Wordless Wednesday

My niece Kaylee, 6.5 weeks old.

Sea World in Pictures

You all can look at the camera, but I'm going to keep an eye on these things you call 'sharks'.

"oooooh!"



Shamu was ok, but the flock of birds in the stadium really was his main attraction.

Sea World has a splash pad and well Ace did a bit of that.

Fourteen Months Old

Ace is growing strong as ever. Although he eats like a bird! Yes I don't even want to think of how few calories he actually consumes on a regular basis for fear of creating a panic in me that he's going to waste away into nothing. I have to remember that plenty of children go through fickle eating phases and he still is getting breast milk (the best nutrients ever) so he isn't going to starve. Oh yes and he's fourteen months old.

Ace continues to discover and enjoy new things and has had many new adventures this month: the swine flu, first visit to a fire station, babysat by Grammie, Sea World, San Diego, visit to his mommy's college, first trip to the beach, lots and lots of California adventures during his 14th month.

New vocabulary includes both verbal and signed words. In the verbal department he says: dog, door, out, up, light (well it is wwwwwiiiiiiiiiT, but he's pointing right at the light when he says it) he's doing very well. He understands a ton of other things. He takes instruction very well (when he wants to) including taking his dirty diapers and throwing them away. He always brings his shoes to you when he wants to go outside. And he knows to sit on his bottom when he's instructed to do so. In the signing department he has slowly been grasping the understanding of Please and Thank You. Although 'thank you' and 'water' are virtually the same and it also mirrors blowing kisses which he does from time to time - so it can be a bit of a guessing game :) Overall we are beaming with pride at how well he's soaking up vocabulary and knowledge in general.

Ace also appears to be jumping back into the teething arena and starting to work on breaking those molars in. So far no immediate sign of their breakthrough but we have had a handful of otherwise inexplicable runny noses, lots of chewing of the hands and other objects and gagging because he's pushing said things further back to relieve the pain. Hopefully they'll be kind and either come fast and together or grant him a bit of reprieve between their arrivals.

For several weeks Ace has been away from his dad, since him and mommy are down in California for a month long adventure that started with wedding festivities and ends with mommy's birthday at Disneyland. Ace and his dad have missed each other terribly, but Ace is adorable when he talks on the phone with his dad almost every day. He waves at the phone and occasionally will even kiss it. It is very sweet and I know that both of them will be very happy to not be separated for much longer.

I have to say Ace is a born traveler. We've been all over the place and in the last week he's been so many new and very different places and he's handled them all with curiosity and excitement. He sleeps just as well as he ever does where ever we may be and he doesn't miss a beat. He's such a great adventurer. Can't wait to see how his 15th month unfolds.

The Beach

Growing up I lived at the beach... well I resided 2 hours from the beach, but whenever I could get myself out to the ocean I lived at the beach. I loved going in the water (even if I turned blue, literally.) It was just so much fun to get to go to the beach and so on our excursion to California and traveling all over So Cal I knew that Ace needed a good trip to the beach sometime during our time here.

Well today was that day! Yes we spent nearly two hours running around on the sand and the second we got to the beach Ace started screaming with excitement. It was adorable to see him race straight for the waves and to run in the surf and feel all the different textures of dry and wet sand. He chased birds. He collected rocks (and trash, grr) and even played in the water just a tad (but it was a chilly!) He had a GREAT time. He ate a little sand (wasn't a fan, again) and enjoyed chomping on grapes in between his sprints down the beach. He made friends and played with their sand castles (with permission of course) and the weather was perfect. Warm but not blazing hot and not chilly even a little bit.

I'd say Ace had a great first experience with the Pacific ocean and one of his mom's favorite places: the beach!

Vacation Getaway!

Vacation all I ever wanted. Vacation time to get away! Oh Belinda! How we love thee. And Oh how we love to wander So Cal. This week we are down in So Cal visiting my Aunt and Uncle and several others in the area! So far our trip has been grand! A trip to Sea World and the World Famous San Diego Zoo (ah home!) yes Ace had a WONDERFUL time at both of these parts on Tuesday and Wednesday. He was able to enjoy it with his Great Aunt and Uncle and Grandma, and of course good ol' mom. :) Sea World is BY FAR the favorite.

He's doing great with travel. He's doing great with all the unknown and excitement. Tomorrow we're going to go visit his mom's college and professors. :) Ace also on this vacation getaway will get to experience the beach for the first time! I can't wait to introduce him to the ocean. It's one of my favorite places. Especially with San Diego beaches. :)

Be patient, I will post more pictures later in the week. However until then. Enjoy this gem. Ace in his new hat from Sea World while he's chomping on a grape. Yum!  I absolutely love San Diego.

She's Married!

My best friend of 19 years is married. Yes after months of planning and organizing both of my dear friends walked down the aisle yesterday. The bachelorette party was tame but exciting and the bride got a lot of great loot for the honeymoon. There were a few really late nights with program production and assembly and other details to attend to. The wedding was beautiful. There were some surprises... like the one the bride sprung on the groom when she had the girls walk into Love is a Battlefield, which was really amusing for all of us. You'll notice we are not wearing these dresses and I'm not wearing these shoes; that was a hiccup in the planning phase back in July when DB (I refuse to give them googleable free-advertising due to their idiocies) informed us that dresses would arrive on October 13th... 4 days before the wedding. Are you kidding?! So DB was scratched and we all went on the hunt for our own black dress.

My speech went over very well and the video I made for the bride and groom drew tears and applause. I was flattered and honored to be able to put it together for them. Here is an excerpt from my speech I said this with the speed of Micro Machine man lady!

"When I started writing this speech it seemed impossible. How do you cram 19 years into a few minutes? I think I've done it: It started in Girl Scouts, loud vs. bossy, I migrated people in tents, which led us to Sherman where we became friends, we were Mut and Jeff, a country music addiction was formed, ice pops in the couch, an invite to church, we went high school, we dated best friends, we took a bad trip to Arizona, we became Elmo and Grover, a perfect 10!, we went to Texas as delegates, palm springs in the summers, Kobes, Can't Buy Me Love, our wine, family camp, and the beach, we went to separate colleges, we worked camp together 'taste likes dirt and I like it', I went to law school, she went to boot camp, she stood by my side as my MOH, and today I am standing by hers. Whew. "

I played wedding coordinator in addition to my MOH duties and also photographer assistant in getting people in and out of shots. I was to say the least BUSY, but I enjoyed every second of it.

I could not be happier for these two and I am so glad that their day was wonderful and beautiful.

Wordless Wednesday