Pasta 101

Allison has been actively looking for some cooking classes in town.  The ones through the city conflict with soccer so she has been anxiously awaiting for the summer schedule to come out.  While at the mall last week, she asked to look inside Williams-Sonoma for possible classes and Bingo!

 They host kid's cooking classes every Saturday morning for free! She signed up for this morning's class…Making Fresh Pasta and Turbo and Reanna came too.

 Jill, the instructor, gave a demonstration and the kids each got their own work station.

 They mixed flour, eggs, salt and olive oil and rolled their own dough.

 Then they used the pasta machine to knead the dough and make it into thin layers.

 Jill gave them the choice of fettuccine or spaghetti

and they got to bring it home to boil.  It was delicious!

Next week…Rocky Road Fudge!

Physical Therapy

We just can't seem to solve Allison's back dilemma.  She goes weeks with no issues and then it either tightens or fully spasms…putting her out of commission for a day or two.  Her X-rays look normal so we think it is just a muscle issue, but we are seeking a solution. The doctor referred her to a Physical Therapist who is now heating, stretching, stimulating and exercising her muscles.  Fingers crossed that he has the answer!

Goodbye Wisdom Teeth

After 43 years, Matt finally had to give up his wisdom teeth.  One had cracked and was causing pain, so he decided to have them all removed.   I'm not sure which one of us was more nervous since I wasn't sure if I could be a good caretaker without passing out, but we got through it together.

He came out of surgery quite loopy and emotional (which made for some fun video!), but he slept most of the way home.  We stopped to fill his prescriptions and I spoon fed him a vanilla milkshake in the CVS parking lot so he could take his pills.

Although nauseous and sleepy most of the day, he was great by dinner time.  He ate mashed potatoes, yams and peas and was back to work the next morning!

Family Day

We have been trying to take advantage of a few soccer-free weekends before the chaos begins again. 

 Today, Matt planned a fun family day in San Diego.  Our first stop was Balboa Park.  We walked all over the park to check out the outdoor theater,

 beautiful fountains,

 and amazing architecture that makes up the museums, restaurants and theaters.

 We toured the tranquil Japanese Tea Gardens and the Botanical Building.

 The lilies were in full bloom just in time for Easter!

Everywhere we turned there was another awesome site.  These spectacular trees lined the path to the Archery range.  After Balboa Park, we drove down to Gaslamp Quarter for dinner at Chiante, gelato at Chocolat and a little bit of shopping and walking.  Great family day!

Taylor's State Cup

Taylor's State Cup started in Escondido last weekend.  Yeah, no overnight stays or long drives!

They did very well in bracket play…won 1-0 over Newport Mesa, lost 1-0 to a very tough Santa Barbara team and won 1-0 over OC Premier.  That record allowed them to advance to the Round of 32 this morning in San Bernadino.

Legends faced Inland Empire Surf and it was a frustrating game due to a horrible referee and many blown opportunities to score by our team.  Taylor landed pretty hard on her tailbone and the ref failed to call a foul, but she recovered quickly and came back in. The game ended in a 0-0 tie, forcing 2 10-minute overtime periods.  Still no score so on to PK's.

Coach Amanda picked the top 5 girls to take kicks and Taylor volunteered to go first…high pressure for sure!

She nailed her kick, but the team fell short.  They lost 6-4 in penalty kicks and the season comes to an end.  They had a good showing this season, Taylor learned a ton from Amanda and really has gained so much knowledge as she debates whether or not she wants to play in college.  For now, she will put her effort into tryouts in a few weeks and continue the process towards deciding…Great Season Legends FC!

Lake Tahoe Day 4

We couldn't have planned better weather for our trip.  The drive on Sunday was clear, the kids experienced a real snow storm and our final day of skiing was absolutely magical!

 This morning, we took the tram up to High Camp to try some different runs.  Snow was everywhere and the sun was shining!!  It was a scary ride up, but well worth it!

 We could even see Lake Tahoe glistening in the distance from up here!

 The powder was freshly groomed and we had the place almost to ourselves.

 We were the first ones down several of the slopes and it was just perfect!

 Taylor and I practiced "selfies" on the chairlift and we all loved the day.

My legs gave out long before the rest of the crew, but I just hung out taking in the views they finished out the day.  We hit the hot tub before getting dressed for dinner and then had great mexican food at Hacienda Del Lago.  It was a great lakefront restaurant and we watched the snow flurries come in right on the water.  A perfect ending to fantastic Spring Break trip!

Lake Tahoe Day 3

 Luckily we only bought ski passes for Monday and Wednesday.  We loved waking up to this site and the snowfall was beautiful, but there were near white-out conditions on the mountain and the wind was howling.  We checked the road conditions around Tahoe and they looked pretty good so we ventured out for the afternoon.

 Our first stop was the old mining town of Truckee.  We stopped in the Visitor's Center

 checked out the Truckee River from a few different spots along the drive.  

 We were only about 10 miles from Squaw, but the weather was much calmer here!

 Then it was on to Northstar Ski Resort to check out their village.

 It was beautiful, but basically a ghost town this late in the season.  The ice rink was shut down already and there was little new snow here.  

 However, Starbucks was still open and the fire pits were on so we made s'mores for an afternoon snack!

 Our last stop was Lake Tahoe in King's Beach.

 It was a little chilly along the water

 and we could only pretend to actually go in,

 but the scene was beautiful!

When we got back to Squaw Valley,

 the snow was still falling

and we were ready for a fun day on the mountain tomorrow.