Fourth of July 2009

This year, Mom and Dad let me stay up to see some fireworks from our front yard! I think I had more fun with my glow in the dark puffer fish...


As usual, Uncle Fred and Grandpa KC came to visit for the holiday weekend. Here we are at a local zoo, Uncle Fred fed the goats for me because I was too scared!


We enjoyed all of the beautiful animals. Look at this peacock!

And, what's this? A sheep? Nooooo, that's Grandpa, silly!

Have you ever seen a camel this close? He almost licked us on the safari ride!

A beautiful zebra!

A family of deer...

A rhea mama and babies...

Grandpa and I enjoyed an afternoon stroll...watch out for the goose poop!

Happy Father's Day 2009

Here we are in a rare family shot all ready to go out for brunch for Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day, Daddy! And then, do you know what Dad wanted to do after brunch? Mom said we could do anything he wanted...and he chose going to Home Depot! That's okay because I got to drive the orange car!

Graduation Day 2009

Remember Graduation Day last year? Well, I can't believe a whole year has gone by already in the toddler room! Time to say goodbye to my teachers in the Ladybug room and hello to the new teachers in the Busy Bee room! I'll miss you!

Here I am at graduation. I would like to say that I sang all the songs we practiced with a smile, but instead, I cried as soon as I saw Mommy in the audience. =(

No more bah-bah (that's my pacifer!)

Dad said it was time everyone got to see my beautiful smile. That means no more pacifier for me!

I think that I actually have a lot more fun this way!

Stuck in Charlotte, NC

So our flight out of Charlotte back home was delayed...delayed...delayed...and then cancelled. We had to go to a hotel and spend the night. I was the only one with a change of clothes! Ewww! Mom had packed the exact number of diapers needed for my trip, so we had to run out a buy more of those, too!

I got to stay up 'til 11PM and then we all slept in one big bed.

Since our flight the next day was not until the afternoon, we went out to explore Charlotte. We rode the public transportation downtown!
We tried to go to the Discovery Place Children's Museum, but wouldn't you know, it was closed for the week for renovations. So we wandered around and someone told us about the Imaginon Children's Library. It's a really cool kids library with all kinds of interactive displays. Here I am playing in the trolley!

And then, finally, we made it home. Phew! Home Sweet Home!

Atlantis Day 9 - On our way home, or so we think...

This was one of my last days with the pacifier...but I didn't know it yet.


We wanted to make the most of our last day, so we set out for the beach early at around 7AM. Do you like my sunglasses?

I wanted to see the turtles one last time so we trekked all the way to the Beach Tower and then Mom and Dad tricked me into going on this lazy inner tube ride. I tried to remain calm. Mom wanted to go around again but I saw my stroller parked on the sidewalk where we entered the river and I started screaming, "My stroller! My stroller!" You can't pull a fast one on me, I know when we've been all the way around the block!

We wait for our final bus ride and I show Mom and Dad that I can swing like a monkey!

After a quick bath, we take a ride back to the airport. We passed by where Anna Nicole Smith is buried.

We take our first airplane ride to Charlotte, NC. This time, I dedcide I wanted to sit in my own seat and I buckle up!

We have a layover in Charlotte so we get a meal. Mom says Dad and I can go get a banana from the frozen yorgut place. Here is what I came back with. Mom wasn't really happy with Dad when she saw it.
This is when our adventure takes a downturn. We are at the Charlotte airport from 5PM til 9PM, when we finally decide that the plane is never taking off (I am asleep in my stroller). So we leave with no luggage for a nearby hotel to spend the night. I'm the only one that has a change of clothes!

Atlantis Day 8 - I'm a real beach bum

Ok, ok, I know what you're thinking...how long is this vacation? But today is our last full day so we try to make the most of it at the beach and the pool. But first, a flashback...

This photo was taken on March 11, 2005 when Mom and Dad took a cruise that stopped in the Bahamas. This is the Atlantis beach...

So this time, Mom drew the same heart on the beach here...with one addition...

I'm now a pro at destroying sand mounds as fast as Dad can make them.

Look, I carved a sea turtle in the sand! Just kidding...Mom did it. I helped dig the whole, though!

Then we hit the pool area but this 4-yr old Brit named Isabella kept trying to take my toys. This is the face I gave her.

Atlantis Day 7 - Are we tan yet?

I forgot to show you this from yesterday. Dad and Mom brave some of the water slides while I cheer them on! That's Dad! He made a big splash at the bottom!

Here I am showing Dad which hotel room is ours! It feels like home now...

I have really grown up a lot this week...like learning to enterain myself while we eat out so that Mom and Dad can enjoy a meal for more than 17.5 minutes.

I even venture out after dark now! Like the big kids do!

Atlantis Day 6 - More of Everything!

What a beautiful sunrise on Day 6 of our vacation! We are never going home, right, Mom and Dad?


I am in love with the fish tanks in "The Big Dig" inside of the Royal Towers. So we go back and say hi to some friends!

Fish really do swim in schools!

I'm pretty comfortable around the resort now. Here I am resting in the lobby of the Coral Towers.

Here I am jamming with the Carribean band in the Harborside Village.

Here I am riding the bus that takes us from tower to tower around the resort. "Come on, Mama and Daddy, we're gonna catch the bus!"

Atlantis Day 5 - More Exploring

Phew, what a morning! Oh, you didn't know everything from the post below happened before noon? We were busy! But now, it's nap time back at the room.


For dinner that night, we ate at Johnny Rockets. See my hat?



I like to stick cheerios on my fingers so I can be like a red-eyed tree frog. They have sticky suction cups for toes. (I learned this from watching "Go, Diego, Go!")

Here I am having a mini slider. Looks like a full size burger when I'm holding it, huh?

Here we are at the famous Golden Chair of Atlantis. Okay, it's just a way for them to try and sell you a photo. But still cool!

At that's it, it's finally time to call it a day! Good night, folks!

Atlantis Day 5 - Exploring the Resort

On Saturday, the resort was crowded with "tourists" but we braved the crowds and went exploring. There is so much we haven't seen yet! I will show you a few highlights here...it doesn't even begin to cover everything we saw!

First, we went through an underground cave and saw schools and schools of fish!


What a GIANT fish you are!



Then we found a tunnel through a tank of sharks! We saw a hammerhead and more!

Here I am kissing a statue of a dolphin, to make up for not hugging the real one yesterday.

Then we went to explore the bridges and waterfalls. Here is the biggest rope bridge I have ever been on! Okay, it's the only rope bridge I've ever been on and it kept shaking...hey, wait, that was just Dad bouncing up and down. Cut it out, Dad!

Then we tried out the beach at the other side of the island. Whoa!

Atlantis Day 4 - Dolphin Cay

Mom has been telling me for a month that I am going to get a chance to "hug a dolphin!" I have been executing this order faithfully by hugging all the stuffed dolphins in all the gift shops, but apparently this is not quite what Mom means. So, today, we are hugging real dolphins.

First, I don a wetsuit. Ok, ok, not willingly. But Mom insists.

Then we watch a short video (during which I dozed off, not a good omen for school, Dad says). We go into the shallow water for our interaction.

Well...ok...I know you don't want to hear this. But I get splashed by the dolphin with some salt water and I start to cry. So Dad takes me out of the water and I don't finish the interaction. I did not, in fact, "hug the dolphin." Maybe we'll try again later in the week. But the people there felt so bad for me that they let us get a private tour of the behind the scenes areas and their sea lion habitat.

This is where they prepare the fish and keep track on a board of how many pounds each dolphin eats.

Here are the sea lions, which are not on view to the public unless you schedule an interaction.

All in all, a fun day!