Botanical Gardens

I have been wanting to go to the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens for awhile and a few weeks ago I just decided to go! The kids and I had an awesome time!! The gardens were beautiful and it was so relaxing! The kids had a fun time running around and playing and worked up a good appetite before we picked up their Daddy for a nice lunch. I think that I was able to get some nice shots and thought I would share a few :-)

I can't believe that it is already the 2nd week of May!!! May is always one of our busiest months and it looks like this year won't disappoint! We have a trip to Disney, Daniel's birthday, our Anniversary, last day of school and family birthdays all in a span of 2 weeks!! And of course I have lots I need to do to get us ready for everything!!! Have a great May!!

A few more pictures...

I finally have a minute to update with a few pictures from the last month!

First up are the Easter pictures. We had so much fun with the kids!

There was lots of egg decorating and some cookie baking:

I made the kids chocolate eggs- one Jack Skellington and one Potato Head. And I also made giant chocolate bunnies that the kids loved! Then the kids were off on a scavenger hunt to find what the Easter Bunny had left for them.

Then of course there was an all out hunt for eggs and goodies!

When I heard that Disney on Ice was coming to town, I knew we had to take the kids! Daniel really enjoyed it the last time and I knew they would both love it! The week before the show, we met Tony for lunch downtown and we stopped at the Convention Center to buy tickets. I distracted Daniel long enough that he didn't know what the tickets were for! Tony asked what kind of discounts there were and somehow he scored some good seats with a discount! The day of the show, we headed downtown for lunch. We kept telling Daniel that Tony had to go to work and he was so disappointed. After lunch, we took a walk downtown and stopped in the bookstore to browse. Then we headed towards the Convention Center. As he saw more and more people there, he started asking what was going on and where we were going. Tony kept saying "I don't know what's going on- let's go see". When we were right outside, it clicked- he might have seen a sign or something. He started jumping up and down yelling that we were going to the Disney Ice show. It was great!! As we were walking in, Daniel spotted Jack Skellington on the program and flipped out! We actually didn't realize Jack was in the show- it was a nice surprise. We all really loved the show! It was a lot better than the one last year and so much fun! We can't wait for the next show!!

The next weekend, Tony's brother, wife and daughter were in Texas for a few days. Our Niece's 2nd birthday fell during their trip and a party was held at Chuck E. Cheese. The kids had fun, but I will just say that Chuck E Cheese is not for Tony and I!

It has been a busy month and it isn't quite over yet!! And May is going to be even busier with a trip to Disney, Daniel's 6th birthday and our 15th Anniversary along with a lot of other things!!

More from March...

Here are a few more pictures of the kids from March. Everytime I look at these pictures I realize how big they both are getting! The time really does fly when you are having fun!

I love how close they are and that they love being together so much! Hopefully it's a bond that they will always share! Both of these kids just melt my heart!

Catching up...

Seems like it has been awhile since I last posted! Things have been busy around here for sure. I had a few weeks where I had a lot of cakes which kept me pretty busy when added on top of everything else! Instead of posting the cake pictures individually, I'll post a link to my photobucket account and you can look at them if you like.

Since I haven't posted pictures of the kids since March, let's just start there! Daniel is just growing up into such a great young man! He loves to help around the house as well as play, play play! After it had been so long that I had forgotten about it, he lost his first tooth one night. He was initially a little scared, but got over that quickly and thought it was super cool! For days, he would go around smiling at me so I would see it and smile. He is quite the character!



Arianna's personality continues to bloom-she is a character like her brother! She takes after her big brother in a lot of respects. She is so sweet. She's my little kissing bandit- she just randomly goes to one of us and kisses us on the leg, arm, face, head- whatever is easiest to reach. She still likes to copy everything we do which can be funny at times!

Although we don't seem to have much of a "spring" here in Texas, it is nice when we can get outside and play!

We hadn't been to the zoo in awhile and I had planned to go the next week...until Tony reminded me that it was Spring Break! I was glad that I scratched those plans when I started seeing reports from the Zoo and Museum on Facebook about their record attendance. I didn't want any part of that! So, we made some alternate plans that week and went to the zoo the next week. We had great weather and practically had the whole place to ourselves. We got to check out the new Museum of Living Art (MOLA) exhibit. It is very well done and well all enjoyed it. The only thing Daniel did not like about it was the HUGE tarantula...but everything else was good!

Then we headed off in our usual direction and saw some of our favorites. We had great views of two Cheetahs which can be a rare thing. The Penguins were being fed so there was a lot of activity there- just not in the water. Daniel said he was happy that I got to see the Giraffes since they are one of my favorites!

The train wasn't working, but we had the carousel all to ourselves. The kids had a great time riding and the guy working it actually left us on there for quite awhile. I think I was starting to get a little dizzy near the end. After the zoo, we headed downtown for a nice lunch with Tony.

Daniel's school had their Easter party on a Friday and since Tony works from home that day, I decided to go help out in his class. The teacher asked me if I could pick up the pizzas which was no problem. A couple of the kids told me repeatedly that they liked my pizza ;-). Another Mom and I "hid" the eggs before the hunt...yeah, there really wasn't much hiding. It was more like just throw the eggs out there and hope they didn't pop open when they landed. The yard was definitely covered in eggs! The kids had a blast running around and getting eggs. If you haven't heard the stories, there are about 5 girls in his class who "like" him. Some of them may or may not be in the pictures below ;-). He's friends with all of them, but does seem to like one more than the others. I am, however, sworn to secrecy on that! The pizza was a hit as well as the cupcakes. Really, could the icing BE any brighter???

The next day, we went to our neighborhood Festival at the nearby High School. It was an extremely windy day! Arianna had the right idea when it was her turn for egg hunting- she had Daniel go with her and carry her basket for her! What a great big brother! Arianna picked up a few and was done with it whereas Daniel was all about the quantity! We played some games and even got to see the Easter Bunny! The photographer tried to take her from me and she was having none of that. But she had no problems with the Easter Bunny.

That gets us to the end of March...next up the beginning of April!

I haven't been too good about posting these lately, but here are the monthly pictures of the kids! I was just thinking that we have done this monthly for the last 5 1/2 years. Wow- where has the time gone??


Daniel is my entertainer- he LOVES to sing and dance. He can memorize a song in no time- and I'm not talking about kid songs either. We love hearing him sing in the back seat of the car. He is REALLY and I mean REALLY into Disney's Nightmare Before Christmas and he sings the songs very well. I'll have to post some video later. He is also very sweet and compassionate and very full of energy! He loves school and is learning so much every day. His smile gets me every time! He loves Disney and can't wait to go back. We're currently trying to plan something for his birthday and our anniversary. I can't wait to wake him up the morning of to go to the airport- you've never seen a kid so happy and alert at 5am!



Arianna is a little busy body- full of energy and curiosity! She mimics everything that her big brother does. At least for now, he thinks it's funny and sees what he can make her do. She loves her big brother and misses him when he's gone. I love seeing her run to him with a hug and kiss after school. I think her goal in life right now is just to drive her Daddy crazy- she does pretty well too! She can be sooooo sweet though- I love getting random hugs and kisses from her. And her smile can instantly melt away any bad feelings that I might have. Her vocabulary expands every day and even includes some not so good words (like for shirt, she misses the "r"). She isn't up to the singing yet, but she can dance right along with her big brother. She also entertains me while I work out- she mimics my workout which is hilarious at times!

Two peas in a pod for sure! They are at a great age for playing together and expending some of that energy. A nightly ritual has become a game of Tag and everyone has to participate. If one of us tries to sit down, Arianna will pull us and get us back in the game. It usually ends with lots of tickles and then bed. They play very well together and have lots of fun. I love seeing Daniel's compassion for her when she is upset- he's an awesome big brother.

We've consistently had Family Night this year and we all love it. We usually all help prepare dinner and then play games or watch a movie. Game night can be quite noisy, but tons of fun! Somehow movie night always ends up with a kid movie...just kidding- we love the movies too and wouldn't have it any other way!

Since it has been so cold lately, we've spent a lot of time entertaining ourselves in the house. This seems to be a favorite of the kids right now.... so exactly why do we have all of these other toys??? ;-) And if you are wondering, I am the one that gave them the instruments. People have always joked that they would buy my kids "noisy" toys to drive me crazy. I just say bring it on because I always buy them noisy things myself! We had to take a brief break here for a phone call from his school cancelling school the next day for the snow. There was lots of celebrating after that call!

We didn't do anything big for Valentine's Day- we're of the thinking that we don't need a Hallmark holiday to make us do what we already do. But I did get a few little things for the kids and Tony. That morning Tony brought me breakfast and roses after his 6 mile run- that was a sweet treat! I made these cookies for Daniel

Now, I know you are thinking that those aren't "Valentine's" cookies... and you're right. But when you have a kid obsessed with Nightmare Before Christmas, what can you do?? And look at this face when he saw them...

Well, that's our update for now! We have to get the house cleaned today and start our weekend off right! We love having Tony work from home on Fridays and try to get everything out of the way before then...so off to clean! Have a great weekend!

School Open House

Daniel's school had an "open house" last week that we attended. The theme was a "Winter Wonderland". They threw bags upon bags of white packing peanuts on the floor and let the kids run around and crush them up- it was really a neat idea! The only downside was that the peanuts stuck to everything and we carried some home as souvenirs. Both of the kids had a great time though which is what matters most!

Making a marshmallow snowman. Eating it was a joint effort- he ate the marshmallows and she ate the pretzels!

Snowball fight!!


It's snowing!!




See...it sticks to everything! Making popsicle art!


By far, Daniel's favorite activity was making snow angels- he did it over and over and over! Oh, and we loved the "snow boots" he made too!!


It was a fun time to see all of the activities they had worked on and let the kids loose! Oh and the cookies were yummy too! ;-)

Pirates and Bats...oh my!

I will admit that I am a sucker for kids costumes! I usually find some really good deals and buy a few for the kids to dress up in during the year!

Since we are going to be at DisneyWorld and on a Disney Cruise for the week of Halloween, I'll go ahead and post some pictures now! I'm sure I will have tons more later ;-) I know there will be a Minnie Mouse dress in the near future :~)

Here is Pirate Daniel and his little Buccaneer Arianna off getting set for an upcoming voyage on the Disney Wonder! Daniel will also be havig a Pirate makeover at the Pirate League in the Magic Kingdom before we attend the Halloween party- that should be tons of fun!


Tony's birthday was last weekend and Daniel insisted on throwing him a Batman party...which they both enjoyed. I decided you couldn't have a Batman party without the special appearance of Batman and Batgirl. Tony thought it was great and we had lots of fun! Arianna did not want to take her costume off and wore the arm pieces most of the weekend :-)



Have a great weekend!!

Kids!

Here are some updated pictures of the kids!


Daniel is close to 5 1/2 and getting taller! He loves school and is doing great! He is such a sweetheart and a really good kid! He is really enjoying that Arianna can do more things with him now. Sheesh...he's growing up so fast! He is very excited about our upcoming Disney trip and is planning out the things we are going to do while there!




Arianna just turned 22 months....another one that is growing too fast! She has most of her teeth and has some words that she knows. Although she sometimes calls Tony "Daddy"and other times calls him "Mama"- whatever! :-) Her favorite thing to do right now is to climb up the back of the stairs- she's a darn good climber too! She really misses Daniel when he is at school and runs to give him hugs when we pick him up from school.

Thanks for looking! :-)

The countdown has begun...

The countdown to our October vacation to DisneyWorld and a Disney Cruise has begun! To celebrate our excitement, we made a Disney themed countdown chain!

The individual "rings" are 2"x8" with various Disney characters. Very simple to do with any graphic or for any occassion! I really think this turned out super cute!

Here is the master hard at work!

And here is the finished product!

What seems like an eternity will be here before we know it! So, I better get busy finishing up our plans and getting things ready! Can't wait!!!

First Day of School!

Daniel had a great first day of school! He was apprehensive and fought off a few tears in the beginning, but then he was off and running! It was, of course, much harder on me! Tony took the day off and was there to drop Daniel off and pick him up with me and Arianna. It will definitely take some getting used to...it is really quiet around here with him gone. When we picked him up, both teachers commented on how well he did and how well behaved he was which made my heart smile! We are so proud of him and it was a great start to the school year.

Show Day!

Daniel had his last "show day" at Little Gym on Wednesday! That makes 4 sessions that he has attended and really enjoyed! He was a little sad that he won't be going back. Their schedule just doesn't work out for us once he starts school on Monday. So, I am looking into a couple of other things to keep him busy and having fun!

He has done very well in these classes. One of his first instructors commented on how far he has come since the beginning. One of the biggest things we have noticed is his confidence has gone way up...which is awesome!

After class, we headed over to McDonald's for a "celebration"...ok just to play! Believe it or not, we made it over 5 years without ever going to a fast food playground! And we have been to plenty of places that have them....we just have an aversion to them for various reasons and honestly Daniel never asked to go to them. When the new McDonald's opened near us, we decided to take them in there. It is a nice one- I'm sure partly due to it being so new. We don't play there often, so it is a treat for him and he enjoys playing. There is a McDonald car in the area for the smaller kids that Arianna likes. While she was sitting in the car, a bigger kid climbed in next to her. When Daniel, aka protective brother, saw this, he shot over there to keep his eye on the situation. He managed to nicely get himself between Arianna and the bigger kids. It was really sweet to watch him look out for his little sister.

Next up... movies and lunch with Mom...

Fun Day at the Zoo!

It is only Wednesday, but it has been a busy week already! Monday we played with the neighbors for a bit and then got everyone caught up on Dr. appt checkups! It was bad enough having back to back appointments, but this was also a new doctor so it took awhile- glad it's over! Daniel managed to get out of there without any shots this time so he was happy. Arianna did have to get 2 shots but she didn't cry or even flinch...she did look a little mad though!

Tuesday, I took the kids to one of our favorite places...the Fort Worth Zoo! It was a little hot- but hey it was under 100 degrees! It turned out to be a great day though! The kids both had a lot of fun and really wore themselves out! Daniel was really enjoying taking it at a slower pace this time and asked a lot of questions about what each animal eats among other things. The only dissapointments this time were that the Penquin exhibit was closed for renovation and the carousel was also closed. I was really disappointed about the Penquins since that is Arianna's favorite. But I wasn't so disappointed about the carousel since I at least didn't have to stand in the heat for half an hour waiting!










After the zoo, we headed downtown to pick up Tony for lunch. We decided to head over to Freebirds for some good food!!



Next up.... Show Day at Little Gym!!

August pictures!

It is still hard to believe that August is already here...I'm still trying to figure out where the summer has gone! It is also hard to believe that Daniel is 5 years old and that Arianna is already 20 months old! Time moves way too fast!