McClain's 1st Birthday

Well, it's hard to believe, but my baby is already one year old! He's just turning into a little man before our eyes! For his birthday, Tim's family from Texas and Arkansas all came to visit. Tim took off half of the day on Friday and we went to Toys R Us and allowed McClain to pick out a toy- he picked out a huge dumptruck- such a boy! Then we went to Centennial Park and let McClain play with the ducks. "Duck" and "Car" seem to be his favorite words right now, by the way. Then we met up with Tim's family as they arrived in town and went to dinner.

Saturday we all went to the Zoo. Then we went to a park near my parents' house for McClain's party. He got so many great gifts, and of course, he really enjoyed his cake! All in all, it was an amazing weekend, and a great first birthday for McClain. We love you, McClain, and can't wait to spend many more wonderful days like this with you. You make even the best day all the more enjoyable. Happy Birthday!!!

California 2007

I can't begin to describe how amazing our trip to California was, and there is no way I even have enough room on this blog to post all the great pictures we got. But I'll do my best to give a summary of this incredible vacation.

We arrived in Los Angeles Thursday afternoon and met Tim's parents there at the airport. We then ate lunch (outside, and I was even in long sleeves- much different than the wonderful 100 degree days we've been having here) and drove through some of the notable areas of Beverly Hills and Bel-Air, including Rodeo Drive. After this, we checked into our hotel- the Safari Inn, which has been the location for several movies, such as Apollo 13. We then drove into Santa Monica, ate dinner there, and took McClain down the beach for his first ocean experience. He loved it!

Friday we got up drove into Malibu. We took a quick drive through Pepperdine University's campus- some of the best views around can be seen from here- and then spent much of the day at the beach. Friday night we went to Anaheim and watched the Texas Rangers play the Angels. Yes, this game did determine which weekend we planned this trip for. It's not coincidence that the Rangers were in town- by the way... we won that series 2-1.

Saturday morning we checked out of our hotel and took a quick drive past NBC studios. Some of the Days of Our Lives sets are outside, so I had to browse through. Then we went into Hollywood and saw the Walk of Fame and the handprints outside of the Chinese Theater. For those of you who watch LA Ink, we also drove past Kat Von D's new shop and Tim and I went in for a look. No tatoos and no Kat, but still very cool for us since we watch that show religiously. Then we drove into Bakersfield and checked into a new hotel there. Tim's great great-grandparents live here, and we wanted to celebrate their 72nd wedding anniversary with them.

Sunday we went to church with Tim's family in Bakersfield and came back to their house for most of the day. That night we ate Chinese food- warning...Chinese food in CA is the real thing as Tim's parents call it- if so, Tim and I like the fake kind.

Monday we checked out of our hotel and drove back into LA for our flight back home. This will defintely classify as one of the best weekends ever, and we can't wait to get back to visit CA again one day soon.