And Then There Were Two...

Wheels, that is!

Ever since the girls got bikes for Easter, Isabel has been curious about riding without training wheels. She is definitely my 'timid' child (Is it wrong for a mom to call her child wimpy??? If so, I will stick with 'timid' and you will understand *wink*wink*), so I was not really wanting to go through with all of the drama of trying to teach her to ride on two wheels. That is, until my friend Traci told me about a foolproof way to train. She suggested that I use a bike on which she can sit and touch the ground flat-footed on both sides and take the pedals off of the bike and just let her coast around for a while until she gets the hang of balancing herself, then just put the pedals back on and watch her go! Sounds too good to be true, I thought...especially when we consider how 'timid' Isabel can be. But, Traci assured me that her little guy has been riding with two wheels since LAST summer and he is the same age as Ashlen! So, we gave it a shot...

I dug the tiny bike out of the garage sale pile and took off the pedals. She coasted down the driveway for a total of a few hours and really did seem to get the hang of balancing the bike!

So, the pedals went back on and by golly she did it!!!!

She made it halfway down the sidewalk...And then the inevitable happened:

I was so impressed because the little girl that I thought was so 'timid' just got right up and climbed back on to try again! She wasn't scared or mad or even discouraged...

she was determined!

In fact, we were out on the sidewalk all night long

(except for an hour break for a much-deserved pizza dinner).

I love her face in this picture...that smirk cracks me up!:

Yep, that's grass on her chin:
I know the shoes are not the smartest choice...

she did much better when we switched to tennis shoes!

I think I am more proud of her than she is of herself...

trust me, that is a lot of pride!

Not to be outdone, Ashlen kept zooming past on her scooter saying things like "Look at me on my scooter, Mommy!!!" and "I have to practice my scooter so that I can get my pushin leg real strong!"

Thanks Traci...Your method is amazing!!! Now, I just have to convince Ash to give it a try...

Vegas, Baby!!!

Jason insisted that I do something fun to celebrate my 30th birthday, so we decided to plan a fun trip to a place we have always wanted to visit...LAS VEGAS!!! I am not a huge fan of giving people my money and getting nothing to show for it, so I was not sure if this city would be my thing, but I figured anyplace that is warm and dry in April is a place I would enjoy!!! So, we found another couple to travel with us because Jason and I don't travel together well...we are opposite vacationers because I like to just relax and he likes to go and do and see everything the place has to offer...kind of a reversal of our normal selves at home. We have found it is much more enjoyable to travel with others because usually someone wants to go and do stuff with Jason and someone else is willing to relax with me. A couple of guys that I work with happened to be planning a trip to Vegas for the same days that we were going, and since they have been there many times before, we decided to book at the same hotel...the Monte Carlo.
It was a great hotel, but after seeing all of the cool places in Vegas, I would never stay at the same hotel twice...I want to try them all! The weather was 85 and sunny the day we landed, so that evening, we had a great dinner in a restaurant with collapsable outdoor walls and went for a long walk down the strip...it was very nice and I was very excited for the coming days! The first full day, we woke up to clouds and a cold front...they stuck around for a couple of days, so I didn't get the warm weather and poolside hours I was hoping for. But, we found lots of other stuff to do:

We went to the Bellagio's Fountain Show a few times...I loved that!!!

Here we are in front of the fountain show...those drops on my shirt were not from the fountain...it rained (yes, in the desert) much of the time we were there.

We did lots of shopping, eating, and walking.

And Nicole and I saw Cirque du Soleil's 'O' which was AMAZING!

I am usually not a big gambler, but when I was waiting for Jason to quit a video poker game, I decided to throw $5 into a penny slot machine while I waited. On my first spin, I won over $100!!! I cashed it out and put it in my pocket! I did end up wasting most of it on Starbucks and Sbarro, but I was fine with that because I got something to show for it...pants that no longer fit me. Oh well. Jason, on the other hand, lost lots of money and has nothing to show for it except a pouty face every time I bring it up. I am proud to say that he got 3rd place in a Vegas Poker Tournament, but overall he ended up in the red. I think it is cute that he thought he might actually come back with more money than he had when he left...maybe next time we will have to take a drive past some of the properties of the casino owners to remind him that that is just not 'how they roll' at a casino...at the end of the day, the house ALWAYS wins! =)

We had a great trip and are already planning to go back next year...start saving now if you want to come along!

WHAT?!?!

Today I had to get my driver's license renewed...apparently they think that the picture from my 20's is no longer a valid representation of my appearance...at least, that is how I am interpreting it in my 'overly sensitive to turning 30' phase. Or, maybe they just want to test my vision since I am entering 'middle age'. Either way, I am not a fan of the process. So, I went today to get a new license. I am actually a bit relieved to do this because the last time I got my license picture taken, it was a day or two before I gave birth to one of my offspring (probably Isabel, but I really don't remember which...must be middle age officially settling into my brain) and the picture was terrible. Anyway, I take a number and am waiting in a crowded seating area with both girls. We take up a game of 'I Spy' to pass the time and the lady next to us decides she wants to play too. So, the girls warm right up to her and they start chatting. Of course, she starts by telling me about a distant relative of hers that has red hair (I get that a lot), but how her child is part Native American, so she didn't get any of that hair. Then, Isabel notices her number card has the number .08 at the top and she asks about it because our number card just has something about railroad tracks at the top. The lady, to my horror, starts going into detail about how the cops will arrest you if you drink too much when you drive and you can't drink so much that your "blood number" (yes, that is a direct quote...and yes, I did go to Pekin to get my license renewed, can't you tell? Sorry if you are from Pekin...nothing personal!!!). The woman obviously had some personal resentment towards this .08 number so I am waiting with a grimace for Isabel to say 'My daddy is a police officer'. Instead, she says very loudly with terror in her voice "But, my mom drinks while she drives all the time!!!".

Yep. That's me. The alcoholic mother who drinks and drives with her children on a regular basis. Of course, I quickly (and loudly) explained to Isabel that it is okay to drink SODA when you are driving. You just can't have 'Mommy and Daddy drinks' when you drive. I just hope she doesn't ask why...how do you explain drunk to a 6 year old?

Easter Egg-citement...

Sorry, I couldn't resist the pun! We have had quite a weekend with much more excitement to come!!! I offered to host Easter dinner this year...I know I am crazy, but I love hosting dinners...any dinners...so, if you are ever hungry, just hint around and I will gladly invite you over for a meal! So, to prepare for the big day, the girls helped make some tasty table decor. We made 'Nest Egg' treats. They did turn out adorable, but not so tasty. Here they are:

I know you are feeling really sorry for the poor guest that got stuck with the nest full of black jelly beans, but my mom loves those, so the kids made that one for her. YUCK!

I am not a fan of coloring eggs...it is messy and never turns out very well...plus, I can't stand the smell of hard boiled eggs. I know that I could do real damage to their childhood if there is not some Easter egg ritual incorporated into the holiday, so when we got a 'paint your own pottery' place here in Morton, our new egg tradition was born! I took the girls to paint their eggs for this year earlier in the week and the eggs were done just in time for Easter! Every year, I pick three or four colors and the girls are free to paint whatever/however they want with the colors. This is the first year that Isabel put some real decoration on her egg...it has a happy face, a butterfly, a flower, and her nickname 'Is', except she spelled it Iss for some reason...darn that 'Kindergarten Spelling'...she never asks me how to spell things correctly, she just guesses! It is supposed to boost her 'language confidence', so as long as she loves to read and write as a result, then I suppose I am happy! =) Here are their eggs from this year:
And, here are all of the eggs from the past four years (Isabel's are on the right and Ashlen's are on the left):

The Easter Bunny wanted to get new bikes for the girls this year, but he had an issue with a big scratch on the only cute 18" bike in stock and needed us to take care of an exchange when the replacement comes in, so we just decided to get the bikes for the girls so he wouldn't have to worry about carrying those big bikes in his basket. It was so nice yesterday that we decided to surprise them a day early. Here they are on their new bikes:

Ashlen got a princess bike with a bell (which is her favorite part of the entire thing...I think if we let her, she would take off the bell and just play with that instead of going to all of the work to pedal the bike around). Isabel wanted a princess bike, but the Bunny thought she might outgrow that pretty soon. There was also a Bratz bike and a Hannah Montana bike, but those were both out of the question. So, she got a Fairy bike. It has a sound machine and two real vases for flowers. I thought a banana seat was a pretty cool upgrade when I was 6...geesh! At least it doesn't have an auxillary cord for her iPod...I might have to draw the line there!

Easter morning came with lots of whispers and giggles from upstairs...they were given strict instructions to stay in the bedroom (they like to sleep together these days) until Daddy got home from work so that he would not miss any of the excitement. I knew when he was home because I could hear them banging on Isabel's window (which faces the driveway) saying 'Daddy's home!!!' at 6:45 this morning. They had lots of fun looking for eggs, but that Bunny is not as creative as she...I mean he...used to be. I hid, errrr...HE hid most of the eggs in the same spots as last year!!! It is hard to find new spots in the same house! Here they are with their baskets:The bunny sunk a small nest egg (get it, nest egg?!?!? ha! okay, I will stop now...) in those bikes, so the baskets were pretty bare this year! Just candy, nightgowns, goggles for the beach this summer, candy, coloring books, diaries, candy, American Girl movies, and some candy. Here they are in their goggles (Ashlen calls them wobble-gobbles...not sure where that came from, but it is almost as funny as these pictures):

After the Bunny excitement, we got dressed for church and then came home for dinner. My brother Nathan and his wife Sky came over, as well as my parents and my sister Kelsey. I videotaped everyone, but didn't think to take a picture of all of us...now I wish I had! Oh well... here are the girls dressed for church (I feel kind of bad because I ALWAYS get Easter dresses for them, but this year I didn't find anything really cute, so I just put them in a spring outfit...I am a slacker!)

Here is Isabel with my mom after dinner:

And Ashlen cuddling with my Dad (his eyes are closed in every picture I took today...this is the only one in which they are partly open!!!):

Jason and I leave for our Vegas Vacation tomorrow, so I am really excited for that! I am not bringing the good camera, but I will try to get a few decent shots with our point-and-shoot so that I can post something when we get back! I hope you all had a great holiday!!!