3 Years Old

Well, my baby is three!

Who gave you permission to do that?

 

You are one wild and crazy boy. Daddy and I are always saying that we jinxed ourselves when we named you because you are completely living up to your name. It's pretty fun most of the time, but since you are a flight risk you are strapped into the stroller a lot when we're out in public and you don't like it one bit.

 

You have been in speech therapy for the last year and are been booted out of the program now that you are 3. Since I'm actually writing this post I April (sorry) I can say that you have been evaluated by the school district and you are actually starting pre school today (4.4.17)! Which made me happy so you wouldn't have so long before next school year to keep receiving help with your speech. Speech therapy was kind of on and off with how much you progressed. We went through a few different therapists because of one moving, one having a baby and one just being temporary while the other was on maternity leave. So it was a little hard to keep a good routine with you and them and I feel it made you regress a little. But the last few sessions before we were all done were so great it made me sad it was ending. You still don't say much (in English) and a lot of your words are in your own language. But you have many more words than you did just a few months ago, so it is going great. In pre school you will also be working with a speech therapist to keep helping you progress. One thing is that you have always understood everything that anyone says to you, so that has never been a worry to us. You are getting even better at requests and demands and understanding more complex sentences other than just 2 or 3 words.

 

Right now your words are (that I can remember, I'm sure I'll forget some):

Mommy

Da-ee (daddy)

Hi-hi (monster trucks)

Weeoo weeoo (anything with a siren or lights)

Booaah (cars or trucks)

bubbles

dog

duck

beebee (baby)

bump pa (grandma and grandpa)

how (house)

nigh nigh (night night)

bee (big)

rawr rawr (dinosaurs)

hoo hoo (trains)

moe (more)

no

yis (yes)

pee (please)

hee hoo (thank you)

owie

 

You also have noises and signs for other things:

you use sign language for:

More

All Done

Milk (sometimes)

Help (sometimes)

and your other actions and sounds:

mmm-mmm (with your lips kind of puckered)-drink

rubbing your belly-hungry

 

You are also getting really good at pointing to different body parts which has taken some work.

 

You love to watch your tablet and your favorite videos are anything with monster trucks, firetrucks and police cars.

 

You are growing like a weed and have been catching up to Tanner really quickly! Right now you wear a size 9 shoe, 3T pants and 2 and 3T shirts. It is so crazy because you two are only 1 size apart from each other. Pretty soon you'll be able to just share clothes and I'll be able to combine your dressers... That is until you pass up your brother and grow bigger than him. This will be interesting!

 

Weight: 30 pounds

Height: 38 inches

 

You are a great kid and are developing in leaps and bounds. You are so sweet but can also stand your ground with your brother and cousins. So proud of who you are becoming, and we are the luckiest to be your parents! We are so excited to see what this next year will bring!

 

xoxoxoxo

Mommy and Da-ee 

6 Years Old

 

37 lbs
42.6 inches

 

Birthday Interview:
What is your favorite thing to do?
"Legos, playing nerf guns and playing outside."
What do you want to be when you grow up?
"Fire fighter!"
What is your favorite food?
"Just pizza"
Who do you like to spend time with?
"Gunner, Michael, Cole and Guadeloupe and Megan at school."
What do you do really well?
"Legos and video games"
What makes you laugh?
"Tickles."
What is the best time of the day?
"Lunch time because I like it."
What are you afraid of?
"I dreamed I walked down the stairs and mickey pulled me. That is my scariest dream ever."
Who is your best friend?
"Gunner!"
What do you like to do with your family?
"Playing with toys and outside and did."
What do you love to learn about?
"ABC's and numbers and books and words."
What is your favorite book?
"Paw Patrol and Trains."
What is your favorite TV show?
"Paw Patrol, Star Wars Rebels and Lion Guard."
What is your favorite movie?
Star Wars, Moana, Baymax and Pixels"
What do you want for your Birthday?
"Video games, star wars stuff."

5 Year Anniversary Cruise

We finally did it! We have been wanting to go on a cruise for our 5 year anniversary and we actually got it all planned and done!

 

We did a Carnival cruise to the Eastern Caribbean.

 

The day before we left I tried to get as many snuggles from Tanner and Chase as I could. It was not easy leaving them!

 

We flew to Florida with a layover in Dallas, TX. I had to get a picture of the cow manikins in the stores at the airport.

 

We spent the night in a hotel then the next morning we took Uber for the very first time to the port to board the ship. Just waiting in line we already made a couple friends from Colorado who were on their honeymoon.

 

Once on the ship we just walked around and explored the different decks to get a feel for the ship while we waited for our luggage to get to our room.

 

The next day was our first our first port at Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas. We walked around and shopped a little then went on our excursion that we planned. We chose to do a glass bottom boat at this port. It wasn't great at all. There wasn't very much to see in the bay we toured and there was a wall around the entire glass part that we had to lean over. It was a very weird angle from the seats we were sitting in. Over half of the people, including Kollin and I, were complaining of head and neck aches by the time we were done. Mine got so bad I started to feel sick and I cut our trip short and went back to the ship. I felt bad since Kollin wanted to go to the beach, but he was very supportive and came back to the ship with me. In other words, I would not recommend the glass bottom boat tour on this island.

 

Day three was a day at sea. We just hung out, went hot tubbing and had our first elegant night for dinner. It was fun getting our pictures taken and seeing everyone dressed up for the night. Kollin was not excited about having to dress up while on vacation while I kept saying that it is fun. But once he saw that it really was fun, he got over it. He wore his kilt and I think he was the only one on the entire ship who did. So of course he got lots of comments on it. We love to find any excuse we can for him and the boys to wear them

 

The next day was our second port at St Thomas, VI. This one was pretty fun. Apparently St Thomas is the shopping capitol of the Caribbean. There were lots of great shops, but we actually didn't spend too much. Our excursion for this island was an open air bus ride up and over the top of the island and down the other side to Sapphire Beach. The bus ride was very interesting and we got to see a lot of the island which was fun. Sapphire beach was my favorite beach of the entire trip. We went snorkeling, ate food and had lounge chairs all to ourselves. We got to just hang out at this beach for a good 3 hours. Then it was time to take the bus ride back.

 

On the way back we made a stop at a lookout pot where we could see our ship, the entire bay where it was docked and also we were told the largest ship on the sea right now was docked in the same bay out on its maiden voyage. It was across the way from ours and further away, but it was HUGE! It was from Royal Caribbean.

 

When we got back we shopped a little more then headed back to the ship and took a nap for a few hours. That was really nice being able to sleep uninterrupted during the day!

 

 Day five was San Juan, PR. Our excursion was a bus tour of Old San Juan and some of New. We stopped at the state capitol building and the statue of Saint John the Baptist. Then we went to a fort and were able to walk all around it. Through the tunnels, on the top, in the lookouts and everything. It was really fun to explore it. We made a couple more stops, one at a little shopping area where we were able to find some souvenirs. We got back to the ship and just took it easy for the rest of the day. We walked a lot!

 

The next day we docked at Grand Turk, VI. The excursion we did on this island was our favorite one by far! We took the "Reef and Ray Tour." Or something like that. We got on a boat and went out to this amazing reef. We dropped anchor and jumped in to snorkel around. Snorkeling at this location was better than at Sapphire Beach because there was much more to see and more colorful fish. After we got done snorkeling we boated over to another tiny island where the stingrays were. One of the crew members from our boat jumped out and just dug one up out of the sand and held it while everyone went up one by one to hold it, kiss it and get a massage from it. It was the best!

 

Later that night was the second elegant night. We got our pictures taken again and Kollin wore his kilt with a different shirt so he wasn't exactly the same. He still got many comments on it.

 

Day seven was a day at sea while the ship headed back to Miami. We slept in, casually ate breakfast, played some trivia games, went hot tubbing and just relaxed most of the day. It was a great way to bring the cruise to a close.

 

Oh ya! About the trivia that we played. They had these cheap little trophies that were apparently a hot item on the ship that they would give out as prizes for various activities. I played a few trivia games on one of the days and won all of them but one! They were trivia about Fully House, fact or fiction, skatagories and Trivial Pursuit. Trivial Pursuit was the only one I didn't win, which is funny because that was the only team one I played that day. So I ended up with 3 "24 Karat Gold *colored* Ship on a Stick!" Then a couple days later I won another one after playing a movies trivia. I was known as the Trivia Girl by the crew from then on.

 

The next day we had to be up bright and early to get out of our room and have breakfast. Then it was hurry up and wait to be called when you can get off the ship. Once we were off we took another Uber back to our hotel and  took it easy for the night

 

The next day we flew home and that was that! It was a wonderful and memorable vacation to go on with just Kollin and me. We hope we'll be able to do something like that every 5 years for our anniversaries or so. We also really want to take the boys on a Disney Cruise when they are a little older as well. Fun plans in the making!