Mishaps

We made it home from Phoenix tonight, but not without a few mishaps. (1) I misplaced my cell phone multiple times throughout the morning (2) Our hotel room keys stopped working, so we made multiple trips to the front desk (3) We actually left the hotel on time, but left a suitcase there, so had to speed back once we discovered the missing bag at the airport (4) We missed turns on the way to the airport, even though we had the Garmin - we must learn to trust the Garmin! (5) Once we finally made it to the airport, it took forever to get through security with Reese's liquids (bottles, sippy cups, etc) and Grandpa Cipra's metal in his artificial hips (6) We left another bag - this time at security (7) Grandpa Cipra lost his boarding pass.

Good news is we never lost Reese or her essential items - paci, Lovey, and Monkey! So we'll still call this a successful trip.

Heard Museum

We spent about 45 minutes at the Heard Museum where Reese "learned" about American Indian arts and cultures. While she didn't quite appreciate everything in the museum, we found a kid area where Reese and Daddy played.

Green Thumb

Reese stopped to touch and smell the flowers each time we left the hotel. Maybe she'll have a green thumb like her Great Grandma Cipra!

Zoo

Reese enjoyed the morning at the Phoenix Zoo. Highlights included feeding the giraffe (she was surprised when the big giraffe head came up to her face, but she didn't cry), watching the monkeys play in the trees, and playing in the Little People activity area.

Ball Game

We went to Chase Field tonight to watch the D-Backs take on the Phillies. Reese did great at her first MLB game. She ate some ball park food, watched the players, and entertained the people around us. We left in the 8th inning, not because Reese was fussy, but to miss the traffic. Good job, Reese! I bet you attend lots of baseball games with Daddy in the near future.

Pool Time

We spent some time at the pool every day. Reese's favorite thing to do was not swim, but throw rocks into the water! Most of the time Mommy and Daddy had to dive in to get the rocks, but sometimes we recruited little kids to help us too.

Encanto Park

We found a great park today - Encanto Park. There were lots of birds, dogs, and people to meet. Reese also enjoyed watching a little league soccer game, and getting into the action. There were also rides and fair food like cotton candy, but Reese was so busy with the "free" entertainment that we didn't even have to pay. I definitely recommend this park to anyone who visits Phoenix with kids.

Off to Phoenix

We left for a little family vacation to Phoenix, Arizona today. Reese enjoyed her time at the airport pushing Monkey in the stroller. Sure glad we brought that stroller for Monkey since Reese rarely rode in it! Although I was worried, she did great on the plane where she played and slept. This is her second plane ride, but this time she was more mobile than her first trip. Traveling must have made her hungry because, when we arrived in Phoenix, she scarfed down a hamburger at Lenny's Malt Shop. Altogether a good first day.

Daddy's Home

Hooray! Daddy is home! After days of uncertainty, loss of communication because his laptop crashed and cell phone would no longer charge, 5 scheduled then cancelled flights and train tickets, it was a fluke that Todd got on a plane yesterday. He happened to call me at work just as I was walking out the door. Todd heard on the news (the one station that was in English) that the European Union held a conference and they were going to schedule some new flights Tues morning. So we decided to check Delta.com just in case. We were shocked to find a flight at 10:30am Tues morning, , a seat available, and actually scheduled to depart! Long story short, he walked in the door at 10:00pm Tues. What a relief!

Reese was already sleeping when he got home, but was so excited to see Daddy when she woke up. She immediately started smiling and gaving him kisses. She was soon saying, "Dada, Dada, Dada" and back to playing with their favorite toys together. Todd stayed home with Reese on Wed and they had a great day bonding. Reese would not let him out of her sight on Wed evening, so we went to watch Daddy play in the "old man" basketball league in Rockford.

Since Todd has so much extra time in Paris, he did a little shopping for his girls. He bought me a beautiful scarf, Reese a pink rugby outfit and soccer ball, and little socks that are too small for Reese so Belle the cat will have to wear instead.

Welcome home, Daddy!

Second Trip

We took a second trip to the park this evening. This time Reese enjoyed throwing rocks, touching the water, and attempting to walk into the river!

Park

We played at the park today. Reese tried lots of new things like climbing on the jungle gym and going down the slide.

Daddy update: Todd now has a flight booked on Thursday. He is sitting in his hotel room in France getting very frustrated and missing his little girl!

Keeping Busy

Reese and I are trying to keep busy while we wait for Daddy to get home. If it was Reese's choice she would spend every waking minute outside to pass the time. She just loves the outdoors and cries when we come inside.

Latest plan is for Daddy to fly home on Monday. Fingers crossed! Dumb volcano!

Belly Laugh

Reese's belly laugh is contagious!

Airplane

Daddy has been in Paris for work all week. And, wouldn't you know, a volcano in Iceland is preventing him from coming home on time! He rarely travels, and this is his first time traveling internationally for work - so what are the odds!?!

Reese (and Mommy) miss Daddy so much. Reese even built him an airplane out of Mega Blocks to get him home (ok, so Mommy helped a little)! Fingers crossed his new flight tomorrow night does not get cancelled.

Princess Potty

I decided to pull 0ur Reese's potty today, just to see what happened. Reese was intrigued from the minute I took it out of the package. I asked her if she wanted to try it out, and she said "yes." So I took off her diaper, put her on the potty, and told her she could pee. She looked down, said "pee", and started going - no joke!! The potty is a "Princess Potty" because it plays a royal tune when you go -- so Reese was rewarded with a tune on her first try. She was so proud, and I was just shocked.

We tried the potty again a couple hours later, but this time no luck. So it appears our first success was a fluke. But hey, I really didn't expect to potty train a 14-month-old and it's a good story to share.

Goulash

Reese really enjoys eating goulash! It's definitely one of her favorite meals!

Easter #2

We celebrated Easter with the Haags at the lake today. Reese loved all the attention and kisses she got from her family. What a lucky little girl.

Daddy's Birthday

Happy birthday to Daddy! This morning we celebrated by going out for bunch at Denny's -- frugal Daddy cashed in on the free "grand slam" breakfast you get on your birthday. :) And this evening Reese helped Daddy open his presents. Wishing you another great year, Daddy!

Playing Catch

Reese loves to play catch -- with others or simply by herself!

How are you?

Cute video of Reese having fun and saying "Hi". Reese legitimately says many words, but we also like to pretend that she says things like "How are you?"

Baseball Opener

It's tradition for Todd to take a vacation day for the Major League Baseball opener. Although Grandma and Grandpa Haag came over to help, Todd only saw 30 minutes of baseball. They were all busy with Reese who was so excited about the opener that she didn't nap all day!

Easter Egg Hunt

Happy Easter! Reese enjoyed her day at Grandpa and Grandma Cipra's house - which included an Easter egg hunt just for her. She enjoyed it so much that we had to hide her eggs in the yard three times!

Pizza Party

Daddy had won a pizza party at the Austin Country Club, so we decided to cash it in tonight. First Reese met a few bunny friends on the stairs. Then a few other friends including Emmy, John, and their little boy Braden joined us for some pizza. Braden is just one month older than Reese. They got along well when they played ball, but Reese started crying when sweet Braden tried to give her a hug!

Head Rest

Reese and Daddy napped on the way to Austin today. Before he fell asleep I asked Todd to make Reese a little pillow to make her ride more comfortable. I had to laugh when I saw what he came up with.

Curiosity

This picture captures Reese's curiosity lately. She has to touch and see everything we are doing - on the computer (so I have to limit my Facebook addiction to during Reese's naps - maybe this is a good thing), putting away the dishes (if only she could actually help put them away instead of making her own little pile on the floor), taking a picture (as seen in this picture) - the list goes on and on. I love her curiosity, but tasks sure take longer than ever before.

Coloring Eggs

Some of the neighborhood girls came over for an Easter playdate. We had fun coloring eggs and going on an Easter egg hunt in the living room. Thanks for a fun day, girls!