More birthday fun...

(see blog below for Part I)
We had a small family get together for Shay's 2nd bday! Have to share frosting photos of course! Here was her take on the day:

"Yay, I get my party hat and party dress, now where is my bathing suit?" (she kept asking to wear it and I finally gave in!)

"I wish that Hank would kiss me back!"

"Mom - why are you making me wear this hat again?!"

"This frosting stuff is pretty good afterall!"

"Yay, more presents - everyone is so nice to me! I LOVE all my wonderful presents! THANKS!"

"This is one cool ride!"
(This is a rolling suitcase called a Trunki for Shayla - one of her gifts)

Shayla's Birthday Fun!

So Shayla is now two and the birthday celebrations are over! For those of you who were not able to share her birthday with us, here is a quick recap:

Birthday morning: Shayla opening presents from mom & dad! She loved this little piggy bank. Her big present this year was a Kitchen - I am sure I will have many fun photos to post of that in the days to come!

Mom, dad & Shayla in front of theater to see Sesame Street Live!
Shayla engrossed with the dancing and singing Elmo! She doesn't watch the show so does not know all the characters but knows Elmo (all kids do at birth I think), Abbey, and Big Bird from a few books toys and Elmo's potty video! So every time Elmo was not on stage she would keep asking for Elmo!

The Sesame St crew doing their thang!

Shayla giving "Elmo" a hug!

Shayla is TWO!!!

WOW!

I cannot believe my little baby girl is my big two year old toddler now!

"All the dreams I prayed you'd be, Are all the things you are to me!"

Shayla is such a joy in our lives! She is so independent now and wants to do everything on her own from getting dressed, using the bathroom, etc. and yesterday I guess I did not get her breakfast fast enough and she went into the cupboard, got our the cheerios and poured them into one of her play bowls and when I came downstairs she was sitting there eating them! It keeps speeding up from here I am told! She continues to love playing in the water, playing with dogs, playing at the park, all things play like a good kid should be happy doing! She loves her tumbling class and loves jumping, doing somersaults, walking on the balance beam, swinging from rings. This girl is truly FEARLESS! Too much so at times! She is also VERY social and VERY active and loves being around people (she calls everyone her "friends") and loves telling mommy and daddy how much she loves us "this much" and always up for giving hugs and kisses! She is our angel from above and I am excited to celebrate her 2nd birthday today and to start a new year with her that will bring so many new adventures and blessings!

HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY MY SHAY SHAY!!!

In anticipation of tomorrow...

Well, I didn't get Shayla's 2nd year scrapbook done in time for her birthday, but we have had lots of fun lately together, so that is worth it to me! In looking over a few photos I was putting together for a slideshow cd for her birthday party, I made a few collages of her over the past year! Here they are! Check back tomorrow for her adorable 2 Year Old photos!


SHAYLA THE SUNGLASSES GIRL
*No I do not cater to her by buying lots of sunglasses, she just wears them so much they often break so although there are lots in these photos we only have 2-3 that are actually functional right now (:

SHAYLA'S 2ND YEAR OF LIFE
A photo for each month of the year she was 1 years old! (not in order)

8 Years Later...

Eight years ago this day - Jon & I were married for time and all eternity in the San Diego Temple!

I cannot believe 8 years have past already and here we are still happily married with a beautiful daughter!

Jon - I love you! Thank you for continuing to be a man I want to be married to!

“We're all a little weird. And life is a little weird. And when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall into mutually satisfying weirdness - and call it love..."
...Robert Fulghum



On our wedding day - May 19, 2001

The only recent picture I could find of us without Shayla in it (;

Baby fun!

Saturday we had a baby shower for my/Jon's beautiful glowing cousin Ashley in anticipation of the arrival of Baby Hannah Grace Valentine (don't you love that name!?) We are so happy for them in their long, hard journey to have a baby and can't wait to meet her!


The family and glowing mother-to-be in the middle!


Some of the yummy food!

Shhhh, don't tell Jon the pool table makes a great changing table for niece Stella!

Shayla saying hi to her cousin Stella - love Stella's expression here!

Uh what election?

So if you are in California, I hope you know that the next election for all these crazy propositions is next Tuesday, May 19th. If you are an absentee voter you should get your ballot put in the mail by tomorrow if possible! Anyway, a very low turn out is expected and many people have forgotten about it, so I just thought I would remind you! Even if you are sick of all this nonsense and sick of voting, it is our duty as citizens to vote (can you imagine what life would be like if we did not have this right?)...so do your duty folks and vote!

FYI - I am voting no on all propositions - they are all basically short term solutions with long-term financial repercussions and if the state could not budget the money they have already taken from us, what makes us think they can now! This collection of bills includes a $16 billion tax increase, over $11 billion in spending authorizations and at least $5 billion in additional debt. It fails to address the fundamental problem: a desire to spend more money than the California government has, despite this year's unprecedented tax increases. This analogy makes the most sense - it is like California is trading off a car on which thousands are still owed and taking a loan for a new car where you are paying off both the new car and the old car you just got rid of.

Happy Moms Day!

Happy Mother's Day to our moms!

We cannot thank you enough for being the wonderful mothers you are and setting the standard high for me to try to follow as a mother! Every day that I am a mother, I appreciate you two more and more and understand the pain and joys that you must have gone through in raising your children! So, yes, we cannot thank you enough and we cannot love you enough!

My mom!

Jon's mom with Shayla

And Happy Mother's Day to all the other moms out there - my friends, sisters, family - you are dedicating your life to the best endeavor ever!

“Motherhood is the greatest potential influence either for good or ill in human life. The mother’s image is the first that stamps itself on the … young child’s mind. It is her caress that first awakens a sense of security; her kiss, the first realization of affection; her sympathy and tenderness, the first assurance that there is love in the world.” David O. McKay (1873–1970)

One way to get your kids to eat their Spinach!

I posted this on my mom's forum and am posting it here because I KNOW how hard it is to get kids to eat their green veggies - especially spinach - and this is a GREAT recipe! I hope you all try it and your kids love it too!

Lily Pads
(From Sesame Street Silly Snacks Cooking With Kids Book)
These are a great way to get your kids to eat their spinach! They are so good! I make them without cheese and serve plain for lunch or dinner or even with a little bit of butter for breakfast! They are like mini spinach pancakes! Try them today so your kids get their dose of superfood greens!

2 cups packed fresh baby spinach leaves (about half a bag a 6-ounce bag)
2 eggs
1 Tablespoon melted butter, plus more for skillet
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup low-fat milk
Slices of American Cheese (optional)

1. Put the spinach in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Pulse on and off until the spinach is coarsely chopped. Add the eggs, butter, salt, sugar and nutmeg and process until combined.
2. Add the flour and process until combined. Add the milk and process until the batter is smooth.
3. In the meantime, lay the slices of cheese on a cutting board. Cut out circles using a 1 1/2 –inch cookie cutter. Save the scraps for another snack.
4. Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat and brush lightly with melted butter. Drizzle the batter onto the skillet in circles about 2 inches in diameter. Cook 1 minute or until the edges turn dull. Flip each lily pad, then top as many as you wish with cheese.
5. Cover and cook an additional 30 seconds or until cheese melts. Remove the lily pads to a plate and repeat the steps with the remaining batter.
Makes about 30 lily pads.

A little bit of everything week!

Wow - I cannot believe it is May already!
That being said - this last week of April was a very full week for us and we had lots of fun little outings! Shayla and I had lots of fun outings during the week. Jon was off at his shooting trip this weekend that he goes on once a year with the guys to make sure all their guns still work (they shoot targets not animals, blow things up, and have a giant bonfire, etc).

Anyway, here are some of the highlights of our week -


Monday - Circus time! This circus came to Fillmore and I thought Shayla would enjoy it. She REALLY did like it more than I thought and cried when it was over! Although it was a bit cheezy she had a great time as we watched the tight rope walkers, jugglers, horses, ball of death (2 motorcyclers circled each other in the medal ball in the background). And heck, what could one expect from a Fillmore circus on a Monday night?

Thursday - Checking out the new condor exhibit at Santa Barbara Zoo. It was such a beautiful day. This picture does not do these birds justice - they are so enormous and the background was so lovely. There is actually a Condor sanctuary in the hills around Fillmore but I have never seen one so close!

Friday - choo-choo! Shayla does a class called Teeny Weeny Wigglers which is kind of pre-gymnastics and she loves it - her 2 favorite parts are when she gets to swing on rings over mats and the end where all the kids line up and choo-choo around!

Saturday - Parties galore! We had 2 birthday parties and a baby shower! Shayla had SO much fun at them all! Here is a photo of her going down a big slide all by herself at Pump It Up (we will definitely going back there - she loved it!)

Anyway, so a great way to start out the month of May! Hope you are all doing great!