My Third birthday party with my friends!

In my final (FINALLY) entry in catching you up with my whirlwind, crazy, wacky holiday/birthday...we revisit a birthday party that I held at Jonah's Treehouse with my friends from daycare!

Mom and Dad asked me who I wanted to invite to my party...I told them...and that's who they invited! Cool, right?

Our friend Miss Alice set us up with a discounted rate for spending a few hours hanging out at Jonah's Treehouse...it has been a long time since I had been to Jonah's Treehouse...but I remembered it like it was yesterday. They have a small ballpit that you really couldn't drag me out of, no matter what you tried.

They also did a lot of fun activities with all of us. There were some songs to sing, percussion instruments to play...

We thought it was hilarious that the boys and girls split up pretty evenly. It was mostly the girls that sat down and paid attention to the people running the event...while the boys continued to run around like crazy people.

And I, of course, spent more time in the ball pit. This time, with added puppet Lion-Friend.

I have to say, one thing you can count on to get me up and involved in the games is the parachute...and that's what they did! My friends and I were jumping around on it, and letting them spin us on the parachute! The parents all helped pull us around, and it was GREAT!

We even got under the parachute (can you imagine that there was ever a time that I was scared of this thing?! It's SO much fun!) while the parents helped pull it up and down over our heads...at one point, they got a little overzealous and knocked me down...I was pretty upset, and I cried a little, but the girls running the event cleared off the parachute for me, and let me lay down in it by myself for a few minutes....

They spun me (and Lion) around for a few minues, and it's really quite amazing how much better you feel after a few spins on the told parachute...

They had everyone join me on the parachute for the finale, and we all had a lot of fun being spun around by the parents...it was a great time!

The grand finale of the event, of course, was bubbles...everyone had a lot of fun chasing them around, and I, as always, tried to eat as many as humanly possible...it's kind of my thing when it comes to bubbles.

We were then led into the party room that was all set up for a late lunch/early diner (Depending on your perspective) I realized early on that my preferred method of dress was not condusive for eating....

We got a few slices of pizza, and of course some juice boxes. What party is complete without juice boxes!?

Everyone seemed to really enjoy the pizza...even the adults! I have yet to meet anyone that doesn't love pizza!

After the pizza, they lit the candles on my cake, and all my friends sang Happy Birthday to me...it's always such a nice feeling having everything sing for you...I blew out my candles, and dove right into some birthday cake...it was a delicious cake that I picked out myself when I was out shopping with Dad, and just as I expected, it tasted just as good as it looked.

And that was it...finally, after what seemed like weeks of partying (and a month of posts to catch up) my birthday was finally all celebrated out...it was such a great time. My friends and family made such an effort to give me a great birthday, and it totally paid off. What fun we all had! I can't wait until next year....thank you all for your happy thoughts, the presents, and especially for taking the time to celebrate my birthday...Thank you for being so generous and wonderful to me in beginning my fourth year on this Earth...let's do it again next year!!!

My first trip to the dentist...

Notice there are no exclamation points in the subject of this latest blog entry....this is due to the fact that I was not all that excited about this little experience....

Initially all seemed to be going pretty well...when I turned 3 years old a month ago, I was very excited about the prospect of my first trip to the dentist...this was mostly due to the fact that my parents presented it as a very exciting part of turning 3.

I am inclined to disagree.

It started off fine, with me sitting in the chair (which went up and down using a little pedal on the ground, which was kind of fun) and it also didn't hurt that there was a TV to watch with some cartoons on it...

The hygienist came in a reassured me that they would only be counting my teeth today (I brought along Humphrey the Whale with me to help ease my nerves) and I agreed that I would be OK with that...

But then I saw her bring out the random array of metal hooks and pokey looking things. And I was alllll done. I tried sitting on Dad's lap while they examined me, but I was too overwhelmed...Mom tried to reassure me, to no avail...

To be fair, the dentist came in after, and managed to at least take a look inside my mouth to see that I had no cavities (Yay!) and that my brushing regimen seemed to be sufficient. He also let me use his little mirror to get a look inside my mouth (I think if they had started with the mirror and eased me into the metal hooks, instead of the other way around, I would have had an easier time!)

They were still nice enough to let me pick out a toy from a toy chest they had (It was a small green plastic hat that fit many of my toys perfectly) and said that they would try again next time. I have a hard time getting onboard with doing this every six months.

Ah well...maybe it will go a little better next time. The dentist said that they had seen far worse than me...they were really good about respecting my boundaries and not causing a huge scene...which I appreciated.

I'll try and work up to doing a little better next time...

Gramma Mindy's Visit!

You thought that when I ended that last post with a little bit about our return home that I would just gloss over this next post, right? Well, I gotcha! Because when Mom and I returned home to Maryland after the holidays, we returned with one more passenger than we went up with...that's right! The title of the blog post gave it away...Gramma Mindy came to visit with us for New Year's!! Not only did Mom and Dad get to go out for New Year's Eve for the first time in several years, but we also got to have a lot of fun with Gramma Mindy!

I was very excited to have her come down and see us! (The excitement may have also been caused by the blue lollipop that got to have when we went out....note the blue lolli in my hand, and matching tongue...)

While she was here, we found time to check out the White House Christmas Tree...It is a smaller new tree that replaced the one that got blown down several months back during a particularly hairy storm. It' a bummer to have lost such a lovely tree....but this new one did an admirable job filling its shoes/lights.

In addition to the tree, there were numerous little trains set up that surrounded the display. I don't know what it is about trains and Christmas, but I like it!!

Here, once again, is our friend Thomas the Train Engine zipping around a tiny reproduction of a town...he sure is popular, that Thomas!

Gramma Mindy was cool enough to buy me my very own digital camera for Christmas (or was it my birthday...man, I get confused with that all the time! THANKS Mom and Dad! :-P  ) so I brought it with me to take some of my own pictures! Nothing beats SamHeight pictures of trains and Christmas trees! I liked that camera very much, and took several pictures to look at whenever I wanted to. It was very well built, and easy to use!

Though it was daytime, and we couldn't see the lights, we really enjoyed being able to take in the display without all the crazy crows that are usually around. We got to relax and enjoy ourselves.

We even got to have Gramma Mindy take a picture of me, Mom and Dad in front of the tree....this was the closest thing to a decent picture that I would allow them to take. What do you expect!? I'm THREE!

It was truly a sight to behold...so much to look at....so many little trains running around their tracks right outside in the grass. No one rushing you to get by and look at it themselves...it was very laid back...just how me, Gramma Mindy, Mom and Dad like it...

 Each state (and US territories) has a little tree that is part of the trail of trees that encircle the larger one...Each one is decorated differently depending on where it's from, and who does it (Usually the decorations are made by school kids) We saw the trees for Connecticut where a lot of our family lives, Washington, DC where we used to live, Maryland where we live now, and also this one...Maine.

This is in honor of the little cabin in the woods that our family has way up North. It was a lovely little tree...what a nice time we had with Gramma Mindy! It's always sad when she leaves...On Sunday we brought her down to the train station, and I said goodbye....but I think I get to see her again in a few weeks, which is nice! Hooray for her school vacations!!

I turned 3!!!

In all the holiday hubbub...I never really did a proper posting about my birthday! I turned THREE! Can you believe it!?

The picture above was taken during the .024 seconds that I was standing still next to that 3 in the Sears Portrait Studio...

Since my birthday happens around Christmas, things were a little crazy with lots of celebrating! (And lots of cake!) so it's understandable that I haven't gotten to this posting yet....

Since my birthday got snowed out last year (CLICK HERE to reminisce) Gramma Mindy again hosted a party for me on the day after Christmas....It had a Toy Story (Primarily Buzz Lightyear) theme with plates, napkins, and decorations that featured my current favorite space ranger...

This year, the weather was much kinder to us and LOTS of people got to come to the party! Dad's family showed up (Minus my Auntie Steph and cousin Braelynn, because Braelynn was sick. :-(  ) and Mom's family came too!

One would think that it would be difficult to have a birthday that falls right after Christmas, but it's actually kind of nice...I like when things are all lit up and decorated during my birthday! It's really nice!

A cool thing about my birthday was that my Uncle Steve got to come! He has to work a lot, and so we thought he might miss it, but this time around, he managed to get some time off, and I got to see him. He looks pretty awesome in that birthday hat!

As is typical, I got to have a cake, and they added three Toy Story alien candles....everyone sang "Happy Birthday" to me, and I got to blow out the candles (After making a wish, of course!) 

I got to tear into some delicious cake, and received a lot of really cool presents...as always, everyone was very generous, and I really enjoyed hanging out with them at my party!

When I arrived back home in Maryland, Mom and Dad had another birthday present waiting for me...it was pretty big, and I was very excited at the prospect of another surprise!

I unwrapped it with crazy anticipation, and at first I saw a box of diapers underneath the pretty wrapping paper...now don't get me wrong, I'm as appreciative as they come, and I can always use diapers (For a little while longer, anyway...) but I had kind of built up in my head the idea that it was going to be something different...

Sure enough I was right...Mom and Dad got me the penguin pillow pet that I had been eyeing for months...at the Baltimore Aquarium and at Sears, or anywhere else I saw pillow pets, I'd dig around until I found the penguin, and would cuddle with it, truly enjoying the experience...now, I had one of my very own...it was an awesome present...

It truly was a lovely birthday....and I still hadn't even had the party with my friends from daycare yet! That update...is coming soon!

Christmas 2011 Part 2!

I have kind of a unique situation in that I often have to celebrate holidays in several places, with several different batches of my family...while I sometimes find this difficult both in scheduling things, and in general when it comes to feeling a bit fragmented in regards to family events, everyone does a pretty good job of making it all feel equally festive and connected in its own way....I appreciate that!

Which leads us to the second part of our Christmas celebration at Gramma Mindy's!!

Once again, there were a lot of presents to be had! I had a lot of fun unwrapping yet another series of presents, and got a lot of fun stuff. Here I am opening a new book, and next to that is a coat hanger that I am very excited to hang up!

In addition to those, and many other fun things, I finally got myself a Thomas train engine set!! All the times I had played with the Thomas train engine set at Barnes and Noble or Sears, I was always excited about the prospect of getting my own Thomas train set....the tracks are made of solid wood, and the train cars are made of metal and plastic...it's very well put together! I got the tracks and water tower from Mom and Dad, and Gramma Mindy got me a lot of the cars...she got me Thomas himself, in addition to a bunch of other cars...

I had a lot of fun playing at Gramma Mindy's with all of my new stuff!

One of the things I got was a soccer goal and ball....since soccer and living rooms don't really go together, JustRichy and I took it outside to check it out!

We set up the goal in the corner of Gramma Mindy's deck (Check out that view!!) and Just Richy and I played a short game of soccer. I was the goalie, and did my best to stop the ball from getting in...however, it was a bit chilly out, and I think I ended up focusing on keeping warm moreso than blocking the goal...

Richy sunk a couple shots, and I realized that I'm gonna have to spend the warmer months of spring practicing for the next time he and I go head to head!

As always, I got myself some more Legos! I can never have enough of these things! They are just the right balance of allowing you to use your imagination to create things, while also containing elements like cars, people, and decorations that help augment your designs by making them into something more closely approximating the real-world equivalent. I like that I can make a race track that looks just like a race track, or one that belongs in outer space....it's my choice!! 

Richy and I had a great time keeping warm, and seeing just how far we could take the Legos...it was a blast!

Just when you think this blog can't get any more celebratory....next up is my birthday!!! That's right...even though I am sooooo far behind, I haven't forgotten!

Christmas 2011 Part 1

As always, because of our crazy schedule, we had several distinct celebrations in regards to Christmas. The first leg was at Gramma Debbie and Grandpa's house....

Since my Aunt Amy and Uncle Steve are currently living with Gramma Debbie for the time being, my cousin Nicholas was kind enough to share his space with me... 

...and I was kind enough to plop his pacifier back in whenever it fell out...I thought it was a pretty decent arrangement...

Gramma and Grandpa has a nice tree set up, with some pretty ornaments, and best of all...PRESENTS underneath! (On the left is Aunt Amy and Uncle Steve's cat Caspurr....I got my eye on him...)

Dad's friend Mike stopped by, and he made the mistake of doing something fun that I liked...namely, he picked me up in the chair I was sitting in, and spun me around over his head...I then had him repeat this move no less than 19 times. It was a lot of fun!

Later on, when everyone else arrived, we did our annual FakeChristmas where Dad's family exchanges gifts with us, and vice versa....I got to open a lot of really fun stuff...

I fancy myself a present connoisseur, so I don't like to rush anything...I find a present that looks intriguing, I size it up, open it, and then take my time to enjoy the spoils that lie beneath the lovely wrapping paper...

I got a lot of really great stuff, and had a lot of fun hanging out with everyone...some highlights of the day were:

A big book from the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse...it should keep me entertained for ages!

A new plate, cup, and bowl set featuring...THE TOY STORY CHARACTERS!!! I thought the combo of all three items was really great, and it should make lunchtime fun!

Continuing the Toy Story theme, I got myself some Buzz Lightyear pajamas! 

I was confused at first....the pajamas look like this from the front:

And so the first, logical, question I asked was: Where is Buzz's head? Where are his hands? Dad laughed and told me that MY head and hands would act as Buzz's head, effectively dressing me up as Buzz Lightyear! How COOL is that!? And they were also super cozy! To this day, I ask for these pajamas at bedtime as my first request for which ones I want to wear...I LOVE these things!

There were any more gifts, and after a protracted session, I opened them all...it was truly a great FakeChristmas. Dad even said that it felt more Christmassy than usual, and everyone does a great job of making it feel like Christmas, no matter what day it is....I always enjoy hanging out with everyone, and it's such a nice holiday....even though it happened a few days before December 25th. :-)