Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Birthday weekend

 Last weekend we had a family party on Emmy's real birthday!  My mom and dad came down and we have a packed weekend.  Sunday we hit up the zoo, opened more presents, hit a pinata and ate more cake!

playing with Papa


Their best friend Lucy :)


 Hello!


A monkey watching a monkey



Ryan would not leave my mom alone.  Made her carry him around the whole zoo!




We can't go anywhere without her climbing on everything!



She has no idea how hard it was to find ELSA!  I went to four stores and was fortunate enough to get the LAST ONE at Target!


One of my friends at work told me never to get a pinata at Party City because they break at the first hit and cost a fortune.  So, I was directed to drive to City Heights to buy an authentic one.  So I found myself driving to the not-so-nice part of town to get the best pinata ever!  The store also happened to be a shoe repair store, how convenient :)




Well, this "authentic" pinata sure was sturdy!  Not only could Emmy not break it open, neither could Josh or my Dad.  I didn't post any pictures of them finally breaking it open.  It got ugly....




Ryan reaped the benefits.  First time eating gummy fruits.




Someone is a big fan of cupcakes.





Monday, February 24, 2014

Emmy is FIVE!



Happiest birthday to my sweet Emery Jean!  We’ve been busy having fun and celebrating her turning FIVE!  Since we had an early party with her friends last weekend, we had a family party this past weekend that included a trip to the zoo, a piƱata, presents and Rubios.  (Pictures to come).  I don’t think Emmy turning 5 is as shocking as the thought of her starting kindergarten next year.  Or when I look back at pictures of just a year ago, I realize just how much she has matured both physically and mentally.  

At 5 Emmy is:

Super smart.  Not only does she love school, she seems to really pick up things quickly.  She is reading and writing small sentences, can add and subtract in her head, is learning to tell time on a watch, can count to over 100 in English and to 39 in Spanish, can remember how to get anywhere (clearly she did not get her sense of direction, or lack of, from me!) and is learning about different cultures and countries around the world.

She is a total girl.  Changes her outfit at least 5 times before leaving for school or going to bed.  She lives in either leggings or dresses but won’t be caught dead in a pair of jeans.

Is obsessed with the movie frozen!  Asks if we can buy it every day.

Crazy strong.  Besides her skills at gymnastics, she can lift herself onto and climb on anything at the park, do the monkey bars for days, can pick up her 30 pound brother can carry him around and run really fast.

She loves stuffed animals which she calls “puppets”, we can’t walk buy one without her asking to buy one.  She loves snuggling and squeezing them.  She must have at least 100, it is pretty ridiculous.

She asked me last week why my friend has  a baby in her belly and I don’t?  She proceeded to tell me she wants a little sister. When I explained you can’t choose a boy or girls her answer was I’d send a brother back.  I asked is a girl dog was okay?  Nope she wants a baby sister.  Now I have someone else to help me convince Josh for #3 :) But she sure would be PISSED if it was a boy.

She is still a snuggler.  We snuggle and watch a show before bed and I lay with her after I read a story.  She usually falls asleep right away so I try and cherish the few minutes we snuggle in bed because I know before I know it I won’t be allowed in her room.

She’s already tried asking to borrow my clothes.  Mommy when I get big can I wear this?

Tomorrow will be her first time eating dinner at a friend’s house.  Riley’s mom is picking her up, feeding her dinner, and bringing her home.  Not because I need her too, because they want to play.  I am going to miss her at dinner time!

I feel so lucky to have my little monkey, oh the fun we are going to have!

Monday, February 17, 2014

Birthday party, during a long weekend, with a special visitor

I LOVE 3 day weekends!  Even better are long weekends when my brother is in town and we get to throw an early bday party for Emmy!  My brother was in LA for work so came down Friday.  I took the afternoon off and we got lunch from a taco stand and walked the beach.  It was a perfect day and I don't remember the last time we got to hang out that long without any kiddos around.  It was awesome!  Ryan was immediately glued to Marc following him around everywhere calling his name.  The were super cute.  Saturday we had a party for Emmy at a pottery/candle making place.  It was a bit of a zoo but everyone had a blast.  The kids got to paint, make candles and run around out front while the parents drank beers and ate.  We hung out Sunday and did some gardening today.  Great weekend, I don't want it to end.  But i guess i never do.  Next weekend is Emmy's family birthday party!!!

Our walk on the beach.  Not sure what else I can do to convince him to move to San Diego?!


Bestest buddies


Ryan's first experience with soda "wawa"



Mmmm spinach salad


These two weirdos will always be bestest buddies.


Beauty queen ready for her party! 










Thank God Marc was there to help with Ryan!  They had a blast hanging out and running around.






Only this kid climbs a tree in a dress shoeless!  




Lucky girl!



Josh had a little helper in the garden today.









Tuesday, February 11, 2014

18 months!


My little buddy is 18 months.  Where did the time go?  Thank God he is such a snuggler, otherwise I think I’d be having a really hard time seeing him grow up so fast.  Today he weighed in at 28 lbs and 32"tall.  Although, I am not sure how accurate that is given he screamed and cried so much we had to pin him down just to get his length.  Poor little guy was terrified.  It was a nightmare.
 
At 18 months our big boy is:
 
Running.  I call him twinkle toes because he runs on his toes and you can tell he wants to go faster than his little legs will let him
 
Still not sleeping though the night.  Ugh.  He is usually up 2-3 times a night.  We either pat his back, rock him to sleep or bring him in our bed where he proceeds to lay on top of me the rest of the night.  Every morning I try and figure out what must be waking him.  Let’s be honest here, would you rather lay on a flat, cold crib mattress, or in our big, warm bed in my arms.  I know, I know, I’ve answered my own question.  And yes, I realize we better be prepared to have him sleeping in our bed for the next few years.
 
A crazy snacker.  As long as we are at home, he is snacking.  Yells “nack” and wants in the fridge or cupboard constantly.  It drives me nuts!
 
Really into throwing things.  This kid has an arm.  He can chuck a ball across the room.  Not so convenient when it is a fork at the dinner table or a metal flashlight at Emmy’s head.
 
Obsessed with dogs.  Our house in on a bill so we can see down into our neighbors yard and they have a dog.  At least 75 times a day Ryan wants up so he can see the dog.
 
Attached to Emmy.  She is his everything.  He wants to be with her all the time and loves snuggling with her.  The two of them have a long drawn out goodbye every morning when she is dropped off in her classroom.  He will grab her hand when they are walking down the street.  It is the sweetest thing ever.  And reciprocated.  Emmy was talking about getting married one day.  I said who are you going to marry? Her answer was brother.  I told her that wasn’t possible and she didn’t understand why.
 
Still really into Elmo or “Melmo” as he says.  He will bring me the remote “Melmo?”.
 
In love with my dad!  Anytime he sees my phone he says “papa?”.  So we either call him or I show him pictures on my phone.  He smiles and then gets upset when I put it down.
 
A really good wrestler.  He tackles Josh and Emmy like he is 8 times his own size!
 
A total mama’s boy.  He cries when I leave the room, freaks out if I go upstairs and whines my name in the middle of the night.  I hate to admit it, but I love it!
 
Very stubborn.  He knows what he wants, when he wants it and has already started throwing tantrums.  Awesome.
 
Obsessed with brushing his teeth and washing his hands.  Great hygiene! 
 
Is full of personality and expression.  He is so funny these days with his facial expressions.  You can’t help but laugh and want to play with him.
 
These past 18 months have been the craziest, busiest and best of my life!  I love my little buddy so much!






Seeing them snuggle together never gets old