Kids Say the Darndest Things {14}

*While Justin was on his trip to Kazakhstan, I accidentally said 'stupid'. This is what Amaia had to say:
"You don't say stupid! I'm gunna wait until Daddy gets home and I'm going to tell him you said stupid all the time-when Daddy gets home from Kaza Stahn."

*I was playing Fruit Ninja on the Xbox, and I got to the part at the end where you go crazy trying to slice that pomegranate like a million times, but I only got like 10.
Amaia: Why didn't you do it a lot?
Me: I tried!
Amaia: Is it because you were fat?
:(

*Amaia: If all my skin falls off, I would DIE. Just like that boy in the app store-the zombie boy.

*Amaia: I have to go potty!!
Justin: Again? Do you have a UTI? Or any other STDs?
Amaia: NO! I'm still 3!! (like she knew what the heck that meant anyways)

*I was laying on the floor, and Solia was sitting on my stomach bouncing. I was grunting from the impacts-
Amaia: Mommy, are you dying?
Me: Yes!
Amaia: Ok, well, I'm not going to come save you because I'm doing my puzzles

*Justin: I hate cats
Amaia: Don't say that! That's the same thing as saying 'stupid' or 'freaking'-we don't say that!

*So one day Amaia and I made one of those glitter jars that we found on Pinterest. You shake it up, and then the kid sits and watches the glitter settle so they can have a little time out. We used it one time that day. The next day, Amaia got mad at Solia, knocked her over, and then says to me: Can I have the jar? I need it to calm down"

September 2011-1st Half

(Our funky palm tree, my self inflicted hair cut, hot Justin, and a gross slug)

 

*Amaia is is SUPER copy cat mode. If you say something (new-ish) it will come out of her mouth in ten seconds or less

*Amaia will pick up anything long-ish (a tube, a ruler, a broom, a fork, etc) and use it as a gun. She'll 'bang' you and say "die!"

*Amaia will constantly say "GOOOOOOOoooood, good job" when you are doing something, even if it is something mundane like changing Solia's diaper, or reading a book.

*Amaia's been making up adjectives: sliney, flimpy, bonky, flompy, cutty, etc.

*Amaia likes to recount past conversations: "If I say (blank), then you say (blank)..." exactly as the conversation happened last time.

*Amaia is getting a little obsessed with death. She's always saying "If this happens" or "if I do this, then I would DIE."

*Amaia has started calling all kangaroos a "roosky" because that's what we call Solia's toy kangaroo.

*Every morning when the girls wake up, Amaia gives Solia a big hug and says "I LOVE Solia"

*Amaia has some strange names for candy: M&Ms are "nen a mems"; Candy Canes are "candy cans", and marshmallows are "marsh a lows"

*Amaia's gotten into this bad habit of repeating "what?" over and over, even when I'm in the middle of trying to tell her "what".

*Amaia says 'avagot' instead of forgot. For example, "I avagot my blankie"

*According to Amaia, she never actually goes to sleep at night. She just is taking a 'big breath' or a 'big break"

This is how we keep Amaia's burritos from unraveling on burrito night.

Yes, we tortured a slug. Yes we are horrible people. :)

Daddy and Solia. She has really warmed up to him!

*Solia gives kisses! Well, she'll at least slobber on your mouth.

*When I do my makeup in the morning, Solia either stands there 'begging' for me to put some on her, or she stands in between me and the wall and tries to push me away from it.

*Solia loves hats. Everything is a hat as long as it stays on her head.

*Solia likes to pull/yank/grab everything! Hair, arms, (boobs!), clothing, faces....

*Solia is constantly climbing onto our giant (yet highly cheap and unstable) TV stand

*Solia has learned to take off her diaper....

*Solia has moved on past the crying like a baby when she is upset. She's moved on to full out tantrums, and screeching and growling when she doesn't get her way

*Solia is finally getting attached to her Roosky and Blankie-she is always hugging them when I go get her from her naps

*Solia likes to help wash Amaia in the bath tub

*Every time Solia sees herself in the mirror, she gives herself kisses

*After she is done eating, Solia will stack her cup and spoon inside her bowl

*Solia (finally) got her first tooth on September 14th! It just barely broke the skin, but you can feel tooth, darn it!

*Solia is crazy obsessed with all the birds out back in the river. Ducks, cormorants, geese, swans, seagulls and pigeons all take their turns in our river and she loves to watch them, calling them "duh!" (ducks)

*Solia can follow basic commands, like "come here", "bring me that", "Can I have kisses?"

Look at how cute they are!

Kids Say the Darndest Things {13}

*Amaia: If a zombie comes, and a zombie eats my brains, I would DIE.

*(Amaia was asking for make up and I said no).
Amaia: But Mom! You have makeup on YOUR chin...
Me: I have a funny looking chin.
Amaia: My chin is funny looking, too.
Me: No, your chin is so pretty
Amaia: But Mommy, I'm scary!!
(she really wanted that make up!)

*We were watching a video of a howling wolf and Amaia says "Mommy, is that wolf a strawberry man?"     What??

*Solia was crying and Amaia walks over and starts to comfort her: "Oh sweetheart, it's ok sweetheart..."

*Amaia: Where did we go a long weeks ago?
Me: I don't know, where did we go?
Amaia: We went to.....I don't know what I'm talking about.


*Justin and I were saying something about cookies...
Amaia: Mommy's irrational
Me: Did she just call me irrational?  What the....
Amaia: BEEP!



*Amaia had gotten an owie, and was sitting on the floor yelling at it to "just get better owie, just get better!"

Kid's Apron from Reusable Grocery Bag

Ok, as per request, here's how I made this apron. The only reason I'm posting this now, as opposed to, oh I don't know, REAL blog stuff, is I have these pics all on my phone. That's right, you get crappy iPhone pictures. I took some of the finished product on my actual camera, but I usually use my PC for all my photo editing/deleting/organizing/etc. So there.

Anyways, let's give credit where credit is due. I used this reversible toddler/child apron tutorial from Naptime Crafters. I used all the same measurements as she did. The main difference is I used a REUSABLE GROCERY BAG from the Disney store instead of fabric. The main reason for that is I'm hoping it will help repel paint/water/glue, etc from seeping into the apron and getting her clothes underneath. It won't be machine washable, but since it's just plastic (well, mine was, if your reusable bag is fabric you should be able to machine wash it) it just wipes right off.

Some things I did different:

I used two of the four pieces I cut from the top of the apron (you know, to make the 'arm holes'? The pieces that you cut out to make the top skinnier than the sides? Very technical, I know). Anyhoo, I used two of those pieces to make pockets-one on each side. Taking each side separate, I sewed on the pocket, then sewed on some 1/2" ric arc around the edge (melting the ends with a lighter sort of like you would for ribbons so it doesn't fray). I did this to both sides. I had to position the pockets around the big pictures of Minnie and Mickey, so they ended up on different sides (one on the left, one on the right, but right on top of each other when placed back to back). If you just use fabric or a plain/patterned bag, you won't have that problem. Also, make sure to put it at least an inch away from the edge of your fabric, so that when you sew it and then top stitch it, your top stitching doesn't go over the super cute ric rac like mine did :(

Make sure you follow the tutorial all the way up until you sew the two sides together. Don't be like me and forget to add the straps and neck loop on until after and then have to turn it back inside out to finish it.

So I cut the whole thing like the tutorial says, but then when it came time to sew, I added some ric rac in between the seams. Like this:

Here you see I have the right sides of the 'fabric' together, with the ric rac in between. When I sewed this, I put the presser foot right up against the edge of the fabric:

Not sure what kind of seam allowance that is...3/8"? Anyways, close enough for me. You want to place your ric rac as much as you can so that the middle of the ric rac goes right under the needle:

See how it's not right up against the edge? Then just sew it up like anything else. When you get to the hard corners, cut off the ric rac, and turn it so it's now going in the new direction. The raw edges of the ric rac will end up inside so it won't matter. Make sure to leave like a 4" gap to turn this whole apron right side out. Make sure you leave a trail of ric rac the same length of your hole, so you can have it when you go to finish the seam. You don't want to have 4 inches of your apron with no ric rac. Trust me on the size of the hole-reusable bags are thicker and take more space to turn around.

Here is the ric rac from the outside. You notice how the stuff in the middle is 'bigger' than the edges of my strip? That's because when I sewed, the places where you don't see as much ric rac sticking out is where I placed the ric rac too close to the edge of the fabric. Be careful you don't put it too far away from the edge of the fabric, though, or you'll be able to see holes in your ric rac.

After you've turned it right side out, pull on your ric rac to sort of 'iron' it flat. I wouldn't suggest actually ironing it since it's plastic. Then, to close up your hole and finish it, turn the edges of the hole to the inside, making sure to sandwich the tail of ric rac in between the fabric. Top stitch all the way around with like a 1/8" seam allowance to finish. (Don't mind my not-so-straight stitching. This wasn't the actual apron, but a scrap. And I was in a hurry).

And then place on a super cute (and very excited, even if she hates getting pictures taken) model:

Yay! Have fun!

August 2011 2nd Half-With Video Link

Ok, so where did we leave off? The Kaisers were here. I'm a little fuzzy on the details, but one day we went to Bath:

And got to blow glass bubbles. Which was awesome.

One day Solia and I stayed home while every one else went on a bus tour of London. Here are some pictures:

That afternoon, Justin and Amaia came home and left the Kaisers touring around. We had a babysitter come and watch the girls, while Justin and I went and met the Kaisers to see the musical Les Miserables. It was awesome-it was the first time I'd ever seen the musical version of this story (we have the DVD with Liam Neeson, but it's just not the same).

The one day, the most rainy freezing day ever, we drove all the way to Windsor Castle. It was so cold and wet, that here are the only pictures we took of the entire place:

The worst part was it was freezing and raining outside, but drafty inside, and we weren't really prepared with coats and stuff wise, so we were all freezing, so we just kind of blew through it as fast as we could. It was a lot of fun though and we're glad they were able to come and hang out with us.

Here's my Solia. Being a stinker, as always.

* Every time Justin comes to kiss me, or pick me up, Solia literally freaks out-like has a full on panic attack

*Every time Solia eats in her chair, she offers me a spoonful for me to blow on before she will eat it (even if it's cold)

*Solia is getting better at kisses, she gives open mouth almost-making-outs, and she also tries to actually kiss by making a popping sound.

*Solia has certainly warmed up to Justin now, and she will actually let him hold her and play with her, and she even gives him hugs and kisses.

*Solia's starting to say the beginning of words, like she'll say "buh" for ball or bug, "duh" is for duck

*Solia has a hard time letting me get stuff done. Every time we do into the kitchen, I'll put her down to make dinner or do dishes or laundry, and she'll freak out and grab onto my legs or try and push me away from the counter so I'll pick her up.

*Solia can sign: banana, food (points in her mouth), all done, hat, and more (thumb into the other palm)

*When Solia is finished eating, and I offer her more food, she'll act like she wants it, and then just smack the spoon/food onto the floor when I offer it to her

*When someone leaves she'll say "buh buh" and wave goodbye

*She's getting really good at following basic instructions, like 'bring me that' or 'give that to mommy' or 'get down' or 'can i have kisses' or 'go get amaia'

*Solia will hand me a book, stand right by me and wait for me to open it up and read it, and as soon as I start, she'll turn around and go get another book before I can even finish the first page.

*If Solia is not 100% happy, any time I move it's a fit. It doesn't matter where I"m going, if I'm sitting or standing, on the computer or xbox or at the mirror, it's like a total meltdown unless I'm laying on the ground with her or holding her.

Amaia: Likes to make soup (bottom right pic) with water and dirt and grass out in our yard

*I've finally given Amaia scissors, and she loves sitting in the office cutting up paper-I usually give her past art projects that have already had their time on the wall

*Amaia says prayers exactly like this every time: "Heavenly Father, thankful for this day, thankful for the rest of our days, in the name of Jesus, Amen!"

*Amaia's always saying "You gotta see this, Mommy"

*She is the bad word police. As soon as we tell her not to say something, she makes sure we don't say it either. On the list so far are: stupid, idiot, freaking, and shut up.

*Amaia likes to say "that was the craziest thing I ever seen" or "that was the funniest thing I ever seen"

Fun little photo shoot with my girls:

Gotta love the 'tank crossing' sign-on the side of the road by a huge field.

And some of Amaia's crafts-leaf paintings, a monogram, and she traced and colored her own hand (top center, including fingernails)

And here is the link to YouTube for the video this month:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_ahSFqrspU

Kids Say the Darndest Things {12}

*Me: You're so big, Amaia!

Amaia: Am I big?

Me: Yeah-you're getting big just like Mommy!

Amaia: And like Daddy! I'm getting to be a boy!

*Amaia was super sad, so this was my attempt to cheer her up:

Me (very dramatically): Why didn't you tell me I looked scary (i.e. no make up on)?

Amaia: I didn't tell you because I was screaming and crying and whining!

*Amaia was yelling out the back window at all the ducks swimming behind our house.

Amaia says: I'm scaring the duckies. Hold still-I don't want anybody to move. No talking, no farting, and no talking-I'm going to yell!

*Amaia was nursing her stuffed horse and she says: He's drinking from my booby! He's zoo thirsty. He's drinking milk-or apple juice, or orange juice, or water melon, or lemonade.

*This one's more of a 'kids do', but have you seen the part in the July video where I cry for a doctor and Amaia 'pumps' medicine out of that little piece on that stool? Well, one time I cried for a doctor, and Amaia said NO. So Solia runs to the stool, flips the little piece a couple times, and then comes and 'gives' me the medicine by full on smacking me on the face over and over.

*One day I was throwing a fit about something, so Amaia says to me: You need to chill out! Do you even hear yourself?? We do not yell in this house!! (It was quite an eyeopener, and I was immediately over whatever it was I was yelling about because it was just so funny!)

*I usually take my ring off when I type on the computer, because it slides over and the diamond rests in between my fingers and it's annoying. Amaia came up and grabbed it off the keyboard and asked if I wanted my ring. After I put it back on, Amaia says : Now you love daddy again, because you have your ring on!

*Amaia: I need to get in my bed and take a biiig breath so I can get all the tired out. I'm so tired and I need to get all the tired out of my mouth!

August 2011-1st Half

I know it's been almost a month since I updated this blog. I've been trying to catch up, but ever since Justin got home from Texas and brought back the Elder Scrolls: Skyrim game, I've been doing nothing but playing after the girls go to bed.....yikes. So it's December, and I'm just now doing the first August post. Maybe I'll get caught up one day and then I'll be able to stay caught up? One can hope, anyways.

Solia:

*She can point to what she wants now or where she wants to go, and grunts as she points

*Solia can sign: wash hands

*She's actually gotten attached to her Roosky (her Kanga doll that we are NOT going to call Kanga) and Blankey-one day for her nap, I laid her in her bed and placed her Roosky and Blankey next to her, but a couple inches away. She sat up and grabbed them and then laid down hugging them.

*She tries to say food but isn't quite there yet

*She says Yes by grunting

*When Justin and Solia do the whole 'neeeerom bonk' thing that Justin used to do with Amaia, Solia will lean her head in and go "aaaaah ba!"

*Solia loves combing/brushing her hair, and brushes it from the back of her head up over the top

*Solia gets really excited when Justin comes home from work, or when he comes back from another room-she giggles and squeals but still won't let him hold her

*Solia LOVES birds. Have I mentioned that? Every time we go to the harbor, she loves to chase the flock of pigeons around, but as soon as she sees someone who is not Mom, she freaks out and runs away.

*She likes to help clean up if she sees you putting something away

*Solia can make a fish kiss face

*She'll always try to call you on the phone and starts grunting like crazy if you don't start talking back to her

Here are some photos of the girls together-really not as many now that we aren't doing the 365 project. I'm glad it's over though-it was a lot of work.


So right at the end of this 'post' (fortnight? haha) we had some visitors, Frederic and Estelle Kaiser. They came to visit us from Switzerland. Justin met him when they were assistants to the Mission President on their missions in Buenos Aires. You can see them in a goofy self photo in the bottom right below (sorry! That's the best pic I have of you guys....if you ever read this...):

I had to post that cool guard pic twice for Justin. He spent a lot of time taking this photo at Buckingham Palace and then post processing that photo to make it awesome. And it is awesome. But I digress.

Ok, I guess here is another photo of Kaiser (as we all called him), but we were really using him as a 'cover' to sneak this photo of the cops in the background while we had a picnic at Greens Park

Here are some photos of Amaia:

Amaia:

*Whenever Amaia runs around humming or singing random sounds, it's always to the tune of "Book of Mormon Stories"

*Amaia likes to have Justin crank the music up loud when they drive in the car

*Amaia is officially no longer napping. For now it's been pretty bad, since she's still waking up early and going to bed at the same time. Hopefully she'll adjust.

*So, it turns out that Amaia really likes Salmon Sashimi (raw sushi). Justin and Amaia went to the mall for their second Daddy Amaia night and had some and I guess she really likes it....

*Whenever Amaia sees a picture of anything, she always points and goes "That's where we went!"....it all started with a picture of the Eiffle Tower (that we really did visit with Justin's parents) and it just kind of evolved

*If Amaia is talking about yesterday, or sometime previous, she always says "a long weeks ago"

*Apparently, Justin is Eugene and all 3 of us girls are Rapunzel. And Amaia calls us all by 'name' all the time

*Amaia's started telling us that "that's really annoying".

*Amaia apologizes for everything "sorry sorry I'm so sorry sorry"

*She likes to take the toy shopping cart and goes to "moo" the lawn.

*The different scenes in a movie are called "pages" to Amaia, but the title page of a book is called the "menu"

*Solia still calls every one dada, and it makes Amaia mad. When Solia calls her dada Amaia will yell "it's UH MY UH!"

*Amaia is officially in her first full fledged Disney Princess Craze. Something I swore I was never going to do was let my girls get into all the princess crap. Oops. She's got the DVD, a whole set of Tangled character figurines that Justin bought at the mall for her, which came with a huge Tangled poster (currently hanging on the wall, along with the 3-D card from the DVD box) and she calls us all by our "Tangled" names all the time...

Here are some crafts that Amaia made-bubble printing, leaf printing, and her hand that she traced all by herself.