Birthday Hike

My wonderful cousin was kind enough to agree to go on a hike with me for my birthday.

In the past we have hiked camelback mountain. But since it was my birthday I wanted a hike we could get our heart rates up but still talk the entire hike.

We picked the Kiwanas and National trails at South Mountain.

There were these cool dam/bridge looking things that led to nothing. And they weren't holding anything back either. I tried to claim they were steps for giants, but Rob didn't really go for that.

We took a couple non-trail trails and tried to hike up as high as we could. Once we started to feel like we might get sun burned we decided that was the top and we turned around.

See that pretty trail??

We had fun. Thanks Rob for the hike and Rich for watching the girls while I left you guys on my birthday for like 3 hours.

Braid

Am I ready to put a braid in Cara's hair?

Definitely Not.

Happy Birthday to ME!

I would have to say this was the best birthday EVER!

I told Rich that if everyone could have birthdays as good as mine then the world would be a much happier place.

But seriously- how could I not have the best birthday ever with a cutie like this?

We were at Applebees for my birthday lunch.

A special thank you to my family for singing me "Happy Birthday" all throughout the day.

I loved it. I loved it so much I wouldn't let your phone calls go to the machine because I wanted to experience it all in person.

note to readers- for every birthday my family has the tradition of calling and actually singing the entire happy birthday song. It is hysterical and we sound awful, but it makes our birthdays amazing. I totally encourage everyone to go out and do this for your loved-ones!

Spoiled

I was very spoiled tonight for my birthday.

We went to Sushi Eye with some friends for dinner. Please Please PUH-LEASE if you like sushi and are ever in the Phoenix area... stop here... well, come pick me up and then we will go together and have sushi.

Amazing.

After dinner we stopped at a wonderful little place for dessert.

Melting Pot anyone?

A little bit of Heaven on Earth.

Plus Rich and I both go to blow out a candle for our birthday celebration.

After that we headed out for a movie.

Thank you so much to our wonderful sitter!

Thank you for wonderful friends who SPOILED me rotten.

And here is to another year!

27 sure sounds like it is going to be great.

Happy Birthday Week

This week has been a whirlwind.

I will catch you up soon!

Goodnight

Check Out My Tonsils

Hey mom! Look at me!

I think at least 2 times a day I have my mouth inspected.

Every time they find a flashlight they have to look into my mouth.

EVERY SINGLE TIME.

They also say:

"Mom, open your mouth." "Hey mom, lemme see your teeth." "Mom, show me your tongue." "Hey mom, lemme brush your teeth." "Mom, what is in your mouth?"

Some days it is bad and I get food shoved in there, a finger, a fist, a toy, whatever.

So I am not surprised that most of these trampoline pictures had Ryann's mouth wide open.

This is What We Do

This is just what we do.

Our house is a little crazy sometimes.

I am not apologizing, just stating.

I love these girls for who they are and for being perfect little people despite my mistakes and shortcomings.

When I say "perfect little people" I don't mean they don't make mistakes, they aren't naughty, or that they are better than any other kids.

I mean they are perfect in their love for me.

And that, my friends, is what perfect should mean.

Little Cara Kay in the dryer while I fold laundry.

Ryann learning how to play the Wii. Seriously? A Zelda shooting game? Her Dad is so proud.

I know her Uncle Zach will be proud too, once I send a letter off to him telling him about it.

Curly Sue

My little Nugget was so excited to get her hair curled for church on Sunday.

Can you tell?

I hair sprayed the crap out of her hair and it sort of held for the rest of the day. I was a little shocked it did so well, since it usually doesn't hold curl at all.

McDonald's Play Place

Not going to lie... my new favorite place from 7-9am on Saturday mornings is McDonald's. We were letting Rich sleep in for his birthday so I took the girls.

I got my free Oatmeal, shared a little with the girls, but they were having way too much fun to eat.

It is so fun that Ryann can help Cara climb up the steps, that way I don't have to climb up and rescue any little girls.

I think next time I will bring a book to read. They seriously played for almost 2 hours.

My cute little monkeys.

Soccer Time

We went to the park yesterday and one of our friends had brought their soccer balls and goals. Ryann looks like a pretty cute goalie. Just like auntie Erin?

Cause I know her mommy HATED to play goalie.

She was actually a little too warm playing in her long sleeves and long pants.

Did I mention how I love Arizona this time of year?

Thanks for such a fun park day!!

Full Force

We are in full force of potty training. We just completed week 1.

I have had a lot of people ask why we are potty training Cara so young (20 1/2 months) and I will not take a picture of the reason why, but in a short and very graphic version- here it is:

Immediately after pooping, she digs down deep with her hands and throws her poop all around the room. Doesn't matter if it is 3 seconds after she pooped or 3 minutes. So if she poops during a nap- biggest mess of your life. If she poops in the living room, right in front of you, she is already digging in when I smell it.

Sorry to be so graphic, but at least I warned you.

After a week she has only pooped in her diaper once. Never pooped in panties or on the floor. I think she just HATES poop on her bum? She hates it on her hands too, but I am thinking she just wanted to get rid of it and that was the only way how since she hasn't learned how to take off a diaper yet.

Okay, so she is always pooping on the potty. She has also learned how to "hold it" so she goes potty less frequently but in more amounts. However, she still is only giving me about 3 seconds warning before peeing. So I am still making her sit on the potty every 30 minutes to an hour.

This picture was taken after the park- hence her pull up. We still do pull ups when we go out, because remember that 3 second warning? Not enough to get to a bathroom when we are out of the house. She actually isn't mad about using the potty, she was mad that I was taking a picture of her and not helping her get down.

I am being patient, taking the slow route. Ryann took at least 3-4 weeks before we could leave the house without a diaper- so I am prepping myself for about the same amount of time.

We still haven't put this guy away, but we haven't had to use "little green" for almost 3 days.

Happy Birthday Hubs

Today is a day to celebrate. Not only did Rich turn 33... but we found out some AMAZING news!!

Like, seriously, AMAZING.

My brother Zach will be so proud when he finds out.

Rich shares a birthday with Rainn Wilson.

I know everyone of you is jumping up and down, this truly is amazing news.

And for the 0.01% 99% of the population who isn't as addicted to the office as Rich and I are, this is DWIGHT SCHRUTE.

A couple more things Rich and Rainn have in common- Their names start with the letter R. They both played the clarinet in grade school. Rainn was the lead role in the mo

vie The Rocker, and we own that movie. He also played the voice of Gallaxhar from Monsters Vs Aliens and we own that movie too.

Some things that Rich and Dwight Schrute have in common:

Dwight is Assistant to the regional manger, Rich is a manager

Both are excellent ping pong players

Both love Smallville the TV show

Dwight is a purple belt in Karate, Rich is a white belt in Karate

Dwight wears glasses, Rich has and sometimes wears his glasses

I can't believe all the connections.

So Happy Birthday to Rich and Rainn

I love you Rich! Hope you have had a great day

**** Info courtesy of wikipedia****

Go and Do

You know that primary song, "I will go, I will do..."

You do? Good. You don't? Well, it has some crazy hand motions and basically it is about listening to what needs to be done and then going out and doing it. When there is something that needs to be done- a way will be provided to get it done.

I want to be a "go and do"er. I want to be that person who recognizes when someone needs help, and then help them. I want to be that person who can be an answer to prayers.

I had a couple "go and do"ers in my life yesterday.

Yesterday was a tough day. Potty training, babysitting last minute for 2 different families at 2 different parts of the day (which I was THRILLED to do- they are such sweet kids), added on top of Rich working long hours, money stressors, Ryann on the verge of getting sick, tired girls, and a trip to the duck pond.

Oh yeah, and a messy house.... due to potty training.... you can't leave the baby in panties and wander off... this is when said little one takes a leak on the carpet.

Anyway, it was a full day, and by the end I was spent. I felt bad for my quick meet up at the duck pond. Thankfully I met an amazing friend there who knows me well enough to not take it personal that I had to "duck" out (hehehe) quickly after arriving. I left for fear of tantrums, kids falling in the pond, a kid getting hooked with a fishing hook, or someone running out into the street.

Guess what? She was the "go and do" person that I needed. I know that for some reason she thought of me, not knowing why, but she thought of me and was prompted to see if we could spend some time together. Guess what else? I ignored it. I didn't take advantage of it. I was too stressed and not thinking clearly, and not realizing that my pleads throughout the day for help were about to be answered.

To put it nicely, I didn't have it all together.

I did say quite a few quick prayers through out the day. So I should have taken a deep breath and placed my burdens with the Lord. That is what I am doing now. I have had a lot of prayers answered lately. I have been truly blessed. I am especially blessed to have friends who go and do.

Since I ignored the first answer to my rough day, I was blessed with another. A couple hours later a friend came by and brought dinner to my house. Then I understood. She was there for me. The kids ran around the backyard as I ate and was finally able to relax and recognize the blessings of friends. About an hour after she left we met up again for cupcakes and hot chocolate. Wow. I feel good now. I feel like I can take on the world. I feel blessed.

So please, please be that person. Be a "go and do" person. If you see someone who needs help, help them. If you feel prompted to do anything good, for any reason, do it. You can be an answer to someone's prayer without even knowing it.

This is my plan. I am going to try. I won't be perfect, but I am going to put myself out there more and hope that I can help someone else. I want to pay it forward. And please, don't be afraid to ask, because if you ask me, it will make it a whole lot easier for me to go and do.

Stampin' Up

I am not sure who let this little girl play with the stamps.

Okay, I know. No one actually let her...

But obviously it was daddy who was watching her when this happened.

And when I say obviously, that just means this is one of the first times I caught Ryann doing something she shouldn't have been on Daddy's watch, and not mine.

Cause trust me- I can't count the number of times she has been sneaky on my watch.

An Elephant Never Forgets

My cute little Ryann found this mask at Grandma Mingo's house last night. She thought it was great.

Cara, not so much.

At what age will kids wear masks?

Next question- why do kids remember the strangest things?

Ryann can only remember the day of the week "Wednesday", so how can she remember the exactly place she left her black horse one week ago?

She can't remember her numbers but she can memories the book "pinkalicious" in an afternoon?

She doesn't remember why some shows have commercials and why some don't, but she can remember exactly what toy we accidently brought home with us from Grandma's house last year!?

She can't remember that Santa got her the new bike, but she can remember that I promised her a treat if she slept in her bed without getting out for 7 nights in a row??

Have a great night.

Cousin It comes to town

Remember Cousin It from the Adam's Family?

Here is Ryann playing with toys at Grandma Mingo's house. We have been trying to teach her how to push her hair behind her ears- it isn't going so well, so we mostly clip it back, but when the clip is gone she walks around and plays with it in her face.

I think it has something to do with her "widows peak" hairline.

So here is a picture of Cousin It. I totally forgot what he looks like- but he has wavy hair, so I am wrong- Ryann doesn't look much like Cousin It.

Thank goodness. Cousin It is quite scary looking.

Happy Hiking

To let Daddy have some precious, uninterrupted sleep... the girls and I went out and got donuts.

Then, to work off the donuts, we went hiking.

Cara fell and skinned her knees like 8 times. Good thing she had her PJ's on.

This happened every time she tried to run too fast.

She is the reasons I try to not run fast. I like 10 minute miles. No falling when you run 10 minute miles. Or 12 minute miles for that matter

(I ran 12 minute miles when I was pregnant with Cara).

Run is word that has many meanings. In this case, it means a jog that is really no faster than a walk.

Hiking. I imagined these shadow pictures to be a lot cuter than they actually were. The above one- you can see that Cara is carrying "guy guy" her little bear blanket.

The one below would have been ADORABLE if 1. it was on flat ground so the shadows didn't get distorted and 2. if I had a good camera and 3. if I knew how to take pictures.

The girls stood behind this sign below and jumped out and yelled, "Happy Hiking!" to everyone who passed by. Like 3 people.

Then when we finally headed down the mountain (hill) they said "good morning" and "happy hiking" to everyone we saw.

Quite entertaining.

Pinkalicious

Ryann has a new favorite book.

Courtesy of one of my most fabulous friends from my hometown.

We read it at least once a day. Usually more.

If I am unavailable to read it to her, well, she knows it by heart so she just reads it to herself.

Throughout the day I hear, "PINK, PINK, PINK!"

She also will read it to her new bear.

Last weekend we had 2 birthday parties and the second party was a "build a bear" party. Ryann and I made this cute bear and she LOVES it. Cara also made a bear with daddy, it was small and perfect for her size.

The second birthday party also had reptiles. Snakes, lizards, geckos, a hamster/guinea pig (what is the difference???), frogs, spiders, and more. Ryann thought it was great.

If you click the link to Austin's animal encounters you will get a little info about the party... the website is a work in progress he told me :)

Yes, I know a guinea pig/hamster is not a reptile- but it was at the party, so whatever.

Brush With Death

Oooops, I meant to say The Brush OF Death... got your attention though, didn't I?

This picture here is of a My Little Pony Hair brush. As many of you may know, brushing My Little Pony's hair is a horrible task. I actually end up braiding it in about 4 different braids the day after Ryann gets one. If not braided it gets tangled and ripped out and you find it all over the house.

There is a story to this picture, I am getting there.

So Cara found said My Little Pony hair brush and she was brushing my hair. So Sweet, right? It was, until you realized that little pincher/claw thing on the end fits perfect into my nose.

She seriously attacked me. Out of no where I have this cute little girl brushing my hair and then all of the sudden a pink claw/pincher thing jabs into my nose. My eyes tear up and Cara just says, "Nose, nose, nose" like she is the cutest thing on earth. Then she starts to cry when I won't let her shove it up there again.

No, the pony brushes have not been thrown out of the house... YET.

Yes, Auntie Erin, I now feel your pain from when Cara cracked your nose and gave you mini black eyes.

Pump It Up

This weekend the girls had 2 fun birthday parties to go to! The first was at Pump It Up

They had a blast, and I actually had a lot of fun too.

I thought 9am for a birthday party was too early, but when the party was over at 11:15 I realized it was perfect because then we laid them right down for naps and no one had a melt down!

Well, Ryann had a mini-melt down when we tried to take a group picture, but hand sanitizer quickly made her think it was pretty cool.

Cara only went down this slide once or twice, but Ryann was all about it. She loved to go by herself, with me, or even with a friend.

I'm the Winner

We were practicing bike riding in our kitchen the other day.

Ryann has a hard time peddling and steering at the same time.

I tried to pick just one video, but I couldn't.

I won't blame you if you don't watch any... but my favorite one is when she says,

"I'm the winner!"

Since no one is racing her... that is what makes it funny.

Do you like how I spelled that out for you?

I think I will watch these again.

And again.

And again.

Thanks Santa- what a great gift!

Pucker Up

You got it. My baby girls love to give kisses.

We probably give and get kisses in our house over 100 times a day.

I am very often told "no mama" by this little kissy face- as she bats my lips away from her.

Yesterday I walked into nursery at church just as this kissy Cara was hitting a little boy her age in the face. As I started to scold Cara, the little boy grabbed her in a head-lock sort of hug and made her squeal.

The parents said he deserved it, but I am sure my sassy pants deserved it too.

Happy Monday!

Like Mother Like Daughter

I am hoping that very few of you know about my childhood obsession with dogs. It is very equivalent (if not more!) to Ryann's obsession with horses and ponies.

When I turned 2 my older sister and brother saved all their money so that they could buy me a pound puppy. Anyone remember those? Yes, my pound puppy was my life. He slept with me every night. He was the first of about 90 stuffed animal dogs. Okay, not 90, maybe close to 15, but seriously. I had an obsession. I LOVED DOGS.

(I still do, but now is not the time for us to have a pet dog... sorry Max)

I remember some nights lying in bed and putting my stuffed animal dogs surrounding every inch of my body (no, this wasn't in college- this was when I was probably still in elementary school). They all had names. We played and played and played. I made houses for them and elevators and fed them and naturally you can see that I often pretended I was a dog.

That's not so weird, right?

Maybe the weird part was when I had my little brother ride around on my back and use a neck tie as a leash. Because we all know that people and children don't ride dogs. Whatever, in my pretend world they did.

Back to present day... Ryann's obsession with horses... at least Ryann having her sister ride on her back while Ryann pretends to be a horse makes sense.

So I guess the title of this post could have been:

"My daughter is not quite as strange as I was as a child"

They sure are cute though.

Under the Bed

Some people have monsters hiding under their beds.

Not us.

We have little girls.

I will have to admit- that might be scarier than monsters :)

Don't be fooled by their no care attitudes. They were laughing and giggling up a storm until I finally came and "found" them.

They play hide n go seek a lot. Usually without me knowing that I am supposed to find them.

I also think it is time to clean out under the bed. Not just to clean out the little girls, but the tea pot, plate, instruction manual, the Halloween slipper, and more.

Golfing? Really?

Over the break Rich convinced the other 2 worst golfers in the world to go golfing with him. When I say OTHER I mean that Rich is pretty *awesome* as well.

Okay, I am sure they aren't the worst. I bet if they played a lot more and practiced and took private lessons for a year then they could be marginal.

I say this in jest- but take a look at these videos Rich took.

They played 9 holes. 3 against 1. It was versus my grandpa (who is an EXCELLENT golfer by the way).

They then played "best ball" so whoever hit best for that hole out of the 3 guys would take that score and record it.

In the end, my grandpa still beat them by at least 5 strokes.

Way to go Grandpa Wagner!

So my favorite story of the whole day was the "missing golf ball." Jason was trying to tee off and he hit the ball. No one saw where it went. They looked high and low. Maybe it had gone in the water? Hit a tree? Off the green? Where could it be?

He hit it in such a way that it sunk into the ground. Like the ball and the tee went straight down as if he had hit them with a hammer.

Now that is some amazing skills.

2 Brunettes

For the first time in probably FOREVER... There are 2 brunettes within the Wagner girls.

Don't be shocked, I am sure it won't last for long.

Maybe we can convince them all to go brown!

I highly doubt that.

Last Photos

These are the last photos of the Academy of Sciences that we went to while in Cali.

And apparently little girls aren't the only ones who can't look at the camera.

Nice work Brittani.

One of the only pictures of Ryann actually looking at the camera and you ruined it.

Oh well.

PS... don't you think the girls fake fur coats are adorable? Of course you do. Thanks Grandma!

Joy Joy the Mini Pony

Over the vacation we were able to spend some time at my friend's ranch. The best part? Joy Joy the mini pony! Ryann was in heaven. Cara, not so much. Since Cara is so loud it really spooked the pony and Joy would run and hide whenever Cara was around.

Seriously. Not joking at all.

You really should believe me when I say Cara is loud.

My friend Amanda said she had NEVER seen Joy run.

After hiding from Cara, Joy was a little cautious. It took quite a lot of carrots to get her out of her stall and into the open where the kids could brush and pet her.

I wasn't able to get the picture when Ryann was hugging Joy, but believe me when I say it was pretty darn cute.

A huge thanks to Amanda and Casey for letting us see, pet, feed, and play with Joy!

I have a feeling it will be a scheduled trip every time we go visit Napa.

Do I look happy? I was sure trying to look happy. Cara on the other hand, could care less if she looked happy. Because she wasn't. This picture is about 2 minutes before Cara stepped into a HUGE mud puddle that went almost up to her knees. The smile on my face was totally gone then.

It wasn't funny then, but now it is funny.