Good Times w/my Cousins

We spent a couple days in Houston last weekend and brought back some fun. Gaby's cousin's, Carlos and Susana, came to Austin with us to hang out. We've been having so much fun with them. Gaby loooves playing with them and pretending that she's a big girl too. They are both so loving and sweet with her. Even though they are 10, they still love playing with little Gaby and are always ready for a hug and kiss from her. I swear, I haven't heard Gabs giggle as much as she has this week. She's having a ball!
Anyhoo, here are some pics of the fun we've had:

playing at the park...

swimming at the pool...


a little BBQ at Rudy's...

just hanging out in our pjs...

playing video games...

riding teacups...

go carts...

Gaby's very lucky to have such great cousins! They love her so much :)

Si, si si !!!

Finally!! The last few days we've been hearing the word we've been waiting for FOREVER! Our sweet angel has finally learned how and when to use the word "si". I know it doesn't sound like much, but it makes this mommy VERY happy!!

Also, this weekend Pita taught Gaby how to say "amo" (as in "te amo" or "I love you") except she doesn't have the "te" part down. But "amo" is enough to just melt your heart when you hear it:) It's just too cute!

Big Melon Head

Apparently, I've passed on an undesirable trait to my precious daughter..... Yesterday, was her 18 month appointment. Yes, 18 months! What a big girl! Anyway, Gaby's height and weight are staying pretty steady. She's always been tall and lean. She's 33 inches (90%) and 26.1 lbs (75%). But looks like she has mom's "melon head" as my sweet husband likes to kindly call it, when we discuss his disproportionally small head. Her head measures in the 97% percentile. Sorry, baby :) Wait...maybe that just means she's got a big, smart, ever-absorbing brain??

Who you callin a Melon Head??

I Know You're Out There...

I have been having so much fun with this blog. As I've been writing it for the past year and a half, it's been hard to know if anybody is reading or visiting. I started doing this as a sort of scrapbook for Gaby in the future but it really has become such a great way for our friends and family to keep up with the princess. Consequently, it sure is nice when someone sends me an email or calls and mentions they have visited the blog. A couple of weeks ago, I was playing around with it and added a neat new feature- it's a "Hit Counter". It basically just tallies all the hits/visits to the blog. To my surprise, I got over 100 hits in the first week!! That tells me that ya'll are out there and hopefully enjoying the blog that I have so much fun writing! Now my loyal bloggers, I have one teeny, tiny request. It would be sooo lovely if every once and a while...maybe...possibly you could leave me a little note/comment. Gaby and I would love it :)

Angie

Happy Anniversary!

It's hard to believe but- today is Gaby and my (Byron was here a couple weeks b4 us) first anniversary in our new house, new town, new home. Time sure does fly! We are loving Austin and are acclimating to the excruciating heat. Although, with less humidity and great Hill Country breezes it really isn't as bad as it could be. At least that what I tell myself :) The Longhorn brainwashing has begun early (by her non-UT-going-daddy) and Gaby is certainly on her way to becoming a "Cool Austin Chick". Cover your eyes my Aggie friends...

Beach Pictures

While we were on vacation on Anna Maria Island in April, we thought it would be a good idea to have our portraits taken. Unfortunatley, the ONLY time it rained while we were on the island was the minute we got into position to take our pictures. Bad luck! We still managed to get some good shots, I think. But please excuse our hair :)

Here are a few of those pics:

Our little family...

Mimi, Papa & the girls...

Candie, Steven & Mia...

A couple of the princess...

Sweet little Mia...

The whole gang...

Although, it was a little stressful trying to take good pictures with two toddlers (especially two tired toddlers after a full day of beach fun!) I think the photographer did a great job and we are really pleased with our pictures.

Happy Belated Independence Day!

We had a great 4th of July weekend! The Morrison Clan
came over for a fun-filled weekend and luckily we got a break from the oppressive heat so we spent lots of time outside. Here's a quick recap: we ate chili dogs, corn on the cob, & watermelon (yum,yum & yum!), went swimming, threw frisbees, had dinner on the lake,
went to the park, played with sparklers, had multiple puppet shows,
fed some pigeons (we were looking for ducks!), ate birthday cake (Happy B-day Jill!) and threw lots of rocks into the lake.
Friday night, after the babies were safely asleep, us adults got to see fireworks from our deck and Saturday night we went out for a nice quiet:) adult-only dinner. Hope, Charlie and Gaby became fast friends and when they weren't fighting for toys they giggled and played nicely. In the end, a good time was had by all and we were so happy to have the Morrison's and their precious kiddos over:)!!

Puzzle Maniac !

My daughter LOVES doing puzzles! I'm not kidding when I say she can do them all day long. It's pretty darn cute. And I don't think I'm being biased when I say she is very good at them. She always wants you to tell her what shape, animal, object, she's holding. She also enjoys looking for the specific piece to put in the right spot. At only 17 months, I believe it's pretty impressive that she can do them so well. She is definitely one smart cookie :) and I am a proud mama.

Finally Some Gymboree Pictures :)

Gaby has sooo much fun at Gymboree! She lights up as soon as we walk in the door and she hears the music. We have a really great instructor who plays the best music- even Mommy enjoys it:) Gaby loves walking to the middle of the mat and shaking her booty! She is most definitely not shy and loves being the center of attention. Most times she is the only girl in the class and has a blast keeping up with the wild and crazy boys. I just love watching her have so much fun :)

Gaby's 1st Haircut

Today, I finally decided to get Gaby's hair cut. As appalling as it has been to my mother, I just haven't wanted to do it until now. Pita's been bugging me for months to cut Gaby's hair, but I just love her wild and crazy curls! The longer it gets, the crazier it is!! What finally made me do it, though, is that when we go to the pool, Gaby's long bangs get in her eyes and bother her. Fortunately, Patty (Gaby's nanny) is going to beauty school so instead of spending about $20 to have someone trim her hair we were lucky enough to have Patty do it at home. And she did a super job! Gaby's hair looks soo cute :)

Here's the before shot:

Getting her hair wet...

The first cut...

Having fun, singing "The Wheels on the Bus"...

Long bangs...

A little off the back...

And after, it's hard to tell what it looks like while still wet...

Thanks, Patty :) !!

Time to Brag :)

Gaby finished her 2nd season of swimming lessons a couple of weeks ago. She loved it and did so great, but is kind of in an inbetween stage right now. So we've decided to take the summer off. She's was getting a little bored of her Aquababies class but might not be mature enough for the next level- The Aquatots. At the Aquatots level, there are only 4 kiddos per class and they are usually around 2 1/2- 3 yrs old. The kiddos are on their own without their mommies and basically have to sit at the edge of the pool waiting for their turn with the instructor. Her instructor said that skillwise Gaby is ready for the class, but we're just not sure she can sit on the edge and wait her turn. Patience is not a trait she's mastered quite yet :) Also I'm not sure she would be too hip on being there without me. So we'll wait the summer out and try to get into a pool as often as we can so we can keep her comfort and skill level up. We joined a gym with an awesome pool this past week and plan to take full advantage of it :)!!

Oh, and the bragging part...At the end of our last class they gave the kiddos purple ribbons for completing the course but Gaby got a yellow one instead. The instructor said the yellow ribbon was b/c she's an "Advanced Waterbaby"- That's my girl:)!!!

Here's me trying to be all "artsy" with my camera :)

New Developments in Gaby-land

Talking
Gaby's vocabulary is growing! She seems to say something new every couple of days. Although, "NO" still continues to be her favorite word. And yes this is still very, very frustrating. She still hasn't learned the word "yes" or "si" and even when she does want something she still says "no" first. A few of her words: mama, daddy, banana, mas, gracias, agua, all gone, bye-bye, hi, oh-oh, Gaby, mio, stop it, and puppy. As you can see it is definitely a mix of spanish and english. And then there's a whole slew of words that only she can understand:) Patty, her nanny, also taught her to do the sign for more/please. It is just too cute when she does it! Funny story- she started doing it one day and I knew it was some sort of sign language but I had no idea what it meant or where she had learned it. Took us a few days to figure it out. She must of thought we were idiots!

Tantrums
The princess is learning how to show her frustration and short temper. I thought it was called the Terrible Twos. She has little tantrums here and there and when we're in public it is pretty embarressing! It doesn't happen often but one time is too many in my opinion. She can achieve some impressive volumes though :) I've learned already that the best thing to do is just ignore her, if possible leave the room and -poof- she's over it. Gotta love a toddler's short attention span!

Whining
When Gaby doesn't know the word for something or just doesn't feel like saying it her favorite thing to do is whine for it until someone pays attention to her. It's this high pitched, screeching sort of noise. Utterly annoying!! Starts to sound like nails on the chalkboard. Give me patience, Lord!

Molars
Gaby's first molars are coming in! Yippee! I'm ready for her to be able to chew everything with no problem. Athough it is pretty amazing how much she can eat with just her gums. I'm talking chips, granola bars, toast etc. It's also very cute to watch her chew with her front teeth- just like a little old man :)

I love my daddy :)

Happy Father's Day to my sweet husband who has turned out to be a pretty great daddy! Gaby will always be grateful for the books you read and reread to her, for the tickle fights, for the bull rides, for the hours of puzzle tournaments, and especially for her nightly baths!

A Few of my Favorite Things

Sorting shapes... I have no idea at what age kids are supposed to be able to put the right shape in the right hole but Gaby's been doing it for about 2-3 months. She's a genius :)

Pushing my stroller...She loves walking away, pushing her stroller and blowing kisses. It's the cutest!!

Coloring...
She can sit for about 20 min concentrated on her coloring. Gives me a little time to get stuff done- like cooking dinner.

Reading...
Gaby grabs a book, sits in her chair and reads out loud to herself. Makes you want to kiss her to pieces!!