Our Journey

Its Ocean time baby....

2010-08-28T13:49:00.000-07:00

The annual ocean trip was a success! We had SO much fun. We arrived on Thursday night and got settled. The room we had was great and the first day I sat and soaked up the sun while doing a little studying since I just started WSU. After majority of the family arrived it was beach, food, drinks and game time. The first night we played an aweseome game of bunko. Then Saturday we woke up and decided as a group to head to Ocean Shores. We went on the go-carts and got ice cream. We then headed over to the beach to ride horses but the kids had to be at least 5 years old and Maya and Naomi really wanted to go. So Uncle DJ to the rescue. We stopped off at a horse riding arena and he asked the owner if they would let the girls go a few laps with the horses. He agreed and let them ride around a few times. It was a wonderful day full of family and love. The Ocean is our happy place.

Maya and Jer

Happy Baby waiting to go to Ocean Shores

The go-carting group

Me and Jer ready to go

The bromance minus one

Maya got to ride with me on the slick track. It was a blast! No fear!

The group at the ice cream shop

Getting ready to ride the horses....Maya had to wear an adult helmet if you couldnt guess that by the picture

The girls on the beach. Maya loved playing in the sand this year and getting dirty.

I love this picture. My little baby with her little diaper bottom on the beach. Doesnt get any better than this.

Drinks for Drinks

2010-08-06T13:45:00.000-07:00

Joss and I went to "Drinks for Drinks" which was a charity concert our church was putting on. The charity is called Charitywater and they bring fresh water to third world countries. They go to lands and help dig wells and teach the people how to use them. It is an amazing organization that allows people access to their own resources. Here is a picture of our cute faces at the concert.

Bridal Shower and Bachelorette Party

2010-07-31T13:33:00.000-07:00

Joss had her family bridal shower today at her Maurm's house. It was a beautiful day for a shower. Afterwards we headed downtown to Seattle to meet up with the girls for Caroline's bachelorette party. Needless to say we were exhausted by the end of it, but we had a blast!

Cousin Kayla

2010-07-26T13:29:00.000-07:00

Cousin Kayla was in town and spent almost a week with us. Maya loved having her at our house! We went out to dinner, shopped, DJ and Kayla went to a movie. We kept her really busy for the most part. We miss our family in Oklahoma and wish they were closer.

Holy aka "Hold Me"

2010-07-25T13:40:00.000-07:00

There is this wonderful Christian song that Maya loves. The chorus of it is "Holy, Holy, only you are worthy..." But Maya sings it "Hold me, Hold me..." which I think is so sweet.

Mima's 80th Birthday

2010-07-23T16:17:00.000-07:00

Today we went to the zoo to celebrate Mima's 80th birthday. We actually were able to round up about 90% of the family members which is quite shocking since our family is always so busy. We had so much fun spending the afternoon at the zoo together. Maya loved seeing all of the animals. I think her favorite were the hippos and the giraffe. Hope we can take her back really soon.

The Lavender Festival

2010-07-17T15:53:00.000-07:00

Another successful year at the Lavender festival. We had two new babies with us this year, Sylvia and Layla. For the most part everyone did pretty good. Naomi and Maya loved each other half the time annoyed each other the other half of the time.

We had a total blast and I love how this has turned into a "Ladd" woman's retreat.

We laughed, we cried, we relaxed surrounded by all that lavender...

Halle Halle Halle - lujah

2010-06-28T15:37:00.000-07:00

Here is Maya's rendition of Hallelujah....

Sylvia Marie Ponath

2010-06-28T15:27:00.000-07:00

Born 6-23-10 @ 5:46pm. Weighing in at 7lbs 1oz. 19 1/2 inches long. She is sweet as can be!

Nae Nae was such a patient girl. She waited all day for her baby sister to get here. They were so sweet together!

Bawa and her 5th grandchild

Nikki's Graduation

2010-06-28T15:20:00.000-07:00

Tis the season of graduations.....

My cousin Nikki graduated from highschool and we are all so proud of her! Love you cuz.

A Proud Auntie Moment!

2010-06-28T15:08:00.000-07:00

Preston graduated Preschool this year and is moving up to Kindergarten next year. I am so proud of him!! I cant believe he is already 5 years old, man time flew by fast. His graduation ceremony was just about the cutest thing I have ever seen. Maya and I were there to cheer him on. It was a very proud moment for me.

Me and my sweet boy

Preston and his teacher Mrs. Hizzy

This is John. He used to go to daycare with Maya but now he is in school. Anyways, she loves him and was following him around everywhere! So cute!

DJ and Waywa

2010-06-28T15:04:00.000-07:00

We brough dinner over to Brittany and Michael the other night and DJ finally got to meet his new niece. Isnt she sweet! Little does she know that her Uncle DJ is the coolest and will hook her up with all the candy her little heart desires! Ha!

Lilly's 3rd Birthday Party

2010-06-28T14:52:00.000-07:00

We went to Lilly's Birthday party on Saturday. Maya had SO MUCH FUN!!!! It was held in a barn in Snohomish and Maya got to ride her first Pony. She rode the horse more than any of the other kids, it was so cute! I think its time we got her a pony.

Look how happy she is! She definitely needs a pony of her own!

Maya was so sad that the party was over.

Reunited and it feels so good....

2010-06-11T14:42:00.000-07:00

My Cousin the MMA Fighter

2010-05-22T14:34:00.000-07:00

My cousin Colton has been doing MMA fighting for about a year now. His 2nd fight of his career was today and he is still undefeated!!!! We had a total blast hanging out with the family and rooting him on. Maya stayed with Emma and all of the other kids and stayed up until after midnight....what a party animal! ha!

DJ and I, with the rest of the gang went out to Ballinger Lake Golf Course for the fight. We prefunked and enjoyed each others company. Colton went 3 rounds and ended up picking up his second win. We are so proud of him and cant wait to cheer him on for fight #3.

Package for Princess Maya

2010-05-22T14:27:00.000-07:00

My Dad and Carol sent Maya a package today that had a beautiful (handmade by Carol) blanket, a doll with some accessories and a Princess Basketball from Basketball Papa! Maya was so thrilled to open her present. She absolutely loves the basketball and wants to take it everywhere.

She had just gotten out of the bath when the mailman arrived. ha!

Layla Jean Williams

2010-05-20T14:19:00.000-07:00

My sweet niece came into this world today! 7lbs 12oz 19 1/2 inches long. She looks just like Preston and is already the most adorable thing ever. Britt and Michael are beaming parents and Preston is totally in his element being a big brother.

Proud Auntie!!!!!!!!!!!

Big Brother

Isnt this just the sweetest thing you have ever seen?

Ladies Night

2010-05-14T14:11:00.000-07:00

All of us got together Friday night to spend a little time with just each other. Both of my sisters are due to have their babies soon and it has been a long time since it was just girls chatting and not worrying about or men or our children. We went and had pedicures and then had dinner at Macaroni Grill. It was so much fun just hanging out like we used too!

Us girls got my Mom a necklace too. It has all of our names on it. She totally loved it and was shocked that we had gotten for her. She has always wanted something like that with her girls names on it.

The Pioneer Woman

2010-04-17T15:52:00.000-07:00

I had this brilliant idea to take Maya with me to have my cookbook signed by the one and only Pioneer Woman. I have been reading her blog for years now and have cooked a ton of her recipes. She makes me laugh on a daily basis and I think if she lived here we would be best friends. Anyways, I knew she had a lot of people that followed her blog but what I did not realize is so many of them were here in my own home town. Maya and I arrived a tad early to the event expecting to be there maybe 15-20 minutes waiting in line or something. After seeing how packed 1st Place Books was, I knew this would not be the case. We ended up waiting 6 hours to meet our dear blogger friend. We didn't stay there the whole time. We went and had something to eat, ran some errands, ate some cookies, looked at books, made some new friends, etc. In the end it was totally worth it. It was a mother/daughter bonding experience I will never forget. Bless her heart though, Maya was a total trooper the WHOLE time!

If you havent already, check out her hilarious blog at www.thepioneerwoman.com

Eggs Eggs Everywhere!

2010-04-04T15:19:00.000-07:00

We had an awesome Easter this year. Maya was thrilled about the fact that she got to hunt for eggs filled with candy. She had not 1, not 2, but 3 Easter Egg Hunts this year. Joss and I did a little mini Easter egg hunt around the house for the girls after their naps on Saturday and then we had 2 hunts on Easter Sunday. Here are the pics.....

My creative hiding techniques

Dad still had me beat though....he's a seasoned pro

Maya collecting her loot

I like the eggs in the shoes. Ha!

Maya thinks her bff Romy is SO funny

Maya ruined her pretty white Easter sweater so we had to resort to the hoodie and dress look.....you like it?

Dad and Papa helping the baby girl out

BTW, Maya picked out her own Easter basket this year. She's going to be a little soccer player :)

Her audience

Oh here we are for round 3 and Mom's house!

Me and my baby

Look at all those eggs. Even though this is her 3rd hunt she is not sick of it one bit!

Our family Easter 2010

Maya had so much fun collecting all those eggs that for the weeks that followed Easter, every time we went outside she would say "Mama, I gonna go find eggs."

Maya's 2 Year Checkup

2010-03-22T15:09:00.000-07:00

We took Maya in to see Dr. Wu today. She is a big girl weighing in at 35lbs!!!! She is as healthy as can be. Here are a few fun facts about Maya:

She doesn't like any sort of vegetables, the only thing I can get her to eat is sweet potato fries

Her favorite color is pink. She has to wear something pink everyday whether that be pink socks, pink shoes, pink shirt or pink pants. I even painted her toes and fingers with pink nail polish...I'm telling you the girl is obsessed with pink.

Her favorite movie right now is Princess and the Frog

Her best friends are Preston, Naomi and Romy

Her favorite thing to do is go over to Grandma and Grandpa's house and kick the soccer ball with Papa

Her favorite books right now are her Princess book collection she got for her birthday

Oh and she is already planning her next birthday party, she asks everyone "You wanna come to my berday?"

She has only gone #2 once since we got her a big girl pody but we are not rushing it, we are just getting her familiar with it.

She loves the park and going to feed the ducks. Whenever we ask her what she wants to do, this is usually the first thing she will say

My baby girl is growing up so fast which makes me a little sad, but I love how she amazes me everyday with all the new things she learns. She is so precious and the light of my life!

Arnies with the Family and the newest member of our family...meet French Fry

2010-03-19T12:19:00.000-07:00

Sunday we had our annual family brunch with my Mom's side of the family. We had another awesome meal and a great time with the family. Mima came equipped with games and prizes of course. After Arnie's we headed to the beach to skip rocks, eat some ice cream and play in the sand. Since Sunday was Maya's official birthday, we did an extra special thing for her after lunch. We met up with Auntie Renee, Colton, Jerica and Emma at Build-a-bear. It was the first build-a-bear experience for Me, DJ and Maya. They are so great with kids and Maya had a great time on her birthday. She picked out the bear, picked out a heart for the bear, gave her bear a bath, picked out the clothes and gave the bear a name. Finding a name for Maya's sweet bear was the hardest part. After careful consideration she decided on "French Fry". It seemed to fit the bear perfect and we couldn't ask for a better name for Maya's new BFF. After all was said and done, Build a Bear sang Happy Birthday to our sweet girl.

DJ and Colton (they were missing the other member of their bromance Uncle Dave)

All the cousins with their ice cream. Please note, that Nae Nae is already to the cone and compared to how much Pres and Maya have. BTW they all started out with the same size ice cream scoop. Nae Nae may be small but the girl can eat some ice cream!

DJ with the girls

Bawa, Maya and Nae

I love that Maya and Nae are so opposites. One is petite, one is a little chunky, one has the dark hair dark eyes one is a little lighter in her coloring, one loves to throw sand and get dirty the other one freaks out if there is a speck of dirt anywhere on her body. Can you guess who is who?
Dang, that's one hot Bawa!

My Pregnant Sista's

Auntie Renee and Maya picking out an outfit

French Fry has got to have undies! Its just not ok when people don't wear undies!

The Birthday Girl!

Mama and Maya taking in the whole BB experience

Giving the Bear a bath

French Fry had to have some shades!

I'm telling you it was a family affair to pick the name for Maya's bear. Look how serious we all are! It was a big decision!

Still thinking.....

Maya wasn't too sure about the singing but it was the second day in a row with no nap so I think that played a part in her expression in these last two pictures.

Thank you so much to Mima for an GREAT brunch and Auntie Renee, Colton, Jerica and Emma for an awesome afternoon and helping us create a lasting memory. Our family (including French Fry) are so lucky to have you in our lives!

Maya is 2 YRS OLD!!!

2010-03-19T11:43:00.000-07:00

But if you ask Maya how old she is she will reply " I four". My baby is growing up WAY too quickly. I think I am going to be saying this the rest of my life. I want her to stay little but she is getting a mind of her own and a new found independence.

We had an awesome celebration of Maya's birthday last Saturday. All of DJ's family was there along with a lot of our close friends. It was perfect! We all met up at Round Table Pizza and had pizza and salads together. The kids played and ran around while all of the rest of us mingled. After the food we had cake and Maya opened up all of her presents. She was SO good this year. She truly loved all of the gifts that she received and was so excited to open each and every one of them. She didn't seem overwhelmed at all and was a total angel child all day. After Round Table Stac, Megan, Mom and Dan came back to the house and we all chatted and played with Maya's new toys. It was a perfect day and I couldn't be happier with the way everything turned out. Here are some of the pics from the party....

I LOVE this picture! Everyone was singing Happy Birthday to her and she was the star of the show.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY GIRL! Mommy and Daddy love you so much! We are so blessed to have you!

The Boys

2010-03-19T11:40:00.001-07:00

Joss and I have been working out to some Jillian Michaels DVD's at night once the girls go to bed. We are sweating and working our butts off while our Men do this....

Man, women get the raw end of the deal! We have the babies, are bodies go to hell, we have to then eat rabbit food and have Jillian kick our butts, while the guys eat whatever they want and play video games!!!! So not fair!

Drip Dry? Not an option!

2010-03-19T11:30:00.000-07:00

So the a few weekends back Maya and I were at the house by ourselves. I went into the guest bathroom to go #1 and then realized there was no tp. So I asked Maya to come into the bathroom and I told her "go get Mama some tissue from the other bathroom" (btw we call toilet paper tissue, not sure why?) anyways, she looks at me and says "Mama, you go pody? You need tissue? Ok be whyyyte back" She comes back with a quarter size piece of tissue. So again I said, "Maya, bring back lots of tissue, Mama needs more tissue, can you do that?" "Ok, Mama you need tissue? Ok I be whyyyyte back." Again, a quarter size piece of tissue. We did this about 15 times before I finally had enough tissue to wipe my bum. After I finally got out of the bathroom Maya wanted me to come back to the other bathroom where she had gotten my tissue from. This is what I saw....

Baby Girl was trying so hard to help her Mama and was pretty proud of what she had accomplished! Look at her face, doesnt she look pretty impressed with herself?

Maya loves her Daddy so much that she......

2010-03-02T16:15:00.000-08:00

waits at the top of the stairs for him to get home! I love their bond that they have!

So Stubborn

2010-03-02T16:10:00.000-08:00

We have recently been having some sleep issues with our little angel lately. She is stubborn as ever and does not want to go to bed. Hopefully I don't jinx myself but actually the last few nights she has gone down with out a fight, but last week was a different story. She would scream and scream, yell from her room, get so worked up that she would throw up. It was horrible to listen to and it made me and DJ's hearts ache. We were at a loss as to what to do. So for a few nights it was just a stare down. DJ snapped this picture of Maya. She was being so stubborn that she was falling asleep on her knees. DJ and I kept having to leave the room just so we could laugh! It wasn't so funny the next day when we were dog tired.

Anyways, with the advice from a few wise women in my life we now have stars on Maya's ceiling, music playing in the background and a little one that for the last few nights has been PERFECT when we put her to bed. Thanks to all the women in my life that helped me through last week!

Family Weekend!

2010-02-26T15:22:00.000-08:00

Last weekend was one of those weekends that you come away from and wish you could do it all over again. We had such an awesome time together as a family and truly enjoyed every moment of the weekend together. Saturday morning we woke up and had breakfast and Maya and Daddy colored a little while we planned out our day. We decided we needed to get Maya stocked up with clothes and shoes since all of a sudden she doesnt fit into anything. We headed off to Target and stocked her up! Dad also picked out a bubble wand to use at the park later. After that DJ had his first Molbacks experience. We went and looked around and picked out a plant to bring to my Aunt who just had a friend lose his battle with Cancer. Maya fell asleep on our way to drop off the plant which was (I hate to admit) sort of nice because DJ and I got a chance to chat and drive on a beautiful sunny day!

After Maya's nap we headed to the park. We brought the bubble wand, fed the ducks and played on the playground. We had SO much fun being together. Feeding the ducks is always a little terrifying for me (I hate birds!) , so I sat back and let DJ and Maya have all the fun. Ha! While we were feeding the birds, across the lake I could see these 2 giant geese coming towards us. They were moving at rapid speeds! I said to DJ, "dont they look muntent, they are SO huge" Well, turns out they were not only big but mean too. They swam up and walked right up to us. They started hissing and squacking at us. Maya, who doesnt share my fear of the feathered friends, said "Mama I hug" and tried to hug the hissing geese. Needless to say, we grabbed Maya and ran.

After my traumatizing experience we headed to the playground to have some fun. DJ helped Maya up the structure and after she went down the slide turned to him and said "Come on Daddy" so DJ went down the slide too. He and Maya went down the slide quit a few times! Ha! He only came away with a few bruises but I think it was worth it.

Enough typing here are the pics from our day........

So cute, what an awesome start to the weekend!

By far the cutest recent picture of Maya....doesnt she look like a big girl!

Daddy+Maya= non stop fun!

Chasing Bubbles

My brave girl feeding the birds

I think DJ's face tells the story of this day...pure joy!

Watch out Maya they're getting closer. It was about at this time when I started backing away! Ha!

Action shot of Maya going down the slide.

Maya talked Dada into going down the slide too! What a good sport!

Thirty-One(derful)

2010-02-19T10:39:00.000-08:00

Us girls took Cam out on Monday for her 31st birthday. We went to the Bothell Alehouse, right in downtown Bothell. This place is so cute and they have awesome food. We did what we do best which is chat, chat, chat. It was so nice to catch up with everyone and be together. Love you girls!

Cam has a ton more pictures so when she sends them, I'll put those up too!

I scream, U scream, We all scream for ICE CREAM!

2010-02-19T10:27:00.000-08:00

Its 60 degrees here in Seattle. Its sunny and beautiful and get this......IT'S FEBRUARY! We are taking full advantage of this weather we are having. On Monday since it was President's Day and I had the day off, we took Maya and Preston to McDonald's and met up with Bawa and Auntie Tay Tay and Nae Nae. We had some lunch and then headed to the park to enjoy the sunshine. Of course Uncle DJ had to hook all the kids up with ice cream.....

Stay tuned....I think we are heading to the zoo this weekend! :)

Happy Heart Day!

2010-02-12T13:21:00.000-08:00

Seriously I tried to take this picture numerous times this morning. I was trying to capture just how adorable Maya looked today but it was too early to be smiling her usual smile. Check out the girls shoes. Ha! So cute!

Its the little things that make me smile.....

2010-02-12T13:20:00.001-08:00

Hand in Hand

2010-02-12T13:19:00.000-08:00

"Don't walk in front of me, I may not follow. Don't walk behind me, I may not lead. Walk beside me and be my friend.

- Albert Camus

First Haircut

2010-02-06T11:49:00.000-08:00

Maya had her first haircut last weekend at Bella and Max in Country Village. We woke up Saturday morning and headed first to the Country Cafe. The waitress that we had was so sweet and the food was pretty good too! After breakfast we went and walked around Country Village a little. It was still too early for the shops to be open so we went and explored. We fed the ducks, chased the Roosters, checked out the put put course and played on the playground. I was a little nervous because I didn't know how Maya was going to react to getting her hair cut but she did awesome! Bella and Max was so accommodating to kids, they had toys and put on a movie for them too while they were getting their hair cut. Oh and the coolest part is the seat that they sit in to get their hair cut is a car. SO cool! Maya wanted to sit in all of the cars! With every haircut they give you a ticket to ride on their train. It was kind of rainy when we went but we'll be back to take a train ride and chase some more Roosters!

I took a ton of pictures....

Daddy and Maya walking hand in hand

Checkin out the ducks

Hello Friend

Roosters guarding the bridge

Maya feeding the ducks

She's got a pretty good arm!

So excited for her hair cut!!!!

Baby girl was sitting so still

Looks just like Mommy's hair when she gets it done....minus the pink car

So serious!

There's the smile

(Can you see Dad in the backgroud?)

Mom, enough PICTURES already!

All done and as pretty as can be!

A Girly Day like no other Girly Day

2010-01-14T11:58:00.001-08:00

So Joss had this brilliant idea for us girls to go have a Spa Day. Seriously this place was SO awesome. It is called Habitude and it is in Seattle. When we first arrived we were whisked upstairs to check in and given a short tour. After that we went into the women's locker room and changed in to fancy robes and comfy flip flops. We then went out to the waiting area to have a seat and wait for our masseuse to come and get us. We both enjoyed a 90 minute hot stone massage that was out of this world. The stones were so hot but felt so good on my sore muscles. We got to chose our own scented oils that said something about us. The scent that I chose happened to be called "Expressive"....kind of fits!

After our massage we went into the Sauna for a little while before getting dressed and heading out for some lunch. One of the gals recommended Thaiku that was just a few blocks down. Ok hands best Thai food I have EVER had! Seriously my mouth is watering as I type. After lunch we went back for Ultimate Pedicures and Manicures. Wow were they nice! The paraffin wax on our hands felt amazing and we were so relaxed by this point that we both could have curled up and taken a nap.

What an awesome day with an amazing friend!!!!! Thank you so much Joss. This Spa day will go down in history.

2010 Here we come!

2010-01-14T11:46:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful safe New Years! We had an awesome night with wonderful friends! Has anyone made any New Years Resolutions?

Mine are as follows:

Finally take off the baby weight - Maya is almost 2 years old so I think its time
Finish my degree and move on to the next - Yes, I have been going to school for forever!
Be nice to DJ - HA! I'm serious about this one!
Pray with Maya every night and try my best to be a good example for her
Kiss, Squeeze and love my baby girl every day.....well I already do this one but I want to make sure I never stop! Even when she is an adult she will always be smothered with her Mama's love.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Serious Diva!

2010-01-14T11:43:00.000-08:00

Ok, Auntie Jossie and Romy got Maya a little purse for Christmas that came with sunglasses, make-up, cell phone, car keys, etc. Anyways, this is how Maya has looked ever since! She is such a Diva....I LOVE IT! Oh and the pj's she is wearing I picked out. They came with a red tutu. So adorable. Now she wants to wear the tutu with every outfit she puts on.

Ready, Set..........GO!

2010-01-13T15:59:00.000-08:00

At night Romy and Maya can get a little crazy running around the house. It is hilarious because they just run from room to room screaming and having the time of their lives! They have this one spot right in front of me and DJ's bedroom that is usually the starting point for the running. They'll stand side by side and say "ready.........set.........GO! and book into whatever room they feel like running to.

The Childrens Museum

2009-12-30T16:04:00.000-08:00

Britt and I took the kids to the Everett Children's Imagination Museum on Christmas Eve. It was so much fun and if you live in the area this place is worth visiting! They have pretend veterinarian clinics, plane, ferry, bank, pizzeria, stage, tree house, etc. They also have a spot upstairs where you can sit by a fireplace and read a book, a place to play with blocks and build, and a downstairs art room with all sorts of art supplies available to use. We made Dada a snowman and brought it home to him. It was such a cool place and we will definitely be back!

Building Block Area

Drivin' the bus

The kids checking out the world map in the bank vault

Maya going down the fireman's slide!

Maya and Preston the Vets....taking care of the sick aminals (yes I meant to spell it that way)

Oh and a side note for any parents, it was very clean and tidy and we could have spent the whole day playing there. They also have an outdoor area that is HUGE but it was rainy so we just went and peeked at it, but in the summer time it would be awesome!

Sleepova (Sleepover)

2009-12-30T12:31:00.000-08:00

Preston has been having "sleepova's" at our house since he was really young and we all look forward to it everytime he comes over. There is always the build up to it...."Mimi, its only 5 days until I get to come ova and have a sleepova with you, DJ and Maya......Mimi its only 4 days until I get to come ova and have a sleepova at yo house...." and so on and so on. I love it!!!! Then comes the big day. We usually try to have something planned with the kids to make it extra special. In November when he came over we made dinner and watched a movie and in December when he came over we built a gingerbread house. All of the cousins consider each other to be best "frewends" and I think it is so awesome that they are so close. We are very blessed!

Maya, Preston and Romy...woo hoo!

Pressy making the girls laugh

What a stud!

"My cousin is soooooo funny" - Ms. Maya

December's Sleepova.....

Hopefully there are many more slepova's to come!

These are a few of my favorite things....

2009-12-25T10:42:00.000-08:00

When the dog bites, when the bee stings, when I'm feeling sad, I simply remember my favorite things and then I dont feel so baaaaaaaadddddd........

Our little princess all dressed up!

DJ is going to kill be for putting this picture on here but it cracks me up I jsut had to do it!

One of her favorite gifts was an Elmo for the bath. Unfortunetly she wants to take it in the bath and cuddle it after the bath when she is fully clothed.

Daddy and Maya working together to set up the tree

Lots of love!

Maya loved her presents from DJ's sister and her family. They are from Oklahoma so unfortunetly we couldnt all be together this year. They sent her a baby doll, miniture pack n' play, stroller, clothes, etc. She loves everything they gave her! SO SPOILED!!!!!

Our Date with Nae

2009-12-11T15:52:00.000-08:00

We had a date night with Nae and we took the girls to Red Robin and to Target to hit up the $1 spot! Seriously awesome place to take the kids for a little toy. Target has bins that are at their level so they can pick something out themselves and also no matter what it will only cost you a $1! :)

Our original plan was to take Nae to Snowflake lane but I didn't get off work in time. Then we promised to take her before it ended and we didn't make it. Her Auntie has some serious making up to do! We still had fun though. We love having her! After dinner and Target we went back to the house and I dropped off DJ and Maya and then took Nae back to her house. It was so nice just to be with her. I put her pj's on and read a few books and then tucked her in. She was so sweet and went right to bed. I love this little girl so much!!!!!!

We need another night with Nae real soon!!!!!!!!

Updates

2009-11-24T11:44:00.000-08:00

Sorry I havent updated lately. I'm in the process of sorting through my pictures, until then.......

Romy, Maya and the Chairs

2009-11-06T12:15:00.000-08:00

Romy and Maya think it is pure entertainment to take the chairs from Maya's table and push them across the kitchen floor. When they reach a certain point they'll stop, sit down and have a conversation in kid gibberish.

Here's the girls in action....

The simplest things can be so fun!

How do you eat an Oreo?

2009-10-28T16:12:00.000-07:00

DJ gave the girls Oreo's the other night and Maya took her Oreo, split it in half, and started eating the inner part first. Hmmmmm, either she has had these before or she is just a girl who knows to go for the good stuff first. Ha! I snapped a few shots of the girls, they looked like a couple of bearded women! :)

I think I cried more than Maya!

2009-10-28T16:06:00.000-07:00

Maya had a big fall the other day. She was running and lost her footing and fell right smack down on her nose. She cried for about 2 minutes and then was fine. I was shaking the whole time and when the blood started to come out of her nose is when I really lost it! Turns out everything was fine, no concussion, no broken nose but I was a total freak of a mother. I was so upset that when I called DJ tell him what happened he almost couldn't understand me. There is nothing like seeing your child in pain. I know what your thinking, wow drama queen, but I was genuinely worried! Here is my sweet angel at the doctors office waiting to be seen. I was crying and she kept looking at me like "Mama what's wrong?"

My baby girl with a swollen nose!

Date Night

2009-10-28T15:45:00.000-07:00

Last weekend DJ and I went bowling with Dan and Angie. We all had a total blast and won a little money too. Its called midnight bowling and whenever you have colored pins up in certain positions, if you bowl a strike, you can win anywhere from $.50-$10! I think we won about $15 total. It was pretty fun. I won the first game and Dan won the last two games. My first game (the best game I bowled) I had 5 strikes but none of them were money shots. Then I choked when the colored pins came up on the other two games. Oh well, it was a great date night!

I love Fall!

2009-10-28T15:27:00.000-07:00

I know I mentioned this in one of my previous posts but I LOVE Fall! It is my favorite season. Last weekend we took Maya out to one of the pumpkin patches by our house. It was just a little farm but we had a nice time picking out a few pumpkins as a family. It was a horrible rainy day but the rain subsided just for 1/2 hour or so while we went out into the field to pick our pumpkin. After we left we stopped at the little coffee stand and got some caramel apple cider (my favorite) and then headed over to DJ's Grandparents house so that he could carve his pumpkin. You cant ask for more when you get to spend a beautiful Fall day with family!

Maya's 18 Months!!!

2009-10-15T14:58:00.000-07:00

Maya had her 18 month check up today. Here are her stats : 29 lbs, 35 inches long and her head circumference is....lets just say large. Since I can remember her stats have always been off the charts. We always have a 97+ mark by her percentile but today was the first time her weight was just 95-97 %. Which means she was described by her doctor as "long and lean"!!! Can you believe it? Ha, I think Dr. Wu was just being nice. I would go as far as calling her lean but she is starting to grown a little more length wise and a little less weight wise. The doctor said that most people will assume that Maya is 2 instead of just 18 months because of her size and because she is so advance with her vocabulary. When we first checked in the nurse asked if Maya could say 2-3 words. We proudly said "Actually, she can say 2-3 word sentences."

Here are a few facts about Maya:

Her favorite word right now is "Mine". Everything is mine. The other morning she wouldn't give up her wet towel from her bath. She kept saying "my towel". Ok whatever!

Her favorite toy right now is her little kitchen. We went last weekend and got some fake food so that she can play with it more.

She is still a little top heavy (she has a large head) so she falls down a lot. She loves to run and jump but sometimes has more bumps and bruises because of her big head.

She loves shoes. She can say shoe, or my shoe or Mama's shoe or Daddy's shoe. Even after I put pj's on her at night she sits down and says "shoes?"

All of a sudden she is attached to inanimate objects such as blankets, coats, stuffed animals. She has become a little territorial.

She loves to read. Right now her favorite book is Ring around the Rosie and a picture book because she knows all of the pictures and can say almost all of the words (car, spoon, apple)

She is still a picky eater. Right now our only dinner options are chicken nuggets, quesidilla, grilled cheese sandwich or pancakes.

She doesn't like juice she only wants "molk" (milk) ha!

She now tells us when she has pooped. She will say "I pooped" grab your hand and take you into her room and to the changing table. I think we are going to get her a potty just to see if maybe she might want to start using it.

Her favorite people right now are her cousins, aunties, uncles, papa, bawa, romy, and of course Mama and Dada.

We love her so much and I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful child. Words cant even describe how happy she makes us and how privileged we feel to be her parents!

I tried to get a picture of her on the scale but she was feeling a little camera shy. This might be the last time she sits on the scale. :( My little baby is growing way too fast!

Our little Marshmallow thief

2009-10-12T14:44:00.000-07:00

The other night DJ and I were winding down for the night and chatting about our day in the living room. Maya was playing with her mini kitchen minding her own business. After a few minutes I noticed Maya was being very quiet. I looked over and saw her going into the big kitchen, opening up one of the drawers, helping herself to a marshmallow, taking one little bite and then she would go and put the 1/2 eaten marshmallow on her mini kitchen counter. I told DJ..."shhhhhh don't say anything just observe what your little girl is doing". It was so cute! Of course we eventually told her that she couldn't help herself to marshmallows anymore which she wasn't too happy about, but it was one of those endearing moments.

These are the marshmallows that had accumulated

Her face after we told her she couldn't do that anymore

Photo op after she ran to Mama crying because Dad put the marshmallows where she couldn't reach them. Its tough being Maya! ha!

Little Mamas

2009-10-01T14:56:00.000-07:00

Paula and Ron gave Maya a little kitchen with a refrigerator, stove, microwave, sink, etc. Maya loves it so much and has been playing with it non-stop since we got it. I love to see her use her imagination. The other night she was "fixing" me and DJ dinner and bringing us various plates and bowls full of imaginary food.

On Tuesday DJ had something downtown to do so me and Joss were at home with the girls. After we gave them a bath the girls played with the kitchen and made all sorts of yummy treats for their Mamas. It is so neat to see them interact together.

For right now the kitchen is in our big kitchen but will be moved this weekend when we do some rearranging in Maya's room.

Fall is here! Woo hoo!

2009-10-01T14:45:00.000-07:00

Fall is by far my favorite season. I love when the leaves start changing, when there is a crispness in the air but still sunny outside, it gets dark earlier so the house gets cool and it makes you want to bake cookies and try new comfort food recipes.....

Sorry going off on a fall tangent. Seattle's first day of Autum was 85 degrees outside which was a total downer. But this week, finally, fall is here. Which means the rain came as well, oh well. Maya was all bundled up in her car seat the other day and I thought she looked so cute!

Happy fall everyone!

Giddy Up

2009-09-30T08:55:00.000-07:00

This is the email I got this morning:

Hey babe like my cowboy boots?

Love,

Daniel

Yep, thats my man on the right. He is a man of style! Back off Ladies he's taken!

Elmo and Uncle Michael

2009-09-24T16:05:00.000-07:00

Maya has started saying quite a few words lately. Two of the words are Elmo and Mo Mo (Uncle Michael). She loves her Uncle Michael and the other day she got a sweet little gift from him. He knows how much she loves Elmo and so he gave her all sorts of Elmo toys. Her favorite of course is the Elmo ball. :)

Thank you Uncle Michael! That was so thoughtful of you! We love you!

Smile of the Year

2009-09-24T15:54:00.001-07:00

Have I told you how in love I am with my baby girl?

Stinky Feet

2009-09-24T15:30:00.001-07:00

My Cuz

2009-09-24T15:19:00.000-07:00

My cousin Colton fought in his first ever MMA fight last Saturday. He did AWESOME! I was so proud of him. It was a little nerve racking since he is my little cousin but he came out without a scratch on him, as for the other guy....well lets just say Colton won. He won his first trophy and I was glad to be there to witness it. I have seen my cousin play pee-wee soccer, baseball, football and now he's an MMA fighter. Here are a couple of action shots...

This was taken we he first came out

We were his cheering squad, not only did we have t-shirts that DJ made that said "the Colt" we were the loudest crowd. Even the announcer said "well, Colton definitely has the loudest cheering squad with him tonight..."
After he won the fight, he's like "yeah that's right, what else did you expect?"

Our Champ!

The Little Gym

2009-09-19T10:00:00.000-07:00

We joined the little gym and Maya had her first introductory class on Saturday. She was a little timid at first but that is how she does things. She likes to observe instead of jumping right in. I think that is probably how she will always be and I think that is pretty neat. She really thinks things through before acting on them.

Anyways here are a few pictures from her first class......

Her favorite part of the whole class was playing with the balls and the bubbles. Towards the end she started to get comfortable with the mats and allowed me to help her do a "proper" somersault.

At the end of the 5 month session all the kids put on a "show" for all of the adults to come and watch all of the skills they have learned. I'll keep you posted as to when that will be.

Our Family Annual Ocean Trip

2009-09-18T15:27:00.001-07:00

It has been tradition in our family to take an annual ocean trip to Sandpiper resort on Pacific Beach. We have tried very hard to keep this tradition going but for the past 4 years we have been unsuccessful. Well, we have revived the Sandpiper trip!

Me, DJ and Maya headed out Thursday morning. We were planning on visiting DJ's grandparents in Westport but his grandma had a few doctors appointments she needed to go to. We were disappointed but we made the most out of it and headed out to Pacific Beach. When we got there we checked in and got our room keys. After we unpacked we headed for the beach. There is something so calming and peaceful about the ocean. I could sit outside for hours and do nothing and be perfectly content. Maya and I sat on the beach while DJ built us a castle. We all chatted and had fun laughing and being together. Its moments like this I will always cherish. We went back up to the room and put Maya down. She was totally exhausted from the trip. DJ and I cracked open a bottle of wine and a puzzle. Do we sound like an old couple or what? It was so much fun. I don't think him and I have laughed that hard in awhile. I love that we love each other!

It felt so great to be there! Maya is finally getting familiar with the water and sand combo so we were actually able to put her down and have her walk on the beach unlike last time. Baby Steps!

On Friday morning we woke up, my family who is always fashionably late was still not there. We decided to take a drive so that Maya could take a little morning nap. We took the highway to the Indian reservation and drove around. There were a lot of fisherman out there collecting their nets. It was so beautiful out, it looked like a scene from a movie. After the drive we headed back to get some lunch and head back out to the beach. Early afternoon is when the family started to arrive. Preston and Nay Nay just went for it on the beach and were playing in the sand and water right away. Maya just sat back and observed! :) Early evening rolled around and we went back upstairs to the rooms to hang with family and slowly make dinner. DJ made his famous Spaghetti, Mama made a salad, bread and dessert and Aunt Renee made her Chicken Parmesan. The whole meal was GREAT!

Saturday we woke up and had breakfast. It was a community breakfast so each member of the family brought a little something to offer. Afterwards the guys took off to a little local bar called the Green Lantern and Maya and I took a much needed nap. After we woke up we went on the beach to fly kites and hang out. Saturday night was Mexican food followed by a lively game of Balderdash (which we also played the night before). I think this is my favorite picture of the whole trip. My baby girl dancin' on the beach. So carefree and full of life. I love her SO much!

Daddy built me and Maya our castle....so sweet! Sunday morning was breakfast put on by the grandkids and Mima, we all took a family picture ( hopefully Britt will send me a copy) and then we all headed home.

It was a wonderful weekend! Our family loves being at the ocean....cant wait for next year!

Maya cant wait either!

Swimming Lessons

2009-09-18T15:16:00.000-07:00

I took last week off and did a lot of relaxing with my family. It was so nice and was way over due. On Wednesday Maya and I went and got to see Preston's swimming lesson. I have wanted to go and see him but by the time I get off of work and pick Maya up its usually too late.

Preston did so good and I was so proud of him. Maya was terrified when we first got there. I think she thought she was going for a swimming lesson. She has a major fear of water that I am hoping is just a faze. My camera was being difficult so I only got a few good shots.

My little man...I love him so much!

Concentrating SO hard!

Checkin out the ladies....ha!

Carrie and Steve's Wedding

2009-09-18T13:54:00.000-07:00

We had the privilege of going a beautiful wedding a few weeks back. DJ has been friends with Carrrie since high school so in turn I have gotten to know her as well. Carrie and Steve are the PERFECT couple! They both have the sweetest personalities and were just made for each other! It was such a fun wedding and DJ and I had a blast with everyone. Here's the recap of the day....

In the morning DJ and I woke up got ready and got Maya all packed for Bawa's. We dropped her off early since we had to be on the boat by Noon and DJ was afraid there would be traffic. Since there was absolutely NO traffic we ended up being really early. It worked out perfect because DJ and I got a little alone time. We walked to the Ivars Salmon House which was right down the road within walking distance. We decided on a few morning cocktails and some fried calamari. It was SO good!

This place is awesome. Neither of us had been to the Salmon House before. All of the wait staff was so friendly and accommodating. We filled out a comment card and thanked them for the wonderful service and they sent us a Buy One Get One Free Coupon for brunch. We will most definitely be back!

After Ivars we headed over to the boat. The ceremony was so sweet and personal. Both Carrie and Steve had written their own vows and what they said was so so perfect and loving.

After a few glasses of wine and the longest champagne toast in history all of us were feelin pretty good! Dan decided to start a new fashion statement for all of us ladies with the "dress tie"

Me and my Man (he looked so handsome!)

Stac, Carrie and Anna

At around 5 Carrie went up and changed and we all headed to Chop Sticks in Queen Anne. It is a piano bar in a really neat part of town. We all enjoyed each other's company, danced, sang, drank, and celebrated the beautiful couple~

The bridesmaids gettin' down

Mom and Dan dancing the night away

The Bromance aka Dan and DJ

Stac and DJ sharing a martini

Carrie and Steve....so in love! :)

Dan and his Mai Tai
The girls and our friend the jello shot
The end of the night. Just how we wanted to end it.....exhausted and happy!

Congrats to the Happy Couple! We all love you!

Also, a BIG thank you to Bawa for taking such good care of our baby while we were gone. We missed her so much but knew she was in good hands! BTW..Maya had a total blast with Bawa and got to hang out with Nay Nay too and watch the Huskie game. Sunday morning couldnt come soon enough to pick her up. We were so glad to see her!

"People let me tell you 'bout my best friend....

2009-09-03T08:47:00.000-07:00

.......She's a warm hearted person who'll love me to the end"

There's nothing like a bond between a Father and Daughter.....

2009-08-27T13:02:00.000-07:00

Hey Puddin'

2009-08-27T12:51:00.001-07:00

Pizza Party

2009-08-27T12:22:00.000-07:00

When me and my sisters were little my mom used to let us make our own mini pizza on English muffins. It was SO cool and I still remember it to this day. When my sisters asked if I could watch the kids last Friday night, I thought hmmm...what could I do to make this really fun? And that's when I remembered the infamous pizza party idea. So me and DJ went and picked up all the essential fixin's like pepperoni, Canadian bacon, cheese, olives, pineapple, sauce and of course English muffins. I got us all set up in the middle of the kitchen so the kids could just go to town and not worry about making a mess. Making a mess is the best part anyways! :) Here are a few pics.... All the kids before they got down and dirty with their pizza making skills

Nay Nay diggin in to the pineapple

Maya putting olive on her fingers....so cute!!

Romy was taking her pizza making very seriously

Nay Nay was Preston's helper, she didn't actually make her own she liked to assist

Preston was so good at making the Pizza's. Before we started I told him that we were going to have a pizza party and that everyone gets to make their own. He said "no way...we get to make our own? THAT IS SO COOL!!!!!"

Romy was gettin down with the sauce

Uncle DJ loaded up the pizza's to put the first round in the oven

Maya was more interested in taking bites out of the English muffin than actually making her pizza

After the pizza party Uncle DJ ordered a movie for all the kids, it was the old school Care Bears Movie and ALL of them loved it.

In true Uncle DJ fashion we were stocked up with popcorn and candy for the kids to have during the movie

I was surprised that all of the things I did when I was a kid and liked when I was younger, still is fun and "cool" to the next generation. What a great night!

Some Random Videos....

2009-08-14T12:25:00.000-07:00

Here are a few videos I took of Maya at Costco. As many of you know she likes to say "no, no, no" and thinks its hilarious. So i tried to catch it on film.....

And here is a video of Maya when we had the major heat wave here in Seattle. One night me, DJ and Maya just sat on our bed and sprayed eachother with a spray bottle while the fan was hitting us. It is what you call the "Po Man's Air Conditioner". Ha! Anyways, after spraying ourselves endless amounts of times Maya decided to take a little sip out of the spray bottle.....

Dont judge me people! ha! oh and Maya's hair is wet from the water not from sweat (well maybe a little bit of both since it was about 120 in our house).

The Nome Family Picnic

2009-08-14T12:14:00.000-07:00

We attended the annual Nome Family Picnic last Sunday. It was at Woodland Park in Seattle, right by the zoo. There were a bunch of people that grew up in the Nome area that knew Grandpa Amarok and some were relatives of his, which I guess makes them our relatives as well. It was sort of a rough day though so we didnt get to stay long. Maya has been sick all week with Hand, Foot and Mouth. Its a common virus that kids get so she was totally miserable. Plus we got lost on the way there so DJ and I were done with the day before we even got there. Oh, well there is always next year. Hopefully all three of us will be a little happier next year!

Maya's face pretty much sums up how she felt that day

Papa Dan, Grandma, DJ and the cranky baby

Thank you Grandma and Grandpa for inviting us, feeding us and still loving us even though we were all a little grumpy!

Baby's 1st M's Game

2009-08-12T14:05:00.001-07:00

My company has a suite at Safeco field so we all went last Saturday night. We had a lot of extra tickets too so we were able to bring Papa Dan (DJ's Dad) and Bawa (My Mom) and Papa Mick. Maya was a good girl the whole time. She cuddled with Bawa, Auntie Jossie, Dad, Papa, and Mom for the whole game. She got a few cool souvenirs too!

Maya all decked out in her Mariners gear!

Hello God, its Maya...

2009-08-12T14:01:00.001-07:00

....can you please turn down the heat here in Seattle?

(Sorry these pictures were a little blurry....maybe it was because it was SO hot in our house that everything was sweating, including my camera. We had record temps in Seattle this week, it reached over 103 at Seatac airport, which means up in our area it was 115. aka way too hot!)

Heat Wave

2009-07-27T13:54:00.000-07:00

Seattle had a major heat wave a couple weeks ago. It was absolutely, completely, utterly miserable!!! We tried to find things to do in the evening that didn't consist of sitting at home in our hot house. So we went out to dinner a lot, went to the sprinkler park, went to the mall and went to the beach. It cooled down to a nice 95 degrees when we were at the beach and believe me that was cool compared to our house that was 120 degrees inside.

Peachy

2009-07-25T13:51:00.000-07:00

I took Maya to the Edmonds Farmers market a few weeks back. It was hotter than heck outside but we still had a nice time. I love this time of year for all of the fresh fruit and veggies. Here's my little peach enjoying a peach...

She's really diggin in! ha!

We love Mexican food....

2009-07-24T13:12:00.000-07:00

and so does Maya...

Lavender Festival '09

2009-07-18T13:03:00.000-07:00

This year we went "kids free" to the Lavender Festival. It was really hard for me to leave Maya but her and Dad had a ton of fun bonding. Me, Tay and Ma headed out to Sequim for the weekend and had an awesome time. We laughed, we laughed and we laughed some more. I swear that's all we did all weekend. It was so much fun and so relaxing. Again, I was horrible about taking pictures so this is all I have. This pretty much sums it up though...

"Come on guys let me get a picture of you....

......ha, Taya act normal.....

....alright someone turn down the wind....

...just forget it, I tried"

She's a picker

2009-07-14T12:52:00.000-07:00

So those of you who know me well know that I'm a picker. I have always been like this and its only gotten worse since having Maya. I am constantly picking at her. I am the mom who will stick my fingernail up her nose and get that hard to reach boog. (I'm sure I just lost all my readers...all 10 of them. ha!) Well, truth be told, Maya is a picker too! When we were down in Vancouver she was running around bare feet at my Grandma's house and she stepped on a few lego's. She scrapped up her foot pretty good and now has a scab that she now likes to pick at. As I'm writing this I'm 1/2 laughing and 1/2 grossed out that I am actually admitting all of this to you but oh well. So for your viewing pleasure I caught her in the act.....

So determined

What Mom? You do it too! :)

Cousin Kayla

2009-07-12T12:38:00.000-07:00

We came back just in time to see Cousin Kayla for dinner on Sunday night. We miss our family in Oklahoma SO much so it was nice to at least see one of the members of the family for a short while. We all went out to Spartas in Bothell. Maya was in heaven and was so excited to see her cousin.

I had a rough time getting a good picture of the two of them together

The two of them laughing together....so sweet!

The girls

Some much needed playing time with her cuz

My handsome man and his niece. He misses his niece and nephew SO MUCH!!! We need to visit really soon. ;)

Ladd Family Reunion 09

2009-07-11T12:16:00.000-07:00

Sorry these took so long to post! And sorry for the fact that there are not more pictures!!! We went down to Vancouver for the annual Ladd Family Reunion. This year we decided to stay in a hotel since last year when we went down it was 110 degrees and we all melted in Gail and Dans house. It was fun to do something new this time. Vancouver has an awesome farmers market on Saturdays so we all went and checked it out. Just so happens that there was a gay pride festival going on down there too so that was interesting. DJ missed the conversation we all had about the gay pride festival so he thought that it was typical for Vancouver to have drag queens out and about on a Saturday. After the market we walked over to an antique car show they had going on a few blocks down. That was pretty cool too! We all went back to Gail and Dan's for a BBQ and some pool time. All the kids played together and had a total blast. I was having so much fun that I forgot to take a lot of pictures. OOPS! I'm sure my Uncle Dan will eventually have a few on his website that you can check out! :)
http://www.pbase.com/danielwickwire/life_in_snapshots

I love this picture! About 2 minutes before I snapped this I asked Preston if he was sleepy and of course he replied....no.
Preston with his Basketball Papa (Carrot in the background)

This was Maya on Saturday afternoon, totally wiped out!

My sweet niece, she is only 2 years old but always so put together.

Auntie Tay Tay with the girls

Baby Michael

2009-07-07T11:27:00.000-07:00

Kat and Michael got into town last week and I snuck over to their hotel for a quick visit before we headed out of town. It was so good to catch up with Kat and hold her little man. I love him so much!!! Here are a few pictures from last Thursday....

Michael and his favorite Auntie :)

Last night Maya and I went over to Auntie Cami's house and all the girls came over for a visit. We all got to swoon over baby Michael. Maya was intrigued but also got jealous every time I was holding him. Here are a few pictures from last night courtesy of Auntie Jossie.....

Me and Mikey

Auntie Katrina and Maya

Auntie Jossie and Michael

Auntie Cami and Michael

The crazy toddler

Auntie Shirrae and Michael

Michael looking up at his Mama

Michael surrounded by all the ladies already!

Maya and Auntie Jossie - Maya LOVES her!

More Ocean Info/Pics I forgot

2009-07-07T11:12:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday before we left DJ went and put together a ocean present for Maya. It was a sand bucket, shovel, Elmo kite, and paint so that we could paint sand dollars. He had it all wrapped for Maya when we got home on Thursday. He is the best Dad!

Here are a few pictures of the baby girl on our way out of town (before my camera died)......

Ocean Trip '09 ~ Part 1

2009-07-07T10:21:00.000-07:00

For those of you who just want to see the pictures from the ocean:

We're on our way.....(She has crazy hair because we had the windows rolled down) ha!

Meeting Great Grandpa Miller for the first time

6:45 in the morning...on our way to the beach

Daddy and Maya on the beach

DJ trying to get Maya used to the beach

We were all so happy to be there

First Sand dollar of the trip

Playing around

Look no hands...

Great Grandma Miller and Maya getting some much needed cuddle time in before we left

This was Maya the entire way home!

My Man in his new Westport t-shirt driving us home

For those of you who want all the details:

Me, DJ and Maya took off for the weekend to Westport, WA on the coast. We had an AWESOME weekend together. It was our first family trip that we have taken since Maya was born. We took off on Friday afternoon around 12 and headed out to the beach. We got stuck in horrible traffic since everyone was going out there for the holiday weekend. Maya did pretty good on the way down but started to kind of lose it when we were heading into Aberdeen. Once we got into town we stopped at Wally World and picked up a few things that we had forgotten. We then headed to the house that we rented for the weekend. It was a sweet little house right in the heart of Westport. It was perfect for our family. We quickly unpacked the car and headed over to DJ's Grandparents house over in Grayland to say a quick "hi" before dinner. We visited with family for a little while and then headed back to Westport. We ordered take out from this great little Mexican restaurant called Sergios and had a lazy night at the house. After Maya fell asleep DJ and I sat out on the porch swing and had a glass of wine, played a few games and then laid in bed and looked at all of our visitor information that was left for us at the house.

On Saturday DJ and Maya woke up early and went and got us all coffee. I slept in a little, well if you call sleeping in 6:45. Since the tide was out and DJ was SO excited to be at the ocean we decided to head to the beach and collect some sand dollars. We found so many!!! We filled Maya's sand bucket full of sand dollars, shells and cool looking rocks. Maya was hesitant with everything. She was unsure of the sand, water, etc. The only thing she was sure of was that she wanted either Mama or Dada to hold her the entire time instead of walking the beach. After our walk on the beach we got back to the car and Maya fell asleep. DJ and I decided to drive out to Tokeland which is the next town over for another round of coffee and since it is an Indian reservation, DJ wanted to check out some fireworks. DJ got stocked up and we headed back to Westport to get some breakfast and to look in the shops. We also checked out the aquarium that DJ went to when he was a kid but it is currently under construction and had no animals in it. :( We went back to our house to get changed for the day and went back to the beach. DJ's grandparents live right by the water so we loaded up a little wagon with our beach gear and Maya and headed out. We hung out on the beach and relaxed. It was so peaceful! We then attemped to go back to the house and lay Maya down for an afternoon nap but it turned into watching a movie and having some quiet time before the big evening we had ahead of us. That evening we went back to DJ's grandparents for a BBQ and then went back to the beach for a great fireworks show. Maya was so exhausted by this point that her and I went for a walk down by the water and she fell asleep in my arms instantly. This is one of those moments that I will treasure for the rest of my life. My sweet baby asleep in my arms and walking the beach listening to the waves crash. At that moment I really couldn't ask for more. Maya ended up sleeping through most of the fireworks but woke up for the finale. She was a little scared of them at first but then warmed up.

On Sunday we went into town again to get some Westport gear before heading back home. Sorry for the detailed description of our weekend but it was SO much fun and my memory is so terrible that I don't want to forget a single second of our time at the beach. In September we are headed back to the coast for a weekend with my entire extended family so Part 2 of our Ocean trip will be then. Hope you all had a safe, wonderful, relaxing weekend with your family.

Unseen Footage

2009-07-07T10:03:00.000-07:00

I just figured out how to download pictures from our video camera/digital camera that Carol and my Dad got us. So here are a few pictures that I took with it that I have never shared. I'll post some videos of the hospital and other random footage another day since my computer isn't pulling up videos right now.

Maya ~ 1 month old

Father Daughter moment

Dr. Morrell and Maya (He is the doctor that was with us throughout my entire pregnancy and he was able to deliver our baby. BTW I love this man! We couldn't have asked for a better Doctor!)

Maya asleep in her carseat. So sweet!

Arnies with DJ's Family

2009-06-29T12:42:00.000-07:00

My man won a $50 gift certificate to Arnie's in Edmonds at a golf tournament he got to play in last week. So we went with DJ's grandparents and Dad and had brunch. Arnie's is an awesome place for brunch, I highly recommend it! Maya was good for the most part. She got a little antsy towards the end so we had to cut our visit a little shorter than we had hoped. Here are a few pictures of our angel...

Can you tell she was enjoying the food too? Ha!

My Best Friend Romy

2009-06-29T12:19:00.000-07:00

Let me tell you all about my best friend. She is so great and we have so much fun together. Sometimes we just lounge around and chat about life...

We also make sure we take care of each other and make sure that one another are smellin fresh and clean....

We get together for dinner or coffee (pancakes and bananas)....

Also, she is 6 months older than me so she gives me all of her hand-me-down clothes. Its awesome! Sometimes I will get clothes that still have the tags on them and have never been worn. The best part is she helps me accessorize.....

But, I have to say the best part about our friendship is I know she will always have my back.....

I couldn't ask for a better friend! I love you Romy!

Love,

Maya

P.S. Sorry for spilling my milk all over the carpet right before you took these pictures Mom. I'm sure everyone who is ready this blog will understand that the carpet is clean but always stained because I am only 15 months old and I spill A LOT! Love you Mom!

Daddy Day (week)

2009-06-24T12:58:00.000-07:00

So Father's Day was a little longer this year. I have been wanting to get DJ golf clubs for awhile now and have been researching, searching, reading, looking......for golf clubs! I ended up finding him a awesome set of irons, wedges, and a couple of top of the line drivers from this guy off of good ole CL. Instead of me (a woman) going and meeting up with a stranger from Craiglist to buy these clubs I sent DJ. So in the end my "golf club surprise/fathers day present" came about a week earlier than expected. So not only did DJ golf the day after he got the clubs, his second fathers day present was a tee time with him, his dad and his uncle on fathers day weekend. THEN...oh yes there is more...we went to the track on Sunday (the actual Fathers Day) as a family. WOW, that's a lot of presents don't you think? He is an awesome Dad and totally deserved it all!

We had a lot of fun at the track but it was also a little hard bringing Maya. She is walking now and that is all she wanted to do. It was so crowed that it made me a little nervous so we ended up only staying for a few races. But we did stay long enough for Maya to get up close and personal with a horse. One of the jockey's brought out one of the horses for all the kids to see. I thought she was going to get scared and cry but she reacted the total opposite. She screamed with excitement and reached out to touch the horse. I didn't get a picture but I'm sure we'll be back.

Here is a picture of Daddy and Maya at the track,

Soon after I took this picture we headed home due to those ugly looking Seattle clouds in the background! Also, did you notice that DJ and Maya are matching? I put Maya in a polo shirt so that her and her Daddy would match. Ha!

**I have to add too, that when we got back from the track I had a major allergy attack. Anyways, I took some meds and went to bed early while DJ surprised me and cleaned and detailed my car. Not only is he an awesome Dad but he takes good care of me too! Love you baby, Happy Daddy Day!

RN Stacie

2009-06-24T12:42:00.000-07:00

Last Friday we went and got to see Stac graduate from nursing school. I was honored to be able to witness her and all her glory! She worked her butt off for this and she is going to make an unbelievable nurse. It seems like just yesterday when we worked at PA together and her and I were talking about how long school was going to take, yada, yada, yada... and now she is done and starts working at Overlake in a few short weeks. Congratulations Stac! We are all so proud of you!

Stac getting her nursing pin

3 generations of strong women!

My HOT man. Don't you just want to squeeze him!

Britty, Stac and I at the after the graduation

28 is GREAT!

2009-06-24T12:38:00.001-07:00

I turned 28 last week and did it in true 28 year old fashion. I stayed in with my family, ate an amazing dinner and DJ made me a yummy cake. What else could a girl ask for than to have her man cook for her?

Doesnt this make your mouth water??

DJ and Maya both got me really sweet cards too! I'm so spoiled!

Beads

2009-06-24T12:14:00.000-07:00

Maya is very into accessorizing! She likes wearing necklaces, sunglasses, etc. Her very favorite thing to do is go into our room and get into my jewelry box. She takes everything and tries to put it on like a necklace (rings, bracelets, hair ties) So we have found a few necklaces around the house that are just hers and she wears them around all the time. Also, every day that I pick her up from Paula's she's got her Mardi Gras beads on! Here are a few pictures I snagged of her the other day with her necklaces on. Daddy was brushing her teeth in the pictures too!

DJ likes to say "Maya have you been out with Auntie _____?" I wont say the name but her wild Auntie knows who she is! Ha! :)

Maya's 15 month check-up

2009-06-16T12:27:00.000-07:00

Well I have broken the tradition of taking a picture of Maya on the scale at her well care appointments. Oops! Work has been crazy busy and I was late meeting DJ and Maya at the doctors office. I was REALLY disappointed that I couldn't take the picture but I was not about to try and get our restless toddler back on the scale. Her appointment went really good. She is once again hitting all of her marks. She is 28 lbs, 33 1/2 inches long and her head circumference I think was about 19 inches. All and all she is WAY off the charts on everything. The doctor said that she is the size of a 2 year old. That's my girl! Since she just started walking though, I think some of that weight may come off. At least she is not short and fat or tall and super skinny. She is perfectly proportioned. She is a smart little thing too! She showed Dr. Wu how she can do "itzy bitzy spider" and walked for her. Then right when Dr. Wu was walking out the door Maya goes "Byyyyyyyeeeee" ~ like a teenager would say. Ha! Dr. Wu turned around was was like "Did she really just do that? She sounded like an adult" Anyways, I'm so sad because I do not have a picture at the appointment (can you tell this is really upsetting to me since I've mentioned it so many times) so I will leave you with a picture that I didn't post from a few weeks ago and it may be some sort of clue as to why our baby is so chubby, or what we like to say Pleasantly Plump!

She not only likes to eat but she is in the process of learning how to eat with silverware. Our baby is growing up!

Here are a few 15 month facts about Maya:

She has 6 teeth and more are coming in (partly why she hasn't been sleeping very well the last few days
She says a ton of words and is repeating what we say. At the doctors office she was laying down on the table for the exam and Dr. Wu said "lets get up" and Maya said "up"
She goes through stages of eating a ton and then not eating at all. I have noticed that she will eat just about anything you put in front of her if you allow her to eat with silverware. She likes to be independent!
She is getting into everything, it is definitely time to start baby proofing EVERYTHING!
I think her favorite word is still "no, no, no"
She tries to put on her shoes by herself. It is so adorable, I'll try to get it on video for you all.
Her favorite stuffed animal is Minnie Mouse that her Auntie Jossie brought back for her from Disney World. She sleeps with it every night.
The only thing tiny about Maya is her feet. She is still in a size 3 and has been for the last 6 months at least.
Her favorite toy is a big blue ball that we picked up for her from Target. She likes to sit across from you and roll it back and forth.
She loves to go on walks and be out in the fresh air. She will not fuss one bit if we take her for a walk, she just sits and enjoys the scenery.
Her favorite interactive game right now is "Izty Bitzy Spider" She puts her little fingers together and goes "ehh" and that means its time to sing!
Speaking of singing she loves my voice. I know, I have a terrible singing voice but really it is the only thing that calms her down if she is crying.
When we give her something that she likes or wants she will look at us and give us the biggest smile, then turn away and then look back again with a huge smile. Right now that is her way of saying thank you!

Maya and Romy

2009-06-15T13:15:00.000-07:00

Sunday morning Maya and I snuck into Romy's room and got her out of her crib. Then me and the girls went out into the living room and played until the rest of the house got up. It was SO much fun. We had a nice little morning together. They are finally at the age where they like to play with one another. It's nice too that they are far a part enough in age that when Maya yanks toys out of Romy's hand, Romy just moves on and finds something else to play with instead of retaliating. Here are a few pictures of the girls and a couple of videos of them on the recliner/roller coaster. Kids are so awesome, at this age they think anything you do is cool and so much fun.

Sorry the video's aren't more exciting. They were laughing so hard when we first started rocking them and then the camera came out right when they started getting a little bored. Also, sorry for my loud obnoxious laugh (and for Maya picking her nose).

Do you know why they call them toddlers?

2009-06-12T13:12:00.000-07:00

Because they toddle right into things like, the corner of an outdoor metal swing...

Bragging Rights

2009-06-12T12:48:00.001-07:00

When DJ was laid off at the beginning of the year it was a little bit of a scary time for our family. He didn't know what to do, I didn't know how we were going to make it financially, we were worried, stressed, etc. Ya know the normal stuff that comes along with a major, unexpected change. So after countless job interviews and a ton of frustrating set backs, DJ decided to go back to school. What better time to get an education, right? He worked his butt of when he was a Marine and deserves to go to school and have it paid for.

So he started up at Shoreline spring quarter. He was a little nervous as anyone would be after not being in school for so long. He thought he would be the oldest student there(which he wasn't) , he didn't know how he would do with homework, test, reading textbooks, etc.

Well let me give you a little clue as to how he finished out his first quarter at Shoreline:

We was given this award last week by one of his teachers in his Intro to Business class. His team placed 2nd (out of 80 teams) in the business management simulation project. All quarter they had to run their own airline and DJ stayed up many nights working on this project. I am so proud of him and what he has accomplished already within his 1st quarter.

He has already received 2 out of the 3 grades for the classes he took. They are both A's! The last grade that he is waiting on is from his Business Law class and he killed the final so I'm sure he'll add another A to the other two. So his first quarter at Shoreline, he Aced all of his business classes and received an award for the amazing work he did. SO PROUD!!

To top it off he loves me so much that one night last week I came home to roses, a sweet card, and a clean house (the clean house part was just a normal day to day bonus that I get from him being home before me). Then this week he showed up at my office with two boxes from Nordstrom full of presents; a new shirt, sunglasses, another sweet card and perfume that I have wanted for the last 3 years! (no joke I have wanted this perfume for that long :)) I have a sweet, loving, intelligent man!

Alright I'm done bragging. Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! I'll leave you with a picture of our little girl in her big girl walker stance,

Guess who's FINALLY walking??

2009-06-11T09:32:00.000-07:00

so many parties so little time

2009-06-08T12:18:00.000-07:00

This weekend was a little rough. We had four parties to go to and all of them were at scattered locations. But Maya was a total trooper so it made for a really fun weekend! On Saturday Me, DJ and Maya headed out in the morning, after making breakfast, to the mall to pick up a few things. We had to get a last minute present for one of the parties we were attending and a few other things. In true Ladd Lady form, I was totally stressed out the entire morning, while DJ in true Ladd Lady significant other form, was laid back and relaxed. He wanted to take our time at the mall. He kept saying "Honey I just want you to find something nice that you can where that you feel good in." And I kept saying, "Just forget it. We dont even have time to be shopping. I have presents to wrap, Maya needs a nap, I still have to shower, yada, yada...yada." Well, everything ended up working out just fine and we had an awesome day. Here's the recap....

After the mall we came home so Maya could take a nap. She decided she didn't want to take a nap so she had "quiet time" while we got ready. Then we headed out the house for our first party.

DJ's cousin Carlyn has a little boy, his name is Brayden. It was his 1st birthday. It was at Alfy's in Lynnwood. Have you guys ever been there? Its Alfy's on steroids. Seriously this place is HUGE!! Here are a few pictures.....

Brayden enjoying his own personal birthday cake!

I had to post this picture even though Maya isn't looking at the the camera. It just cracked me up seeing her little chubby wrist, arms and fat fingers clenched together. Ha!

Maya feeding herself....what a big girl! (I know it looks like there is nothing on the spoon. Its because there isn't, she was just trying to be a big girl)

After we left Alfy's we headed out to deep Monroe for Lilly's 2nd Birthday Party. This was Maya on the drive out there...

I'm pretty sure my Mom has a picture of me doing this same pose.

After we got out to Monroe Maya woke up but was still a little sensitive because of the lack of sleep. We got to hang out and play for a little while with Lilly and Romy. Here are a few pictures from the party...

Our little family.

After we left Monroe we headed back to Lynnwood for DJ's Cousin Sara's graduation dinner at The Old Spaghetti Factory. We had a great time at dinner but unfortunately by this time we were all so exhausted I forgot to take any pictures. Maya did great at dinner. She was a little antsy and wanted to be held but was good for the most part. She barely ate anything all day, partly I think because she was a little out of sorts from not napping. The only thing she ate was Saltine crackers the entire day. Oh well, by the looks of it she will be fine. Oh, and her Papa gave her some Spumoni ice cream at the end of dinner and of course she did not pass that up!

Sunday we had a nice relaxing morning. Maya and I got up and had our Sunday morning ritual of making coffee, playing together and watching food network. Doesn't get any better than that. At around Noon we started to get ready for the 4th and final party of the weekend. It was my Cousin Maddy's graduation party. We headed out there around 1:30 and spent the day with my family, bbq-ing, hanging out, catching up, enjoying each other. Maya did awesome once again. She didn't eat much but she played hard. She was doing really well with her walking too! I'm terrible, I didn't take ANY pictures today of the festivities. Oops. Here is one of her on the way out to Monroe...

After the party we took her home and got her in her pj's...

... about 5 minutes after we put Maya down, DJ went in to her room to check on her and this is what he saw. She was totally worn out from this weekend. She did so good and we feel so blessed to have such a good baby. Love you boo boo.

Michael Christopher aka Maya's future husband

2009-06-05T10:01:00.001-07:00

One of my best friends Katrina gave birth to a beautiful baby boy last Saturday. She went into labor Friday night and had baby Saturday early afternoon. Her and Chris were just here for visit about a month ago and we threw a shower for her. Michael was so anxious to meet his Mama and Dada that he came almost a month early! Baby and Mom are both doing great and I am so happy for their family! Congratulations! We love you and miss you and wish you were here!

Isnt he beautiful?! (Maya's future husband)

The Girls at the Park

2009-06-05T09:51:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Joss and I took the girls to the park. It was beautiful outside and we have a park within walking distance of our house. Before looking at the pictures, beware, Maya's glare might be a little frightening!

This one is not too bad, she just looks a little irritated that we're taking pictures of her and not letting her out of her stroller....

Mama and Maya (Sorry about the hair, when its hot the only thing I can do with my frizzy hair is throw it up in an ugly pony tail! Its a Ladd thing)

Alright here's the look....

She's all leaned to the side like "WHAT?" Man, if looks could kill. Ha!

Happy Friday everyone! I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Too Hot to Handle

2009-06-04T12:53:00.000-07:00

Love the weather but I must admit it is a little too hot for me. And Maya is just miserable! Babies dont understand why its so hot. As her Bawa would say, "Babies are like 'can someone please turn the heat down" Ha! Anyways, DJ captured this beautiful picture of our angel sleeping last night.

Foutain Pony and an Eskimo Story

2009-06-03T10:44:00.000-07:00

The lighting is not that great but I am finally able to put Maya's hair up in a pony tail! This is big news since I didn't have ANY hair until I was about 2 yrs old. I was a little concerned that she would inherit my nickname when I was a child..."Uncle Fester". My family was so sweet don't you think? Here are a few pics of my little girl and her new hairdo...

These pictures were taken the other night. Right after I took these pictures DJ and Maya read a few books which is a part of our bedtime routine. I was in the kitchen cleaning up and looking for something to make for dinner. I could over hear DJ reading Maya's typical favorites, Singing with Elmo, Elmo at the Zoo, Hungry Caterpillar, etc. Then I heard him reading her a new book. From what I could hear he was reading a book about Polar Bears. Then I hear him veer off from what I can tell is the story and say to his 14 month old daughter in a sweet fatherly voice "Daddy wants to kill a Polar Bear some day" and then goes on reading. He finished the book and we put her to bed. After we came out of her room I looked at him and said "Not only do you want to kill a Polar Bear but you decided to add that to your daughters story?" We both started laughing. He hadn't even known that I was listening and I guess being the Eskimo that he is, it was totally natural to him to share this information with Maya. We both agreed that even though she couldn't even understand what he was saying that next time we read her this book he'll leave that part out!

I promise I don't think the idea of killing any animal is funny, its just that him and I come from such different backgrounds and it becomes very apparent with situations like this. His family used to hunt seal up in Alaska and lived in a village right outside of Nome, Alaska and is a part of the Sitnasuak Tribe. If you follow the link about their tribe one of the values is "Love of Children". That is most definitely accurate. I sat down with DJ's grandfather a few weeks back and he gave the a lot of information regarding the history of their family. It was so interesting. I will have to get some of the pictures from him and do a post of Maya's Eskimo Heritage.

A Maya Montage

2009-05-28T12:42:00.000-07:00

I wanted to do a themed weekly blog posting and I think I have come up with it. Actually my photo taking abilities (or lack there of) combined with Maya's expressive face gave me the idea. So weekly I will do some sort of Maya Montage.

This weeks installment is Maya's first attempt at eating with a spoon.....

"Thanks for trusting me with the spoon Mom, but to you really have to make a fool out of me on the blog with all these pictures?....

...I think I am getting the hang of this (concentrate, concentrate).....

...I actually got some in my mouth (and on my shirt and on the side of my face) but still I actually got some in my mouth...yummy.....

.....thanks for treating me like a big girl and letting me eat with a big girl spoon. I feel so grown up and just like you guys. I love you Mama and Dada"

~ Maya

So Lady Like...

2009-05-28T12:39:00.000-07:00

This is Maya's signature lady-like position to sit in! Ha! Thats my girl!

Cuddle Time

2009-05-28T12:34:00.000-07:00

Maya loves to cuddle. She is definitely Daddy's little girl. She will come up to him and lay her head down on the couch where he is laying, then he picks her up and they do this for anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours. I don't know of any other 14 month old that will sit still for that long. For her its worth it just to be with her Dad.

Our Memorial Day weekend....

2009-05-26T13:57:00.000-07:00

Friday night Pres came over and spent the night. He was an angel child the whole time! He listened, played with Maya, took a bath, didn't put up a fight when it was time to go to bed...all and all great! On Saturday Maya and Pres woke me up at 5:50am, needless to say I was a little sleepy the rest of the weekend. We woke up, I made the kids breakfast and we played some quiet games until the rest of the world was ready to get up. Maya went down for her morning nap around 9 and Pres and I took off and went to the store to get stuff for breakfast. After the store we went to the Dollar Store and got some sidewalk chalk for later, then went and got my car washed. My friend Charla was raising money for the 3-Day Breast Cancer walk by hosting a car wash, so we went and donated $ and got my car all shinny too! The rest of the day was packed full of playing, going to the park, testing out the sidewalk chalk and later a nap. It was a great start to a Memorial Day weekend.

Maya and Dada hanging out on the blanket while we all played with Sidewalk Chalk

Sweet Angel!

I have a slight obsession of taking pictures of shoes. I just couldn't resist taking a shot of Dad's new sneakers and our little girls sandals together. So cute.