Cancun Baby!!

We had the pleasure of going on a much needed family vacation in May.  To be honest, we talked about it for a few months but I was having a hard time committing to spending the money, but ended up just going for it and planning the trip about 6 weeks before we went.  That meant having to rush passports for the girls and I - an extra $300 on top of an already ridiculous price.  Then, the passports arrived in our mailbox in less than a week.  I was a little annoyed and wished the post office would have just held onto them for a couple of weeks to make me feel better.  Oh well, if I hadn't put a rush on them, I would have been stressed everyday until they came in.

So, the day finally came to head out.  Our flight left at 6a!  I picked this flight because the total travel time was 6 hours and we got into Cancun around 2p.  I figured we would get in, check into the hotel, get a good dinner and go to bed early.  That way, we would recover from the travel in one day and not loose a day of vacation due to tired and crabby kids.

Ivan and I got up around 3:30a and got ready.  Then we got the girls up and into the car and were on our way to the airport.  We picked up Grandma Lola who joined us for the vacation and Uncle D who was taking us to the airport.  The entire ride to the airport, Emery was complaining that her tummy was hurting.  She tends to be a little dramatic at times so we just kind of blew it off.  As soon as we pulled up to the airport, Emery started crying and threw up all over herself and her car seat.  Throw up of milk and water, EVERYWHERE!  I immediately started stressing but luckily, we hadn't checked our luggage so I grabbed a change of clothes and Grandma Lola took her to the bathroom to get her cleaned up and changed.  Emery ended up throwing up all day long, the last time was when we were in line for customs in Mexico.  Luckily, all of the people who had to witness/hear her throwing up throughout the day were very understanding.  Now, the best part, pictures to document our exciting and relaxing vacation!

The girls on the plane.  Even though Emery was sick, she was really good and not too whiny.  Both girls were really good on both flights and the layover to Mexico.

Cuddling in the morning ...

We spent basically everyday relaxing at the pool..

We saw iguana's everywhere.  Some of the waiters even gave Emery a little cup up fruit to feed the iguana's

We had a pack n play in our room for Paisley to sleep in.  The first night we were there, Paisley just could not get to sleep - she cried and fussed for hours.  We finally gave her some Tylenol and let her sleep in bed with us.  Bad idea!  She ended up sleeping in bed with us every night.

Paisley LOVES, LOVES, LOVES birds!  She spent a good amount of time every day chasing these birds all around hoping to finally catch one

Our view from the patio of our hotel room

Sisters ..

I only took the single stroller figuring that Emery would walk since we wouldn't be walking far.  Wrong!  Emery rode in the stroller 90% of the time and would occasionally let Paisley ride with her.

We went to Wet N Wild one day and had a great time!

This is one of the rides at Wet N Wild.  Normally, I would never get on something like this.  I don't really like water, especially in my face.  I also don't like heights and I'm not the greatest swimmer.  Well, earlier in the day, Emery and Ivan were going down one of the twisty slides together.  Emery told me not to be a chicken and to go down with them, so I did.  I then decided to join them on all of the slides.  I screamed like a baby both times I went and then decided I had enough.

 We spent basically everyday at the pool, but we did go down to the sand one day for a couple of hours.  The girls had a good time playing in the sand and making sandcastles.

Back at the pool for a day of fun and relaxing ..

Both of our rooms had these huge jacuzzi tubs in them.  Emery and Paisley loved taking baths and playing in the huge tubs.

Emery and I had the pleasure of having a mommy-daughter date for a mani/pedi.  Emery loved it and asks to go back to Mexico to get a mani/pedi all of the time.

Paisley, the "baby monster" in action - she drew all over the marble floor with marker - good thing it wiped right off.

On the flight home, Paisley pee'd through her diaper.  I've been lucky with both girls that they never really had diaper blow outs and never really pee'd through their diapers.  So, because of this, I don't carry a diaper bag or a change of clothes with me.  My purse is big enough for a few diapers, wipes and sippy.  Well, after Paisley pee'd through her diaper, I didn't have clothes.  So, in the Dallas airport, I was forced to buy her some clothes - this was the only thing they had, so I went with it.  She doesn't look to happy about being in them either ..

All in all, we had a fabulous vacation to Mexico.  On most trips, I ready to go home to reality after just a few days.  We spent 7 days in Mexico, and we really could have stayed for another 5+ days and been perfectly happy.  We will be going back to Moon Palace for sure!  In fact, I wish I could be there right now ...

April 2012 Catch Up

Just the girls being girls, Paisley trying to run away, and Emery trying to get Paisley to stand still for a picture for me.  All with the dog hanging around waiting for Paisley to feed him ..

As I've mentioned, Paisley is a CLIMBER!  She pulled the chair over to the counter and climbed up it, in a matter of 3-5 minutes.  She saw Ivan put the fruit snacks in the cupboard and she was determined to get them!  After that incident, she climbed up to the kitchen table and fell off backwards.  She cried for a minute, then went along with her business.  In the same day, she climbed up the back of the chair and leaned over, falling head first to the kitchen floor.  I was right there, but my reflexes were about 3 seconds short.  She wasn't hurt either time, just scared.  I will say though, while she has not stopped climbing, I think she has learned which way to position the kitchen chair so she doesn't fly face first again.  This kid of mine!

We took the girls to the zoo one day to enjoy the nice Utah Winter weather.  It was great to get out of the house and see the animals.

 Papa and miss Paisley ..

 It looks like Paisley just had to have Emery's left over lunch (and my coke).  OK, OK, she may just still be in her jammies and it must have been lunch time.  We quite often have lazy days where we don't go anywhere and we hang out in our jammies all day.

I signed Emery up for soccer this year.  We did dance for a year and Emery liked it at first, but I think it was too long of a season and just too much attention on her.  The soccer season was only 6 weeks and I wanted Emery to get to spend time around other kids again.  When I told her I was signing her up for soccer, she wasn't very excited.  Then I told her about getting cleats and a ball - she said she would play soccer, only if the cleats and ball were pink - of course!  So, I found both in pink and off we went.  We are now into the last 2 weeks of the soccer season and Emery is doing really good and she really likes it.  It is fun to see her get excited about soccer and want to go back every week.  I just signed her up for next season as well.  In this picture, it was a very warm and sunny day, so I had already lathered her up with sunscreen, hence the shiny face :)

 Here Paisley is climbing onto the kitchen table again.  I swear she thinks it is the place she is supposed to play at all of the time.

 And her artwork!  This time, she missed her face.  She usually thinks that markers are makeup and puts it all over her face, arms and hands.

 More evidence.  When she's in her highchair or seat, she doesn't eat much.  As soon as you take her out, she thinks she's starving and will eat her food and Emery's.  Baby Monster, I tell you!

 Do you believe me yet!

February 2012 Catch Up

I am just trying to do a quick catch up of pictures that I've taken but yet to post on the blog.  All of these are from February (well, that's the date on the photo album from the camera anyway).  

Paisley is still our little "Baby Monster" - she's a climber for sure.  She came up with the plan of moving the train to the drawer and to climb on top of it to get the sucker all by herself.  She also executed the plan all by herself and managed to not get hurt in the process.  

We went to a nearby school to play one afternoon.  We had an unusually warm Winter and there were many days where it was nice enough to play outside.  The girls had a blast!

Paisley L-O-V-E-S shoes.  Specifically, Emery's shoes.  For most of the Winter, Paisley was known to be walking around the house with Emery's "golden boots" on.

Sisters!  The girls hanging out in our bed one morning drinking O.J. and watching cartoons - priceless!

Paisley's 18 Month Update

I took Paisley to her 18 month appt today. She is right on track and doing great.

Weight - 23.81 lbs - 43rd percentile

Height - 32.68 in - 79th percentile

Paisley was pretty consistent with her weight compared to where she was at 15 months. She jumped from the 62nd percentile up to the 79th percentile in height - but I'm not 100% sure that is right. She hates to lay on the table with the paper on it, so it was a little rough getting an accurate height. I wouldn't be surprised if she "shrinks" (haha) or doesn't get much taller between now and her 2 yr check up because of this. My god! It seems crazy to talk about her 2 yr check up already!

Paisley is still a very good baby, but she's also still a little CRAZY! Her favorite thing to do these days is to climb up the kitchen chairs, climb up to the dining room table and hang out right in the middle of the table. If it's quiet and we can't find Paisley anywhere, the first place we look is on top of the table and she's usually there.

She's obsessed with toothbrushes and shoes! She loves to wear Emery's boots and shoes and we play the "put on/take off" game all day long. Paisley has about 5+ toothbrushes and she always has one in her hand. When I brush her teeth, it must tickle her gum because she just giggles and giggles away. I love it!

She is babbling like crazy too. She says "mama, papa, Carter, shh, boots, mas, good, ya". When Paisley calls for me and is another room, there are times that I can't tell if it is Paisley or Emery - Paisley just sounds so grown up already.

Paisley is still a good eater, but I think she is starting to get to the stage where she isn't eating quite enough. Actually, at times, Emery eats better than Paisley - that's saying A LOT! Paisley is a great sleeper, usually from 8p-8a and then one nap a day - 1-3 hours.

Pictures to come once I buy a new camera. Ours finally bit the dust and I need to do some camera shopping ASAP.

Emery got MARRIED!!!

Emery has basically been obsessed with Peter Pan for the last few months. She got a new bedtime story book for Christmas from Grandma Lola and there are a few stories about Peter Pan in it - I think that's what got it all started.

Well, at first, she was talking about her and Peter Pan going on a picnic together. Innocent enough right? Then, she started telling me that her and Peter got married. She talks about Peter coming along with us all of the time and how we have to make room for him in the car. OK, still pretty innocent, right?

Last night, Emery and I were laying in my bed watching TV before bed. This is how it went:

Emery whispering, "Mama, I'm in love with Peter"

Me (after opening my eyes widely), "why do you love Peter?"

Emery, "well, we already got married. I love him"

Me, "what makes you love Peter?"

Emery, "he's brave, strong and handsome"

I'm not sure how she knows so much about love and marriage at such a young age. It just goes to show that she is really grown up and getting to be such a big girl!

Tubing at Soldier Hollow

We took the trip up to Midway to go tubing at Soldier Hollow last weekend. We went up with my BFF Mandy and her three boys and had great time!

Nothing like a full-blown tantrum from Paisley before we left. Yes, we are the type of parents that pull out the camera when our kids throw tantrums!

Paisley and I hung out at the bottom of the hill the entire 2 hours. Truth be told, I am a little bit of a wimp and was kinda scared to go down the hills - they looked huge. I always jokingly (well, I'm semi-serious) that I will keep having babies so when we do things like this, I will stay at the kiddie hill with the babies and he can take the big kids to do the exciting stuff.
We people watched and I pulled Paisley up and down the kiddie hill for 2 hours - we both had a great time! Lucky for us, the weather was perfect - I even had my jacket off for a while.
Ivan and Emery
Paisley ended up taking a little nap in her tube. Trust me, I actually contemplated getting myself a tube and laying in it just like Paisley - she looked soo comfy!
The whole gang!
Lincoln walked Emery down the hill - they were so cute together!!

Well Baby Visits

I took the girls for their well baby check ups last month. They both are healthy as can be and growing right on track. Emery had to get 1 shot (the chicken pox vaccine that I had been holding off on) and poor Paisley had to get 4 shots.

As soon as we got to the Dr's office, Emery was miss chatter box, like she always is these days. She was talking up a storm to the nurse and couldn't wait to go first for Dr. Ring to check her heartbeat and examine her. After I decided to have Emery get the chicken pox vaccine, I started explaining to Emery that she had to get 1 little shot. The nurse asked Emery if she wanted to go first - nope, not for the shot - she wanted to go second. Both girls took the shots like champs and only cried for a minute.

Here are their stats:

Emery - 4 yrs old

Height - 40.75 in - 64th percentile

Weight - 33 lbs - 34th percentile

BMI - 14.3 - 17th percentile

Paisley - 15 months old

Height - 31 in - 62nd percentile

Weight - 23 lbs - 50th percentile

Hide & Seek with Emery..

Emery and I were playing hide and seek today - I was hiding behind the couch and she was sitting on the couch covering her eyes and counting, patiently waiting to go seek me. Her counting went a little like this ...

"1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, oops, I went past 10, ready or not here I come"

I just love this little girl so much!

Christmas Day 2011

We had a great time celebrating Christmas this year. I keep saying this, but the holidays really do get funner and funner as the kids get older. Emery came into our room around 8a and was so excited that Santa had come and left her presents. She did a good job of trying to be patient while we got up, got Paisley up and got ready to open presents.

Here is Emery with her loot ...
As expected, Paisley was totally satisfied with a few edible treats .. I will be the first to admit that Emery probably watches way too much TV. I think the thing that confirmed that statement is that 2 of her gifts (and the one's she was most excited about) came from infomercials that she'd seen on TV. One for a cup and ice cubes to make slushies - the silly thing was $15! but I saw it and Walgreen's and knew she would love it so I bought it The aftermath ... The girls and Ivan watching a movie and drinking milk waiting for the next set of activities while I was in the kitchen cooking awayEmery was so excited for her roller skates. She got them from Santa. As soon as she opened them, she asked where her helmet, knee pads and elbow pads were - this girl is all about being safe!
Just to prove I was actually there ..
Paisley loves all food, snacks, treats, candy - you name it - she loves it. She totally loved this sucker from See's Candy.
We had a pretty low key Christmas here at home - our family came over to enjoy a nice dinner and we played Monopoly and stuffed our bellies full with dinner and desserts. Emery is already asking how many days until the next Christmas - we will see how she's doing at being patient now that she has to wait a whole year.