Our Little Ballerina

Today was Em’s first day of dance class. She has been waiting for this day for a few weeks now. We’ve been talking about how she’ll be in the class while I wait in the hall and watch through the windows. I really think that had helped her transition. She did great! She was following the directions of her teacher, Miss Heather, and seemed to be loving every minute of it! I was a little worried though. You see Em has been telling everyone that she was going to show “them” (meaning her classmates and teacher) her dance moves. But instead she followed along and was really upset when class was over and we needed to go. Her comment, “I just want to stay here all week.”

Fishin' with Papa

These pictures needed a post all by themselves. Here Em is with her Papa on the 4th. They were fishing off the pier and I couldn't help but taken tons of pictures of them. I do wish we all lived closer so that we could see each other more often. Em loves her Papa so much and I think that's what makes these pictures so priceless. The soonest she'll have a chance to do this again will be next year.

4th of July

Here's some pics from the 4th of July. We decided last minute to head up north by John's family for his Aunt & Uncle's 25th wedding anniversary.

My absolute favorite picture of the summer so far!

Em and Aunti Katie

Em with Uncle Vinny

One HOT HOT Day!

So of course the day we decide to go to Sea World was like 103! I thought we would split our day like we did when we went to Disney but honestly, John and I couldn’t fathom going back with the heat. We started our visit by checking out the dolphin cove which Em really liked. I then wanted to make sure she got to see the Sesame Street show they had going on in the morning. I am so glad we did. We were able to sit right up front and Em enjoyed it so much! Once it was done we even waited a few minutes and were able to get our picture taken with Elmo but again, she wouldn’t do it by herself.


Em and I went to feed the dolphins which I thought was a cool experience. Em was very excited until the fish were put in front of us. Then all she wanted to do was get away as quickly as she could. Well shortly after that she became unbearable. It was a mixture of the heat and her being tired. She finally passed out in the stroller which gave John and I nice break. We walked around and checked out some other animal exhibits until she woke
up. Then we got something for lunch and were figuring out if there was anything else we wanted to do before we left. Well as luck might have it, the Shamu show was going to start shortly so we walked over there and I would say that show made the whole trip to Sea World worth it. All three of us enjoyed it. We were up a ways so we never got wet which was probably for the best. I can just imagine how Em would have reacted if she had gotten soaked. It would not have been a good thing! Here are some of the amazing pictures we got from the show.

Mickey Here We Come

Thursday was the day we had scheduled to do Magic Kingdom because we were able to get a reservation for a character lunch with the Winnie the Pooh characters. We figured we do a few things in the morning, head to lunch at 1:00 and then take the shuttle back to the hotel to give Em a chance to take a nap for a few hours. Since the park was open until 11pm that night we were planning on going back after dinner to have some more fun and see the fireworks and light parade. Well not everything went as planned. We had a great time in the morning. The first thing Em saw was the castle. She was sooo excited! There was a small show right in front with the regular Disney characters along with the princesses. Em loved the dancing and singing. She was so zoned into every movement. Here she is on John’s shoulders getting a better look.


She also loved the Winnie the Pooh ride. (She liked it so much we had to ride it again when we returned that night.) Once she got home all she would tell everyone was how Tigger would keep jumping out. We walked through Mickey and Minnie’s house and got to get our pictures taken with them. The waiting in line was difficult for her but a trip to Disney just wouldn’t be complete without a pic with them. Now if only she would have been willing to be in the picture by herself, that would have been great but this was as good as we could get. The real kicker was her comment after we were done, “See, I told you that wasn’t so bad!” Sure Em….


She did want to meet the princesses and that was a little easier for her. I think it’s because they don’t wear a mask like the other characters. She even talked to them a bit. Here’s some pics of us with Cinderella, Belle, and Aurora (Sleeping Beauty).

Well our trouble began when we went to check in for our lunch reservations. As we walked up to the restaurant I could see a crowd of people including several of the employees. I went to check in and they informed me that they were having technical difficulties and were not sure when they would be opening up. Apparently, they had been closed for the previous 2 hours and said it could be another hour before they started allowing people in. I asked what they were planning to do with those who had made reservations. She said we could go to one of the 2 other restaurants that she named and we would be taken care of. When I asked her if the Characters would be at those restaurants her reply was, no, they only come here. This made no sense to me. If they were trying to get the patrons to go to another restaurant why wouldn’t they send the characters along? So we waited a bit and it still hadn’t opened so we went somewhere else to eat. John said that he didn’t think Em would even notice. Yeah right! It wasn’t right away but the next day she did question when we were going to go eat with Pooh and Tigger.

So by the time we were done with our lunch it was 2:45 and the parade was going to begin at 3:00 so we decided to sit along Main Street and wait to see it before we headed back to the hotel. Well, 4-5 minutes before the parade began the clouds started rolling in. The parade began and Em was in awe watching all the characters and floats go by, then out of nowhere it started pouring! I had all I could do to get the umbrella out from under the stroller and put it up to protect Em in the stroller. We had ponchos in the diaper bag and a rain cover for the stroller but there just wasn’t anytime. I was completely soaked. It was crazy!! And there was Em just mesmerized by the parade not caring one bit that the rain was coming down so hard. If it wasn’t for a float getting stuck in the road and stopping the parade, we probably would have just sat there taking it all in till the end. All I could do was smile and laugh because it was at that moment that I realized the true “magic” that the Disney experience brought to us. Even with the terrible storm, Em was loving the experience as was I.

We ended up going back to the hotel in the rain. Completely soaked from top to bottom. All 3 of us passed out for a couple of hours. When we woke up the weather was still gloomy but John and I decided to just bear it and go back. We were so glad we did. Once we finally got back to the park the rain had cleared and we were able to enjoy the rest of our night. We were able to hit another 4 rides and didn’t have to wait too long. The fireworks were amazing and Em still talks about Tinkerbell flying through the air before they had started. Once those were done, we went to get a spot for the light parade which was equally cool. Here are some more pics from our day:

1st Trip to Florida

So we decided to take our 1st trip on an airplane with Em. I was so worried about how she would be on the plane. To my surprise she did an awesome job both to and from. Here’s a pick of her 1st plane ride.


Our plan was to go simple with this first trip to Florida. We had decided to only go to Magic Kingdom and Sea World. I think that was just enough for Em, and for me. All the walking and high temps were nearly unbearable but we made it through and had a great time!

My Baby is 3 Today!

Oh how the time flies. It’s hard to believe that three years have come and gone. I still remember the anxiousness and excitement we felt the day you were born. My favorite past time then was just watching you sleep. I just loved that (and still do!) Now we are constantly busy always finding fun things to do.

At 3 you are:

A wonderful artist. You love creating little masterpieces. You are constantly making things whether it be with crayons and paper, your doodle pads, or shaping bead necklaces into different shapes. You have developed the ability to draw people and they look great. Your all time favorite right now is painting. Your artistic interests also extend into music and dancing. You love to sing just about anything. You have a tendency to just bust out singing your thoughts instead talking which I do love to hear. But if we acknowledge you singing sentences, you shy away from us. So Daddy and I have learned just to listen and enjoy them quietly.


Very opinionated. You are always expressing exactly what’s on your mind. Some may say it’s just your age but I believe that you will carry this trait on as you get older. You are my little chatterbox, always going on and on. (As a teacher, I already know what your report cards will say!) I enjoy having our conversations and treasure them so much. That is one of the reasons we go out to dinner just the two of us. I like the one on one time it gives us together to just talk. Your mind is an absorbing sponge that is always picking up on the things going on around you.


Loving and caring individual. You are always concerned with how others are feeling. Your compassion is abundant. When others are hurt the concern is obvious on your face. You are my little helper always offering to lend a hand with everything I do. (I do hope this continues as you get older too.) You are a “little mother” to younger children which eases my concerns with a new sibling on the way. I believe you are ready to become a big sister and you will do a great job too!