My Little Girl is 3

Then

Now

crazy how 3 years is not long at all. That time just flew by, but look how much she has grown! But first, the most recent "best" news for my little girl. no more diapers. The story: 

A week ago, I sent her (and her sister) to her Aunts house for Potty Training Bootcamp (and to play!). :) Why you might ask? Why don't you do it yourself?! Good questions. The honest answer? Meltdown. I have been trying on and off for over a year, tried every trick in the book, and for her it was just a game.  Even though I was going crazy, I never wanted to force her. I was hoping it would just click.

The day before I sent her off to 'bootcamp' I find out that she's ready to move up to the next level of her gymnastics class! the catch? no wearing diapers. The moment we got home I was back to all my tricks--bribes, reverse psychology, pleading, no diapers on...nothing. By the next morning, no progess and I was having a meltdown. In my head...no way she's going to be ready by next weeks class. Luckily my sister in law is an expert at potty training (seriously...she is amazing, and really good with this age group). My husband called her up, she wanted the girls and was more than happy to help out! yay!!

They played for 5-6 days, (my girls did not want to come home). And the best part?!! 95% potty trained! She may have 1 accident a day when she (or the mom) is not paying attention, but that's reallly good considering the progress I made--or lack there of.  No more diapers, that's the important thing.

 * I just hope it sticks!

Today

My 3 yr old woke up to a room covered in balloons. At first she had no idea what that was for, but she loved it! We made purple strawberry flavored cupcakes, picked up a petite Tinkerbell cake, and then had lunch with my dad, my sister and her kids.

silly kids.

By the end, she had a very simple but fun birthday. Once she realized that it was her birthday, she sang to herself the birthday song all day. She also wore her pretty pink dress and her Happy Birthday tiara all day. I think her favorite part was getting ice cream before dinner with her dad.  Love Birthdays at this age.

My Movie Reviews

In the last few weeks, I have been lucky to see a few movies! I love going to movies.

So here are my quick reviews, and I promise not to give too much information away.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

From what I can tell, the movie has had mixed reviews. This movie is based off of an actual game you can play on Xbox, playstation, Wii, and DS.  Even if you knew nothing about the game, the movie is definitely entertaining. Great actors like Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, Ben Kingsly, and Alfred Molina. Basically, this action-adventure story is set in mystical Persia where Dastan (Gyllenhaal), a rougue prince of persia, is forced to join with the princess Tamina (Arterton) to safeguard a powerful ancient dagger from evil forces. This dagger has the power to release the sands of time, which can cause the bearer of the dagger to reverse time and ultimately rule the world.  wow just reading that the movie sounds cheesy, and maybe it is BUT I loved the movie. :)  The  movie has great action scenes that mimic the game, the storyline may not be the best, but it is great to look at (and not just the visual effects). :)   7/10 stars

Sex and the City 2

My sister was in town and we went to see this movie.  Now I really have no interest in upscale fashion, but I did watch the series when it was on tv and found it interesting to watch. This movie is set 2 years after the last movie, with each woman facing their own struggles. Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), who has been married to Big for 2 years is struggling with married life in wanting more excitement, Samantha (Kim Cattrell) is struggling with menopause, Charlotte (Kristin Davis) is worried about the nanny, who doesn't wear a bra, with her husband and her daughters terrible two's, and Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) quits her job.  Samantha takes all of them on an all expense paid trip to Abu Dhabi for much needed girl time.  The movie starts with great flashbacks from when Carrie meets each of the girls. Then at a wedding you have a random star cameo of Liza Minnelli who eventually starts dancing to Single Ladies -- that was weird. While in Abu Dhabi Carrie runs into Aiden (my fav ex boyfriend from the series)! Trouble starts to stir. Anyway. I would compare it to a very long tv episode. If you like the series, it is a great sequel full of fashion, shoes, glamour..whatever. 5/10 stars

The A Team

I was kinda familiar with the tv show this movie is based on.  Who doesn't know Mr T! (oh yeah..Amy. hehe)  The movie was great! If you know nothing about the show, it's basically about 4 special forces soilders that are apart of an elite group. The 4 soldiers are Hannibal Smith (Liam Neeson), Face (Bradley Cooper), B A Baracus (Quinton Jackson), and  Murdock (Sharlto Copley).  They are sent on a special ops assignment where they are setup for a crime they did not commit.  This group uses their unique talents on a mission to clear their names with the military and to find the man who framed them. Expect a lot of action, and humor. Those that might be more familiar with the series may be disappointed, but I really enjoyed the movie. 7.5/10 stars

Dave and Anna's Wedding

Just a few pictures from my cousin Anna's wedding this weekend! Such a great couple, and I'm so happy they found each other. Love my cousin and her new husband!

Look at the back of her dress!! I had to share.

Her dress was in one word...stunning. 

 

Here is the Bride and Groom with their parents

Anna and her friends. She is so loved. Friends from her childhood, past roommates, friends from her mission, church, and college friends.

Congratulations Anna and Dave!

Newport/Balboa Beach

My week in California can be summed up in one word. relaxing. Just nice to go somewhere and not have any real set plans.  Other than our day trip to San Diego, and another day trip in LA, we spent the rest of the time doing nothing and anything we wanted. I'm not saying it wasn't frustrating at times with a house full of kids, that's just normal.  My dad and his wife planned this trip almost 6 months ago. They rented a beautiful house right near the Balboa beach. In all, we had 9 adults and 8 kids, with room to spare! The kids kept each other busy and played really well, non-stop. That was actually nice, they kept each other distracted.

Here is a picture of the Balboa Pier and the massive waves early in the week.

My oldest sister flew down for a couple days, and on one of those days we (me and my 2 sisters) drove to LA for a taping of the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. That experience is really a post on it's own.  Really fun time, but after driving and waiting for it to start, it took an entire day. Very interesting how they filmed the show, they did it in segments. We saw Craig tape 2 monologues, saw one guest, Ben Stein (Bueller, Beuller, Bueller), they introduced 2 other guests but they had been taped earlier, they taped the band, The Nationals, and a few other things mixed in. But each one of those, or a couple will be shown on a different night. hard to explain, but really fascinating how it works. The next day my husband and my sister Amys husband went to a taping of the Price is Right! They were up and at the studio by 4AM for a 12:30 taping of the show. craaazy, but they had a good time.

Anyway, here are some pictures from the beach!

Love this picture of my sister Lisa chasing our nephew Braden with a dead crab on Seal Beach. All the kids loved to play in the sand, and chase the waves.

Here's a picture of some of the kids. Amy's husband originally dug a huge hole that the kids played in all day, but by the end, they jumped in and he buried them up to their necks. The loved it. Just shows you how much fun they had. Me? I'm usually a water person, but seeing that the water was freezing, I enjoyed laying under the sun doing nothing. I tried reading a book, but I ended up closing my eyes. I burn. easily. My sister is witness to the fact that I did indeed put on sunscreen (she helped), but I still came out looking like a lobster. Sunburn or not, I loved it. Laying on the beach, eyes closed, with the sound of the crashing waves. Sigh.

Our beach. Balboa pier in the background.

Look closely, and you'll see dolphins! Everyday on the beach we saw dolphins swimming by. Never seen that before, loved it. So did the kids.

Just a picture of the Ferris Wheel at the Fun Zone on Balboa. I took my girls up on this and they loved going up and down. The views of the ocean and of the area were beautiful.  Those are the highlights.  We spent a lot of time on the beach, walking on the boardwalk, and just spending time together. Loved it. The weather was maybe a little chilly, but felt great on sunburns. :)

SeaWorld San Diego

We were lucky enough to be in California last week. My dad rented a house on Newport Beach for everyone (his family, my twin and her family, my older sister came for a couple days, my aunt and her friend). The only thing my husband and I really had planned that whole week was one day in San Diego for SeaWorld. Everyone else went to Disneyland (we went last year, so wanted to do something different). San Diego was not a short drive, we made it there when the park opened, and left when it closed, made it back to the beach house late. Here are a few pictures from that adventure.

The Commerson Dolphin swimming on his back. One of my favorites that I saw there. Never seen one before. They are found near the Strait of Magellan at the tip of South America.  Love the markings. I read that the nickname for this dolphin is the Skunk Dolphin.

Feeding time for the penguins outside! Inside this exhibit the lights were down really low to mimic how the light would be in their natural habitat. Could not believe how many different kinds of penguins they had there....14 or 17 different penguins? My favorite name was the Macaroni Penguin. :)

LOVE Polar Bears. So excited when I found out they had 2 at SeaWorld. I miss the polar bears at our local zoo. My girls loved seeing the polar bear too.

 

What is a trip to SeaWorld with out SHAMU! They had 4 killer whales performing at the Believe show. My girls LOVED this show...by the end. They were pretty nervous when they found out that we were in the Splash Zone. Since they had never been to a show before, they really didn't know what that meant. Did we get wet?? oh yes. Everyone got wet in the wetzone. It. was. awesome.  Sad, but I must admit that I used my oldest as a shield, so I was only partly drenched. hehe. * If you were curious, since the recent death of one of the trainers by a killer whale, the trainers were not in the water during the performance. The whales did flips, spins, tricks, but the trainers stayed out.

My other favorite?? the Sea Turtles. Ever since swimming with them years ago, I've always loved sea turtles. This guy was lounging in the sun while his other friends were swimming around.

I also loved seeing the Otters and the dolphins, wish I could have seen some sea lions. Could not believe how many pink flamingos they had at flamingo cove. SeaWorld was a fun visit and worth going at least once.

New Music Video for Eclipse

As you know I'm a big fan of Muse and the Twilight books (notice I say books, not movies). Wanted to share the video of the new song that Muse wrote for the Eclipse movie. Not sure what I think of the song just yet, but everytime I hear it I like it a little more. :) Sorry the video is a little blurry.

Cousin's Bridal Shower

The Bride To Be: Anna

Over the weekend, my darling cousin had her 'friends' bridal shower. I can not begin to tell you how much fun we had at this shower. Sadly, I can not go into great detail about what happened, but I will share what I can.  (trying to keep my posts appropriate) haha.  Anna's friend Emily hosted the shower at her home, in the area she called 'Sugarhood'. Hilarious. Have I mentioned how much I love Anna's friends?

 

Idaho girlfriends! These girls have been friends forever.

Such a great turnout of friends! Maybe 25? could have been more. Anna had friends from her childhood, missionary years, college buddies, roommates (old and new), church ward friends, and of course a few cousins. :)  The food was delicious, the company was great, and we had many many many laughs as the bride-to-be opened her presents. Sadly, I'm not posting pictures of the gifts she received, but I will say that she had bags from Victoria Secret, Blue Boutique, and non lingerie-ish stores. Soooo much fun. We just hope she got everything she needs! Or at least enough to get her and her fiance started.

THE box. This is the box that Ams and I made, and filled with goodies. (some that made her blush. hehehe,what are cousins for?)

Love my cousin, she has been like a sister to me. When we were younger our mothers would dress us up like triplets. Before Anna grew over a head taller than us, we were mistaken for triplets. good times.  

Now she's engaged to a wonderful guy, and they will be married in a few weeks! So excited for both of them, and they really are one of the cutest couples. Congrats Anna! you know I love ya.

 

Mother's Day/Birthday weekend

I have been trying to think of something to say about my birthday last week. I even had a post ready to go, but I just didn't want to post it.  Sometimes you just don't want to share everything that's happening in your life with the world.  Even though my mothers day/birthday weekend was great, in a way, sometimes things happen. For those that are curious.

On the positive, my little family spoiled me with a purple iPod! Which I love and play with everyday. I feel like I'm starting to catch up with technology. I stopped and got a coke slurpee with my girls. My hubby got me my favorite raspberry almond torte for my bday cake, which was so delicious.

On the negative, I was kinda sick, saw my doctor (fine now). Then my dads appendix burst and was in the hospital recovering from surgery on my birthday. Most of my birthday was spent up in Bountiful visiting my sister and then my dad at the hospital. In my opinion he was seriously lucky. The doctor said his appendix burst once about 6 weeks ago, and then again before he went into surgery. He's doing better and recovering, but seriously it could have been a lot worse.

The Positive was great! Can I have redo on the rest? ;)

New Bike/trailer test run

Just as an update. We successfully picked up a bike trailer for the girls, and early tonight I took it on a test run. I wanted to see how long it would take to ride my daughter to school. Holy crap I'm out of shape. I mean I knew I was out of shape, but seriously? Guess it doesn't help that I'm pulling a trailer with 2 little girls (plus a little dog) and I haven't been on a bike in years. The area I live in is full of hills, and I've decided that most of those are uphill. :)  I honestly had to get off and walk/drag myself + the trailer up these hills. In my mind I'm thinking, how embarassing, I hope no one recognizes me. lol. BUT I'm out there doing something. And it can only get better if I keep it up. 3 miles there, and then I turned around and made it 3 miles back. By the time I got home my legs felt like jell-o, and I really wanted to vomit. Sadly (or good?) that didn't happen. Any bikers have any advice?!

Saturday Night - Date Night!

Saturday night we got together with my cousin Anna and her fiance Dave, my sister Amelia and her hubby Randy (and little Alice). Anna has been super busy studying for her nursing school finals, planning a wedding, and being a fiancee, that we haven't seen/talked to her much. So you can understand why we were so happy to finally be able to snag her away from her craziness and just have fun!  

The night started early at Rusted Sun Pizzeria. The pizza here is fantastic! If you want to try, it's on 2010 S and State. Very small, but delicious! Then we tried our luck at bowling at the Bonwood Lanes. Now don't laugh, but my husband and I have our own bowling balls/shoes. When we were first married, no kids, we joined a fun league and in the end you got your own bowling ball. Are we competitive? sure, but that applies to most everything. :)

Anyway, after everyone else got over laughing that we had our own stuff, we bowled! I am not a consistent bowler, but I love it! We had girls on one side, and the boys on the other. Ams won the first 2 games (I only bowled 97 on the first..ouch), but I smoked them in the third game with 160. The guys were awesome. In the last game, each of them got a turkey (3 strikes in a row), and Randy even got 4 in a row! In the end, it was just nice to get out and spend time with some of my favorite people.