Sadie's Birthday Party

I spent the week before Sadie's birthday talking to her about birthdays and reading her a book about a birthday party in an attempt to prepare her. Juan and I were really excited for her birthday this year.  We woke her up singing Happy Birthday which made her grin from ear to ear. 

The theme for the party was "Down on the Farm" since she loves animals so much.  We hired a petting zoo to entertain the 20 some kids.  We were debating about having it but in the end we are so glad we went for it!  The family Juan found on Cragslist who runs the zoo does it on the side with farm animals they rescued and now raise on their farm!  This made it way more affordable for us and what a great cause to support.  Here are some pictures from Sadie's birthday party.  

Matus, Tata and Sadie hanging out before the guests arrived

She was a little nervous petting the animals at first...

 

...but by the end of it she was running around on her own!

Having fun with Babcia...

...and Maddy

She was so excited about her cake and candles but like last year she was a bit shy and overwhelmed with all the attention (there were 30 people waiting for her reaction).  She kind of looked down the whole time.

I love our little family :)  

Giving Tio Lou a kiss

PRESENT TIME!

 Helping Abuela take the plastic off

 All in all she had a fabulous party! She got a lot of nice things.  Thanks to everyone for their generosity.

"Mammy"

For those of you who don't know, I have been watching my niece Maddy (or "Mammy" as Sadie has affectionately nicknamed her) a couple times a week for about a year now.  She and Sadie have taken to each other pretty well...although Maddy is such a friendly girl I can't imagine her not liking anyone :)  When Maddy was little, Sadie used to greet her with waves, kisses and shouts of excitement.  She's not as enthusiastic anymore, but I think deep down she's glad to have a friend over to play with.  ;)  Here are some old pictures of Maddy and Sadie on a typical day.

Watching Elmo

Sadie loved caring for Maddy.  Here she is helping with a diaper change.

Giving her the paci

Feeding

 Putting on her socks

Telling a story...CUTE!

This one's sweet and makes me giggle.  Poor Maddy took her kisses like a champ!

Twinkies

Now that Maddy's getting older, they play more together and have more common interests.  One of their favorite things to do together is watch Baby Einstein's Water Neptune video and have a snack after naps.  They also enjoy riding the wagon together to the park, jumping on the bed, and hiding from Lola in the blow-up castle.

  Hugs...

 and kisses

 It's not all fun and games though...she's learning to survive all of Sadie' violent "affections"

Still smiling.  What a sport!

Her last day before turning 1

 

  Maddy recently started taking her first steps.  Yay Maddy!

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAMMY!  You are one of the sweetest and cutest little girl's around.

Great America and the Dells

Welp, I know I promised pictures of our adventures at Great American and the Dells, but after going through my pictures I realized I barely had any!  We must have been having a blast and forgot about taking pictures.  :)

We got free tickets to Great America with Juan's ex-employer (yep that's right, Juan got a new job!).  All I can remember about the day is that it was really hot and we spent most of the time at the water park in the lazy river.

Papi and his girl on the train

Me and my girl on the train (if you look close, Sadie has an airbrush tattoo of Hello Kitty on her arm)

Juan got a great deal for a weekend getaway to the Dells.  Sadie did well in the car and passed the time by watching episodes of Sid the Science Kid.

Her reward for being a good girl in the car...a lollipop that she devoured in like 3 minutes.

Headed to the water park first!

Warming up in the sun.

 Papi took us out for dinner.

We also took a tour through the Dells Glacial Park on the famous Dells Ducks.  The "ducks" are amphibious vehicles that travel on land or water.  It was our favorite part of the trip.  

Sippin on a smoothie before the ride.

When we got in the lake Juan stuck his hand out to show Sadie the water and Sadie pulled it back in because she was afraid for him!  It was so sweet.

We visited my aunt and uncle on the way back home.  What a treat it was to spend some time with them.  They are two of the most strong and loving people I know. 

Happy Birthday Sadie!

My little girl is turning 2 today!

Hope you enjoy your day!  Love, Mommy and Papi

Summer Fun

Ahhh!  I seriously cant believe summer is almost over!  Or is it already?  When I was a child summer seemed to last forever.  Now it comes and goes like the blink of an eye.  We've had such a fun-filled summer, but sadly, for those of you who didn't know, our home was burglarized a few weeks back and one of the items taken was my laptop with ALL my pictures.  And no, *deep sigh* I didn't back them up.  I thought about it a week prior to the burglary but was too lazy to do so and now I'm really kicking myself for it.  :(  But I'm thankful for this blog and all the pictures I can reference back to. 

Sadie is growing like a weed and talking so much!  She's speaking a mix of Polish and English, picking whichever word is easier to pronounce (ex:  "ball" or "pileczka").  She's got attitude like no other and has become quite a picky eater - according to my Mom she gets that from me...the picky eater part, not the attitude ;)  She loves watermelon and popcorn and I can get her to do just about anything for a popsicle or candy (yes, I bribe my child!). She's getting braver and more confident in her physical abilities, and although she's cautious in her explorations, she's like a mountain goat climbing over every possible obstacle, from couch to crib, our backyard fence to kitchen counter.  She's determined to clime!  She's polite, but not patient.  Shy, but not uncaring.  She loves when people sing and often makes up little ditties herself.  She repeats everything, drinks water from a hose, and thinks it's gross when Papi farts "Ewwww Papi!  Yucky!".

Some of her favorite past times this summer included:  

finger painting
bike rides

pool days in the back yard with Maddy and other friends

going to the park

walks with Lola 
jumping on the trampoline with Matus
and swim class

Speaking of swim class, here's our little graduate!

 Enjoying her favorite... White Cheddar Popcorn

 My little girl!

  Early morning family bonding

  In the garden...

 She can put her underwear on but just doesn't get that it goes "under" your clothes :)

Did I mention Sadie is shoe-crazy?  I went to Payless last week to exchange a pair and she was running up and down the aisles having a field day trying them on!

Precious

Also, Rachel lived with us for 10 days at the begining of the summer as she prepared to move to London.  Well, she's still preparing for her big move, but I'm not complaining.  That just gives us more time to hang out as much as possible.  It was such a special time for me to live with her under the same roof again and I will always cherish the day she played hookey and we talked about what bushes to plant in my backyard and spanking children.  I am so fortunate to have spent that time with her.  She's truly the bestest friend a girl can have.  She's kind, generous, and has amazing badass hair.  God has been good to me, and if Sadie has a friend half as good she'll consider herself a lucky girl. 

And...I turned 30 this summer and had the best birthday yet!  I was so blessed by Juan, my friends and my family for painstakingly planning 2 surprise parties for me.  You guys put a lot of time and effort into making the parties so wonderful.  Thank you!  I am humbled that you guys would go to so much trouble for me.  I feel so loved!  

It's been a great summer, but I'm not done yet.  Next up is our trip to the Dells and Great America.