Santa already??

Ok, so I already said that I wasn't ready for the holidays and then here comes Santa Claus to the mall! On Saturday we took Emily to Northeast Mall in Hurst to see the arrival of Santa via the Hurst Fire Department. All the kids and parents and news crews gathered outside the Food Court entrance and watched the firetruck arrive. Then we went inside to see watch Santa come through the Food Court. Santa saw Emily and Jon and went right up to them and said Merry Christmas and shook Emily's hand! She was ok with that so that was cool! After that we headed over to the kid's area for activities and goodie bags. What a neat way to start the holiday season.

Halloween

Where has the time gone? I know it's November already and the holidays are just around the corner - literally! I'm just not ready.

I wanted to post some Halloween pictures of Emily as Minnie Mouse. She had school on Halloween and everyone wore their costume. There were plenty of princesses and super heros. All the parents gathered in the parish great hall to see the parade of students in their costumes and to give out candy. I had my bowl ready. The 4's and 3's went first and they were cool. Then the 2's came in and a few of them were crying including Emily, who was scared. Once she saw me she ran to me and would not let me go! Poor thing! All the cameras and strangers scared her. I had to walk with her to finish trick-or-treating. She calmed down a bit but then I had to leave her once we got to her room. Oh I was a wreck the rest of the morning!

Our evening of trick-or-treating went much better. Emily actually said something like, "tricky tree" at each door. Lucky for us she doesn't eat hardly any candy except for plain M&Ms. I'd say our Halloween was spooky and fun!!

Emily and New Orthotics

Emily recently got new orthotic inserts to wear with her shoes. She is doing well with walking and running but her feet still pronate a bit so she'll be wearing the new inserts for another 6 months to 1 year. These are a bit different than her last pair and so far she doesn't mind them. The certified orthotist recommended that we make a physical therapy appointment in about 6 months to have Emily evaluated for muscle development.

Emily is walking and running and trying to jump. She is so active and loves being outside. I'm posting a few pictures of her new inserts so you can see what they look like.

Emily's School II

The Toddler play area at SMA.

On the bulletin board!

Ok so I have to blog about how I'm doing with this new school experience. Way back in February St. Michaels Academy had an open house and we took a small tour. Emily was not yet walking and that concerned us but we liked the school program and decided to register her for the upcoming year. Between February and September I kept taking her to storytime at the Euless and Hurst libraries so she could get used to being around other kids. The first day of school kept getting closer and I started to panic a little bit. Afterall, this is my baby and we're like a daily duo. I bought Emily her first nap mat and got her used to laying on it.

Knowing Emily was only two and couldn't really comprehend what school means, it was hard talking to her about it because she didn't understand. My mom bought her some books about going to school and Emily flipped through them while Jon and I explained what happens at school. Still, on that first morning we did our normal routine but then we made our way to school. Emily was confused and apprehensive. She had met her teachers the week before but now it was time to separate. I don't know who took it the hardest, me or her. But I'll never forget her face and the tears on her cheek as I handed her to her teacher and walked away. Luckily there was someone with the program there to talk to me and assure me that everything would be ok and to lead me to the "Parents Cry Room". As I tried to stop my tears I kept telling myself that Emily would be ok and that all first days are difficult in some way.

When 2:30 came at last, I waited outside Emily's room with the other moms. I was so excited to see her again and to find out how she did without me. Once the door opened all these small faces turned to the doorway and then the crying started. Emily saw me and immediately cried and shook and held out her arms. It was like a relieved cry and I tried my best to stay calm and smiling. The teacher said Emily had a good time once she stopped crying but that she didn't want to nap.

School is a big adjustment for both of us and I'm sure we'll get used to it as the months go by.

Emily's School

Hello! I'm finally blogging again. Emily started a preschool program for two year olds at our church in September. The preschool is called St. Michaels Academy and so far Emily is doing very well. We attended the meet and greet session a week before school started and Emily didn't know what to think at first. The room she's in has lots of toys and books, a couple of small round tables and it's decorated really nice. She has two teachers, Ms. Rina and Ms. Annette, and there are 12 students in her class. Emily goes to school on Wednesdays and Fridays from 9:00 until 2:30. From the start Emily didn't want to nap with the other kids so for a few days I've been picking her up after lunch. Her teachers assured me that Emily will eventually feel better about napping once she gets used to being in school. This Friday I'll let her stay the entire time and see if she naps. Emily loves playtime outdoors and she loves making crafts. A teacher comes in once a week to teach sign language and another teached comes in to teach Spanish.

I think this program is making a positive impact on Emily. She is talking more and getting better being around other kids. I've posted a few pictures from the meet and greet day and her first day of school. I'll try to get more pictures posted soon.

San Antonio Trip

Howdy and greetings from the heat record breaking Metroplex!! I cannot believe the heat wave we're having up here in North Texas! We are all ready for some cooler weather and rain.

This past Tuesday we drove to San Antonio for a mini break and because Jon had a convention to attend. We stayed at the La Quinta Convention Center next to the Rivercenter Mall. Emily did well on the road trip but we were all ready to get out of the car. After we checked in Jon had to wash up and change so he could go a session at 4:00. Emily was fascinated with our room. I gave her a bath to cool off and a snack to hold her over until dinner. Once Jon got back we went to the Rivercenter Mall to see what we could find for dinner. It was so crowded!! We finally settled on Chilis on the Riverwalk. After dinner we went back to the hotel and Emily ran all over the lobby area and looked out every window. We went back up to the room and tried to wind down and relax.

On Wednesday morning after a night of practically no sleep, Jon went to his convention and I took Emily to the North Star Mall to walk around. I remember going to this mall a lot on our family trips as a kid. We had lunch in the food court and then we drove to The Quarry Market. Borders bookstore was closing so we went inside to look around for some bargains. Emily loved that store and became fascinated with gift wrap and bows. I was able to grab a sticker book for her and a sports magazine for Jon before we left. I wanted to get back to the hotel room to put Emily down for a nap. It took her a while to calm down but finally she fell asleep and I rested. Once Emily was up I got her a snack and we headed down stairs to the lobby to play with her sticker book and people watch. She really enjoyed sitting on a regular chair and chattering really loud as people came and went. Jon came back and we headed to Casa Ole for dinner. We met up with Jon's supervisor, Meredith, and had a good time.

Thursday morning we checked out of the hotel and headed home. I think it was a good short trip but it was way too hot to do anything outside.

More Las Vegas Pictures

The gondola rides at The Venetian.










Outside New York New York.












Venetian performers.













The famous chocolate fountain at Jean Phillipe.

















Jon with the Blue Man Group.

Las Vegas and the Big 4-0!

Me infront of a water fall inside The Venetian Shops at the Palazzo.

Jon infront of a big fountain inside The Forum Shops.
This statue was real!

The fountains at the Bellagio.

Ok, so I'm way behind on blogging. First I have to say I'm still in denial about turning 40. What? When did that happen? Jon was first to turn 40 on Father's Day. To celebrate this milestone we threw ourselves a party at Blue Mesa Grill in Southlake, Texas. We had chicken quesadillas, goat cheese empanadas and beef tenderloin skewers. We received a few gifts from our friends and family and lots of funny cards. My parents were able to come and so were my brother and his family. Some interesting gifts included a huge bottle of whiskey, two big bottles of beer, a bottle of sangria, coffee mugs and some gift cards. Plus someone gave us two huge containers of mixed nuts and cashews! Even though Jon and I were still a little under the weather, we had a great time.

The next day Jon and I left for Las Vegas while my parents stayed at home with Emily. It was the first time we ever left her overnight so I was a little nervous. But once I checked in with my mom and heard that Emily was having fun, I felt better. We arrived in Las Vegas around noon and took a taxi to Caesar's Palace.

Caesar's Palace is huge! We stayed in the Centurion Tower and our room had a huge bathroom. I can't believe I'm blogging about a hotel bathroom but oh well! It had a big shower and a small TV plus a big tub. Once we checked in we made our way through the casino to The Forum Shops, an indoor mall inside Caesar's Palace. Every shop was a big name like Fendi, Burberry, Ferragamo, Valentino, etc. The restaurants were kind of upscale and the Roman decor was really cool. The fountains were almost like the ones in Rome. The shops went on forever. Finally we made it back to the casino and had a snack at Cypress Street food court. After that we headed outside to walk to the Venetian. It was so hot and there were so many people walking around the strip. The Venetian has a really nice casino and it has its own mall called The Shops at the Palazzo.

This is where the indoor gondola rides were. There were also "street performers" dressed up in bright costumes that sang and played music. After walking all around the mall we went back to our room and rested.

For dinner we went to Serendipity 3. There was a short wait but we didn't mind. We sat outside overlooking Las Vegas Blvd and we did some people watching. Jon and I split a cheeseburger and a crab cake salad and had two very good mojitos. It was about 9:30pm so we decided to walk to the Bellagio and catch the water fountain show. Again, there were crowds of people everywhere. We were lucky and got up against the rails so we could see the fountains really good. The water's really loud when it shoots up, it almost sounds like fireworks. After the show we went inside the Bellagio to Jean Philippe Patisserie to see the chocolate fountain and to have some gelato.

Monday morning we woke up and had breakfast at Espresso inside the The Forum Shops. Then we walked to M&M World. I loved that place!! It's four levels of M&M candy, clothes, gifts and more. After that we walked to New York New York. The inside is designed to look like you're walking in New York. Pretty cool! After walking through the casino we went to the MGM Grand. They have a lion exhibit but we were too early to see it. So we caught the monorail to Mandalay Bay. We passed the Luxor sphinx and pyramid along the way. Mandalay Bay is really nice and it has a huge outdoor beach and lots of pools. On our way back to Caesar's we stopped in New York New York again because we were so hungry. We didn't want to eat a huge meal since we were planning to eat an early dinner at the Bellagio buffet later, so we had a slice of pizza. Back at the hotel we rested. Oh, from our window we could see The Flamingo casino and the huge Donny and Marie sign. Wish we would've seen their show but they were off Sunday and Monday.

Finally we made it to the buffet line at the Bellagio and waited almost an hour to get in. The food was excellent and the desserts were very yummy. I have to say the Italian pasta dishes were the best. The buffet had lots of international food including a sushi bar. The desserts were served on little plates and were bite sized. Jon and I really enjoyed the buffet. Later that evening we walked to the Paris casino and took the Eiffel Tower Ride to the observation deck. The view really was breathtaking and we could see everything including the fountains at the Bellagio. Once we came back down we started playing the slots. It was lots of fun but we lost what we won.

Tuesday morning we decided to walk back to the Paris casino and have breakfast at Monami Gabi. We sat outside but we could feel the air conditioner so it wasn't bad at all. It was really nice to be able to sit and talk just the two of us. We've already planned our next vacations with and without Emily. After breakfast we checked out of Caesar's Palace and went to the airport where the lines to get through security were awful. But once we made it through we walked around the terminals and got some last minute gifts and some lunch before boarding the plane.

This was a great trip and we really want to go again when it's not so hot. I'll post more pictures in the next blog.

Party in the Hill Country May 2011

I'm just now blogging about Emily's Hill Country birthday!!

In May we had everyone over to my inlaws' house in Llano, TX for Emily's 2nd birthday/Mother's Day celebration. It was so great to have everyone there so they could see Emily. My brother, Anthony, and his daughter, Isabella were able to come. Kristin, Alexa and Kyle were there and so were mom and dad. Aleta and I went to Inman's to get the BBQ - brisket, chicken, turkey sausage, beans, coleslaw, bread and sauce. Jon and I brought the Elmo cake from Creative Memories. Emily really enjoyed herself but most of all she loved Ally, the border collie. She followed her around outside and was laughing and smiling. I think we'll have to get a dog someday. Bill set up the pool but Emily thought the water was too cold. Anthony brought the pinatas but Emily didn't really get interested. She received a lot of nice toys and clothes as presents and had fun with Isabella, her cousin. It was a short celebration but it was nice to see everyone there.

Fort Worth Zoo

We finally took Emily to the zoo on May 5. We had a blast! Emily wasn't really into the animals but loved walking on the paths and stomping on leaves and puddles. We walked a long way and got to see a lot of the animals. It was fun for us since Jon and I love going to the zoo. Emily was interested in all the other school kids there on a field trip. When she saw them running, she wanted to run too. We'll go back when she's a little older so she can see more of the zoo.

Happy Easter

Ok, you know I'm trying to catch up here! Easter was really nice. Emily helped us color eggs and put stickers on them. She got two Easter baskets full of goodies. I put her navy blue sailor dress on and we went to church. Everyone loved her outfit! After church we went home to change and then headed out to Southlake Town Square to walk. We had lunch at Mi Cocina and then gelato at Piccolo Molo. Emily had lots of fun seeing the other kids near the big fountain and even managed to get into another family's photo! For dinner we had home cooked pot roast and for dessert we had Easter cupcakes. I hope your Easter was blessed!