This year Isabella wanted to be a bride for halloween. Partly because of Kate marrying Prince William and partly because she had so much fun at my cousin Allison's wedding. We had a dress picked out and everything, but David had other plans. He refused to let her be a bride claiming she's too young (I guess he didn't realize she wasn't ACTUALLY getting married). She was given a chance to select another costume and so she chose to be Rapunzel. Fortunately, Daddy was ok with that choice...
As far as Madeline, I'd made Isabella's first 2 Halloween costumes, so I felt an obligation to make Maddie's as well. After going back and forth about what she should be, I finally decided on a bumble bee. Let's just say, you could tell the costume was "homemade." Oh well, it was made with love.
The weekend of Halloween, David and I attended a wedding in New York for his long-time friend Arie's wedding. It was SO nice to get away, just the two of us. I'm not quite sure what it is about us, but we tend to bring unseasonably cold or warm weather with us when we travel. Just lucky, I guess. We arrived on Friday afternoon and it was cool and crisp. We were able to wear coats, but walk around comfortably outside for a few hours. It was so nice. We went to see Jersey Boys on Broadway that night. OMG - I could not stop smiling the whole time. It was one of the best musicals I've ever seen. David shared that sentiment. We couldn't stop raving about it. Saturday night was the rehearsal dinner, but we didn't have any plans until 6 so we decided to take advantage of our free time. After spending 30 minutes in a "time share" presentation (we had to in order to get the amazing rate we were offered), we convinced the poor sales person we had no intention of purchasing at that time. About 20 minutes into the presentation, however, it started snowing outside. We're not talking a dusting, we're talking huge, fat flakes. We were mesmorized by its beauty. We couldn't wait to go outside and enjoy the wintery weather. We met our friend David Dym in the lobby and headed off to Carnegie Deli. As we were leaving the hotel, we realized the "beautiful snow" was going to have the same effect as rain and we purchased two umbrellas from the vendor parked right outside the entrance. Boy did those come in handy. The fat flakes poured down like water and the wind started picking up. We arrived at Carnegie just in time as there was no wait when we got there. It was everything it's touted to be and more. We all shared some potato latkes and a potato knish. I head Matzo Ball soup and the Davids split an enormous corned beef and pastrami sandwich. By the time we left (no more than 45 minutes later) there was a line out the door. Also in that 45 minutes, the weather took a turn for the worse. The wind picked up and the snow turned into a wintery mix. We decided to go down to the Financial District and see Wall Street and ground zero. We took a cab there after vetoing the subway idea. We'd already bought Subway tickets, but when we saw the line just to get on (it was backed up ABOVE ground b/c of the weather), we thought a cab was our best bet. Once we got there, the wind had picked up even more and the snow had turned back into rain with a hint of sleet. Beautiful combo. I should take this opportunity to mention that NOWHERE in the 10-day forecast was snow mentioned. At least not until we were packed and already on the plane... That said, we were desperate for winter accessories (we needed scarves and gloves BADLY). We were walking around ground zero trying to find a way to see the site when the wind picked up even more and destroyed our umbrellas. It didn't just flip them inside out, it snapped the metal spokes. Now, we were cold, wet with no umbrella and still no way to see the site. We decided to take pictures of the construction zone as they were re-building 3 towers and that in and of itself was pretty photo-worthy. From there we headed to Wall Street itself and had a chance to witness the "Occupy Wall Street" idiots. Quite a site, let me tell you. By this time, the snow that had accumulated on the streets had turned into enormous puddles so every step we took we saturated our shoes. By the time we were done with Financial District, our shoes were soaked and we were in need of new ones. Literally. We made a stop at the M & M World to buy gifts for the girls and we headed to THE Saks Fifth Avenue and each bought a new pair of boots to wear. It's a shame they will only get used once a year in San Antonio... We headed back to the hotel to take a warm shower and get ready for the rehearsal dinner. The dinner was at a Persian restaurant and I have to say, the food was delicious. It reminded us of a Turkish restaurant here in San Antonio Turquoise. We went to a pub down the street for a drink afterwards and went home to rest up for the wedding.
The wedding was held at the D & D building. I'm not sure exactly where it was, but it to be in a Design/Home furnishings/Home Improvement area. The building was beautiful, as was the view. Arie and Beth's wedding was small and beautiful. It really was. Unfortunately, we had to go straight from the wedding to the airport. It's a good thing we left when we did. We're not sure what the cab driver was thinking, but it took an hour to get to the airport. I don't know my way around NYC, but I can tell you the route we took to JFK airport was NOT the most direct nor was it the fastest. As we were going through security, we were stopped and the security employees informed us we couldn't carry the snow globes we'd bought for the girls on the airplane. They gave us the choice to either check a bag or throw them away. We opted to check the bag, but we were cutting it close. Damn you Al Qaeda. My Dad picked us up from the airport (which was really strange to have MY Dad picking us up at the San Antonio airport).
This brings us to Halloween. Isabella had a make-up class for ballet, so my parents had a chance to see her in action - well, not exactly. Still, it was cute to see her standing in her full ballet ensemble. We took the girls trick-or-treating in the subdivision across the street from ours. Unfortunately, David was in a "fender bender" on his way home from work and missed seeing the girls in costume. He would've made it for the end of it, but he waited 2 hours for the police to show up. Nice. Ok, here's what you've all been waiting for: the pictures. First, however, here are the wedding/NY pictures first:
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Maddie 9 Months
Madeline has now been out of my tummy longer than she was in (although I could have said that at 8 months too, I suppose). She has matured into quite a little love bug. She draws attention no matter where we are. Her smile can light up a room. A week ago, we got her ears pierced. She looks adorable in earrings, just like her big sister. She's starting to "talk" and even added "da da" to her repertoire. So far we have: ba ba, ga ga, ha ha, wa wa, da da and ma (yes, just one ma. I'm trying desperately to get her to add that second "ma.") According to her pediatrician, she is EXACTLY where she should be at 9 months, developmentally and has even caught up on the growth chart. Her stats are as follows:
Height: 26 inches (8th percentile)
Weight: 16 lbs. 15 oz. (19th percentile)
Every day she seems to do something new that makes us so proud. She's crawling around everywhere. She's even discovered the joys of playing with Isabella's toys. Only one of the two of them is happy with that discovery :). Isabella is a good sport, but she's only human and tends to aggressively take toys away from Maddie. I lovingly remind her that if she doesn't share her toys with her little sister, I may not share my toys with her (i.e. my iphone or ipad). She immediately finds a toy she doesn't mind temporarily parting ways with and hands it over to Maddie to enjoy. That only appeases Madeline for so long until she realizes Isabella is playing with something else and then she decides that toy is her next target. It's funny to watch. I have a new appreciation for what my little sister went through. Being an older sibling myself, I can where Isabella is coming from. Now, however, I see Maddie's perspective and I try, with a 50% success rate, to make them both happy.
Recently Maddie started clapping her hands. If we say "Yea Maddie" she'll start clapping. If we start Pat-A-Cake she starts clapping. It's absolutely adorable. I'm trying to capture it on video, but she always stops when I start shooting. She also started pulling herself to a standing position and twice has even let go and stood by herself for a second. David and I are just bursting with pride.
Here are some photos of our 9-month old princess:
Up next: HALLOWEEN!!!!
Height: 26 inches (8th percentile)
Weight: 16 lbs. 15 oz. (19th percentile)
Every day she seems to do something new that makes us so proud. She's crawling around everywhere. She's even discovered the joys of playing with Isabella's toys. Only one of the two of them is happy with that discovery :). Isabella is a good sport, but she's only human and tends to aggressively take toys away from Maddie. I lovingly remind her that if she doesn't share her toys with her little sister, I may not share my toys with her (i.e. my iphone or ipad). She immediately finds a toy she doesn't mind temporarily parting ways with and hands it over to Maddie to enjoy. That only appeases Madeline for so long until she realizes Isabella is playing with something else and then she decides that toy is her next target. It's funny to watch. I have a new appreciation for what my little sister went through. Being an older sibling myself, I can where Isabella is coming from. Now, however, I see Maddie's perspective and I try, with a 50% success rate, to make them both happy.
Recently Maddie started clapping her hands. If we say "Yea Maddie" she'll start clapping. If we start Pat-A-Cake she starts clapping. It's absolutely adorable. I'm trying to capture it on video, but she always stops when I start shooting. She also started pulling herself to a standing position and twice has even let go and stood by herself for a second. David and I are just bursting with pride.
Here are some photos of our 9-month old princess:
Up next: HALLOWEEN!!!!
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Madeline at 8 Months/Yom Kippur in KC
Eight months, really!?!? I have to admit, I'm not a huge fan of how quickly times seems to be slipping away. Since this is probably my last baby, I was hoping time would go by slowly enough that I could enjoy almost every moment. That is not proving to be the case. At 8 months, Madeline is continuing to surprise us with reaching milestones at a pace ahead of where she should as a preemie. She is so close to crawling it is scary. Right now it's more of an "army crawl." She sits on her own and seems to really be enjoying her new perspective on the world. She won't go back to the doctor until 9 months, but based on our scale at home (which has proven to be pretty accurate) she is 16 lbs. 2 oz. We figure she's around 25" or so. She even has two sharp little teeth! She's growing like a weed and has become the happiest baby in the world. She'll go to almost anyone who wants to hold her, but is starting to show signs of separation anxiety with me. Even when David's holding her, if I walk by her or leave the room, she reaches for me and starts to whimper a bit. She's feeding herself and is really starting to hone her fine motor skills. I'm loving watching her grow...
Isabella started piano lessons about a month ago. Through her school, they offer Piano by Color. It's a European method of learning where each note is assigned a color (C=blue, D=red, E=green, F=brown and G=orange). They start with 5 - one for each finger. It is offered in two formats: 1) a 30 minute "group" lesson or 2) a 15 minute individual lesson. I wasn't sure if she would enjoy it or how well she would do. I've been pleasantly surprised with how quickly she's picking it up and how much she truly enjoys it. After trying a group lesson first, we've decided on individual lessons for her. She did significantly better on her own than she did with another one of her classmates. (especially considering the classmate was bouncing off the walls - I'd have a hard time concentrating too) Her teacher commented how amazing Isabella's attention span is and even tried an individual lesson for 30 minutes. Apparently Isabella did so well, her teacher admitted she could've gone 45 minutes and would've held her attention the whole time. Because they are offered through school, she is limited to either the 30 min. group or 15 min. individual lesson. Her teacher has suggested, in a month or so, enrolling Isabella in her own 30 minute lesson at the teacher's "regular" studio and stopping lessons at the preschool. She's been very impressed with Isabella's progress. Isabella enjoys it so much she doesn't even mind practicing at home...now THAT says something.
For Yom Kippur, we traveled to Kansas City to spend some time (very short amount of time) with my family. It was sort of a whirlwind weekend, but I VERY MUCH enjoyed seeing my fam. ( Just a side note: my sister and mom looked AMAZING. If you haven't seen them recently, you'll be stunned the next time you do. I'm SO proud!!!) My mom stayed home with the girls so David and I could go to Kol Nidre with my Dad and sister. I know I'm not supposed to "enjoy" Kol Nidre services, but it was nice to be among adults for a change. For Yom Kippur services we gave Isabella a choice: go to babysitting (where we all know she'd do anything NOT to go) or sit quietly in services and not say a word. No surprise, she chose sitting in services. We told her if that's what she chose, if we heard a peep out of her, she'd be off to babysitting. We expected her time in services to be short-lived. Much to our surprise, she lasted the ENTIRE time. She's never behaved better! Mental note for the future: threaten babysitting to ensure a well-behaved child. For break-the-fast, we ate a my parents' house and Isabella took it as an opportunity to show off. She showed everyone her "moves" from her ballet class and played all night with cousin Carey. She took pictures on my phone and helped with Maddie. She had a great time.
Sunday morning was the belated celebration of my grandparents' birthdays and anniversary. As many of you know, in August, my grandmother fell and broke her collarbone and the planned celebrations had to be rescheduled. (A photo was taken of Isabella in her sling next to her "GG" in her sling. Sad, but cute.) Knowing we were coming in town, they kindly rescheduled for this weekend. Isabella got to play with her cousins Eliza and Peyton, which she enjoyed immensely. Can't wait to see the family again soon!
Isabella started piano lessons about a month ago. Through her school, they offer Piano by Color. It's a European method of learning where each note is assigned a color (C=blue, D=red, E=green, F=brown and G=orange). They start with 5 - one for each finger. It is offered in two formats: 1) a 30 minute "group" lesson or 2) a 15 minute individual lesson. I wasn't sure if she would enjoy it or how well she would do. I've been pleasantly surprised with how quickly she's picking it up and how much she truly enjoys it. After trying a group lesson first, we've decided on individual lessons for her. She did significantly better on her own than she did with another one of her classmates. (especially considering the classmate was bouncing off the walls - I'd have a hard time concentrating too) Her teacher commented how amazing Isabella's attention span is and even tried an individual lesson for 30 minutes. Apparently Isabella did so well, her teacher admitted she could've gone 45 minutes and would've held her attention the whole time. Because they are offered through school, she is limited to either the 30 min. group or 15 min. individual lesson. Her teacher has suggested, in a month or so, enrolling Isabella in her own 30 minute lesson at the teacher's "regular" studio and stopping lessons at the preschool. She's been very impressed with Isabella's progress. Isabella enjoys it so much she doesn't even mind practicing at home...now THAT says something.
For Yom Kippur, we traveled to Kansas City to spend some time (very short amount of time) with my family. It was sort of a whirlwind weekend, but I VERY MUCH enjoyed seeing my fam. ( Just a side note: my sister and mom looked AMAZING. If you haven't seen them recently, you'll be stunned the next time you do. I'm SO proud!!!) My mom stayed home with the girls so David and I could go to Kol Nidre with my Dad and sister. I know I'm not supposed to "enjoy" Kol Nidre services, but it was nice to be among adults for a change. For Yom Kippur services we gave Isabella a choice: go to babysitting (where we all know she'd do anything NOT to go) or sit quietly in services and not say a word. No surprise, she chose sitting in services. We told her if that's what she chose, if we heard a peep out of her, she'd be off to babysitting. We expected her time in services to be short-lived. Much to our surprise, she lasted the ENTIRE time. She's never behaved better! Mental note for the future: threaten babysitting to ensure a well-behaved child. For break-the-fast, we ate a my parents' house and Isabella took it as an opportunity to show off. She showed everyone her "moves" from her ballet class and played all night with cousin Carey. She took pictures on my phone and helped with Maddie. She had a great time.
Sunday morning was the belated celebration of my grandparents' birthdays and anniversary. As many of you know, in August, my grandmother fell and broke her collarbone and the planned celebrations had to be rescheduled. (A photo was taken of Isabella in her sling next to her "GG" in her sling. Sad, but cute.) Knowing we were coming in town, they kindly rescheduled for this weekend. Isabella got to play with her cousins Eliza and Peyton, which she enjoyed immensely. Can't wait to see the family again soon!
Friday, September 30, 2011
L'Shana Tovah
To be honest the New Year started off eerily similarly to the way last year ended. With Isabella being sick, David had to go to Rosh Hashanah services as the sole representative of our family. I can't remember a High Holiday service I've missed...EVER. It was odd to stay home, but absolutely necessary. Unfortunately, that meant missing two amazing meals at my in-laws. Fortunately for me, they sent me home a plate of food from each meal.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones...
...or legs of tables, for that matter. Isabella is a clutz. THAT we all know. However, the magnitude of her clutziness has reached a new level. We were having some work done on our house and didn't have access to our kitchen for a few days. David was out of town, so I called my sister-in-law Rachel to join me for dinner out. It was a great opportunity to chat and also for Isabella and Madeline to see their cousin Hannah. We were having a great time, but I noticed Isabella was sitting backwards in her chair. I told her a few times to turn around or she might fall. Can you guess what happened next? Of course, she fell. She fell off her chair and landed on the leg of the table on her shoulder. She started crying immediately and holding her arm. Fortunately we were done with dinner and just waiting for the check. I tried to calm her down, which I was able to do, for the most part. I examined her arm and shoulder and didn't see anything unusual. She did, however, tell me she couldn't raise her arm. Also, when I picked her up under her armpits to get her in and out of the car, she screamed bloody murder. I thought maybe she had a stinger or something so I decided to take her home, ice it down, give her some Children's Motrin and see how she was in the morning. I ended up having her sleep in bed with me so I could keep my eye on her. She whimpered all night - every time she moved. Once we were up the next morning, I asked her how it was feeling. She said it still hurt badly and could raise her arm. At breakfast I noticed she was eating with her left hand (she's right-handed). I decided to call the Doctor as soon as they opened at 8. They asked me if I could get there by 8:30. They warned me that we'd probably have to take her to get x-rays immediately following the appointment, so I prepared myself for that. At the appointment, the doctor made the comment to me that she had a sneaking suspicion Isabella had broken her collarbone. I was stunned. I examined her entire arm and shoulder. I never even considered it might be her collarbone. They put her in a sling and we headed straight to the imaging center (fortunately, it wasn't very far from her Dr.). After a couple of x-rays (which she was an angel for, by the way), they sent us home to wait for a call from her pediatrician with the results.
As I mentioned earlier, they were doing work on our kitchen (and den area), so once we got home, we went straight into the office to set up shop there. After a few minutes, I started to feel REALLY run down (I hadn't slept that night), so much so, that I told Isabella she needed to bring some books and toys into my room so I could lay down. I NEVER do that. About 30 minutes later I had a fever. In the meantime I'd called David (as luck would have it, he was only in Austin - about 90 minutes from here - and he said he'd head home early to help out. I received a call from the pediatrician confirming the worst; her collarbone was broken. By the time David got home, my fever was up to 103 and he insisted I go to a clinic to get checked out (our GP's office closes at noon on Fridays). He put the girls in the car, dropped me off and picked me up when I was done. I was diagnosed with a sinus infection, even though I had no congestion. I thought it was a bit odd, but didn't think anything of it. They prescribed me an antibiotic. Well, I discovered the hard way that I'm allergic to Omnicef. My body did NOT like that medication and was even more miserable than I was before. It was so bad that I went back to the clinic Sunday and was told I had a virus that needed to run it's course. They gave me a steroid to help with the allergic reaction (and it did help after a day or so). The next morning, Isabella woke up with a fever. While mine lasted 3-4 days, hers lasted 7 full days. She developed a cough with hers, lost her voice and was pretty much miserable for an entire week.
As far as the broken clavicle goes, we had to pull her out of soccer (I'm not sure how devastated she was), she missed a couple of weeks of ballet until she could raise her arm again, and it was recommended she wear a sling when she leaves the house. The sling wasn't just to help immobilize her shoulder, but mainly to act as a deterrent for other people to be a little gentler with her. Only a four week recovery, though - we can handle that.
I didn't take any pictures of her during this ordeal because she wasn't exactly in the best mood...
As I mentioned earlier, they were doing work on our kitchen (and den area), so once we got home, we went straight into the office to set up shop there. After a few minutes, I started to feel REALLY run down (I hadn't slept that night), so much so, that I told Isabella she needed to bring some books and toys into my room so I could lay down. I NEVER do that. About 30 minutes later I had a fever. In the meantime I'd called David (as luck would have it, he was only in Austin - about 90 minutes from here - and he said he'd head home early to help out. I received a call from the pediatrician confirming the worst; her collarbone was broken. By the time David got home, my fever was up to 103 and he insisted I go to a clinic to get checked out (our GP's office closes at noon on Fridays). He put the girls in the car, dropped me off and picked me up when I was done. I was diagnosed with a sinus infection, even though I had no congestion. I thought it was a bit odd, but didn't think anything of it. They prescribed me an antibiotic. Well, I discovered the hard way that I'm allergic to Omnicef. My body did NOT like that medication and was even more miserable than I was before. It was so bad that I went back to the clinic Sunday and was told I had a virus that needed to run it's course. They gave me a steroid to help with the allergic reaction (and it did help after a day or so). The next morning, Isabella woke up with a fever. While mine lasted 3-4 days, hers lasted 7 full days. She developed a cough with hers, lost her voice and was pretty much miserable for an entire week.
As far as the broken clavicle goes, we had to pull her out of soccer (I'm not sure how devastated she was), she missed a couple of weeks of ballet until she could raise her arm again, and it was recommended she wear a sling when she leaves the house. The sling wasn't just to help immobilize her shoulder, but mainly to act as a deterrent for other people to be a little gentler with her. Only a four week recovery, though - we can handle that.
I didn't take any pictures of her during this ordeal because she wasn't exactly in the best mood...
Friday, August 26, 2011
I'm Not Isabella...
Oh my precious Isabella. In the wake of her first day of school as a big Blue Bird, it is my duty to share with the world the wonderful (and not-so-wonderful) ways Isabella has changed lately. I haven't written about only her in a while. She has turned in to quite the character. She's incredibly sweet and loving, but sometimes forgets she's only 3 and takes on the attitude of a 13 year old. She's become quite the negotiator as well. If you tell her she has 5 minutes left until nap time, she says, "How about 10 minutes." When you ask her how long she wants you to lay in bed with her at night, she says "All the minutes" and when asked how many minutes is "all the minutes" she replies "10 and 5." She's still pretending to be other people. Who she is depends on the day. Sometimes she's Justin Bieber and other times she's Melanie from So You Think You Can Dance. Most recently she's been Mama Mia (can you guess which soundtrack we've been listening to?!) For some odd reason though, she's always Isabella when she has to go to the bathroom. If she walks up to you and says "I'm Isabella now" you know to ask her if she has to go potty. It's so strange, but REALLY funny and surprisingly helpful! Within the last couple of days she's started "mapping out" her identities for the foreseeable future. For example, last night she told me "When I go to the bathroom, I'm going to be Isabella. I'm still going to be Isabella when I wash my hands, but when I'm done I'm going to be Melanie. Then, when I get in my bed, I'm going to be Mama Mia, ok Mommy?" You can't help but laugh when she lays it out for you. It's too cute.
When it comes to wonderful big sisters, Isabella has made a case for best in the world. She is the most loving, caring big sister. She helps me with Madeline all the time and loves to show her how to do things. She always wants to kiss her and hug her and I'll even hear her whisper to Maddie how much she loves her. It melts my heart. Her only downfall is she tends to take over Madeline's toys. She starts off innocently showing her how to play something and Madeline ends up losing interest, moving on and Isabella keeps playing. I have to remind her that she has the "Big Girl" versions of these toys. The grass is always greener...
She's recently taken over my phone and iPad. She learned my passcode and figured out how to operate the iPod on the devices. She also figured out how to turn on "repeat" thus torturing us with Justin Bieber OVER AND OVER AND OVER again. It got so out of hand that the use of the devices is limited to running errand (for my own sanity) and some longer car rides. That's it. Use at home has been prohibited for now. She's asked a couple of times, but seems to be ok without playing "DJ" all day. She also has grown quite fond of the 1985 USA for Africa music video as well as the remake last year. It cracks me up, but she liked them so much she'd leave them on while she was playing with other toys and reading books. One can only listen to We Are the World so many times. She's also discovered the wonders of photography and videography. Ever since she figured out how to flip the camera so she can see herself, she has inundated my phone with self-portraits and random photos of the floor or my arm, sometimes even half my face if she has any luck. (I've included one of her self-portraits in the photos at the end of this post). I'll also find short little videos of her looking into the camera breathing. I think she just likes pressing the record button - who knows! Of the 883 photos on my phone, 800 of them were taken by her...
Sometimes I look at her and can't believe how grown up she is. I love being able to have real conversations with her and I'm always amused at the number of things she can remember. She can remember where we were when we heard a song. If she hears a person's name on the radio or in listening to David and my conversations that she's met before, she'll chime in and let you know. For example, we were eating lunch and David and I were talking about Phil (Mickelson) and Isabella interjected with "You mean Phil like the Phil we ate lunch with in Kansas City (Phil Rogoff)?" You'd think after this happening over and over I'd stop being surprised, but each time she makes the connection I'm bursting with pride.
Isabella started a ballet class at a studio a couple of miles from our house and her preschool. She absolutely loves it (a girl after my own heart). I wasn't sure how she'd do since she's so shy and only likes to "perform" when she's very comfortable with her audience. She spent the first class kind of just "existing" and not really participating. Fortunately by the second class, she was joining right along (she's one of the youngest in the class). She's great about showing David and I all of her moves and telling us what she learned in class. It's so awesome how much she thinks about it. She insists on wearing her leotard and ballet shoes around the house. She'd wear her tutu if I'd let her, but tulle isn't the world's strongest fabric...
Recently, Isabella has started "fine-tuning" her fine motor skills. She's become very good at lacing things, she's mastered stringing beads, and has even learned to use scissors (child-friendly, of course). She's started writing letters. So far, she can write an "I," a "T," an "E," and an "A."
She has memorized all of her Shabbat blessings and even likes to say the Sh'ma before bed. It confirms my decision to send her to a Jewish Preschool. It's so nice to see her express an interest in all of the holidays. I'd love for her to grow up embracing her religion and hopefully she will not be the only Jew in her elementary school (I was until Meagan joined me) :).
I hope you've enjoyed this glimpse into the life of my beautiful 3 1/2 year old. Here are some funny Isabella quotes as well as some pictures (even some of her first day of school) and videos to top it off:
"No Cuddles, it's not Cyndi Lobster, it's Cyndi LAUPER - LAUPER!"
"Mom, stop turning off the iPad, it will shut off by itself!"
"I'm going to go to the hospital real fast so the doctor can take the baby out of my tummy and I'll be right back."
"WHAAAAAT UUUUUUUUUP!"
"Word to your mother!"
"I want to listen to the REAL version of Total Eclipse of the Heart."
When it comes to wonderful big sisters, Isabella has made a case for best in the world. She is the most loving, caring big sister. She helps me with Madeline all the time and loves to show her how to do things. She always wants to kiss her and hug her and I'll even hear her whisper to Maddie how much she loves her. It melts my heart. Her only downfall is she tends to take over Madeline's toys. She starts off innocently showing her how to play something and Madeline ends up losing interest, moving on and Isabella keeps playing. I have to remind her that she has the "Big Girl" versions of these toys. The grass is always greener...
She's recently taken over my phone and iPad. She learned my passcode and figured out how to operate the iPod on the devices. She also figured out how to turn on "repeat" thus torturing us with Justin Bieber OVER AND OVER AND OVER again. It got so out of hand that the use of the devices is limited to running errand (for my own sanity) and some longer car rides. That's it. Use at home has been prohibited for now. She's asked a couple of times, but seems to be ok without playing "DJ" all day. She also has grown quite fond of the 1985 USA for Africa music video as well as the remake last year. It cracks me up, but she liked them so much she'd leave them on while she was playing with other toys and reading books. One can only listen to We Are the World so many times. She's also discovered the wonders of photography and videography. Ever since she figured out how to flip the camera so she can see herself, she has inundated my phone with self-portraits and random photos of the floor or my arm, sometimes even half my face if she has any luck. (I've included one of her self-portraits in the photos at the end of this post). I'll also find short little videos of her looking into the camera breathing. I think she just likes pressing the record button - who knows! Of the 883 photos on my phone, 800 of them were taken by her...
Sometimes I look at her and can't believe how grown up she is. I love being able to have real conversations with her and I'm always amused at the number of things she can remember. She can remember where we were when we heard a song. If she hears a person's name on the radio or in listening to David and my conversations that she's met before, she'll chime in and let you know. For example, we were eating lunch and David and I were talking about Phil (Mickelson) and Isabella interjected with "You mean Phil like the Phil we ate lunch with in Kansas City (Phil Rogoff)?" You'd think after this happening over and over I'd stop being surprised, but each time she makes the connection I'm bursting with pride.
Isabella started a ballet class at a studio a couple of miles from our house and her preschool. She absolutely loves it (a girl after my own heart). I wasn't sure how she'd do since she's so shy and only likes to "perform" when she's very comfortable with her audience. She spent the first class kind of just "existing" and not really participating. Fortunately by the second class, she was joining right along (she's one of the youngest in the class). She's great about showing David and I all of her moves and telling us what she learned in class. It's so awesome how much she thinks about it. She insists on wearing her leotard and ballet shoes around the house. She'd wear her tutu if I'd let her, but tulle isn't the world's strongest fabric...
Recently, Isabella has started "fine-tuning" her fine motor skills. She's become very good at lacing things, she's mastered stringing beads, and has even learned to use scissors (child-friendly, of course). She's started writing letters. So far, she can write an "I," a "T," an "E," and an "A."
She has memorized all of her Shabbat blessings and even likes to say the Sh'ma before bed. It confirms my decision to send her to a Jewish Preschool. It's so nice to see her express an interest in all of the holidays. I'd love for her to grow up embracing her religion and hopefully she will not be the only Jew in her elementary school (I was until Meagan joined me) :).
I hope you've enjoyed this glimpse into the life of my beautiful 3 1/2 year old. Here are some funny Isabella quotes as well as some pictures (even some of her first day of school) and videos to top it off:
"No Cuddles, it's not Cyndi Lobster, it's Cyndi LAUPER - LAUPER!"
"Mom, stop turning off the iPad, it will shut off by itself!"
"I'm going to go to the hospital real fast so the doctor can take the baby out of my tummy and I'll be right back."
"WHAAAAAT UUUUUUUUUP!"
"Word to your mother!"
"I want to listen to the REAL version of Total Eclipse of the Heart."
Friday, August 12, 2011
Our Vacation Destin-ation
FINALLY, for the first time since before Isabella was born, we took a vacation for more than a weekend. We took the girls to Destin, FL for a week (7 days, 6 nights). I will admit I was extremely nervous heading in to the trip as we weren't sure how the girls would handle sleeping in a hotel for a week. We were blown away with how smoothly they transitioned from home to the hotel (and back, for that matter). The room was set up in a way that Isabella had her own "room" with a bunkbed (it was a little cove in the front of the room and was separated from the rest of the hotel room by the bathroom). It worked out really well. Also, because of a helpful hint from my friend Kim, we rented a stroller, exersaucer and booster seat from a fantastic company called Babies 'N' Town. They delivered it to our hotel and it was already there when we arrived. The exersaucer alone was worth the price. Madeline actually had somewhere to sit and play instead of having to hang out in her infant carrier. Nice.
The first day was mostly spent traveling, but after a recommendation from the concierge, we headed to the Village at Baytown Wharf. It was a neat little village with tons of stuff for kids (mostly older kids, though) and great restaurants. We decided to eat at this italian restaurant called Graffiti's. Isabella was an angel, but Madeline was unusually fussy. We chalked it up to a long day of travel.
Day two (Saturday) we spent at the beach and pool for most of the day. We went in the morning after breakfast, took a break for lunch/naps and headed back out in the afternoon. We went back to the village for dinner. This meal was probably our favorite of the trip. We ate at a place called Bistro Bijou. It was a Louisiana-style restaurant and felt as if you were in New Orleans. The food was amazing. Isabella was an angel again and based on how Madeline started dinner, we feared she would be a handful, but much to our delight, the real Madeline appeared and she slept the entire dinner. Atta girl! We treated Isabella, and ourselves of course, to some gelato for dessert which made her night!
Day three (Sunday) we, again, spent the morning at the beach/pool as well as the afternoon. For dinner we changed it up and went to an area called Grand Boulevard where we ate at a Tommy Bahama restaurant. The food was surprisingly good. Both girls were fantastic. They were so good, in fact, that we decided to go take them (ok, Maddie didn't fully participate) to play miniature golf. We were so excited, but when we started to play we realized it was a Putting Course, not miniature golf. Unfortunately, there is an enormous difference. This was hard for David, the golfer, so you can imagine how impossible it was for Isabella. We let her put the ball wherever she wanted and hit it from there. She didn't know the difference, so she had a great time. I must say, I held my own for the first 8 or so holes. I even had a one stroke lead at one point, but then my lack of golf experience kicked in (ok, I just sucked at it). We had to leave after 12 holes because it was time to feed Madeline, but we had a great time.
Day four (Monday) we decided to switch things up a bit. We went to the beach/pool in the morning, but opted to try something different in the afternoon. I'd read about a place called The Gulfarium (a cross between an aquarium and Sea World) in Fort Walton Beach, about 20 miles west of our hotel. We thought Isabella would really enjoy seeing all of the fish and alligators. We found it easily, but it looked a little sketchy when we pulled in to the parking lot. David decided to run in and check it out to see if it was worth the visit. I must mention, RIGHT before we left the hotel, I asked the concierge how late they were open and if our timing was ok (it was 3pm). She assured me our timing was great and they did "shows" until 6pm. When David came back to the car, he had a puzzled look on his face. Apparently, they stopped admitting people at 2pm and closed at 3pm. Needless to say I was a little upset. We decided to go to the village instead and just walk around there. It ended up worked out alright as we got to go in a candy-making store. They made all different types of fudge. OMG - it was decadent. We ate at a 50's Diner for dinner and walked around afterwards a little longer. I happened to read just prior to dinner that a magician was performing at 8pm. We decided to take Isabella to the show. It was geared more for older kids and adults, but she had a good time nonetheless. While we were waiting for the shuttle (big mistake, by the way) to pick us up, Isabella made friends with one fo the female security guards. It started when the woman was gushing over Madeline and asked how old she was. Immediately after we told her Maddie's age, Isabella chimed in and said, "And I'm 3!" She'd had enough with the focus on Maddie.
Day five (Tuesday) was spent at the beach/pool in the morning and again in the afternoon. We'd just gotten to the beach in the afternoon when we experienced something we in San Antonio have not seen in MONTHS. RAIN!!!!!! It figures we had to go on vacation to get rain. Everyone on the beach started packing up their belongings and making a mad dash towards to the hotel. Everyone went inside, but we opted to wait under a covered part of the pool deck and wait it out. Isabella was so excited she did a rain dance. Fortunately, it only lasted about 20 minutes. Good thing we didn't go inside because once the rain stopped, we had first dips on the chairs at the pool :) We went back to the village again for dinner and ate at an overrated restaurant called Marlin Grill. It looked like it was going to be really nice and their sign and menu boasted "Fine Dining." Not so much. It wasn't a dump by any means, but the food wasn't as "fine" as we expected. A little disappointing and NOT worth the money. Oh well, every other meal was fantastic, so no complaints. Before dinner we'd promised Isabella she could ride the carousel afterwards. Well, about 30 minutes in to dinner, it started POURING rain. Unfortunately, they shut down the ride and she was a little disappointed, but we told her we'd try it again the next day. There was a girl on stilts making balloon animals, so Isabella happily waited in line for a pink poodle. The same security guard was working and Isabella was no longer concerned the attention would be on Madeline. She earned the woman's FULL attention. It was adorable.
Day six (Wednesday). We spent our usual times at the pool/beach and talked about going to the village for dinner. Around 5pm a hellacious storm rolled in and brought torrential downpours with it. We decided we'd give it an hour to stop and then we'd head to the village so Isabella could ride the carousel (it was our last night). When the rain hadn't let up and we saw the wind flip over a lounge chair by the pool, we decided the village was no longer an option. Isabella was really disappointed, but she recovered quickly. She only reminded us we didn't take her to the carousel 50 or 60 times. It continued to pour, so we ended up going back to the Grand Boulevard area and ate at a place called Mitchell's Fish Market. It turned out to be a chain, but the food was fantastic. We even had dessert (a rarity for us) to celebrate a great vacation. All night Isabella kept telling me how she didn't want to go home, she wanted to stay in her new bed at the hotel forever. I agreed with the wanting to stay in Destin, but not so much on the hotel. I missed my bed...
We flew back home on Thursday. With a delay in Houston, it turned in to an all-day traveling experience. We were exhausted when we got back. Now I need a vacation from my vacation :)
Here are the photos and videos from the trip:
The first day was mostly spent traveling, but after a recommendation from the concierge, we headed to the Village at Baytown Wharf. It was a neat little village with tons of stuff for kids (mostly older kids, though) and great restaurants. We decided to eat at this italian restaurant called Graffiti's. Isabella was an angel, but Madeline was unusually fussy. We chalked it up to a long day of travel.
Day two (Saturday) we spent at the beach and pool for most of the day. We went in the morning after breakfast, took a break for lunch/naps and headed back out in the afternoon. We went back to the village for dinner. This meal was probably our favorite of the trip. We ate at a place called Bistro Bijou. It was a Louisiana-style restaurant and felt as if you were in New Orleans. The food was amazing. Isabella was an angel again and based on how Madeline started dinner, we feared she would be a handful, but much to our delight, the real Madeline appeared and she slept the entire dinner. Atta girl! We treated Isabella, and ourselves of course, to some gelato for dessert which made her night!
Day three (Sunday) we, again, spent the morning at the beach/pool as well as the afternoon. For dinner we changed it up and went to an area called Grand Boulevard where we ate at a Tommy Bahama restaurant. The food was surprisingly good. Both girls were fantastic. They were so good, in fact, that we decided to go take them (ok, Maddie didn't fully participate) to play miniature golf. We were so excited, but when we started to play we realized it was a Putting Course, not miniature golf. Unfortunately, there is an enormous difference. This was hard for David, the golfer, so you can imagine how impossible it was for Isabella. We let her put the ball wherever she wanted and hit it from there. She didn't know the difference, so she had a great time. I must say, I held my own for the first 8 or so holes. I even had a one stroke lead at one point, but then my lack of golf experience kicked in (ok, I just sucked at it). We had to leave after 12 holes because it was time to feed Madeline, but we had a great time.
Day four (Monday) we decided to switch things up a bit. We went to the beach/pool in the morning, but opted to try something different in the afternoon. I'd read about a place called The Gulfarium (a cross between an aquarium and Sea World) in Fort Walton Beach, about 20 miles west of our hotel. We thought Isabella would really enjoy seeing all of the fish and alligators. We found it easily, but it looked a little sketchy when we pulled in to the parking lot. David decided to run in and check it out to see if it was worth the visit. I must mention, RIGHT before we left the hotel, I asked the concierge how late they were open and if our timing was ok (it was 3pm). She assured me our timing was great and they did "shows" until 6pm. When David came back to the car, he had a puzzled look on his face. Apparently, they stopped admitting people at 2pm and closed at 3pm. Needless to say I was a little upset. We decided to go to the village instead and just walk around there. It ended up worked out alright as we got to go in a candy-making store. They made all different types of fudge. OMG - it was decadent. We ate at a 50's Diner for dinner and walked around afterwards a little longer. I happened to read just prior to dinner that a magician was performing at 8pm. We decided to take Isabella to the show. It was geared more for older kids and adults, but she had a good time nonetheless. While we were waiting for the shuttle (big mistake, by the way) to pick us up, Isabella made friends with one fo the female security guards. It started when the woman was gushing over Madeline and asked how old she was. Immediately after we told her Maddie's age, Isabella chimed in and said, "And I'm 3!" She'd had enough with the focus on Maddie.
Day five (Tuesday) was spent at the beach/pool in the morning and again in the afternoon. We'd just gotten to the beach in the afternoon when we experienced something we in San Antonio have not seen in MONTHS. RAIN!!!!!! It figures we had to go on vacation to get rain. Everyone on the beach started packing up their belongings and making a mad dash towards to the hotel. Everyone went inside, but we opted to wait under a covered part of the pool deck and wait it out. Isabella was so excited she did a rain dance. Fortunately, it only lasted about 20 minutes. Good thing we didn't go inside because once the rain stopped, we had first dips on the chairs at the pool :) We went back to the village again for dinner and ate at an overrated restaurant called Marlin Grill. It looked like it was going to be really nice and their sign and menu boasted "Fine Dining." Not so much. It wasn't a dump by any means, but the food wasn't as "fine" as we expected. A little disappointing and NOT worth the money. Oh well, every other meal was fantastic, so no complaints. Before dinner we'd promised Isabella she could ride the carousel afterwards. Well, about 30 minutes in to dinner, it started POURING rain. Unfortunately, they shut down the ride and she was a little disappointed, but we told her we'd try it again the next day. There was a girl on stilts making balloon animals, so Isabella happily waited in line for a pink poodle. The same security guard was working and Isabella was no longer concerned the attention would be on Madeline. She earned the woman's FULL attention. It was adorable.
Day six (Wednesday). We spent our usual times at the pool/beach and talked about going to the village for dinner. Around 5pm a hellacious storm rolled in and brought torrential downpours with it. We decided we'd give it an hour to stop and then we'd head to the village so Isabella could ride the carousel (it was our last night). When the rain hadn't let up and we saw the wind flip over a lounge chair by the pool, we decided the village was no longer an option. Isabella was really disappointed, but she recovered quickly. She only reminded us we didn't take her to the carousel 50 or 60 times. It continued to pour, so we ended up going back to the Grand Boulevard area and ate at a place called Mitchell's Fish Market. It turned out to be a chain, but the food was fantastic. We even had dessert (a rarity for us) to celebrate a great vacation. All night Isabella kept telling me how she didn't want to go home, she wanted to stay in her new bed at the hotel forever. I agreed with the wanting to stay in Destin, but not so much on the hotel. I missed my bed...
We flew back home on Thursday. With a delay in Houston, it turned in to an all-day traveling experience. We were exhausted when we got back. Now I need a vacation from my vacation :)
Here are the photos and videos from the trip:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)