Month: October 2011

Pumpkin Carving

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Tonight was pumpkin carving time! Despite everyone starting to come down with a bit of the sniffles, we had a great time. I remember carving pumpkins with my family as a kid and it was something I always looked forward to at Halloween time. My hope is that in the future Abby and Ellie will look forward to these things as well. I also hope we can start a few Halloween family traditions of our own now that Abby is really learning what these holidays are. Now I cant wait until Ellie is old enough too. But lets not rush it.

Abby has her pumpkin and she is ready to start creating. She has been learning on a Disney Preschool show called “Special Agent Oso” about all the steps needed to create a Jack O’ Lantern.

The face has been drawn and now its time to cut the top off and scoop out all of the “pumpkin guts”.
The pumpkin tops are off and not its time to scoop out the “guts”. Ellie had a lot of fun doing this, even if it was a teaspoon at a time.
Having lots of fun!

Abby’s pumpkin is all done. Thank you daddy for helping create a wonderful Jack O’ Lantern face!

Ellie is done too! Mommy helped to make the face for Ellie’s Jack O’ Lantern, with two little buck teeth and all. Just like Ellie!

Disneyland… A Repeat Story But with a Few Tweaks

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Yup I know it, its another trip to Disneyland! But I love it and so did Abby and Ellie. This time it was just mommy, Abby and Ellie. Ok well it wasn’t just us but Daddy definitely didn’t get to come with us being that it was a work day and all. This time we met up with Judith, Diane, Auntie Kelli and Char for a day of fun. It was a gloomy day, but that didn’t stop us. If anything it made the the park a little less crowded and quite a bit more enjoyable.

Ellie made a new best friend out of Oscar, the chef at the Carnation restaurant. He was smitten with her and she with him.

Abby was so excited to meet Ariel!
Just taking a break a break in front of King Arthur’s Carousel.

For Ellie this is just a break to cause more trouble! Although I am sure it felt good to stretch those legs.
Trying to pull the sword from the stone.

Catching a ride with Kelli. These two look incredibly happy to be at Disneyland.

Ellie is giving poor ghost Mickey a little bit of “Mouth to Mouse Resuscitation”

We were able to snag some great seats for the parade. Abby had the chance to see Mary Poppins up close. She even waved at Abby!

A beautiful evening at the happiest place on Earth!

The day spent with friends was wonderful. Because of the kindness and generosity of Judith and friends I even had the chance to get on a few grown up rides like Matterhorn and Space Mountain. Disneyland closed early that night to prepare for Mickey’s Halloween but it gave us the chance to jump on to a few rides over at California Adventure and then stop for dinner before heading home. You could tell Abby had more fun then she even knew what to do with. She fell asleep on Judith’s arm as we were eating dinner. Once again it was a great day at the Magic Kingdom.

Pumpkin Patch 2011

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Yesterday we headed over to the Pumpkin Patch. Unfortunately I was not thinking and did not charge the battery for my good camera. So I was forced to use our smaller Kodak. While I love this camera, it doesn’t take the best pictures in low light and the flash always washes faces out. Oh, well. That is life. The girls still had a blast and that’s what truly matters.

The girls had a lot of fun playing in the pumpkins. Daddy even took Abby into the petting zoo to see the goats, sheep, pigs and chickens. One of the little goats was young and jumping everywhere, which made Abby and Ellie giggle quite a bit. After poking around and taking a ride in the wagon, both of the girls found the perfect pumpkins to take home. Cant wait to see them all carved!




Boo at the Zoo… Or Something Like That

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Shaun and had planned to take the girl to Boo at the Zoo at the Santa Barbara Zoo, but did not do something crucial… Buy the tickets. We called the Santa Barbara Zoo and they told us that we could buy tickets at the gate, but they sell fast and there were a limited amount. So instead of rushing to get there, Shaun suggested we do something else. And what is the next best place to Boo at the Zoo… DISNEYLAND!

This time, however, we decided to surprise the girls. And by surprising the girls I mean we decided to surprise Abby. So when they woke up from their nap, we got them dressed and ready to go, but we told them we just needed to head to Target instead. Thank goodness Abby does not have a sense of time yet because she bought it, even when we passed by about 4 on the way. As we approached the off ramp, we finally fessed up as to where we were really going. Abby, as always, was excited but you couldn’t tell. She always stays as cool as a cucumber.

The evening at Disneyland was pretty casual. We rode the train around the entire park, which Abby had a great time doing. We also had the chance to catch the Fireworks and Fantasmic which thrilled Abby to no end. Ellie loved Fantasmic the most because she could see Mickey, whom she is a major fan of. We walked around and enjoyed all of the Halloween sights and then as the night got late we headed home. I have to say, we are very blessed to be able to enjoy such a wonderful place when we want to and to share it with our little girls. I don’t think I will ever take it for granted.

Ellie worked on some of her pilates and yoga from her stroller as we waited in line to get in.

As you can see, Abby is very excited to be on the train!

Ellie was having lots of fun too!

Even though Tinkerbell had “gone to bed” for the night, we still took a picture in front of her teapot house.

Not the best picture in the world, but no matter how old I am I still love the castle at night.

St. George and Back in Two and a Half Days

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I have never actually run a marathon, not even close, but we are no strangers to marathon road trips. This road trip was to St. George and back, leaving Friday night after Shaun came home from work and heading back on Sunday afternoon. It was a marathon, but I am not complaining. It gave us the chance to see some of my family and spend a bit of time with them, even if it was short. Most importantly, it allowed us to spend time with my Grandma Taylor (Great Grandma Tutu to the girls). She has had some health issues as of late so even though it was a shirt trip, we felt it was an important one to help cheer her up.

The drive in was uneventful, getting us in at nearly 2AM mountain time. Not too bad considering we didnt leave the San Fernando Valley until after 5:30PM. The following day was pretty mellow. We spent time at Grandma’s house, visiting with my parents and sister as well as my Uncle David, Uncle Kevin and Aunt Carolyn. Everyone had decided to have a BBQ over at my Uncles David’s house, so Shaun and I made a run to Costco with my dad which gave us time to talk and catch up as well. The BBQ was very casual and gave everyone more time to talk and visit with one another. We had some yummy food with pumpkin pie for desert and then we all say down to watch Rango together, which was a very nice close to the evening.

The following morning we got up and packed the car. Its hard to leave so soon. Had this not been one of the busiest times for Shaun, we probably would have stayed a little longer but such is life. We met with my parents and sister for brunch at Cracker Barrel, yum! After a very yummy and slightly filling breakfast we headed over to Tonaquint Cemetery to say a quick hello to Grandpa Taylor. I miss him very much but it always makes me feel better when we can stop in a say “hello”. After the visit with Grandpa we headed back to Grandma’s house to say goodbye to everyone. We stayed for about an hour and let the girls play. Grandma was in wonderful spirits although I could tell she was sad to see us go too. Its always hard to leave family, but we finally had to pack up the car and say goodbye. Aside from some traffic outside of Baker and Barstow the ride home was pretty smooth. Until next time St. George!

Ellie and Auntie Jillian have a snuggle as we wait for dinner.

A few snuggles and some play time with Grandpa Taylor. I’m sure grandpa cant resist those baby blues!

Sometimes a girl just needs to sit in the closet and eat her snacks before breakfast. That, or Ellie just did not want to leave. Can’t say I blame her.

Abby is trying to be like her Auntie Jillian and play with the golf tee game at Cracker Barrel. She kind of had the hang of it.
Ellie is showing off her Rockette moves to Grandpa Taylor.

That’s a big game of checkers!

Saying “hello” to Grandpa Taylor. Miss you very much!

Jillian finally helped me find Grandpa’s name on the memorial wall. Thanks!

Oh those teary baby blues! Ellie didn’t like the fact that Grandpa wanted to rest his arms, she wanted to keep flying up in the air instead!
Like this!

Smiles with Grandma Taylor. I can see where those blues might have come from.

Chewee, such a sweet old boy. Sixteen years old and still going strong. One can only wish for a happy, loving and faithful dog like this.

Road trip snacks made it not just to her mouth but all over her face!

Ellie is loving her pretzels and showing off her cute little feet all at once. These girls are so easy going in the car. Boy are we blessed!

Disneyland Birthday

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So what do the Wharton’s love? OK, well there are a lot of things but Disneyland is one of them! Now that Abby is a bit older she has favorites characters, loves all things Disney and gets very excited when the word Disneyland is mentioned. She even loves watching a short movie about the Disneyland Parks on Netflix. (Yes, it is possible that she is more obsessive about Disneyland then I am.)

So as a birthday treat and on a whim, we decided to take Abby to Disneyland. Ellie did not come with us on this trip and while we missed her I know Abby enjoyed having some time with just mommy and daddy. To start the day we rode the tram in. I don’t think Abby could have been more excited, especially when she saw the Halloween scenes with Mickey, Minnie and the gang on the way in.

Its fun to be a kid. Even sitting with mommy on the tram is considered a ride!

Excited and happy smiles from Abby and Daddy after hopping off the tram. Disneyland here we come!

We started out day over in California Adventure. Shaun and I wanted to get on some of Abby’s favorite rides there before they became super busy. While we were there we rode The Little Mermaid, Toy Story Midway Mania, King Triton’s Carousel, and even snapped a picture with Duffy the Bear and the one and only Mickey Mouse! We did a lot in a short amount of time! Once we finished we left and headed over to Disneyland for the rest of our day. We had plenty to do still!

Abby talks to Duffy the Bear. She had to tell him just how much she loved his pumpkin costume.

Before smiling for the camera, Abby and Mickey “hugged it out” for a few minutes. As always, she was in awe of Mickey. Before we left she gave him a big kiss on the nose.

Abby and Daddy on King Triton’s Carousel. This was the first time she rode all by herself! (With daddy standing right next to her of course.)

Such a pretty girl. We love seeing her have so much fun.


After our ride on the carousel, we headed to Disneyland for the remainder of the day. We stopped for lunch and then hit the rides again. I had hoped for Abby to get her picture taken with Rapunzel, but unfortunately the line to see her was nearly two hours long. SO instead we headed over to ride Dumbo. This was Abby’s first time on Dumbo and she loved every second of it.

Mommy and Abby had a blast on Dumbo. It was Abby’s first time!

From there we headed over to Toon Town and Abby was in heaven. She had the chance to meet Pluto, Minnie and of course Mickey Mouse. She also had the chance to play in Minnie and Mickey’s house as well as Donald’s and Goofy’s. She really loves that Donald’s house is a giant boat and that she even had the chance to sound off the horn.

Abby and Pluto sneak a picture and a few hugs. She was so excited to meet him.

Abby was extremely excited to meet Minnie and give her big hugs… Can you tell?

Its all smiles for her picture with Minnie

We also got to see Mickey! It was a bit of a surprise so Abby was a bit overwhelmed but she did love it! Gave Mickey more kisses on the nose! But it was nice to get a picture of all of us!

After our trip to Toon Town, we left hoping that Abby would fall asleep in her stroller. But on our way we saw that the line for Small World was very short, so we hopped on! From there Abby was energized again, so we got on a few more rides. Abby really wanted to ride the Tea Cups, so Mommy took her. Daddy is not a fan even though we didn’t go fast. Abby loved it and just squealed and giggled as mommy turned the cup faster. I am sure we will be going on this again soon!

Abby loved the tea cups! She even loved how she was pushed back into her seat as made the tea cup spin faster and faster.

After the tea cups, we went Alice and Wonderland for Auntie Jillian. Abby loved it too and just as we were about to come to the end of the ride.. it broke! I joked with Abby that we broke it but she didn’t really like that too much. We had to wait until Disney Cast Members let us off, that was a first for me on that ride and I have been many times! From there, the little girl who insisted on walking most of the day, finally crawled into the stroller and passed out. Shaun and I took the time to walk the park a bit and then sit down at Carnation Plaza for some dinner.

When Abby woke up, we got her changed and then headed for one last ride, Nemo. She loves the Nemo Submarines and we promised her one more ride before we headed home. In line she made a new little friend, Lily, who was visiting her grandparents with her mommy. They came all the way from South Carolina. When the ride was over and we had to part ways Abby and Lily gave each other a hug. It was very cute. As we left we walked through the castle on our way to Main Street and said goodbye to Disneyland. Abby had a wonderful time and before we had even left the park was asking when would we be back again. Very soon I’m sure!

It’s Time to Get Tangled!

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“Rapunzel, let down your hair!”

And let our hair down we did! Today family and a few friends came over to our house to celebrate Abby’s 3rd Birthday. This was the first year that Abby chose the theme to her party and her pick… TANGLED! As a surprise, Shaun and I bought her the Rapunzel dress to wear for the party. Abby, who needs a few minutes to wake up after a nap, certainly went from grumpy to happy in a hurry when she pulled it from the bag.


Abby looked adorable in her dress and to top it off, she had Pascal to carry with her. That was a lucky find at Disneyland during our trip in July. It certainly added to the costume and Abby was willing to carry him everywhere with her.


Family and close friends came over to share the day with us. We even had the chance to see a few familiar faces that we had not seen in a while. The day was casual, with nothing speacial to be done. Abby played with Emily, Harrison and Ellie and the adults found plenty to talk about. As part of the party we played the movie, Tangled. In the end it was the adults who watched the movie as the kiddos played. I saw this coming.


As part of what I hope will become a tradition, I mde Abby’s birthday cake again this year. It ended up not being as detailed as I had hoped, but Abby didn’t care. SHe was just excited to see cake and cake with Tangled toys on them to boot.


When it came time to sing Happy Birthday to the birthday girl, we made sure everyone was there, including Grandma and Grandpa Taylor and Auntie Jillian. While they couldn’t be there in person they were on speaker phone to sing.


After cake it was present time. Abby is certainly loved and she received a lot of wonderful things from some wonderful friends and family. This was the first year that Abby actually took interest n opening presents and she wont for it. HOwever, when I say she went for it I mean she willingly opened them but she opened them slowly and methodically. Before enjoying the gift inside, Abby had to make sure that all ribbons, wrap and tape had been removed. I dont know where she gets this from but some people might say “Like Mother Like Daughter”.




After presents we all enjoyed each others company until the party came to an end and everyone went home. Abby was one tired little girl, but it was worth every minute. Its hard to believe that she is now three. The time certainly flies but I cannot wait to see what the next year (and of course many years following) will bring. Happy Birthday Pumpkin! I hope you had a wonderful birthday party!

Happy Birthday Abby

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Abby,

Three years ago today you came into this world a happy little baby with the most stunning blue eyes I had ever seen. After months of kicking, flipping and a few ultrasounds your daddy and I greeted you with smiles, tears of joy and the excited yet nervous anticipation of new parents. We were not clueless about babies or children for that matter, but everything changes when the child you now hold in your arms is your own. There is a lot to teach and there is also a lot to learn.

While we are always learning, the last three years have taught us a lot. You have taught us a lot about being parents, about ourselves and about life. Its hard to sum up into words the things we have learned and what you have taught us, but here is my attempt.

In three years we have learned…

…to smile for new reasons
…that your giggle and the sound of your laughter can make even the most horrible day seem like its light years away
…to not sweat the small stuff and to take each challenge in stride
…that some of the smallest things in life like crawling and walking are part of some of our greatest joys
…that despite being small, its amazing just how much “stuff” you can produce
…that constantly talking to you, teaching you new words would eventually mean that the only time you stop talking is while eating, sleeping and occasionally during a movie. But all of that talking has given us some of the best moments of parenthood thus far
…a new definition of patience
…that being a parent should automatically give you a degree in psychology and make you a specialist in negotiating
…that you have to carefully watch what you say unless you want it repeated at the most inopportune moment
…that you are incredibly independent but always know where to go when you need help or just want to snuggle
…that you know exactly what to do to make us laugh
…that your imagination is endless and that stepping into your world always brings something new and amazing
…that just when you think you cant love anything more, you come along to change it

Abby, the love we have for you cannot be put into words. It’s amazing that three years have passed already but we have enjoyed every moment. We look forward to the years to come and all the adventures ahead of us. Turning three means officially stepping from toddler to preschooler. Moving from diapers to completely potty trained. The start of school and making friends. But I will stop there because I dont want that time to move too quickly. Happy Birthday Little Pumpkin, we love you so much!