Brayden Turns 4

We attended Brayden's 4th birthday party today. He's growing up so fast! Reese had a lot of fun watching and playing with all of Brayden's other cousins. This was the first birthday party where Reese really took interest in what was going on - singing Happy Birthday and watching Brayden blow out candles and open presents. I can just imagine her thinking, this birthday stuff is a lot of fun!

More Funny Conversations

Here are some more funny conversations we have been having with Reese lately...

Reese has discovered a nice way to tell us "no" - she now says "no thank you". For example, I asked her if she wanted to take a nap today and she responded "No thank you, Mama." It's hard to argue with her when she's being so polite!

When Reese drops something, she occasionally says, "Oops-a-daisy. I drop it!" Do I say oops-a-daisy? How did she learn that?

Daddy was brushing Reese's hair the other day and she said, "Daddy, no brush hair. Put [the brush] on floor." Guess she told him!

Per Reese's request, we played the Wii Cow Racing game yesterday. She really got into it telling me how to play the game. She would yell, "Go, go, go!", "Turn!", "Faster!", and "Jump!" In one section of the game where scarecrows pop across the screen, she became worried and told me in a very concerned voice, "Don't scare them, Mama."

Reese & Libby

Reese loves Libby and talks to/about her all the time. Here are some examples...

Libby had a cold when we first brougth her home. Everytime Libby would sneeze (which was about 10 times and hour), Reese would say, "Bless you!" And then tell me "She's chokin'" - a little confused with choking vs. sneezing. Libby sneezed so often that I'm pretty sure she thought her new name was "Bless you" instead of Libby.

We let Libby outside to play every day, and entice her back inside with treats. When it's time to come in, Reese goes to the door and yells, "Come in Libby! Treats!"

Sometimes Reese and Libby play on the playset together. Reese demonstrated how to do it, then Libby slid down the slide too!

Reese enjoys disciplining her kitty. She says, "Get down, Libby. No on table." and "Libby, don't spray!"

Her funniest yet, was when we were eating dinner, Reese said completely out of the blue, "Libby tooted!" and then laughed hysterically.

Down the Slide

Reese pushed all her toys down the slide tonight, then went down herself to land in the pile. It was great fun!

Deep Conversation

Reese had a deep conversation (in a box) with her friends Malcolm, Lulu, and Monkey. I think they were talking about the Brett Favre drama that unfolded this week.

Leave the Room

Reese has recently started asking us to leave the room.

Sometimes she wants some privacy if she has to go "#2". Earlier this week Reese told Grandma, "Grandma, go over there (pointing to the front entry). I'm pooping." Grandma followed direction and went into the front entry. After a few minutes Grandma asked, "Are you done?" Reese responded, "I don't know," but graciously let Grandma come back into the room anyway.

Other times she has asked me to leave the room do so something naughty. Reese was taking a bath last night and kept drinking the bath water. I repeatedly told her not to drink it because it is icky. She then said, "Mama, go into the crib". She wanted me out of the bathroom so she could keep drinking! Stinker! I laughed and said, "Reese, do you want me to go into the crib so you can keep drinking the bath water?" She quickly admitted, "Yes!"

Fun with Jack

Grandma and Grandpa Cipra took care of both grandkids today. Reese really enjoys her time with Jack. Anytime he would go out of her sight, Reese would say, "Jack, where are you?"

Play-Doh was one of their favorite activities. Reese made snakes and pancakes and Jack made nickles to work on couting in 5's. Way to go, Jack!

They also went to Lake Rebecca Park to throw rocks in the lake and explore. Fun times!

Jokester

Reese is becoming quite the jokester. Here are a few examples.

She is starting to understand junk food, and goes through the following routine on her own while looking at us and smiling...
"Candy?" "Nooooooo!"
"Cookies?" "Nooooooo!"
"Cake?" "Nooooooo!"
"Ice cream?" "Nooooooo!"
"Chocolate?" "Nooooooo!"
"Coffee?" "Nooooooo!" (Clearly Grandma Cipra drinks a lot of coffee around Reese to know this word.)

Reese is starting to understand genders, so we often have this conversation...
Reese: "I'm a boy!"
Mommy: "No. What are you?"
Reese laughs: "Nooooooo, I'm a girl!"
Then we repeat 10 times

Jumper

Reese loves to jump. Our days are filled with Reese saying "I'm jumpin'!", "Bouncin'!" and "Hop like a bunny!"

Tonight her jumping got dangerous when we were outside. She jumped on the lawn chair, stairs, and side of the inflatable pool. Let me clarify, she does not climb, but actually jumps and gets air time -- and of course refuses to let me help her. This dangerous jumping pushed me over the edge. I called Grandma Cipra and asked her to stop at Toys R Us on the way to our house and buy a jumper. I realize the huge jumper a bit extravagant, but I figure this investment will save me some trips to the emergency room! As an added bonus, I'm hoping the jumper wears Reese out so she starts going to bed before midnight!

As you can see, Reese LOVES her new toy. Her eyes were filled with excitment as she watched me inflate it. After jumping for a few minutes, she turned to me and said, "I like it!!" Reese and Grandma jumped for an hour tonight. Every time Grandma would get out to take a rest, Reese would say, "Grandma, back in!"

Crazy Frog

We have this crazy frog who jumps onto our kitchen window every night. We are not quite sure how he gets there because our window is about 15 feet off the ground. Reese thinks it's hilarious, yells "Froggie!" when she sees him, and makes everyone come to look at him.

Mechelle Hedtke, I apologize if you see this post. I know how much you dislike frogs.

Wedding Dance

Everyone had fun at the wedding dance tonight. Reese was not shy and showed us some dance moves before the floor was even cleared from dinner. Brayden found an "older woman" to dance with, but as you can see, he experienced his first "rejection" when she left to be with her friends. Poor guy!

On the way home, Reese was recapping the night by saying, "Grandma Haag dance!" and "Grandpa dance with all the girls!" See Grandpa, she was watching!

Kim and Josh

Congratulations to Kim (Todd's cousin) and Josh on their wedding day! It was a beautiful day for an outdoor ceremony. I thought this was a sweet picture of Daddy and Reese watching the boats prior to the ceremony. We'll have to go back to Baker Park in Maple Plain to play soon.

Another Fun Day

Another fun day at the lake. This time cousins Peyton and Brayden were there to play too!

Wild

It is quite obvious our cat Libby is just 2 years old because she loves to play. Reese often says "Libby fast!" and "Libby wild!" Reese loves to watch Libby chase her ball and even gets in on the action herself.

Anniversary Gifts

Todd and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary today. To be honest, we would have forgotten about it if some family and friends would not have sent us emails congratulating us. We obviously didn't have plans and we don't typically buy each other gifts anyway. So, we decided to go out to dinner and buy Reese gifts instead. Reese scored two new dolls, a stroller, and some books. Happy anniversary to her!

Table Prayer

Reese loves saying the table prayer. She insists that we say it about 20 times throughout dinner. Her favorite part is the end where she says "Eat!"

Cipra Family Reunion

We attended the Cipra Family Reunion in Austin today where Reese got to meet lots of relatives. She also enjoyed spending time with her Great Grandma Cipra.

Jet Skier

We spent the day at Eden Lake today. Reese had fun watching Mommy and Daddy jet ski and demanded a little "driving" time of her own.

Outlet Mall

Reese and I hit the Albertville Outlet Mall today. We pulled up to the mall and Reese yelled "Clothes!" - she just LOVES shopping for clothes. In fact, she asked Heather (who takes care of her on Wednesdays) if they could go to Target the other day. Too funny!

Reese watched some kids on the mechanical rides on the sidewalk, and was eager to try herself. She really liked the ride -- until I put the quarters in and it started bouncing her around. She watched the rest of the ride from my arms.

Longing

It has been very hot outside lately, so we have spent more time inside than normal. As you can see, Reese and Libby are longing to go out and play.

First Sleepover

We attended Todd's 20 year high school reunion last night. Wow - Todd was an Osseo Oriole 20 years ago! We enjoyed talking with current and old friends late into the night. Reese spent the evening with Troy, Tammy, Peyton, and Brayden. She had a lot of fun playing with her cousins, shopping at Toys R Us, and sleeping in Brayden's room. We'll call her first sleepover a big success!