Happy Friday and Birthday Par-tay!

Friday morning we went to the Y and home for a quick nap for Ace. After he got up we met Kylie, Ava (the little girl who G is going to preschool with) and Parker at McDonalds. They played for awhile and then we ate lunch. After naps we had an electric guy come by the house to fix our light fixture in the kitchen so we could have light for the party on Saturday. We ran a few errands after that and then went to Nanas for a while. That evening we went to a BBQ at Cole and Marijo's house. They are moving to Panama City, Panama in 2-4 weeks, because Cole got a welding contract down there. We are already planning a February vacation down there to see them and baby Quinlee! After we got home, Maci came over to help me decorate Gentry Gingersnap's Birthday Cake! 2 hours later we had a masterpiece!

This morning we walked with Dawn and Kadence. After we got home, I went to take a shower and little Miss G came running into the bathroom and said "Mommy I helped you by putting Strawberry Shortcake back on the cake!" Me.."You WHHHHAT?!?!" G"I was just helping" and took off running! I hopped outta the shower and ran to the fridge and long and behold my fear was confirmed...she stuck her fingers in the writing and ran them along the piped edges! So I went back to the shower to cool down, literally and came to the conclusion, she is a child who wanted to help...So I came out and she was crying and told me she was "soooo sorry". I figured it is nothing a little icing cant fix. So I made an extra trip to Walgreens and grabbed some icing and within an hour it was presentable. We cleaned, ate lunch and napped until party time! Around 4, the guests arrived. John and Katy, Liz and Amelia, Harmony, HevynLei and Destiny, Mark and Ana, Austin and Katy, Josh, Itty and Lolo, Maci, Nana, Papa, Grandpa Arvin, Nana B and Dave all helped us celebrate! We had a house full! G got Strawberry Shortcake remote car, jewelry, polishes, clothes, a bike and movies! Then the most exciting part for her, the cake and ice cream! They did a pinata and played! What a perfect 3rd birthday!

Happy 3rd Birthday Gentry Gingersnap!

Today is Gentry's 3rd birthday! When she got up she came into our room and I said Happy Birthday Miss Gentry and she said "Hey I am Gentry Gingersnap!" So for today she went by that name:) I told her she could eat, play and do anything she wanted for her special day, so here is what we did:
We started the day with her breakfast of choice, doughnuts! Then off to the Y for a small birthday celebration with her Y friends! They ate rice krispie treats on a stick dipped in chocolate with sprinkles on top! Megan, one of the girls that works there, said Ace kept crawling up to the table, pulled himself up and stared at the treats! In time little man! After we left there we headed home to let Ace nap for a while before her 3 yr old checkup. She is a healthy little lady! 37.25 inches tall and 36lbs, 36lbs of sassiness! She passed all the tests that the Dr did on her, yay! After we left there we went to Nana's for a while before lunch. Auntie Whit and Lolo gave her their gift, a horse and doll and then Maci gave her a Tangled book that came with a brush that plays the music when you brush your hair! She was very excited for both! On to Pizza Hut for lunch! We had daddy's friend, Gordon, meet us there too! G filled her healthy little 3 yr old belly with pizza, pasta, a breadstick and pudding! Ace enjoyed pears, pudding and olives off mama's salad! After leaving there, we headed home for naps. Next stop was back to Nana's to play with Destiny and Lolo! I had to go to VBS for the final night so the beans hung out with Nana and Maci. When I got finished, we got daddy and went to end G's birthday with a bang at The Deli! She got a grilled cheese, carrots and dip and chips! Ace polished off a grilled cheese and a pickle! It was raining out, so I figured it was a perfect evening for Broccoli Cheese soup! Nana, Papa and Maci also joined us! After we ate, G got to choose what ever pie flavour she wanted and to my surprise, she chose FRUIT! Wow, that sure made mama happy:) Maybe she has learned that after eating all that sugar sometimes it is nice to eat things that are nutrient rich and make you feel good:) She even got it go because she said her tummy was full. When we got home, Daddy and her looked through her new Mouse About The House book and off to bed! Whew what a fun and busy birthday! Tomorrow we have to make the double layered Strawberry Shortcake cake for the party on Saturday! I thank God every night for such a sweet, precious baby girl he has blessed Luke and I with:) Thanks God! ♥

Starting out the day with a "healthy" doughnut!

With her books from Mommy and Daddy

At the Dr!

Thanks Auntie Itty and Lolo

Thanks Auntie Maci/Pooka the Panda

At Pizza Hut with Destiny!

Playing dress up at The Deli!

I am 3!

Enjoying big boy food!

Great picture with Nana and Papa!

This day was all about THIS gal:)

"Can I boom you?"

Sitting on the big boy potty! Whenever he needs to poo-poo,
he gets severly constipated, so we
sit him on the toilet and for some strange reason,
he goes there but wont is his diaper!

Monday morning we started out with our normal routine and got Destiny after we finished at the Y. Around noon daddy came home early to stay with Ace and Destiny while I took G to her 1st eye exam. There is a program here called See-to-learn that the local eye doctors participate in as well as the preschools. They do compliementary exams so we took advantage of that! She did wonderful, even though she kept telling Dr Hageman, "Ok I am done now!" Or she would yawn and then start giggling and say "I am tired momma. I am ready for my nap"! ( It was a noon appt and ran a little late) She did great and has good eyes! Heres to hoping she doesnt get my horrible eyesight! After naps we celebrated her doing a great job by going to the Cake Lady and got sugar cookies:) Afterwards we went to the library and then came home to eat dinner and head to VBS. Luke had his final game this evening and lost (YAY! No more hot games). We went by for 20 minutes after I got done helping at VBS.
Tuesday we went to the Y and then went on a unexpected shopping trip with Whitney and Maci. I had a groupon that I had to use before July 30th and I know that I wasnt gonna make it so we went along! We got some new shirts for preschool for G, a polo for Ace and some flip flops for me! I bought the groupon with the intention of buying myself some new clothes but that just happen anymore, oh well. We went to lunch at Carlos O' Kelley's and then stopped at State Beauty for some beauty goods. When we got home the beans napped for a while and then we ate dinner and I headed to VBS. Afterwards I took G over to Nana's for the much anticipated slumber party! She kept G, Chloe, Destiny, Hunter and Addi! Brave soul she is! Then at 8 I had a meeting for MOPS. I am a care group leader this year and so excited for it to start!
This morning Luke, Ace and I headed to Hutch for Luke's follow-up appt with Dr Kelley for his skin cancer spots. He had to have 2 more spots froze off (with liquid nitrogen) and then 2 scraped/burned off:( He wasnt too thrilled when they came in with the numbing needles, so Ace and I went out to the waiting room so the jumping bean could get down and do his thing! Unfortuantly the type of spots that Luke gets are hereditary, (His mom had a bunch of spots removed as well), we will have to be extra careful with G and Ace and ensure they are covered in sunscreen. After we left there we made the cant miss stop, the Bux! I got my new fav, Half Caff Soy Latte. Ahhhh paradise. Why is it that just being in that store puts me in a happy mood? I love the ambiance of it:) This afternoon we plan to go see Nana B and then back to VBS!

Something funny G has been saying is "Can I boom you" Which sounds kind of naughty but only means "Can I jump on you?" She is so silly:) Ace has his 3rd tooth popping thru on the top and has been saying Nana, Dada, Papa, and Mama! ♥it!  Also he walked the family room while pushing his walking toy! He will be walking in no time I hope!

Posing with the plastic dog in Old Navy

Sleeping baby:) He soothed himself to sleep by sucking on G's hat tag:/

Another dog pose. Dog from VS this time:)

G sleeping on the way home from Salina

Gosh I hate these toys! She was very proud that she crawled to the top!

G playing on the merry-go-round!

Swinging at the park!

Add caption

Posing with the plastic dog in Old Navy

Where did the weekend go?

This weekend just flew by! Saturday Ace and I went on a walk with Dawn and Kadence and had to go early this time and still ended up sweating buckets?! Well I did, Ace just went to sleep:) G and daddy went to breakfast at Neighbor's and then daddy had to go do a haircut so she went with him. She told me when I got home, "I was good mommy and I ate lots of candy too!" Daddy knows the key to her heart and how to keep her quiet! That afternoon we headed out to the Country Club for Hunter's 6th birthday party. We went swimming for 1 1/2 hrs and then ate dinner. It was so hot out that day and the water felt really nice! We went back to Nana's afterwards for the pinata, (Peenya, is how G says it) cake, ice cream and presents. The beans slept so well that night:)

On Sunday we went to church with Dave. Ace actually stayed in his class today, but probably because he had to be in Gentry's class since they didnt have any infant nursery workers. So we shall see how he does next Sunday! After church we went home for a while and then out to lunch with Nana, Maci and Dave. Tonight I had to help with registration at VBS at our church! It was a zoo there! Gentry is so excited for next year when she can go! Tomorrow we have Gentry's eye exam to ensure her eyes are doing ok before she starts preschool!

It's Friday!?!?

Wow this week has flown by! We have been very busy! We ended up going to Daddy's 1st game (which means he won it b/c they played a 2nd at 8:30) It was a sweltering 109 degrees?!?! So ready for Fall's crisp cool air. We have been going to the Y earlier this week just so it isnt so darn hot outside. We get done earlier and Ace gets his full nap which makes for a happier baby and happier mommy:) Win win situations are awesome! This week has been full of long visits at Nana's, library time, numerous post office visits for daddy (which are always great when they offer a sucker for G, if not she will say , VERY loud may I add, "Mommy when will they give me a sucker"?), Walmart shopping and Ace switching over to whole milk and no formula! We have had 2 successful days of no formula, only milk and big boy food! Now I am hoping we can get off of the bottle soon!  Tonight we had Dave over for dinner. We ate Taco salad and Dave couldnt rave enough about it! I am sure he doesnt eat homeade meals very often so it is nice to be able to cook for him when possible. This weekend we have a walk scheduled with my friend, a birthday party to attend and some resting to catch up on!

Eating his fruit for a snack at Nana's

She has been very eager to hold him alot lately so she was pretty happy here:)

Vacation time!

Saturday morning we loaded up and left town by 7:30 am! We ate homeade chocolate chunk muffins on the road. Ace started out pretty calm since he was drinking his bottle but when we reached Salina, he started in...Crying and crying and whining and more whining! We tried everything to get him to calm down and finally after 2.5 hours, we decided to turn his seat backwards and he calmed down pretty quick after that. I think when he faces forward he can see us and thinks "If I cry long enough they will get me...thats what they do at home!" (Not sure if he really thinks that, but thats what I picture him thinking!) We pulled into KC and met up with Richard, Chris, Aiden and Ariana. We then headed to Legends, the outlet mall, to start off our trip by dining with the dinos at T-Rex cafe! G got Sly's Sliders (mini chesseburgers) and applesauce. Luke, Ace and I shared the Boneyard Buffet. It was pretty good but it was all about the dinos for G! We walked around the mall for a while and ended at an old fashioned candy shoppe. G got her favorite candy, gummies! Ace slept thru about half of the shopping in the wrap. He was fighting that sleep like crazy! We headed over to Crowne Center to go thru the Crayola store where Gentry got her backpack for preschool! Dora and Diego and it was mini size for the little lady:) She also has reached another 10 stickers on her "Good Girl chart" so she picked out a Dora mermaid doll, another to add to her entourage! We went thru a Rainforest exhibit and it was very interesting! Ace was just glad to get down and crawl! G and him were "Animal rescuer's"! (From Diego, G always sings that song as she is running, one of my favorite things about my green eyed gal) As we were leaving the exhibit there was a little boy who got his shoe string caught in the escalator!! The mother had this horrified look on her face as she was screaming for help. It was terrible! Thankfully they got the boys shoe off in time so he didnt get hurt. I cant even imagine what was going thru her head! We left Crowne Center and headed to find a hotel. The one "must-have" for the hotel was a pool. We found a Comfort Inn that was close to what area we wanted to stay in. We went swimming for a while and then got dressed and ate dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings. Luke and I shared Asian and Caribean Jerk wings and G got some chicken fingers. It was pretty crazy in there and Ace was running on pure adrenaline! He learned how to shake his head "No" that evening...just what I was wanting him to learn. After we left, we sent our guests on their way and headed to Orange Leaf for some after dinner fro-yo! It was very neat to self serve your yogurt and then choose your own toppings! G and I shared the Chocolate Cookie Dough fro-yo with gummy bears and Cookie Dough pieces. Awesomeness in a bowl! Back to the hotel for bed, ahhhhh I couldnt wait, as this mama was very tired.

Someone is stoked to be out of the car seat! (And yes we were parked!)

A-T-T-I-T-U-D-E! Playing the "drums" in the Nike Store
and of course "drumming" up lots of smiles from customers:)

Sitting with the Dino's

♥ her to the moon and back!

G and Dexter the Dino

♥ my family!

Chris and Ariana with Luke and G at the Crowne Center fountains

Funny Face in the Fritz's train

At the Rainforest Exhibit

"Crawl like a jaguar, crawl crawl crawl" (From Go Diego Go)

These 2 never fail to make me super happy:)

♥ my blue eyed baby

Cheesy time!

Sunday we got up and went down for breakfast at the hotel. Ace ate eggs for the 1st time and loved them! G got her usual "whol-tel" breakfast, Waffles with peanut butter:) She is one happy little gal when she gets those! We went back to the room and packed up to leave, but not before we jumped on the beds. See I may have a lot of rules as a mother, but they usually have fun alternatives:) No jumping on the beds at home, but the hotel is ok to do so:) So we did some "cool tricks" on the bed. It was very fun. Probably one of my favorite parts of the whole vacay:) I had one request for the trip and it was Trader Joes! It just opened friday so it was brand new! G and I went in and were in heaven. She was enjoying the Tacos they were sampling and I couldnt help but smile at all the healthy foods we were surrounded by! We got a bunch of dried fruits, cereal, TJ style Eziekel bread, stevia and some Jerky for Luke. It was a success:) We loaded up and headed to Lawrence where we met up with Jon and Ashley. We ate at Noodles and Co. It was pretty good. G had some awesome Mac N Cheese and Luke and I shared Peanut and Veggie Saute. It was great to see them. We stopped by Starbucks for some liquid energy and Birthday cake pop (G's new favorite treat, besides her Caramel Chocolino) and headed home. Within 30 minutes everyone, except me of course because I was driving, was fast asleep. I REALLY thoroughly enjoyed the time singing to Michael Buble and sipping my latte. It was very much needed:) We stopped thru Salina for Luke to get his golf clubs and got home by 3:30. It was a nice trip that indeed brought us closer, isnt that what vacations are for?
We got home and unloaded and we had a few people that were missing us, well more like missing G and Ace, so we went over to see Nana and Auntie Maci. G talked Maci into a slumberparty again. Kinda starting to feel like she enjoys Maci more than me:( That evening was very chill, dinner, movie and my own bed!


Monday morning Ace and I went to the Y and did a few errands before we swung by and got G. It is weird to only have one child...I dont like it! Ace doesnt either, because he always crawls into G's room in the morning and if she isnt there he crawls back out and you can tell he is wondering where she is! Luke took her out to lunch to McD's while Ace and I ate at home. I think it is important to spend some one-on-one time with the beans:) Tonight Luke has his final softball game and it is well over 100 degrees already so we will see if we make it out:/