March Madness with the Mayorgas'

Jackson began his first "Itty Bitty Tee Ball" season. It was only 8 weeks but he had so much fun. It was adorable to watch! Parker wanted to play really bad, so next year we'll have two players! Of course we don't mind, baseball is in our blood!!

In March we made our way to Tempe, AZ for a weekend of Spring Training with the Angels! I guess we just couldn't stand waiting until April for the regular season to start. The boys were super excited! Spring Training crowds are smaller, the venue is smaller and the players are much more relaxed. We were able to attend two games! Boy was it nice to have some rock star seating!! For the first game we were right over the Angels dugout and for the second game we were right behind home plate!

We arrived a couple of hours early to our first game with hopes to watch a bit of practice. Not only were we able to do that, but we also were fortunate enough to meet some of the players, coaching staff and media personalities! The photo to the left is of Parker and Dan with Angels manager, Mike Scioscia.

The weather was very hot all weekend, so two days in the Arizona sun was plenty for us to handle.

Our quick little weekend getaway was certainly enough to get us excited for the 2009 season to start. The boys' love for baseball continues to grow. We're so happy that they enjoy spending evenings at Angel Stadium, watching a game. It's great family time. You wouldn't believe how much two toddlers could understand about the baseball!!

One of the most precious things in life is the gift of time. We feel so blessed to be able to spend so much time together as a family. We pray that the family time we share will make life long memories for us and the boys!

The weekend of February 20th, 2009 we took a family camping trip to Calico Ghost Town. The weather was beautiful and a great time was had by all.

We arrived at the campground Friday evening just in time for a great dinner of burgers and hot dogs, along with all of the classic sides. It was a bit of a late arrival so the kids played a bit and then were off to bed. The adults chatted around the fire while the kids snoozed away. Minus Jenny, she was too cold so she stayed in the RV and cuddled with Jackson and Parker. Did they ever love that!

Saturday morning they were up and at 'em early. The gang took off for their first ride just after 7am.

The kids had a great time riding their little quads around our campsites. The weather was beautiful, we couldn't have asked for better. The boys love camping. I'm not sure if it's because they have Momma and Daddy there with them the whole time or the fact that they get to play in the dirt all day long! It's probably a little of both.

The weekend was perfectly relaxing and as always, it went too fast. But one thing we can say for sure is that Calico is a place that we will return to.

January 2009 - Our First Walt Disney World Family Vacation!

On January 10th 2009 we embarked on our very first Walt Disney World vacation as a family. We've 'primed' the boys for several months with trips to Disneyland, CA to make sure they would 'get it' and enjoy WDW Florida.



The Animal Kingdom was the first park we visited. It was amazing and lots of fun. We started our morning with Donald's Safari character breakfast. Then we set off to take the safari ride. Thy boys loved this 'hands on' park. They got to brush goats, pet snakes and ride a train (huge deal). Mom and Dad even got to ride a roller coaster since Grandma and Grandad Choo-Choo went with us.











It was such a treat to be able to spend part of our week with Grandma and Grandad "Choo-Choo" (Melissa's parents). The boys thoroughly enjoyed their company, and I think they had a little fun too!

It's amazing how Disney can appeal to kids of all ages....ages 1 to 53 in our case!

This photo is all of us with the tree of life in the background.

Day two was spent at the Magic Kingdom. We enjoyed a quiet morning with almost non-existent crowds. The boys got to fly with Peter Pan, Play in Toon Town with Mickey and Minnie and help Buzz Lightyear blast Zurg among other adventures. But, for our boys, the most exciting was the boat ride in search of Captain Jack Sparrow, where they thought they were swashbuckling pirates! Both of they boys enjoy chanting "Yo ho, yo ho, a pirates life for me" on a daily basis! The afternoon brought heavier rains so we opted to leave the Magic Kingdom before dinner. They boys were tuckered out anyhow.

After Grandma and Grandad headed home, we made our way to our 3rd park. Epcot was great. Probably a little more fun for Momma and Daddy than Jackson and Parker. We explored the living seas and rode the Finding Nemo ride. Then we headed over to the world showcase for some lunch at the Rose and Crown Pub in "England." The boys fell asleep right after lunch so Momma & Daddy cruised the different countries in the world showcase. When the boys woke up we went on the Journey into Imagination ride then played at the Imagination! Pavilion. The boys loved all of the hands on stuff they could do there. We explored a bit more before we decided to make it a short day and head back to the condo for some rest.

Our fourth park to visit was Disney's Hollywood Studios. It was a very, very cold day. We slept in late and arrived to the park after lunch. Unfortunately, because of our choice to sleep in we missed out on our favorite ride "Toy Story Mania" since the line was way too long for the boys when we got there. We were able to watch an amazing stunt show that must have been created with our crazy boys in mind. They loved the car chases, motorcycle stunts and loud noises. We only rode one ride here, we really spent the day exploring. Jackson and Parker were thrilled to find their buddies 'Lightening McQueen" and "Mater" from the movie 'Cars' at the Hollywood Studios.
After a delicious dinner at Mamma Melrose we headed over to see Fantasmic!, which was well worth the wait and the elements!

On our 5th and final day of Disney parks we decided to go back to the Magic Kingdom after a fun luau themed character breakfast at Ohana's. We repeated some of our favorites like Pirates, Buzz Lightyear and The Haunted Mansion...and did a few new things too. We tracked down some characters. Mom & Dad had a quiet lunch at Tony's while the boys slept in the stroller....it was almost romantic! We watched the parade, did some shopping then sadly said "GOODBYE!!" to the happiest place on earth. It was a perfectly magical, fun filled, and not so relaxing week!

Growing Up WAY Too Fast...

In fact, everything about most of our days is FAST. Sometimes we really think that Jackson & Parker might have a 'Fast Forward' button hidden somewhere!

They love going to the park, play dates with their friends and Family Fun Days (that's what we call Fridays) at Disneyland. Our boys are busy little beavers, always on the GO GO GO!

Both of the boys are running more than walking, tumbling, and loving sports (especially baseball...yay!).

Jackson is learning how to get himself dressed, which is a HUGE blessing since we started potty training a month ago. Things are going very well. He's such a big boy! He is also learning his shapes, color and can count to 20!

Parker lives by the philosophy of 'Monkey See, Monkey Do' every day. He wants to be just like his big brother, but with a bit more attitude. Parker's favorite phrase at the moment is "I'll do it!" He is learning his colors and can count to ten. Parker can identify all of his major body parts. He loves books and his favorite is 'Goodnight Moon' at the moment.

A New Tradition....well, sort of....

As many of you may remember, I created a website for Jackson when he was born. Sadly, I didn't keep up with it, for several reasons. But, more importantly I'm resolving to have another go at a website. My goal is twofold. First of all, if I manage to keep this blog up throughout the year, creating my holiday letter will be an absolute piece of cake. Second, you will all be able to see and read about all of our adventures and the boys' crazy antics!

So, here we go, embarking on a new journey in a brand new year!