Happy Birthday Addison!

My baby turned two today. I should probably be sad that she isn't a baby anymore, but I have to be honest and say...YES YES YES!!!! I'm so happy to be done with the baby stage! I LOVE the two's! BRING ON THE TWO'S! Two's aren't terrible to me - they're the best. I love this toddler stage for so many reasons. Aside from the obvious reason (more independent which means a little less dependent on me 24-7) I also love the communication. I love it when they start talking. Addison uses more words every day and hearing her talk is so dang cute! She is also starting to play really well with Ellie and it is so fun watching them "pretend" together. Addison is my curly headed firecracker and she has added so much to our family. She is a feisty little one and can be a bit stubborn at times, but is also extremely cuddly and sweet. She loves her blankie, hugs, reading books, climbing, dresses (she has to put one on the second she wakes up each morning and then it's a fight to get her dressed in anything else) fruit snacks, pasta, "wa wa falls" (water falls) and playing with her sister "la la." I don't remember when she started calling Ellie "la la" but it stuck and she still calls her that even though I think she could pronounce the name correctly now. Every morning she wakes up and starts calling us all from her crib..."Mommy, Da Da, La La...Mommy, Da Da, La La." Best alarm I've ever had.
Happy Birthday Addison - we love you so much!

What a fun mess the cake was! Her smile made all the mopping after worth it! I was just happy we ended up with a cake. When I went to pick it up at our local grocery store (sorry - NOT one of those moms who spends hours icing amazing homemade birthday cakes) I had both of the girls with me. I picked up the cake at the deli and put the box in the cart. The girls were standing next to the cart and as I turned to thank the lady who made the cake, they both hopped on the same side of the cart and tipped the whole shopping cart on top of them. Of course they both started BAWLING so I flipped up the cart and made sure they were ok. They were just scared - no bones broken. Then I see the cake. The once beautiful cake that is now smeared all over the place. Just as I was starting to count slowly in my head (a little something I do daily to keep from losing it with my lovely children) the cake lady came to my rescue - helped me clean up the mess and re-made the birthday cake. Funny thing is that this felt like a typical trip to the grocery store with my girls. We never make it out of that store without some sort of catastrophe!

Last weekend we went to Chuck E. Cheese with some friends and while we were there I decided that it was Addison's official birthday "party." I thought about throwing her a party this year, but just couldn't justify the stress on my end when I know she doesn't know the difference anyway! The girls had a blast at "Addison's party at Chuck E. Cheese."

Addie kept hugging Barney!

Ellie and her cute friend Maddison...

So I thought I only had TWO kids at Chuck E. Cheese, but it turns out I had three...

Game on! Dads and toddlers in a mean game of air hockey...
(dads were taking this WAY too seriously!)

Love my girls!

My Mom

Today is my mom's birthday. Happy Birthday mom! Hope you had a great day. Let the party begin and carry on throughout the summer! I love my mom so much - she is my best friend and I can't even begin to imagine life without her. We talk every day, even if it is just for five minutes to share what we've been up to during the day. I love it. I love so many things about my mom. Here are just a few...

My mom is a total "YELLOW" personality. "Yellow" people believe that life is a party and they are hosting it! That is the best way to describe my mom! She is such a happy, upbeat, fun loving person. It is impossible to be mad or stressed when you are around my mom. She has a magical way of making everything fun or funny. She is a blast to be around.

My mom is ALWAYS there for me. I can't even begin to count all the times she has gone above and beyond for me. This is one of my favorite pictures of my mom. It was taken in 1998. I had just finished getting my Elementary Education degree and was about to teach my first Elementary class. I was a total wreck! The classroom I was moving into was filthy and I had no clue what I was doing. I called her crying and told her I was staring at a blank plan book. She was there in minutes and we spent HOURS cleaning and decorating that room. Not only did she help, but she did what she always does...she made it fun! I went from tears and stress to laughter and excitement. Then she spent the next few days helping me plan and get ready for my first weeks of teaching. I would have been so lost without her!

This picture was taken during another time she totally came through for me. Having a newborn is stressful enough for me...adding a high maintenance two year old and a potty training deadline nearly put me over the edge! After I had Addison, I had one month to get Ellie potty trained because she was starting a little preschool a few days a week and she had to be potty trained to go there. My mom stepped right in. Potty trained Ellie, took shifts with Addison, made meals, cleaned my house and most importantly, calmed me down! I will forever be grateful to my mom for all she did for me during this time.

Another thing I love about my mom is how darling she has always been with Kenny. From day one since I married Kenny she has welcomed him in the family and treated him like a son. The two of them have a great relationship and really have a good time together. Last time she visited, they got talking about how much they both love reading People magazine. Two weeks later, Kenny got a People magazine in the mail addressed to him and they've been coming every week. So sweet mom! Kenny loves you so much!

Family ALWAYS comes first with my mom. She is the happiest of all when all of her family is around. She always lets us all know how much she loves us and always puts our needs before her own. She has a great relationship with my dad and is simply the best mom ever. This is a picture of her when she opened the gift Car and I gave her for Mother's Day (a picture of her three granddaughters). We knew she would love it...family means everything to her.

Another thing I love about my mom is what a great friend she is. She loves her friends so much! She would do anything for them. She is extremely giving and has always been a good example to me of how to be a good friend. (If you're in the mood to laugh...just hang out with these four women. They will have you rolling in minutes!).

I always knew my mom would be a perfect grandma and let me tell you -she really is! She is so darling with my kids. She loves them like I do. She has such a special relationship with each of my girls. They absolutely adore her! My mom's calling in life was definitely to be a grandma!

My mom is such an amazing woman. She enjoys and appreciates life each and every day. Sometimes I do or say something and Kenny teases me that I'm turning more and more into my mom. I can't think of a better compliment. Love you always mom!

So You Think You Can Dance!

It's finally time! Tomorrow night SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE starts! I'm so jazzed! This is the best show ever! If you haven't seen it yet you need to tune in. The dancing is AMAZING! It is a lot like American Idol (I think even better). Tons of people try out and then the judges narrow it down to the top dancers who then have to learn to perform many different styles of dancing. The judges can be kind of cheesy, but when they narrow it down to the final twenty it gets so good! I LOVE this show! After last season, Kenny and I bought tickets and saw the top twelve dancers perform live here in San Diego (yes, I have a good husband). It was the best show! The dancers really are incredible and do amazing things. I can't wait to watch it again this summer! So set your DVR's to record SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE tomorrow night. You'll love it!!!

Gotta love Target!

I'm lovin' these summer dresses I bought the girls at Target.

TOO CUTE!

Also lovin' the pink jellies...wish I still had mine!

Austin

Oh I can't believe it...my little brother just bought his first house! CONGRATS AUSTIN! It looks darling and has such a nice yard. I'm so excited for you! I can't wait to hang out there and see it myself this summer. Nothing like your first home!

I'm having a bit of a hard time with this though because it means my little bro is growing up. Austin and I are seven years apart (he and Carly are five) so he has always been the baby of the family. It's hard for me to picture him old enough to own his own home! I still remember him so well like this...how cute is this little guy!!??

Aside from getting a home, Austin is dating a darling girl named Dayna (another sign of his recent maturity!). It's funny because when my mom first told Car and I that Austin was dating someone and really liking her, we were a little skeptical. We kept talking on the phone about it wondering if anyone could ever be good enough for our Austin. Then we met Dayna. What a doll! She is the sweetest girl! Smart, funny, beautiful and SO CUTE with Austin. We've completely flipped now and keep warning Austin that he better not screw this up because WE LOVE HER! What a cute couple!!!

I know I've been posting a lot of older pics lately (I've been trying to organize my childhood photos) but I came across this picture and couldn't resist. This is one of my favorite memories. Carly, Austin and I loved to play "court" when we were little. The three of us played this all the time. Austin made an amazing judge pounding anything in sight with his gavel. Carly always wanted to type super fast so she played the role of the court reporter (using a calculator to record everything said). I of course was always the dramatic and slightly neurotic attorney/witness on the stand defending and protecting the very rights we all enjoy. Good times...

US THEN...

AND NOW...

Mothers Day

Happy Mothers Day everyone! I want to tell my mom I love her so much! Hope you had a good Mother's Day mom...lunch on me as soon as I come to visit! Car- hope you enjoyed your first Mother's Day - you are a wonderful mom to Claire. And to all of my darling friends...I look up to each one of you - you are all amazing moms and set the standard pretty high! So glad I have all of you in my life.

I had a great Mothers Day today. We didn't do anything too special - (celebrated last weekend on my girls trip :) but it was so fun because Ellie is finally old enough to understand this beloved holiday and she was so cute. Kept telling me "Happy Mothers Day" all day - giving me kisses - picking me flowers. Best present ever. This picture was on our way to church today...

Last night I enjoyed a "moms' night out" with my cute neighborhood friends. Thanks for organizing this Kendra! It was so nice to visit uninterrupted without our little ones around.

Love you all!

In April when Car and Shawn came to visit we planned a photo shoot so we could get a picture of our daughters together for my mom for Mothers Day (all three granddaughters). My cute friend Autumn took the pictures and did an amazing job! We framed this picture below and gave it to my mom last week in Salt Lake. She loved it! Pretty sweet girls. Mission accomplished. :)

I have to share some of the other "not so great pictures" during our photo shoot. As you all know, getting pictures taken with kids can be so frustrating! The pose our girls are in in the above picture lasted two seconds! We were so grateful Autumn caught it on film! The first four pictures below are as precious to me as the one above. Carly and I were shouting out so many orders "Ellie, hold Claire up - you're dropping her!" "Addison, look at us." "SMILE!" "Claire is falling again!"... These show how hard they were trying for us!

Other fun pictures taken that day...

Carlsbad Flower Fields

Sure sign of Spring in San Diego...

A couple of weeks ago Kenny and I took the girls to the Flower Fields in Carlsbad. I've driven past them a million times in the six years I've lived here and have always wanted to walk through. Seemed like the perfect time -

since I now have two little girls who LOVE flowers.

Simply breathtaking!