Holidaze

It's almost Christmas!!
I can't wait, mostly because I've been so good this year... at least I think I have.  Mumma is pretty happy that she hasn't been getting calls every other day from the Principal, or the Guidance Counselor, or the Nurse.... you get the idea.  Mrs. Metcalf is my teacher this year and Mum says she's good at her job.  I happen to think she has a lot of rules.  But that's another story for another day.

It's almost Christmas!!! (did I mention that?)

For Thanksgiving we went to Grandma and Grandpa's again.  It was a long ride, but Mum got a brand new car just before we left--so it was pretty comfy and we even stopped at a hotel with a pool in it on the way down.  Swimming at 10 o'clock at night is waaaaay more fun then swimming during the day!

It was nice to see all my cousins and aunts and uncles and great-grand mas from New York for a few days.  This is us in New York at a party.

Now we're getting ready around our house for Santa to come.  Isn't our tree pretty?  I picked it out and Vilee and I helped Mumma and Nana decorate it. 

I visited with Santa other day and let him know what I REALLY wanted.  It's a Baby Alive doll.... have you seen it?  You feed her and then she fills her diaper--awesome, huh?!  Mumma says we have our very OWN Baby Alive named Violet and "why can't you just feed her and then changer her diaper? I promise to let you!"  I assured her it was NOT the same.  I really hope I get it!  Vilee is still too little to ask for anything from Santa, so she'll just be surprised, I guess.  Maybe he'll bring her a pony since she loves horses so much!

After I went to see Santa,














I decorated cookies (and ate them),














and then Mumma had me do this funny thing...

...we were mannequins in the windows at her store!  I wore pajamas and pretended to listen to Mumma reading--for a little while anyway.  I was kinda antsy and I wanted to go out and watch this parade that was happening at the same time.  Sometimes I just can't help myself!

Christmas is COMING!!!

xoxo Ayda

Wonder Land

Hey guys, Vilee here. So I turned two yesterday for real. Today, Mama and Daddy were working the High Rollers Sale at Epic Sports, so the rest of the family headed to Wonder Land for a day at the beach.

Mimi took some photos of me, but I wasn't feeling up to smiling. I think I look more mature with my "serious" face on....

This is my serious face.....

Here are some photos of my buddy Ian....

FYI: Ian loves bananas.

Papa and I spent some time looking into the tidal pools. Nanny is my all time favorite person right now, but if she's not around, Papa will do....

It's kinda hard for me to share Nanny with Ian. I have to remember that he is just still a baby and needs extra help. I'm a big two-year-old now who uses the potty. Sometimes it's just hard to share....

Since my sister Ayda is practically a teenager, she got to run all over the place by herself. She's pretty good on her feet....

Columbus Facts

Recently we've been learning all about this guy Christopher Columbus and how he sailed the world, and discovered America, and worked for the King, and yadda, yadda, yadda....
I thought I'd educate Daddy on it since he didn't seem to know very much on the subject.  I told him what I'd learned and when I got to the name of the ships, he made me repeat myself THREE times!  He must be getting old or something.

Ayda:  "Daddy, do you know the name of the ships Columbus sailed?"
Daddy: "I dunno, maybe you should remind me what they were,"
Ayda:  "They were the Tina, the Placenta, and the Maraca,"
Daddy: "Huh?! Say that again?!"

Happy Columbus Day everyone!

xoxo Ayda

Wheels on the Bus

Well, it's official... I'm in 1st grade!  And if my matching leopard shoes

 

 

 

and leopard backpack don't clue you in--I'm wicked ready.  

 

 

 

 

I'm just not entirely sure how I'm going to eat my school lunch today with so many missing teeth!  I hope whatever they serve is soft!

 



There were no tears from me OR Mumma today--in fact, even Violet was all smiles!

Here's hoping this year is one for the books (in a good way)!

xoxo
Ayda Sue

Our Trip to England

I know it's taken me a while to get around to writing about our trip to England...which happened in APRIL...but Mama doesn't like it when I use the computer. So forgive me.

Mama, Daddy, Nana, Papa, and I went to ENGLAND in April to visit Mama's friend Chelsesa. We had a blast! Here are some photos from our trip...

 

Chelsea and her husband, Bobby, live in a cute town north of London called Bury St. Edmunds. We stayed at their house for a WHOLE WEEK! They must have been crazy when they agreed to that! Here we are at the abbey ruins in their town. It was really cool to walk around and see all the old buildings. I spent a LOT of time in this carrying contraption on vacation....

 

No one trusted Daddy to drive, so Papa was the designated driver. Mama was the navigator. They made a great team, even though Papa looks nervous in this photo. He had to drive on the wrong side of the car and on the wrong side of the street! I'm glad I was in my car seat and didn't have to witness any of it. We drove ALL OVER the place.

 

One of the places we went for the day was Norwich. It was a rainy day, but we had a lot of fun! Check out the sign behind me at this restaurant. As if! Mama and I were breakin' the law! Jolly old England, indeed!

 

We also hiked the Cliffs of Dover, which were pretty spectacular. It was one of Mama's favorite parts of our vacation. There was a cute little lighthouse and tea cafe at the far end of the trail. After a soaking wet walk, we settled in for some tea and scones. It was super yummy, and by the time we were done, the rain had passed and we had a dry walk back. 

 This is the trail we walked. I rode. You can BARELY see me in this photo. Thanks a lot, guys! 

 

We had dinner in Dover at this cute little pub. I'm trying to sneak a drink, but Papa is watching me like a hawk. Bummer...

 

We had a good meal and then drove home, which should have taken 3 hours but took MUCH longer because I decided to pitch a FIT. I was sick of being stuck in my car seat.

 

We went to Windsor Castle on our way to Bath. Here's what I thought of Windsor. Meh. Everyone else seemed to really like it, though. Suckers.

 

All the grownups had a lot of fun in Bath. They said it was a really cool old city and they wished they could stay there longer. I wasn't convinced. In fact, I was pretty sick of being strapped to daddy all day long. This is a photo of Daddy and I at the Roman Baths. I couldn't figure out what the big deal was. Not impressed.

 

We stayed in Bath overnight. And after that we had one more night with Chelsea and Bobby before we headed to London. What a crazy big city! We didn't really get to do much in our 2 days there, but we did get to do some sightseeing. This is a photo of me and Mama at the British Museum. We really loved that place! I had a good time flirting with anyone and everyone who paid attention to me. If you're heading to London, you'll have to put this on your to-do list!

I was very tired of being strapped to people, strapped into my car seat, and strapped into my stroller by the time we were finished our vacation, but overall I think I was a pretty well behaved baby...especially considering I was sprouting two teeth at the time! I did scream for 3 hours on the plane ride home, making Mama cry, but I was glad they brought me along. Not many babies my age have their own passport!

xoxo Ian

 

 

 

 

 

 

Schooooooools out for SUMMER!

Sing it with me!

Today was my VERY last day of kindergarten!  I can't wait to get summer started.  Here I am, lookin' cool just before Mum took me in.

Don't I look different than I did on my FIRST day?!  Well, maybe a little.

xoxoA

Catch Up!!

Alright, alright, alright... so we're going on 4 months since the last post--we're a busy bunch!  I've decided to post a little picture timeline so that you can see what me and Vilee have been up to.  Cousin Ian will have to post his own photos...

Since February, lots has happened!  I've lost a couple teeth, gained some bangs (Violet too), and done a whole bunch of school stuff. 

In March, Daddy went to Guam for the month so it was just Mumma and the girls (with lots of help from Nana, Pup, Mimi, and Shane)!  We had Easter in the snow...

 

... here we are at Nana's looking for eggs outside.  Can you believe the Easter Bunny still made it to BOTH houses in this weather?! 

In April I had my first ever music concert.  I'm there in the back row.

 

We did 4 songs and one even had sign language to go with it.  We worked really hard for months and months to get these just right!

In May, it was my birthday!  I'm 6, ya know.  Me and my friends went to the Discovery Museum and it was A-W-E-S-O-M-E!  I decided I wanted a luau theme this year.  Wouldn't ya know, Mumma had a whole bunch of decorations from a party for Great Grandma that I wasn't even alive for! 

In May, Vilee and I also got new hair-dos.  Nana and Aunt Sally cut our locks while Mumma was shopping.  We love our new bangs--but Mum is still getting used to it.  She's says they make us look all grown up.  Ppffft--whatever Mum.

THIS month has just started... but it's been a good one, and a HOT one!  I went on my first camping trip of the summer with Nana and Papa last weekend.  Mumma and Mimi brought the babies down the next day and Violet stayed that night with us.  Papa picked out this camping site... did I mention it was HOT?!

This was the only shade we could find for lunch time.  Luckily, the pool was open and we took our first dip of the summer!

That pretty much catches us up.  Now I'm just waiting for the last day of school!!  Mummy and Daddy bought us a camper too, so now we can be neighbors with Nana and Papa when we go camping... instead of all cramming into their camper.  But maybe they'll still let me sleep with them, and Vilee can sleep with Mum and Dad :)

Happy Almost Summer!!
xoxo
Ayda Sue Ellen

Fat Tuesday!

Yesterday was Fat Tuesday and we had a family party! Here are some photos. We had a really good time and even had a yummy King Cake! Mimi made the best macaroni and cheese and I pretended to be a waitress and took everyone's drink orders. It was a really fun night.

This is me with my cousin Ian and sissy Violet.

Ian and Vilee are best buds!

I just love holding baby Ian.

Vi put on MY boots and walked around the whole house. She looked really funny!

This is a King Cake! You eat it on Fat Tuesday. Inside there is a Jumpin' Baby Jesus and the person who finds him has good luck for the entire year!

Jesus's legs were poking out of Mimi's piece!

This is my kazoo. Vilee couldn't make it work, but she sure looked cute trying!

Do you recognize this guy? It's MY DAD! We think he looks like Violet in this photo...

Great Pond Trip

It's been a long time since any of my family have been to Great Pond and, actually, I've NEVER been--until this past weekend that is! Mumma and Daddy decided that I was old enough to make the trip to Great Pond, but this time we didn't stay in one of those yurt thingys... we shared a cabin with our friends the Anayas! It was so much fun to have another little(er) girl to play with! This is me and my friend Vivie going for a sled ride... it was pretty cold out!

Daddy and Ayda did most of the fishing for our family. They even caught this fish!Ayda was much braver than me...

... or maybe is was just that she actually had thumbs in her mittens. I did lots of cuddling with Mumma

and even a little with Sissy

I did NOT however do much sleeping. You would think all that fresh air would knock a baby out! But nope, I wasn't having any of that ol' portable crib! Honestly, would you?! At the end of the long weekend, Ayda topped off the excitement by FINALLY loosing her second tooth! That thing has been dangling for weeks!

Happy Fishing Everyone! xoxo Violet