The Most Beautiful Cake

My sweet Isabella made me the most beautiful cake for my birthday! No store-bought cake or expensive bakery cake could ever compare! How perfect....and yummy! Thank you Isabella and Mimi!

First day of MDO

Well, this morning was a bit sad. I had to keep telling myself that it would only be a couple of hours and then I could go get her. If she doesn’t like it, we can forget the whole thing all together and we can get back to our normal routine. But things went better than expected. Mark dropped Isabella off this morning and he was hoping for maybe a tear or two, but Isabella hardly looked back. A hug and “I wub you” at the classroom door was enough for her, and then she was off to play with the baby dolls and rice table leaving Daddy a bit snubbed. When Victoria and I picked her up two hours later, I was expecting a look of relief on Isabella’s face, but she seemed to have an extra skip in her step on the way to the car as she recalled what she had done with her new friends. She said, “snack...goldfish” and then during the ride home she shared how she had colored an Elmo coloring page with “colors, crayons, Elmo” and then during lunch she continued to share about her playground time with “outside, slide, bucket, and shovel” and oh yes, her favorite....“storytime”. So there you have it....a morning full of fun! Let’s see her emotions on Thursday morning when Daddy drops her off again....hmmmm.

Girls' Birthday Party Video

You're 2!

Happy birthday Isabella Mia! What a joy that past two years have been! This past year you have grown so much!

- You love to run everywhere you go.
- You talk constantly from the moment you get up until the moment your eyes close at night, even though 80% if what you say is in another language.
- You love books! You love to look at them on your own and you love to be read to.
- You love to sleep with Baby right next to you.
- You are a milk lover and gulp it down as if it were going out of style.
- You highly dislike being dirty, from your hands to your toes.
- You always wake up in a good mood...you are definitely a morning person like your daddy.
- You are finally taking baths in the tub like a big girl...no more baby bathtub...phew! That was a battle!
- You like to sing songs while we go for walks in the morning.
- You love to suck your thumb in the car and in your crib.
- You love snack time!
- You're not too sure about swimming pools, but you finally went down the toddler water slide all by yourself! We were so proud of you!
- Your favorite shows are Sesame Street and Dora.
- You are such a good eater and will do anything for a piece of bread.
- You don't like avocados or hot dogs....again, just like your daddy.
- You love music (music class, music in the car, music in the playroom, books that play music) and you love to dance and get dizzy to it.

Words that I will miss you pronouncing as you grow up:

• music = "seek-in" ....don't know where that one came from
• milk = "me-yoke"
• good morning = "ha morning"
• Victoria = "Toria"
• banana = "nana"
• school bus = "scuba"
• thank you = "ta-choo"
• please = "peas"
• blanket = "banky"

You are growing up so fast Sweet Pea, so I cherish every moment with you! I love you, Mommy.

Happy 1st Birthday Punkin'

Happy first birthday to you, my sweet Victoria. What a year it has been. It has gone by quickly at times and not so quickly at others, but I remember so much of it!

I remember holding you tightly in my arms in the hospital right after you were born and I couldn't believe you were finally going to be part of our family!
I remember the many, many hours that you slept each day barely being able to keep your eyes open for more than 45 minutes at a time.
I remember sleeping next to you in the hospital praying that you fight off the meningitis.
I remember the first five colicky months and hoping and praying that the colic would subside soon.
I remember the many struggles we had during feeding times. Praise God that those tough times are over and now you love to eat!
I remember your first smile.
I remember seeing your face light up every morning and after every nap when Isabella walked into your room.
I remember your delight after learning how to crawl.
I remember you angrily signing for more at every meal and crying when mealtime was over.
I remember your tummy as a bottomless pit.
I remember your giggles when Daddy tickles you and throws you into the air.
I remember one of your favorite things to do was and still is to climb on and off Daddy when he's lying down.
I remember you finding so much comfort in your thumb and your Puppy.

There are so many joyful and hard moments that I remember. I thank God for you and I look forward to many more years ahead. I love you Punkin'.

Great memories

Tonight as my bride and I were talking, I asked her to recall one of her most favorite dating memories ... she mentioned a date we took when we were married and she was pregnant with Isabella. We went to play putt-putt!

Then we recalled Sea World. We had been dating for about three weeks when we went to see Chamu and the others at Sea World. While walking around the park we noticed kids holding on to a linked chain and thought out loud how it would be great to bring our kids to Sea World and have a chain like that; although now with two wonderful girls I don’t think we’ll be needing a chain, hard to imagine having 5 or 6 kids now!

Anniversary Weekend

We celebrated our fourth anniversary with a weekend away in Fredericksburg. We rented a tandem and had a blast riding together from winery to winery. After the second winery I began to wonder if it was a smart idea, but I was able to keep my grip and make it to the fourth winery; however, I don’t know how much I was helping by that point. But Mark kept us on track. Our B&B was the perfect getaway...quaint, private and served delicious, diet-ruining breakfasts....yummy! It was a much needed weekend away that we will always remember.