Easter Egg Hunt

Gabby was able to participate in two Easter egg hunts this year. The first was at the church on Saturday. The second was in our front yard on Easter afternoon. The Easter Bunny brought Easter eggs for Gabby and Sasha to find. The hard-t0-find eggs were for Gabby and the easy-to-find eggs were for Sasha. Gabby had lots of fun looking for the eggs and was very successful at finding them.

Sasha, on the other hand, was not so interested in finding the Easter eggs. She was outside for almost five minutes before she realized that there were Easter eggs to be had. Who cares about candy when there are bugs and leaves and dandilions and bark chips and grass to eat?

Sasha, do you see the egg there?

Well, now it's right behind you. What are you eating?

In search of that egg. Where could it be?

Yeah! I found one! I'm good at this Easter egg hunting stuff.

Hmmm....what's inside here? Candy? Let's check this out.

The Easter Bunny did not think she would be able to open the eggs and put some chocolate candies inside. Well, Sasha is smarter than the Easter Bunny. She likes chocolate candies, apparantly. Like mother, like daughter. Happy Easter.

Easter at the Baird's

Well, the Easter Bunny did us proud this year. Gabby and Sasha were really spoiled and Gabby loves the Easter Bunny now because he brought her some fun things. Actually, the Easter Bunny had some help from Santa Claus with her presents. Santa saw how much Gabby got for Christmas and decided to leave one of her presents for the Easter Bunny to bring. How nice of him. :) Anyway, this was the first year that the Easter Bunny really came to our house, and it was fun to see how excited Gabby was with all the candy/presents. It makes holidays more fun when you can see them through your children's eyes.

Our Easter morning spoils.

Gabby unwrapping the first present.

Sleeping Beauty dress ups! Yeah! Now Gabby can be the princess she always knew she is. :)

What's more? Snow White dress ups! Gabby is in heaven.

Beautiful. They are a little big, but that's good. Then they will last longer, hopefully. :)

Snow White beauty. Gabby wore these dress ups for 3 days straight. We even had to go to the post office and grocery store with her wearing them. I guess this present is a hit. Good job Easter Bunny!

Sasha got this push toy from the Easter Bunny. It makes music. She loves it. Anything she can push around is a toy to her, so having something her size is even better. The handle adjusts lengths too so as she gets taller she can still use it. Our almost walker. She can only take about 3 steps unassisted. Someday she will get brave and just do it. But for now...

Also, Sasha started saying 'no' on Easter Sunday. It is her favorite word now. All day long, "No, no, no." Oh boy. That's Mommy's fault though for not finding other words to use besides the dreaded No. Fortunately she doesn't know how to use it yet, so it is still cute.

Laughlin Vacation

March 28-31 found us in Laughlin, Nevada. My mom and grandpa came down to see my mom's cousin Shirley, and so we drove over so we could visit as well. We had a great time, and as always, were so excited to see our Nana. Gabby was happy to go to "Nana's Hotel" and swim in the swimming pool. However, the pool wasn't heated and we ended up "swimming" in the hot tub instead. Whatever works. We also went to a town in Arizona called Oatman, which is about 13 miles east of Laughlin. There are donkeys wandering the streets and you can feed them carrots from your hand. Gabby loved seeing them. She was not shy to go right up to them and pet them or feed them. It really suprized Jay and me. Historically, she has been shy and skiddish around all animals, so to see her go right up to the donkeys was a pleasant surprize. Here are a few pics from the trip:

Gabby and the donkeys.

Nana and Sasha with a donkey. Sasha seems so uninterested. I think she was just trying to not get licked.

Oatman used to be a big vacation spot, I guess. This hotel is not an operating hotel but it used to be. I guess Clark Gable came here on his honeymoon. Or his wedding night. I can't remember which.

Gabby feeding the donkeys. They love carrots!

An Old West cowboy show. They were shooting their guns at each other. It was quite loud. Sasha didn't like it much. They didn't have mics on though, and it was hard to hear them at times. Gabby could not make out what they were saying. She was sitting on my grandpa's lap during the show. She turned to him and said, "What are they talking about?" "Oh, just cowboy stuff" was his reply. He thought that was funny.

Another funny note on this show...the premise of the show is that these outlaw cowboys are fighting over some stolen money. It starts with these to men and an outlaw woman. The men were trying to get the woman to give them the money. She wouldn't, so they shot at her. Then she dropped the bag of money and ran off. Once she was off stage, a little boy from the audience ran to where the woman had dropped the bag of money, picked it up, and ran back to his mom. The actors were totally taken off guard by this and started laughing. Obviously not part of the act. You could tell the mom was kind of embarrassed. I thought it was funny, and brave of the boy. Either trying to help the woman or just wanted the money. ha ha :) It was fun.

By the Colorado river, which runs past the casino/hotel where we stayed.

Sasha's Birthday Cake

So here is a photo diary of the consumption of Sasha's 1st birthday cake. It starts out as such a beautiful, clean situation. A nice, free (from Albertson's) cake, just waiting to be eaten. And then Sasha comes on the scene...

Big Sister blowing out the candles. What a great helper! :)

The first bite.

Yum! I think she likes it!

Yes! She does like it!

Ahhhh! That was a great birthday cake! Thanks Mommy and Daddy! Let's have some more!

AI recap, a la Kelly

I just watched last week's American Idol and tonight's episode back-to-back, and I have to say that Kris is rapidly becoming one of my favorites. I love "Ain't No Sunshine" anyway and I think that Bill Withers is an amazing artist, so any of his songs would be awesome to hear. But this was AWESOME! I watched it twice! (Thank you DVR.) The kid knows what works for him and doesn't back down. I think if he keeps this up he could be in the top 4. I was a big Danny fan coming into this season, but he is falling down on my scale. My sister is right, he kind of sounds the same week to week. His performance this week was good....I'm just liking some others better. So here's my breakdown on my top three:

1. Adam. Motown week: WOW. Amazing. His range....huge! This week was back to his rock edge, which I love too. He is my favorite and I am hoping for him to win, so I guess I'll play favorites here. He knows what he wants to do with each song and he doesn't back down. He knows who he is as an artist and what kind of song he needs to choose to keep in that area, unlike several other contestants who are struggling to find this balance.

2. Kris. His Motown week performance was great, I loved the way he changed the song. It didn't sound anything like other versions, which I loved. And this week...well, we already discussed that. He is in his own zone, like Adam, so I think as long as he keeps it up he will be sailing to the end. And I think he will.

3. Allison. She is the best female contestant, in my opinion. She could definately be in the top 3, if not the finals. Her voice is amazing, hard to believe she is only 16. I definately liked her Motown performance better, but I love No Doubt, so this week was cool for me too. I liked her outfit too. Maybe in person it was too over-the-top, but it didn't come across that way to me. Plus she's 16. Give her a break. She looked 16 tonight. Aren't they always criticizing the younger contestants about not looking/sounding their age? This show drives me insane sometimes!

It's fun to watch the shows together because it's easier to see who is standing out and who is falling behind. It will be interesting to see what happens. I hope Megan stays around. I love her voice, if she can figure it out in time I think she could be a contender. She is still struggling a bit though. And I like Matt too. But he is a bit inconsistent. Which is a shame because when he is on, he is ON. This year makes me tempted to vote, but I don't want to fall into the depths of AI obsession, or whatever it was that Holly calls voting. I can't remember. :) I did try to vote one week but I couldn't get through. So there's another reason to not try. ha ha

Sasha's 1 Year Old Today!

My baby is one year old today. My how time flies! I cannot believe that it has been a year already. And what a joyous one at that. Sasha has brought so much joy, happiness, laughter, and love into our home. She has such a sweet spirit and is so loving to everyone around her. She thinks the world of her big sister and thinks that Gabby can do no wrong. Her smile and fun-loving personality have brought me and Jay so much joy and we are so happy to have her in our family. Happy Birthday lovely daughter of mine. I love you so much! :)

Sasha and her classic finger-pointing. This is her favorite thing to do as of late. That and making a fishy face.

Cheese!

Tired baby. Taking a rest on the couch from a busy play day. I love this pose.

Pay It Forward

PAY IT FORWARD.

It may look like a 4th grader, but I'm in. Read on for more....

PAY IT FORWARD

The first 5 people to respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice--for you! This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:

1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!
2. What I create will be just for you.
3. It WILL be done this year.
4. You have no clue what it’s going to be … it may be cards, a bookmark, something delicious or a complete surprise to you (and me!) … who knows?
5. Most importantly, you must offer the same deal on your blog - the first 5 people to comment on your blog get something made by YOU!

And the AI losers are....

What! What!! Jorge!! I CANNOT believe that Anoop is saved from elimination tonight! I was convinced that he was leaving and I wasn't sure who the other person would be. I didn't suspect Jorge though. I liked him, thought his voice was great. I even thought his performance was good, definately better than Anoop. Don't get me wrong, I am an Anoop fan. He has a lot of energy, pizazz if you will, on stage and he is fun to watch. But WOW!!! That one caught me with my mouth wide open. Jasmine, not so much. I was surprized that the judges put her through actually. I would have chosen that Alicia Keys sing-alike (Felicity? I can't remember her name) over Jasmine.

Since I'm here...My favorite this season is Adam. I think he's awesome and I think he will probably win. His voice is amazing! However, there are several strong voices here and I think there are about 4 top contenders that this whole deal could go to: Adam, Lil, Danny, or Allison. I think that the girl with the pink hair (what's her name again?) is running right behing them, the third strongest girl. Any thoughts? I have to seek out Idol fans since my husband could care less.

Sasha's new toy

At least someone is using it! Ha ha! I can't keep her off of it. I guess she sees Gabby doing her "exercises" and has to try it out for herself.

AI reactions

Hey all, I just watched American Idol tonight and I have to post. The girls really bombed! I liked the girl with the pink hair, but that's it. Tatiana is driving me crazy. I can't stand her. Drama Queen! Simon hit it on the head. I actually am trying to vote tonight to help make sure she doesn't get through. A first for me since I watch American Idol but I don't vote. The guys were alright too, not up to what I was expecting from this group. I like Danny (is that his name? The last guy who's wife died), and the musician guy with the crazy hair. I guess I should learn their names. Tough competition, the odds are really against everyone since only 3 people get through. I personally think it will be one girl and two guys. We'll see.

Happy Valentine's Day

In my husband's family, holidays are a big deal. Jay's mom always made holidays special by having a nice breakfast and nice holiday decorations. This includes birthdays, where the whole family gets up to make the birthday person breakfast before work/school. On Valentine's Day, this tradition also included some small present for each of the kids. Jay always talks about these memories and so I thought it would be fun to carry them on in our family. Gabby is now at the age where she can start to understand and care about holidays and presents, so I thought I'd start this year to make these events special occastions for her. Here is our Valentine's Day breakfast that we had this morning. In case you can't see: scrambled eggs with cheese on top, bacon, pancakes, milk or chocolate milk (as preference demanded), cantalope, and yummy Costco cinnamon rolls. Each of the girls got a present and Gabby made her Daddy a homemade Valentine card. Jay gave me some flowers a couple days ago, which you can kind of see in the picture. They are very beautiful. I got some paper plates and cups decorated with red and pink hearts, and red napkins for us to use with our meals today.

This is my one Valentine decoration, besides our dinnerware. So here we are as a family, with our Happy Valentine's Day presents. Gabby got a figurine of Belle and Ariel, and a Jasmine book. Sasha got a stuffed animal and a book about shapes. They were happy with their presents. They also got Valentine's Day cards from grandparents and Ggpa. Thanks for the great cards! We love them, and love you too! Thanks for thinking of us.

I'm glad I have this day to celebrate how much I love my family. My children are a joy to me and I feel so blessed that they are such sweethearts. Jay is the love of my life and my best friend. I am so so blessed and lucky to have found him and I love him so much. I hope you all have as much love and joy in your lives as I have in mine.

Gingerbread House mania

Better late than never, huh? When we were in Utah for Christmas, my mom bought a gingerbread house kit for us to do with Gabby while we were staying at her house. But there was so much going on that we never did it. So she told us to take it home. We finally got around to putting it together on Friday (Jan 16th).

I did the icing and Jay and Gabby put on the candy and helped put the house and tree together. We had a good time. By the end Gabby was more interested in eating the candy than putting it on the house. Of course. :) It turned out cute, but I think we should have made the time to do it with my mom. She is a lot better at things like this and has a more steady hand and a craftier eye than I do, I'm sure it would have turned out looking professional with her help. Oh well. Maybe next year we can make sure to have time for it, now that we know how much fun it can be.

Front View

Back View

The creators, and our cheerleader Sasha! :O)

A Christmas picture for you

Thanks for the tips on where to find that David Cook version of "Billie Jean". AWESOME! I got chills watching it and I think my jaw was open the whole time. I hope my husband didn't see me drooling! :) ha ha...

We got family pictures taken the day after Christmas, so I am excited to see them. I should be getting the disk this week, hopefully there is something good to post. Sasha was being such a cheeseball, so I am hoping that there are at least one or two good ones of her. Gabby....well hopefully she is just looking at the camera. We tried to take a family Christmas pic at the LA temple, but we didn't get one that was great of all 4 of us. Gabby was pulling her look-to-the-side face. But by the time we got this pic (see below), we had already tried about 10 other times and I was just tired of it. Plus it was 9:00 p.m. and I had a stomach ache. Who wants to walk around with a pain in her side? Not me. On a more positive note, how awesome is it to be walking around with only a fleece jacket on at 9:00 at night on December 5th? Beautiful weather. I don't miss the snow, I have to say. And the lights at the temple were very beautiful. There is always such a peaceful feeling at the temple and on the grounds. I love being there.

And just never mind about how aweful my hair looks. Wow, I can't believe I was walking around looking this bad for so long. I guess it just goes to show how easy it is to fool yourself. Because when I looked in the mirror, I didn't look like this. Thumbs down. :( Glad Jay still keeps me around. :) (My hair looks much better now...will get pics up soon). P.S. Thanks, Aunt Cami, for the cute hat and socks! Sasha looks adorable and is so warm and comfy! :)

Idol's Back, Baby!

So I guess I have to admit now that I am an American Idol watcher. Slightly embarrassing since my husband thinks it is totally stupid/staged. Yeah, the tryout footage probably is staged and it is a bit silly, but I suppose it's the silly in me that drags me to the T.V. I don't usually watch the tryout parts, but I heard there were tryouts in Salt Lake this time, so I have to watch. Oh well. We'll see how it turns out.

And BTW, David Cook's CD is great. If there is anyone out there wondering if it is worth the listen, don't. Just know that it is. My personal fav is "Bar-ba-sol", but there are many more to pleasure the ears. I wish I knew how to link it up to this message. I guess I'll just have to install one of those music list things on the blog. Anyway, hope this year can produce as well as last year did.

Also, does anyone have a copy of his (David Cook) rendition of Billy Jean that he sang on Idol last season? I have heard so much good, but I missed it. Would love to take a listen if anyone can share or point me in the right direction. XO