My Big Girl

It was time to move Emmy from her crib to her big girl bed. I wanted to make the transition far enough before the baby came that Emmy didn't think the baby was "stealing" her bed. Here's daddy and Emmy setting up the bed:

Not sure if Emmy was much help, throwing her toys in the way

Jake working hard :)

The final result!

We've actually moved the bed since this picture was taken. Since her bed was right under the window, Emmy would sit and play in the window instead of sleeping. I guess looking out of the window is really exciting!

But the transition from crib to big girl bed has been so smooth! I was worried that it would be a big headache but it's been two or three weeks and she's only gotten out of bed a couple of times. She loves that she is a "big girl" now. And she likes to tell me, "I a big girl!"

The next step is to try potty training before the baby comes . . . I need to start soon but I'm scared! Does anyone have any advice to get started???

Trip to Disneyland! {Days 3 & 4}

{Day 3}

Since Lindsey and I are both pregnant and can't go on all the rides, we took Emmy on the rides that she could go on. It actually worked out great, we didn't feel left out and Jake had people to go on the big rides with.

Emmy and I on the Dumbo ride. She had fun flying up and down!

On the carousel. What kid doesn't love the carousel?

Dylan and Papa after Splash Mountain - they just got a little wet . . . :)

We ate some glorious cinnamon rolls at the Blue Ribbon Bakery. They were huge and had tons of frosting. They were so good!

In front of California Adventure

Emmy and daddy in front of the big wave pool

Jake loved the giant pickles! They were cold and crispy, a perfect snack on a hot day!

Here we are eating . . . again. I had a yummy salad on the Wharf in a big bread bowl. Mmmmmm!

This is a series of pics that were so funny.
Emmy was playing with a straw . . .

She thought it might look good on her eye . . .

Then she thought it might look good on both eyes . . . what a silly girl!

We saw Minnie so we had to get a pic with her! Plus the line wasn't very long :) Emmy loved being right next to Minnie. She had this cute little smile on her face.

On a ride in the Bug's Life area. It was so hot outside! I got a nice little sunburn on my chest.

Grammy, Papa, Matt and his family all left early to go home on this day. Derek, Jake, Dylan and Ella went on the Tower of Terror (twice!) while we took Emmy on more rides in the Bug's Life area. We went back to Disneyland after and ate, again :) We ordered a big pizza and had ice cream cones. Then it was time to head back to the hotel and relax in the hot tub!

{Day 4}

We spent a half day at Disneyland on the last day - we had to drive home :( But we had a lot of fun going on some rides for Emmy. Jake sacrificed Splash Mountain so that he could take Emmy on some rides. What a nice daddy!

We had to get a pic in front of the castle and the Walt Disney and "Mickey House" statue

The beginning of the "Pirates" ride, right before the first drop. Emmy loves looking at this picture :)

The end of the ride. We couldn't use our flash (they told us "no flash photography") so we did the best we could w/ this pic. It's a little fuzzy.

Outside of the "Pirates" exit (my belly looks huge here!)

We had such a fun trip and are glad we talked Matt and his family and Grammy and Papa into coming with us. It wouldn't have been the same without you! We can't wait until our next trip to Disneyland!

Trip to Disneyland! {Day 2}

On Monday, we woke up bright and early (6:30 - that's early for us, Emmy doesn't usually wake up until around 8:30!) so that we could get to Disneyland. As we drove up to the front gates, Emmy kept saying "Mickey House!" (that's what she calls Mickey Mouse - why? I don't know . . .) My whole family went, even Grammy and Papa, which was so much fun! We ate lots of greasy food and rode lots of fun rides :)

Here are the highlights:

My family in front of Disneyland! Back row from left: Emmy, Jake, me, my brother Matt, his wife Sony, my bro-in-law Derek, my sister Lindsey, Grammy and Papa. Bottom row from left: Maddy, Grey (Matt's kids), Ella and Dylan (Lindsey's kids)

Walking down Main Street - Emmy was on Jake's shoulders a lot of the time at Disneyland :)

After we rode "Alice in Wonderland", Grammy took the kids to "Mad Hatters" and bought them each a hat. This is the one Emmy picked out! It even has her name stitched onto the back. She likes Pirates. In fact, "Pirates of the Caribbean" was her favorite ride. We rode it at least 5 or 6 times, and she just kept asking to ride it again and again!

All of the kids (I don't know who the kids in the stroller are . . . they're just in our pic!)

We saw Jasmine and Aladdin - Emmy loves them! We didn't wait in line to get a pic w/ them because it was so long. We'll wait until Emmy is a little older to do that.

This is Emmy's Minnie Mouse harness. She would NOT put it on at first. I had to show her another kid w/ a monkey harness on. After that I convinced her to give Minnie a "piggy-back ride"

Mommy and Emmy waiting in line at the Jungle Cruise

Emmy wearing mommy's shades while waiting in line at The Haunted Mansion. I was worried it would be too scary for her but she loved it!

The baby bumps! My belly on the left and Lindsey's on the right (she's due three weeks before me)

Lindsey and Emmy waiting to be seated at dinner. Emmy was tired after a fun-filled day of rides!

Dinner at Cafe Orleans. I had the Monte Cristo sandwich - yummy!!! For lunch we ate corn dogs so I had to add more fried food to my meal plan :)

On the drive back to the hotel from Disneyland, the kids fell asleep in the car. They were so tired! We were, too! We had planned on swimming every night . . . yeah, that didn't happen. We were lucky to make it to the hotel and take showers before crashing! Needless to say, we all slept good :)

Trip to Disneyland! {Day 1}

We had such a great time on our trip to Disneyland!

We woke up bright and early (4:30 am!!!) on Sunday morning so that we could get to California. We stopped in St. George, all piled into my sister and her family's car and were on our way. Our first stop was to Huntington Beach. This was Emmy's first real trip to the beach (we went to Mexico when she was 2 months old, but she didn't get in the water then and I think she enjoyed it this time much better!). The water was freezing but that didn't stop her from getting her feet wet :) She loved running up to the waves, then running away from them as they chased her. She was in heaven!

Here are some highlights:

Daddy and Emmy running away from the waves (we didn't bring her swimsuit to the beach . . . it's ok because the water was so cold!!!)

Running to the waves . . .

And running away! Watch out, it's gonna get you!

An attempt at a family picture . . . Emmy was mad because we took her away from the water and Jake has his eyes closed. What do you do? I still like it :)

I love these cute little "tootsies" (that's what toes are called at our house)

Emmy playing on the beach. She loved playing in the sand!

After the beach we walked around the shops. It was our first time to Huntington Beach and we had so much fun! We finished the night off by eating at BJ's Pizza (soooo yummy!) right in Huntington Beach. We were all so tired by the time we got to the hotel that we crashed (waking up at 4:30 am will do that to you . . .)! Oh, and we had seven people staying in one hotel room! It was a one-bedroom so the kids were all out in the front room (Dylan on the couch, Ella on an air mattress and Emmy in her port-a-crib - luckily the front room was pretty big) and the four adults were in the bedroom on the two beds. It was so much fun to all stay together in the same room, even if we did all have to share one bathroom and listen to Derek snoring :)

Pretty Princess Papa

My dad is such a great Papa! The girls were dressing up at my house on Sunday. They decided to dress Papa up, too. . . and he let them! Even better is that he let me take pictures :)

Ballerina Emmy

We started Emmy in a little dance class last week. It's a Mommy and Me class and Emmy has so much fun running around and twirling. She's not the best at listening to directions yet (which is one of the reasons we started the class) but she'll get better with time :) I had to take my camera to get some shots of Ballerina Emmy . . .

Of course she's the cutest one in her class! (At least I think so (: )

Twirling ballerina

Pretty princess!!!

My recent favorites!

Here are some things I love lately! Hmmm, a lot of these have to do with food . . . blame it on the pregnancy!


A couple of these . . .
Washed down w/ some of this (don't worry, doctor's orders! These pregnancy-induced headaches are no fun, but my doctor said the caffeine helps) . . .
I could always use one (or two, or three . . .) of these . . .
or these . . .
And I LOVE me some of this . . .
Can't clean my house without these . . .
And these are so crunchy, cheesy and delicious . . .
What did I do without these my first pregnancy? (The Secret Fit Belly from Motherhood Maternity) . . .
Oh, and I love these (but i just buy the Walmart or Target brand) . . .

What are some of your favorites?