. When Dad got home from work, he did not hesitate to take a big bite out of a cookie left strategically on the counter. Mike said the worst thing about them was it took a few chews to register the bad taste, and then they were really bad! I wish you could have seen his face! We also brought some over to our friends, the Larsens. The kids all accepted a cookie unsuspectingly. I felt kinda bad when they were spitting them out! Of course, we made some good cookies as well! Although everyone was kinda suspicious. I can't imagine why!
