This was NOT funny.

We got a package yesterday from my sister Holly. When we opened it up, guess what we found? A DEAD PUPPY. The kids were so sad / freaked out about it, that Rich had to go buy a live puppy to get them to stop rolling around on the floor crying.
So now we have a puppy. Her name is Moldie.

Bwahahaha

My evil plan is working. I've been collecting lots of the books I enjoyed when I was little and some other books that have been recommended by others. I just wanted to have them around the house.

I've tried to interest Sarah in a few books (we're talking longer chapter books now), but she'll either read a chapter or two and lose interest or have me reading to her (which is fine too). She finally caught the bug though. Hehehe. She read two chapter books in a row, one last night and one this morning. It was so cute to see her wandering around the house completely absorbed in a book.

And the winner is...The Magic Treehouse books. We'd read the first two to/with her, but she read #3 and #4 all on her own.

I win!

Karen on Vacation

You'd think there wouldn't be too much to interest a toddler (who was afraid of characters) at Disneyland. But you'd be wrong. Disneyland has ducks.


Then there's the favorite game called "Does gravity still work?"

And running to get into the hotel bathroom whenever she wasn't being watched was fun too.

But, of course the Sea World animals were her favorites.

Noah on Vacation

Noah wasn't too thrilled with any ride remotely fast (although he made an exception for Pirates). He didn't want to talk to Mickey or any characters either. He did like tamish rides that weren't dark and pretend play things. And shooting things in the Buzz Lightyear ride and swords at the souvenir stands. And food.

Teacups, White Rabbit's house, & Escaping the Dog Pound

Sea World was more his speed. He liked the funny shows and looking at (but not touching) things.

Sarah at Sea World

No fear. After mastering the roller coaster, Sarah had no qualms about getting close to the wildlife at Sea World. She loved the tide pools and was inches away from climbing in the tank with the bat and manta rays.

Sarah at Disneyland

You know Disneyland is the little girl's fairy tale come true. And it's all about the princesses.

That long line waiting? Totally worth it. Sarah read Belle a story, chatted with Jasmine, and discussed hair with Cinderella. She was just eating up all the individual attention. Totally worth it.

She did mention that Ariel wasn't a real mermaid but someone dressed up.

It didn't stop her from telling Ariel that her favorite part of the movie was "When you got married." We all just love Happily Ever After. Don't you think?

And what goes better with Princesses than roller coasters? Sarah surprised us all by braving some faster rides--the Matterhorn, Space Mountain, and Indiana Jones. She said she wasn't scared about any of it, except the Abominable Snowman jumping out on the Matterhorn.

Disneyland! Yay!

Look! Things shaped like Mickey!
We must take pictures!

It was probably about time. We haven't ever really taken a family vacation outside of going to visit family. Sarah is in prime "Princess" mode, which probably won't last. So we took the kids to Disneyland and Sea World for a day each.

I still love Disneyland. I don't think that magic ever goes away.

(Picture--and lighting--courtesy of Sarah)

The Zoo? Again?

We go to the zoo frequently. When I downloaded the camera, I found that most of my pictures were of Karen. I guess that makes sense, since I already have lots of pictures of the backs of Sarah and Noah's heads at the zoo. This was Karen's first real trip (not counting the trip as a baby). She loves animals. It doesn't matter what kind. If you ask her, they are all "Dog." Or maybe "Duck." (Unless she's saying "Stuck" or "Stop" --you can never quite tell.) And they all say "Oof! Oof!" So it's probably "Dog."

Karen's move to the booster chair

Why Karen needed to move from her high chair to the booster:

Karen likes sitting up to the table with the family. She's getting really good at using utensils too. I'm pretty sure at least 50% of the food ends up in her mouth!

Conversation with Noah

Me: Are you all mine?
Noah: Yes!
Daddy: What? What about me?
Noah: I'm all yours too.
Me: Hey! How can you be all mine and Daddy's?
Noah: Because I love you both.
Me: Good answer.

You just can't argue with that.