Today Ed's mom took Layla to Toys R Us to get her a play house for outside. Layla has been wanting one of them for the longest time so she was so excited when Grandma told her she could pick one out. Layla kept picking different ones, she couldn't decide on just one. Finally we helped her pick out one and then Grandma surprised her and said she was also going to buy her a sink! It's the neatest thing, it has a faucet that really works. Then Grandma had to have a broom so Layla could sweep her house and dishes so she could wash them in her sink. Layla was so excited about everything she got! Grandma totally spoiled her today and now Layla has a whole backyard of toys to play with. 
Layla's favorite book right now is called Pinkalicious. We read it every night before she goes to bed and she thinks it is the funniest thing ever. It is about a girl who makes pink cupcakes and then eats so many that she turns pink. We have read it so many times she now has it memorized word for word so she reads it herself before bed now. Anyway, she has been saying for the longest time that she wants to make blue cupcakes (blue is her favorite color) and I kept teasing her that if we made blue cupcakes that she would wake up the next morning and be blue. So yesterday we finally got around to making the blue cupcakes. She loves cooking so she had a blast and loved putting the blue food coloring in. After they were all done and frosted she ate one and then also ate another one for dessert. The next morning I hear her saying my name (waking me up, I should say) and when I look at her she tells me "see, Mom, I'm not blue!" 
Ed is doing really well, as good as can be for being in Afghanistan. Ed was in Germany for about a week after Layla and I left and then was flown to Afghanistan so he has been there for about 3 weeks or so. He said that he is way up in the mountains and it is snowing there and that it is hard to breathe since he is so high up there. He is really enjoying his job though so that is nice to hear. I get emails from him everyday and get a phone call about every other day so it is nice to be able to stay in constant communication with him. Ed just sent me this picture the other day and then his Sgt. sent me the other one, so just a couple recent pictures of Ed in Afghanistan! :) 
For Layla's 3rd birthday we decided to go to Disneyland for 3 days, 2 nights. We stayed at the Disneyland hotel and had such a great time. We were going to have a party for her but with us just getting here a couple of weeks ago, I knew I would be rushed to plan the whole thing and I just didn't want to do that. Plus, since Ed couldn't be here for it I didn't want to make too big of a deal. Anyway, we left on Sunday, the 1st, for the hotel and to walk around at Down Town Disney for awhile. When we got there and checked in, Goofy was standing right there saying hi to all the kids. Layla looked at Grandpa and told him "I don't want to give Goofy a high five!" But of course, I made her. She was a but scared of him at first but did really good after awhile. After that we went to our hotel room and relaxed a bit and then walked around. We ate at some really awesome place and they sang Happy Birthday to Layla and gave her ice cream. I also let Layla open presents that day because I knew we would be busy at Disneyland on her actual birthday. She got tons of Snap N' Style dolls and clothes for them and their closet. She was very happy! 
The next day was her birthday!!!! We woke up and started getting ready for our day at Disneyland. Layla was so excited, she wanted to meet Minnie Mouse and go on the rides, she had been talking about it all morning. When we first got there we ran over to the Nemo submarine ride and got on the first submarine. Layla loved finding Nemo and Dorie and really enjoyed it, I was glad we went there first. The whole day was just a ton of fun! Layla did so good, she loved riding everything, even Pirates and the Haunted House, I was very surprised. She met Goofy, Pluto, and Minnie that day. She was so excited to show Minnie her dress, and Minnie really loved it too! The weather outside was perfect too, it was cloudy but cool, even though it did sprinkle a bit. We ended up eating at the restaurant inside of Pirates and it was so good, totally worth going there. We stayed just about until the park closed and went back to our hotel, we were all beat and knocked right out! 
The next day we checked out of our room and went to California Adventure. I had never been there before so I didn't know what to expect but once again, we had an amazing time. Layla met Minnie as soon as we got into the park and was so excited to show her her new Minnie purse. Then we decided to go see the Play House Disney show since Layla knows and loves all of those shows. Oh my gosh, it was the cutest thing ever. Layla was in love! She stood up and danced the whole time and sang along to all the songs. She was so happy! After that we walked around, went on rides, ate, met some more characters and just had a great time. I think Layla's favorite part was when she met Pluto. She was so excited to see him and then Pluto took Silky and put it on his head. Layla laughed SO hard! Since we were so busy the day before Layla got a bit cranky around 3ish so we decided to go ahead and go home. We let her play in the water before we left and she had a blast, she got soaked! It was one of the best Disney trips I have ever been on though. We had such a great time and Layla had such a good birthday. She has not stopped talking about it and keeps saying she wants to go back! 
