September Vacation to La Jolla/Del Mar, California

We usually go twice a year over to California and this time we were super excited because we were taking Ashley to LEGOLAND!  It was even more amazing than we could have expected!  It was her speed, nice and slow going, everyone there had kids and wasn't in any rush.  Everything was safe and kid friendly!  We were pleasantly surprised at how much she wanted to ride and do!  She got to steer, drive and direct almost all rides, as she gets taller and stronger there will be more and more for her to do! :)

We also got the 2 day tickets, so when we went back on the 2nd day, she knew exactly what she wanted to do and where it was!  We also had park hopper tickets and we enjoyed our afternoons in the Legoland Waterpark!  It was AMAZING and she LOVED every minute of it! :)

We also visited with "Dada Papa", Lee, and Uncle Brian, she loves all the time she can get with her boys!


We got some adorable pictures and video of all our fun and we can't wait to go back soon! :)

**This is a video of us arriving at the park and her pure excitement! :)  A few cute rides and how well she took to them! :)  

**We were both so surprised she wanted to go on this "real roller-coaster" but she did. . .she waited patiently in line and we thought we'd bow out when it was our turn, but nope, we all got on and she rode it!  Hands in the air the first time around and she didn't hate it, but wouldn't you know this ride goes around 2 TIMES, YEA us!  When we got off, she told us it went too fast the second time around, and she didn't want to go back on it!  No tears though, so we'll call that one a SUCCESS! :)  Here is a quick glimpse of the roller-coaster she rode! 

**This was day 2 at Legoland and a few of our favorite moments from the park!  She hysterically drove her own car, and she did EXCELLENT for this being her first attempt!  

Summer 2011 (July/August)

We had a great summer with lots of learning and "pretending" and even a few "mommy and me" classes!  Ashley is growing like crazy and loves to play "pretend" and her imagination is going crazy!  I love this age and have added pictures and videos to show what goes on in our house on a daily basis! :)

Playing Doctor/nurse

***Playing Doctor with her animals, she takes this very seriously! :)

Mommy and me dance class

***We took a "Mommy and Me Dance" class and it was hilarious!  You have the kiddos who run around and Ashley loves to stare at them, or you had the quiet ones who didn't move through the whole class!  Ashley was cemented to the ground for the first week and then loosened up and enjoyed these  activities the most! :)

1st MOVIE!  We went to "Winnie the Pooh"

Got her friends and ready to watch the movie

***Ashley has always enjoyed watching me bake, and now that she is getting older, she is an AMAZING helper!  Her favorite thing to make is muffins and then anything else she can help add ingredients or stir, she is thrilled about!  I've recently started letting her help me "wash" plastic things we bake with and she LOVES to play in the water and she loves "helping" :)  Truly one of my favorite things to do with her lately is cook and then clean up our mess!

Riding her trike to Grandma's pool

 "flowers" she drew

Playing cook/restaurant

****We were enjoying a WARM July evening outback; Ash was playing and having a blast and then the HABOOB hit! I was taping her playing and singing and got most of it rolling in on video!  It is pretty cool to watch it blow in and hear how quiet it was - we have a farming field right behind our house, so we are lucky and usually get to enjoy some awesome storms! :)

Playing at our neighborhood pool and loving the sun! :)  

Modeling another swimsuit. . .priceless! :)

 Started with her "Preschool Play/Learn" time on the computer!  She loves when I set the timer and she can play learning games while I make dinner!  We are so impressed with how quickly she picks up technology and how to play certain things!  She is so smart and loves feeling like "such a big girl" using the computer! :)

Choosing from her 2 options for dinner. . .what a decision!  :)

Pretty girl

Swim Lessons Summer 2011

So Ashley just finished her final day of swim class for this summer!  She had an amazing 16 weeks of great swim technique and pool safety!  We started back in April and have done some amazing parent/child swim lessons.  When we started we were in a group of 3 and now we have only 2 of us, so we've been lucky enough to have some great one-on-one time with Ms. Mary our teacher!

Ashley is swimming with great arms (righty, lefties) and kicking like crazy to get from point A to point B.  She can do "up-spits", which is swimming across the pool with short breaths in-between.  She is also able to jump in from the side of the pool and swim back to the "wall" for safety.  She has a blast jumping off the diving board and feels like such a big girl!

I am looking forward to swimming with her more and watching her master all of these skills over the next few months, so we can learn even more come this April! :)  She is quite a little fishy and loves being in the water!  Ms. Mary took some pictures of the kiddos underwater last week and they look AMAZING!

Here are some fun pictures of our swim lesson journey and a great video to show you her awesome swimming! :)    

Her first swim ribbon, for mastering going "under" and holding her breath

2nd swim ribbon, for mastering 8 weeks of great swimming!

Oh' so proud of her ribbons! :)  

3rd ribbon for 12 weeks of swimming and mastering her "up-spits"

Pure joy! :)

Fourth and final ribbon of the summer!  

16 weeks of amazing memories! :)  

UNDERWATER PICTURES

Will and Ashley "holding their breath" 

My pretty girl

Straight down "jump" - a different view 

AWESOME VIDEO - showing all her skills

June 2011

Here is a group of pictures that covers the month of June!  We've had a great beginning to our summer!  Ashley is very hands on and loves to make things, so we've been painting with a variety of paints and we color almost everyday!  She loves to play Playdoh and build with her Lego Duplo's!  Kevin and I also escaped the heat for a quick trip to California for my best friend Jen's, wedding!  It was a gorgeous day and a beautiful wedding! :)

Carousel at mall

Always loving her friends

Jen and Jeremiah's wedding in Dana Point, California (June 10, 2011)

Jen's Mom (Alice and I)

Gorgeous girl with her Daddy! :)  

The sun popped through right as they were taking their vows!  So romantic! 

Mr. and Mrs. Jeremiah Butout

First time painting her piggies

Always reading. . .always includes her friends

Hard at work

Loves to paint - first attempt with Tempra paint. . .she did really well! :)

New "dobber" type paint 

My pretty girl, always smiling! :)