Time for more cake

We made a pit stop on the way home from getting Evan's vaccinations to check out the American Girl Doll Store at the Grove.

If you can imagine, Hailey was thrilled.

Evan just wanted to rearrange furniture and climb on things.

Then we made stop in Pottery Barn.

He goes after the push toys right away, like this stroller.

Then we watched the fountains before heading home.

Saturday we headed up to Santa Clarita to hang out with Steve's family.

We went to the park to kill some time while waiting for the cousins to show up.

We didn't stay very long. One reason was because the sand, sidewalks, and slides were super hot.

Hot enough to make both kids cry.

At least the grass was cool.

When we got back Evan needed a nap.

Papa wanted cake, so we decided to have cake, then dinner, then another round of cake.

Meanwhile the kids went outside to cool off.

Then Evan woke up and wanted to jump in the water in his clothes.

Hailey got a new Mini Mouse dress.

Papa also filled up a trashcan for the kids to climb into off the trampoline.

What a funny expression.

After dinner it was time for presents.

I asked Papa last minute if he could make Evan some wood cars... he should quit his job and make wood toys all day long!

Birthday hugs.

Cake Time!

Evan dove right in there.

Kailey started a new trend, bend over and take a bite.

All the others soon followed. 

Back home Evan has had a great time playing with his new toys!

Trying to figure out how to tie a shoe.

Last of all the kids are happy to have more blocks to play with.

Steve's Birthday

Looking for the perfect bedtime story.

Hasn't found it yet.

Such an active and curious little boy.... my little trouble maker. A week before his birthday he figured out how to climb up the ladder onto the top bunk bed. You can imagine I wasn't thrilled when I went to find him and there he was sitting on the edge of the top bed alone. This week at my mom's he got into the kitchen cupboard and dumped out an entire bottle of olive oil onto the floor... and not a small bottle.... the ginormous one from Costco. And yesterday while I was in the shower he managed to pull our laptop off the dresser by the cord and break it beyond repair. Literally he has to be watched every second of the day. Give him five minutes alone and you will most likely wished you didn't. Nevertheless at the end of the day we still love him to pieces. I just have to remind myself that people are always more important than things.

A week ago I had Hailey take the mail from the mailman.... only to hear her practically burst into tears of joy. Oh dear, I should have known better; the new American Girl doll magazine came in the mail. "My doll! For me Hailey! for Christmas?!" she asked. She has spent many hours pouring over the magazine. She suddenly has taken an interest in reading Christmas stories and looking for Santa out the window at night.

I keep telling her Christmas is a looooooong ways away. Which I suppose is a good thing as those dolls cost $110 before tax. Fortunately ebay is selling the older dolls left and right and maybe we can snag a good one for a reasonable cost. I saw one end the other day for $30. Granted, most of them still end higher than that. Hailey does take good care of her toys, and she really is at the prime age for playing with dolls. I remember being little and getting the American Girl magazines so I totally understand the obsession. Type American Girl Doll into ebay and the search results are 21,806 (many of those are clothes and accessories). Still, I am pretty confident it will work out as I just need to win one doll.

Evan has had a blast playing with his new birthday toys.

She finally dozed off while we were reading.

Steve turned 32 today. We had dinner, presents, and cake with my side of family. Saturday we will meet up with Steve's side of the family to catch up on birthdays. The only picture I got tonight was Hailey giving him a hug at the end of the night.

Tell the truth... really she has come out of her room to beg for more bedtime stories.

Steve got a new pair of shoes, 2 cds, and some new board games.

Hailey loves to play this one.

Steve is going to love this game because the setup changes every time you play.

We have played this with our next door neighbors and it's lots of fun.