Leaving Miami

Saying Goodbye to Granddad & Thanking Him for Helping Us Pack the Truck.




Last Weekend in South Beach

SOBE Playground

This is our last weekend trip to the best playground on Miami Beach. We were actually headed to the pool, but there was a bit of lightening a little earlier so it was closed. We played at the park and then headed to the beach for a quick dip in the beautiful water.

A Little Brother

It is official, Lexi is going to have a little (actually rather large) brother. For all of you that hoped it would be a boy to defend himself against a rather rambunctious sister, you can put your fears to rest. I still think she'll have the upper hand for a few years. I know I did.

Little Nook

Lexi has been such a big helper while we pack. She took a moment to hide in her newly discovered nook.

Happy 4th!

Happy 4th of July from the "All American Girl" (her nickname at daycare).

The Lexi Purse

Lexi is a purse girl. In fact, since the beginning of last December, she has been draping my purse (and any bag she can get her hands on) over her shoulder and walking around like she is queen. I am always trying to find ways to ditch my purse, but she just loves it. A few weeks ago a package came from the Crazy Bow Lady, I opened it up and saw this cute little pink bag with Lexi's name on it. I knew it would be an instant hit.

Girls Night Out

While Steve is away (in Houston), the girls will play. Lexi and I went to a friend’s house for dinner last night. We headed there right after work/daycare. My friend is recently divorced and has the cutest little 3.5 year old son, Bennie. He is a chatter box who didn’t want Lexi to touch his stuff. Other than that, he played well with her.

My friend cooked chicken fingers for the kids and pasta for us. We had so much fun talking and watching the kids run around that we hardly noticed the time. Poor Lexi was exhausted when we finally got home at 9:30pm. She barely stayed awake while I put her pajamas on. I have to admit that she is quite a trooper/party animal.

Daddy's Day

This weekend, we tried to take our normal walks in between down pours. On Saturday, we got caught in one about two blocks from our apartment. On Sunday, we stayed dry, but had another fun issue to deal with. Moments after these photos were taken, Miss Lexi threw the worst/longest tantrum to date. First, she ran towards a group playing with a volleyball and then after a guy jogging and kicking a soccer ball. Being the cruel parents that we are, we didn’t let her get close enough to grab their toys. She screamed, whaled, flailed her body, threw everything she could get her hands on and did just about everything you can imagine for around 15 minutes (an eternity). My strategy is to just let her get it out of her system. Steve didn’t exactly like the noise and people staring at us like we were beating our child. All I could say was there is a reason they call it the terrible twos & Happy Father’s Day.

Rainy Weekend

It is a rainy weekend here in the "Sunshine State," so we are organizing and taking it easy.

At the Kiddie Pool

Another First

Wednesday night, Lexi and Steve were in the family room and I was back in my bathroom getting ready for bed. Suddenly, I heard a thud. I could tell that Lexi fell down. This is a normal occurrence around bedtime. When she is tired, she stumbles more. I didn’t think much about it that first second and then the blood curdling screams started.

I started heading towards them. I saw Steve coming my way holding Lexi. He was visibly upset when he proclaimed, “she broke her nose!” Of course, that made my heart jump, but Steve always assumes the worst. I got a frozen teething ring and an ice pack from the fridge. I handed the teething ring to her before I took her from Steve. She was still crying, but not quite as bad because she was trying to focus on the new chew toy. Her nose was bleeding, so I put the ice pack on it. The nightmarish wailing (that Steve can not handle) began again. He told me to stop torturing her. I told him that I didn’t want it to swell or get black and blue. He decided it was a good time to take the trash out, but he only got a few feet down the hall and turned around to tell me to stop. He did that several times. (Yes, we drive each other crazy with our parenting styles.)

Lexi’s nose wasn’t bleeding that much and she was tired, so I decided to put her to bed. There ended up being a few drops of blood on her and a few on me. The next morning, she looked like her normal self. I guess she officially had her first bloody nose (not broken).

SOBE Angel

Lexi posing as a South Beach Angel.

Little Swimmer

Steve and Lexi enjoyed her 3rd swimming lesson. She is becoming quite the little water bug, especially when it comes to retrieving the ball.

Celebrity Face Match

"It's a Baby"

It seems like Lexi has 5 new words every day. The funny thing is that 2 weeks ago, she started saying baby on the day I took a pregnancy test and discovered that it was positive. Like most mothers, I point out everything and tell her what it is called. She picks up on words when she is ready. Some times it is after I say it once. Other times, she waits to hear the word many times. With the word baby, she heard it many times and just happened to pick that day to start saying it.

Lexi has until December to practice saying baby before she actually has one in her home life. Then, everything will change, because she will no longer be an only child.

Thank You, Crazy Bow Lady

We got a lovely shipment of bows from the Crazy Bow Lady recently. They have really enhanced Lexi's hairdos. I think we only had them for a day when Lexi started saying "bow." They are definitely a hit!

Grandparents

My mom was surprised to discover that Lexi speaks in sentences. I guess that is one of the many things I have forgotten to mention on the blog. She has been doing it for about 2 months (maybe more). Here are her 3 main sentences:

1. It’s a __________.
2. There’s the _________.
3. Where’s the _________?

The blanks are filled in with many different words including Spanish ones.

Playing with Toys

Grandma Margie's Visit Day 1

This morning, we ate breakfast at News Cafe and then headed to the local pool. Nobody had as much fun as Lexi. The girl loves water. This afternoon, we went to Lexi's doctor appointment. She is now 24 lbs, 2 oz and 32 inches tall.

Yoko & Kiezen's Visit

My friend, Yoko, and her nine month old baby, Kiezen, came to visit this weekend. We had a great time walking around the beach and watching the kids play together. I’ll admit that Lexi was quite domineering and a tad bit jealous every time I held Kiezen. Their trip ended too quickly though. A weekend just doesn’t cut it.

April Fun

Elmo Everything

Lexi has never watched Sesame Street or any of the spin off shows, but she LOVES Elmo. Her admiration for him started about a month ago when we were in JCPenneys (one of the few stores in Miami that carries Steve’s size). We walked through the kids section & she reached up and grabbed a stuffed Elmo off of a clearance table. She started hugging and kissing him. Of course, I bought it.

Ever since that moment, she has been the biggest Elmo fan ever. About a week later, she started saying his name (Emmo). Not only that, but she calls two relatives Emmo too (cousin Emily & my brother Alma). I have been buying her the Pampers diapers that just happen to have Elmo on them and she takes every opportunity to point Elmo out.

Last week, I bought her the Elmo cell phone and an Elmo musical book. She spends lots of time pointing at him everywhere and saying "Emmo." With that, Lexi has officially proclaimed her love for Elmo.

Easter at Parrot Jungle

Granddad was in a funk and decided not to come for Easter, so we headed over to Parrot Jungle for some fun. As you can see, Lexi was not very fond of the big bunny, but she loved everything else.

Spring Daycare Party

Lexi's daycare is having a "Spring" party today, so I bought a little Easter dress from Target for the occassion. I'm posting a picture of her giving me attitude about not letting her play with my camera. :)

Dadda's Song

I'm so glad when DADDY comes home,
Glad as I can be;
CLAP my HANDS and shout for joy,
Then climb upon his KNEE,
Put my ARMS around his NECK
HUG him tight like this,
Pat his CHEEK, then give him WHAT?
A great big KISS.

Lexi likes this song much better now that she knows some of the words (bolded). Click Here to see the sheet music & then the play button in the top left corner to listen.