A child's laughter

There is nothing more beautiful to me in this world than the sound of a child's pure laughter. It's contagious, full of emotion, and raw. I wish I could bottle it up and have it with me all the time.

Last night we put the older girls to bed but of course Evie wasn't ready. She was on her 3rd or 4th wind of the night. Finally I had enough and knew she needed to go to bed. So, I picked her up and put her in bed. I expected a bit of a fight, a little crying that stops within 30 seconds like usual, but last night was eerily silent. I figured she would explode shortly, so I better change myself for bed and prepare for a long night.

Instead, after changing into my own jammies I came out in the hall to hear her laughing. That good ole fashioned baby belly laugh. The most BEAUTIFUL sound!! I rushed back into the bedroom and told Tad. Then I went to investigate assuming that Emery had crawled out of bed and was playing with her.

The laughter continued.

I opened the door to their room ever so slightly, enough to see that Emery and Ella were sound asleep, and Evie was still laughing. I giggled to myself wondering what possible amusement and 18 month old child could find in the dark.

The laughing continued.

10 minutes later, the laughter was a little slower, coming in spurts, and I had a big old smile on my face. It truly is the best medicine!!

Eventually she fell asleep, but I'm sure it was with a smile on her face :)

The beach- in March!

Yes, it's possible! Going to the beach in March, who would have thunk it! The weather right now is my absolute favorite. Cool, with a hint of warm. In the 60's, and sometimes low 70's. Perfect jeans, t-shirt with possible sweatshirt and of course flip-flop weather! My kind of weather! I told Tad we needed pics of the 3 girls together, so lets head to the beach. The girls were bribed with a trip to the Aquatic Center for some swimming after if they behaved.

Well, it didn't turn out as planned. Instead I got a lot of this.

And this.

And this. (Emery chasing the birds) In fact that girl was running EVERYWHERE at the beach! It was hilarious!

But I did manage to get this.

And this.

And this.

And this.

Not too bad- huh?

The Princess and the toe

Ha! And you thought I'd say Princess and the Frog! Which by the way is a great movie with great jazz music if you haven't already seen it. Of course it's in my car, so I get to 'hear' it all the time!!

We've had a lot of fun lately, and I have a few funnies to share with you. Of course keep in mind they may not be as funny to you as they were to me, but I was in tears several times this week! These kids are HILARIOUS!! And Evie is starting to talk more and more, and her gestures, her facial expressions are GREAT! She even gave me the stink eye last night when I reprimanded her! Oh, if only I could captured some of it on video- I'd be $100,000 richer- I'm sure!

Anyway, I digress. This post is about the princess, Ms. Ella. A few weeks ago they celebrated Dr. Suess's birthday at school. As a result they were allowed to dress up as their favorite storybook character, bring the book, and have a parade around school. I tell you- it was so much fun! I loved seeing all the different creative ideas, there were kids dressed as the 'Chica Chica Boom Boom' tree, 'Sam I Am', tons of 'Fancy Nancy's', my all time favorite as 'Skippyjon Jones', and plenty more! Of course Ms. Ella chose to dress as Belle from her Disney Princess's book. The outfit is courtesy of Auntie Lee! And might I say she looked dashing! There was only one other Belle in the whole parade (I was shocked), but Ella took the cake!! Here she is!

Funny story #1- and yes I do have a photo for proof. But first a little background. You know the footed pj's that are so cute on kids? Well, ours have lasted through all 3 girls believe it or not! However, some are getting quite worn, and stretched out. Yet, I don't want to go purchase more because it is warming up here and there won't be a need for them much longer, so I push to make them work. Evie is REALLY stretching them out as she is too tall for them and her feet are a bit too long for them, but they work for now.

The other morning, I was up with Evie and fixing Emery breakfast (Evie had already eaten). Evie decided she wanted something else to eat from the fridge. She padded over to the fridge and waited for me. I had just opened the fridge when I heard her say in a panicky voice "Uh oh, Uh oh, OH NO!" I looked down to see this.

Needless to say I bust out laughing as she was pointing to her toe and wiggling it. As she saw me laughing she decided it was pretty funny too and started giggling about it. She kept saying "Uh oh, Uh oh, OH NO!" I was laughing so hard I was crying, but I managed to get this photo for proof. As I took the photo, hambone was saying "cheese" with her binkie in her mouth even though the camera was pointing at her toe. So, just to ensure the "cheese" factor continues I took one of her sweet little face too!!

Story #2 of this week is courtesy of Emery the day before St. Patty's day. I was picking up around the house (and distracted I might add!), Evie was down for a nap, and Emery well, was being Emery. She's never in one place for very long. I think during this conversation below she had started in the living room, went through the dining room and we finished the conversation with her in the kitchen. It began like this:

Emery: "Hey mom"

Me: "yeah?"

Emery: "What's that short guy's name with the orange hair and mustache?"

Me: (Obviously puzzled I had no clue, so I tried to think like a 4 yr old. I thought maybe she's looking at a toy from McDonalds) "Ummm, Ronald McDonald?"

Emery: "Nooooo, not him, you know the other guy"

Me: (totally running out of options at this point I take a stab in the dark) "Ummm, Conan O'Brian?"

Emery: "No, silly. You know the guy that looks for the gold?"

Me: (Light bulb finally goes off) "Oh you mean a Leprechaun?"

Emery: "Yay, that's it! Thanks Mom" She goes running off to do who knows what, but she's happy!

I stood there for a minute and then bust out laughing, like a 4 year old would know who Conan O'Brian is?!! And neither Conan O'Brian or Ronald McDonald are short! But seriously, how many orange haired men with mustaches can you think of??? :)

Hope your week was filled with fun and laughter like ours was!! Talk to you all soon!

More of Mexico

Here are some pictures from around the resort. It was lush and green, and very tropical. I loved every minute of it!!

Here is down by the beach, the view we had.

This is the chapel on the resort. There was a wedding every day. They were so beautiful! What a wonderful way to get married!

Here is the swim up bar (early in the morning hence no people), there were some men who gave true meaning to 'belly up to the bar' there in the afternoons!

One of the restaurants overlooking the pools and ocean.

My FAVORITE spot!! We took refuge on this deluxe swinging bed by the pool one afternoon. We read, took naps, and just enjoyed the sway from the breeze! I totally want one of these in my backyard! Along with a pool, a waiter with margaritas.......!!

These are the beds and lounge chairs down by the beach. These all can be covered from rain in the tiki huts, or there were a bunch of lounge chairs down closer to the ocean too.
Another swing bed, this one with a view of the ocean.
This was a 'bar', but I'm not sure why. They had couches and beds overlooking the beach. Needless to say they were always packed.
These were some tiki beds up by the pool area. These were a favorite spot in mornings or afternoons when it wasn't quite warm enough, or for an afternoon shower. They were a great refuge from too much sun as well!! We got on these one afternoon during a shower, and loved it!
The view from inside the tiki bed hut!

This was the spa- it was INCREDIBLE!! I went there two days in a row, one day for a long massage, and another for a massage and pedicure!

Apparently, spa has a whole other meaning at a resort. I was asked to arrive an hour before my appointment in my swimsuit. I found out that with my massage came an hour long water treatment. It was definitely an experience. It started with a cold bucket of water 'to awaken the body'- you could say that again! Then 5 minutes in the steam room. Wow- it was H-O-T in there. After that you went through a cold water pool (underwater), then a warm one. This was supposedly to close the pores, then open them thoroughly. Then they put you in the pool pictured below. It was actually a series of jets aimed at different parts of the body. You'd stay in each area between 5-10 minutes. After the jets, you went through 4 different little pools about 2 feet deep, alternating between cold and hot water. You just walked through these, it was supposed to pamper your feet I think. Then they put you in a sauna for 5-10 minutes. After that you took a small series of showers. First was a cold mist, then the cold bucket of water again (to close all your pores again), then a cold to warm shower.

After all that, it was time to change into a robe and go for your massage. I did this the first day and it was ok, but I opted not to do it the second day. Instead I read by the spa's pool outdoors soaking up some nice morning sun.

Stay tuned for another post about the amazing people we met!! It was a great time!!

Ahhh, Mexico- it was WONDERFUL!!!

It was definitely what this mama needed!! I've never done an all inclusive resort before, but I'm telling you that is the WAY to go!! With the exception of going to the spa for massages, we didn't open our purse/wallet one time!! There was always a restaurant open to get food, or room service, plenty of bars to get drinks, and tons of waiters/waitstaff to get you anything you needed. It was GREAT!! Now I'm eagerly awaiting next years trip to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic!!

I didn't take as many pictures this time, because I spent my time RELAXING! But I did get quite a few. So, I'll break them down and post over the next couple of days so you don't have a bazillion photos in one post!

This post is going to be about our room! It was beautiful! I especially like the jet tub that opened to the balcony, and the bed on the balcony. I think that bed on the balcony was my favorite spot!!


This is the view from the lobby when you first walk in! WOWZERS!


Check out that ceiling!!



Then we get over to our room.








And our bathroom!





and the shower! Holy cow it was big! You can't see it here but on one side the shower nozzle thingy is coming out from the ceiling. The other side had a bench and then one of the 'grandma' type nozzles where you can move it up and down, and then use the nozzle and move it too- you know what I mean right? It was N-I-C-E!!!




then the jet tub that you could open the windows to the balcony! That was fabulous!! We enjoyed that one afternoon before heading to dinner! It was heavenly!







Then of course our balcony! Here's the view we had looking back at the lobby and some of the pool area.

Here is where we had room service put our breakfast every morning! Outside on the balcony!






Then my favorite part of the balcony! The BED!! It was just a wonderful place to relax, yet still enjoy the weather and be out of the sun (or rain) for a bit! I had almost all my conversations with the kids on this bed, and I think I read at least 2 books here!!









Stay tuned for more pictures from our awesome trip! But for now, here's a teaser!!

Oh my Valentine

Geez, it's been a while, whoops! Guess that happens when life takes over!! Things have been a whirlwind around here. A month fo swimming lessons, mom and dad take a vacation to Mexico, Nana and Papa come to visit and watch the girls, and then sick kids :(..... Whew, I'm tired just typing that!!

So, I need to catch you all up on your favorite things, pictures!! Here are some of Ella and Emery I took to make their Valentines day cards. These absolutely puffy skirts I got at a ridiculous sale over Christmas at the outlet center. I got one for each girl, and of course a little big so they can wear them next year. The only bad thing was Evie was napping and didn't get to join the fun. I'll have to do another photo session of them all in them, cause Evie in her black biker boots is HILARIOUS!!

Ella's classic look!

And full of grins and giggles!!

Can you see my tonsils? :)

I look all sweet and innocent, but don't be fooled!!

Also are a few pictures I took of my hats for my friend Lisa to use in her advertising. These hats are all in her store.

Ghetto Evie!

Sweet as a cupcake Emery!

Mom's making me model a boys' hat, but I'll smile anyways!

And my newest hat- a St. Patty's day hat!!

Next up will be some pics from Mexico- stay tuned!!