Happy 5th Birthday Maddie!

Maddie had such a fun birthday this year! The morning started out with a few presents to open, including:

a doll complete with hair stylist tools to play with

(Maddie quickly discovered to her disappointment and to mom's relief
that the scissors were only "pretend")

and a pink gaming system
(not exactly like Aujelle's Nintendo DS she had hoped for,
but mom and dad liked this price tag and educational possibilities better.)

After Maddie's favorite breakfast of German pancakes and chocolate milk, we were off to the waterpark!

Cowabunga Bay

Despite the blustering winds and lower temperatures, we had a lot of fun! Maddie is a brave 5-year-old and enjoyed many of the big water slides. Although, much like her mom, she didn't always enjoy the frigid water. Luckily the pool and lazy river could always warm our body temperatures up again.

Enjoying some sun.

Since the waterpark was more her parents' idea, Maddie got to choose where she wanted to go to dinner. And we all knew what her choice would be, since she had been asking to return there every day since her cousin Martha's birthday party in June:

Chuck E Cheese!

Then back to the house to celebrate with cupcakes, more family, and more presents!


Perhaps the funniest moment of the day came late afternoon when we all wondered where Kennedy had disappeared. We found her asleep in Maddie's bed, complete with her bike helmet and Maddie's nightgown! What a cutie...


And here are some fun facts about Maddie at five years old:

Favorite color: Pink (Maddie believes you should change your favorite color annually on your birthday)

Favorite foods: macaroni, german pancakes, snowcones, rootbeer floats

Favorite tv show: all!

Favorite movie: Up! (this changes frequently)

Favorite hobbies: dance, swimming, playing the computer

Recent accomplishments: learning to swim, learning to read

Time-out Length, according to Madelyn: Zero Minutes (Traditionally in our household, the length of one's time-out corresponds to how many years old the child is. As we were warning her in the weeks preceeding her birthday that her time-out period was about to be increased by one minute, she informed us that her time-outs would be zero minutes when she turned five because she would be old enough to obey all of the time!)

Time-out Length, in reality: Five Minutes.

We moved!

We have enjoyed our new home for almost 2 months now, so it is about time we post some pictures!

(Aaron's favorite part: the 3-car garage and basketball hoop)

part of the backyard

family room

master bath

living room

kitchen (my favorite:))

master bedroom

We already knew we loved the area, since we only moved three blocks away. We feel so lucky to have been able to sell and buy in this economy, and we think we will be happy here for a long time! We started painting Maddie's bedroom this weekend--pictures to come!

Come visit us!

He did it!

or should I say we did it! He survived two years of night classes, homework, and group assignments while I got a taste of what it would be like to be a single mom. It has been a long road, but hopefully it will be prove to be worth our sacrifices.

He had a difficult time deciding whether or not to walk at graduation, but he ultimately decided it would be a good opportunity to celebrate his accomplishment. His MBA department flew in Hawaiian leis for all of their graduates. We met some family for dinner beforehand, and my mom and I attended the actual graduation ceremony. The ceremony was fairly efficient, with no speeches and a comparatively fast distribution of diplomas. I was able to enjoy it more since family members kindly offered to watch the girls.

Now we are enjoying the opportunity reacquainting ourselves with each other and remembering what life is like as a "normal" family. On Aaron's last night of class, I explained to Madelyn that Daddy was going to be done with school forever, so he would be home with us every night. The next morning she asked me when Daddy would be done with work forever, so he could spend every day with us too.:)

Thanks for everyone's support!

And Congratulations Aaron!
We're so proud of you!

An Update

I decided an update about Kennedy was in order, since several things have already changed in the last few weeks.

A few interesting things I forgot to post last time:

• Latest accompishment: using the potty (She loves to sit on it and she can really make herself go! This gives me hope that she'll be easier to train than her sister was, although I'm not ready to really potty train her yet.)
  
• Favorite hobby: collecting things (i.e. nail clippers, hair bows, rubber ducks. She insists on carrying around as many as she can hold in her little hands. She likes to sleep with them too.)
• Favorite songs: "BBCs" (ABCs), "Kinkle Arr" (Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star), and "EEO" (Old McDonald). (However, you usually need to ask her if she wants to sing a song. Otherwise, she will yell "BOP!" for you to stop singing.)
• Kennedy's NEW favorite show: "Doo doo are oooo" ("Scooby doo, where are you?")

As for the sleeping dilemma, we found the answer: a crib tent. I know it looks silly, but it truly works! Kennedy is sleeping so much better now, and we are all happy.:)

She's rubbing her eyes because I woke her up.

Can you find the nail clippers in the picture?

Happy 2nd Birthday Kennedy!

After a long blogging drought caused by another busy tax season and Aaron's last semester of school all while trying to sell our home, we are back! And we are happy to share the highlights of Kennedy's second birthday!



Although Kennedy has definitely hit the "terrible twos," she is still our sweet little girl. Here are a few current things about Kennedy:

• Nicknames: Kenna, Ken
• Favorite foods: macaroni and cheese, fruit
• Favorite things to do: snuggle, read books, play with Maddie, color, dance, take baths, swing
  
• Least favororite things to do: go to sleep, go to nursery or anywhere without her parents, have a bow in her hair
  
• Funniest sayings: "Bop!" (she always tells us to stop singing), "Mammeye nice!" ("Maddie, be nice!")
• Favorite toys: rubber ducks, little people castle set, dress-up, dolls, bubbles
  
• Favorite tv show: "Neh-nehs" (Little Einsteins)
• Favorite movie: "Deh-dehs" (Princess, as in Enchanted) and "Ooool" (High School Musical, thanks Alli)

For over two months now, Kennedy has been climbing out of her crib. (I think both of my daughters inherited their father's climbing genes). As the pictures below show, sleeping has become much more of a struggle lately.

She refuses to sleep in her crib or even in Maddie's bed, but instead, she prefers the floor. Taking away her pacifier when she turned two only made the problem worse. But since we hope to be moving soon, we are trying to endure it until we move to a new home with her own bed and a new routine. It can't come soon enough though!

Until then, this may be the norm...

Bahamas Cruise Vacation: Day 6

Day 6 of our vacation was the last day of our cruise.

We said goodbye to our stylish room,

And did a lot of waiting around.

After we disembarked the ship, we rented a car and drove to the Kennedy Space Center. We were surprised at how much there was to see and do there! You could easily spend a day or two at the visitor's center walking around, watching informative movies narrated by Tom Hanks and Tom Cruise, and going on the bus tour. The center helped me appreciate all of the dedication, hard work, and lives sacrificed for space exploration--something I've always taken for granted and never thought much about before. If you are ever in the Orlando/Cocoa Beach area, we highly recommend visiting Kennedy Space Center!

the shuttle launch pad in the distance

an astronaut memorial

Stay tuned for the last day of our vacation--our day at Disneyworld!

Bahamas Cruise Vacation: Day 5

The fifth day of our vacation involved a relaxing day at sea, which included some of the following:

miniature golf

towel animals

more shows

(I told you the decor was a sight to behold!)

a Romanian encounter
(this server, Liliana, was quite delighted
to meet someone who spoke her language!)

drunk Grandmas who became
self-designated back-up singers

and some after-hours
sugar-packet blackjack in the dining room.

Bahamas Cruise Vacation: Day 4

Day 4 of our trip brought us to the capital city of the Bahamas, Nassau!

We began with a water taxi to Paradise Island.

The tour guide pointed out the homes of the rich and famous.
I believe this one was once owned by Charlie Chaplin,
and is now owned by Nicholas Cage.

We toured the grounds of the unbelievable Atlantis resort.

The "bridge" part of the hotel (above Aaron's head) is called the Michael Jackson Suite. It costs $25,000 a night to rent it out with a minimum 4-night stay. The suite is booked for the next five years!

The resort was incredible...

with amazing aquariums,

and beautiful grounds

with lots of sharks!

This was part of the water park.
Can you see the rider floating down the enclosed tube?--
With sharks swimming all around him!

Another perfect day at the beach

Followed by a tour of the world's largest pirate museum

Maddie was a little concerned when she saw this picture of Aaron.
She asked him how he ever got out of there!

A little shopping at the straw market,
where we picked up some cute purses for the girls

Then back to the ship

We loved the Bahamas!