hello monday|eleven

hello  Monday Mugshots.  Marco and I have been wanting to try a local coffee shop that we pass on a daily basis, but just never had the time or kept forgetting about until the opportunity had passed. We live right near downtown Riverside (by the Mission Inn, in fact) and I've been wanting to get to know more of the local eateries and shops.  So today, we stopped in after dropping the kids off at school.  I love it when Marco has Mondays free.

I wish I would've asked for the latte in a nice big mug, but I didn't think about it until later.  We enjoyed our coffees as well as a breakfast croissant.

hello regular menu planning.  Yes. You read that right. I am back to writing out a weekly menu in hopes that it will help with our budget and grocery shopping as well as bringing back some structure to meal time and MINIMIZE some of the stress of knowing what I am going to cook each day.  I've been putting lots of my pinned recipes to use too!

Marco and I try to have a date of some sort once a week and we go out as a family once a week (usually Sundays after church).  The rest is home cooking.  Our schedules - like most of yours - are crazy busy and all over the place.  The menu planning has helped so much already.  I don't know why I ever let myself fall out of the routine of it!

hello fresh strawberries and summer fruit. One of my favorite things about the warmer weather is that it makes us crave lighter, fresher meals.  More fruit, more salads and more grilling sounds great to me!

hello elementary school open house. I'm looking forward to this years open house at the two little ones' school.  Although I am there helping during the week, I always love it when our kids proudly walk us around the room to show off their hard work.

hello new bible study. We start the second part of our Luke study today and it will last for 8 weeks.  I have been leading a small group on facebook for sometime and have enjoyed the challenge and accountability it has offered.  Learning new things every day...

hello good friday and resurrection sunday!  I have much to be thankful for and am so glad for this holy week. Lord help me to focus on Your grace and mercy... Your unconditional love and sacrifice...

Marco and I enjoying a coffee at Back to the Grind. They have a  "leave one , take one" book program. Isn't that great?

So there you go. hello monday and new beginnings.

Inspired by my friend, Lee at Embrace Life, Hello Monday provides a peek into the coming week - in all its glory. Join us and Lisa for the Hello Monday fun.

“A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral.”

― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

My good friend Margie gifted us with some tickets to see Peter Pan at the Riverside Fox Theater.  We were so excited to go, especially since the two youngest, Marco and Naomi, had no idea!  

They love watching Peter Pan on DVD, so imagine their surprise to be able to see it LIVE? 

We practically live around the corner from downtown Riverside and the Mission Inn area.

We were at the cross walk and they still didn't notice the marquee. haha!

 It wasn't until we were taking this picture of them that they started to get an idea as to what was going on.  Seriously made me laugh!

 The list of cast members that night.

 In this picture, they are completely aware of what they are doing there and who they were going to see. 

 Thanks to Margie (Cathy Rigby's sister-in-law) and Michelle (her niece), we also got to meet Cathy!! The two youngest actually went back stage to meet her and then she told Michelle to bring all of us for a photo or two.

 She was so sweet (and petite!!) and took lots of time with my kids.  She was giving them Fairy Dust out of her pouch and filling up their pockets with it!  Look at Naomi in the picture above.  Can you tell she was excited? =) 

 We had a wonderful evening.  The show was magical and my two youngest got their first "broadway" experience.  

Peter Pan to the audience: Do you believe in fairies?

Marco and Naomi *at the top of their lungs*: YES!! We do! We do!

One Little Word|Captured|Week 12

I was able to have Saturday to myself and decided to go swimsuit shopping. Ummmm. Yeah... not fun. Please tell me why anything that looks half way decent has to cost $100 or more? Wow. Anyway, after the torture session was over, I headed downtown to walk around and enjoy the beautiful day. My word for 2011 is JOURNEY and one thing I want to make sure is that I am PRESENT. That I am actively participating in my JOURNEY and not just the destination. I really allowed my self to slow down and enjoy the walk, the sights, the sounds - all of it. It was a beautiful day at the Mission Inn and it's surroundings.

You can join Jill and many others over at her blog and share your One Little Word Captured each week. Just click on the button below.

One Little Word|Captured|Week 6

One of the reasons I chose the word JOURNEY for my OLW for 2011 is that I wanted to be reminded to take notice of the little things...the details along the journey. I'm not talking about the technical details of a day or special event - that's the thing I'm trying to get away from! I obsess over making sure that everything is okay and that everyone is in their place and that everything is .... perfect. Well, of course you can hardly ever have things completely "perfect", but I'd let the whole day go by and totally miss the "magic" of the moment because I was so worried about everything else. Seriously. My wedding, graduations, my children's birthday parties, special events at school or church that I was in charge of...

Anyway, when my husband and I went downtown, I decided I wanted to enjoy it and take it all in. I took all kinds of pictures of the great architecture, a building that was two different colors because they had started painting it and many other fun things that I normally would've rushed by - then I saw these trees. They lined the walk near the spot where we parked. I didn't notice them at all when we first got out of the car. Had they bloomed after I arrived? That would've been crazy. Nope, they were there. Marco said he noticed them when he pulled up. Oh, that's right...I was checking my camera and checking the time on my phone...

They were so beautiful. I thought about the terrible weather a lot of my friends were dealing with and how they'd probably love to see a beautiful tree like this. I really took them in and took time to think about my friends and family out east. I'm going to be a different person at the end of this JOURNEY and I can't wait to see who that's going to be.

Join in the fun. Click on the button and read how you can share your OLW Captured!

3in30|February|Week One {Goals}

One week into February and I wish I could ask for a do-over already! haha. It hasn't been too bad, but I can't believe it's already been a week. Breaking up our yearly goals by one month at a time is a great idea, but it also makes you realize how fast time can pass. Well, there's no avoiding it... let's see what I've got! Here are the goals I set for February.

1. Get to know my hometown ~ This may not sound very important, but I live in a pretty cool city here in Southern California. It's filled with rich history, cultural diversity and beautiful sights! My one little word for 2011 is JOURNEY and this goal will work as part of me wanting to see and do more on my JOURNEY.
***Well, I was assigned jury duty this last week and I did learn a little about our very old court house. It is just beautiful and I plan to go back on one of these Saturdays to check it out again. I've also looked up some of the events that are going on downtown and at the museums...so there's progress there!***
2. Read more...for ME. ~ I love to read. LOVE it. I have not had much time to read for pleasure lately. I am going to make time. Just like my art is important to me and my journaling, so is reading. I read plenty - online, magazines, self-help, spiritual guidance, how-to's...but I just want to get back into my super thick historical fiction books. I have a goal to read Jane Austen everything this year, so I might just start with that. Make time. Every day. I must.
***Okay, I've done a bit of this. I forgot about a book called Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas by James Patterson. I decided to finish that probably by tomorrow or Sunday and then I will have to see what's on my list next - probably my Jane books. Progress here too!...***
3. Lose 10 lbs. ~ Okay. This is what makes me get busy. I just didn't want to put it out there last month 'cause it's almost like I knew I wouldn't be ready for it. But enough is enough. Just start with 10 right? I can do that. More water, cut out the sugar/starch/carbs, get my butt moving... I can do this.
***I've been doing great on the water - not so much on the sugar/starch/carbs business. I haven't gained, but I haven't lost. Still - this one is a fail. Let's see if I can do better this week. =/ ***
It's not too late for you to join in the 3in30 fun. Just click on the button in my sidebar and join in - you'll be glad you did!

Riverside County Court House ...Erected 1903...taken with my phone. =)

One Little Word|Captured|Week 5

This photo is SOOC. As part of my JOURNEY this year, I have decided that I really need to be more aware of my hometown. I live in the beautiful city of Riverside. There is so much history, cultural diversity and beauty and I want to capture it.

I have lived all over the world. Seriously. I've lived in Korea, Germany, 10 different states and I've visited tons more. I really wish that I could go back to some of those places and appreciate what I had around me. I lived near the beautiful city of Chicago, I was an hour drive from Seattle, I visited France, Spain, Greece...what do I have to show for it? Vague memories. Seriously. I honestly think that I rush through everything so much trying to hurry and get this done, get that done, help this person, do that job for so and so... *sigh* Not anymore. I HAVE to slow down. I want to look around and enjoy...and learn...and appreciate...and live this journey.

Capture your word in a weekly photo...just click on the button and join Jill and the others like me who need the weekly reminder to focus on our One Little Word.