Little Lady

My little lady is FiVe!!!!!

Last weekend we celebrated Isabella's fifth birthday with a fun-filled birthday weekend!

Her actual birthday was on Saturday and we started off the day with sprinkle donuts in her decorated chair.  From there we spent the morning getting ready for her party at the gym that we belong to.  She has been wanting to have her party here since we joined and I caved, but I am glad that I did because it was a great place to have a party. Lots of fun activities for the kids with the highlight being the slide into the outdoor pool.   

We ended the night with dinner and her favorite spot, Mi Ranchito.  They serenaded her with a birthday song in Spanish that took her by surprise.  I wasn't sure how she would handle it, this used to make me get tears in my eyes as a kid, but she did great!  She even wore the sombrero while they sang.

The next day we went to see Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.  We love the book at our house and they were very excited to see the movie.  The movie was fantastic and fun for the kids because they got to wear 3D glasses.

The best part for me was on the morning of her birthday she woke up and said, " Mommy am I five right now?"  I told her "yes'.  She then told me, "Mommy, why aren't my feet any bigger, why aren't I any taller, I can't tell that I am five".  I love to know what their little minds are thinking.  I convinced her that she was for sure five and she spent the whole day telling all that would listen that she was "five".

Thanks to all that came to help celebrate her big day, it meant the world to her and she loved having you there.

What a great day I had with you bug, I can't believe you are five already because I still remember how you fit into my hands the day that you came into this world.  You are beautiful inside and out!  

I love you!!!

Congrats to the Kramers!!!

This weekend our family traveled to the wonderful town of Springfield, Illinois for a wedding.  Kyle's good friend from med school has been doing his Urology residency here for the last five years and met the girl of his dreams.  She is fantastic and we are excited for both of them as they start their new adventure.  They are actually looking to move to the KC area in the next year so we are very excited at the thought of having them near.

Mimi got to go with us on the trip which was a huge help.  Not only on the 5 1/2 hour car ride but also during the wedding festivities.  Kyle was a groomsman in the wedding so there were some extra duties.  The kids got to come to the wedding and the reception and they had an absolute blast.  They were dancing like crazy people and having the time of their lives.  When we got in the car to come home Margaret told me that her feet were soooo tired from dancing and she needed some sleep.  You don't hear this much from my two-year-olds mouth so I knew the night had been a good one.

You may be wondering why no pictures, well really we were all just too busy trying to get places on time that every time I thought about taking a pic I just talked myself out of it because my hands were full.  I am hoping that some good ones were taken at the reception and I can post later.

There is just one pic that I was able to take on the trip and it requires a little story telling.

Anyone that knows me knows that I love to save a buck.  By listening to my sister-in-laws I know that this holds true for my brothers as well... I think we can thank our good ole dad for this one.  Anywhoo, I found a hotel near all of the wedding sites that was a little bit cheaper than the one they suggested.  After reading many excellent reviews online I figured what the heck, let's save money!  Well this is what I got...

yes folks this is a train track and this picture was taken outside our room window and no I did not use the zoom!  This was a working Amtrak which had trains passing through about six times between 6:00 pm and 6:30 am.  It seemed as though everytime they got to our window they blew the whistle.  Oh good times, good times with Mimi, Kyle and three kids!

I can't wait to write my review for the hotel, I think all I will write is TRAINS, TRAINS, and more TRAINS!

Day at the Club

Labor Day we headed to Topeka for an adventure that we hadn't yet accomplished... golfing with all three kids!!!  You may be thinking YIKES!!!  But it wasn't too bad and surprisingly we lasted seven of the nine holes.  

This is something that Kyle has wanted to do with the kids forever.   We were headed to Kyle's parents for an evening BBQ so we thought what better time to see how it goes.  Nana and Gran Stan met us at the club for this adventure, thank goodness because we needed the extra hands!

Our little golfers geared up and ready to go!

They loved riding in the carts, especially when Gran Stan let them drive!

Everyone ready to hit the links!

 Isabella is taking the lessons from her daddy seriously, listening to every single instruction given.  Can't wait to get this girl clubs, I think she will be a natural!

Now my Margaret wanted to do things a little differently... when Gran Stan approached her to give her a little advice my little ball of fire let him know that 

"I can do it all myself!"

Having never played the game before she did pretty darn good without the help.

Of course Walter just loved the idea of hitting a ball with a stick.  He spent all afternoon chasing and saying "Ball"

Too cute!

Had to post this because I have a feeling that there will be many more golf dates to come for these two...

We had a fantastic day, thanks so much!

Irish Fest

Last weekend we made it to the Irish Festival.  I have been wanting to go for years since I have lived here but something always seems to come up Labor Day weekend and we never make it.  This year Kyle was coming off of a week of night float and we had to clear the house to allow him some sleepy time so we took the complimentary tickets (score) that my neighbor gave us and headed over to Crown Center.

There was loads of things for little ones to do, just a little pricey.  Children under twelve got in free but to do any of the activities they needed a $10 bracelet or they could pay per activity.  Since we were staying awhile I caved and bought the bracelets and it was definitely worth it, the kids had a blast.  The theme for the kids was pirates and fairies!

Sir Walter with his mighty sword.  

He loved this balloon sword and he carried it around all day having sword fights with his cousins.  He couldn't wait to show his daddy when he got home.  As he was walking into the backyard to show Kyle it got caught on a bush and popped before he could show it to him.  He had the saddest look on his face...it was pitiful!

My pink fairy Isabella really got into this theme.  She brought her own wings to the fest and spotted a matching wand when we got there.  Cha-ching  $$$$ times two for the other fairy who spent most of the day looking like this...

my little green fairy brought wings as well but for some reason has been unhappy with life lately.  I am hoping that this is just a stage and something that shall too pass because I need my Margaret giggles back fast!

It was a beautiful day and the kids got to spend the day with wonderful family.  Lots of cousins, aunts and uncles, and second cousins.  I had a great time seeing everyone and listening to the music, it was beautiful!

Big Boy At the Table

Our little man has finally moved up to the big boy table!

Last night we moved Walter from his highchair (which sat in a corner because of his throwing food everywhere phase) to a booster seat at the family table.  He was so excited to sit with all of us and I must say I like him here with us.  We would always move him near the table when he was in his highchair, but this is just different.  I like having us all here as a family.  He was a good boy and refrained from throwing food at all of us.  He does need to work on his noise level at the table...and his growling ( for some reason he does this to us as he eats... maybe he has been hanging out with Shadow a little too much).

At breakfast this morning Margaret loved having Walter there to make funny faces and noises with.  

All smiles!

Margaret's First Day of School!!!

Miss Margaret made it through her first day of school last week like a true BIG girl!  Of course Mom and Dad got to go with her to play and she only had to stay for an hour, the real deal starts this coming week so we shall see.  

On Parent night I brought home a picture of her two teachers for her to see them and get familiar with who they are.  Needless to say when I showed the picture to Margaret the next morning she informed me she didn't want those teachers as she threw the picture across the living room.  I am praying that I just caught her at a bad moment, you just never know with this two-year-old.

I have her in a Kids Day Out program that is only one day a week.  It is nice because she is not quite three but definitely ready to get out of the house and do something on her own.  It is a long day for her, she is there for lunch and well into the afternoon.  She was so excited at the thought of getting to eat lunch there and the fact that she got a new lunch box.  This will also be a nice day for me to have some one-on-one with my main man (sorry Kyle) Walter while the girls are off getting smarter.  We just won't know what to do with ourselves, but I am sure we will figure it out!  Although I am a big talker now, I am sure that next week when I drop her off I am going to get some tears flowing.

Playing playdough in her new classroom:)

Margaret's first day of school!