Oh, the places a kid can sleep

So when preparing for nap the other day, it was a little odd and out of the oridinary. First, Elaina wanted to put her pajamas on.  So, I thought, "what the heck, she is going to sleep so pajamas are fitting."  Then, she did not put up too much of a battle to go down which was unsual too.  Erik and I were downstairs.  Erik walked up the steps to find her right here....

Why the cup??? We have no idea either.

Sleeping like a baby.  She must have known all along she was going to sneak out and try to sleep right there.  That is why she didn't put up a fight at all.  In case you were wondering, I put her back in her bed so she would not roll down the steps.

Pepto Bismol

This blog is not what you think it's about.... It's about the adventure we had last weekend painting Elaina's room. And what color do you think that was...... (drum roll).........pink. Yes, ladies and gentleman, pink. And when I say it's pink, I mean it's PINK. But, it's is so adorable. I love it and Elaina REALLY loves it. Here are some pics of the room

Here is the room.  I don't have everything all done or anything back on the walls but I will soon

Strike a pose

Here is where the Pepto Bismol part comes in.....  Erik kept telling me it was Pepto Bismol pink and I kept disagreeing.  We color matched it to her bedspread so I just knew it couldn't be that pink.  Well, when were were done, Erik went to get the bottle of Pepto and guess what, he was right (contrary to popular belief, I can admit when I am wrong).  It's hard to tell from this picture but it truly is EXACTLY the same color pink as the bottle.  Kind of funny

She did it!!!

So, I've posted in the past about how Elaina is a bit freaked out by Splash pads.  Well, last Friday we went with some friends to the New Harvest Park splash pad and Elaina LOVED it.  The water splashes are smaller and more suitable for little kids so she was not freaked out by it.  In fact, she did not want to leave.  Here are some shots of the fun:

Action shot.....running through the water

The whole gang....  Isaac, Olivia, and Elaina (Sarah is in the back but you can't see her very well)

Elaina and Olivia riding the bee together

Isaac getting in on the action

I love this pic - she is running under the water.  She did this alot.

Elaina and her friend Olivia

She was all smiles - I love this picture of her

This was a big hit for the kids- they were "washing thier hair" in the sprinklers.  A few of them got a nose full of water but they were unphased by it and kept on going.

A pool funny

So, the other day while Elaina and I were getting ready to go to the pool, she said:

"There are no somebodies at the pool, mommy"
That means - "There is no one at the pool, mommy"
I thought that was cute and blog worthy :)

And speaking of the pool, I took some pics of our adventure to the pool (again).

She is all about swimming by herself using her arm floaties.

And she loves to jump off the top step into the pool. This is her jumping in (mid jump)

She also likes to float on her back with the floaties- well, she sort of does. Very good effort.

This is how she rides to and from the pool - in the wagon with her snack and shades. This girl knows how to roll :)

Happy Birthday Erik/Daddy!!!!

Yesterday was Erik's birthday. I took off work a little bit early and picked up Elaina so we could surprise him with some birthday cookies. They weren't anything that special, just break and bake cookies but we decorated them. Erik was surprised and enjoyed them. Elaina had a great time decorating them. Take a look:

She's ready....

I am 100% sure that she ate more icing then what she put on the cookies. Evidence.Sprinkles - her favorite part, right behind eating the icing.

Not the prettiest cookies.....But, made with love....

We surprised Erik yesterday with the cookies. Now, it's time to surprise him with this clip that he has not seen yet....

We love you Erik (Daddy)!! You are the greatest and hope you enjoyed your day!

America's Favorite Pastime

This past Saturday we went to see the Knoxville Smokies play baseball. My mother in law's company picnic was held there so she got us all tickets to go have dinner and watch the game. It was Elaina's first official baseball game. She was not that into the baseball part but there was a lot for the kids to do in terms of bounce house things, a big blow up slide, and swing set for her to play on. It was fun for her and for us. There was not a whole lot of baseball watching for me but overall, it was fun.

They gave out free hats - here is Elaina in hers while taking a swig of her drink-pretty adorable.

A pose with her daddy. The look on her face in this one cracks me up.

And now a normal smile....

The 3 E's at the game
They had face painting - Elaina chose to have them paint it on her arm.....
She called it her tatoo - here is Elaina and her cousin Brittany posing with their tattos (Brittany's is real - hopefully Elaina's never will be)
Brittany and Elaina chillin with their feet up. Elaina was really starting to wear down
Such a sweet pose with her mammaw - this was taken about 5 minutes before we left. She was almost asleep in her mamaw's arms. She did fall asleep in my arms after this was taken so we left the game a bit early at that point.

And one final shot - this was her at dinner showing me her freckles.

Vacation

A week and a half ago, Erik and I went to Cancun for a week. It was fabulous. We were minus the littlest "E" and we missed her an aweful lot. But, she was home with her grandparents so she was in good hands and had a wonderful time with them. We actually did really well with missing her until Thursday. It hit me like a ton of bricks Thursday and I was ready to be home with her. But, it just made getting home to see her that much more special.

So, the reason we were there??? My cousin got married. So, we were there with many members of my family on my dad's side. It was fun - lots of sitting by the pool, reading, eating, drinking, and laughing went on. Erik played golf one day. I was going to snorkel but the weather was bad that day so they were taking anyone out. I opted for a massage instead. Don't you know I just hated that :)

I really enjoyed spending the week with my dad and his family - I don't get to see my dad much and have not been on a vacation with him in I can't tell you how long so that was nice.

As you can see, this place was a real dump....I can't believe my aunt and uncle would set us up in such a place.

There were many family poses taken since that what you do on vacation - you dress up each night for dinner and take pictures before you go... .evidently. This is my dad with me and my sister, Nell. My other sisters could not come.Nell, Dad, me, Brenda, and SeanMe and Erik...

These next two shots are just because... my dad wore this thing on his head all week - why?? because he is alabaster in color and didn't want to burn his head.

Why?? because when your laying by the pool under a palapa, what else are you going to do??
The reason for going to Cancun... my cousin, Andy, and his now wife, Katie. They are completely adorable. I just liked this pic of the groom's wedding party - and my cousin Dylan who snuck in the pic

Dad and his two youngest after the wedding. The 1 day I got burned was the day I wore this dress. It looks weird but oh well.

And again....

Another pose from the happy couple - this was after the millionth meal we had eaten. While were were there my dad turned 61, I mean 16. We ordered a cake to be brought to the palapa

Pic of the cake - we lucked out with this cake. It was delicious. The other desserts we had were not so good. Mexican's don't eat dessert quite like we American's do.

Birthday Party

I am behind on my posts.....So, here we go.....

This year we had a low key b-day for Elaina. We just had a family birthday party. It was fun. Not much to report other then there was cake, presents, ice cream, and one excited 3 year old girl. What else do you want out of a birthday party??

Speaking of cake.... our dear friends, Carl and Sabrina, offered to make her cake this year. They made her cake on her first birthday too. They brought it over mostly constructed but had some assembly to do so it was a perfect project to enlist the help of Elaina on. She loved helping and it was cute to watch her do it.

Here is a pic of the cake they made on her first birthday...

Here is Elaina and Carl working on putting her 3rd b-day cake together...

Here she is helping Sabrina make her cupcakes for the top

And placing candles on top..

The final product. SO incredibly cute. BTW- Elaina picked this cake out from some books Sabrina had. It's pink - that's all Elaina cared about was that her birthday party was "pink."
Here are some pics of the b-day girl with her finished cake.

Once everyone got here, it was present opening time..Needless to say, she was thrilled about this. This is her opening her princess soccer ball. My dad, who is an avid lover of soccer, was thrilled she got this - NOT.

All smiles....

After everyone left, Erik and I realized we did not give her her big gift from us - her scooter. DUH!! We completely forgot - what were we thinking?? So, we brought it down after everyone left. She love this thing and rides it all the time.
She did not get a nap that day so this was her during dinner.. She was actually eating with her eyes closed. I just kept shoveling it in and she would open her mouth and chew - eyes closed the entire time. It was very funny.

Thanks to all our family for coming to spoil Elaina on her b-day. She had a wonderful time and loves you all so much

And, a special thanks to Carl and Sabrina for the cake! You guys are amazing friends and so special to us... and great cake decorators/bakers :)