Look Mom: new shoes!

I ordered the girls new sandals last week, as Kyla had found a too-small pair in my "getting ready to sell" bin, and decided she NEEDED to wear them all around the house, all day long.
I found them each a pair at the site 6PM.com and oh MY! The deals they have on this site! If you hit this site on a good day, you too can own 2 pair of Umi sandals for little girls for less than $50 - and 3 pair of sandals for Mom (including 2 pair of Born and 1 Keen) with shipping for only around $80! Insane, I tell you!
So anyhoo, once the box with the new shoes was opened, Kyla has not taken her sandals off. She resists to her full extent any attempts at taking them off her feet. And that includes when she is wearing FOOT PJ's.Yes, my girl stuffs her PJ -clad feet INTO the sandals. And yes, she looks adorable!

Chef Soupy K2 at your service!

Watch out, people. We have another iron chef in our makings: K2! She adores wearing her Chef hat they made at daycare a few weeks ago - and it's SO entertaining to watch her cooking away in her kitchen!
This one if my favorite: it looks like K2's little onsie is pulling on her BUDDHA belly! :) So sweet, my girl.

A tattoo artist in the making?

You see the above artistry on Kyla's slipper? That would be thanks to older sissy, who decided drawing on her own feet while inside their favorite BOX, would be a fun activity to try. I did allow her to write on her feet, yes, and I have to say I was quite impressed with K1's flower drawing skills and her perfectly matched flower on each foot. Adding a dash of violet to the flowers added an especially sweet touch, one that I would be proud to say, could be a tattoo artist skill someday? LOL

Oh, Sisters, Let's Go Down

Today in church, K1 and I participated in a special worship choir's rendition of "Down to the River to Pray". It's one of our favorites - so when an email went out requesting people to volunteer to be a part of it, K1 and I eagerly volunteered. She woke up this morning, talking about singing for church, so she was VERY excited and so proud to perform. We go down right away during the "sisters" part. The girl loves to be a part of singing for show!
Sadly, Kyla woke up yet again with another fever (AHHH!!),so Daddy wasn't able to come and watch. Thank goodness for kind friends at church to video tape for us!
Enjoy!
*and it may be hard to see K1 singing, but you CAN see her litle mouth moving and once in awhile,she nods her head with drama as she is singing. I could hear her sweet voice if I listened closely while up front with her :)*


Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing

Meeting CARS!

Thank Goodness I've started listening to Talk Radio these days! Yesterday, on my drive to get my hair freshly colored, I heard that the characters from "Cars" and the upcoming "Cars 2" would be posing for a meet and greet at our beloved MOA for one day only!
EEKS! I thought! Keifer adores watching the movie cars, and would LOVE to meet Lightening, up close and personal!
So, after I had my hair colored and trimmed up (love it, fresh red and copper), I picked up the girls, and raced over to the MOA. Luckily, the lines weren't so bad,and we waited about 20 minutes to "meet" the new character Finn, Lightening, and our favorite, Tow Mater.

No, we didn't really "MEET" them, per say. They were just regular size cars that started up, but didn't talk. LOL. But I had Keifer all excited to meet them. She was really excited to see them, but her excitement pretty much waned after waiting in line. She posed for the free pictures, and as you can see, Kyla really could've cared less, as well! But it was a fun experience, anyways.

After the posing, I told Keifer if she continued to behave, we'd go eat dinner together (as daddy was stuck at a computer programming workshop), and then we'd walk around the Park (aka amusement park), and look at all the ride. We enjoyed a highly overpriced Mexican dinner together, at a restaurant that overlooked the park - it kept Keifer entertained throughout the dinner (watching roller coasters through the large glass window next to our booth), and we did then enjoy a stroll through the Park. Both girls held a hand of mine, and they both giggled and swooned over the loud and noisy rides. Kyla even started talking to the Dora statue!
I told Keifer she did such an excellent job of behaving for me this time, that perhaps me and her daddy would take the girls after daycare on Friday for a "rides" visit! Let's hope the good behavior continues!

Wordless Wednesday: Here sissy, I'll help you

Who is this big girl? *sniff*

Only a few more weeks,and my first baby girl will be 4 years old! WHERE THE HELL has the time gone? *sniff sniff* I was just telling her last night, as she excitedly talked about her upcoming birthday party, that it felt like I had just given birth to her! And I told her I was sad to let her outside of my warm womb, because I had her all to myself. *sniff*
She is just such a good big sister. She adores her little Chap-stick toting sissy, and both tolerates and teaches her so much. She even told me last week, she thinks we should have another baby- a baby boy, and we'll name him Jack, just like the baby Jack at daycare! Um, sweetie, I think mama is done with babies (*double sniff*
And I just told CJ last night, but our little book lover appears to possibly know how to read some things? I'm not so sure, but the other night, she took her smoothie cup from Old McDonalds (as we call it in this house), and read "Smoooo-thie" off the side. No prompting. Yes, it was obviously her smoothie cup, but how did she know what that WORD was on the side? Hmmm. I wouldn't doubt it, she adores sitting with books and pretending to read them to herself and K2.
And oh, how I adored this outfit she is wearing in the picture. And how disappointed I was/am that she could NOT stop chewing on the damn collar (cowl collar) and so, she can't wear it without making the neck line saturated with saliva. Lovely. Oh, K1.

Baby, baby - how K2 loves her baby!

Eat, baby. Here's your bottle.
Kyla loves to feed and hold and push her babies around in her stroller. The baby in the pictures here are the ones she loved on PRIOR TO Nana Dian coming this past weekend and gifting her with a NEW baby! Oh, boy, watch out, old babies. The NEW baby is the object of K2's affections now!

Posing with baby on the steps. So much love for her little ones.

See the baby??? Watch this!

Into the sink she goes- for a bath!! And a snack (as she pretends to pour milk into a bowl and sticks the bowl into babies face!)

All done! Just fine!

Last night, Kyla was pushing her new baby around in the stroller, talking to her and asking her questions none of us could decipher ("Kyla talk"). I told Kyla it was time for her bath. She took baby out of her stroller and climbed up stairs, so I let her take baby into the tub.
She pretended to wash her baby, all on her own, with a washcloth, and poor baby had her face under the water for quite some time (eek). After the bath, we wrapped baby in a towel, similar to Kyla, and as I clipped Kyla's toe nails, she held out her baby's foot , saying "toes, cut, toes, cut". So I clipped baby toes as well. Then, she brushed her baby's teeth, just like she brushed her own!
It still amazes me how much our little ones pick up and how their mothering to little wee ones is just as warm and loving as ours is to them. Kyla had my heart fluttering with her little mothering, and watching her take care of her baby was so sweet *sigh*.

The Soupy Cousins

These pictures and video at the end were captured about a month ago- right before Kyla girl got hit with pneumonia and Keifer with her breathing "stuff". We visited Auntie and Uncle's house, and Keifer was in hog heaven playing with her cousins. Here's Abby, modeling her mom' s new heels, which had never been worn! Can you believe this beauty is going to be 10?

Keifer Lynn, trying on Auntie's shoes as well, but clomping around a bit loudly.

I love this one- the 3 cousins admiring the "beautiful sunset" (as my Keifer put it! She loves when the sun goes down and it's pretty) We were also debating whether that smoke streak in the sky was REALLY a plane's exhaust or was it a shooting star?

Kyla girl, eating as usual, and modeling her Uncle's Fighting Sioux wardrobe.

You think Abby and Mason are fun for Keifer?

Ashes, Ashes, they all fall DOWN! I love how they all fall so dramatically in this video- and if you really listen, you can hear Kyla giggling like a maniac!

Funny girls

She wears her sunglasses inside

She has a TAIL!

Big cousin's flip flops!

Tubby bubbles

Nothing better than tubby time with your sister (big or little). K1's new favorite tub activity is blowing bubbles with straws, which also has the added benefit of working on her core muscles -which, in turn, leads to a calmer state all around. I'm all for calming my girl down, especially when it gets her clean at the same time. Kyla is loving the new company in the tub.

And the cutest thing ever is whenever I say "bath?",Kyla will jet over to climb upstairs, go into the bathroom, saying "bath, bath" and now will open up the drawer that holds her ear plugs and says to me "pugs, pugs". She's one damn smart girl!

Keifer Says: Pics and recaps

Watch out, people, here come Keifer Lynn, raring to go in this life. Lover of all music and instruments, Glee (especially the Christmas album. Still), and her sister.

Here are some phrases/things that Keifer has amused us with over the past few months. Yes, I keep a scrap of paper around to take notes on what she says to share on my blog in the future!

~~While listening to the character Annie sing (in the movie Annie), "Mom, Annie is a REAL good singer". And yes, the REAL is said really dramatically. With big eyes. And a serious look.

~~While singing along to her Ipod in the back seat, this time with Laurie Berkner: "Mom, I sound JUST LIKE Laurie when I sing!"

~~Right now, Keifer and my favorite song aka OUR SONG is "Just the Way you Are" by Bruno Mars. The minute she hears the instrumental opening chords, she perks up and gets excited. It also helps that we have a version of it on our Ipods as sung on Glee(of course), as well as her other semi-favorite, "Hey, Soul Sister" (which she loves to sing with a microphone at home).

The below picture is of Keifer and her friend Mazzy - we've done Baby Ballroom with "Maz" as Keifer calls her since infancy. The girls now go to Elaine's (Daycare) together as well. Over Christmas, we were lucky enough to watch Maz for part of the day when we were on vacation and Maz's mom needed to get some work done.

However, it wasn't such a fond friendship one day last month when Keifer decided she wanted something Mazzy had while at daycare. So she spit at Mazzy. And was very matter of fact about the spitting when questioned about it; very nonchalant. That's our girl. Getting angry and taking action (with her spit!).
~~When we were going to the grocery store one Sunday afternoon, and had spent yet another day in our jammies (because we roll like that at our house) I told K1 she could wear her jammie shirt to Cub.

She raced to CJ, to tell him all excited, "Daddy! Daddy! I 've got some GREAT NEWS! I get to wear my jammie shirt to Cub!"

Don't YOU get excited when YOU get to wear jammies somewhere?

At the Children's Museum - proud as punch about her face that she painted all by herself!

~~When going to the bathroom (#2) one night, she was pushing and grunting and making lots of dramatic measures to void her bottom. She told me, "I have to go poop, but my butt just won't let it OUT!"

~~ It was both Papas and Nanas Wedding Anniversaries the past few months. Keifer made one of the sets of them a homemade Anniversary card. In the card, she wrote "I want to marry you". Driving home, she informed me that she did indeed not only want to marry them, but also Mom and Daddy, too.

Last night at dinner, I was informing K1 that her great friend Hayden not only moved away during the past few weeks from our neighborhood, but he is unable to make it to her upcoming birthday party.

She looked very sad, but quickly said, "that's OK, because I'm going to marry Hayden, because he's a boy and I'm a girl!" OH? And where the heck did THIS come from?

Apparently wedding plans are being made as I write, that I am completely unaware of.

Performing in her informal pre-Christmas dance recital. She was nervous, and all overwhelmed that the family (and other families) were there (I think).

Cousin Abby pre-show. Keifer thinks the moon and sun rise and set on Abby.

~~ On Christmas Day, when we were driving to Cousin Abby's house for prime rib dinner, Keifer was mad. She wanted Chinese food (the noodles!) and was NOT happy about the prime rib that Uncle slaved over for us.

If K1 could choose, she would pick Chinese food and Teresa's out for meals every day of the week. She is JUST like Mama in that aspect.

~~She also was very curious about when Jesus was going to come and visit us - "Mom, when is Jesus going to come to our house?"

My beautiful child.

~~One of her favorite things to do is look at pictures and video clips of herself with her friends. In Keifer's world, friends are the best thing ever, well, besides her family. She is always telling CJ and I out of the blue that she loves us. Which makes both of us melt with love even more. And I try to remember that when she is being VERY sassy (more often than not lately) and using her little pre-teen "AH" on the end of all her words, especially the word "no".

Example? "No-AH".

Used in a sentence: Grumbling. "No-AH, Mom, I don't WANT to do that" *insert evil eyes*

Just how old is she?

~~And although my girl is full of sass and spice, she is also full of sugar, too. When looking at pictures of a group of her girlfriends in one picture, all together, she gasped audibly and said, "Wow, I got a lot of gorgeous friends! And my sweet little Kyla!".

Tell me that doesn't make you want to wrap her up and take her home? LOL

Wordless Wednesday: Sissies in a BIN

*Not to be confused with the "sissies in a box"

Teaching each other?

You want to see something super heart-warming? Here is my big "little" girl - as she calls herself these days ("Mama, I'm a big little girl"), teaching her little sissy how to do sign language.

Keifer is really into learning the correct signs for all the letters of the alphabet and really loves when the sign language teacher comes to daycare one time a month. She's always been good at the basic signs, having learned (and loved) them by watching the Signing Time videos (with Alex and Leah!). It's so fun to have her ask me in the middle of something what letter she is making with her fingers, or how to correctly make a letter in her name.

We found a fun program on the Starfall website, where Keifer also enjoys learning the letters and finding the trash and recycling for the garbage cans. What an awesome picture I think this is! I love the look on Kyla's face, as she is trying her hardest to be JUST LIKE SISSY!