Merry Christmas!

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year 2009.

Gianna's performance

Gianna got to perform a little dance routine this past Friday at the Tree Lighting Ceremony here in Ladera Ranch. It was so very cute. They danced to Rockin Around the Christmas Tree and they all looked precious in their little red tutus. I was so very proud of her going out there in front of all these people and doing such a good job.

Thanksgiving

Gianna came home right before Thanksgiving with this wreath she made at school. It just made my whole week. Made me wonder why we only do Thanksgiving once a year. I'm keeping the wreath up to remind me everyday of all the things we have to be thankful for.

Tag Team

This past Saturday Geoff decided to take Gianna to the USC-Cal game so while Gianna got some Daddy time I got to take Violetta to Disneyland. It was our first time going to Disneyland on our own and it was nice to get to spend some fun time with her since alone time with each kid is extremely limited right now. She got to go on Snow White's Scary Adventure (which she didn't really care for..too dark for her), Winnie the Pooh ride (which she loved...all the colors kept her interested) and the Jungle Ride (loved the boat ride). She unfortunately fell asleep on me so we had to come home earlier than I planned but the time we did get to spend there was nice. It was definitely a busy day for Violetta, she also stood up on her own earlier that day while we were visiting my sister. We think she's getting ready to start walking pretty soon. We'll have to see what the next couple of weeks bring.

Halloween

Our little princess.....I just fell in love with this dress especially because of the felt crown. She's holding her very first Halloween treat, Raisinets, of course she didn't get to enjoy them but she loved carrying them around.

Our little pink witch.... Gianna originally wanted to be Princess Ariel but since pink is her favorite color we were able to persuade her to wear this outfit (along with a promise that Mom would dress up as a witch too).

Family Vacation-San Francisco

By the time we made it to San Francisco both Gianna and Violetta had gotten sick. We spent a day in Sonoma at a pediatrician's office with a screaming child and at a Longs Drugs trying to get rid of Gianna's ear ache and then Violetta ran a temp most of the day in San Francisco. Definitely made our trip that much more interesting. I'm just glad it was nothing too serious and I thank my lucky stars for Tylenol.

Family Vacation-Monterey

We had a wonderful day in Monterey. Gianna and Violetta both loved the Aquarium. Violetta was in love with the penguins and Gianna loved the otters and the two story fish tanks. But from the look on her face I do think overall Gianna's favorite was the Ghirardelli chocolate ice cream witht the chocolate sprinkles ofcourse.

Family Vacation-Solvang

Sunday we drove to Morro Bay with a stop in Solvang. We thought Gianna would like all the windmills. It's a cute little town and we did find a playground just outside of town where we had a fun little picnic and Violetta had her first ride in a swing by herself. Gianna just surprised us with all her new skills, climbing, jumping and balancing. It was wonderful to see the girls enjoy themselves and to spend an afternoon together.

Family Vacation-Santa Barbara

Well we survived our family vacation driving up the coast to San Francisco. We had a great time and the girls were such troopers considering we spent a lot of time in the car driving from one place to the next. We left here on Saturday and drove up to Santa Barbara where we made a stop at the Santa Barbara Zoo. One of our friends recommended it and Gianna just loved it. It's actually a very nice zoo with great views of the ocean, not too big but big enough to have an elephant, lions, giraffes, gorillas and penguins. There is a little train that takes you around the zoo and a little kids play area with an "ant hill" that kids like to slide down on. Gianna couldn't get enough.

Saturday at the USC Game

I've been waiting for this day to come for some time now -- Violetta's first USC game!

I've been spoiled for the past several years as Gianna has really taken to these outings -- in fact, I was able to use it as one of those "Christmas Threats" (you know, "hey, if you don't shape up then there's no SC game for you on Saturday"). Never thought that I'd have a daughter that would fear missing out on the game more than taking a favorite doll away... I was really hoping that Violetta would enjoy it as well and share in the great times that we've been having the past few years.

We suited Violetta up and headed up early to enjoy a picnic on campus, followed by the typical traditions that we've followed for each home game. Gianna was a great big sister and showed her the ropes, and Violetta took it all in stride. She absolutely loved the band and all the attention from SC fans throughout campus -- more than a few wanted to get their pictures taken of the future Song Girl (class of 2029). She even tried her hand at the Victory sign -- still needs a little bit of work, but she was proudly going along with everyone.

Great game -- USC started a bit slow, but ended up playing well. Gianna watched the entire game and learned a few new things along the way. Violetta took in the crowd and the experience, and abolutely loved it. She lasted through the first half, but all the excitement got the better of her and she nodded off at halftime.

A dad couldn't ask for more...

Fun Videos

Sometimes it's nice to just show off the kids, so here are a couple of fun recent videos...

Here comes trouble...

Well, Violetta has begun her mastery of crawling and is the more adventurous of the two -- she now is pulling herself up and loves to scoot along in order to get what she wants. Here's a recent video to give you an idea...

Special Day

Last May Fleishman-Hillard moved it's Los Angeles offices from downtown to a newly restored building right on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Ever since, I've been wanted to spend the day with Gianna showing her around and visiting Disney's El Capitan theater.

We started off the morning picking up shakes at Robeck's near the USC campus (following a brief nature stop -- it's a long trip from Orange County), caught Sleeping Beauty at El Capitan, visited my offices for a great view of the Hollywood sign (which for some reason really resonated with Gianna), a brief walk along the Walk of Fame to see Snow White's star, on to the subway for an afternoon at Universal Studios, and then back to Hollywood Blvd. to watch the stars at the premiere of Beverly Hills Chihuahua. Whew! Gianna crashed out within minutes of getting in the car.

Star sighting

So last night we had our "stars" sighting of the year. We met some friends at Disneyland and while we were in line to buy some churros right out side of the Astroblaster exit I recognized Comfort from "So You Think You Can Dance". She was wearing a Goofy hat but when I saw her smile I knew I had seen her somewhere then I noticed Mark standing next to her and that's when I knew for sure who she was. I normally don't say anything but before I knew it I was waving and saying hello to them. She was surprised that I had managed to still recognize her. A little while later we got to see Katie and Joshua, the winner of the show. Geoff and I got to congratulate them all. I debated about taking their picture but by the time I got my camera out they were gone. It was definitely a fun experience. Having been a dancer for over 15 years I am just amazed at how talented these young people are and to get to see them having fun at Disneyland was such a treat. http://www.fox.com/dance/

Another Weekend, Another Trip to Disneyland...

Ho, hum. Living in California is such a drag. Weekend comes, have to schlug it off to Disneyland...

Beautiful day -- we tested out the new Toy Story ride (very fun) and Violetta took her first trip on a Carousel. She was a little tentative at first, but took it in stride. Gianna, of course, is a natural...

Welcome Kyle Steven Mordock!

Craig and Nicole welcomed another son into the Mordock clan. We went to visit him when he just just a couple of hours old -- beautiful kid, not like most newborns. He has a big clump of dark hair and was very alert. The girls were so excited to see him.

OSWho?

Big game today and Violetta demonstrates that she's being raised right by sporting the Cardinal & Gold. She's a quick learner -- already has the "Victory" sign going (well, almost) to the sound of the USC band.


Tickets were going for more than $1,000. Um, we stayed home and watched it on TV. Only a UCLA grad would do that poorly in economics. Speaking of UCLA, how'd that game go with BYU?

iProblems

Silence at the Mordockdome is a rare commodity -- what, with two little girls that love to exercise their vocal chords and all. It's amazing how different their lives are than ours were at the same age with all these newfangled gadgets -- Gianna has pretty much commandeered the iPhone and rarely lets it out of her sight. Think the video below is a harbinger of things to come...

Back to school Princess

The evening before Gianna's first day back at preschool I decided to have a princess dinner for her. She got to wear her princess tiara for the evening and use all her princess dinnerware. I just love this picture because it shows how much she loves being a "princess". I love how wearing a tiara makes her so happy.

End of Summer

To celebrate the end of summer and our nephew Dane's 3rd birthday we got together at Mom and Dad's. We were able to enjoy the great weather and Mom and Dad's new backyard. The kids had a blast running around while the adults got to enjoy each others company. I can't believe how fast summer went.

Violetta's Adventure

So the adventures have begun. Violetta has been exploring underneath our bed along with her big sister. I don't remember Gianna being this adventurous. I guess it's to keep me on my toes.

Summer Fun

So it's been a busy summer for us. We've been to the Santa Ana Zoo, the OC Fair, storytime, the pool, Seaworld and ofcourse Disneyland. Here are some pictures of our adventures. Gianna loved looking at the little chicks and eating all the fair food. Who can resist roasted corn, french fries and caramel apples. Can't wait until next year when Violetta can join her on all the rides. The second picture is of Gianna at the Santa Ana Zoo. It's a pretty small zoo mostly monkeys but it's still lots of fun to go to for a couple of hours.

Our little crawler

Well Violetta is now our little crawler/scooter. She's exploring the whole house now and boy is she determined, when she wants something there is no stopping her. Now the fun really begins.......

Our Family

Hello!!

Well, Geoff has been after me about starting a blog so we can share with all of our family and friends. With two little ones, I just never really found time until now. So here it goes.... I guess I should start with an introduction to our family. Geoff and I have been married for 9 years now and we have two wonderful little girls, Gianna (4) and Violetta (6 months). I became a stay at home mom this past year when we had Violetta. It's been a wonderful adjustment staying home with my girls. I've learned to cherish each moment with them especially because I know what it's like to be a working mom and not be with them all day long. I can't say I don't miss work every once in a while, especially around 6pm when the girls get fussy and I'm trying to get dinner ready and them to bed but overall staying at home has been a lot more rewarding than not. Geoff works for Fleishman-Hillard as a VP of Public Relations. He unfortunately gets the honor of having to work long hours for our family. Gianna is 4 going on 14. She loves HSM and Hannah Montana even though I try to steer her to Dora and Diego instead. She also loves to dance. She's quiet a character and manages to make each day exciting and fun for us. Our baby Violetta is just getting to come into her own little personality. She's getting to be so much fun. She's quiet the yeller, I guess she needs to be in order to get some attention around here. She's mostly happy unless she needs to be fed or changed. She loves her bath (and so do I because it means it's almost time for bedtime) and eating. She also loves the shows her big sister holds everyday for her. So I guess that is our family and I hope to be able to share more soon.