Holidays in California- Part 1

Oh boy! Another year is over, and a new year begins. This past year has gone by so fast, its not even funny. I swear, this time last year I was rocking my baby, feeding her a bottle, and putting her in her crib. Tonight she will go on the potty, climb into her big girl bed, and read stories with us. She's talking up a storm, and seriously saying some funny stuff. This girl is growing up so fast, and I just love every little phase (except maybe teething ;) )There are just so many wonderful things about this age. She is so much more independent, although that can be extremely frustrating too. She demands to do something "all by herself", and then cant do it yet, and then cries. So... that's a ball of fun too. She loves playing dress up, which is pretty adorable. She got a princess Elsa dress and runs around the house singing "Let it GOOOO!"

Here are some favorite quotes of hers right now....
"Don't take my boots, or your a naughty girl" (said her friend Dalia)
"This room is RUBBISH!" (referring to her uncle John's messy room)
"I never want to play ever again" (said when mad about something)
"I want to stay in the bath forever!" (said in the bath tub)
"Your a good mommy" (said to a teary mom this morning)
"I love my daddy"
"Papa is my husband" (uuuh...?)
"Mango is my best friend"
"I am hungry for SLEEP" (said last night in bed)
"Don't stay up too late" (What she says to us after we tuck her in)


So, we went to California for the holidays. We were gone for 2 weeks, and we had a blast! I look back on all these pictures, and I am just amazed that we did all this stuff. Olive REALLY had a great time, and even though she was completely overwhelmed and exhausted at times, she was in a great mood most of the time... There were a few fun "2-year old moments". Here is our trip, play by play.

The flight out went well thanks to the amazing invention called the IPAD. She loved flying and wasnt at all affected by my panic attacks during take off. We flew into SFO and got our rental car, which Olive called "our red car" for the whole trip. We stayed with our amazing friends Carolee and DJ, aka "Caroleejay", and their super sweet dog Audrey Podrey. Olive was obsessed with her. While in the city she went to the nail salon for her first mani (painted "frozen colors"), went to the park, and Benihanas of course.

We also spent a couple of days with some of my friends and their wonderful daughters too. SERIOUSLY.... I didnt get a single picture of Rachel and Deborah and their amazing daughters!? We had a wonderful time hanging out and playing and chatting. I seriously miss them everyday. Also, missed seeing Jamilla due to illness :( Hope to see her next year.

Then, off to my parents in Coarsegold Ca. Olive LOVED it there! She loves pugs, and my parents had 2, and adopted a new one while we were out there, so that was very special!

While visiting, my sister and her adorable family came down to visit too, and we went to dinner (Happy anniversary mom and dad!), and a children's museum. That museum was seriously fun, and I've never seen Olive play like that! She pretended to be just about everything, and smiled the whole time! Her big cousin Garrett was so cute and helped her get changed and played so well with her. Her other cousins Walker and Owen also had a blast! What a fun day! I think her favorite thing was pretending to be a chef. She was very busy cooking and saying things like "I better put the pizza in the oven", and "its almost ready!"

Grammy took her shopping, and Olive loved being super girly with her!

Christmas eve came, and she was so stinking excited for Santa to come. She kept asking how Santa would get down such a small chimney. "He too big for THAT chimney!" She calmed down when papa told her he will just come through the door. I read her The Night Before Christmas, sand her Silent Night, and she slept like a baby.

In the morning it was the most magical thing seeing her excitement when she saw her new scooter! It made Christmas  so magical again for me. It was just a wonderful morning with laughing, family, presents, and happiness. She just loves her papa, grammy, and uncle John. Her new pug family gave her many kisses, and we were off to Adams family!

Santa brought her a new scooter!

Grammy got a trumpet, and Olive liked it too!

 Stay tuned for part 2.....