Our Ladybug Lately

That would be Lucia :) She is now 20 months (I know, crazy, huh?) and is talking so much. There are many new fun facts about this little one which I would like to share before I forget... It might sound like I'm bragging about my daughter, but hey, maybe I am :P


*She's been enjoying gymnastics for a month now and is doing better each week. That even includes her behavior. Who would have thought that my fun, spirited child would actually sit and wait her turn?! She is also doing great following instructions. I'm seriously soooo proud of her!
* It's IMPOSSIBLE to put her in time out! Everything is fun to her!!! Seriously?! Everything?! Now, feel free to leave some wisdom on this please :) We don't like using her crib for time-out, because it's a pleasant place for her and we don't want to change that. If I sit her on a chair or have her stare at the wall... she thinks it's fun! I also don't want to spank her... so please... any ideas? She might also be too young...
* Back to the positive, fun stuff... She spits water into the sink after brushing her teeth! So fun to watch thanks to Daddy!
* I bought her a little crib for her baby doll, because she's really into babies lately. What does she do? She sits in it like it's for her with her doll or stuffed animals.

*She is LOVING pretend play! ANd I sure love watcing her pretend! She will talk to her dolls like we usually speak to her. She'll even put her in her the doll crib, lean forward to speak to the doll, and say "no,no,no" using her finger.
* Her hair is growing long enough for a 'real' ponytail, instead of the one on the top!
*She talks to me up to the moment I put her down to bed. I honestly feel like she's telling me about her day. That's my favorite part of the day! She is at such a fun age, in which she just loves interacting with people.
*Her favorite games always involve her being chased. She prefers daddy chasing her, but I do pretty well when daddy isn't around :)


She's at such a fun age!!! We love her so much and are so proud of every milestone she hits! Every day I thank Heavenly Father for allowing me to be this ladybug's mamma! It's THE best job I've ever had! And I know Chauncey really enjoys playing with his little girl.

Pig Tails

She now has hair long enough for this:

Spring Flower

I found this cute flower head 'thing' at Joann's and really cheap tulle (hope I spelled it right). Since I ONLY know how to make tutus, I decided I'd make Lucia a Spring one. Here is Lucia modeling it all before it's completed:

Viva Las Vegas!!

We're lucky we can visit my aunt in Vegas once in a while. The drive has gotten a bit harder, and slower as Lucia grows older. It's still fun to spend time with family! My aunt's youngest is 6 and absolutely LOVES Lucia! We love it too, because she never gets tired of playing with her. Lucia loves her a lot too. We get a huge break from entertaining Lucia when we're out there thanks to Daniella! We're so thankful for my aunt and her family. Spencer is always so nice to give up his room for us when we go! Thanks Spence!!!

Here are Daniella and Lucia (not sure what they're doing):

Daniella has a couple dress up costumes
Which Lucia loved! And she HAD to get into one of them (which actually fit)

A is for...

Apple!!
There are some days when I get into this "teach my child" mode. Today I wanted to teach her the letter A. I showed her the letter A and said: "A is for apple" to which she replied "apple" and just ran off. I was sitting on the kitchen floor, thinking 'great! this will take a while'. All of a sudden Lucia runs back to me with a flash card of..... an APPLE! :)

Missing you

As most of you know, Chauncey, Lucia, and I are going to be taking a nice, warm trip to my country... the Dominican Republic. This trip is not for another 2 months. We're all really excited, although I have to admit I have sort of mixed feelings. WHY PAO?!?!?! I know it will be great! But, really, how great? I guess you need to understand why I feel this way...
My dad died 6 years ago. I'm not gonna lie... I miss him soooo much. I can't even exaplain it. Thankfully, after his death, and joining the church, I have a completely different perspective of death (for which I'm so grateful). However, this doesn't take away from the fact that I miss him. Everything that I love the most has happened after his death. I met the MOST AMAZING man in the world, who took me to the Lord's Temple to be sealed for eternity (pretty brave of him for wanting to be with me that long) :P. I also became a mom to the most loving little girl. I'm sure he took care of Lucia before she came to us, and I know that one day I will be able to introduce him to the man I love the most...
So, here I am going to the DR to show off my beautiful family, but my dad's not there. (Sorry to make this post sad, but it kinda helps me to let it all out.) I just miss him.
I feel better already!!! PHEEeeeW! Anyway, here's my daddy... and uhm, I guess some of me too :P (just for fun):

I miss you so much Daddy!!!

Big... small... who knows?

Lucia LOVES playing with older kids. She is also becoming such a girly girl, which, of course, I love! It's really fun to watch her hold a doll and feed it a bottle. She even offers her doll her binky! Unfortunately, I'm not on top of things and haven't captured this moment. I will, though. However, she also loves acting like a little baby herself. She's seen me play with friends' babies and I think she likes it. I have some pictures here that I think are way cute.

She wouldn't let go og the popsicle.

She's really into my necklaces now. The one she's modeling actually broke that same day :(

For the one on the swing, I wanted to post one of her as a baby in it, but our old computer crashed and we haven't recovered our documents yet. I thought it would be so cute and funny to see the before and after pics.