Valentine's Day

Lil' SB had a great Valentine's Day! Her class had a party (on Friday) where they decorated a valentine bag, traded cards & passed out candy. They feasted on cupcakes, cheese, chips & juice. As you can imagine, she was VERY hyper that night. On Saturday, Papa SB and I gave her a gift bag--which included a Clifford book, jelly beans (she LOVES them..thanks to Omi!), ocean & land animal trading cards and puffy stickers. She immediately requested that I read the book. After our reading session, she tore open the trading cards and 'read' each one as she 'sorted' them in 2 piles. I know Valentine's Day is such a commercialized holiday, but in our house, it is a time to spend quality time with the ones we love. My heart was (and is) full!!

First Day of Dance Class

For the past couple of months, Lil' SB has been asking to take dance at her school. I would've signed her up, but I had a hard time justifying paying an additional $50 per month for her to attend class during the school day. So...I found a Saturday class which meets at our local athletic center. Yesterday was her first class, and she couldn't have been more excited. As I helped her put on her tights and leotard she couldn't stop singing about her new activity. We arrived at the center a few minutes before class, so I could help her put on her skirt and tap shoes. When the teacher arrived, all the little girls followed her like the Pied Piper into the classroom. She asked that the parents stay in the hallway during class because we would be a distraction (I can totally understand that.). Hence, we all lined up to peer through the windows as if the girls were animals at a zoo...kinda funny to see. As I watched Lil' SB, I became emotional--my little baby is growing up. She really enjoyed herself. At times, she just danced to her own tune--not paying attention to the teacher but looking at herself in the mirror. I wasn't surprised. Well, here are a few pictures and a sweet video...

Christmas Travels

Okay...this is the last post to catch up!! Well, I know Lil' SB's Omi, Papa & other relatives will appreciate my posting of these pics. Anyway, so...for Christmas we headed out West to see Lil' SB's paternal grandparents. She was excited because it had been about 6 months since they had seen each other. Other than having a flight delay of 5 hours, it was a successful travel adventure. Here are some pictures of Christmas morning & evening...

Lil' SB excitedly unwraps presents from Santa.

Lil' SB enjoys some of the books Santa left for her.

Lil' SB found the recorder Papa SB used when he was a little boy.

Lil' SB checks out her new tap shoes & ballet shoes.

Lil' SB received a few new stuffed animals (Tigger bounces & the moose dances & sings!!)

Lil' SB reads to her Aunt.

One of the fun things about visiting Papa SB's home town is that it's also my old stomping ground. I lived there from 5th grade until after my sophomore year in high school. Anyway, Papa SB and I took Lil' SB to the local Putt-Putt where we used to hang out as middle schoolers. It was a flashback for us, but a new, exciting experience for Lil' SB. We had a blast!!!

Let's Make a Gingerbread House

Lil' SB and I took numerous trips to Target in December--she is crazy about that store!! Anyway, during one of our adventures, she spotted a box with a gingerbread house on it. I explained to her it was a kit you can buy to build your own house. Her eyes lit up! Of course, I caved in and bought it (actually, it didn't take much convincing because I was excited about the idea, too). Once we returned home, Lil' SB and I washed our hands and opened the box. Wow...so many pieces...I was hoping we wouldn't make a mess. We separated and organized all the pieces and put the candy in various dishes, and away we went. Here are some pics of our fun event...

Thanksgiving at Omi & Papa's House

I'm still catching up on my posts...so here goes. Thanksgiving '08 was an adventure to the East coast. Lil' SB and I took a plane to my parents' house while Papa SB drove (he wanted to stop to attend a college football game with his cousin). It's funny because Lil' SB has become a great, little traveler. She is so used to the process that I don't even have to tell her to take off her shoes at the security checkpoint! We keep the same routine...we take her backpack w/ her DVD player and movies along w/ several books. We always stop to get a treat...this time it was jelly beans...and take a tour of the airport while we wait to board. Anyway, here are some pictures from our vacation...

Lil' SB plays with her friend (son of my best friend)

Lil' SB hangs out with Omi

Lil' SB hangs out with her cousins on Grandma Gracie's farm

Lil' SB doesn't realize the plants are dead!

Lil' SB plays with Uncle J's hair while he reads a book

Lil' SB cleans Grandma Gracie's floor

Lil' SB's Birthday

Okay...so I'm a bit late in posting this...umm...2 months late, I know. Anyway, I have to take a look back to Lil' SB's birthday. On her actual birthday, I took cupcakes to her school (along w/ the Little Mermaid napkins she picked out at Party City). Before they passed out the goodies, her teacher had the class sing to her...check out the video...


During the drive home, I asked Lil' SB where she would like to go to dinner, and she said, "Let me think about it." Hmmm...have we gone to that many restaurants??? Yikes! Anyway, once we got home, she let me know her decision...Pei Wei. Yum-O! Off the 3 of us went. She wanted her usual, honey seared chicken & white rice. She devoured her portion and wanted more. To top off the meal, she savored a fortune cookie while asking me to read her fortune. It said: You were born with a 'sixth sense' and superb insight. That is very fitting of her personality...if I may say so myself.

After we finished our meal, we headed to the local grocery store to pick out her cake (chocolate) & ice cream (vanilla) and then made our way home. We enjoyed every morsel of our slices of cake & lapped up every drop of ice cream. Now that our bellies were full, Lil' SB opened her presents...

Papa SB bought her Candyland (which we've played about 100 times already)!



She also received clothes & books from both sets of grandparents and her aunt and uncle. What a lucky girl!!

That weekend we threw a party for her at the Little Gym...with 12 of her friends (okay, so most of them were kids of our friends, but she didn't seem to care). We all had a blast! Here are some pictures from the crazy event...

Papa SB, Lil' SB & Mama SB

The kids loved the party hats, sunglasses, balloons & cake!!

Lil' SB on the balance beam.

Lil' SB & friends wait for the bouncy "runway" to deflate.

Lil' SB gets to be the center of the parachute.

Miss Beth swings Lil' SB like a monkey.

Trick or Treat

OH, yes...Halloween!! Since the end of September, Lil' SB has been telling everyone she is going to be a pumpkin. Of course, I made sure we found a pumpkin costume for her (even though it was way too hot for the evening...she still wore it) This year she was old enough to really understand how it works...she got the hang of knocking on the door, saying 'Trick or Treat' & receiving candy. Actually, a few times I had to escort her away from the door because she thought she was going to get more candy. Well, here are the pictures & a little movie I put together. Enjoy!