Globe-trotting Grovers: June 2018

our story

It all began on the evening of Nov 29th 2003, at former Chat Noir French Restaurant in Costa Mesa, CA. Brad approached me [Jana] and we instantly connected; it was love at first sight. The next 4 years that followed were a whirlwind of romance, growing pains, and adventures. We circled the globe, traveling to South America, Europe, and Asia. Then one night, Brad surprised me with a romantic beachside proposal. We made it official on August 23rd 2008 with an intimate wedding at a hip art gallery in Laguna Beach. A year later we finished redesigning our home in the beach village of Corona del Mar.

On May 18th, 2010, we were blessed with a sweet little miracle of our own, our baby boy Taj Leon. He stole our hearts and took our breath away! Then, 19 months later, his incredible little brother, Jax Franz, arrived on Christmas morning (December 25th) 2011. What an amazing gift we received! In an effort to slow down the clock and enjoy our beautiful family, in Spring of 2012, we sold our CA seaside home and moved across the country to our dream lake house in Brad's hometown of Bemus Point, a resort village on Chautauqua Lake in Western New York! Even though we are living a more slow paced life, we are living a life far from ordinary!

From the West Coast to the East Coast, our Grover family adventures continue! So won't you come along and join us on this journey of love, family, and travel we like to call our La Vida Grover!

Friday, June 29, 2018

End-of-the-School-Year Projects, Field Trips, & Jax Kinder Moving Up Ceremony!

Taj's first big (2nd grade) research project on Wombats. First big poster board for Taj (and last poster board project for mommy to stress over- hopefully!)

2nd grade Village ice cream class trip

Erie Zoo field trip

Jax friends after school play date that mommy organized!

Bemus Elementary Field Day

Last day of school (and last day of public school for a whole year!!!!)

Jax's Kindergarten promotion

Last day of school burger-and-shake get-together with friends, seeing the highly anticipated Jurassic World movie!! Perfect way to celebrate the last day of school and beginning of summer! Taj's buddy Mason from Erie also spent the night so it was a double fun weekend.

Tuesday, June 5, 2018

Pittsburgh Wknd (& Pride Parade) with Friends

Mommies and boys overnighter in Pittsburgh for some friend, museum, and foodie time! We love having city adventures with friends. We had a dance party at our Embassy Suites hotel (to no other than the Greatest Showman soundtrack) and a post dinner movie slumber party! A fun 24 hour road-trip with pool time, dining experiences, city sightseeing, and experiencing our first Gay Pride parade as well! Pittsburgh is seriously one of our favorite cities close to Bemus, its full of awesome architecture, contemporary new-age vibe, culture, and pretty downtown. It has the mountains, bridges, river, and lots of charm.

Touring the city via an incline train and seeing a magnificent view!

Andy Warhol art museum

Friday, June 1, 2018

2nd Baseball Season with Coach Daddy- Little League

Another great Little League baseball season with Daddy as coach! This was the boys' 2nd season playing but first time on the same team. Jax moved up to Little League and both boys had quite the swing. Jax was the smallest on the team but probably the fastest, and he hit the ball every time! Both boys have awesome hand-eye coordination. Coach Daddy was super dedicated and devoted to the team, often times spending evenings working on the line-up and studying baseball. He was the best coach and really enjoyed this gig. Excited to do it again next year.