The Mullet

Ryan and I like to watch American Idol together. Make fun of us if you would like, but it really is one of the few shows that we agree on. We look at it as couple bonding. Well the other night we watched the the guys perform and when I saw Alex Lambert sing he immediately reminded me of someone, I just couldn't remember who. It wasn't until the next morning I realized who it was. Here is Alex Lambert on American Idol: And here is our baby girl:
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, our daughter has a mullet. I've been praying and praying for her hair to grow faster so she is out of this phase, but it is not happening as quickly as I would like. For now we use barrettes and pigtails to mask this lovely hairdo. I know every child goes through a weird hair phase, I just wish it would be over soon. We still think she is pretty cute though, mullet and all.

Valentine’s Weekend

Isla got a special Valentine’s present when her Grandpa, Grandma GiGi, and Aunt Anna came to see her this weekend. Aunt Anna brought her new puppy, Leo, and although it took Isla and Leo some time to warm up to each other they soon became best buds. It looks like it might take Hank a bit longer to warm up to Leo though. He kept looking at Ryan and I this weekend as if to say “are you kidding me, what is this dog doing here?” He is slowly turning into a grumpy old dog, but we still love him.

Miss Isla wasn’t feeling 100% due to her non-stop teething, but she managed to have a good time with her visitors. GrandmaGiGi and Grandpa got to go to Little Gym with Isla and to the zoo. She even showed them how she can walk and play ring-around-the-rosie.

Here are pictures of Aunt Anna and her cute new baby Leo:

Much to Ryan’s chagrin, Leo is a golden-doodle. Although I have to say the no-shedding thing would be a great bonus.

Isla enjoying her Valentine's Day doughnut with Grandpa:Sunday at the zoo. I can’t believe this was Isla’s first time to the zoo. I really need to get it together! She loved all of it:

The bald eagles:

The penguins:

The giraffes:

But more importantly, the carousel. Isla went for two rides on the carousel and when we took her off she started crying because she wanted to go on more rides. I have a feeling we will be back to the zoo many times this spring and summer.

Talker Not A Walker

Lately it seems that everyone we talk to asks us “So is Isla walking yet?” The short answer is no (well kinda – she takes about three to four steps on her own and then is done). Ryan and I have discovered that our Miss Isla is more of a talker than a walker. This is sort of funny considering that Ryan and I are both quiet people – of course we get the child that talks non-stop! Every day it seems she comes home with a new word. For example, this weekend Isla and I were sitting on the couch playing when she stopped, looked at me, pointed to her elbow and said “elbow” and then went back to playing with her toys. I tried really hard not to giggle, but how random is that? Even her daycare providers comment on how impressed they are with her vocabulary. She also likes to sing songs (Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star and Old MacDonald are among her favorites).

When it comes to walking she loves to be able to hold on to one of my hands. If she has a hold of it she will walk anywhere. Once I let go she just stands there and either takes a couple of steps or sits down. I know she could walk if she wanted to, she just doesn’t have the desire to . . . yet.

She has also turned into a climber. She loves to climb on anything she can. At daycare the other day she actually climbed into one of their Exersaucers. I think Little Gym may have something to do with this. Thankfully she knows how to get herself down from the objects she climbs onto so I don’t worry about her too much.

Since getting her first tooth at 13 months they have been coming in non-stop. She now has eight teeth and is currently working on her ninth. Those darn molars have been giving her some trouble, but I think she is handling it as well as any other toddler can.

Isla continues to be a great eater (surprise, surprise) and is now using utensils. Although does it count when you use your fingers to put the food on the spoon and then eat it? Meals have definitely become a little bit messier as you can see:

We are so in love with Miss Isla and can’t wait to see what she will be up to next!

Isla's Weekend in Bellingham

Since we went to Bellingham for our ski weekend this year (see earlier post) it was a great excuse to bring Isla and have her stay with my parents while Ryan and I were with my girlfriends. Word is that she had a great time with Grandma GiGi and Grandpa. Grandpa got to spoil his granddaughter rotten with doughnuts and ice cream! Here are some pictures of Isla and my parent's condo (which should be completed in mid-March) from the weekend:

Mt. Baker Ski Weekend

For our ski trip this year, my college girlfriends and our significant others met up in Bellingham to ski Mt. Baker. While it was a blast to get together with all my girls, the skiing proved to be sub par. Unfortunately the mountain hadn't seen any new snow in a long time, but it was fun to go back to the mountain I skied on during my childhood.

Since two of the girlfriends are pregnant we decided that one of the days should be a spa day for the girls. We all enjoyed relaxing massages and sitting around talking with each other. Our significant others apparently enjoyed themselves while we were at the spa as we came home to a group of rowdy boys who started drinking at noon! I guess you can't blame them when we leave them for a day at the spa.

I was so happy to be back with my girls since I hadn't seen them since last May (way tooo long!). I'm so excited that we have two baby showers, a bachelorette party, and a wedding as excuses for us to get together in the coming months.

I was a bad picture taker this weekend so I only have two group shots from the weekend - one of the girls and one of the boys:

Vegas Baby!

So my dear friend Marjorie had the great idea to invite a group of girls down to her family place on Lake Las Vegas this past weekend. I have been down to Vegas twice before and both times stayed at hotels on the strip so it was nice to actually stay in a home for a change and be away from all the craziness. The house was absolutely amazing and right down the street from Celine Dion's house. I think someone had the bright idea to go down to her house on Friday night and serenade her. Luckily we kept on drinking and forgot all about it.

Molly in front of Marjorie's family home/estate: Photos of the inside:

Marjorie's good friend Heather would cook us fabulous breakfasts in the mornings:Mimosas in the hot tub on Saturday morning (check out the cool view):

On Saturday afternoon/night we went down to the strip to sight see, people watch, drink, and have some dinner (not necessarily all in that order). Here is the before picture of all us girls:

We went to dinner at Aureole in the Mandalay Bay. The food was very yummy and the conversation even better:

Laura selecting our wines for dinner on their electronic wine list. It is sort of hard to see, but it was more like a Kindle:

After dinner we went to check out the new City Center on the strip. It was quite the spectacle with it's leaning buildings. I was too close to get any real good pictures of it. Here are the girls getting ready to board the tram from the City Center to the Bellagio:

And the dancing photos:

The last picture of the night:
I want to send a HUGE thank you to Marjorie for hosting us. You are the hostess with the mostess! I also want to send a thank you to Molly who was our DD and drove us home at 3 in the morning from the strip - you are a saint!

Fiesta Bowl Champs . . . again

Okay so I'm way behind on my posts. Thank goodness I had a three day weekend so I could catch up! Going way back to the 4th of January - when the Boise State Broncos won the Fiesta Bowl . . . again. Ryan had his good friend, Ben, over for the game and this was how they watched the entire game (keep in mind they both have been BSU fans since they were born):And here is Ryan with his little BSU fan before the game: