Our Little Angel

Cassidy is nearly 2 years old and we can't believe how much she's grown! She truly is our little angel! Cassidy has definitely increased her vocabulary! It's so fun to hear her talk. She loves to talk to her dolly, mama, dada, the moon,Odues (Oakley our dog), family, and to anyone else who will listen.

Some of her favorite words are: Applesauce, globe, mama sleeping, bye bye, ICE (as some family members know :),wata (water), night night, moon out, sun, ant, ball, bounce, fishy, camera, home, please, no tank-you, bath, potty, shoes, socks, gloves, hat, cousins, Annaleese (every little girl, is her friend Annalise),puzzle (knows her daddy's business), pillow, names of many animals but turtle is one of my favorites to hear her say, I can go on and on. If we ask her to say something she is pretty good at pronouncing the word. It's pretty amazing!

Cassidy also knows parts of her body very well of course eyes, ears, mouth, and nose, but also eyebrows, eyelashes, elbow, knee, bottom, tounge, neck, teeth, hair. She may start saying femur, cranium, fibula, humerus. :)

We haven't officially started our potty-training. Okay well, mommy hasn't. Cassidy has actually gone pee pee in the potty already once, (thanks to her cousins in Arizona) At this age they like to copy everything! Since then she is still very interested in sitting on the potty. So you think, that's great! Makes it easier on me, I know I need to get my butt in gear. Thank you Cassidy's cousins for your help. :) I guess I'm the only one that doesn't know what she's doing, and should just follow my daughter's lead. I'm open to any suggestions.

Cassidy loves to dance! We will turn on some music and immediately Cassie shakes her body. Sometimes she will tell us "come come" and get us dancing too. It's a fun family event!

We love to hear her say a prayer and it's so cute how she will now close her eyes and bow her head. And of course scream Amen with excitement at the end.

She's learning her ABC's and loves the letter "A" she'll point to every letter "A" that she sees on pictures or in her name. It's great! I think I'm going to need to give her some more challenges.

It's so much fun to be a part of her learning experiences, and to watch her grow. She's got such a sweet disposition and sillyness about her. She sure knows how to have fun and keep things light hearted. And she always wants to be part of the action, for example, for dinner tonight she insisted on helping daddy cook. It was so cute to watch Derek be so patient with her as she would find her own way of doing things. But together they made a great team, and the meal was a success!

Celebrating with Daddy

After a wonderful trip to Arizona we were excited to be back home with Daddy! Cassidy fell asleep as soon as we landed. I just pushed her in her stroller as she slept. She finally woke up as we were waiting for the luggage at the baggage claim. Daddy was the first thing she saw and had to be in his arms, as fast as she could get out of the stoller. It was so sweet.

The following day Derek took the day off from work and we just played! We went to Pump it Up (an indoor playground). And then after dinner we went out for dessert to a Fondue Restaurant, the Melting Pot. It was delicious! Everything is good dipped in chocolate. :) It was a fun day being together again!

Family Time in Arizona

It was so special for Cassidy to be able to play and have fun with her cousins! We had a wonderful time just hanging out between the wedding and baby blessing celebrations. Cassidy sure kept up with all of her cousins especially being the only girl of 15 grandchildren. Cassidy was so spoiled with so much love and attention from those sweet boys and of course from the rest of the family, her aunts and uncles and grandparents. She couldn't think of anything more than to play, play, and play.

Another fun time was my dad growing out his beard, finding the perfect Santa suit, and playing Santa. He had to be the closest thing to the real deal. Cassidy walked right up to him with her arms stretched out for a big hug. It was so adorable! Thank you Santa for a memorable experience!

By the time we got home Cassidy went right back to her same old routine, NAPS. Thank goodness! :) Thank you all for taking such good care of us! We love you and miss you tons!

Cutie Patooties

Since most of the family were together for Dave's wedding we also had the chance to be a part of our nephew's baby blessing. Jess (Angie's sister) and Jon are new, happy parents of twin boys. They were born September 30th. Aren't Karsten and Adon so cute! It was so fun to hold them and to give them lots of kisses. Congratulations Jess and Jon, you're such good parents!

Dave & Brianna's Wedding

Cassidy and I flew to Arizona for my brother's wedding, after Christmas. Even though Cassidy and I were going to be away from Daddy, we appreciated the opportunity to spend time with family for the weekend.

Dave and Brianna are the perfect match! It's fun to see them so in love. They asked Cassidy to be their flower girl. The dress Cassidy wore was the same dress Brianna wore when she was a flower girl for her aunt's wedding. Pretty special! Cassidy had fun being the flower girl and thought she had to pick up the flower petals and put them back in the basket. I do teach her to pick up after herself. :) She loved being escorted by her handsome cousin McKay. And Samuel (another cousin), was the adorable ring bearer. They were so cute and all did a great job! The sweetest part during the ceremony was seeing my brother cry, he just couldn't keep it in when he saw his bride for the first time. Tough Dave wasn't so tough. :)

After the ceremony, the reception followed. We had a great time eating some good food, dancing, and laughing through the night. It was a wedding full of humor, with many surprises and a special guest. Elvis decided to join the party. :) Brianna's a huge fan! Then, Dave surprised my mom during the "Mother and Son dance" with Spanish music instead of the traditional slow song. It was the best gift he could have given our mom. She sure has some dancing feet! We're so happy for you guys and so excited to have Brianna part of our family. Congratulations Dave and Brianna, We love you!






McKay, Cassidy, & Samuel







my brother Doug, my sister Jess

A little look on our Christmas Holidays :)

Make a scrapbook - it's easy!

The Nativity

This Sunday after Church, Cassidy and Derek were playing in the basement and made a little shelter by placing a blanket between two couches. Cassidy loved crawling thru the "tunnel". The little cave reminded us of the stable of the first Christmas. Derek got this crazy idea that we should all dress up and play out the nativity in our home.

So, while Cassidy took her nap, we got together some costumes and props. We fancied up the stable set with a box and blanket for a manger. Derek even cut out a little star and had a hidden flashlight shine on it. Then when Cassidy woke up, we all put on our costumes and put on our Nativity production. It was a blast! Cassidy played the part of Mary and rode Oakley to the stable. She put her most prized possesion, her dolly, in the manger. Oakley then transitioned roles to a shepherd - a role that comes natural for most Australian Shepherds. Angie was dressed as an angel and appeared to us. Derek played a wise man and brought the baby Jesus a little treasure box. We then sat in the stable/cave and retold the Christmas story. It was quite touching as we imagined being there at Christ's birth. The moment was nice while it lasted - then Cassidy wanted to climb inside the manger box or on top of the stable. All-in-all a fun way to remember the true meaning of Christmas. Mad props to Derek for the idea.

 

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Show Credits:

Mary:	Introducing Cassidy in her first lead role.
Baby Jesus:	"Dolly"
Joseph:	Daddy
Shepherds:	Daddy & Oakley
Wiseman:	Daddy
Angel:	Mommy
Mary's Donkey:	Oakley
Stable animals:	Oakley
Director:	Mommy
Costume Design:	Mommy
Best Boy Grip:	Daddy

Could it be Dasher? or Prancer? Comet or Cupid...

I was able to take Cassidy to go see one of Santa's famous reindeer. Okay maybe she wasn't so famous. Her name was Chase and we spent some time with her at the public library. The children were able to feed her apples and carrots. Cassidy loves animals and enjoyed this opportunity to get up close.

We got Elfed! :)

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9631424109

This was so much fun, thanks to all who have passed it on, we enjoyed the fun entertainment of seeing you all being dancing little elves. We had to do it too. :)

Let it snow...Let it snow...Let it snow

We woke up Sunday morning to a beautiful Winter Wonderland. The snow was so sparkly. I love the way the trees look covered with snow. It's just a beautiful sight! We had to take some pictures after church.

These last couple of days we have been playing in the snow and making snow angels. Of course Cassidy's little heart was content with eating the snow. :)