Happy Halloween!

I wish I could just learn my lesson: if I would just do some shorter posts more often, then I wouldn't be so behind on my blog and it wouldn't take me so long to update it each time. I'm still working on that!

So, this post was SUPPOSED to be done weeks ago during Fall Break, but it wasn't. Better late than never. My sister and I took the kids to Vertuccio Farms. Hannah had a blast (well, all the kids did!) We started with the inflatable horses.
The donkey was very friendly, and let the kids touch him. I was surprised that she even wanted to! She thought he was "so cute!"
Riding the train with Zoey was probably the highlight! These two girls were great about sharing the wheel!
These two little chicks also loved observing the little chicks...and sheep. Pardon the pun on that one.
I have never seen a bike quite like this one before!
Hey, this corn is really tall!
Can't leave without pickin' out a punkin!

Also during Fall Break, Hannah and daddy had a ritual of heading to the park to feed the ducks. Hannah loves feeding the ducks!
Can you tell?
She also loves helping mommy make cookies!
Putting flour on daddy's face doesn't hurt either!
Then the weekend before Halloween arrived before we knew it! Hannah was quite disturbed by the innards of the pumpkin!

On Halloween, I took her to the Halloween Parade at my school. She had watched "Dora's Halloween Parade" several times, so she thought she was quite special that SHE got to go in a parade too!
I love this pic of her in her angel costume. She was smiling a lot, but it was almost impossible to get a pic of her smiling with her eyes also open, and facing the camera. She looks so sweet and innocent here (don't let her fool you!)
Walking up to strangers, saying "Trick-or-Treat", and getting candy in return is one of the coolest things ever!

Yep, posing again. Head tilted. She's kind of giving the "model" smile (where they don't actually smile, they just slightly turn their lips upward). And look how her legs are crossed...model!
HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!!!

THREE!!!

Hannah turned 3 on September 16th! Where is the time going? Daddy brought home flowers for her (he said they were for mommy too!)She had to smell them...
Hannah was so excited to see that the candles were for HER to blow out!
She loved her new Dora dollhouse!...
And her Tinkerbell jacket

On Saturday we celebrated with friends and family, and we rented a Dora bounce house! Hannah LOVES bounce houses. She was quite excited to see it in her backyard!
Time for some snacks.
Presents!


Time for more jumping. Zoey and I kicked the boys out so they wouldn't bother us!
Whew! Tired..These two girls just needed a quick rest.
Mommy even came in to bounce with me!...
And so did daddy!
This is just so much fun!
Later in the day my family came over to celebrate with me too!
The morning after...look at these new clothes!
Hannah...Happy birthday sweet girl. There are so many things I love about you...here are just a few.

I love your smiles and your laughter...especially when daddy is tickling you and you end up laughing so hard that you can barely catch a breath.

I love how, now that you're in a big-girl bed, you still lay there in the morning and wait for one of us to come get you. I guess right now we don't need to worry about you wandering the house. (whew!)

I love how your "radar" goes on the moment you spy candy, cake, donuts, or anything sweet! Wonder where you get that from?

I love how you "take care" of your babies--you love them, feed them, give them their naps, and even burp them! It is so fun to watch you being their little mommy!

I love how you sleep with about 5 different stuffed animals, and before bedtime you have to make sure that they are all covered up along with you!

I love how much you love our dog Taylor and kitty cats Cosmo and Wanda. You are so gentle and caring towards them.

I love how you often make random observations about various things:

"Daddy you're a boy and I'm a girl and mommy is a girl too." (as we are driving in the car)

"Mommy I'm not mad at you, I'm happy at you. And I'm happy at daddy too. I just am." (as we are at the store in the shopping cart)

"Mommy I'm nice-ing you." (After I asked her if she was being a good girl).

And I also love how you mix your phrases up:

Jim taught her to "wash it down" when she is eating, meaning take a drink. The other night she took a big sip and said, "Ahhhh I gotta wash it off mommy)."

Oh Hannah...we love you so much! Happy Birthday!

H is for Hannah!

Hannah will be 3 in a few days! It's so hard to believe! She is growing up right before our very eyes. She can write the letter "H"!!! She is very excited about her birthday and can tell everyone that she is almost 3!Hannah's perfect "H"
More beautiful "H's"...

Life's a Beach!

We enjoyed a nice trip to Coronado Island (San Diego) a few weeks ago. Jim's sister Therese rents a house there for part of the summer, and she invited us to stay with her. It was perfect weather. We all had a great time! Hannah was very good in the car on the way there and back (as opposed to last year when she hurled twice on the way there...glad there was no repeat of that!)

Being on vacation is so exhausting that on the second day there, Hannah decided she needed a 10 a.m. cat nap. It only lasted about 15 minutes though...
The cat nap gave her just that little bit of extra rest she needed to survive all day at the beach! She was a trooper even without her normal nap time!

We told her to smile, but she is scrunching her nose--she does that a lot when she thinks she is smiling. Looks a little goofy and could be some great blackmail pics someday...
Daddy dug this GREAT hole! It was loads of fun to jump in it and then climb out--over and over again.
Trying to bury mommy in the big hole.
I wish the pics had turned out more clear...maybe a little sand on the lens? (notice that Dora is standing in the sand behind Hannah to the right. In case you're wondering, Dora loved the beach too!)
Running around the big hole!
Skipping around the big hole...
Jumping in the big hole...
Sitting in the big hole...this is the best day ever!
By the 3rd day at the beach, Hannah figured out her limits. She came up to me and said, "Mommy I'm tired. I wanna lay down."

And she did...slept for about an hour and a half!
Hannah loved riding on the big boat (Coronado Ferry on our way to Seaport Village)

We love Seaport Village! Hannah thought the big lobster was pretty neat too!
Hannah slept like a baby (pardon the pun). Jim decided to go in and arrange her dolls around her and take a picture (no, she wasn't just automatically sleeping like that!)
Yeah for park!
We took a walk around the Hotel Del Coronado...( and maybe I even sort of pretended that we were staying there...)

We couldn't head back to sunny AZ without first taking a pic next to the blue M & M!!! Hannah wanted to bring him home!
Oh...home sweet home. We really missed you Taylor! We had a great time in Coronado, and loved the place Therese rented. But, it's always good coming home too!