20 Questions at Age 4

1.   What is your favorite color? Red

2.   What is your favorite toy? Dolly's

3.   What is your favorite tv show or movie? Merida (Brave) Favorite TV show is Busytown Mysteries

4.   What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Sandwich. Peanut butter and Auntie 'Lissa's  Jelly

5.  What is your favorite outfit? Dresses

6.   What is your favorite game? Playing kick the ball

7.   What is your favorite creative activity? Ballet

8.   What is your favorite animal? Jaguars and Ponies

9.   What is your favorite song?  Someday ('Mean' by Taylor Swift)

10.   Who is your best friend? Olivia

11.   What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play Ball

12.   What is your favorite drink? Milk

13.   What is your favorite holiday? Father's Day 

14.   What do you like to take to bed with you at night? All my animals and my blankets and my night lights. I like to take my nightlights into my bed so I can see where I'm rolling

15.   What do you want to be when you grow up? A Mama since I'm a girl

16.   What is your favorite thing about your brothers? Moose: that he smiles at me and gives me happy squawks. Gator: He scares me sometimes and plays the piano. Bear: He gives me hugs and kisses

17.   What do you love about yourself? My heart

18.   What is your favorite book? Rapunzel

19.   What’s your favorite thing to do with Daddy? Tickling!!

20.   What’s your favorite thing to do with Mommy? Tickling!

365 Day 206

Although she loved the idea of this (as did I) actually getting a picture I liked was difficult. This one ended up being the one we sent out to everyone. She really loved her party and this year even helped me sign her thank you cards. Of course, she got really mad when I wrote on them too...

365 Day 194

Tired and happy after a long day of playing.

20 Questions at age 3

1.   What is your favorite color? Purple! 

2.   What is your favorite toy? Rapunzel! 

3.   What is your favorite tv show or movie? Tinkerbell (she's never actually seen Tinkerbell, just got a cup today and decided she was her favorite. Favorite TV show is Go Diego, Go and favorite movie is Tangled or Toy Story 3)

4.   What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Peanut butter toast 

5.  What is your favorite outfit? A princess dress

6.   What is your favorite game? Hide and seek 

7.   What is your favorite creative activity? Play in the world  (I don't think this question is very clear. She loves to color but asking it with this wording and I think she was confused.)

8.   What is your favorite animal? Jaguars

9.   What is your favorite song?  Someday ('Mean' by Taylor Swift)

10.   Who is your best friend? Noralee (Who this is has yet to be figured out. She LOVES Olivia most, but she likes to tell me that she is her sister so maybe that's why she picked Noralee as her friend)

11.   What is your favorite thing to do outside? Water plants

12.   What is your favorite drink? Milky (We don't actually normally call it this, she's just in a funny *good* mood today)

13.   What is your favorite holiday? Thursday *best answer ever!

14.   What do you like to take to bed with you at night? jaguars, bum bum (blanket), and night light friend

15.   What do you want to be when you grow up? A mermaid

16.   What is your favorite thing about your brothers?  Playing outside with them

17.   What do you love about yourself? Dancing

18.   What is your favorite book? Tangled and Merida

19.   What’s your favorite thing to do with Daddy? Hang glider

20.   What’s your favorite thing to do with Mommy? Hang from her hair

365 Day 189

Rocking the guns at her cousins birthday party at Wacky Tacky!

365 Day 186

To think I almost skipped the singing part this year. 

Last year she hated it, this year she said it was her favorite part.

365 Day 181

Oh how I wish she would smile without her teeth bitting her lip, but oh well. 

We got to play with this precious little girl (and her awesome brother) today while visiting Pops and Granny for the boys's belated birthday celebration. I should of taken more pictures but I got caught up in playing with these two year olds. Who knew tea and hide and seek could be so fun! Excellent, excellent day!

365 Day 179

The birthday party is only days away and I still haven't sent out invitations.

Utter fail!

Today I finally pulled out my camera, took some pictures, and made the card. It's printing now and will be ready tomorrow for me to send out. Whew, that's a load off my chest!

365 Day 178

He actually surprised me. 

Well actually, they all did. 

I was going to spend my day just cleaning the house but my good friend invited me to hang out. With a good excuse to get the kids together to play, I couldn't pass it up. 

What started as a few hours turned into many when Cliff told me he had to work late. My friend was making spaghetti and invited me and the kids to stay. Turns out Cliff planned the whole thing and brought Buca over to their house for dinner as a surprise (she really did make spaghetti so I wouldn't get wise). Buca gave me the over sized card with our Antipasto salad and Penne Cardinale. My friends were in on it too and had picked me up this perfect coffee cup and card beforehand. I love my friends and family! 

They made today truly special.

Oh, and the best part was the homemade peanut butter cheesecake they made me! 

365 Day 176

Today was a 4th birthday party at the gymnastic center. It was a blast! I took this picture before Little E had arrived. My camera didn't like the lighting in the place so getting my photos to come out how I wanted was difficult but even with the flaws I still love having all the cousins sitting together in one unposed shot. 

The highlight of the day (there were many) had to be watching my brother, father, and husband attempt to climb the rope to the ceiling. I say attempt but Cliff  did succeed. I have to admit I thought he'd make a fool of himself (like I would have and normally do) but I think he might have impressed them that he could still do it.

365 Day 154

All grown up and still plays with toys. It's a sign of a good party when the adults are playing as much as the kids.

365 Day 119

First Birthday Cupcake. Messy. Fun. Awesome.

365 Day 115

Going... going... GONE. We spent a full day out and about getting to hang out with Mamaw. On the way home she konked out hard.

365 Day 91

It's been crazy weather today. Rain, sun, rain, sun. We went to a birthday party in Rocklin and it was pouring down rain. When we left we had sunny skies over our had and this beautiful full rainbow in the distance. Then, on the drive home for game night the clouds went back to dumping buckets of water on us. Crazy weather, awesome day.

365 Day 84

High jumping fun on the trampoline.

365 Day 49

Don't leave a toddler unattended near a chocolate peanut butter pie or she may not be able to resist licking it.

P Turns 3

Today was P's birthday party. It was planned literally months ago and I was looking forward to seeing Juliana and her family . It's been a very long time! She had the party at artBEAST in Sacramento. It's a really cool place, but unfortunately for me it's primarily parallel parking around that area. Yes, it is embarrassing but I don't know how to accurately parallel park and the idea stresses me out. Needless to say I circled the building 3 times to find a spot I could pull into and not have anyone park behind me. Basically, one part of the street per block that I'm able to park in...

Well, I finally arrived (late, again, even though I had plenty of time) and got checked in. There were lots of different stations to check out but Evelyn was feeling too shy with all the new people and kids(she's actually met them all before, but it has been a long time)  to leave my leg. She finally discovered some interest at the button gluing table (no other kids there) so we sat down and I pulled out my camera. As I went to take my first picture it happened: I ran out of memory. I emptied all my SD cards last night and apparently I forgot to put it back into my camera when I finished. I was about to be so mad and crushed when I remembered seeing another SD card in my wallet awhile back. I'm really not sure why I put it in there in the first place (if I remember correctly I think it was in my pocket and I didn't want to loose it) but I remember when I found it that I consciously chose to not take it out just in case I ever found myself in this predicament. Two points for me and my brilliance!

Evelyn discovered a few more stations before it was time to go upstairs for cake and crown making. She was so polite and proper with her food. She picked a seat at the end of the long table away from all the kids (to be fair she was one of the first ones to sit down, it's not like she tried to be separate) and sat properly waiting for food. She patiently waiting for cake to be passed out and didn't rush the cake pot, she asked politely for crackers, and even ate all her bunnies before she started on her cake pop. Funny thing about her cake pop, she sat there and licked it forever (in my world) before I finally encouraged her enough to try and actually bite it.

When she finished all her food, and P had opened all her presents, we headed downstairs to leave. As I'm saying my goodbyes Evelyn discovered the painting wall. She loves getting paint on the brush and rubbing it on the wall, much more than she did putting it on paper. I let her paint for a little while, but I was still trying to get her ready to go. It never fails, she's shy when we get there and warms up 2 hours later- right about the time we need to leave.

It's fair to say that getting to the party was extremely stressful for me (sorry I took it out on you Cliff, I was wrong). Before I left the house that morning Cliff had joked that it was right were I was last night so it should be easy to get to (for me it was not) and I could even get some cake when I was done. I wasn't going to do that, I didn't need the calories, but as I drove past it (literally 1 block away) I flipped around the block and parked again. The sleeping man on the tarp was still by the tree, he moved since last night so I knew he wasn't dead, as Evelyn and I walked past and up to Ricks.

The choices were almost all new since last night. I had such a difficult time picking something. Lemon bars, Chocolate OD, Chocolate Strawberry Tortes, Chocolate Raspberry Tarts... it all looked amazing.  Evelyn wanted an eclair for herself so bad, she saw another little girl ask for it and decided she wanted it too. I finally settled on Creme Brulee since it's light and not as rich-or intense- as the Chocolate Over Dose I was drooling over, and a chocolate mint mousse torte to take home to Cliff.

Evelyn was very patient for a child who was ready for her nap and  stuffed with crackers and cake. I gave her a spoon of her own but as it turns out, she doesn't care for vanilla pudding. Shame for her, more for me. While I finished my dessert she admired all the cakes in the case behind her asking what each of them was. I'm not completely cruel, when her and I got home Cliff shared his slice with her.