Haircuts

Today the plan was to cut Amelia's bangs so she no longer looks like an orphan. So I got out the scissors and promptly was distracted checking my email. Amelia grabs the scissors and cuts a 6 inch chunk out of my hair before I realize what is happening. When I was little, I got a hold of the scissors but I only cut my own hair. I think this is definitive proof that Amelia is smarter than me.


The chunk of hair I am missing from my head.


Amelia's mischievous smile after becoming a stylist

Amelia's Weekend of Fun

On Thursday night, Amelia and I braved the blizzard conditions and went to see Disney on Ice: Disneyland Adventure. The storyline was that the Incredibles went on a vacation to Disneyland and Cindro kidnapped Mickey and Minnie, so the Incredibles has to rescue them. Amelia is not really a girl that is very versed in all things Disney. She knows the names of the Princesses and Mickey and Minnie but not much else. She has not seen very many of the movies and I don't think any with the characters in the show. I knew she would like it though, if nothing else for the ice skating and costumes. We were not disappointed. Amelia LOVED the show. She has been pretending to be an Incredible all weekend and has been calling me Incredible Mommy. There is also Incredible Daddy, Incredible Kitty, and Incredible Dog.

On Friday night, I took Amelia swimming, which is one of her favorite activities ever. She loves the water. She can float on her back and will put her whole face in. She will even go under voluntarily, although her favorite thing is to dunk me. She is going to take swimming lessons in May.

Today Amelia got to have a special Daddy/Daughter day. Philip took Amelia to see Monsters vs. Aliens. I was worried that she would get a little nervous but she had a great time. Philip said she say in her chair the whole time and watched it and just ate her popcorn. She came back to tell me all the highlights of the movie. Now she and Philip are at Walmart buying her a special toy. She has really become a Daddy's girl lately. Not that I am complaining (much), it gives me more time to get things done but I do kind of miss her being my special girl.

Here are a few pictures from Disney on Ice.


The finale


Cinderella's Carriage

Amelia's spinner

My little Incredible

Garden of the Gods

It is amazingly nice out today. So Amelia and I decided to go for a hike in Garden of the Gods. We had a great time. Amelia liked to look for bees and wasps (they are the only bugs out right now). She walked the entire time and I got a ton of great pictures.


Beautiful view of Pike's Peak

This is the picture that tells me Amelia is not a baby or even a toddler anymore. She is a little girl and I can't deny it.

New Stove

This is my new stove. I am going to love it. It has an expandable burner, a hidden heating element in the oven, a warming zone on the stove top. This stove is light years ahead of my current stove. That may be because it is about 3 decades newer. It will be here on Saturday, I hope. I believe I have cooked my last meal on my old crappy stove; Thursdays I always use the crockpot and we like to go swimming on Friday night which usually results in eating out because we can never get Amelia out of the pool.

A Little Outdoor Fun

Lately, with the weather being so nice and the days being longer, we have been taking advantage and playing outside as much as we can. Amelia loves to play with Buddy, they play tag and fetch. She also loves to fly her kite, climb the tree, blow bubbles, and draw on the sidewalk.



Hanging like a bat from the tree


A little birdie



In the tree

It looks like a kite parade with the whole family involved

All she knows is to run with your arm up. Her perseverance usually pays off and she gets the kite in the air all by herself.

The Birthday Extravaganza

Well, Amelia is 3 years old now. I cannot believe how fast she has grown up. For her party she picked a fish theme. Heaven forbid she should pick something that I could buy at Party City. I probably worked on the decorations and cupcakes for at least 25 hours, not to mention all the cleaning I did before the party. But it was all worth it. Amelia loved the party. Everyone had a great time. We ordered pizza for lunch. Then we played Pin the Fish in the Fishbowl. We sang Happy Birthday and had fishbowl cupcakes. Next came the presents, she got so much. I can't even believe how many presents there were. (Of course, our thank you notes will be in the mail this week.) The biggest hit was the pinata, there was enough candy for all 10 kids to get a whole party hat full of candy.

All morning Amelia just kept asking if her guests were on their way. She was so excited to get the party started. But then when everyone left, she said "That was too many guests, I am tired." She took a nearly 3 hour nap.



The cupcakes turned out pretty good considering it was my first time attempting something like that.


Pin the Fish in the Fishbowl.



Blowing out her candle with Daddy. When I asked her what she wished for she said "I wished for you Mommy." She sure knows how to melt my heart.

Making a dent in Present Mountain

The pinata (it was Valentine's Day clearance, that is why it is a heart.)

How to Make Pancakes

1. Use a footstool to retrieve a bowl
2. Use same stool to climb on the counter and retrieve the box of pancake mix
3. Pour mix in bowl
4. While pouring in bowl, make sure to spill half of the box on the counter and floors
5. Get a sponge and try to hide the evidence
6. Call for Mommy when you realize you are in over your head

These pictures don't even capture half of it. All I could do was laugh, even though I spent 3 hours cleaning my kitchen the day before in preparation for the birthday extravaganza.

A Nice Warm Day

The weather here has been so nice lately. Monday, Amelia and I took advantage of it and went to the park with our friends. We played ball and flew our kite. It was a great time. Then after nap time, it was still warm out, so we went and played in the yard. We flew our kite and played kickball. Then Philip helped Amelia climb the tree. She especially enjoyed hanging upside down like a bat. Of course, the perfect end to a warm day outside is a popsicle.