Disney Hair

We are leaving for Disneyland again in the morning and Zoe is sporting a new hair-do for the occasion.

A few months ago, when Zoe first became obsessed with Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, I started looking for Mickey Mouse beads to put in her hair.  I found a lot of beads, but none that had a big enough hole to fit over her braids.  So, I decided to make my own.  I made them out of Fimo clay.  They were really easy to make and turned out so cute.  Zoe wore them in October when we went to Disneyland and has asked for them every time we have done her hair since then.

Wednesday, she finally got to put in her Mickey beads again and she was so excited.  She wasn't as excited to sit still and get her hair done though.  It is such a battle to get it done, but she is much more patient when it is getting braided than she is when it is getting combed out.  The braids should last at least 2 weeks (hopefully 3) so it is worth it to get a couple week break from combing it.  As much as she hates sitting still to get it done, she absolutely loves it once we finish it.  She loves clicking her beads and showing it off to everyone she meets.  Plus, as time goes on, I am getting quicker and she is getting a little more patient, so it is a little easier every time.  I thought we would have to divide it up into 2 days this time, but we managed to have it completely done by lunchtime on Wednesday.  Not too shabby.

We did cornrows in the front and then box braids in the back.  They are definitely the best cornrows I have done so far.  I am getting better.  By the time she is old enough to care how they look, I am going to be an expert.  While I was out running errands today, I actually had two different people ask me where I take her to get her hair done.  I love it when people ask that question.  It makes me feel good to know that I am doing something right.

18 Months

I haven't posted one of these updates for quite a while.  I took a picture a month in the same position during Zoe's first year in order to see how much she was growing and changing.  After she turned one, I decided to cut it down to a picture every 3 months.  It is so fun to look at them and see how much she has changed. (Click on the first picture to see it bigger and then you an easily click through them.)





I am amazed at how much thicker and longer her hair is getting.  It is kind of hard to tell in these pictures how long it really is.  The curl in her hair is getting much tighter and so it sits tighter against her head, but it is getting really long.  I am also amazed at how tall she is getting and how much she has thinned out.

At her 18 month appointment, Zoe was 33 inches tall and weighed just over 20 pounds.  That puts her in the 87th percentile for height and the 6th percentile for weight.  The funny thing about that is that Zoe is a wonderful eater.  She isn't picky at all and she eats a lot.  It doesn't surprise me that she is so skinny though.  She never holds still.

Zoe is a character.  I can't even find the words to explain her.  She is a firecracker.  She has so much energy, so much passion, and such a love for life.  That energy and passion gets her in a lot of trouble, but it also makes her so fun to be around.  Every day, Zoe leaves me exhausted and watching the clock for bedtime.  But every day she also brings me so much joy, makes me laugh more than I have ever laughed in my life, and makes the world so much fun.

She has developed quite a little temper.  She knows what she wants and doesn't think she should have to settle for anything less.  When you tell her no or don't give her what she wants, she tends to throw things, or bite (not people yet, usually just her shirt), or kick something, but half a second later she is happy and content with the world again.  However, she is also very loving.  She loves to give kisses and hugs.  The only time she holds still during the day is when she climbs up into someone's lap to cuddle.

She is developing an adorable little personality.  She loves to be the center of attention and is quite the little show off.  She loves to play with Robby (or anyone else who will play with her.) She likes to be silly.  Her favorite thing to do right now is run away from me and hide.  The other day, she ran into her closet, hid behind a diaper box, and pulled it back against her so she was trapped in the corner.  I don't know how long it would have taken me to find her if she wasn't saying "Zoe, where are you" and giggling the whole time.

She is a very active child.  She loves to run, gallop, jump, dance, and climb.  She gets into absolutely everything.  One of her favorite things right now is slides.  She will go up and down a slide a hundred times and giggle every single time.  She loves shoes, books, Mickey Mouse, and "poop" (Pooh).

She is talking like crazy now.  She says new words every day.  I seems like there isn't a lot she can't say and she is getting better and communicating her needs with words, which is very nice.  Right now, she is working on putting words together into sentences and conversations and is getting pretty good at that.  She loves to talk to anyone and will always try to get every one in the store or anywhere else we go to talk to her.  She will usually say hi to whoever is passing by.  If they acknowledge her, then she will continue the conversation, usually saying "Daddy work, Robby school," because of course the random stranger would be interested in where her dad and brother are.  She knows a lot of body parts and animal sounds now too and we spend a lot of our day pointing to noses, ears, eyes, eyebrows, and belly buttons.  She also loves music.  She sings to herself all the time and is constantly asking us to sing her favorite songs.

Zoe loves pretty things.  She absolutely hates to have her hair combed, but is relatively patient with sitting for a long time to let me braid her hair.  She adores having beads in her hair and will ask for them if she hasn't had them for a while.  She loves when people pay attention to her hair and tell her it is pretty.  (Which is good because everyone comments on her hair.)  In fact, if we have recently styled her hair, she will walk up to people, click her beads, and tell them "hair, pretty."  Aunt Emily gave her a bunch of necklaces, bracelets, and a pair of dress up shoes and she loves to put them on and walk around the house in her pretties.

I love this little girl more than I can even say.  She makes life so much interesting and so much fun.  I can't even imagine my world without her in it.

10 Magical Years

December 18, Kirk and I celebrated our ten year anniversary.  We had always planned on going to Hawaii, Mexico, or some other tropical-like place to celebrate this great milestone.  But, given as how we already had Disneyland season passes, we thought that it might be kind of fun to go together, on a childless Disney trip. Plus, as an added bonus, it was definitely a cheaper option.

I wasn't too sure how the trip was going to be.  Disneyland is fun, but mostly because the kids are having fun.  It is such a magical place to a child and seeing it through their eyes make it fun.  I wasn't too sure how fun it would be without the kids.

We ended up having a great trip though, and in some ways, it was one of my favorite trips we have every taken.  Disneyland is so much less stressful without kids.  We were able to just slow down and enjoy.  We were able to do what we wanted to do, without worrying about keeping everyone happy.  And, the magic was still there.  It was the first time I have ever been to Disneyland during Christmas time and I loved the festive decorations and atmosphere.  It made us want to go back next Christmas time, so that the kids can experience the Christmas magic.

The greatest thing about the trip was just having a few days together to reconnect and to focus on us.  There is no one I would rather have gone to Disneyland with.  I am an incredibly lucky woman to be married to such an amazing man.  He truly is my better half and makes me a better person.  The last ten years have been incredibly magical and I am looking forward to many, many more.  I love you, Kirk!

Playing in the Snow

After one of our snowstorms this year, I decided it was time to take Zoe outside to really experience and play in the snow.  It was really cold, so I bundled her up a lot.  She wasn't sure what she thought of the experience.  She hated being all bundled up, the poor kid could hardly even walk, but she thought the snow was ok.  Once Robby showed her that she could eat it, she was a little more impressed.  Now she love the "nows" (as she calls it) and gets excited any time she sees it.

I love the expressions on her face in this pictures.  She kept looking at me like I was crazy for putting her through this.

I can't believe how big Robby is getting.  It seems like it wasn't very long ago that he was getting bundled up for the first time and thinking I was crazy for taking him out in the snow, just like his little sister.   Now, he is enjoying helping her experience such exciting new things.

Enjoying the Cousins

Around Thanksgiving time, Kirk's brother Gavin, his wife Karena, and their 3 boys, Elden, Bennet, and Keagan, came from Arizona to visit.  It was so nice too see them.  The cousins all have a lot of fun playing together.  We are so glad that they are living in Arizona now so that we can see them more often.

It was Keagan's first birthday while they were here, so we got to have birthday cake and celebrate with him.

For some reason, I have always been terrible about taking pictures when we are with them (we went to Arizona in October to visit and I took zero pictures).  I guess I am just too busy having fun and enjoying the company.  This time, I at least got a few.

We also attempted to take a family picture while they were here, but it didn't go so well.  At least we got something.

October In Disneyland

We had a great trip to Disneyland in October.  It was a lot different than our spring trip because Zoe was so much more aware of what was going on.  She is in love with Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, so she was really excited to go see Mickey.  She would get all excited every time she saw Mickey on someone's shirt or bag.  There are a lot of Mickeys in Disneyland.

We don't usually aren't the kind of people that spend time getting pictures with characters, but we thought it would be fun to let Zoe meet the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse characters.  The first character she saw was Goofy.  She was so excited, when she was far away from him.  As we got closer to him, she become fascinated, but apprehensive.  Then he touched her and she decided it wasn't really fun anymore.

We repeated the same procedure with Minnie and Mickey.  She thought it was the greatest thing in the world to seem them from a distance, but wanted nothing to do with them up close.  Not that I can blame her, they are a little bit scarey.

Every time we go to Disneyland, we have to take pictures in the letters outside of California Adventure.  It is tradition, and a fun way to see how much the kids have grown.

We had so much fun in Disneyland.  When we got our season passes and decided we were going to go quite a few times this year, I wasn't sure if we were making the right decision, or if we would get burned out.  It ended up being a great decision.  We are having so much fun together as a family and building some great memories.