bedtime chronicles

so as of lately riley has been quite the pill at naptime and bedtime. 

she sleeps great. no issue there. 

but mention the words "nap" or "night night" and wait a few moments for the meltdown to begin. i do not enjoy this. 

we have however found a remedy. its pretty cute actually. 

as long as we let her sisters sing and help put her in the crib she is as happy as a clam. 

i snapped this photo as they were singing "bless the Lord oh my soul" to her just before her nap. 

thanks girls, you really are mama's big helpers. 

let's pretend...

seems to be the thing to do around here these day.
let's pretend this, let's pretend that...and so it goes from there. this can go on for quite some time.
i love their imaginations. it reminds me of the days my sisters and i would strap on our roller skates and glide around the garage like figure skaters.
i always got to be kristi yamaguchi and the others were left to choose between nancy kerrigan and tonya harding. those were the days.
today my girls are chefs and i am the lucky recipient of their plastic treats. i love it.

the tooth doctor

my kids love the dentist. quite the opposite scenario for this mama. 

when ever i mention an upcoming dental appointment to them you would have thought i told them we were going to disneyland. they really can't wait. 

they talk of the flavors of toothpaste and flouride they will try and what stickers they might get. i guess when cookie dough, bubble gum (why are these flavors not offered to adults) and princess stickers are in order what can i expect right?

thank you doctor wacker (yes, that really is his name) for another great appointment!

birthday girl

in our family march is birthday month.
from the very beginning to the very end there is little time between the next.
this past weekend we celebrated my mom's special day in san diego.
it is so easy to shower her with love on her birthday.
for as long as i can remember she has made each and every one of our birthdays so memorable.
from staying up to the late hours of the night to decorate our themed tables so perfectly, to her banging on the piano to wake us from our slumber with a birthday song.
and now that we are married her traditions still carry on to our husbands and our own babies. she is amazing to say the least.

this year we mixed things up a bit and signed up for a cooking class. and not just any cooking class.
if you know my family you know that we are sushi lovers, and what could be more perfect than 3 hours spent making the most tasty bite-sized morsels you may ever eat.
thank you to our hubbies for watching the babies so we could get in a little girl time!

 sushi made by yours truly♥

and i will use any excuse i can to have a mini photo shoot...

happy birthday to poppa in washington who shares the same birthday as my mom. we love u and wish we could have been there!

all girl

did i ever mention how much i absolutely love having girls. 

it's the best. it really is. 

today chloe had a princess tea party to attend. riley got to tag along. 

this was a party right up our alley. no shortage of princess attire here. 

so much cuteness going on in these photos i can hardly stand it. 

love bugs

love these two with all my heart

♥

fab five.

we spent the extended weekend in san diego.

my girls love going to grandpa and grandma's house. 

and of course we can never get in enough fab five time. 

chloe and ari are kindred spirits while the babies love getting into trouble together. 

ella does an amazing job at keeping her eye on all the cousins making sure everyone is happy an accounted for. simone already has dibs on her for babysitting. 

i snapped a few pictures when we first arrived. i can't believe how big these girls are getting.