Friday, July 30, 2010

Happy Birthday, Grandma Becky!



Happy Birthday, Grandma Becky!

We hope you have a great day and a great trip to Gatlinburg with the Garcia's.

Have a very happy birthday!

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Hiding

Me:  What are you doing, Alex?
Alex:  Hiding!!!
Me:  Doing a good job, son!


Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Silly Kids

I watched Noah and Kayla today while Jess went to get her haircut.  The kids played together so good and we had a pretty good time.

While he was here, Noah decided he really liked Alex's Woody hat (Jess said he has been in a hat phase lately).  I took a picture of sweet Noah in the hat:

And not to be outdone by his little friend, Alex had to have a picture with his Woody hat on also:


I think these are two of the cutest cowboys that I have EVER seen!!

Later, Alex decided he wanted to take some "cheese" pictures with Woody.  Since he really isn't into pictures lately (screaming "NO CHEESE" when I try to take his picture), I took advantage of the good mood and willingness to take some pictures!  Here is the result:


Sunday, July 25, 2010

Temper Tantrum

Temper tantrums are quickly becoming a regular thing at our house.  He has a bit of a temper...wonder who he gets that from?!

When Alex doesn't get something he wants, he has a temper tantrum.  When Alex doesn't like something Mommy or Daddy says to him, he has temper tantrum.  When Alex doesn't want to eat dinner, he has a temper tantrum.  You get the point - lots of temper tantrums...and two VERY frustrated parents.

Instead of giving into what he wants (or doesn't), I usually let him cry it out.  But, man this kid has a set of lungs on him and can cry for what seems like forever!

Today, I just let him cry and took a picture of him in one of his finest moments of the day:

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Woody

We got Alex a Woody costume since he is really big into Toy Story right now!  I originally saw it at Target when I was in Denver, but couldn't get it because I didn't know if the box would fit in my suitcase.  When I got back from our trip, I checked our Target...no luck, they were sold out.  I eventually found it on Amazon (love that site) and ordered for Alex.

We got it in today and he absolutely LOVES it!  He put it on as soon as I opened it and only took it off because I told him I had to wash it.

I got a few pictures of it with my cell phone - not the greatest quality, but still super cute!

All dressed up:

Funny boy:

I know this one is blurry, but I LOVE it!  I love this kids smile...it lights up my world:

Playtime with Daddy

Tonight, Alex and Larry discovered a fun new game!

Larry was the basketball hoop and Alex was the basketball.  The idea of the game was simple, Alex throws himself through Larry's arms.  He had an absolute blast...and I got a video of it :)

Monday, July 19, 2010

Mommy's Little Helper?!

Today was laundry day at our house.  Alex decided that he wanted to help with sorting...


Such a big helper :)

Friday, July 16, 2010

Colorado - Last Day

Our last day in Colorado.  We are so sad to leave, but Alex is getting very ready to fly on the "jet-plane" again and we are excited to go home to Larry!

Today, we just kind of relaxed (well, as much as you can with 3 kids running around and a small baby). We went to Sweet Tomatoes for lunch...YUMMY, YUMMY!  I haven't had Sweet Tomatoes in years and it was so good!  Jenny and I took Alex, Katelyn and Joshua to Target...we have to go to Target when we see each other :)  Even with three kids, it was a good time!  We spent a good part of the afternoon watching the kids play (and fight - they were grouchy from being up late the night before) and watching them run through the sprinklers.

It was a good day.  I always hate leaving Jenny.  We have such a good time together, whether it be going to Target, gambling at the casino, sitting in the same room and watching TV or talking for hours.  I miss my best friend living in the same town as me.  Thankfully, I know that no matter how far apart we are in miles, our friendship will never suffer!  Thank goodness for phones, internet and texting!

Thank you Jenny, Matt, Nonna, Kyle, Katelyn and Joshua for showing us such a good time in Colorado.  We love you all and hopefully we can visit again really soon :)

Pictures from our last day:


Thursday, July 15, 2010

Sweet Baby Joshua

Here are two pictures of one of my favorite little boys:



I love this sweet baby!  Think Jenny will notice if I take him home with me?!

Colorado - Day 4

Tonight, Jenny, Matt and I went to a casino about an hour away from the house.  Even though we lost every penny we put in the slot machines (well, Jenny and I did), we had a blast!  At point, Jenny and I were laughing so hard (mostly at ourselves) that we had tears rolling down our faces :)  I love that we can have a great time together even when we are losing money!

For dinner we ate at one of the casino buffets.  It was really good!  It is always surprising to me the different types of people that come to buffets.  All-you-can-eat crablegs were served and boy did people take advantage of that.  Seriously, people would come to their tables with two plates STACKED with crablegs...I guess they didn't realize you could go back more than once.  All-you-can-eat does not mean all-you-can-grab-on-the-first-time-around!

Nonna (Jenny's Mom) and Lisa (Jenny's sister) graciously watched all 4 kids for us.  It was such a nice treat to be able to just go out with adults and not have to worry about chasing Alex around.  I think Alex was pretty well-behaved for Nonna and Lisa and I think that he might have fallen in love with Lisa a bit - he has been talking about her since that night!  Thank you both again for watching Alex!

Here are pictures from our third full day in Colorado:


Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Colorado - Day 3

Our second full day in Colorado!

Today was Aunt Jenny's birthday.  We had a great day!

Lisa (Jenny's sister) and Daniel (Lisa's boyfriend) came over tonight to have dinner and celebrate Jenny's birthday.  It was so nice to spend some time with Lisa - I haven't seen her since August of 2009.  Daniel is a great guy and Lisa seems so happy!

At some point (can't remember if it was before, during or after dinner - probably all three), the kids started playing in the sprinkler.  They had such a good time!

One of my favorite things to do when we all get together is watch the kids interact and play with each other.  Some of the time they fight over toys, throwing sand or being too rough, but most of the time they play so well together.

Here are pictures:


Do You Think...

...Katelyn has watched Jenny feed Joshua a few too many times?!


I love this picture a little so much that I had to have a separate post for it :)

Happy Birthday, Best Friend!

Today is Aunt Jenny's birthday!  Alex and I are so lucky to be in Colorado celebrating the day with her!


From DC - November 16, 2009


For those of you that don't know, Jenny and I have been friends since the summer before we went into 7th grade.  My grandma lived next door to her parents house.  Jenny was outside playing, I went outside, we introduced ourselves and the rest is history.  After we became friends, many hours were spent talking on the phone, swimming in the pool, talking about boys, going to the mall, watching movies and building one of the best friendships I will ever have!

Jenny has been my friend through most of the different phases of my life.  She has been by my side during happy times and sad times.  We lost touch for a couple of years, but as soon as we started talking again it was as if no time was lost at all.  I love friendships like that!  Most of my memories growing up include Jenny - listening to music and writing down all the lyrics (because we thought we were the coolest kids ever knowing all of the lyrics to "Baby Got Back"!), watching MMC, countless sleep-overs, getting ready for prom and homecoming, driving around in my mom's Altima or her Dad's Izuzu pick-up truck and listening to tapes that we probably shouldn't have been listening to (a little Eazy E, anyone?), graduating high school in our fashionable purple gowns and so many more!  Now, most of my adult memories include her as well - visiting Jenny, her Mom, her Dad and meeting Kyle for the first time in North Carolina, calling her and telling her that I was pregnant with Alex, watching her hold Alex for the first time, being in North Carolina with her for her Dad's memorial, celebrating with her when she found out Katelyn was a girl (I LOVE buying that Baby Girl pink stuff), being there with her when we found out Joshua was a boy, and being there when she welcomed Joshua into the world (I have never been more honored to be a part of something in my entire life).  And I know that we are not done making memories together and watching our children make memories together - nothing warms my heart more!

She is my best friend and she encompasses all that it means!  She is there for me when I need a shoulder to cry on, when I need encouragement, when I need an ear to listen to me (or vent to), when I need someone to laugh with me, when I need someone to talk me down off the ledge and when I need a best friend.  Jenny understands me when no one else gets me.  She loves me, despite (or because of) my many flaws.  She is the best secret-keeper I have ever known.  And she is the best friend a girl could ask for :)

Jenny is also Alex's Godmother and she loves my boy almost as much as I do!  Larry and I wanted Jenny to be more that just Jenny to him, because she is so much more than that to us.  Naming her his Godmother felt so right and we know that if anything should ever happen to us, Jenny will love him with her whole heart!  Alex loves his Aunt Jenny because she is one of the best aunts ever AND because she gave him three of his most favorite people in the world (Kyle, Baby Girl (Katelyn) and Joshua)!

My life is blessed because Jenny is a part of it!  God knew that I would never have a sister, so He gave me Jenny and I will never be able to thank Him enough.

Happy Birthday, Best Friend, Aunt Jenny and Larry's Wife #2!  We love you more than you will ever know :)

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Colorado - Day 2

Our first full day in Colorado was great!

In the morning, we went and watched Kyle at Swim Class.  It was great to see Kyle being such a little fish.  Alex wasn't a big fan of watching Kyle swim and not being able to get in the water himself!  In order to keep him sitting still, I had to feed Alex (and Katelyn) lots of snacks.  I had no idea two toddlers could eat so much in 30 minutes!

After swim class, we headed back to the house to pick up Nonna and Matt and shortly we were on our way to Fair Play, Colorado.  Yes, the place where South Park is based on!  Jenny's brother, Mike, is the fire chief of Fair Play and offered to give us a tour of the fire house.  Alex was so excited, the whole way there he was talking about seeing the fire trucks!  The fire house and fire trucks did not disappoint my 2.5 year old.  He was running between the trucks in such amazement.  Mike even let Kyle, Katelyn and Alex climb up into the cab of the trucks...talk about fulfilling a little boys (or girls) dream!  After looking at the fire trucks, we went into the fire house.  The boys loved running around and playing in there!

Once we were done at the fire house, they decided to take us to Breckenridge.  Breckenridge is an amazing little ski town.  It has a cute little village with shops and restaurants.  The views from town were incredible - huge mountains everywhere.  It was so neat to see the mountains and the ski paths cut out.  We went to dinner in Breckenridge at sports bar in town - great food!  After dinner we walked around a little bit and I got Larry a shirt and coffee mug, Alex a shirt and shot glass for our collection.  The kids started to get a little restless, so we decided to head home for the evening.

We had a great day being tourists...so fun!!

Here are some pictures from the day:


Monday, July 12, 2010

My Little Traveler

Alex could not be more excited that today was the day we got to go on the "jet-plane" to Colorado.

We drove to the airport and he pointed all the planes he saw in the sky, he made up a little song about flying ("jet-plane, jet-plane...I'm coming!") and talked about flying the whole way to the airport (about 2 hours).

Once we got to the airport, we gave our bag to the baggage guys, got our ticket and went thru security.  Alex did pretty well, though he didn't completely understand why they were taking our stuff on the belt - he was much more calm when we got everything back.  After we made our way to our gate, we found our way to a window and Alex was in awe!  He loved seeing the planes, trucks and people working.  He waved to several men down on the tarmac.

We got to the airport a bit early, so we had a wait awhile before we got on the plane.  This was, by far, Alex's most disappointing part of the trip.  He did not know why all these planes were coming and going and we were just waiting in the airport.  Probably thought it was some cruel trick on him!  We kept ourselves busy during the wait walking in and out of stores, getting a snack and drink and walking up and down the gate.

When it was time to get on the plane, Alex was so excited.  We found two seats and I buckled his car seat into his seat (yes, we brought his car seat on the plane, I figured that would be the easiest way to contain him for a 2.5 hour plane ride).  He happily climbed in and asked for his cup, his blankie, his puppy and his pappy (pacifier).  He loved take-off and fell asleep shortly after.  Much to my surprise, he slept until we get ready for landing...almost 2 hours!  I was able to eat my snack, drink my soda and read a book...pure heaven for me!

As we landed, Alex kept saying "woohoo"!  We made our way off the plane in Denver and quickly found Aunt Jenny!  We were so excited to see her (well, I was...Alex was still a little grumpy from waking up from his nap).

All-in-all, our travel experience was so good and I couldn't help but bragging about my boy to everyone :)

Here are some pictures:

Waiting to leave the house...he has his backpack all packed:

Waiting on the plane...love this one:

Looking at everyone on the tarmac:

On the plane:



And proof that the boys CAN play nicely together when they want to:

Off to Colorado...

Alex and I are going to visit Aunt Jenny, Kyle, Katelyn, Joshua, Nonna Lynn and Matt!  We are so excited and can't wait to see everyone.  While we are there, we get to celebrate Jenny's birthday with her (it is Wednesday, July 14).

I'm sure when I come back I will have plenty of pictures of the kids (and hopefully a few of Jenny and I together)!  Look for pictures after July 17.

Sunday, July 4, 2010

TOY STORY 3!!!

We took Alex to his first movie today, Toy Story 3.  We weren't quite sure how he would do since he had never been to a movie before.

He did amazing!  He got a little antsy at the end, but after an hour and 50 minute movie, I was starting to get antsy as well!  He sat VERY still as long as you kept filling him up with popcorn...man, this kid LOVES popcorn!

The movie itself was so good!  I love all the Toy Story movies and I was sad to see it come to an end!

Here are some pictures:


July 4, 2010

Happy 4th of July to all of our friends and family!

We tried to figure out a place to take Alex to watch the fireworks, but they started too late and we were a bit worried about how the loud noise would affect him.  We finally decided to stick around the house and see what people were shooting off in our neighborhood.

Our neighbors down the street started shooting some off and Alex REALLY liked them.  His face lit up everytime they would light one off!  After a few minutes, Uncle PJ decided to go get some of our own.  When he got back, Larry and Uncle PJ went to work setting off a few fireworks of our own.

Alex was in awe of the "wireworks"!  As soon as one would go off, he would tell Larry and PJ "one more wirework, please"!  It was incredible to watch his face light up :)

Here are some pictures:




Thank you Uncle PJ for going to get fireworks!

Thursday, July 1, 2010

ECLIPSE!!!

Amanda, Sheena and I went to go see the Eclipse movie that just came out...you may or may not have heard of it!!

The movie was incredible and left me wanting to see it again and again!  I'm so excited for the next movie to come out :)

It was nice to have a "girl's night" and nice to go do something that I enjoy!  Thanks Larry for watching our Little Man!

Here are some pictures from the night:

Sheena, Amanda and Sarah - nice face, Amanda

From Eclipse


Sheena, Amanda and Sarah - much better!

From Eclipse


Sarah :)

From Eclipse


Amanda and Sarah

From Eclipse