Just a "G" from the OGC...

There were just too many cute group shots from our day at Disney to include these in that post, so I decided to do a separate one of the Emma pix! She is such a sweetie and just the love of my life. It was so funny to see her chase Pinocchio down through the Mainstreet Plaza so she could get a picture with him! Emma is still not a fan of the giant costumed characters that have the big heads, like Mickey and Pooh, but she likes the ones that look more human. So I guess Pinocchio is okay. She was also very intrigued by the pirate band playing music on Tom Sawyer's Island. Especially the "lady pirate" as she put it. In fact, I got this one shot of Emma getting her groove on and actually going out there to dance to the band! We finished the day with ice cream at the Carnation shop on Mainstreet and Emma was in 7th heaven with her rainbow sherbet. Erin had told the girls that we would maybe stop for a treat on the way out and Emma, being Emma, took over that suggestion and insisted that "treat" meant "ice cream" regardless of the fact that it was maybe 50 degrees out and January! Funny thing is, we all fell in line with her requests and ALL had ice cream that night. And you know what? It was yummy and a great end to the day!

Cutie Booties!

Are these just not the cutest baby bums ever?! And, to add to the cuteness factor, Charlene embroidered their logo across the bottom on the back of the shirts! Too cute. I love the matchy-matchy look with jeans, tennies, and ponytails. It's like having the cute factor of triplets without all the work since they each go home with their respective Mommy at the end of the night!
BTW, I love the shot of the girls with Snow White. They had already talked to her for about 5 minutes and gotten their pictures taken when Hayden noticed Snow White's shiny black shoes. Then all the girls had to tell Snow White about their various sparkly shoes that they had at home. And all FOUR princesses (Snow White and the 3 OGC) were chatting and comparing footwear. They are such girls already!

The OGC takes over Disneyland... Again!

We spent Tuesday at Disneyland with Emma's BFFS, Sophia & Hayden, and their Mommies, Erin & Jen. Chris, Jen, & Radu joined us too. The girls looked adorable in their matching OGC shirts which were handmade by Charlene (Hayden's Grandma). People kept asking if they were cousins, sisters, even triplets. And of course, each time the girls would reply in unison... "Yesss." I don't know if they didn't understand the questions or they are just little liars! Lol. At one point Erin started telling people that we were the "Sister Wives" from TV and that Chris was the father of ALL the girls! Then he started telling people that we were all Mormon and all his wives. It was way funny to see people's expressions to that one! In any case, they looked wayyy cute and had a great time running around the park all day together!

Renal Cancer 5K

We drove up to Hesperia on Sunday to participate in another 5K walk. This one was to benefit the Kenneth S. Croteau Foundation for Renal Cancer. Kenneth was the father in law of one of my friends, Jen, and the grandfather of one of Emma's BFFs, Hayden. I hear he was a wonderful man and was taken to soon from his family. Despite passing just within the past month, the family has already worked to set up a foundation in his name to help fund further research. How cool is that?! So when Jen asked if Emma and I would come and walk, of course we agreed. Over 50 people showed up to walk and they raised over $600! They also asked that everyone walking wear blue, if possible, as that had been his favorite color. Cute, right? Unfortunately, I'm an idiot and did not realize exactly where Hesperia was, or how cold it could get out there. So here come Emma & I, dressed in jeans and blue T-shirts. It was freezing!!! Erin had an extra beanie and gloves for Emma to borrow, but, yeah, it was still really cold the whole time. And Emma kept telling me how she was "froze-ing" and wanted me to carry her. I had her tucked in a blanket but that didn't help much. She was just so cold and angry. In fact, it started SNOWING on us as we walked! Originally, we had thought about getting together for lunch after the walk but, by the time we were done, CHP was issuing road closure warnings for Cajon Pass, so we had to get going. We ended up heading down the pass as part of a police-escort-led processional. That was a new experience. But, as soon as I had Emma strapped into her carseat and the heater running, she was back to her happy little self. We sang songs and talked all the way home. She kept telling me, "We walked in the cold to help people like Hayden's Grandpa so they won't be sick anymore." I love my girl.:):)

Happy New Year 2011!!!

Little Miss Emma Grace did not make it all the way until midnight. She told me she was ready to go to sleep around 9:45pm, which is actually pretty late for her. I went in a few minutes before midnight to see if she wanted to get up with us, but she was fast asleep. So I placed her dollar in her tiny little fist (thereby ensuring our financial stability for the year to come ;-)), knelt down next to her on the air mattress, and gave her a hug as I whispered "Happy New Year Baby." Of course, being the child that she is, she refused to wake up at midnight but decided to be wide awake and ready to play around 1:00 am as we were all settling down! Lol. My girl is a trip. I sure do love this little lady and it has been an amazing year for the both of us. I can't wait to see what 2011 brings! Happy new year, my sweet girl!

New Year's Game Night & Slumber Party!

We decided to ring in the New Year as a family at Tim & Jen's new house. Karen, TJ & Mikayla, Scott & Matthew, Kenny, Mom & Al, and Emma & I all spent the night there playing board games and watching movies (and the Dexter season finale!). We had so many tasty snacks and drinks and everyone had a great time just hanging out and being silly. I made my famous jalapeno poppers and those were gone really quickly! We also had fried chicken, chips and dips, BBQ's pork roasts, deviled eggs, fruit, coffee cake, Scott's signature "Hop, Skip, and Go Naked" punch, etc etc etc. It was a great way to have a safe celebration and we had a great time. Emma and TJ especially loved the fireplace and thought that was really neat. It was so nice to just hang out, engage in some friendly (at times!) competition, and be together. Unfortunately for Scott, he was the first person to fall asleep though. Lucy, Katie, and Karen attacked him with baby powder! And then he tried to come in and retaliate in the middle of the night but mine & Karen's airmattresses were blocking Katie's bed, so he only got Lucy! Lol. Too funny. Thanks Tim & Jenny!

Countdown to NOON!

Being the parent of a young child presents certain holiday... difficulties. Like, do you fight a losing battle against a cranky toddler in order to keep him or her awake to ring in the new year with you at midnight? Nope! Not if you are one of the smart Mommies like my friends and myself! Rather, we move up the celebration and get the little ones together for a "Countdown to Noon" party. We met up at our friends Erin & Sophia's house around 11am so the kids could play and we had a little potluck full of snacks and finger food munchies. Then we counted down at 11:59 am and set off poppers and horns at 12:00. The kiddies had a blast and Emma LOVES that annoying paper horn. Man, that thing is loud when it is being blared straight into your ear as you drive down the road! Oh well, New Years comes but once a year. Or, in our case, twice. ;-)