Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Puerto Vallarta 2010

We just returned from our first trip to Mexico. We stayed in an all inclusive resort in Puerto Vallarta and had SUCH a great time! The first time ever that we've just relaxed and hung out by the pool, etc. Amazingly, we were able to relax....even with 2 small kids. The staff took SUCH good care of us. I really could get used to the 24 hour food service! Jake caught on pretty quickly to how the whole thing worked and by the time we left, he was know by our poolside server as "the kid who loves pickles". Both kids had SUCH a good time in the pool and the water was so warm that even I was comfortable! We did venture out one day to a water park and I'm not sure if Jake or Brian had more fun......waterslides galore! It was the perfect vacation and here are LOTS of pictures!


Our little surfer dude


Mia loved the sand....she had lots of fun, but we're still finding it in the suitcases and will probably continue to find it in places we'd rather not. Worth the fun though!


Ready to fiesta!


Post swimming naptime for the boys....


Poolside snuggle time



Best pool EVER! Jake and Mia could play on the Acapulco deck and we could relax in the water right next to them.....soooo nice! And with Tino taking such good care of us, we never went hungry or thirsty.....in fact, Jake took a record amount of trips to the bathroom.....seemed like every 30 minutes he'd be doing the "potty dance". Guess we should have limited his strawberry drinks (virgin strawberry daquiri's....yum. we're amazed he's gone back to diluted juice now that we're home). We spent SO much time in the pool....and the water was even warm enough for ME to get in without hesitation, which is amazing.


These next few are from Mia's first time in the sand.....reminds me of the pictures we have of Jake doing the same thing (eating sand) on the beach in Kauai when he was exactly the same age.






Best buds


Having fun with my favorite kiddos!

Playing on the balcony


Here is Mia....she was the "welcome wagon" for the resort while we were there. Here she is waving and saying "hiiiiii" to the people down below. Whether we were at the pool, strolling around, or playing on the balcony, she would wave and say hi to anyone that would listen....and did it even if NOBODY was listening. It's her favorite/only word that is truly recognizable. Maybe we should have taught her to say "hola" while we there.


Chillin' in the pool again....


Watching the boys come down the waterslides


Jake doing the kiddie waterslides on his own....he was quite proud and was doing backwards spins down the thing by the end of the afternoon.




Coming down the BIG waterslide with daddy!


Burrito boy....he loved it when Daddy would wrap him up like this.


Ooooh yeah....you know that nobody loves a competition more that Brian. As luck would have it, the resort had a few "games" to play. Here are Jake and Brian, kicking butt in the beanbag toss. It started with about 30 people and of course, Brian made it down to the 3rd round of finals.....when he threw the winning beanbag toss, Jake cheered "YEAH DADDY" so loud and with SO much enthusiasm. Once they won and the coordinator went to hand him his winning t-shirt, he told him that he had to dance for 30 seconds before claiming the prize. You can imagine how thrilled he was with all of the pool-goers looking on. He and Jake boogied down (okay, hardly swayed back and forth....but this is Brian we're talking about)....and walked away with a silver and white t-shirt for a night club in Puerto Vallarta. I'm sure he'll get a lot of wear out of it :) But it was definitely worth the memory.


Chubby toddler in bikini = irresistable!


Yes, her mouth was open and smiling like this the whole time....trying not to focus on the obscene amount of pool water that she drank. Ick.


Love that smile! Though he does have a floatie on here, he "graduated" a little bit with his swimming....he would swim for as long as he could hold his breath....I'd say about 10 feet. But we were really impressed with the progress he made.
Of course, he mastered the "cannon ball" on vacation as well.

Some pics....

Daddy's helper.....just taking a measurement to make sure Uncle Shaun's steps turn out right.

Jake's first swim lesson! Miss Kelly is his teacher (actually someone I used to babysit) and she is great....of course, he loves her. Doing pretty well....hoping by the end of summer he'll be able to swim a bit and get himself to the steps, out of the pool, etc.


Yup, ALL those birthday gifts and of course, she'd have been happy playing with the paper!


Sometimes I just can't handle the cuteness.


I think Mia is going to be a character. One thing is for sure.....she makes me smile.

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Mia and Jake



Mia and Jake had a photo session with my good friend, Jenn who is a fabulous photographer. Here are a few of the pics she got. Here is a link to her blog and a few more pics of Mia and Jake
http://jennhoffmann.blogspot.com/2010/05/photo-session-winner-sneak-peek.html

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Mia is ONE



I've been in complete denial lately that my BABY girl is going to be one. Yes, it makes me well up just thinking about it! Can't believe that a year ago, we had just met her....it's the funny combination of feeling like she's been a part of our family forever, and seeming like it was just yesterday that she was born. She completes our family and we feel SO lucky each and every day to have our two wonderful kids. Mia absolutely adores her brother and is such a pleasant baby. She has 2 teeth on the bottom now that are almost all the way in......she is doing some fun stuff now like "what does a fish say" or "what does a sheep say" and she responds appropriately.....loves to wave hello and goodbye....LOVES to dance the moment she hears music....and too many other things to list. Of course, she's at the age where EVERYTHING she does is adorable :) Mia, we LOVE you more than words can say......what a great year!

One year old stuff


Forward facing in a toddler carseat.....doesn't she look thrilled.


Scootering with Uncle Tim



Just looking cute with her little watermelon bootie....


Wow, Mia's been a year old for a whopping 2 days and already she doesn't seem like a baby any more.....sigh.

More Birthday....

ME.....you're singing to ME?!!




Jake was more than happy to help with blowing out the candles.


Such a fun family night! Mia's first birthday dinner at Grammie and Gramps' house.

Our SWEET Girl's Birthday Party!

Mia's first birthday party was this weekend and the theme was "Our SWEET girl is turning one". You know I love a theme.....and what a FUN theme it was....at least from the party planner's point of view.....though I'm pretty sure I'm going to receive some hate mail from the mommies after sending their kiddos home with a bag full of candy! The weather cooperated and we had a great day with friends and family, celebrating our Mia.....really can't believe she's already a year old.




In the picture below, we're singing Happy Birthday to her.....she loves it...she even
danced a little bit while the tune was going ;)

She wasn't sure what to make of the cupcake, but loved it once she had a little taste!









In all honesty, I did feel guilty about sending the kids home with lots of candy.....giving them a toothbrush as well was my way of making myself feel a little better :)




Sunday, May 30, 2010

Kiddos!


My clean up crew helping me get ready for Mia's party! Jake was content for a LONG time when I gave him a Windex bottle filled with water and let him "help" me by cleaning the OUTSIDE of the windows. Mia didn't want to be left out and got her own rag to help too. Wish I could bottle this enthusiasm for cleaning and open it back up when they're teenagers and can actually HELP with cleaning, etc.!!


Skater Girl - who knows....maybe she'll be the one to go hard core on the skateboard.
Hey, if the helmet fits, right?!


Jake helped me make the cupcakes for Mia's party. He cracks me up though....when I was taking the beaters out of the mixer, he asks "ummmm, Mommy....what are you going to do with those beaters??" You could just hear the hope in his voice that I would say, "Sure, Jake....have some cake batter for breakfast"......so I did. Love that boy!


Here is Jake, enjoying his morning TV....(a.k.a. "mommy's quiet time")! Mia just love to be up on the couch with him. She looks so proud...really feels like part of the big kid club when she's up there. He tolerates her while the tv is on, but gets a bit testy if she starts crawling around up there and blocking his view. This morning right after I took this picture, I came to wipe Jake's face off with a washcloth. After I came back in the room from putting it in the sink, Mia had grabbed a washcloth from the laundry basket that was also on the couch and was "wiping" his face. SOOOO sweet. She also loves holding and loving her dolls...she's definitely a nurturer! Don't know where she gets that from :)