Another video...

Ok, so I got a video of Eva saying more of her words. She looks like a crazy woman because she just woke up from a nap. And she has her first ear infection :( but she has been such a good girl about it, I didn't even know! So, enjoy some more extreme cuteness!

Cute girls talking

I love the way kids learn to talk. Eva actually uses so many words now, I need to get more of them on camera!

Oompa Loompa

The other day we made some pizza. Mallina loves to help me cook since she has now become obsessed with Ratatouille . Even Eva put some cheese on the top. So, as we were eating I look over at Eva and realize that with her funky hair and orange face she looked like an oompa loompa! It made me laugh.




Mallina actually ate dinner! She is so picky, but since she helped make the pizza, she was excited.

Then the next day, Eva got a hold of a ding dong. I just let her go for it, and this is what the aftermath looked like.



I don't think I even have any pictures of Mallina that look like this because I am usually such a freak about kids making a mess with food. Not sure why. Even looking at these pictures I cringe and think about cleaning up the slimy mess! Hopefully by the time the last kid comes along I won't care as much!

Wildlife World Zoo

So we went on an adventure to the Wildlife World Zoo. We've been to the Phoenix Zoo, very cool, the girls loved it. Then we heard about the Wildlife World Zoo. It's a little different than the Phoenix Zoo, the animals are actually much closer to you, you can see them very well, and you can even take a train ride through the "African Safari" where the animals walk around. (No freaky animals, just birds and those cow/deer like one's). It was a lot of fun, although I will never wear slippers there again, walking around on dirt in slippers sucks. It was out in the middle of nowhere so it took a while to get there, but we are used to driving long distances to get anywhere. So here are some pictures from our day!


Baby Jaguar and Bageera. See how close they are!The King of the forest, the Lion.
Mallina and Pongo. She was more excited about this fake dog than the real animals.

This bird was huge and really cool and had the thickest eye lashes!


This next sequence of shots makes me laugh. Do you think I have a spirited toddler? :)



Watching the Swans, one got out of the water right in front of us, then tried to bite me! It was stinky!

They like to move it move it!

Happy Mom's Day!

Sometimes I am just blown away by the fact that I have two children. That I am a mother. Seriously. ME. So weird. I have the two most beautiful children (ok, so maybe I am biased) that crack me up, drive me insane and melt my heart every day. I am so happy to be at home with them every day, even though it has been a huge and really hard adjustment to make, I wouldn’t give it up for anything. I have so many wonderful motherly role models in my life. I am the youngest of 5 girls and four of us are moms. Julie has somehow raised two of the sweetest boys you could ever meet. She manages to be a big time lawyer and an amazing mom every day. Kristie has been a mom almost my whole life and has 5 great kids who I feel like are my friends, and are so much fun. That is Kristie in one word FUN. We can’t help but laugh and talk talk talk when we are together. Alyson has worked so hard to do whatever she has to to take care of Jaxson. I feel like he is my little boy too, I spent a year with them and loved every minute of it. Jennifer isn’t a momma yet but has acted like a mother to most of our children. She travels to dance recitals, sports events, graduations, birthday parties, everything. I love that I live close enough for my girls to know Aunt Jenny like they do. And I MUST give a shout out to my niece Nichole. She has three gorgeous daughters that are so incredibly sweet, and are so good to my girls. Her oldest are twins and she is currently pregnant with her second set of twins! She is amazing and I know she is going to just as an amazing job with these twins as she did with her first set. My own mother has done so much for me, I can’t ever begin to repay her, except to do the same for my girls. She doesn’t let anyone feel like they aren’t special. I am always getting packages filled with decorating magazines, clothes for my girls, items to decorate my house, and sweet notes and cards. She taught me the importance of the gospel in my life, and that I can do whatever I want to do in my life. The sky is the limits. She has also taught me the importance of being educated no matter how that education is attained. I also have friends who are moms who work so hard to give their kids the best, and offer so much support when I think I am going insane. So, here is to all of these mammas, may we all get the appreciation we deserve :)

Here's my family: Daddy, Jen, Mommy, Eva, Aly, Kristie, Julie and me.

This is how we usually act :)

JP

I am the youngest of six children. The third was the only boy. He was 10 years older than me and I used to walk around with him holding onto his pinkie finger. Every time he would introduce me to one of his friends he told them that story. His name was John Paul and he died three years ago today. I was 7 months pregnant with Mallina. It was one of the hardest days of my life. We spent 4 days in his hospice room as a family, trying to comfort him and one another. I was so grateful that when we got there he was still aware of what was going on. I hadn't seen him for two years. It was the first time he had met my husband who actually made John laugh out loud. He had a great sounding laugh and was seriously one of the funniest people you could ever meet. He loved imitating crazy movie characters and could do them dead on. While sitting in the hospice with him, he dozed while rubbing my pregnant belly, a touch I can’t ever forget. He really loved his nieces and nephews and I’m sad my girls didn’t get to know Uncle John. He was a gorgeous child and such a handsome man; I’ll never understand why the only boy in the family got the most gorgeous eyes out of the bunch. I lived so far away from him most of my life and I’m sad that I don’t have a ton of memories with him from my adult life, but the memories I do have are mostly of fun times. He came to both of my graduations in Hawaii and who couldn’t have a good time over there! Today my sister Jenny took me to this beautiful garden where there is a bench and a plaque in memory of my big brother. It is a beautiful place and I’m so glad I took my girls there today. I took some pictures of it, my dad and sister Julie haven’t been able to go there, so this is for them. I know we are all thinking about him today, as well as each other. I love you guys and am so happy to be part of our family! I wish I had more digital pictures of him, but here is one I’ve scanned of dad and JP. (Yes you will be getting copy ;) You can click on the pictures to see them larger.

And the rest are of the memorial. This is visible right as you drive up and park. I was surprised at how big and noticeable the bench was!



This reads: This Christmas Box Angel is a place of love and healing for those who have been touched by the death of a child. We invite you to leave a white flower at its base. I love that my name is next to his. Well, not exactly my name, but you know.