Happy 2014!

We're back from the holidays and still getting resettled into some sort of normalcy.  We had a great time while we were away and came back ready to get back into the swing of things, although I confess it's taking a bit longer to find a rhythm and routine than I anticipated. Here's some quick peeks at our holidays:

Hope your new year is off to a good start!

Turning 4, Going to Disney

Just a few weeks ago, we celebrated Mia's birthday of turning 4.  It was a fun day with family at home & a swim in our community pool in the morning, followed by a small family party at our house that night.  Aunt Allison, cousin McKaber, Uncle Brian, Aunt Amanda and cousins Braden & Abby joined us. We had an impromptu Disney princess/female character theme (Tinkerbell, Belle, etc.) with strawberry cupcakes for all.  We have typically done a big party at our neighborhood park/community center in years past but this year we kept it a bit closer to home (literally).  Mia didn't believe she officially turned 4 until we sung her happy birthday and she had her cake.  Here she is at the moment of "officially turning 4":

a bit bashful now that everyone is singing to her

recap of Mia's 4th birthday

Keeping it low-key that day was the way to go, because a few days later we packed up several belongings, a cooler of food, our double stroller, and headed to Disney!  This was our first family Disney trip EVER (Greg & I haven't gone since college days) and Mia was more than thrilled about visiting the "happiest place on earth."  We took advantage of the FL Resident 3-day pass and stayed overnight at a nearby timeshare, which worked out super well.  All props for trip-planning to to Greg.  He really made sure we had a fun time and that all the essentials were taken care of.  

We spent Monday at Magic Kingdom, getting familiar with the park and seeing what our kids would enjoy the most.  Tuesday, we checked out Hollywood Studios and saw a couple of shows, including Disney Jr. Live on Stage, which was embarrassingly fun for all of us.  (If your child watches any popular Disney Jr. shows, then they will most likely highly enjoy that performance!)

This was actually taken our last day
at the park at the very end of our stay!  

Wednesday, we kicked it around our hotel at the pool and took monster naps to catch up on all the fun we were having, and on our last day, Thursday, we went back to Magic Kingdom.

Mia's favorite parts were the rides.  Gabe's favorite things about Disney were the curbs we let him jump on and off while Mia was on a ride, falling asleep in the stroller everyday, and meeting the Disney princesses (which, surprisingly, was NOT Mia's favorite part)!  

We brought all our own food to the park or bought it at Publix, and only got ice cream treats while we were there.  This was a major timesaver and advantage in our minds, because there was no waiting in line for food, no wasting of money on food no one really wants to eat, and no headaches from eating something our bodies didn't necessarily like.  Props to Disney on letting you bring your own food to the parks!  We'd highly recommend that.  

Walking into Magic Kingdom for the 1st time

Dumbo Ride

Gabe: Disney? NBD

Mickey's Philharmagic. Totally cool until the show started.
Then Gabe was terrified.

Waiting in line for It's A Small World

Killin' it on Barnstormer, Mia's favorite Roller Coaster

Waiting for Disney Jr. Live on Stage to begin

Mesmerized.  Mickey! Sofia! Doc! Jake!

Silly moments while we wait for Greg to finish a ride

Lounging around the pool

Finding ducks outside the hotels

In the words of my friend, Erin, "Owning Disney" despite the rain.
Ponchos didn't disappoint.

Gabe's feelings about the line for Peter Pan's Flight.

PeopleMover.  Also a good place to take a break.

Mia giving Greg a preview of age 15.

And age 16.

These princesses were SO nice.  So impressed with their hospitality skills.

Gabe had a thing for Aurora, Sleeping Beauty.

If you can't tell, even Greg & I are kinda jazzed.

We hands-down really enjoyed this trip.  Not coming from a long ancestral line of Disney-freaks, I set the bar kind of low for myself but was blown away by how much fun we all had!  Gabe is still in that meandering place where he doesn't really know what he is missing and gets tired enough that he'll fall asleep, so it worked out well with all that Mia wanted to accomplish.  

We are so thankful we got to go as a family, not only to semi-celebrate Mia's 4th birthday (!), but to also have a nice, quick getaway that provided good family times and even some relaxation. Hey, I might even call it a real "vacation," and that can be hard to do when traveling with little ones!  +1 for Disney. +1 for good family vacations.  

That one time my kids endeared themselves to a Home Depot employee

Munchkins on Mother's Day

Lots of times I find myself telling the silly or ridiculous stories about my children, usually for comic relief or to share in the "we're all crazy!!!" craziness.  We all love those stories and they are fun to tell.  Likewise, I also find it helpful to share the good stories, the ones that redeem your faith in humanity (or, just your children) from time to time too.  We need to share the good, lest we forget.

So here's another one for ya.

Last Friday night after we ate at Moe's (welcome to Moooooe's!) we ran over to Home Depot to get my Mother's Day gift.  Awh, isn't that sweet? What mom doesn't shop at Home Depot for Mother's Day? Well actually, we were going to get a spice rack for our pantry, and seriously, I wanted that for Mother's Day. Like, for real.  I really need my spices organized.  In a rack.

It kind of looked like this, except in a cart, at Home Depot...
and so, not really like this at all.

Also, Home Depot for men is like Target for women.  You can just keep walking around and around, and finding more stuff that you think would make your home awesome. Well, we found the spice rack we wanted, and were walking around looking at random things, when the kids, who were securely seated in one of those race-car carts, started getting a little fussy.  So I decided to see if they could distract themselves by seeing if they could give each other a hug (brilliant mom moment, right?).  They both have their affectionate moments, and they seemed to be aligned that night so they began hugging each other, a lot.  I'm not going to lie, it was adorable.  You'd think I'd have the perfect picture of them doing it too because I'm always snapping pics of them, but I was afraid if I moved in front of them to snap a picture, they'd stop doing it, or they'd want to hold my phone, and the moment would be over. So I just stood behind them pushing the cart, mentally savoring this moment of mutual adoration and love they were having for each other.

The moment was kind of like a mashup of this and the last picture.
(also don't try this stroller maneuver at home)

We were approaching the checkout, and the employee behing the register was just completely *endeared*.  He was lovin' it!! As they kept on hugging, releasing, and then hugging again, he was exclaiming, "Oh my goodness! I just love this! These kids are so cute! They are making my day!  This is the cutest thing ever.  Oh my goodness!" and putting his hands on his head like,  WOAH.

Greg and I both knew this was not completely normal behavior for our kids, but we did not try to excuse it like, "Oh, sometimes they fight!" or, "You should've seen them earlier.  Just horrible!" We just laughed and smiled along with the guy and I might've said something like, "I just asked if they could give each other a hug and this is what they started doing..." and then as we were wheeling the still-hugging kids out of the store, Mia shouts, "BIBLLLLLE!" (bible)  She does that because she knows it's one of the words Gabe can say, so if she's trying to coax Gabe into talking, she'll say, "bible!" or "Da-da!" to see if he'll respond.  That "bible" shout was like the cherry on top for this Home Depot employee.  I think he might have gone to Nirvana after that; our kids just lifted his soul so much.

And so that was how my squirrelly, rambunctious and crazy-fast growing kids made the night of an employee at Home Depot.

A look back at February

It's not yet March officially but it sure feels like it sometimes.  Pollen is floating around here like crazy, eyes are itching, the sun is warming up the earth and things are starting to grow!  I've had an honest interest in gardening this year and even though my attempts at it have been feeble and weak to say the least (thus far it's all been in the name of discovery & exploration for Mia's sake!), I really wouldn't mind actually growing something edible this year.  More on that in a bit. For now, here's a bit of what we've been up to lately.  

Florida College Reunion. The Class of 2003 had our 10 year reunion in early February. I got to see a ton of people I hadn't seen in ages, and others whom I hadn't seen in ... days.  It was great to be back with so many old friends! 

Post-nap walks.  Sometimes the hours between the end of naptime and when Greg gets home for dinner can be tricky, but it's been so nice out lately that we take advantage of a walk around the block for some distraction.  

Cousin McKaber hung out with us one Saturday night a few weeks ago.  Mia was mesmerized by her little cousin and Gabe wasn't quite so sure.  McKaber handled everything like a champ and we enjoyed some QT with our newest nephew.

A friend donated her kid's old playhouse to our kids. It's not brand spankin' new, but it provides some leisure and excitement to our backyard and gives Mia the opportunity to play house (outside)!

Gabe recently learned how to climb our couches.  Now if he can get up on the couch he likes to sit there next to Mia or lay on it.  Silly boy.  He only stays still for about 14 seconds.  Exhibit A: Gabe on couch.

"Gardening" with preschoolers. 

Cinderella singing to...Cinderella.

Exhibit B: Gabe on couch.  Notice throw pillows, thrown.

Something's actually growing!  The kids played with the pots and seeds so much I wasn't sure the seeds actually were planted, so I'm not sure if this is a carrot or bean, yet, but I'm thinking it may be a bean.  This sprouted only 6 days after being planted.  I'm very excited about trying other things.  

[If anyone has any tips or pointers for a newbie gardener (I'm thinking small pots and stuff to begin with), I'm all ears!  What can I plant and when in south Florida??]

One has to keep their eye on this guy. Even at the park with swings, slides and countless structures to climb on, the only thing he wants to do is run away from me and descend these concrete stairs.

Photo book for Gabe's 1st Year

Click here to view this photo book larger

Build your own high-quality photo books at Shutterfly.com.

I finally put together this long-overdue photo book commemorating Gabe's first year. I did one for Mia for 2009, and one for her 3rd year (ages 2-3).  I enjoy doing these but it can take  a bit of time and a lot of thought trying to narrow down exactly which pictures to use! But I know I'll be thankful to have this years from now to remember the times from when Gabe was a wee one.  He just had his first haircut today and I'm not sure he's so little anymore!

Anyway, the above link is for curious long-distance grandmothers who can't yet view the photobook in real life.  Although trust me, I'm sure the real life viewing will be a lot more satisfying than a digital viewing!

PS: If you ever have any "free photo book" Shutterfly coupon codes and will not be using, throw it my way. I know a little gal who has a birthday coming up in about 3 months and I'd love to use it for her too!

Sweet kids, sweet life

Same tree, new location

A year ago at this time, I was in funky haze of life with a newborn and a 2.5 year old.  I think there was a lot of Max & Ruby, several attempts at cute pictures of the two of the kids together, and many prayers for good naps (and good nights).  When I think back on that time, I somehow don't recall how exhausted I probably was, or the lack of patience I may have exuded.  I seem to only remember the warm, fuzzy times, and it makes me just a little bit more excited about this holiday season.

It just seems like this past year went by so fast!!

Gabe @ 5 weeks old

Mia is taller, more grown-up, tells us funny things, leaves the "t" out of the "th" sound (so "things" sounds like "hings"), and is much more verbally expressive and her comprehension of the world around her is increasingly widening.  She can hear you say something and repeat it back and it seems like it makes sense to her, even if she asks "why?" about it a million times (still)!

She also unintentionally makes us laugh.  The other night at dinner Greg was telling me about some things going on at work. I was processing what he said (sometimes that can take me a while), so after seconds of silence I said, "I hear you," to which Mia promptly responded: "I didn't say any'hing," very matter-of-factly. Greg & I burst out laughing.  Girl pays attention!

Our most recent family pictures -
Gabe gets clobbered by Mia.  No big deal.

Gabe is crawling, babbling, waving, buzzing his lips with his hands, chowing down on all sorts of foods, and breaking molars left and right.  His right molar just broke through and it appears the left one is working its way in, as well as a bottom tooth on the right!  I am so thankful for the amber teething necklace because it has seemingly helped us so much through this process!!

[Interested in a teething necklace? Use my coupon code MC25 at http://hyenacart.com/stores/inspiredbyfinn/ within the next 2 weeks and save 25%! These would make great gifts for anyone in your life suffering from teething or inflammation (can be used on adults too!)]

He walks great if you hold his hands. He moves his legs like he knows what he's doing, but if you let go, he does a mini-squat, and then plops down on his bottom and starts crawling like a mad man.  I guess in this case, both the flesh and the spirit are weak.  Mia did not walk until 15 months, so I am okay with this.

He makes sounds that sound like, "buh buh" (bye bye), "what's that," "mama," and "dada."  He does lots of other mumblings too, but I haven't decoded what they might stand for now.  If he is getting whiny or insistent about something, he might say, "digga digga digga" really fast and earnestly!
He is still really easy-going and plays independently really well. We can set him down in front of a bunch of toys and he'll just play, investigate and rummage through them all.

We had family pictures done the weekend before Thanksgiving and should be getting them anyday now. I can't wait to update our old family photos.  Gabe doesn't look quite the same as he does in the header on this blog!

These are my hoodlums

The rest of this month is enjoying holiday things in FL before we head out for a bit to visit our families. We can't wait to be with everyone for the holidays, but we're also enjoying our family time down here.  It's been a while since we traveled and have done an extensive road-trip so our fingers are crossed and prayers will be lifted that things are smooth-sailing.  Gabe just got an upgrade on his carseat so 2 fist pumps for the Britax deal at Target on Cyber Monday. Gotta love Target!

sleepy Gabe in church on Sunday

PS: We had a great Thanksgiving with both sides of our family!  We hosted it at our house and it went really smoothly. I was very thankful for a low-stress holiday, lots of good time, and family time!

Mia & Braden having a blast playing MarioKart (their first time)

1 set of grandkids & grandparents

and the other side (featuring new cousin McKaber!)

Hoodlums are waking up for their naps so it may be time soon for some wagon walking...

Mia; Amelia; Me & Gabe; Mo & Rory

Until next time, adios!