Dropping In

Hey everyone!

We are still here :) Sickness has been moving through our family the past week. First Amelia got it, then Jason and as of this morning I have it. It's just a cold but it has been kicking our butts this past week!

A lot has been going on for us and I will share more soon!

For now, here is Amelia in her new bike helmet:


Spring is coming!

Shutterfly Books

A couple of months ago I got a coupon at the Target checkout for a FREE 8x8 photo book from Shutterfly. I held onto it because I thought maybe I'd check it out. I figured there was some catch because nothing is really free these days, is it? Well, there was a small catch - I had to pay shipping and handling (which was minimal.) That was it though. I was able to make an 8x8, 20-page color photo book for eight dollars. I hope I come across another coupon like this...soon!

Hopefully the window below works and you can view the book about the trip we took to the North Shore last fall!

Click here to view this photo book larger

Zoo Day

This afternoon the sun was out (a rarity the past few months) and the temperature was in the mid-30s...so we went to the zoo! We decided to go to Como Zoo over the MN Zoo (where we a have a membership) because it was a little chilly out still and most of the animals would be inside anyways. So, for a quick zoo trip Como made more sense today.

We saw polar bears in the newly renovated exhibit:


We chuckled at this lion:


Native to a warmer climate, he has embraced the snow surrounding his rock.

Amelia liked to monkeys and apes the best. They were the most active. She had a great time and we can't wait to take her to the MN Zoo this summer!

St. Patty's Parade

Yesterday our friend Lisa invited to a local St. Patrick's Day parade! It was such a nice afternoon out that we couldn't turn her down. Amelia watched so intently the whole time:


Some of our favorite parts were the unicyclists:


The really tall man:


And the "Irish" camels:


Lisa grabbed a few pieces of candy, a sticker and beads for Amelia. We are looking forward to more parades as the weather warms up!

Here is about the best picture of Amelia that I could get in her St. Patrick's Day outfit:


She is far too busy to stop for a minute or two to take a picture!

Playing Outside

Today if was almost forty degrees (which felt very warm to us here) so we went outside after dinner to play! Amelia got to use her cozy coupe outside for the first time and she was loving it!


She had to bring her ball with her. We told her that she and her ball wouldn't fit into the car together but she was determined and she found a way!


I am looking forward to some warmer weather coming so we can play outside often! Amelia has so much energy and playing outside is a great way to burn it off and get to bed on time!*

*We're a little messed up here because of daylight savings but we'll get back on track...eventually.

Two Years Old

Friday Amelia turned two years old! She got a few presents from my family on her actual birthday including this new princess kitchen:


We had dinner out with my family at Boca Chica and dessert at Izzy's in St. Paul.

Saturday we had a little birthday party for Amelia at my parent's house and my family and Jason's family came. Both days I had Amelia dressed up in the same birthday dress she wore last year. It was a tad short so I threw some leggings on under it and it was pretty cute!


I was pretty impressed I got two years of use out of the dress since it is size 18-month!

Amelia was so funny opening her presents. She would just empty the bags but throwing everything over her shoulder:


Auntie Lisa (one of my best friends) started to fold tissue paper and after that Amelia brought her every single piece and helped her smooth it out so she could fold it. Kids pick up on every little thing!

Auntie Kimmie got Amelia her first trike and We took turns pushing and pulling her around on it and when I stopped to get her picture on it she made sure I knew she did not like that I stopped pulling her:


She can be so demanding sometimes. We definately are entering the "terrible twos."

Amelia had a big cake and cupcakes. She tried so hard to blow out her candle on her cupcake:


We had to give her a little help. After all the work blowing out the candle she didn't even want to eat it! She picked sprinkles off and that was about it!

Amelia got a lot of great stuff for her birthday including new clothes for this spring/summer that we are anxious to wear! Auntie Liz got her a little suitcase which was perfect to bring home all her new clothes in.

That's really all the pictures I have to share. I didn't get any of her with family members because after presents and lunch she dragged her Nana to her bed and pretty much asked for a nap. So, the guest of honor slept through the last half of her party which meant no pictures really!

Lisa, Kim and I went bowling with Amelia in the evening. We thought we could get Amelia in on the bowling but she pretty much just liked walking out to the lane and then back. We'll take her again and hopefully she'll be more interested in it since it won't be a totally new envoronment for her. That means we'll have go sometime soon!

Online Again!

I haven't been online in nearly two weeks. Wow! We don't have Internet at Grandpa's and I just haven't been able to get on at my parent's house except for banking and bill pay.

We haven't been up to much. We celebrated my dad's 60th birthday with dinner out and cake at home. I tried to get a picture of his cake with all the candles but he blew it out before I got a chance:


That's what it looks like after sixty candles are blown out.

Amelia wore a wild outfit for grandpa's birthday:


Look at those pigtails!

We've been playing around the house a lot. Amelia uses this little stool as a goofy chair all the time:


We have been having a bit of a heat wave (thirties and even forties!) so I took Amelia outside to play yesterday. She thought it was the best!


I haven't taken her out much this winter with the weather we have had the past few months. It was just too cold for her!

Molly

Last week we said goodbye to our friend, Molly.


The night before I went to Wendy's and got the ol' girl a special dinner...a bacon cheeseburger and some fries. She gobbled it up in no time!

Sometimes when I ask Amelia where her dog is (I actually asking about her Slinky dog from Toy Story) she runs around but other than that she has no idea - for that I am thankful. She loved that dog!

For the Love of Cats

Last Saturday we took Amelia to the 'Saintly City Cat Show' which is part of the St. Paul Winter Carnival. Amelia LOVES cats and this was pretty much the coolest thing to her.


She ran from cat to cat and got really upset when she had to leave each cat.


She had two favorites and their owner was very patient with Amelia each time we stopped to see her cats.


As you can see she even opened their cages so Amelia could pet them but she was way more interested in opening and closing their cage doors than anything.

Since we were nearby we stopped in Rice Park to see some of this year's ice sculptures.


This year is the 125th St. Paul Winter Carnival and I liked this sculpture because it has each of the century logos for the event carved.

Mom and I:


Afterwards we had a cozy dinner at Mama's Pizza. By cozy I mean we fit all 5 of us into a little booth that would comfortably hold 3 or 4 people. It was interesting...


Nana and Grandpa had the pleasure of sitting with Amelia...who insisted on eating off of Grandpa's plate instead of her own (even though they had the same thing) and she was close enough to reach on over and help herself!

Date Day

Yesterday afternoon Jason and I dropped Amelia off with my mom and had a little date afternoon/evening. We browsed a few stores and then went to find something to eat. We decided on Cecil's for dinner and each ordered a sandwich and we shared them:


After we left the restaurant we ran into a little movie theatre and decided to park and see what they had and at what time.


We got there just a few minutes before "The King's Speech" started and we knew nothing about it. Nothing but someone on my Facebook saw it recently and loved it so we went on that and saw it as well. Ironically, we saw it at the same theatre she saw it at too since we were in her neighborhood!

Amelia had a good time with her Nana and Jason and I enjoyed some time on our own.