Brooke's 5th Birthday

Brooke's 5th Birthday
Originally uploaded by Joni7

Our dear Brooke has turned into such an amazing big girl. She turned 5 on April 6th and had an amazing time celebrating her birthday with her friends and her Nana who flew in for 3 weeks from North Carolina to help take care of everyone while Rob recuperates from shoulder surgery.

To commemorate her big day, we bought Brooke a new 'big girl' trundle bed complete with rainbow & butterfly bedding.

Christmas came and went too fast!

We spent a nice Christmas in Santa Barbara this year. The kids really enjoyed all the activities leading up to the holiday. Brooke and her dad went to the Christmas parade which is always fun. Brooke danced as a little flower in the Nutcracker Suite. We went to the Museum of Natural History where they had a big snow festival (with fake snow since the weather was a balmy 70 degrees!). And we made yummy Christmas cookies which seemed to disappear really fast. Our friends Julie and Paul spent Christmas with us along with their little boy Andrew who's just a little younger than Paige. It was great having a houseful of kids. Click the link to go to my flickr page to see even more pictures!

Merry Go Round time

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Originally uploaded by Joni7
Brooke and Paige enjoyed the merry go round on the beach in SB this weekend. Brooke insisted mommy hold her the whole time. Paige, on the other hand, was ready to race!

Hula Girl

Brooke went to a birthday party recently that featured Hula dancers. She had a blast.

15 months old and on the run!

Paige turned 15 months old this month and has figured out how to run. And now that she can, that's just the way she 'rolls'. She also seems to think that "come here" = "run away" and is constantly laughing while trying to outrun us.

Paige's first haircut

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

My sister only trimmed her bangs (Paige wouldn't sit still for more than that!) but this is her official first hair cut! Brooke also got a trim.

Sisters

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

Can't you just see how much these two love each other?!? This is one of my all-time favorite pics.

Paige turns one!

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Originally uploaded by Joni7
Paige's birthday was supposed to be celebrated with her Grandma and Grandpa Rafalski and Aunt Sooz from Indiana but due to the Santa Barbara wild fire, we had to cancel their trip. So the birthday celebration was a bit subdued, but Paige had a great time nonetheless. She's walking now and saying a few words. Her favorite word is 'Dada'. She yells it at the top of her lungs while looking for her daddy. She's definitely a daddy's girl.

We survived the Jesusita fire!

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Originally uploaded by Joni7
The Jesusita Fire is an ongoing wildfire that began on May 5, 2009 in the hills of Santa Barbara, California. As of May 9, the fire had burned 8,733 acres. We were evacuated on Thursday, May 7th. We stayed in Montecito that night and then in Ventura until Sunday, May 10th, when the evacuation orders were lifted.

Here's an image that shows the partial fire lines. The small blue image is where our house is. The fire came about 1/8 of a mile from us. We're glad we are all safe and the house survived. The firefighters did an amazing job.

Who's 11 months old already?

I blinked and Paige is almost a year old! She's really changed this past month. She is starting to look less like a baby and more like a toddler. She is unstoppable... crawling after her big sister, walking along the furniture, and never sitting still.

She's gotten so big. She's bursting out of the 12-month clothes and will be ready for 18 month clothes before we know it.

She's also finally starting to sleep through the night. Not every night, mind you. But 3-4 times a week. I'll take what I can get. And I certainly can't get too upset about it... look how cute she is!!!

Brooke turns 4!

We celebrated Brooke's birthday with all of her friends by throwing a big party at My Gym. Brooke's princess castle cake was magnificent! She had such a good time.

She's such a big kid now and is learning so much so fast. She's like a sponge. She's very interested in knowing how words are spelled and likes to read books. She is also quite a storyteller. But her favorite activity is playing dress up. We gave her lots of dress-up clothes for her birthday and she is loving it!

Paige is signing and crawling (10 months old)

Paige recently started using sign language for more. Today she used it when Rob was flipping her over. She also seems to understand "no" ... but often chooses to ignore it.

She started crawling 2 weeks ago and is getting into everything. She's a lot different than Brooke was at this age; Paige is much more physically adventurous. I see lots of bumps and scrapes in her future.

Battered in Breckenridge

Don't let this wonderful picture fool you. During this trip, Paige and Joni suffered bouts of a stomach bug and Rob managed to fall on his face while skating and got 7 stitches just hours before our flight home. Just when we thought it couldn't get any worse, we almost missed our flight, Joni lost her purse and someone accidentally took one of our suitcases when we finally landed. But we did manage to squeeze in some fun like sledding. The snow was beautiful. Hopefully we'll have better luck next time we visit.

Paige's first snow

Paige's first snow
Originally uploaded by Joni7
Paige celebrated turning 9 months old by enjoying her first snow ever in Breckenridge, Colorado. She just started waving and saying "mama" and "dada". And she's sooo close to crawling! What a happy girl she is!

Trying on ski clothes

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

In preparation for our trip to Breckenridge, Brooke tried on some ski clothes that one of our friends is lending us. She's ready for the slopes!

8 months and teething

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

In addition to 2 teeth on the bottom and one on top, Paige has 3 teeth on top all coming in at the same time. I was lucky to get a picture of her without the usual drool.

She's now sitting up all by herself and likes to stand and walk with her daddy holding her up.

What is this thing?!?

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

Paige contemplates her first cookie. She's not quite sure what to make of it. I thought it would feel good on her gums since she has a new tooth coming in.

Candy Cane Train

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Originally uploaded by Joni7
Brooke got to ride a special candy cane train with her dad... Can you tell that she dressed herself for the occassion?

7 months old and sitting pretty!

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

Paige is finally sitting up all by herself. Here she is with big sister Brooke by the Christmas tree. They are ready for Santa!

Maybe it's the hat?

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

Both of the girls look pretty darn dorky. Thank goodness Christmas just comes once a year!

Whose baby is this?

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Originally uploaded by Joni7
She certainly doesn't look like my sweet, adorable Paige!

1/2 a year!

It's hard to believe Paige is already 6 months old. She just keeps getting cuter and happier every day. I basically do nothing but kiss her chubby cheeks when I'm with her.

Paige's new chair

Since she's nearly outgrown her bouncy seat, we got Paige a Bumbo. She loves it! Also, if you look closely, you'll see one of her new teeth. She's about ready for some solid food!

Fractured Clavicle!

Poor little Brookie fell off a bench at preschool and fractured her collarbone. She's being a trooper, though. Here she is sporting her little sling that's supposed to keep her arm from moving around too much. Now if only I could keep the rest of her from moving around!

P.S. Notice the amazing sunset sky in the background... Brooke declared it a miracle!

5 months old and growing

Better late than never. Here is Paige looking cute as a button. I can't believe 5 months have come and gone already. We didn't know it when this picture was taken, but Paige was teething. She now has 2 pearly whites popping through her bottom gum.

4 months old already?!?

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

Yep, Paige turned 4 months old this week. That means mom's maternity leave is almost over . Paige will start daycare with Brooke on Monday. Mom will start having massive guilt at that same time.

Although many babies start sleeping through the night at this point, Paige has decided to wake up several times at night now. She's sleeping worse than she was when she was 2 months old!

I keep telling myself this will pass. And before we know it, she'll be asking for the car keys.

Grandparents and Granddaughters all together finally!

We traveled by car, bus and plane to Indiana to visit Joni's family. It was the first time all of the granddaughters were together. Joni's parents were thrilled. Lots of pics were taken. Check them out on flickr.

3 months old and cuter than ever!

Paige is the happiest 3 month old I've ever seen. She smiles all the time and just lights up the room she's in.

No pink girly bikes for this one!

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

Rob took Brooke out today to pick out a "big girl bike" now that her trike is too small. She insisted on having a blue bike but the only ones the bike store had were boys' mountain bikes so that's what she went with. No pink girly bikes for this one!

Pinata and Purse

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Originally uploaded by Joni7
Joni's company held a Fiesta party. All of the kids took turns batting the pinata, including Brooke all dressed up in her floppy hat and princess purse. Viva la Fiesta!

2 months young!

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

Paige turns 2 today and she's growing like a weed! She's gained 3 pounds and grown 2 inches in the past month. She's smiling like crazy and is a very happy little girl.

Birthday Cupcakes

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

My birthday was on Monday. We celebrated with these awesome cupcakes (which Brooke has insisted upon for all of our birthdays now). If only Paige had given me a good night sleep for my birthday, that would've been perfect! Hah!

Paige hits one month

I don't know where the time has gone but Paige turns one month old today. She's doing great... already holding her head up, smiling occassionally and being an easy baby, for the most part. Here she is in her bouncy chair watching her mom wash dishes.

Doctor Evil?

No... more like Chunky Monkey! Paige went to the doctor for her 3-week check-up. Imagine our surprise when the nurse said she weighs 9 pounds 4 ounces... that's a 1.5 pound gain in 2 weeks!!! She also grew an inch since birth. Grow, Paige, grow!

Visit from Grandma and Grandpa Rafalski

Grandma, Grandpa and Aunt Sooz flew to Santa Barbara to see their California granddaughters. Brooke had a ball entertaining them with her shenanigans.

Front Paige News

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

I received the best Mother's Day gift in the world when Paige Frances Hoadley entered the world. She was born at 9:56 a.m. on Sunday, May 11th and is seen here in the spotlight for the first time ever!

First visit to the dentist

Don't let this picture fool you. Brooke's first trip to the dentist wasn't all grins and giggles. She refused to sit in the chair by herself and had to be held down by mommy and the dentist in order for her to take a look inside Brooke's mouth. Let's hope she doesn't get any cavities any time soon!

One month and counting

Brooke and mommy are very excited to meet baby girl #2. One more month to go!

Birthday Girl

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

Brooke turned 3 yesterday. We celebrated with all of her friends at the park with pizza, cake, and a huge Nemo bounce house.

Where's my sister?

Brooke gives her baby sister a little rub. She is very protective of her. The other day, it was raining. As we were getting out of the car, Brooke said "Hurry, mommy... my baby sister is going to get wet!"

Big girl, big changes

For Christmas this year, we're tackling potty training. Since Brooke and mommy are both home for an entire week, we think we can do it. Brooke's doing great so far. In fact, she has embraced being a "big girl" so much that she's decided she can't sleep in a crib anymore. So this is also the week of transitioning to a big girl bed... oh my!

Lots of loot!

It took almost 2 hours, but Brooke managed to open all of her Christmas presents finally. Her favorites are her new play kitchen and her blue guitar from Santa. Rock on!

Merry Christmas!

Brooke really got into the Christmas spirit this year. In addition to making cookies for Santa, she insisted that his reindeer like cupcakes. So we spent a couple of days in the kitchen baking lots of goodies.

Ho, Ho, Ho!

Eating strawberries

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

Brooke and cousin Emma enjoy a snack of fresh strawberries after a hard day of playing at the park.

Happy Girl

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

One of Brooke's favorite things is to run up and down the hall acting silly.

Brooke does yoga

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

Brooke's daycare teacher has started doing yoga with the kids. Brooke is so proud of herself. You should see her downward dog!

Brooke's Hot Boots

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

I'm about to give away her halloween costume, but Brooke will be wearing these cute boots as part of her Cowyboy costume later this month.

Ledbetter Beach

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Originally uploaded by Joni7

We enjoyed some fun in the sun after a dinner near the beach in Santa Barbara.

Too cool

Too cool
Originally uploaded by Joni7

Here's Brooke in her hip new hat playing at the park.