Disneyland!!!

We finally got to go to the happiest place on earth! :) A couple of weeks ago we were headed down south to visit my brother and family, so while we were in Southern California we thought we could squeeze in a first trip to Disneyland! 

 

 

 

We felt like little kids anticipating this day with our little girls. Brandon had requested this week off of work almost a year ago and we had no plans for the week. With my brother recovering from surgeries and a long hospital stay we wanted to go and visit him as a family. Since we were already in LA we decided that a day at Disney would be so fun! We planned to go just one day and push the girls through their naps and spend the entire day there. We couldn't have planned a better day! The weather was absolutely perfect (as would be anticipated in Southern California) and planning to go to Disneyland in the middle of the week in March was wonderful. No lines. Virtually no crowds. Two excited little girls. Perfect. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There really is something magical about Disneyland. No matter what your age it seems like all the imagination, the characters, and ----- make for a very magical experience. We dressed the girls in matching shirts, received their "1st Visit" pins (and a birthday pin for Lucy :), had enough snacks to get us through the day and we were ready for the best day just the four of us. 

 

Aubrey is all girl and although a little nervous, she was so excited to meet the princesses. Lucy was just too scared to even get out of daddy's arms :). 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The tea cups were one of the first rides we went on and it was a hit! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Autopia was another fun ride for Aubrey!

 

 

 

And the jungle cruise was more of a hit than Pirates of the Caribbean :).

 

 

 

Dumbo was also a favorite for Miss Aubrey :).

 

 

The finding Nemo submarine was fun for both girls :).

 

 

You could not wipe the smile off of Aubrey's face the entire day :).

 

 

 

Aubrey was so excited about meeting all the characters.

 

 

 

Lucy once again wasn't the biggest fan :).

 

 

 

Sometime during the middle of the afternoon, Lucy just couldn't take the excitement and she finally caved into taking a little nap.

 

 

 

Now this might be an everyday occurrence for some parents having their child fall asleep in the middle of the day in a stroller, but this is something that is very surreal to us. This little girl was tired and we were thankful for the little cat nap she took in the middle of all the business. 

 

Aubrey enjoyed a little pineapple juice and Dole whip in the meantime :).

 

 

We did make out with a little less than what we came into the park with. We lost a shoe and a headband during a couple of tantrums from Lucy not wanting to get off of a couple of rides. Who could blame her for not wanting to get off a ride really, but throwing her shoes has been a fun little "stage" we've been in. 

What an awesome day we had! And I'm so glad we got to finally take the girls. It was a day we will remember for a long time (and we know Aubrey will remember it well!).  She says she misses Disneyland weekly :).

Happy 2nd Birthday Lucy!

 

Little Lucy. You bring so much joy to our lives every single day. Your uniqueness in your personality and in who you are make you one very special lady and bring something so special to our family and we couldn't be more in love with you! 

 

 

 

 

We love your expressions! You have the greatest faces that express when you're happy, offended, giddy, disappointed and when you're being just a little mischievous and wanting to get into something you know you shouldn't.  You don't let things go very often especially when we're in the car. The back seat driver in you comes out often with a "whoa" when we hit a bump and mommy had to break just a little harder. We love how we (almost always) know what you're feeling.  

 

 

We learned this year that you are not a morning person. You need time to actually wake up in the morning and move at a slower pace. You don't like to talk much and you like to held. We've loved taking advantage of this time to get to snuggle and read to you in the mornings as you recover from your beauty sleep.  Every morning you insist on "making your bed" as you cover your little stuffed turtle (affectionately named Speedy) and make sure that he's kept nice and warm.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Your loves: You love your sister and we love seeing the bond between the two of you already. You cry when we drop Aubrey off at preschool some days. You enjoy having tea parties, playing Legos with her and jumping on the trampoline together:). You love your blanket and you love wearing it like a cape. You love watching Looney Tunes. You love to put objects on your head. You love going outside. You love Murphy and love to feed him his kibble piece by piece. You love your Dido. You two have a special little bond :). You love music!  You dance to it every chance you get (even in the middle of a store), sing along to the words you know, and bob your head along to the beat in the car. You love shoes! You even walk in your sister's play high heels pretty well too :). 

There are things that we've learned that you just really dislike. You really dislike being cold and have no problem complaining about it, you can't stand having your hands dirty or sticky, and you honestly dislike meat and we think you might just be the little vegetarian in our family.  You will forgo any type of meat (including breaded chicken) for a good sized helping of a well dressed salad.  For some reason you'll also hold food in your mouth for a half hour or longer! You're picky with foods and we keep trying, but you definately have a refined palette :). 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You may be small in stature, but you make up for it in some of your physical abilities. You jump around all the time (especially to music) and you love the trampoline! You've mastered jumping on two feet for some time now.  You've scaled some tall tables and even mastered doing headstands on the wall. You've climbed out of your pack n play this year but have yet to climb out of your crib (fingers crossed!). You love going to parks and we love seeing your excitement in going down slides and swinging on swings. Your little legs can take you places quickly and your run is fast! At the beginning of this year you balanced yourself walking with your arms stretched behind your back, but you've now come a long way :). 

 

 

 

 

 

You are one determined little girl! And you can definitely hold your own! When you put your mind to something there is no stopping you. When you know what you want you're going for it! On top of being determined you are very resourceful :). If you want something on the counter (M&Ms to be exact) you'll grab the step stool, get it lined up in position, and climb to whatever you want using the help of the cabinet handles to climb on and get the prize. That stool has traveled to almost every room in the house.  It has helped you get your toothbrush, toys, makeup, and anything else you are generally curious about :).

 

 

 

 

 

This year you've starting speaking so much! Although some of your words and "phrases" are still a bit incoherent you're making sense. You're putting together multiple words and sentences together and it's been so interesting and fun to hear your little voice develop. Some of your phrases and words include: "baukie"  (blanket), "pie" (pacifier), "guago" (thank you), "we-wa" (Leah), "hi kitty" (Hello Kitty), "sneaky pee pee" (stinky pee pee), "maggie-book" (magazine), "wa-wa" (water), "fifi" (Murphy-grandparent's dog), "bye bye daddy's car" whenever we leave our garage, and Mexico (stated in an authentic accent) just to name a few. Some phrases are as clear as day like, "I did it!" and  "I love you mo" which we love hearing you say :). You always say, "So sorry" when you're apologizing :). 

 

 

 

  

Every color has been yellow the last couple of months but now we have moved on to every color being pink :). 

 

 

You refer to most animals by their sound rather than their name :). Baa, moo, meow all identify different animals. Your horse pajamas are "neigh" pajamas. "Meow sing" is a phrase you say when your toy cat starts to purr. Some animals have come around by their names such as duckie, doggie, turtle and fishy. 

 

Our little Lucy. Everyday is a new adventure with you and we are so incredibly blessed to be your parents. This year your exuberance, your joyfulness, your energy and your strong personality have come alive and so many smiles have come to our faces because of you. You're quirky, adventurous, funny, independent and spunky all wrapped up into one petite little package. 

 

 

 

We love squeezing you, holding your tiny hands, hearing you laugh and watching you play. The way you learn amazes us. We can't wait to see how God uses your unique abilities and talents He has given you! 

 

 

We love you to pieces our blue eyed little babe!  Happy 2nd Birthday Lucy!

Love,

Daddy and Mommy