princess

spring break | santa cruz

The next morning we took off for the Santa Cruz boardwalk. I blamed B for this adventure, but it was really all me. I loved the movie Lost Boys when I was a teenager and I really wanted to go to the Boardwalk. Stacy and Carl have family passes for the rides and Annabelle never misses an opportunity to go on a roller coaster. It lived up to my all my teen expectations! (I thought I had been there before, but no, I hadn’t and I loved every minute of it)
I love these two together! They don’t get to hang much even though they are only 6 months apart and in the same grade. Gwyneth realized she has passed Maeva in height this trip and they had a good laugh about that. Maeva typically goes off to hang with Annabelle because they are both Queen Bees and both Eliana and Gabriela keep Gwyneth busy and feeling quite loved. It’s nice to see them together though and I think with time they will all come together even more. 
We took two cars to the boardwalk and I road with Stacy and these little monkeys:
I LOVE the pictures I snapped of my sister on the roller coaster. Makes my heart extremely happy. 
One of the few rides they all went on together. 
We checked out the beach while Stacy took Annabelle and Maeva on another roller coaster. Roller coasters are not Gwyneth’s thing. 
This was my favorite ride on the Boardwalk. It appears Gwyneth is running away in terror, but she actually went with me and loved it.
We headed back to Capitola for more beach time. The water was so, so cold, but they didn’t seem to mind one bit. 
Isn’t that a fabulous town? So colorful. 
Three of the sweetest little cousins.
We finished the night with dinner at the Britannia Arms Pub. We had very full days at the beach and were sad to say goodbye the next morning. 

earrings

Last February Miss Annabelle got her ears pieced. Fast forward one year and Gwyneth decided it was her turn. I was pretty shocked because she has always said she would wait until she was 102 (G logic | “I will get them pierced when I am 102 because I will probably die when I am 103 and I want to enjoy them for a year.” Well, of course). 
She got up her nerve today (well, kind of…) and us Meyer gals headed to Claire’s. She wanted Annabelle there to hold her hand and reassure her. I honestly don’t think she could have done it without her big sister.
Before Pics: Lovely lobes still in tact. 
Here we go!
She started off a little nervous…and squeezed the heck out of Annabelle’s hand. 
Then she lost it. She said she really wanted it done but she was so afraid it was going to hurt. 
I wouldn’t let her continue unless she was absolutely certain this was what she wanted. She assured me she wanted her ears pierced but she planned to cry the entire time. I felt terrible for her and wasn’t sure if this was the right thing to do. G is such a sensitive soul and I didn’t want this to be negative experience for her. 
She asked the tech if they could do both at the same time and they happily agreed. They told her they wouldn’t go until she said “ready”. They counted down 3, 2, 1….
and then I heard the sweetest little Gwyneth voice squeek “READY!”. 
And it was done! She did it!
I asked if it hurt and she said “Heck yes. It felt like they were putting staples through my head!” 
I went to check out and heard the girls having a lovely moment. 
Here’s a few things I heard:
Gwyneth: “I was always a little bit jealous that you had your ears pierced but I thought I would be too scared.”
Annabelle: “I’m so glad you did it. I’m proud of you.”
Gwyneth: “I never really liked my ears before, but now I LOVE them.”
Those girls!
Gwyneth threw on her shades and was ready to show off those earrings to the world. 
Ears pierced!
We had planned to go a movie tonight, but the girls wanted to stay home and organize their earrings!

happy birthday, brayden

We joined the Conleys and friends for an afternoon of bowling for Brayden’s birthday. 

Annabelle played a good game, but that girls sure is competitive. She wanted a strike every time. 
It was a fun group of kids and they had a blast bowling with bumpers. 
Happy birthday to Brayden. How is this kid 9 already?!
Enjoying some yummy chocolate cake!

breck | snow sculptures

We decided very last minute to sneak away for a night. We were quite lucky because we were able to go to Breckenridge and stay at my dad’s house. We were only able to get away for about 24 hours, but it was wonderful! 
We had lunch at our favorite restaurant (Eric’s), checked out the snow sculptures and then did absolutely nothing but snuggle up in our pjs and watch movies and play games. I appreciate the fact we could do this exact thing at home… but we wouldn’t. We would be working or cleaning or running errands, and we wouldn’t have this fabulous view and quiet time together. 

Check out those icicles: 

first assembly and first aid

Annabelle’s choir group was asked to sing at the First Friday Assembly. The girls were a little nervous in front of the whole school, but they did great. 

 We are working on the exterior of our new location for Color Me Mine. I wanted to get some before and after pictures. Here’s before: (stay tuned for after)

 Tonight a few girls and moms from Annabelle’s troop helped Gwyneth’s troop learn about First Aid. They learned so much and had a lot of fun.

Learning about 911: 
 Making first aid kits: 
 Wrapping up their wounds: 

 The Juniors…and a photobombing Brownie

butterflies

B typically has to work late on Wednesdays and it is the only day the girls do not have an after-school activity. Us gals decided that after dance on Monday and Tuesday we would work hard to get all the homework and projects done so we can have some fun after school on Wednesdays. I asked if they wanted to plan the activities together and they decided they wanted to be surprised. After our fun, we intend to meet up with B for dinner. We could all use a little mid-week fun! 
Let the fun begin….I gave the girls a choice today between butterflies and books (they have a gift card to Barnes and Noble to spend and truly love exploring at the book store). They choice butterflies so off we went to the Butterfly Pavilion. I really do enjoy this gem that is so close to home. 
I love the butterfly exhibit but I’m pretty sure the girls enjoy holding Rosie, the tarantula, the best. 
We had a great time exploring together and it was wonderful to see the girls engaged and asking questions. A lovely kick off to our Wednesdays-o-fun. 
We met B at the Orchards for dinner and to check out the progress on my new space. The construction work has finally started on my new studio! I have to admit — I’m a bit of a mess over this. It is a lot of work…and this work is not something I’m familiar or comfortable with and I’m really outside of my comfort zone.  B did most of the work building out Blue Mountain Kitchen and has been supportive and helpful, but the decisions for this one fall to me. I am afraid of being wrong, making a bad call, making a mistake. I’m questioning myself and my decisions and I’m losing a lot of sleep. It’s a learning experience and it’s hard and a bit scary.
With that said, I can’t wait to get in to this new space. I love putting my own spin on it and truly making it my own. It’s going to be amazing and it will all be worth it in the end!
The took out some very ugly flooring and a wall for me. Now it’s time to pretty this place up. 
Our girls sure have been through a lot of interesting experiences with mine and B’s careers. 
Let’s do this!

sun | great wolf lodge

Our last day at Great Wolf Lodge was all about swimming. The girls were up again bright and early and ready to hit the pool. It was the busiest day of the weekend at the pool and luckily we got a cabana so we could all have a good meeting point and quiet place for lunch. 

The girls spent the majority of their day on the slides. They went over and over and over again. They absolutely loved it. They were all smiles and laughs!

Annabelle’s friends spent the day at the pool as well so we had very happy girls all around.

More wave pool fun…

I don’t have quite as many pics of Annabelle from the day because she was a water slide junky. She stopped long enough for pizza and then back on the slides she went.

Pizza break

It was a whirlwind weekend – I feel like we need a vacation from our vacation. I’m very proud of Annabelle for joining the choir and working so hard. I’m also grateful for the school they attend, the friends they have, and the other wonderful parents who worked so hard to make this weekend a success.

sat | gwl and choir concert

We had an early morning wake up call for Annabelle. She had to be in the lobby, ready for choir practice at 7:45 a.m. Not terribly early, but early after a late night of swimming. She was so excited for her performance that she popped right out of bed and eager to start her day. 

She was gone by 8 and we didn’t meet up with her again until 4:30 for her performance. 

Gwyneth and Ella were up just as early and ready to conquer their day. With all the other girls off at practice they had the run of the resort.

Before the pools opened we played a round of mini-golf

And then we were off to the pools. The girls were first in the water and stayed until lunch time. 

Beautiful view from our room

We grabbed snacks at the Golden Bee at the Broadmoor before the performance. We had some very hungry girls after a hard day of playing.

Finally time for Annabelle’s choir performance. It was a full house. So many families there to celebrate these little ones. They did a great job and sang their little hearts out. Annabelle loved every minute of it!

After the concert, Annabelle & B went right to the pool to met her friends and the little girls chose a pj and movie night. It was a very full day for everyone!

fri | great wolf lodge

Annabelle auditioned for the Colorado Elementary School Choir. Only seven children were selected from our area and Annabelle was one of them. She practiced for months with her school and then went to Colorado Springs to practice with all the members of the choir and give a special concert. 
The choir concert was at the Broadmoor on Saturday. We drove down Friday afternoon and she had to practice all day Saturday. We booked a room at Great Wolf Lodge along with many of Annabelle’s friends and made a weekend of it. Gwyneth was able to invite a friend to come along also so she had a buddy to swim with while Annabelle practiced. 
We’re very proud of this little lady! She did a great job and we had a lovely weekend celebrating her. 
Gwyneth and Ella. Such sweet friends. 

The girls swam for several hours Friday night, we ate dinner at the pool, and then enjoyed some ice cream back at the room. Lots of fun for these sweet girls.