More California Fun

Today was a slower day around here... full of leisurely activities.  Sierra started off the morning by helping to water the flowers and discovering snails!  Then she spent time wandering up and down the street taking the baby dolls for a walk with grandma.  We had a picnic lunch out in the shade followed by some "tag... you're it!"  Then there was cookie baking, lots of playing, some guacamole, yummy dinner... and then horse back riding.  It was another great day =)

Fun in and out of the Sun

 We arrived safely in California and started our trip with the indulgence of In N' Out cheeseburgers and milk shakes!  Then the next stop was Grandma Lulu and Papa Steve's house.  Sierra stayed up EXTRA late to run out some energy after a long day of sitting in the car, sitting in the airplane, and more sitting in the car!  She was a fantastic travler and even took a short nap on the plane... followed by the viewing of Beauty and the Beast.  Once we got to bed we had a good night's sleep and I actually got to sleep in, hooray!  We took a morning walk that turned into quite the outing as it can in a small town.  We fended for ourselves against a loose dog, passed by daddy's old childhood homes and then we stopped to play some at the park and ran into multiple people we knew.  We made it home to get cleaned up and have some lunch before heading down the hill. 

On the car ride there we got to see the trains winding through the mountains, cows, fields of orange trees and other plots of crops.  But my favorite thing we spotted on the trip was the truck on the AAA tow truck.  Sierra spotted it ahead of us and pointed out that she thought that truck had some trouble and was needing help.  As we went to pass by we looked to see if it had been in an accident.  Sure enough we could see that at least the front bumper was broken and had hit something.  I asked Sierra what she thought that truck had run into.  Her response, "I think it hit a frog.  A big frog.  A really really big frog!"  She cracks me up!

We spent the second half of the day with Grandma Jeanette and Papa Mike.  We headed to the pool right away to get some splashing time in the heat before the pool closed for a while.  We had a great time and at the end of our pool visit Sierra was a big helper and helped to clean up all the noodles and pool toys others had left out.  We headed back to grandma's house and helped her get the mail.  Then we had a yummy snack of Cinnamon Toast Crunch!  What a treat!  =)  We helped grandma make dinner... and that was yummy too!  Sierra got to hold and play with the little dogs... and play silly games with Papa when he got home.  After dinner we cleaned up and headed out to one of the best ice cream shops ever... Dewars!!!  Sierra fell asleep on the way but was more than willing to wake up once she realized where she was... and had no problem putting away her ice cream! 

After ice cream we headed back to grandma and papa's for a bath and bed time routine.  We said our prayers and then headed back up the hill for sleepy time!  It was a wonderful day and we've had a great start to our vacation =)

 

More photos to come when the computer is more cooperative!!!

Bits and Pieces

This week has been a busy one with Grandma Lulu in town.  We had a lot of fun... and thanks to Grandma Lulu got a lot of projects done/accomplished!!!  I had quite a long list of things to get done before Weston arrives that is now pretty small... hooray!  (And I have a fairly clean house too!) 

Here are some pictures of the fun moments along the way...

 swinging at the park

 reading fairy tales

 cheesy smiles

 letting her stamps dry after gymnastics

 trying out the cheese fondue... not sure about it

 loving some chocolate fondue

 fixated on the chocolate

 totally focused on her drawing

 in heaven reading to the Fisher kids

 playing doctor on mommy

 picking a wedge...

 32 weeks

 Being "fancy" like Grandma

 yummy cookies

Evening cuddles

"Fancy!"

Apparently... Grandma Lulu is "Fancy!"  At least fancier than mommy, ha ha!  Sierra has been fascinated this week with Grandma Lulu's routine to get ready.  She has enjoyed watching/observing/gawking over Grandma each morning as she washes her face, curls her hair, puts on jewelry... and especially putting on make-up! 

For any of you that know much about me, you know that I'm pretty much a tom-boy... still!  On an occasion I will bother to blow dry or curl my hair... mind you these are very rare occasions!  I do put on mascara about two times a week or more, but it's not a daily thing.  So experiencing Grandma's daily routine has captivated Sierra.  Not to mention Grandma has allowed Sierra to do some experimenting with the light eye shadows!  I have found myself a few mornings busting out the mom spit to rub off/smear in the interesting attempts at make-up!

So yesterday morning our new neighbors were out back with their dog.  (Sierra loves dogs!)  She was up sitting on the toilet lid watching Grandma.  I hollered up the stairs at her that the new dog was out and that it looks like Lizzy, Grandma and Papa's dog.  I could hear in her voice, she was torn.  She wanted to come see the dog, but she was BUSY!  Long story short she came down the stairs hurriedly to see this new dog.  Once she spotted it she had to go out back to get more and to let Bongo go say Hi at the fence.  Bongo did his tail wagging and the two dogs greeted each other.  Sierra talked sweetly to the new dog... and she came running back into the house, past me, and up the stairs!!!  I asked her what was going on and did she need to pee?!  Sometimes she makes mad dashes to make it to the potty.... but this time her response was different!

"No,  Grandma is doing FANCY THINGS and I dont' want to miss it!!!!!" 

Mom and I couldn't stop laughing.  She was very serious and it was so sweet!  And there she returned, sitting on the top of the toilet, watching, studying... and then attempting herself! 

Gymnast... maybe! Ballerina... probably not!

So Sierra started some classes on post a few months ago to get her started in something extra curricular... without mom or dad involved.  Do to our school/work schedule at the time we started her in Ballet first.  This has been quite the comical experience.  She has come a long ways in the past few months, but is still our daughter... and blesses with two left feet! 

After school was out it allowed for the opportunity to try out gymnastics.  She has done really well with it.  She has started doing somersaults, balancing... on her own, hanging/trying more on bars, stretching more, and her teacher said today that she is the first student she's had that can balance on the beam and do the V-sit by herself! 

This week was the end of her sessions and they allow the parents to come in and take pictures (although we had to take them at the end of ballet).  We will be taking a break as we take a vacation and participate in summer school and such.  She will be trying out Karate as a "Little Dragon" in July and August!  I think she will like this too.  I am curious to see whether she picks gymnastics, Karate, or Ballet to continue once the school year starts and we participate in just one!  We'll see...

For now here are some cute pictures of her and a video clip too! 

 Posing in 1st Position

 Little Ballerina

 A little confused... I said "stick your toe out"... and we got the tongue too!

 Hanging like a monkey

 Rainbow into the Waterfall... backwards tumble!

 Starting a V-sit

Holding it strong all by herself!  That's my girl!



Walking on the balance beam all by herself... and keeping the right attitude (heard her saying "I think I can!")

A much anticipated visit...

Today finally marks the beginning of a much anticipated visit for us.  Grandma Lulu arrived to spend a week with us here in Colorado before we head west for our California trip!  Grandma didn't fly in until late afternoon which made for, as Sierra said, "a very long day!"  She woke up at 4:30 yesterday morning to potty and remembered that grandma would be coming today.  And the anticipation started! 

This morning she woke up knowing it was the day.  I had to explain that we wouldn't go get grandma until the afternoon.  That meant we had to eat breakfast and lunch first.  So she proceeded to get ready for the day and come down for  breakfast.  She no sooner finished her toast and yogurt... and asked for her lunch!  Ha ha! 

Here is a picture after we picked grandma up and headed out to eat some dinner.  Looking forward to the adult conversation and company and many more smiles and hugs to come!

Fun at the Zoo

Sierra and I have been talking about going to the zoo for a while.  However, the zoo here is built into the side of a mountain and can be a good day worth of hiking around.  With the heat that we've had this didn't sound like much fun to me.  It seems the hotter it gets the bigger I get!  Saturday was finally a cooler day so I decided it was time to get out a go!  We had a great time =) 

We got to see the Red River Hogs and their babies, the monkeys, the alligators, pet a baby wallaby, feed the birds... and try not to get pooped on!  Sierra rode on the fun train and got to get her face painted... like a red cat!  We saw the hippos taking a swim and the gorillas and monkeys swinging around.  Sierra was a great trooper as she had to do all the walking on her own this time.  No Stroller, not carrying... I was proud of her. 

We also got the added treat of getting a phone call from Cole/daddy while we were stopped for lunch.  (It was our 7th anniversary and the firth one we've spent apart.)  Sierra got to tell him all about the exciting parts of her day.  It was a nice conversation and left us looking forward to hopefully getting caught up and passing the 50/50 mark as we hope to spend the next few together!  It is just a day... but 2/7 is not a good ratio! 

Anywho, here are some new photos of our fun day.  Hope you enjoy!

For Daddy =)

Happy Father's Day to our top notch daddy... whether here or away you are always working hard to make sure our family and little ones are taken care of, feeling loved, and occasionally teased! We love you and we miss you~

Sierra, Weston, Bongo... and Mommy



The Hunt

        So I suppose it's nesting or something of that nature, but I've been cleaning up, weeding out, rearranging areas of the house these days.  Part of it is my attempt to stay busy in the evenings as well.  We have been using the same yard sale microwave cart I found in college.  The kitchen in this house is the smallest I've had as far as storage goes... so long story short the microwave cart became the overflow area.  And then Sierra's coloring stuff, playdough stuff and more were added.  It has been driving me crazy!  So I went on the hunt...

       I quickly found a great microwave cart at the Goodwill... but it was already sold.  Then they had another piece that would have worked well... but it was part of a set.  I didn't need the set and they wouldn't split them up... so I continued.  So I took Sierra along and we checked out other Thrift stores, furniture stores, consignment shops, and craigslist.   Nothing...  And then out of the blue we took a different route to pick up a friend in the afternoon and passed a "yard sale."  It was on the other side of the street but had some intersting pieces of furniture.  So on the way home we went back that direction as well and stopped by. 
    
      This "yard sale" was full of decent wood furniture pieces and antiques.  There was this nice antique buffet table with birds-eye mable for $150... I was very interested in it, but it wasn't what I had been looking for... and wouldn't fit dimensionally.  I was in the car and not the truck so even if I were to get it I would have to come back later.  It was in great shape and so with nerves sending my stomach swirling and the lady approaching me I began to bargin.  I offered $100... She countered with $125.  I said $110... then at $115 she said it was mine!  Yikes... Okay... well I still had the possible out as I would have to go get the truck.  So I took her number and the price we agreed on and had an hour to decide, measure, etc.  Long story short I decided it wouldn't work as a microwave cart, but would be a great addition to the dinning room and would provide storage for my china and crystal.  This would free up the cabinet space needed for the overflow from the microwave cart.  The drop leaf table we had in the dinning room now serves as our microwave stand and things in general look more finished.  It took a couple of nights to complete the rearranging... and I'm not sure that everything is in it's final place, but here are some photos of my "trophy hunt." 

      

"Mommy, I want to be a..."

A couple of weeks ago Sierra and I drove up to Denver for my college girlfriend's graduation from her masters program.  On the way home Sierra and I had the following discussion: 

Sierra- If I were a cow I would say Moo, MOOO! 
Me- Yes, if you were a cow I'm sure you would moo. 
Sierra- Mommy, when I grow up I want to be a cow. 
Me-  Well honey, you can't ever grow up to be a cow, God made you a person.  But if you want when you grow up you can wear a cow costume.  Pause...
Sierra- The next Halloween I want to be a cow.  Pause...That's my decision and I won't ever, ever change it. 
Me- Okay, when it gets closer to Halloween I'll check back with you on that decision! 
Sierra- ... and I want to have a hat.... pause... and feet with my cow costume!  

And then... On top of that we went this last weekend to a Kids Fest and met the Chic-Fil-A cows.  That resulted in the following conversation on the ride home!

Sierra- Mommy, I don't want to be a girl.  It's not fair.
Me- What's not fair?
Sierra- I want be a cow!!!
Me- What do you mean you want to be a cow?  I thought we talked about that already.  God made you a little girl, but you can wear a cow costume.
Sierra- bursting into tears... But I want to be a REAL cow!
Me- What do you mean by a REAL cow?
Sierra- Like the cows at the park mommy! 

(Here is a picture of the cow she wants to be like... ones that have a whole cow face and everything!!!)

Her train of thought these days some times just kills me!

Sierra's REAL cow!!!

Updated belly...

So I've been needing to get a new picture of myself that I'm willing to put on the pillow case we are making to send Cole. So I decided to ask a friend to take some pictures afterward church today (although I forgot to put on any make-up!) Here are a couple of new pictures with the belly in them. Enjoy =)

Fun at the Park

Today they had a Children's Fest at the park down town and opened up the water fountain for the kiddos. I knew that they were having the special guest... Clifford and Curious George so I figured it was right up Sierra's alley! It was super busy and there were long lines for everything so we by-passed the bounce houses and face painting, but managed to fit in some splash time and photo opps with the characters.

Sierra checking out Clifford...

Sierra hugging on Curious George... her favorite!


Meeting the little girl cow from Chic-Fil-A

Saying Hi to Daddy Cow after his juggling tricks

Showing off her balloon

The balloon was a great way to keep track of her in the fountain!

Her excited face as she got her first splashes!

A morning of fun....