Beauty and the Beast

... and no, I'm not talking about Maya and Eric :-)

Maya went to her first live play today ... Beauty and the Beast, and cousin Kaitlyn played Babette. It was so much fun! So Kait took Maya onstage afterwards for the autograph session, and of course, brilliant mommy left her camera in the car. This was the best I could do with the camera phone. And even better, the camera phone was full and I couldn't get a picture of her with the prince/beast. sigh.

And this, my friends, is a picture "for daddy." She worked so hard on it (as you can tell by the concentration on her face in the picture below), and she handed it to me and said "here, mommy". I went into the big "I love it! Thank you so much!" speech, but she stopped me cold and said "It's for daddy" as she takes it back out of my hands. double-sigh.

It's been a great weekend.... we went to Evan's house yesterday for lunch and swimming, and today was Beauty and the Beast. But why, oh why, does the weekend fly by so fast?!?! Now it's Sunday evening, and I still have to do laundry and finish some work before tomorrow morning. I hate Sunday nights ... it's like a ticking bomb counting down the minutes until the workweek begins again. Someone really needs to reverse this concept ... how about 5 day weekends and 2 day workweeks?

Just had to mention ..

Quite often I find myself saying "I need to put THAT in the blog before I forget it", and then 2 or 3 days go by, and I remember that there was something I needed to say, but can't remember what it was. So here goes ... E just emailed this to me this morning about his ride to the daycare. It was really cute, so I thought I'd just pop out here and post it while I think about it:

On the way in this morning, Maria was singing her little heart out to “Cat’s in the Cradle.” Maya’s very good about letting Maria sing. When the song ended after its third time, Maya clapped really loud and said “Good job Maria…you’re a great little singer.” They walked down the hallway to the rotunda holding hands.

Isn't that the cutest thing? I do hope they stay best friends forever ....

Chasing rainbows and puddle-splashing

It's been a great week, but man, did it fly by fast! Monday, as I was driving home from Walgreens, I saw the most incredible rainbow I have ever seen in my life! It was a complete arc, absolutely HUGE, and I saw every single color in it ... red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. I was in awe. As I pulled into my street, I was anxious to get home so the girls could see it, but was disappointed to find you couldn't see it at all from my house. Everyone came outside, and being the adventureous types, the girls, Gran and I all hopped in the car to go see the rainbow down the street. But it was gone by the time we got back to my spot where I saw it. We tried to chase it down the street as we followed the rain, but it was gone for good. We saw bits and pieces here and there, but my babies never got a good look at it. I was disappointed they didn't get to see the rainbow, but was delighted when we were honored with Maria's rendition of "Doe, a deer, a female deer .... Ray, a drop of golden sunnnnnnn.... Me, a name, I call myself .... " She can truly sing almost the whole thing. What a cutie pie .... she's so sweet!

And Wednesday, during the torrential rainfall on my ride home, I saw that the roads in my neighborhood were difficult to drive through thanks to the flooding. I considered taking my girls out in the rain to play when it lightened up some, but then came the thunder and lightening, so obviously we did not go outside. But as soon as it was over, I made a couple of paper boats and me and the girls went out walking looking for water puddles to play in. I didn't see any anywhere in our front yard, so then we headed downhill toward the cul-de-sac and found the perfect puddles a couple of doors down from our house. We had a blast!!! Maya and Maria splashed and giggled and played for a long time. I just love my girls!!!

Happy 4th of July!

I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July holiday. I had a blast with my girls!! I wish 3 day weekends came along more often ....

Friday we spent the day with another of Maya's school friends, Evan, and his parents, Cathy and Tully, at Cathy's parents house and pool. They have an awesome pool, complete with pool house, and an outdoor bathroom that is far superior to my indoor bathrooms! But I digress .... Maya and Evan had a great time splashing in the pool for hours. Cathy is an awesome cook and grilled chicken, burgers and hot dogs. Getting Maya to stop swimming and slow down enough to eat is quite a challenge, but she did rather well this day. However, she did graze a little and leave and come back a few times to eat more of her burger. When she got down to the end of the burger and was walking around with it, Princess the dog came up and snatched the rest of her burger and ran off to eat it. It was so funny! Maya is still talking about it.

We had to leave earlier than I wanted to, in order to come home and meet Jen, our social worker, for our final post-home visit for Maria. We had not seen Jen in a while and it was so good to see her again. However, little Maria was sound asleep for much of her visit.... the girls had played so hard at Evan's grandparents' house, and they had not had a nap, so they fell asleep rather quickly on the way home. Maya woke up and ran to answer the door when Jen arrived, and then proceeded to entertain Jen with her usual diatribe of questions and discussions about pets. She is so funny! After Maya had grilled Jen on the type of pets she had, I looked at Jen and commented, "and I suppose you thought you would be asking the questions today, didn't you?" She laughed.

oops ... I'll have to continue this post later .... little Maya just woke up and said "mommy, I don't have anyone to sleep with me!" So off I go.....

Random thoughts

Maya was so cute tonight. Ok, so she's cute every night. But this one stood out enough for me to make sure I updated the old blog. One of Maya's favorite things to say these days is "Can we go somewhere?" Which is cute as can be, and I do love to "go somewhere" myself, but that usually means it will cost me some money. So I said, "why don't we just go swimming instead?" Worked like a charm, as my little fish LOVES to swim. So I made mac and cheese and packed it all up to take out to the pool. We ate, or, as I like to describe it, I ate and they wiggled and twisted and tried their best to get out of chairs and into the pool. While swimming, Maria noticed a bird perched on the electrical wires behind our property. She started saying, "Hey, bird! tweet. tweet. Hey!" Maya then piped in with "You want to come swimming? Put on your bathing suit. Put on your little bathing suit." How cute is that?! That bird stayed around a long time and looked for all the world like he (she?) was just watching my girls swim.

Speaking of swimming, Maria is getting to be quite bold in the pool! She's my cautious one, the grounded one who analyzes everything for an hour or so before warming up to any new situation. But she actually lets us get her face wet now, and she'll stand on the side of the pool and jump in, all while holding my hands tightly, of course. She's asleep on the living room floor right now .. she just cannot fall asleep easily at night. So while Maya was heading off to bed, Maria was boucing off the walls ... literally ... she bounced off furniture and banged her head in there somewhere.

I found more pictures on my cell phone of Maya and Elysia. This was obviously after Maya corrupted Elysia and convinced her through peer pressure to get as wet in the stream as she was. So stinkin' cute!

And aren't these bows the cutest ever?! I'm dying to order them, and probably will, as shopping is my life, but I couldn't help but post them, too since they are so adorable! They come from this website, which I found through another friend's blog:

http://www.bowtiquelollipop.com/mayanfamilies.html

Prayers for Aviana, please!

This is a friend of a friend of mine. The little girl, Aviana, was walking with her grandfather and they were hit by a car last week. The grandfather will be ok in time, but sweet little Aviana is still in a struggle for life. Aviana, like my babies, is from Guatemala. I simply cannot imagine the pain the parents are feeling right now. I firmly believe in the power of prayer, and would ask that all those who read this pray and/or send positive thoughts to this family, and especially to little Aviana.

http://avianareese.blogspot.com/

ok, just one more ... Happy Father's Day!!

Random Pics

After coming home from Charlotte, mommy took a rare NAP, made supper, and then took the girls outside to play in the kiddie pool. The good news is that daddy finally got the pool looking blue instead of green! Yay! So hopefully we can swim in the big pool soon, but if I'm taking them out by myself, I prefer the kiddie pool anyway ... safer, you know!

I think I could get a shot like this every year of Maya. Nothing more fun than falling in the pool backwards, you know...

Isn't this the cutest thing ever!?

This is a creek in a local park, where we took Maya for one of her school friend's birthday last weekend. I forgot there was a creek in that park, as we had not been there in a couple of years. I don't think Maya was even walking last time we went there. But oh, my ... it did not take her long to gravitate toward the water, and there she stayed for most of the party.

And this is Maya's newest BFF, Elysia. She's such a cutie-pie, and she is the reason Maya no longer wants her hair cut. Elysia's hair has never been cut, and comes down past her waist. These two are two of a kind. Her mom works at the daycare where both girls go, and she was telling me that a lot of the girls in the 3 year old class don't like to stay outside as much, as it gets too hot, and they don't like running around in the heat. Our girls, however, are right there with the boys wherever they go, and they love to run and jump and do the kung fu or spiderman moves the boys are doing. So what happened to the GIRL I requested from Guatemala? hmmm??? And Maria, of course, is not going to be left out!

This was at the same park with the creek. They were too cute! In case you can't tell, Maya's shorts are soaking wet. It didn't take her long to sit down in the creek. Elysia's dad and mom tried to tell her she can wade in the water, but she should try not to get her clothes wet, as they had other places to go after the party. I think I laughed out loud at them .. couldn't help it. To give her credit, Elysia did stay dry MUCH longer than Maya did. Here they were going up to the pavilion for cake and ice cream and the present-opening, and Elysia still had dry clothes. It wasn't until after this part of the party that Elysia finally gave in to peer pressure (sorry, Christen!) and followed Maya in sitting in the creek and splashing. Luckily, I had not only brought extra clothes for Maya to change in to, I had a spare set that Elysia could wear. I honestly didn't know there was water in this particular park, but I knew it was going to be hot, so thought I might take the girls to another park after this one, and the new park has a large water fountain area designed for kids to play in. So I had even brought bathing suits and towels, but we never got around to putting on bathing suits.

Another meet up with our Guatemalan friends!

Charlotte has this awesome Latin-themed mall called Crossroads Mall. It is directly across the street from Carowinds, and has this huge play area that only costs $2 for 45 minutes of playtime. They close it down every hour for 15 minutes to clean it, which we mommies really like. We met some of our friends there today and had a great time! I didn't get very many pictures, as I was by myself with my two girls, and Maria tends to be really clingy for the first hour of anywhere we happen to go. So my hands were full, to say the least. But a good kind of full! Mary Ann got much better shots ... her blog is The Shrum Family Adventures that is linked under my favorite blogs. You can also get a glimpse at the play area in this incredible mall. One day I need to take Eric or cousin Lisa with me to this place so that I can actually SHOP, too.

This is Maya and Lilee ... Maya and Lilee became buds today. Maya seemed to think Lilee needed her help putting on her shoes, but they are the same age! Lilee turned 3 this year, but Maya will be 4 next month, and I guess at their age, that few months in between does make a difference, but they were so cute together.
And Sara Ava seemed a little taken with Maria. Maria can be VERY clingy, and especially so in new situations. Just being in my lap isn't enough .. she has to be in a certain position with me holding her tight with both arms, or she'll still keep repeating "hold you, mommy, hold you". Normally she warms up after an hour or so in my lap. It was almost time for us all to go when she finally let me put her down, and Sara Ava was holding her hand to keep her from getting too scared.

And the group shot. Mary Ann has boys unlike any I have ever met. They are so sweet around all the little girls, and they are sooo helpful with the younger ones! This time only Joel could come, but he was great with all the girls! Sara Ava and Lilee are his sisters. Daniel had to sit with his newest son, Zane, who just came home from Vietnam last fall, as Zane was NOT in the mood to sit for pictures. Chloe is standing beside Maria with her arm around her, also helping to keep Maria from being scared and crying. Chloe is Zane's sister.

And this is Zane. So glad you are home, buddy! It was a long wait for your mommy, and she looked like such a proud mommy today! Zane's older sister Kaitlyn was also there today, but somehow missed getting in the pictures. We're not missing you next time Kaitlyn!
We had a great time! Thanks, Mary Ann, for organizing all the meet ups for us!

Maria firsts!

Guess who went peepee on the potty TWICE this week?! No, not Eric ... well, he probably did, but we didn't clap and cheer for him. Yep, it was Maria! She loves to sit on the potty, because, of course, Maya does it too. Maria loves to copy Maya. It's the cutest thing ever. Now, though, the problem seems to be that she doesn't like to keep her diaper on. And she doesn't quite understand that she needs to finish peeing BEFORE she gets off the potty. And she loves to just sit and tear the toilet paper and throw it in the water, but sometimes doesn't actually pee until she gets off the potty. So we still have a ways to go here, but it was exciting nonetheless.

Maria is also talking up a storm these days. Sometimes it takes me a minute or two to figure out what she's saying, but it's quite clear that she understands what she is saying, and that she is saying something important! Occasionally Maya understands it before we do, and she's quick to point out what it is Maria wants, which I also think is quite adorable.

Oh, and Gran told me one on Maya today. Eric took the girls over to his mom's for lunch Sunday so that I could have some time to work on stripping off the bathroom wallpaper, and they had fried chicken for lunch. Maya and Maria always get the chicken legs. Gran said that Maya came in the kitchen and said she wanted more chicken, but her choice of words was she wanted another "chicken with the handle". hehehe. Too cute!

The daycare had their Spring Fair last week, and the 3, 4 and 5 year olds sang. The theme was Love Notes from Jesus, and it was incredibly cute. Of course, my child was the best and cutest one, but I'm not sure all the parents noticed that. I don't know why....

More Beach Pictures

We had such a great time this weekend at the beach! Maya had been so excited about going, but honestly, I don't think she really knew what "going to the beach" meant. We took her when she was just over a year old, but that was over 2 years ago, so she can't really remember that trip. We didn't get to go at all last year, so this was Maria's first beach trip ever. The hotel we usually stay at had a great pre-summer special rate, so we decided to go just for 2 nights since I already had Friday off anyway in anticipation of Maya's Gotcha Day. But, after spending $$ to get a dual-screen portable dvd player for our car (and let me tell you, that has GOT to be the best invention of the 21st century!), and $$ for a new cooler, and a new bathing suit for Maya (I didn't get a picture of the whole thing, but it came with a matching zippered vest that clips on to the bottom part of her bathing suit ... another excellent invention, I might add), all the dolloar store beach toys, sunscreen for 4, etc, etc, etc, it wasn't quite the inexpensive getaway that I had planned. But it was worth every penny.

So Maya was excited, and that excitement never waned during the trip. She loved to go out on the beach, but loved to swim in the hotel pool even more. The weather was great, but it was very windy the whole time, so it was still a little chilly to be out on the beach or by the pool when one was wet and/or not in full sunlight. So in the mornings and evenings, E would just take Maya to swim in the indoor pool. I think my girl might be part fish. She will jump in the water over and over and over again. Absolutely no fear at all. And now, with the vest on, she can jump in by herself, which stills scares this mommy some, as she can't swim without the vest. I really need to get her enrolled in swimming lessons this year, but back to the pictures....

Maria, however, wasn't quite as impressed. Maria is far more reserved, and still clingy when in an unusual place. And she's not the most water-friendly child out there. If you'll recall, when we were in Guate with her, she did NOT like bathtime and never did warm up to them while there. Once home with Maya, and seeing how much Maya loves the bath and water in general, she did much better and even liked to play in the little kiddie pool we used last summer when only one of us was home and didn't want to try to get both of them in the big pool. I'm trying to set the scene for the next picture, and I think it's already too late to make a long story short, but in essence, she did NOT want to get in the ocean. And prior to that, it was even a struggle just to get her dressed in her bathing suit. I got it on her, but it was a huge struggle to get the little cover-up on her. I managed to do it, but she was NOT happy about it, and I think this is still her pouting face. Sort of saying, "I don't care how interesting this huge sandbox is, I am NOT going to enjoy it!" And you will notice she is wearing her cover-up in all of her beach pictures, because once I got it on her and then tried to remove it when we got down to the beach, she absolutely refused to take it back off. So I decided that this was one of the battles I would choose not to pick:

And here we finally have the beginning of a smile. She was enjoying herself, but just wasn't going to let me see it yet! Eric did try to get her to dip her toes in the water, but she did NOT want to go near that big pool of water in the background. So we had a few tears when he tried, but he didn't force the issue and just brought her back to her sand, and she settled down and was fine for the rest of the time we were out there.

And finally I got a real smile! Until, of course, we got back to our room and I had to take it all back off AND get her in the tub to wash all the sand off. Oy.

In comparison, these smiles were easy to find all weekend:

I can't wait to go back! The girls did great in the car, thanks to that wonderful new DVD player. They love Nemo and can almost recite the whole thing. Maya can say the shark pledge ("I am not a mindless eating machine ...."), and Maria and I love to repeat the part where Crush and Squirt do the "fin, noggin, duuuuude" part. She'll give me five, we'll bump heads, and she'll say "duuuuude" .. so cute! Anyway, they slept a good part of the way down there, and were asleep within 5 minutes of leaving there today around 2:30. It's a 4 hour trip, and I was a little nervous about it, but it all worked out great. Nemo and Cinderella saw us home without any problem!

p.s. Oh, and around 12:30 on Sunday, just a couple of hours before we have to leave to come home, guess who finally wanted to get in the pool? yep... Maria! She kept pointing to it and saying "water", so I finally asked her if she wanted to get in the water and she nodded 'yes'. Wow. Once in, she did not want to get out, so I hated to have to tell her it was time to go and we had to go get dressed. She kept getting out of the pool to go to E and tell him "I water", meaning, of course, "look at me, Father, for I am in the water in the pool and am enjoying myself immensely!", and then she would come back to me and get back in. What a cutie-pie.

Gotcha Day!

Happy Gotcha Day, sweet Maya! You have been the star of our lives for 3 years now, and I love you more every single day that goes by. I hope you have enjoyed your day today, and if all the smiles and laughter are any indication, I think you did!

Mommy and daddy love you very much, baby girl!

Check out Little Miss Independent!

So we, of course, attend the regular stream of birthday parties hosted by schoolmates. Maya went to just such an event last Thursday evening at Mr. G's, a local pizza and play place. She had a blast! But there was one of those "moments" where I realized she's just not a baby anymore. We were all going to ride the bumper cars, but there wasn't enough room for all the kids on the first go round, so we waited for the next turn. Most of the 4-year old crowd was sitting on mom's lap in the bumper car, except for 1 little girl, I believe. That, of course, would be the one Maya watches. So when it came time for us to get on, my little rebel decided she was going on one by her self or she just would not get on at all! I saw her face and knew she meant business. That "I can do it by myself" rang loud and clear. So, being a 'pick your battles' kind of mom, I told her to go ahead and try it by herself, fully expecting her to just sit there and not be able to control the car and having to wait for others to run in to her. Boy, was I in for a surprise. Not only could she actually reach the controls, SHE USED THEM! To borrow a phrase from my MIL years ago, "it was like a dagger through my heart." I know I say all the time I can't believe how fast she is growing up, but it's true. And check out the smile the independent streak resulted in. Not to mention her little independent streak resulted in a rash of independent streaks and many of the kids rode the 2nd time sans maternal parental unit.

And then there was the more sedate merry-go-round.

And the thrill of the small indoor playground equipment.

And a shot of Maria just because she's so darned cute. This one is not too far behind big sis in the independence area, either. Except her phrase is "I do it!" She loves to be tickled, but then will say in the cutest way ever, " 'top it!" (aka 'stop it'). And then she'll giggle some more anyway and get you to do it again. Her latest independent streak is wanting to climb into the car seat by herself, and no, it does NOT matter if you are in a hurry. My lack of time in no way hinders her insistence that she climb up herself. So if I try to put her in her seat anyway, watch out! Have you ever tried to strap in a wiggling monkey? Impossible.

And don't forget the Easter eggs!

Much fun was had by all! (especially mommy!)

Easter continued....

Making Easter cookies!

And tasting said cookies is the best part!