Fun with Sidewalk Chalk

We recently went to a birthday party for the son of one of my high school friends, who I haven't seen since high school. It was so fun to catch up, and try to fully appreciate the fact that we both now have kids. My, how things have changed.

The party was held at a park in North Miami, and was themed around Thomas the Train. They also had a box of side walk chalk. Brianne loved playing with the chalk, though she didn't quite get that they are used for drawing. That's ok, plenty of time to develop those art skills.



The only concerning thing about the chalk was that Brianne kept trying to eat it.


She had a rainbow of colors all over her face. Thank goodness it is non-toxic.


We left covered in chalk, but had a great time at the party!

Let's Go Gators!

Now that football season has started, we have to get into the spirit and cheer on our team - the Florida Gators! We are a little sad, because Tim Tebow (the Gator quarterback and mommy's favorite player), graduated and now plays for the Bronco's, but we will always be Gator fans.

I wanted to buy Brianne a new Gator outfit, and low and behold, found a Gator Minnie Mouse dress at Walmart. It's all of our favorite things in one outfit! We are ready to see a game, just point us to the Swamp!

We also are practicing our poney tails, and managed to get Brianne's hair into a Pebbles Flintstone type of do'. Too cute! Here she is modeling her new outfit and hair do'.

WNBA, Here We Come!

Brianne's Uncle Marc is a great basketball player, and an even better basketball coach. So one afternoon, we all went to our local park to have Baby's First Basketball lesson. Brianne is off the charts in height, so we figure its time to get a head start on her future as a basketball star. She hasn't quite mastered walking yet, so we had to break out the walker, but that didn't stop Brianne from going after the ball.

Here Brianne is learning to dribble.


Uncle Marc showing Brianne how to shoot, and Daddy giving her pointers on proper ball carrying technique.


Brianne trying to soak in all her new knowledge, but she kept getting distracted by passing airplanes.


Even Aunt Jen got into the lesson, showing Brianne how to pass.

Sesame Street Live!

Brianne loves Sesame Street so much that when the live show, Sesame Street Live, came to town, we had to go! I bought tickets months in advance and was able to get seats just a few rows back from the stage. I've been to my fair share of musicals, but never with so many little kids! I was surprised at how well Brianne behaved. I was worried that she would want to get down and crawl around, but she sat in Marty's lap throughout the entire show. Marty and I have been a little Sesame Street-ed out recently, but we both enjoyed the show. What we really enjoyed was watching Brianne have a blast watching her favorite characters. It was money well spent, and I hope we can share more theater with her in the future, though maybe without the life sized muppets.

Brianne got to wear one of her many Elmo outfits for the occasion. We even bought her an over-priced Elmo doll for her to hold during the show.


Brianne cheered when Elmo came out on stage.

The characters came down into the aisles. It was so much fun to see them up close!

Here we are during intermission. Brianne had to hold all her animals, including her new Elmo.

A Relaxing Afternoon at Grandad's House

One recent Sunday, we spent the afternoon at Grandad Steve and Grandma Janet's house. The weather was so nice, we decided to go to the pool at their condo. It took a good 20 minutes to get Brianne changed into her bathing suit and get sun screen applied.

Here we are taking in the view on the balcony.


Brianne with half her bathing suit, getting ready to be schmeared with sunscreen.


After we spent a couple hours down by the pool, we went to a nearby restaurant called Pirate's Bar. We sat out on the dock and had some fish and chips. Brianne was only interested in the chips (french fries). Sitting next to the river, we were concerned that Brianne might throw something in....


We went the whole evening without losing anything, and then Brianne threw her cup into the river. Grandad Steve managed to fish the cup out before it was lost forever. Our hero!