Alexis at 22 Months!

I am just going to jump right in since I am so late on this update! Life just gets fuller and more busy everyday!

*Our sweet girl is talking so much! She can be heard clearly telling any of us to "Stop it!" when she doesn't like something. She will tell us she's sleepy or that she wants wat-ah ! (water), or for you to play with her. When she wants something she says, "I have it?" She is very polite most of the time saying "Please" and "thank you".

She still adores her "Annie's, which is what she calls The Little Einstein's. She carries those four little beat up, scratched up figurines around everywhere. It's a full-time job just making sure we don't lose them. Literally at least 90% of her day she is carrying them around! This past month, the night before we left for Florida, I gave her a little Minnie Mouse. She took one look at her, cradled her, made sweet little awww sounds, gave her kisses and just held Minnie to her face. It was one of the sweetest things I have ever seen and was definitely love at first sight! And it's been like that every since too! She goes around saying, "Minnie, Minnie, Minnie" in the cutest voice! Whenever she sees her on something she gets so excited. And she can be found carrying her Minnie with her Annie's most of the day!

*She flew to Florida for her first trip to Disney World. This was her second time on a plane and it was a lot harder this time then the Denver flight. Nice for mommy to have some help but hard for her to sit so long. She did pretty well though all things considered. And she did really well in the parks. She loved the Princesses we were able to meet and getting to meet her "Annie's" and Minnie were definitely highlights! She did not like the bus transportation though and early on started to freak out when we would board one. Most of the time it took so long to get where we were going with all the stops around our resort that she didn't have much patience for it...and really neither did I!!;0) But she liked the rides and would start pointing to them and saying "Ride!" and I would ask if she wanted to go on one and she would say "Yeah! Yay!" She also thoroughly enjoyed playing in the kid ares at the water parks, especially the one at Typhoon Lagoon!

*She loves music!!!! She dances and nods her head when she hears something she likes. She still loves Maroon 5 and starts smiling right when she hears them!

*She's wearing size 5 shoes still but moved up to a size 4 diaper for a little more room. I'm not sure how much she weighs since we haven't been to a Dr in MONTHS thanks to no ear infections as of late!! I am SO happy about that and am glad that I went with my gut to wait it out! Her clothes size is still some 9-12 months but mostly 12-18 months.

*She's a little bruiser, always falling and scratching herself up! It's been a long time since I've seen her poor little knees clear of scrapes and bruises! She wants to run so fast, and really does run so fast at times she's almost a blur, that she also falls much of that time! It makes it very hard for mommy and daddy to keep an eye on her and is especially unnerving in busy places.

*She likes to dress up already. I put a Princess dress on her from a set that I've had well before she was even born. I broke that out, put the dress and little crown on her, and she loved it! She kept everything on all morning and walked around so proudly. I think I had just as much fun (OK maybe even more!) as her! She also loves to put on bracelets and rings and anything pretty!

*She likes to play outside. She loves to swing. She tries to ride Jacob's little 3 wheel scooter. She enjoys playing in the water and she LOVES slides! If she can find one her size she will go down it over and over and over again!

*Her love for shoes has only grown. She attempts to put them on all day long....her shoes, my shoes, the boys shoes...anything she can get hold of! This past month she especially took a liking to a pair of water shoes she has. So much so that when we would try and take them off her to leave the house she would have a melt down. Most of the time we just let he keep them on...pick your battles right?

*I love that when she says "Pooh" for Winnie the Pooh, she says "Poop!"...I have no idea why she adds the extra "P" but it really is hilarious. She gets the boys and I to laugh every time!

*When the boys practice for karate she does too. So adorable seeing this tiny little girl with her arms out saying "Hiiii!!!" and counting along with them!

She is so much fun to be with. She plays so well with people and by herself. She attracts smiles and attention everywhere she goes. It's a lot of fun being Alexis Joy's mommy!

Making Disney World Possible!

I have been wanting to write the story of how we were able to plan a trip to Disney World for months now. So hoping to get this all down in one attempt!

We went to Florida 3 years ago. Craig had to attend a conference in Orlando for work and we thought it would be a perfect opportunity to tag along and finally full-fill one of my life long dreams of going to Disney World. Our house and car rental were paid for by his company. We paid for flights and Disney tickets. What I didn't bargain for was the insane heat. We ended up only having a few full days to explore the 4 main parks, 2 water parks and Disney Quest. After our 10 day stay we had hardly explored anything! I vowed we would find a way to go back in three years and "do it right" with a "real" vacation!

Fast forward 2 years and the full on planning for Operation Disney World began! I have never researched and put so much time into something before. I looked at airline tickets daily trying to find the lowest price possible. I tried to figure out how to get even more points out of our Amazon rewards card and saved them up until we had two full free flights! I started buying the kids gift cards in August to spread costs out. We had them earn other cards as part of our reward system at home so all of their spending money would be taken care of before we even left. I looked on Disney's web site daily waiting for a summer deal to pop up.....just hoping there would be one! I researched every resort on property and even looked at staying off property again. The dining research was a whole thing in itself....and then figuring that into our daily schedule once we were there...insane!!!! I had multiple books and subscribed to an awesome app where I was able to ask a ton of questions and get almost an immediate response from the very seasoned Disney World visitors. I was able to prepare for so many things that way and get more opinions on dining, resorts, what to bring, etc. Many times throughout my head was spinning from so much information!

The day I finally saw a deal for the time we were going was an awesome day!! I raced downstairs to joyfully share with Craig my findings...FREE DINING for all 6 of us for the entire length of our stay!!! Unbelievable! That would be a free sit down, quick service and snack per person, per night! The only catch was that the offer ended on June 2nd...the boys last day of school. But realizing that there would be no other offers during summer, and that we would literally be saving thousands of dollars AND that their last day was only going to be about 3 hours it wasn't hard to decide that we would be heading there on June 2nd!

Booking the airline tickets was very exciting but also stressful as well. I tried to research when they would be cheaper but tickets are so hard to predict. We had to book a layover flight since it was so much cheaper too. I would have loved a direct flight as stopping makes for a very long day of travel! Using our free ticket reward points was pretty easy and I was surprised to find that the $400 limit also covered tax and fees....so awesome! And since Alexis would still be under two years old, we ended up only paying for 3 tickets out of the SIX of us!=0) To pay for those 3 tickets I little by very little sold clothes and such on Ebay. When I went to pay for the tickets I had almost the exact amount saved up in my PayPal account which covered the costs of the remaining tickets completely! So neat!

So with all of our food, snacks and plane tickets covered that left lodging and park tickets. Craig worked very hard almost nightly for about 4 months on a side job. When the check came that almost exactly matched the rest of the costs! We were set! And when staying on Disney property, all transportation is included so there was no need for a car rental which saved us a ton!

Another great little freebie was signing up for a Disney Visa. I had been looking at the offers over the years and never signed up. Around the time I started planning I came across the best offer yet...a $100 Disney gift card just for signing up and putting any amount on the card. So Craig and I both signed up for one and received $200 in gift cards!! There was any extra spending money we would need while there! And having the card came in handy later when I found out Disney Visa cardholders could attend a special Meet and Greet with Mickey and friends and receive a FREE picture of our choice!! Double score!

One of the craziest parts of planning was figuring out where to eat for our sit down meals. With the free dining we had the amazing opportunity to eat at places we could never have afforded otherwise. At least that many of them!! Character meals alone would cost our family over $100 a pop! Crazy! and thankfully due to all the research I found that you had to make reservations for many of those places a full 180 days in advance...which in return requires a lot of planning on spreading out which park your in, which park your near if the restaurant is in a resort, etc. And trying to narrow down where to go with SO many great options was no easy task either! I had everything all lined up and called exactly 180 days in advance...and got everything I had planned for with almost the exact times I had written down! Very exciting!

We told the boys about our trip at Christmas. I wrapped a box with a paper that told them where we were going and how long we would be there! I added Disney shirts, a kids guide book, an autograph book etc. They were over the moon excited! As extra surprises I left Phineas and Ferb characters on the boys beds the night before we left and Alexis got a Minnie (which she absolutely adored and which started her Minnie Craze!) I had also ordered pins off of Ebay for the boys to trade once there. And I bought Disney Pez Dispensers for another surprise once there.

Up until the day we left I read and planned and read some more. Asked questions by the dozens and painstakingly packed our bags. After a full year of intense planning, the trip was set and we were on our way!!

Alexis at 21 Months

Still trying to fit these updates in as there are so many changes every month! This month she:

*Has moved up to size 5 shoes!

*Had her second Easter and her first Easter egg hunts. She LOVED hunting for the eggs!! When we went up to my parents the day before Easter, we had two hunts. We gave her a basket at the first one and she didn't want to let go. She hung on to it all morning, then all through the second hunt and we then had to to pry it from her at nap time which made her very unhappy! She was happy to be reunited when she woke up! She looked adorable in both of her Easter dresses! It is so much fun getting to dress her daily and then the Holidays are just icing on the cake!

*Is absolutely obsessed with her Little Einstein figurines. She walks around with them in her hands all day. This month she started coming up to us, handing us one, and then asking, "Play?" She moves them all around and makes cute humming sounds. And she loves when you kiss them, pretend they are kissing her, or making them kiss each other!

*She had her first plane ride this month. Just her and I went for a 4 day visit to see brand new baby RJ! She did pretty well all things considered but I am in no hurry to fly alone again! She had a lot of fun playing with Bella and checking the baby out. It was a really peaceful and enjoyable time! (Yes, peaceful even with 3 little ones 2 and under....!)

*Is now much more focused on TV. When we turn a cartoon on in the morning she gets all situated in her little chair, starts nodding her head up and down and says, "Watch?". She loves "Little Einsteins", "Dora", "The Cat and the Hat" and "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse".

*Now has a favorite full length movie, "Tangled". When we saw it in the theatre, it was the first movie she actually sat through and literally watched the whole thing. All other movies she has had to be taken out of the theatre, but not with "Tangled". Then about a month ago we watched it at home for the first time. She sat on Grandma's lap, and once again, watched the entire thing. I couldn't believe it! So when we went to Colorado, I decided I would bring it on the plane hoping it wasn't a fluke...and she again sat and watched it! My girl has very good taste as "Tangled" alllllmost takes first place for me against the long standing, "Beauty and the Beast". It's pretty darn close!;0)

*Still loves to sleep. She starts saying good night to everything in sight when she realizes she's going to bed. The balloon, pictures on the wall, every family member, the cats...so cute!

*She really likes our new fish. She will push the stool over to his tank and say, "Hi Ish! So cute!

*Has gotten worse about pulling out her hair stuff again. Such a bummer!

*Is somehow able to stash paci's while she's in her bed so that she can get to them later when she's out of her bed! Even when I look to make sure there are not any around she somehow still waltzes out with one at some point in the day. Silly girl!

*Has become obsessed with hairbrushes. She walks around saying "Brush? Brush?" She knows how to get into the drawer in my bathroom, that is taller then her, and fish around for a brush until she finds one. Therefore I find my brushes all over the house! About a week ago she climbed into bed with me, brush in hand. She started brushing my hair. Every time I turned to look at her though she would shove my head and yell, "No"! I was apparently disrupting her "brush time"! =)

The boys will often say that we have the cutest baby in the whole world...and I have to agree!=0)

Alexis at 20 Months

When I really think about it, I have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that my baby girl is quickly approaching two years old. It really doesn't seem that long ago that I was longingly looking at her clothes, awaiting her arrival. We are having so much fun with her and she constantly brings a smile to our face!

*One of the new things she does is say "Da" for "yes". It's super cute! "Lexy, are you hungry?"...."Daaa". "Lexy, do you want to put your shoes on?"...."Daa." Love it.

*She has started panting like a puppy more and more. Especially when she wants something and almost always when she sees us eating something and wants us to share with her!

*She had a fever yesterday and has a cough, but so far has not had another ear infection. I am asking that God protect her and keep her ears healthy.

*The girl continues to be obsessed with shoes. Everything is about shoes. She still wears a size 4 and I thought I should try a 5 on her. So I put a pair on her that just slip on. Unfortunately they are too big and fall off after a few steps. Even more unfortunate is that she gets very upset about this! She loves these shoes. Seriously as I type this she brought said shoes over to me asking, "Shoes? Shoes?" I told her to go ahead and put them on so she did. See how long before they fall off and she gets upset again!

*She loves apples and just saying "apple". If it's a food she doesn't know the name to...it's an apple. She can often be heard walking around saying, "Apple? Apple." Very cute!

*She has now said all of the boys names and will usually even say them on command. They get very excited about this. She is also in a phase where she loves to say "Mommy" all of the time. I love hearing her little voice call for me!

*The boys got some tiny jelly bracelets at a party last Friday. She has been wearing an arm full of them ever since. So funny to see all of the girly parts of her come out. She even puts them on herself!

*She likes to climb things. She has loved climbing stairs forever but now she will even climb up the very high play structure in our backyard. This has made it so that she can not be unwatched back there for even 30 seconds...it only takes that long before she has climbed right up the ladder to the top. She is too tiny to be climbing so high!

*She is in the 10th percentile for height and weight.

*She has added a new thing to her sleep ritual. She now needs her little blankie bear (one of those that just have the head and then a little blanket body), which I named "Pinky Bear" She loves it so much and I love that it was from her Auntie Susie who she doesn't get to see that often!

*On that note she had her first road trip this past month. We drove to Colorado and she did pretty well all things considered. She sure was happy to get out of the car after each two day drive though! She had fun playing with Bella and all of her things and getting to visit both her Grandma's in Fort Collins.

Alexis is a very happy girl. She loves to play, smile, snuggle and run. And every month brings fun and new things with her!

Alexis at 19 Months

Alexis turned 19 month a few days ago. I have been having a very hard time finding even a few minutes to write her monthly blog, so I'm just going to dive right in!

*My poor little girl has yet another ear infection. Seems that I am reporting this nearly every month now. As a result, the Dr did say that if this one doesn't go away, or she gets another one in the next month, she's going to need surgery. This makes me so nervous and sad. Zachary did have tubes put in, and they did help tremendously, but I really want to avoid putting her under! A friend did suggest blocking the water from getting in her ears during bath. She did this with her daughter who was having chronic ear infections and there was a huge improvement. So the ear plugs will be going in during bath and this gives me a spark of hope!

*I was surprised to find that she barely weighed 21 pounds with her clothes on. I guess I shouldn't have been since she's still in size 3 diapers that do not seem to be getting any snugger.

*She has been boycotting almost all the foods that she used to eat. I'm so bummed about this because she was just shaping up to be my best eater yet! She takes her food and chucks it on the floor and then just stares you down. We now have another one to do the food battle with and I'm not sure I have the strength left in me to go for round 4!! (I'll find it somewhere for her sake!)

*She absolutely loves to play! All day long moving from toy to toy. She is so good at playing on her own. She babbles along while she plays with a doll or one of her new favorites this month "The Little Einstein's Rocket". She has so many toys to choose from being the 4th child and she sure does enjoy them! It's really cute to watch her.

*If you had told me during the first months of her life that she was going to be an amazing sleeper....I would have laughed. Seriously. But she is such a good sleeper now! She will even ask for it sometimes by grabbing her blankie, going over to her crib and saying, "Nigh, Nigh? Nigh, nigh?" When we put her down for naps and bedtime she almost always, very willingly, goes right to sleep. Sigh. It's awesome!

*She's doing better with leaving her hair ponies in. She will almost always instantly rip them out in the car but while out and about she usually will leave them in for awhile. When I put them in I tell her how pretty and beautiful she looks and she seems good with that! The other day she grabbed a bow and asked me to put it in....made my heart happy! I'm so enjoying having a girl!

*She still likes to say "hi" to all the friends that are up on shelves along the top of her walls. We say hi to the bears, and then the other bears, and then to each one of her princess dolls who she loves me to say by name. She is very intent on learning all of the Disney Princess names and loves for us to say them over and over in books or wherever she see them!

*Her vocabulary has increased so much there are too many words to write. She will try and repeat many things that we say. Like this morning when I was telling her she was beautiful...she repeated me!

She's thrown a couple crazy-all-out-throw-yourself-on-the-floor fits but for the most part is pretty pleasant. She still likes to get in the cabinets and is always bringing me snacks she finds and saying, "Pease? Pease??" It's pretty hard to resist! We are all truly enjoying every day with our baby girl!

On the Road Again...

So this week I have started running again. It had been over 5 months since my last time out. This winter I have gained some weight back and I'm hoping to pound some of that off on the pavement. I've been frustrated at the constant diligence it takes to keep the scale from creeping upwards and I am noticing it's getting harder and harder. I think it's one of my first clear signs of "aging" along with a few gray hairs! So today was my third run this week and I was able to get up to 1.8 miles which I was happy with after such a long break. The furthest I have run to date is 3.3 miles and the most times in a month is 8. My goal this month is to run at least 9times and to lose at least 5 pounds. Those reading, feel free to help keep me motivated and accountable! (Who is reading these days??? Roll call!! ;0) )

My Februrary through Facebook Posts

I have often thought about how my Facebook posts tell a lot about my life in those short little blurbs. Here is a glimpse of life in February....through facebook!

Feb. 1st
Please pray for our friends baby, Finn. He went in for a routine surgery and is now having breathing complications. Please pray for his complete recovery!!

Feb. 3rd
Going to see Amy and Michael sing tonight!! A concert made in Heaven!!! Can't believe they are touring together...Merry Christmas to me!:0)

Nobody knew His secret ambition......

Feb. 6th
Big tv set up in the living room, lots of food covering the island...we are ready to start this party!:0)

Feb. 10th
So when you get a phone call home from your child's principal, praising them for their behavior and reading you a glowing note from their teacher...its awesome!!

Feb. 11th
Heading up to Arrowhead for the 6th year in a row!! Can't wait to make new memories!
:0)

Feb. 12th
Lexy's First time playing in snow!

Bryan is reading princess stories to the girls...so cute!!:0)

Feb. 13th
Feeding the ducks...6 year Arrowhead tradition after eating at the yummy waffle house!!

Feb. 15th
A member of Craig's team at work had a son born at 30 weeks yesterday and they lost him today. Please pray for their family. My heart is so heavy for them!:0(

Feb. 17th
Wow its amazing what just an hour of complete silence does for my head, mood and general well being!!

Feb. 18th
Happy Half Birthday to my sweet Alexis Joy and Happy 2nd Birthday to my sweet Bells!!! Wish we were there to celebrate with you!!

Today is also a day of loss as my Great Aunt Jocey passed today...I'm so sad for my Uncle Floyd, cousin Jessica and my Grandma.:0(

Feb. 19th
Making Valentine M&M cookies to bring to Grandma tomorrow!!

Feb. 21st
Lexy's first time facing forward and riding in her big girl car seat. She LOVES it!!!:0)

Hanging out with the Lemurs at the Santa Ana Zoo!! There are 5 on this rock!

Feb. 22nd
Craig just walked into the boys room to find Tyler standing in front of his closet...still asleep...looks like he was about to pee in it!! Good save dad!;0)

Feb. 23rd
At a Linkin Park concert with the hubby. Now that's love.

Feb. 24th
Happy Birthday to Susie! Friends since Jr High and as close as a sister! I wish all the best things for you today my friend!!:0)

Feb. 26th
Dropping off Tyler for GATE testing. Crazy.(Seriously how is my baby going to be in 4th grade next year????)

Jumping back into painting and starting with our room. I'm so excited that we finally will have color on the walls in there!!!

Feb. 28th
Just saw a woman smoking....and very pregnant. I can not tell you how upset that makes me and the restraint it takes not to go over and say something. Ugh!!!

It was an interesting month. God answered prayer and helped heal little Finn, there was a lot of saddness as an old soul left this earth as well as a brand new one and special birthday's were celebrated. I love Facebook and the fun interactions it provides but I also love how I can look back and see some of how I lived. Hopefully I can make this a monthly post and someday add it to our family scrapbooks. Some day being the key words!;0)

A Year and a Half

Tonight my baby girl turns one and a half. How that much time has flown by is beyond me. Everyone says, "Enjoy this time it will go so fast", heck I've told people that same thing....and it sure does! That little tiny 6 pound baby is walking, getting more of an opinion every day, learning to talk and making our whole family smile! Here are some glimpses of Alexis at 18 months!

*She is talking SO much more!! She says, mama, dadd-EE, baby, peas (please), tank-tew (thank you!), shoe!, bite, uh-oh, oh nooo!, Owwww!, No! (really picked this one up the past few days!), ki-ee (kitty), pretty, ....I know there are more and I will add them as I remember them!

*She still usually takes two naps and sleeps pretty well at night. She has a little routine we have to go through every time she lays down that goes: Lay her down, give her "blankie", cover her up, give her a bite (paci) and turn on her mobile that plays a song and displays lights for about 10 minutes. Miss a step and she'll let you know!

*She loves playing with her little square board books. All day long she will bring one to me and then turn around and start to back up to sit on my lap...even if I'm still standing! So cute!

*When you pick her up and she doesn't want you to, she is very good at stiffening her body and throwing it backwards so it's really hard to hold onto her!

*When she doesn't want food she will still shake her head so fast it's impossible to get to her mouth but now she's also added, "No, no, no!!!"

*She's still small, in size 3 diapers, wearing a size 4 shoe and a 12-18 month shirt is big on her (if it isn't Gymboree....could seriously write a blog all about the difference in sizes from one brand to the next!)I just realized yesterday she could wear some Gymboree 12-18 month jeans without them sagging and 9-12 month jeans from Carter's.

*She loves to play with her babies! She has even started "feeding" them and likes to push them around in strollers. I love when she puts them over her shoulder and hugs them!!

*Poor thing is still on antibiotics and battling an on-going ear infection! This round even had a special drug mixed in that is specifically for ear infections. She's almost done with this 10 day round and still has a runny nose. That does not mean good things for her ears. I really, really, REALLY want to avoid having to go the surgery route. Putting her under makes me so nervous.=0(

*She loves music! When we get into the car and turn the music on, if it has a good beat, you will immediately see her head begin to bob. And it will go in different directions depending on the song and tempo...so cute! The second she hears one of the first few songs off of Maroon 5's "Hand's All Over" she starts grooving to the beat!

*She continues to be fascinated with shoes! The shoes from our shoe bin are almost always in a big heap right in front of the bin and then there's a trail from the bin to the kitchen...to the living room...to the office...

*She got to play in the snow for the first time this past weekend. It was man made and not an ideal spot for her to really get the full experience so I'm hoping she gets another chance when we drive to Colorado next month!

As for her baby book, yeah still haven't gotten to that yet. I think I may be able to retrieve some of my brain cells back once Jacob is in Kindergarten...even if it's only for a few hours and will require even more daily running about! For now I will keep recording what I can here so each stage is captured forever! Because it really does go by....too fast!