San Diego Lawrence Family

Somersault!

2012-02-05T22:02:00.000-08:00

Life is Good

2012-02-05T21:46:00.000-08:00

Another beautiful weekend in San Diego! One of those weekends that make you stop and feel so lucky to live here.

Saturday Emmy and I met an old friend in Seaport Village for lunch. Can't believe we don't head over there more often, it was so much fun! Emmy rode the carousel, hung out with little Rylinn and even got to climb in a fire truck!

We found a hammock to swing in for a while. We hung out here:

And looked out at this:

Josh and I actually got a sitter and went to dinner! We headed over to Coronado. The view of downtown from the bridge.

Anna, Mark, Ava came over to watch the super bowl. The girls had fun dancing and watching Madonna.

August, 2012

2012-01-30T21:00:00.000-08:00

Emmy is going to be a....

January Beach Etiquette

2012-01-29T20:44:00.000-08:00

We have had summer weather almost the whole month and it is supposed to continue! Nothing like hitting the beach on a beautiful day when there is no one else in sight. Until some family sits right next to you when they have an entire beach to take advantage of. The family that posted up literally right next to us was so loud we moved. I took Emmy to the bathroom and by the time we got back some other asshole family sat right next to us! To the point, they way they angled their beach chair, if we were both to tip them back, we'd bump heads. Do we just look that friendly?! Fortunately, they turned out to have a daughter Emmy's age and they became buddies fast. They were very nice and even shared a juice box. But man, if you are going to go to the beach in January when there are no people for miles, give everyone some space!

See, no towels for miles. Except for when a family decides to try and take cover in the shadow of our beach chair.

These girls ran back and forth to the water for hours. At least Emmy took a nap when we got home :)

Big Girl Bed!

2012-01-22T11:23:00.000-08:00

We finally bought Emmy a big girl bed! We just skipped right over the toddler bed and went from crib to bed! She was beyond excited to pick out the comforter and watch us set it up. You could tell she was so proud to be such a big girl. As soon as it was set-up she laid in it and told us to leave. Night #1 went pretty good too. I lay with her a little while but she slept all night and I didn't hear the pitter patter of her feet in our room until 7:30am! Let's just hope that continues :)

Seems like yesterday Josh was putting together the crib

And now he is taking it apart!

Ta da!

So excited

Emmy's outfit selection #4 of the day. A dress, her halloween costume a vest and her cowboy boots (that are on the wrong feet).

Emmy

2012-01-17T20:37:00.000-08:00

It is girl’s week at the Lawrence house this week. Josh is up in Napa all week for training. Getting Emmy ready and out the door and to work by 8a will be interesting…

She continues to develop her own, strong, very girly, opinionated personality. I like to document everything she says and does so I can remind her later.

During conversations at the dinner table she’ll now ask “who are you talking to?” And I’ll say either Daddy, you, or both of you. Lately, she’ll say something and when I ask her to repeat it she says “I am just talking to my own self”.

The other day I picked her up from school and this was our conversation. Me: “Your shoes are on the wrong feet silly”. Emmy: “No, I don’t think so”. Me: “Um, yes they are. We should fix them”. Emmy: “It’s okay, I like them like this”.

She is still such a snuggle bunny. The best time of the day is either after school or before bed when she says “Nuggle with me mama?”. It is the greatest thing ever and I cherish every second since I know it could change at any moment.

Her new favorite food is burritos. So we make them with a variety of meats and veggies to switch it up. I think she just likes the tortillas and the fact that she can make them herself. When I tell her we are having burritos for dinner she always yells “Oh Boy! Yummy in my tummy!”

Her favorite day of the week is Tuesday because it is gym bus day and garbage day. She loves to help gather the trash.

Her new favorite pass time is washing dishes. She asks every night. I used to just toss a bunch of clean Tupperware in there. Now I was all the obviously dangerous things like knives and glassware but let her clean everything else. She has fun and sure makes my life easier! Ha ha.

Her new obsessions are dancing to Yo Gabba Gabba and Curious George.

I bought Emmy one of those cardboard princess castles that you can draw on. It has been under our bed, I was saving it for a rainy day. I told her we had something fun to play with and pulled out the box “Your own Castle and we can decorate it!” She looked at the box, sought out one of the little girl models on the box and said “I want to wear her dress”. Could not have cared a less about the actual Castle but wanted to wear some kid’s dress!

There is a picture of her and Marc from this summer in our family room. At least a few times a week she drags me over and says “I want to wear that dress” (the one she has on in the picture). I tell he she can’t because it is too small and for the summer. I packed it away. Her response every time “But I want to though. I love it always”.

She had two freak outs before school last week because she didn’t like her socks. They were pink. And she was wearing boots so you could not see them anyway. This morning she didn’t like the underwear I picked out for her. Third choice was a charm. Sigh.

Sunday, I had the Golden Globes Red Carpet on. I watched about 5 minutes before I changed it because I knew either Josh or Emmy would complain about watching it. When I changed the channel Emmy said “Hey, I want to watch all the pretty dresses!”

We went to Target this weekend and while we were in the checkout line she grabbed some soft lips chap stick and said “I need this too” and threw it on the belt. Sure, whatever. As soon as we got home she had to open it and put in on in the mirror. She called me in her room to put it on me too and told me to basically pucker up my lips. Like this mama. I NEVER wear lipstick, gloss, or anything like that. The chap stick I use I squeeze on my finger. I have no idea where she learned this. Is it possible to be born knowing how to properly apply lip stick?!

She is quite the kid! And I love her so much :)

Weekend

2012-01-08T17:25:00.001-08:00

What a beautiful way to start a relaxing weekend.

Emmy and I really kicked our feet up.

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T19:17:00.000-08:00

Beach Day

2011-12-29T15:58:00.000-08:00

I took so many pictures this week, I had to split them into 3 posts! The weather this week has been typical - beautiful! Low - mid 70s and sunny so naturally we hit up the beach with the family. Emmy loves to play with other kids and adores older girls. She made friends with a few older girls who were sitting near us, she sort of hangs around close enough that eventually they include her. It is actually pretty funny to watch. For those of you who have not been to Malibu, the waves literally crash on the shore, scares the crap out of me. But of course Emmy is fearless, especially when it comes to the water - even if it is freezing. She kept walking out far with the older girls and I'd just stand on the shore screaming "run" anytime a big wave was coming.

Two Peas in a Pod

2011-12-29T15:39:00.000-08:00

Marc and Emmy are buddies. I am not sure who gets who going but the two of them have more fun that you can imagine. Besides the fact that Marc lets her do all the things everyone else tells her not to like jump on the couches, off the couches onto a sea of pillows, eat licorice, play drums on the dinner table, run around the house screaming, he loves to play with her. They acted out German characters all weekend, Emmy was "Boobbkiss" and Marc some old man. Don't ask.... :)

Up to no good.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-29T15:13:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone had a great Christmas, we sure did! The whole family was together at my parent's house and we had a blast just eating, drinking and watching either football or Shrek 2 (not always at Emmy's request...)

Christmas Eve Dinner. Emmy insisted we all wear her animal hats at dinner. Dad sported the necklace Emmy made him the whole day. I thought it looked especially wonderful with the turtle neck and the hat just completed the look. Ha!

Some family pics. Josh is a professional at taking self portraits.

Cookies and milk for Santa and a carrot for his reindeer!

Christmas morning was a blast!

One of her favorites gifts, her earmuffs.

Almost 3

2011-12-23T14:49:00.000-08:00

I can’t believe Emmy will be 3 in just 2 months! Time just keeps flying by, it is crazy. She is moving up to the next group at daycare starting in January. She’ll be hanging with the 3-4 year olds, what a big girl! Each group is named after a bird and when they move the “fly up”. She told me yesterday that she is flying up to the Robins soon but “not until I am 3 though. I am still 2”

Last night when she was getting dressed after her bath she looked at me and said “Mama, you are my best friend”. It was the sweetest thing ever and I feel so lucky to have such an amazing daughter who is my best friend too :)

I am so looking forward to Christmas and having a week off of work. Wahoo!

Planes, Trains and Automobiles.

2011-12-21T10:40:00.000-08:00

I finally had a chance to post some pictures from our trip to Pine Mountain! It was definitely a trek getting up there but we had lots of fun. Emmy was a complete angel traveling, I think she was better behaved than me. We had to take multiple shuttles, trams, rent a car, etc., and she was so good the whole time. All in all it took us 8 hours to get there which is a lot considering we flew and we didn't leave the state! I think she felt like such a big girl, she loved every minute.

Once we finally got to pine Mountain, she slept in a big girl bed again no problem. She had so much fun with her cousins, following all the older ones around. I really think she needs a big brother....

How could I resist buying her a hard shell, princess, rolling suitcase? She pulled it around like she was some sort of world traveler.

So excited to be on the plane :) She only asked to go to the bathroom once and wanted to go to the "big one". When I told her this was the only one she held it the whole way.

Grandma and Grandpa gave Emmy a treasure chest full of princess dresses!

Emmy and Nixon eating their cheerios

Grandma!

I think Emmy was the most excited to see Dylan. He is so good with her.

Emmy had a ball playing with the leaves!

She thought it was the funniest thing ever to throw them at Dylan. He took it well!

Busted! Little bugger, stealing some frosting from the gingerbread train.

Mayhem! Of course Josh was the center of it all.

Cousin Julia, who could pass for Emmy's sister. They even have the same funny look for the picture!

Our sweet rental car - the Crown Victoria. All we needed was a light to throw on the top of the car and a badge.

I guess we should not have been surprised when Emmy refused to sit on the tram but had to stand up and hold the poll like everyone else. I can't wait to take her on the subway in NY :)

The Hotel Del in Coronado

2011-12-11T10:07:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a beautiful day so we bundled up and headed over to the Hotel Del only to quickly realize it was going to be about 70 degrees outside! We enjoyed an awesome brunch and then went ice skating on the beach! I am not there are too many other places in the world where you can ice skate on the beach. Emmy wasn't too into it but gave it a good try. I haven't been ice skating in over 10 years and you forgot how slippery it is! Especially since there was a layer of water on it since it was so hot. We must have been quite a site trying to stay on our feet ourselves and hold Emmy who was all over the place :) We gave it a good try but decided to head to the beach instead. These are the days that make me feel really to lucky to live here. What a day!

Emmy insisted on drinking her water out of a mug. It looked like the kids was drinking a cup of coffee!

Checking out the rink

Look at the beautiful ocean behind us

The water is never too cold for her to put her toes in

Santa

2011-12-09T21:04:00.000-08:00

Last weekend's picture with Santa. Actually turned our pretty good considering she was not a happy camper when she saw him!

Celebrating the holiday season

2011-12-04T12:34:00.000-08:00

We've been busy enjoying the Christmas season! We've done all the things you say you always want to do but never end up doing. Friday night we went to dinner (Emmy requested we eat at a restaurant) and then headed up to Del Mar to see the Holiday of Lights. Emmy is really into Christmas Lights so loved it. Saturday morning Finn invited Emmy to his school for a breakfast with Santa. We attempted to sit on Santa's lap, I'll have the picture soon, should be interesting :) Last night we went to Balboa Park with literally 300,000 people for the December Nights. We parked 2 miles from the park and it was freezing (to our standards) but we had a blast. We rode the train and carousal at night and met up with Ava to go on some more rides. Fun, busy weekend! Next weekend we are going to attempt to go ice skating at the Hotel Del. Wish us luck :)

Buddies

Josh takes the best family portraits (mom - yes I will send you one)

Riding the train! Yes, she is wearing my scarf again and let me tell you, we received quite a few comments :)

The girls rode the rides all by themselves and giggled the whole time, it was the cutest thing ever.

Finally some pictures!

2011-12-02T16:55:00.000-08:00

Emmy's new obsession is doing puzzles. She is really good too, finds all the corners first, then the edges and knows to look for colors. I am amazed.

Yo Gabba Gabba!!

Following in Auntie Julie's footsteps?

More puzzles...

Emmy's buddy who she refers to as "My Lucy".

Decorating the tree!

Updates

2011-11-28T21:20:00.000-08:00

I have been taking pictures these past few weeks but something is up with the camera and I can’t download them onto the computer. So no pics but updates to share!

Two weekends ago my brother surprised us and got us tickets to Yo Gabba Gabba. Emmy doesn’t watch the show a lot but LOVES the music, listens to it in the car all the time. Such a fun show. We finished off the night with a little greek food for dinner – Monkey’s favorite. She has now been to Sesame Street Live, Disney on ice (3 times), the circus and now Yo Gabba Gabba twice! The best part? We only paid to go to 2 of those shows.

Thanksgiving up at my parent’s house was nice and relaxing. Drive was not too bad considering Emmy was awake for about 2 hours of it. No DVD players in our car – we sang Christmas songs :) It is amazing how you can remember the words to songs you haven’t sung in like 20 years.

It would not be a holiday or trip to Westlake without a surprise visit from my brother! We definitely suspected he could be there but he plays it off very well and is very convincing about his “alternative plans”. He scared the crap out of Emmy when he literally jumped out from behind the couch! Ha ha. He is going to have to fly home for every holiday since we now expect it.

Emmy slept in a big girl bed at my parent’s house! She has been sleeping in the pack and play which is ridiculous because she does not fit at all. My mom made her up the cutest bed with a princess guard rail, princess long body pillow, animals, etc. It was so cute and she actually slept in it! I was amazed! She didn’t got off it until we can and got her. She can see us in our room from the bed so I woke up one morning to “Mommy. Mommy. I don’t want to nap anymore” But she stayed on that bed. I am sure you are all thinking that we’ll probably put her in a big bed at home now. NOPE! She loves her crib still and we are not taking her out until we have to ;)

Hopefully pictures to come soon!

Today was dance class!

2011-11-16T17:47:00.000-08:00

Emmy showing us a few of her new moves.

Flights are Booked

2011-11-14T20:31:00.000-08:00

For all of you who will be attending the Christmas celebration in Pine Mountain this year - so will we! :)

Today

2011-11-11T16:04:00.000-08:00

I had today off of work and am LOVING IT! There is nothing like spending the day with monkey and having a 3 day weekend. We went to Sea World (with every other kid who did not have school today) and had a blast as usual. We checked out the penguins, polar bears, whales, turtles and seals but spent most of the time in Sesame Street Land. She loves going on the rides and we of course had to wait for all her buddies to show up and dance. Watching the look on her face when she sees Elmo never gets old.... Today she wanted to hug Elmo. We've tried this before and she gets scared and hides behind me. Well, today I think she would have hung out with them all day! So cute.

The Season had Begun

2011-11-06T19:03:00.000-08:00

The cold/flu season that is... I have been sick with a cold/cough for weeks now and Emmy had a terrible cold/flu last week with a nasty cough and to top it off pink eye AGAIN. After 6 days, the poor thing finally seems to be herself again. Today she actually got to go outside for a little while before it rained. Yes, it has actually been cold and rainy! I love it! Today I roasted chickens :)

Before she went outside I told her she had to wear a jacket, but she will only wear sweaters. Fine. Then i suggested she wear her scarf. She came out with one of my fancy scarves. Whatever, at least it kept her warm! She is seriously 2 going on 20. The other day she yelled for me to roll the window up because it was making her hair all crazy.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T20:49:00.000-07:00

Dressed up in the big bird costume, she picked out herself, we headed out to cruise the hood. Emmy was so excited to actually collect candy, especially considering she's never really had it before! I let her try a snickers bar and after a few likes and little nibbles she was over it. Once she got a lollipop she was done, the night was complete :)

Missing Monkey Mondays

2011-10-31T16:32:00.000-07:00

I can’t remember when I wrote about my missing Monkey Mondays but regardless of when that was, I still miss her every day. Not just Mondays, but they are usually the most difficult. Well, Mondays and Tuesdays. There is something that really sucks about the day Tuesday. It is not expected to be as bad as Monday, but the weekend is still so… far…. away…

I looked at Emmy yesterday and it seemed as though she grew up 6 months in 6 days. She looks older and speaks such full sentences you forget she is only 2 ½. The things she says just crack me up. All day long I just keep thinking that I wish I could capture it all on video or something. A few things I can remember:

- She understands that “yesterday” means that is already happened but has no concept of time. So everything was “yesterday” which is pretty funny in the context of some conversations.

- She thinks going pee pee on the potty is some sort of rite of passage.

Josh “Hey big girl, you have fun at the park with mommy?”

Emmy “Yeah, I met a new friend.”

Josh “Oh yeah? Was she nice?”

Emmy “She is a big girl, she goes pee pee on the potty.”

Josh “Really? Did you ask her if she did?

Emmy “Yes I did”

She understands the difference between boys and girls

“I don’t wear pants because I am a girl, not a boy” (No idea where she got that

one!)

“Daddy does not wear necklaces because he is a big boy. We do because we’re

ladies, right mommy?”

- She is very polite always saying please and thank you. I think I already mentioned this but when she gets mad she yells “No thank you!” It is the cutest thing. She’ll yell at the coffee table if she stubs her toe.

- “5 more minutes”. I can just look at the kid around bed time and she automatically says “5 more minutes”.

- She is really into pretending to be a cowboy – she prances around the house yelling “Hee Haw!”

- She knows her name starts with “E”. Her school focuses on a different letter, number, shape and color every 2 weeks. The past 2 weeks have been “e” and her teachers say whenever they all sit down and talk/ask about what words start with the letter “e” she shouts “ME!”

"I'm all done crying". Emmy rarely cries, unless she is hurt. But when she does she'll tell us when she is done. It is so cute.

She doesn't understand how to describe flavors so anything she doesn't like is "kinda spicy".

- Listening Time. Emmy’s daycare does not have time out, they have listening time. We’ve never really had to do any sort of time out at home, I don’t know why but I tried to avoid it. However, recently there have been a few times we made her sit in thinking time to be consistent with daycare. After the first time we made her sit, she went to play with her dolls. Within minutes I see her firmly talking to her doll saying “Look into my eyes. You need to listen to me. You go into thinking time”. She dumps her doll in her room, trots by me and says “she not listening, she is in thinking time”. I could hardly contain my smile when I looked at Josh and asked if she was mocking us?

- Her latest response when I tell her she can’t have something such as another juice box or cookie “You not sharing with me Mommy?” How do you respond to that?!

- Yesterday I was in the kitchen when she called me “Mommy I have something to tell you!” So I cruise into the family room, she has me lean down and she whispered in my ear “I love you soooo much!” Greatest words in the world!

Now you understand why I miss her so much!

Beautiful Weekend

2011-10-30T20:18:00.000-07:00

This weekend was one of those weekend that reminds us of why we pay the San Diego "sunshine tax". It was 75+ degrees and sunny. Not exactly the weather you expect the last weekend of October. We headed to the park at the Bay on Saturday and bumped into some of Emmy's buddies from school. It is so cute to see her get so excited to see her friends. Then to the Flash for a little lunch, it is fun to show her off :)

Emmy is so fancy. The only kid who insists on wearing a dress and sun glasses to the park.

After a 3 1/2 hour nap so woke up at 5:30p so knew it was going to be a late night. Josh had a work event so it was just us girls. We headed to Joanne's for some beads to make necklaces! She is very crafty :)

Check out that necklace! Hours of entertainment for her :)

Finished the weekend by carving our pumpkins. We haven't been too festive this year but got our pumpkins ready just in the nick of time!

Such concentration

Tonight

2011-10-26T20:56:00.000-07:00

Emmy is especially entertaining these days. She is really starting to play now, pretending to be characters, acting things out, talking to and taking care of her babies, etc. She is growing up so fast. Tonight she actually said "thanks mom", first time it wasn't "Mommy". The she grabbed her furry phone and pretended to talk to Auntie Julie.

Before bed her 5th stalling tactic was that she had to go to the bathroom, even though I had just walked her into the bathroom 3 minutes before and she told me she did not have to go. Then she insisted on sitting on the toilet without her seat (which she has done before). Well, she fell in and it was pretty hilarious. When she gets mad she says very firmly "No Thank you" to whatever it is that is pissing her off. So as she is crying she starts yelling "No thank you potty!". Ha ha ha ha.

Weekend Getaway

2011-10-24T16:20:00.000-07:00

Josh and I needed a little getaway so we headed to one of my favorite places for the weekend - San Francisco! I have to admit, our trip our north was not the same without Julie being there and staying at her place, but we still stayed at a great hotel. We had no plans so just relaxed, slept in, even took a nap! The weather was so hot, the city had record highs. Just can't seem to ever get any cold weather! We ate lots and drank lots and had lots of fun.

View from outside our hotel room.

Look at us drinking beers at a bar on a Saturday afternoon :)

Summer day at the Marina

Back at home, Emmy, Nana and Papa had fun too! Emmy is obsessed with being a cow girl and now refers to Lucy as "her Lucy". They are the bestest buddies ever.

Visit with Grandma

2011-10-24T16:06:00.000-07:00

Jill came to visit us this week! Emmy had tons of fun playing with her Grandma and Josh even took some time off work too. Selfishly, it was tough to leave them all each day but it was great knowing how much fun they were having :)

The most special gift from Grandma - a fancy tutu!

Make-up time.

Fun day at the Zoo. How crazy is that shot of the polar bear?!

Performances

2011-10-15T13:54:00.000-07:00

Our living room has become Emmy's stage.

Hot Dogs

2011-10-13T19:00:00.000-07:00

Josh usually has to work late 1-2 nights a week so it is just me and Emmy for dinner. I have been trying to make things a little easier on myself by cooking simpler dinners during the week, especially when Josh is not home. So last night I decided Emmy and I would have hot dogs. I was very proud of myself for 2 reasons - 1) That I actually cooked on the BBQ because I never have before and 2) I actually committed to a simple dinner. Of course I bought chicken dogs, wheat buns, fries and had carrots on the side J Emmy took a look at the hot dog and started picking off the outside of the hot dog, took a few bites and then asked for some chicken. Fortunately, I had some leftover chicken! After eating the whole piece and her carrots she gave the hot dog another try. She chewed it up and spit it out “I don’t like hot dogs”. Here I thought I was the hero for cooking the kid hot dogs for dinner but I guess she doesn’t know is what most kids eat since I never make them for her. So tonight we are having tilapia, much more her style :)

Dance Class!

2011-10-12T13:12:00.000-07:00

I don't know who is more excited me or Emmy! Her daycare starting offering dance classes Wednesday afternoons, I think we were the first ones to sign-up :) I started dancing super young and Emmy is such a performer, I have been looking for classes to enroll her in. It is a little bitter sweet because I won't be able to watch her but I am going to try to sneak out of work every now and then to watch. We went to buy ballet and tap shoes this weekend so she's been breaking them in!

Twitting around the family room

Added our own little touch to her shoes - red poka dot ribbons :)

Emmy and I had a little tap session in the garage. Don't worry, I still have my shoes too ;) Ha!

Disney on Ice!

2011-10-12T13:07:00.000-07:00

Yes, this is the 3rd time we've been to Disney on Ice but only the first time we had to pay for it :) This show was all about princesses so I couldn't not take her, right? ;) She loves these shows and knows exactly where she is going when we get off the freeway. She sat and watched the entire show. Part of the fun is getting a totally over-priced toy, so of course I let her pick out a new princess doll. I know, I spoil her rotten and love every minute of it!

Exhausted!

It's been a while...

2011-10-02T21:35:00.001-07:00

The last while has been busy and I've been avoiding the computer after sitting at it all...day....long....

We celebrated Josh's b-day! Actually had a night out - but were still home by 10pm :)

Emmy saw her first movie in a theater! We saw Lion King with Finn. She ate her weight in popcorn and almost made it through the whole thing. If it weren't for the preview, I think they would have made it through the whole thing.

And we've been doing a lot of cooking. Emmy LOVES to help us cook which means it takes 10xs longer to get a meal on the table :) Tonight we made stuffed shells! Yes, she is also so fancy with her dresses. She literally changed her clothes 8 times yesterday........

Bedtime

2011-09-27T20:15:00.000-07:00

Bedtime has definitely been a struggle these days. Emmy comes up with every excuse in the book to not go to bed. She always gets me with the whole “I have to go to the bathroom”. Almost every time she says that she goes so I don’t want to say no. Obviously she has learned this so I swear she holds it until just when I am lifting her in her crib. She also is very particular about which “friends” come to be with her and they always require a blanket (which she is also very particular about). Let’s just say my patience is tested as I watch her lay the blanket over her baby ever so carefully, making sure there are no wrinkles and the baby is covered 100%, for about 5 minutes. Delay, stall and delay some more…

Well, last night she wanted clothes for her baby. Weird because usually she wants them naked. Instead of fighting I gave in (which I do too much) and grabbed an outfit and put it on. “I don’t like that one” was her response. Trying to be strong I said then she won’t wear one, put her down with her blanket and left. Usually whenever I put her down, she falls right to sleep. 45 minutes later I heard her thumping around in her bed so I went it to tell her to go to sleep. She said it again “My baby needs clothes”. She had been thinking about this for 45 minutes! Since it was after 9pm I gave in and went and grabbed her damn doll a dress. When I walked in and handed it to her, she smiled and said thank you. Then she lay down, handing me her blanket, and went to sleep. That kid does not forget anything!

We are in trouble

2011-09-17T22:20:00.001-07:00

Emmy has been picking out her outfits and dictating how she wears her hair for a while. She also has been walking around in my shoes for month but last weekend she started trying on my CLOTHES! My mom sent me a new dress (thanks, mom!) and Emmy looked at me and said "now it is my turn". Oh no....

Making a mess in my closet

I swear I did not tell her to stand like this....

Sweetness

2011-09-15T19:49:00.001-07:00

We are going to miss Marc...

2011-09-13T22:31:00.000-07:00

We had such a good time just hanging out, makes me wish we lived closer.

We hung out at Balboa Park

Gave him a haircut

He stayed with Emmy by himself all day and was out on the couch by 9:30p

We ran into a chicken on the front lawn (no I am not kidding)

We played on the swings

And just had lots of fun.

Unprepared

2011-09-09T10:41:00.000-07:00

By now everyone has heard about the major power outage in Southern California. I understand that having no power for 12 hours is definitely not the end of the world but when you are taken off guard and completely unprepared it is a bigger ordeal than it needs to be. The whole city attempted to get home at the same time and all the lights were out, making for some lovely traffic. To make matters worse, it was about 95 degrees outside and yes, I found myself without gas AGAIN. Since you can’t pump gas without power and I wanted to make sure I got us home, we drove with all the windows down. Let me list all of the ways I was completely unprepared for a power outage:

1. 1. My gas tank was completely empty

2. 2. I didn’t charge my cell phone the night before so I had no bars of power.

3. 3. Not that it mattered because I could not access the wireless internet, but my laptop was also dead.

4. 4. We own 1 flashlight with dead batteries. I took apart 4 of Emmy’s toys to scrounge up some.

5. 5. I am not a candle person so the only candles I had were tea lights, about 10 of them. They only last about 3 hours.

No big deal, we survived, but lesson learned. I think the person who suffered the most from this inconvenient black-out was my brother. He was flying in from New York and was diverted to Long Beach and had to take a bus to San Diego! Now that sucks. By the way, he also had a dead cell phone so I am not the only unprepared one in the family!

Just some pics

2011-09-04T19:48:00.000-07:00

Friday Night...

2011-09-03T15:04:00.000-07:00

started with a little early dinner on the patio at C-Level. Fanciest kids hamburger plate ever.

Ended with popcorn for movie night! Great way to start the 3 day weekend :)

Minute Clinic at CVS

2011-09-02T20:57:00.000-07:00

I forgot to mention that Emmy woke up with pink eye Saturday morning! Before I even stressed I remember my friend Anne telling me about the Minute Clinic at CVS. They see children from 18 months+. They opened at 9am, we were sitting seeing the Nurse Practitioner by 9:05am and were home with drops in Emmy's eyes by 10am. It was super fast and convenient. If you ever find yourself in a bind or out of town, I highly recommend paying the Minute Clinic a visit!

Another taste of the good life....

2011-08-31T15:26:00.001-07:00

Emmy's daycare has been closed since last Thursday so I was able to take some days off of work. Being at home with her for more than just 2 days on the weekend is the best thing ever! It makes me realize more and more just how stressful the weeks are. For the most part our time with her is in the morning getting her ready for school and at the end of the day when we are cooking, cleaning and getting ready for bed. The most stressful times of the day. I'd really love to be able to share more of the fun times with her during the week. I just keep hoping that maybe one day I will....

Friday we hit up Sea World and then headed up to Nana and Papa's house! Jules was in town from Chicago so we have a blast hanging by the pool, eating and drinking - lots. It was like a much needed mini vacation. Back to reality tomorrow... :(

Ready for Sea World!

Staying cool

Happy Birthday Mom!

Now this is the life....

Nana's little helper

2 1/2 Years Old

2011-08-23T16:47:00.000-07:00

Today my sweet monkey is officially 2 ½ years old. I can’t believe how fast time flies by, it seems like yesterday that I was pregnant! She is so much fun and I love to spoil her rotten. Josh is working late tonight so I told her we’d do something special after school since it is her half year b-day. For the record I have never celebrated a “half” year birthday but it is a good excuse to do something fun on a Tuesday  It will probably involve me buying her a new dress or some shoes. She is such a girl and I totally promote it.

Now that she is 2 ½ Emmy:

Obsessed with the color purple. She only wants to wear purple, east purple food and points out everything that is purple. Her favorite juice to drink is prune juice because she thinks it looks purple (no, we have not yet introduced her to grape juice…). She keeps telling me that she wants to look for purple cats which is weird since I am not a big fan of the color or the animal.

Loves to jump. I mean she jumps everywhere. She’ll just stand there and jump for no reason. She sure is building up some leg muscles! She makes Josh and I take turns jumping in the middle of a circle and sings “Mama, mama, jump up and down, turn around and sit back down. MINE TURN!”. She could do this for hours….

Sings constantly. In the car, after her nap, the grocery store, etc. She can sing more songs than I can list. It is amazing how quickly she can learn them. I read somewhere that kids who sing will experience less stress, this kid is going to be stress free!

Is very particular about what she eats, how she wears her hair, what she wears, what I wear!

Likes to ride in the car with the window all the way down. She gets totally upset when we are in the jeep and it doesn’t go all the way down.

Remembers EVERYTHING. I swear she has some sort of photographic memory.

Is so social, she loves to be around kids of any age. A teenager will skate board by and she’ll yell “Hey big boy, what are you doing?”, it is pretty hilarious.

Her favorite phrase is still “I’ll do it!”.

Loves to floss, she thinks it is a special treat when I let her. I actually bribe her to brush her teeth by telling her she can floss afterward.

Is obsessed with stickers (purple ones of course), you’d think I was handing out M&Ms.

Eats a popsicle almost every day. They are homemade so I figure they can’t be that bad.

Is my bestest little buddy!

AFC 1/2 Marathon

2011-08-21T12:08:00.000-07:00

This morning I tackled my second 1/2 marathon, my first solo race. I was up at 4:30a and out the door by 5a, pretty ridiculous for a Sunday morning! I parked in Balboa Park and had to take a bus over to Cabrillo Monument so it was an extra early start. I learned a few things from the last one and brought a roll of toilet paper with me and made sure I didn't start at the very back. I ran this one in 2hr 17 mins, 4 minutes slower that the last one. I stopped to fix my shoe 3 times in the first few miles and the last 2 miles were uphill so I think I did pretty damn good. I did learn a few more lessons:

1. Running a marathon in the summer is not the best idea, especially when the only time you can run is Saturday afternoons during Emmy's nap.

2. 3 pieces of Fillipi's pizza and 3 glasses of wine is NOT the pre-race dinner of champions

3. Make sure you have a full tank of gas before you get yourself stuck in race traffic at 5:30 in the am.

4. Make sure you understand the course completely. If it wasn't for the super nice girl I met on the bus, I would not have been prepared for the hills at the end. I was very conscious about conserving my energy.

5. If you ever find yourself waiting in line for a porta potty, look for the line with the most guys in it, it will go the fastest.

6. Bacon and eggs in NOT the post-race breakfast of champions. Josh tried to convince me 4 pieces of bacon was a good idea because I needed salt. Sorry, there is no situation when bacon is "good" for you.

I almost didn't run this one but am so glad I did, it is such an awesome feeling of accomplishment, especially when Emmy and Josh were near the finish line to cheer me on. It almost becomes emotional.

What do I think about while I run for 2+ hours? Well, let me tell you:

1. I am pretty sure those people who start eating all kinds of weird gel at mile 2 are not going to make it.

2. Those shoes that look like feet not only look completely uncomfortable to run 13 miles in, but they look just as ridiculous.

3. Justine Timberlake getting his sexy back will always put a spring in my step.

4. My butt must look so ridiculous to the people behind me because i have my car key and some chapstick literally zipped up in the ass of my running pants.

5. I can't believe people are literally scooping water out of garbage cans to pass to runners. Those cans better have never been used and everyone's hands better be clean.

6. The 3 guys dressed up like cops in the 80s with the shortest shorts ever sure were entertaining for a few miles.

7. The girl who passed me with her prosthetic leg was an inspiration.

8. I think the fact that I have no boobs gives me a significant advantage over other women.

9. If I stare at the ground, I may actually convince myself that I am not running up a hill.

10. That glass of pino grigio is going to taste extra delicious tonight!

11. I live in such a beautiful city.

12. When I start singing Rhianna's "Only girl in the world" with my eyes closed right around mile 12 up 6th avenue, I will not be embarrassed. I am delirious. It is amazing how your mind can literally take over your body and a song by Kayne West can actually inspire you to keep running.

13. Running by my supportive husband and beautiful daughter was the highlight, even if Emmy looked so confused about what the hell was going on!

14. I just finished running 13 miles and the cup of water that just came out of that garbage can does not taste right at all. Even Emmy would not drink it. Gross.

15. Running 13 miles was a piece of cake. It takes more mental and physical strength to sit and stare at a wall and computer screen with nothing to do for 8 hours, than run 13 miles.

I had fun while it lasted, but now I think I'll retire my shoes for a little while!

Friday Night

2011-08-20T15:27:00.000-07:00

Emmy just chilling with her new buddy Juliette, watching the people on the boardwalk and the sun go down. Give them 20 years and they'll have a few beers in their hands.

It is better to travel well than arrive. - Buddha

2011-08-19T18:25:00.000-07:00

I have been trying very hard to focus on the journey instead of the destination and enjoy the moments now instead of worrying about tomorrow I don't know why but for me that is not so easy. What I really need to figure out is how to make a hard left to take your journey in another direction?

Gearing up for another 1/2 marathon tomorrow. It is one of the best exercises for enjoying the journey. If you start thinking about the finish line too early, it is going to be a rough 2 hours....

My Little Helper

2011-08-13T21:11:00.000-07:00

Emmy honestly loves helping with the laundry. She sorts it, helps me put it in the washer and dryer, fold it and put it away! I'll take the free help while I can :)

Such Innocence

2011-08-08T20:21:00.000-07:00

Weekend at Nana and Papa's House

2011-08-01T21:13:00.001-07:00

We couldn't let another summer weekend go by and not head up to Westlake for a little Nana and Papa and pool time. The drive up was a classic "Are we there yet?". Emmy asked if we were there before we hit the end of the street!

We were lucky enough to be surprised by my brother once again (Marc, we're going to start expecting these surprise visits!), ate lots, drank lots and lived in the pool...

Emmy is officially a fish. She was in the water the entire weekend. We did not spend much time in the pool last year so I was not sure how she would be. At one point she had no floating devices on and told me she wanted to "do it by myself". The kid did not even realize that she does actually not know how to swim. Yes, we are getting her into swim lessons ASAP!

This is the life.

Sharing her Popsicle with Papa

Literally shoveling guacamole into her mouth!

Have you seen anything as beautiful?

Weekend

2011-07-25T12:40:00.001-07:00

We always try and enjoy every minute of the weekend because they go by way too fast.

This weekend Josh and I actually went to dinner just the 2 of us, I took Emmy shopping for new sandals (which was an adventure in itself), we went to Sea World and our favorite Greek place for dinner and played outside for hours! Emmy loves riding her bike around the hood :)

Checking out the penguins with Daddy

So beautiful.....

Emmy LOVES tzatziki, she literally eats is with a spoon, or her tongue. She also loves gyro meat, such a sophisticated palate :)

Potty Tales

2011-07-20T21:23:00.001-07:00

**Warning, detailed potty stories to come**

Emmy going on the potty is bitter sweet. The thought of our little girl growing up is exciting but sad, knowing she is no longer a baby.... And we've traded in dirty diapers for a poop filled potty....

Emmy will only go on the little potty that has the removable pot, not the special seat that sits on the regular toilet. This means that every time she goes we have to dump it out which can be a struggle as she tries to do it herself. I've found myself in a few struggles as she tried to pull a pot full of pee out of my hands...

Moving onto #2. I am not sure what is worse, changing a poppy diaper or dumping a load into the toilet. Let's just say the ladder is not so easy... The bathroom we keep the potty in is like 2 feet by 2 feet so picture me trying to wipe Emmy's bum, pull up her undies, dump the poop into the toilet, all while trying not to breath out of my nose and hit my head on the toilet. 9 times our of ten you can't just simply "dump it" so I find myself slightly panicked as I figure out how to clean the pot without having to disinfect the whole bathroom. So much more complicated than simply changing a diaper, especially when Emmy forgot she had undies on and had her first #2 accident....

The joys of motherhood, would not trade them for anything :)

Busy Saturday

2011-07-17T16:03:00.000-07:00

Enjoying the weekend as always, but they are NEVER long enough..... Met up with Finn, Anne and Noah at the circus Saturday morning. Emmy loved it, she seems to really enjoy going to live shows, she sits and watches them the whole time. She is really into princesses right now and she thinks any girl wearing a skirt or dress is a princess. So, in addition to seeing elephants, tigers and horses, Emmy saw dozens of "princesses" aka carney folk. She was in heaven!

Saturday night we head over to Emmy's buddy Jake's house for dinner. Emmy and Jake have gone to daycare together since they were months old so it is really cute to watch them play and it is really nice to just sit back, relax and watch them :)

Emmy has officially been peeing on the potty for a whole week! She is doing such a good job about telling us and we only had 1 accident in 7 days. Wahoo! She even went by herself at Jake's house, the only way we knew is she cruised outside with her dress tucked in her undies.

We spent most of our weekend....

2011-07-10T20:50:00.000-07:00

in the bathroom. Emmy is officially peeing in the potty! Everyone told me she'd let us know when she was ready and boy were they right. Saturday she woke up from her nap and said "I don't want to wear a diaper, I want to wear undies". I said "sure" and from then on, she has been peeing in the potty. Like every 5 minutes.... :) I put a diaper on at night and during nap but other than that she has been diaper free and trotted into the bathroom every time she had to go. Did I say almost every 5 minutes?? You could say Emmy is just a little OCD....

It was as if a light went on. Now she keeps saying "Now I go to the Robins with Zoe". Zoe is her buddy who just turned 3 (we went to her party on Saturday) so she just moved to the next group in daycare (the Robins) and they have to be potty trained to move up. So she pretty much figured out if she was going to stick with Zoe, she was going to have to ditch the diaper. Not sure how I am going to explain that she has to wait until she turns 3 to hang with Zoe again...

Showing off her new princess undies!

I just thought this picture was cute :) Emmy and Lucy.

Weekend

2011-07-04T21:46:00.000-07:00

Happy July 4th! We had a great weekend, spent lots of time with friends and family, eating, drinking and at the beach.

Emmy discovered Barbies aka "princesses" at Ava's house.

I don't know who had more fun playing in the water Emmy or my mom!

Even Lucy got to take a dip in the pool :)

Emmy "Tiger" Lawrence

Our little performer

2011-07-04T21:34:00.000-07:00

Cousins

2011-07-03T13:53:00.001-07:00

Emmy was lucky enough to get a special visit from her cousins and Uncle Zach this week! They played together so well and Emmy followed the boys around trying to do everything they did. They were really great with her, even patiently watched Barney - that is love. I give you at the credit in the world because he stayed him them all on Friday while Josh and I were at work (I had a great first week at work by the way!). You can't take a trip to SD without hitting the beach and we were lucky that we had a sunny day. Just a few pics... ;)

Long Day...

2011-06-29T20:46:00.001-07:00

Playing in the sprinkler never gets old

2011-06-27T20:29:00.000-07:00

This Week

2011-06-27T12:39:00.000-07:00

This past week has been the best ever - getting to spend 10 days with Emmy was priceless. We had so much fun we did something new everyday - parks, Children's Museum, Dinner at a fancy restaurant downtown, Balboa Park, ate an slushee, haircut, wash the cars, slept in everyday, cleaned, shopped, Hung out at Petco Park, went to the Doctors, went to a b-day party, ate her first lolipop, changed outfits like 8 times a day, etc, etc. I am going to miss her so much tomorrow, I have been tearing up all day :( I love being with her so much, it is hard to think about going back to work....

Pictures from this week:

My Hair is So Long

2011-06-23T21:14:00.000-07:00

Emmy is really into playing with her hair and is very particular about what sort of clips and pony tails we put in it. Remember when you were little and would bend back to make your hair feel longer? Yeah, well she has discovered how to do that :)

Auntie Julie

2011-06-20T20:58:00.000-07:00

My sister had a few days off which is a rarity these days so we felt so lucky that she came to visit us! Emmy was so excited to have "her Julie" around. We had some great weather and took advantage of every minute.

We went to Sea World...

Doesn't get much closer than this!

Julie took Emmy on the Oscar ride. Jules would put her hands up in the air and apparently Emmy kept telling her to stop and hold on tight. Such a rule follower already :)

Beach!

Jules bought Emmy some new shades - too cute.

Now this is the life.

Julie getting a little practicing in.

Changes

2011-06-20T20:52:00.000-07:00

Lots of changes going on at the Lawrence house. Josh was promoted to a new job back in March, selling to the restaurants, bars and hotels instead of the grocery and drug stores. Well, this month he was also moved to the downtown territory. In his industry, it doesn't get much better than that. I am so proud of him, his hard work has paid off.

Since we love to make many changes at once, I got a new job too! I have worked at the same agency for a very long time so was well overdue for a new challenge. I was offered a job at UCSD Medical System in the marketing department and could not be more excited. I have wanted to get into the health care industry and work in a position where I felt as though I was helping people so this is perfect. The best part is I have a week off before I start!

Some slight schedule changes (Josh will now be tackling morning duty - good luck) and Fridays back in the office so definitely some adjustments. All in all, I think they will be some good changes and I am looking forward to my new job :)

Our Conversation on the Way Home Yesterday

2011-06-10T09:02:00.000-07:00

Me: Yawn
Emmy: You tired mama?
Me: Yes, I am tired
Emmy: You need to take a nap mama?
Me: A nap would be great
Emmy: You go to sleep like Emmy does
Me: I'd love to!
Emmy: Mama, I am a big girl
Me: Oh, really? What do big girls do?
Emmy: Go pee pee on the potty
Me: And what do they wear?
Emmy: Underwear
Me: Do they wear diapers?
Emmy: No!
Me: Does Emmy want to go pee pee on the potty?
Emmy: No!
Me: I thought big girls go on the potty?
Emmy: Silence.....

I love it, we have actual conversations all the time now. She also asked me to go to the dentist, for a pink Elmo lunch box and a new purple head band. A girl who knows what she wants. :)

Fashionista

2011-06-07T21:14:00.000-07:00

Emmy is very particular about what she wears these days. She loves to wear skirts or "tutus" as she calls them and picks out her own shoes. I've learned it is just easier to let her wear what she wants. She is just expressing herself right?! I've been trying to document the outfits the past month. Enjoy :)

We Did It!

2011-06-05T16:36:00.000-07:00

Josh and I finished the half marathon (13.1 miles) in 2:12:52. I was surprised at how good I felt the whole way. The last 2 were rough but we were still able to pick it up at the end! We ran with almost 40,000 other runners and the race raised over 9 million dollars for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

I learned a few things during my first marathon experience:

1. Don't over-estimate how long it is going to take you to run, actually lie and shorten it. Otherwise, you'll end up in the 39th of 41 corals as Josh and I did. Meaning, 39,000 people were ahead of us. It was like a video game dodging people the whole way! Plus, we showed up at 6am for a 6:15am start but did not start running until 7:27am.

2. If you plan on using the porta pottys (which is the only place to go to the bathroom) BRING YOUR OWN TOILET PAPER.

3. Do not let your husband sign-up to play in a golf tournament the same day. Poor Josh got home, showered, I made him a peanut butter sandwich and he headed out to play 18 holes. I have a feeling he won't move for a few days.

All in all, I had a great experience and am so thankful to my husband who willingly participated with me :)

I think Josh was having second thoughts :)

Date Night

2011-05-29T20:51:00.000-07:00

Last night Josh, Anne, Noah and I chaperoned Finn and Emmy's date night.

Just hanging out in the liquor store parking lot (We ate dinner next door!). Emmy checking out Finn's knee after he tripped, she is so motherly.... :)

A little after dinner ice cream

Life is Good

2011-05-29T20:42:00.000-07:00

Want to go for a ride?

2011-05-25T09:59:00.000-07:00

Meet Zoe

2011-05-22T20:26:00.000-07:00

Earlier in the week, I actually convinced Emmy to watch something other than Barney, we cuddled up and watched Nemo. She asked if she could get a fish and was shocked when I said sure. All week I kept telling her we'd get one on Saturday. She repeat ie back "I get a fish on Saturday", so cute.

So we headed over to Petco and let her pick out a fish, bowl, rocks, etc. She was so excited and when we asked what its name is she said Zoe.

Meet Zoe #2. We knew these beta fish do not last long, but this was ridiculous. We told Emmy Zoe was taking a nap just like Emmy was going to. As soon as Emmy woke up she asked about the fish. Good thing Petco is up the street and Josh picked out a younger, spunky one :)

13.1 Miles

2011-05-22T20:18:00.000-07:00

In just 2 weeks, Josh and I are running the Rock and Roll 1/2 marathon! Why did I decide to spend my 31st b-day running 13 miles? I have no idea.... Well, actually I signed us up back in March to give me something to focus on and challenge myself while I waited for a few things in my life to work themselves out. Josh just got roped into it so I would not have to run it alone :)

Our training has consisted of running one day per week. Josh and I have taken turns on the weekends. We've tried to step it up these last few weeks by running 2-3 times per week and longer distances. Today I tackled 9.5 miles. It doesn't sound all that far until you compare it to a distance you DRIVE!! I felt good but was pretty worthless the rest of the day.

Once you get past 7-8 miles, it is all in your head. If I can tackle running 13 miles, I can accomplish anything i put my mind to....

Barney

2011-05-21T14:13:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately, for Josh and I, Emmy still LOVES Barney. It is pretty much the only thing she every wants to watch. It is not the big purple dinosaur that she loves, it is the kids and watching them sing and dance. I was able to sneak in a video of her performing her favorite number - a hunting we will go. She also sings the theme song. Enjoy!

Our Little Performer

2011-05-21T14:04:00.000-07:00

Emmy loves to sing, dance and jump. I often catch her in front of the mirror watching herself twirl around. I can't wait to get her into some sort of dance or gymnastics class! :)

Singing and playing the piano

I know I should not have let her do this, but the kid stuck her landing every time! Amazing!

School pics!

2011-05-19T20:23:00.000-07:00

I think it is so cute that Emmy already has something like 4 school pictures and she is only 2! What is really cute is to look at each class picture and see her grow up with all the same buddies.

She always looks so old in these pictures! (Had some trouble with the scanner, so half was cut off)

Emmy and her buddies

Weekend at Nana and Papas

2011-05-18T21:52:00.000-07:00

We decided we needed a break and to get out of town so headed up to my parent's house last weekend. We ate, drank and had fun, especially Emmy. As she would say "This is so much fun!".

My mom bought her mini gardening gloves and some new crocks, she was ecstatic.

We ate Popsicles

Played the piano

and tickled Papa!

Looked for bugs. (No joke, my parents bought her this little "bug kit" with a container, net, tweezers and all!)

Hunting for bugs with Papa and Lucy.

Checking out her new friends

All in all it was a wonderful weekend.

Words of Wisdom

2011-05-10T21:58:00.000-07:00

Whenever I am having a difficult time, I always remind myself of my mom's words of wisdom:

God grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change, the courage to change the things we can and the wisdom to know the difference.

These days I am having a tough time differentiating the things I can and cannot change. I am lacking that "wisdom". So, I am now focusing on my brother's words of wisdom.

Trust the universe.

I have to trust that things will change eventually, that I will continue to be patient, that I'll find balance and answer I feel like I have been searching for and will appreciate the journey it takes to get there....

Happy Mother's Day

2011-05-08T21:20:00.001-07:00

I feel so lucky to have the most amazing mom who has taught me so much about life and what it truly means to be a mom myself. This day is strange to me because moms are honored for what they do, but I feel so completely and utterly lucky to be a mom, it seems weird to be thanked for being given the most amazing role in the world.

Today we went to one of my favorite places in San Diego - Balboa Park! Despite the fact it was a crappy day, we had fun cruising around the park and eating a picnic lunch.

We rode the carousel, but Emmy would not ride the horse so we sat is the carriage Josh did rode the horse :)

How cute is her new headband?!

The best part of my day, nuggling with my money

First Burn of the Season

2011-05-01T20:03:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful weekend so we headed down to the beach today. We always joke that we need to get a good burn in to start the season and today was the day. Emmy was so excited to go to the beack and put her feet in the water. She loves the beach, loves playing in the sand and the cold water does not phase her. We had a great weekend, tough to think about going back to work tomorrow...

Dinner

2011-04-30T22:56:00.000-07:00

We usually have a lot of fun at dinner. Emmy is still a great eater and she loves to tell us about her day and sing songs. If you are ever invited over for dinner, be prepared, she'll make you sing....

Tonight I cooked 2 dinners. Citrus tilapia, quinoa and califlower for Josh and I and chicken nuggets and sweet potato fries for Emmy, assuming she would not want our dinner. Um, I was wrong. She wanted nothing to do with her chicken nuggets or fries and kept saying more fish and flowers please. I pretty much left the table still hungry. She was such a good girl today I gave her some nilla wafers after her fish dinner. She counted them in Spanish. This kid never ceases to amaze me.....

Not only does she love to sing, she also loves to watch herself on video!

Surprise!

2011-04-27T15:49:00.000-07:00

We had a weekend full of celebrations - Josh and my 5 year wedding anniversary, my Dad's 65th b-day, my parent's 35th wedding anniversary and Easter of course. But the best celebration and surprise was my brother flew out from NY to surprise us! He literally jumped out of the family room and scared the crap out of me. We had a weekend full of fun, laughs and food!

Their traditional bed jumping session

We taught Emmy how to give a wet willy. I have a feeling I am going to regret that sooner than later.....

Helping papa open presents

Our annual Easter brunch at the Catamaran! Emmy was once again very excited to see the Easter Bunny and was very patient while waiting for the hunt.

Yes, of course she had two dresses :)

Babies

2011-04-18T20:27:00.001-07:00

Emmy is still obsessed with all of her babies. She probably has about 10 now and loves to carry them around and put them to sleep. She is very particular about them laying on their stomachs and putting a blanket over them and then patting their backs. She'll do this for hours. She also talks to them, kisses them if they fall and sings "rock a bye baby", she is very sweet. She likes them all to be naked with the exception of socks and shoes. So weird.

The other night I went to check on her before i went to bed and found her like this. She is so sweet, she let he babies have all the room! I had to do a double take, I thought she escaped!

She has also been taking a bath with her baby and she has to sit next to her while we dry them both off. I definitely get a few "this is so much fun mommy" while she takes a bath with her baby, she thinks it is so cool. None of her babies have names she refers to them all as "baby" expect this one is new baby :)

This is Fun

2011-04-17T13:43:00.000-07:00

Emmy's new phrase is "this is fun Mommy!". When she looks up at me and says that, they are the sweetest words in the world. I try and do fun things with her so to hear her say it and know she is having fun is the greatest feeling of accomplishment. This weekend we had lots of fun.

Mommy brought Emmy home a new pair of shoes! Are these not the cutest things you have ever seen?! I personally don't even own a pair of Tom's but our stylist daughter does.

Ready for picture day at school!

On Friday, Emmy and I took a trip to the beach. I lost a flip flop (AKA Emmy hid it somewhere and I can't find it anywhere) so I had to buy another pair. How could I buy a pair without getting some for Emmy? Yes, Josh already knows he is in trouble. After our shoe shopping we had to stop for a snack.

Beach time! It was a beautiful weekend so we headed to the beach again...

A little gardening with Daddy.

Then we washed the cars. Emmy thought it was the greatest thing ever to wash her car too :)

buddy

2011-04-11T20:00:00.000-07:00

Emmy got to hang out with her buddy Finn all weekend! They are so cute together, they get along so well, it is awesome. Best of all, Finn's mom is the best too. She had Emmy over for dinner so Josh and I could squeeze in a date night :) Thanks, Anne!!

Waiting ever so patiently to ride the Elmo ride at Sea World.

Taking a break for a little snack.

When I told Emmy we had to get dressed to go to Sea World I got the standard response "I'll do it". She came out of her room with no pants and her shoes on the wrong foot!

Guess who picked out their clothes this morning?

2011-04-08T20:50:00.001-07:00

2 year old program

2011-04-06T20:26:00.000-07:00

Starting last month Emmy moved up to the 2 year old program at daycare. They now consider it pre-school and she spends her days with 2-3 year olds instead of the 1-2 year olds. She has grown leaps and bounds this past month it is crazy! She is not talking in basically full sentences and can sing more songs than I can keep up with. Her new saying is " What is that?" or "Where did that come from?". She tells us what she wants to do "Emmy watch Barney after bath. No basketball dada". No, I am not kidding. Yes, she is still obsessed with Barney, unfortunately.... I still use this as my "baby book" since I don't have one, so I am documenting all she can do!

She has learned the following:
- All of the colors

- She can count to 20, although she tends to skip sixteen and repeats seventeen a few times:)

- She knows the difference between small and big, hot and cold, side and middle, etc

- She knows all her friends names from school. She tells us that her and Riley go running and school and that Riley has the same Elmo t-shirt. The fact that she has friends is the cutest thing ever. When I take her in the morning she says hi to everyone. "There's Sohia", "Hi Jake", "Good Morning Max".

- She can open the fridge and takes out food. We have to be careful!

- She can act out almost every Barney episode! I am going to try and get it on video because it is hilarious! She sings and does all the moves the kids do. She even had props, it is quite the scene. I am 100% positive we have a performer on our hands!

- She can sing more songs than I can keep track:
1. ABCs
2. Twinkle Twinkle little star
3. The itsy bitsy spider
4. Wheels on the bus
5. Old McDonald
6. Bumble Bee
7. Skinermerink (I think this may be a Canadian one!)
8. I love you (Barney theme song, naturall)
9. Bingo
10. Muffin man
12. Patty cake
13. Ring around the rosey
14. Mary had a little lamb

Plus, she is absolutely beautiful!!!

This weekend...

2011-04-03T17:40:00.000-07:00

We went to the zoo

Colored lots of pictures

And made french toast for breakfast :)

Dinner Out

2011-03-29T12:45:00.000-07:00

Our favorite restaurant is a greek place near our house. It has the best, reasonably priced food and Emmy loves it too which makes our lives a lot easier. She loves her "ziki (tzatziki) and pita" but also will eat falafel, veggies, chicken, etc. You name it, if it is served at the greek place, she'll eat it. She is such a crack-up too, she has the bussers fill up her water cup when they fill ours and gives her plate the the server when she is done. You can tell she enjoys the whole experience :)

Playing with her stickers

My mom is not the only one in the fam who can knit! I knit Emmy this scarf months ago and she wanted to have nothing to do with it until this past week. She had to throw her scarf around her neck before we left for dinner, such a diva.

Visit

2011-03-28T20:30:00.000-07:00

Last week Josh's parents came down to visit with their new puppy Piper. Emmy had lots of fun catching up with Grandma and Grandpa. She kept them busy - Emmy style. She doesn't stop these days, she is constantly jumping, running and singing - so much fun.

Playing Golf with Grandpa

I think she has about 12 babies now, putting half of them to sleep

I love her face in this one....