Halloween... better late than never

I know, I know it seems like Halloween was forever ago but I have been really bad about posting. I can't omit this event from my blog, so here it goes.

Natalie decided that she wanted to be Little Mermaid for Halloween about a month before the big day and cleverly tricked, eh hem, I mean asked her Mimi nicely to buy her the outfit for her. Thank you Pam :) We had two Halloween parties to attend prior to the big day. To each of these she was Little mermaid and wore her costume. I even spray painted her hair red! She looked cute but can I tell you that I am ready for her to want to dress up as something other than a princess? Disney has a strangle hold on my child, or so I thought.....

Natalie decided about 4 hours before trick-or-treat time that she would like to be a cheerleader Halloween night. What's that? You want to change your costume last minute. Normally a mom would freak out and run around trying to get things together or just flat out say "no, sorry it's too late, we already have your costume". But we did actually have a cheerleader costume she wore 2 years ago. How it still fit I have no idea but it did. I even had a big red bow and a pom-pom! I did have to run to Wal-mart last minute to buy white tennis shoes. What cheerleader is complete with out white tennis shoes? And here you go ... two Halloween costumes. Both as cute as can be.

Natalie Starts Dance

Natalie started dance in late September. She does 20 minutes of tap and 20 minutes of ballet. She really likes it and it is so cute to watch all of the girls together. Most of the girls in her class go to the same preschool so they get to see eachother more often. They all get along really well. She has a recital performance in June. I hear these are really cute and I can't wait. Hopefully I won't be in the hospital giving birth and I will be able to see it! That would be a real bummer to miss.

Where Have I Been ???

Hello,

It has been forever since I last posted. I would be suprised if anyone is still bothering to check this site out. A lot has happened in the past 8 or so weeks. First and foremost, a topic which has consumed my every thought in that time............

I'M PREGNANT AGAIN !!!!!!!!!!! Yeah! Baby is due June 24th. This date is quite interesting, my birthday is June 22nd and Natalie's dance recital is June 20th. I am just hoping that I don't miss her recital but I'm sure everything will work out okay!
Needless to say, we are overjoyed at our oportunity to bring another baby into our family! Thank God for blessing us. Thanks to all of our friends and family for praying for us. Please continue, we want nothing more than a healthy happy baby!

Little Patriot

Natalie surprised us yesterday evening when we were looking through her preschool folder. We saw that there was a paper with the pledge of allegiance on it and she started reciting it. Wow!

I'm so in love!

I have to tell you, I have the best husband and daughter! Tonight we went for sushi and Natalie went with us. I knew she was an adventurous eater, but who knew she was this great? One of my all time biggest pet peeves is picky eaters, so in our rolls as parents Kenny and I strive to not exclaim when we don't care for something. Thanks especially to Kenny since he is the one with aversions to some foods. I mean when we got married he didn't like mustard. What? I think I would eat a cricket if it were covered in enough chocolate or spice. Yuck, did I just say that :)? Anyway, back to my wonderful daughter, she was not only great dinner company (inside voice, polite to waitress, ordered her own food, sat in her seat even at the end when Mommy & Daddy were finishing up and talking) OMG this would have been enough but this girl had to steal my heart again just like she has from the beginning. She ate SUSHI and liked it! She ate edamame and miso soup and exclaimed "Mommy can I have some more?" We were just sitting there, Natalie with her noodles and us with our sushi and she looks at us and says "can I have some of that", picks up a piece of volcano roll and puts it in her mouth. Aghh- heem, she just turned 3 years old!







Okay, okay maybe I'm bragging a bit, but that is my right as a parent, right? And what better place than here? I am so thrilled knowing how her open mind will serve her in her life. Yeah for her! Yeah for us that we can have a dinner like this. Yeah that Natalie has an open mind, this is one of my great wishes for her in her life and tonight it was displayed to me ten fold.
So why am I so excited about a sushi dinner other than the aforementioned? Ken and I have started trying for another baby and I feel my time coming to a close. I must get my sushi and sake in now! I'm pretty sure you only crave things when you can't have them. My plan is to eat enough so I don't crave it when I can't have it.
Thank you to my family for such a wonderful night! I love you two!

Circus!

Friday night we took Natalie to the Circus for the first time. We just thought she would have fun but she and we had a blast! It really is true about the circus being for kids of all ages. Who knew elephants and clowns could be so entertaining?

We got there early so we could see the animal open house and the pre-show. We got to see an elephant paint, dogs do tricks, acrobats and a hula girl. This was a lot of fun too. We were right down on the floor of the Frank Erwin center and up close and personal with the performers and animals. Can I just say I want to pet an elephant? They are amazing animals. Natalie said she wanted one for a pet and for a second I thought "That would be so cool, we should buy some land". Then I remembered I pay people to come scoop my two dog's poop out of the yard. I don't think Dog Duty does elephants.

Natalie was looking forward to seeing tigers and elephants so when the show began with just performers dancing this is what I was hearing...

"Mommy I don't like this show, I don't like it at all."

We explained to her that the circus was ever changing and that the animals were soon to come. Here is what she looked like when the animals finally came out. I guess this is the beside yourself look?

The most hilarious thing about this whole thing was that Natalie learned how to "cheer" at an event. The clowns wanted to everyone to make noise so everyone was clapping and "whooo-hoooing". Natalie looked at me like "what is going on?" I told her she could scream too. She took me literally" ..... "Aggghhhhh" like you are scared out of your mind or someone just jumped out at you. This is how she started. By the end of the show she was "whoooo-hooooing" along with everyone else. She is so smart, she learned how to conform.

By the end of the circus, we had eaten cotton candy (a must), a hot dog, nachos, and three waters. We also purchased a light up toy for Natalie and a stuffed elephant which Natalie later named Ellie. Kenny and I could have had a pretty nice sushi dinner for the cash we shelled out this night. It was worth it though. We all had a great time and I will gladly go again next year.

You Call That an Awning?!

My neighbors next door have decided they need some more shade outside one of their windows. Unfortunately for me this window is right outside one of MY windows. They have "fashioned" an awning after several attempts at other devices including an outdoor umbrella that looked like a palapa except instead of thatching it was made of beige trash bag material. I wish that had worked out since this "Awning" is all I see now out my dining room window. Even though this has to be against the H.O.A. guidelines I cannot complain because I am the only unfortunate one who can see it.

Now I am showing you these pictures but I'm sure they probably have a patent on this design so don't run off and copy them. This is some fine craftsmanship! You know you have a quality product when it is tied in place with string to your nearby bushes. I think the two different materials and sagging cost extra. Now, other than the drought we are in I have another reason to wish for a big rainstorm. I'm pretty sure a strong wind could take this thing out. Until then I will continue to laugh at it instead of let it bother me :) Come on rain!