Chloe's graduation!

My baby niece graduated from pre K today! She is such a cutie and such a smart little girl, she is going to do awesome in Kindergarten. She goes to the same school as Layla but the one in Palm Springs so it was back to Doral Resort we went to for her commencement. She did so well dancing and performing in front of everyone but my nephew Jaydan is the one that really surprised me! He was the only one in his class that actually danced! I am such a proud aunt of my two little ones, they are the best! Layla had fun and was dancing to all the songs too.

My shining star!

So today I found out that Layla was performing at her school's graduation. Her class was going to do 3 dances and they needed her there. I had no idea that she was even doing anything for it but of course I had to see her dance. The whole school had to dress up as cowboys, well, Layla had no cowboy clothes so the best I could do was a plaid dress and pigtails. The performance was at Doral Resort in Cathedral City so I was in a major rush once I found out that we had to be there. We got there just on time and my mom and I dropped Layla off with her class and teacher where she immediately started dancing and playing with her friends. We went to sit down and realized there were no empty seats. The whole place was full! We ended up having to stand in the back and running up to the front to take pictures when Layla was up. I was a nervous wreck the whole time before Layla went on (and, of course, her class were the last ones to perform). I thought for sure once she saw me she would start crying and not do anything! Boy, was I wrong! She was so excited to see me and as soon as the music came on she went wild! She started singing and she knew all three dances so great and was the best one in her class (I'm not just saying that either, she really was)! She was the one that everyone else looked at when they couldn't remember the moves. I was so proud of her, she really surprised me and after this performance, she will be going to ballet in the fall. I am just so amazed and proud of her!

Wordless Wednesday

Layla's new "school" phrases

Since Layla's been in school, she has learned a few new phrases. LOL
"Na na na na na, you can't get me!"
"1, 2, 3! You're not listening to me!"
"Well, well, well, look at that!"

Strawberry picking

Today was such a fun day! We went with Grandma and Grandpa to Tanaka Farms in Irvine for some strawberry picking. It was so much fun and Layla had such a great time. On our way there we stopped at Denny's to eat breakfast. Layla got alien pancakes and then stole a menu for the rest of the car ride. Once we got to Tanaka Farms we had just missed the first wagon ride so we had to wait an hour or so before the next one. Layla picked a few strawberries while we waited and had fun beating up Grandpa and then it was time for us to get on the wagon and go on our tour. While on the tour we got to try lettuce, beans, cilantro, onions, carrots, and corn before we reached our final strawberry destination. Layla tried everything except the onion but I think her favorite was the carrot, she ate the whole thing and wanted mine after hers was gone. Once we reached the strawberries, we went to town. Layla did great at picking them but instead of putting them in her basket, she ate all of them. She had fun running up and down the rows and was sad when it was time to go. We had a great time though and will probably go back again when it's watermelon picking time! :)

Ever wonder what a sleeping watermelon looks like?

No more pictures until she's 5!

Today I went to have Layla's 3 year pictures taken (yes, I know I'm 3 months late) and they were a disaster! She was all excited to go and take them but once we got there she turned into a major grouch and refused to let go of my leg. We tried everything to get her to smile and then I decided we needed a break and went to go get some french fries. She cheered up for a whole 5 minutes and as soon as we were back in the studio, she turned into her mean self. I was so disappointed. I haven't had her pictures taken since she was a year old so I really needed some updated ones. After a couple of tries I totally gave up. After looking at the pictures that were taken there were only 3 that were ok. Oh well, I guess we'll try again in a couple of years.

Swimming, swimming, and more swimming!

We've been swimming so much since we got back to the desert, I'm loving the pool! Layla has been doing so good with swimming and will hopefully not even need a float by the end of summer.

Mommy's night out!

Last night Desirae and I decided that we needed a mommy's night out. We had the best time ever! We started at Cheesecake factory where we shared some appetizers and a glass of wine (German wine, that is). It was so fun to just sit and talk and relax, we could have stayed there forever. After that we decided to hit up Yard House, Firehouse, and Tilted Kilt for a few drinks. It was so fun to bar hop, just the two of us. It had been awhile! We decided that we needed to start doing that once a month so I'm sure I'll be posting more pictures soon! :)

Our baby bugs hatched!

The other day when we were out planting flowers I happened to notice a bunch of eggs on a leaf. Every day since we would wake up in the morning and check on them to see if they had hatched yet. Well this morning when we went to check on them there were a million little bugs all over the leaf! Our eggs hatched! It was so neat to see and Layla loved looking at them.

Happy Memorial Day!

Today we're remembering the men and women who have lost their lives to keep us safe. Thank you to all military service members for fighting for our freedoms.

Planting flowers with Grandma!

Today Layla and Grandma had to plant flowers in the front yard. Layla loves playing with dirt so she had a blast! She found lots of worms this time and had the most fun sitting on Grandma's lap while she was trying to plant.

Layla's first day of school!

Today was Layla's first day of school! I was a nervous wreck, I couldn't even sleep last night because I was so worried about it. As soon as Layla woke up this morning she was so excited and said she wanted to get ready and go. So we ate some breakfast and got ready. As soon as we got to her school she got shy and said she wanted to go home. I explained to her that it would be fun and she would meet lots of friends but that didn't help much. I gave her to her teacher and she started crying her little eyes out so I took off so that she could get used to playing with everyone. When I went and picked her up her teacher said she did wonderful and only cried for a few minutes after I left. She had so many stories to tell me and was so happy that she made friends. I think she is really going to love school! :)

Flashback Friday

This is from my high school graduation in 2003. Ed and I look so young! :)

We found ducks!

Today we were at home just hanging out and relaxing when my dad got home from work and told us there were ducks in the front yard. Layla loves ducks so we grabbed some bread and ran outside to feed them. There were three of them and they must have been hot! They were so calm and didn't walk much, but were very happy to eat our bread. It was a nice little surprise to find them out there and Layla thought it was the funniest thing!

Wordless Wednesday

I'm 24 today!

Today ended up being a much better day than expected. I was really depressed knowing that it was my birthday and that Ed wasn't going to be here for it. I was still sad he had to miss it but I'm glad I had my family and friends around to help me celebrate. I haven't been in the desert for a birthday since I turned 19 so my mom was very happy I was here. I had a good day with Layla relaxing and then my mom got off around 4pm. She brought me balloons, a cake, and presents. Then we got ready for dinner at one of my favorite restaurants ever, Kobe's. Glen and his family met us there and we had such a nice dinner. Layla ate everything, and I mean everything. Sushi, shrimp, rice, steak, mushrooms, etc. Whatever was put on her plate ended up in her mouth. Not only that but she ate everything with the kid chopsticks they gave her, even the rice. After dinner was done they sang happy birthday to me and gave my cheesecake. We had a really nice time. Right after dinner I got a nice phone call from Ed and we just joked around and laughed for the 20 minutes he's allowed to talk. I loved it. He was making fun of me saying I'm old and getting wrinkles. I had to remind him that he will be in his mid twenties this year and that is even worse! Thank you to everyone for the birthday wishes and making my birthday feel extra special.