Everybody was Kung Fu Fighting!!

Tonight we celebrated my father in law's birthday.  May is quite the busy month for us.  First we have mother's day, then my mother in law's birthday then we have my father in law AND my mom's birthday (on the same day) WHEW!!  Fun times!  My in laws love to take the grand kids to the movies and Kung Fu Panda 2 is out now.  So they are taking the older kiddos to the movie.  My mother in law is an awesome baker and so she made this Kung Fu Panda cake for his birthday!  He let all the kids take a bite out of it!!! 

Seeing Double

Meet Paige's long lost twin!!!  This is my niece Sylvia, or Syl-ya as Paige calls her.  I swear they could be sisters and often get mistaken as sisters when they are out together!  For now, they absolutely love each other which is just adorable. 

One Smart Cookie

Paige was doing her after dinner ritual - watching Elmo in our bedroom.  All of a sudden she comes running around the corner with my "Pregnancy Week by Week" book and yells "Mommy!  Baby!!" with the book open as if she was reading it!!!  I cracked up!!!

And on another note, last night before bath time she was taking off her diaper.  She pulled it off with one hand, ripped it off and shook her naked little butt!!!  Should we be worried?

Self Entertaining

Poor Paige is having to entertain herself in the evenings while Joe makes dinner and I sit on my butt (not by choice).  Out of all her toys, this is what she chooses to play in.  Hours of entertainment, I tell ya!  Especially when she flips it over to stand on top to reach things on the counter like the cough syrup... : )

Lil Helper

Well, it's been quite a few "exciting" days at the Merino Household.  Just as I was waiting in line to watch the fitness competition, I started bleeding.  Terrified out of my mind, my dear friend Mary loaded me up and took me straight to the ER.  Turns out, baby is OK!  Strong heartbeat of 165 BPM, but I have a subchorionic hemorrhage, which basically is a bleed around the placenta.  I was sent home on bedrest for the remainder of the weekend.  I had a follow up doctor's visit Monday.  The bleeding has stopped which is a great sign, but I'm still pretty much to do nothing.  For right now, I can't even pick up Paige.  I was able to talk to the doc into letting me go to work, but that's it.  After work, I am to go home and lay down.  So this means, that poor Joe is running around like a mad man taking care of everything - me, Paige, the house, everything.  I feel terrible for putting all this on him, but there isn't much I can do.  Thankfully, Paige thinks she needs to help with everything, including cooking dinner! 

Miss Independence

So this was Paige first thing in the morning!!  This is her favorite Elmo nightgown and she just had to throw on her boots and run around the house!!!

Time of her life!

My mom was in town this past weekend again to help with plans for Paige's birthday party.  Paige absolutely loves when she's in town.  Probably because she spoils her rotten and carries her where ever she wants to go!!  We had some time to spare so we headed to the park.  Paige has no fear at all as she slide down the largest slide...HEAD FIRST!  And giggled the whole way down!!!  The middle picture is of Paige starring at the older kids playing at the park.  She is such a people watcher and loves to watch older kids play!

Kitty Cat

I thought she looked so dang cute in her little rain boots!!!  It's hard to see in this pic but there's a picture of Hello Kitty on the boot.  She just walks around and says "Kitty Cat" only it doesn't quite sound like that...

Bribery at it's best

Paige loves to sit in our room on our bed at watch her Elmo DVD's.  So since we know this and we are awesome parents (LOL) we use this to our advantage.  She is sort of a finicky eater at dinner so we tell her that if she eats all her dinner (or most of it) then she can watch Elmo!!  Brilliant isn't it!!! LOL

Milestones

OK so I don't have a picture of this, but we have hit two milestones in the Merino household...one good and one not so good.

1)  PAIGE WENT BOTH POTTY ON THE BIG GIRL POTTY!!!!!!!!!!!  This may only be a one time occurrence, but we are nonetheless very proud of her!  She was at my mother in law's and she went to the bathroom and then said "I did it!" and grabbed my father in law to show him!! 

2) Paige is now hitting.  She hit me twice yesterday - in the face.  I am beside myself with how to handle this, but it is a milestone, I suppose.  Not a good one, but still. 

Vegas baby!!!

We had absolutely PERFECT weather in Vegas!!!  It was high 80's and light wind.  This was the view from our hotel room...pretty nice huh?  This is where I spent several hours Saturday!!!  I was in heaven!

This was the armoured truck we took to dinner Saturday night.  It was awesome inside.  When they first suggested an armoured truck all I could think about is the kind that we use at work for search warrants and such...but it was completely different inside this one!  From here we headed to Brand Steakhouse in Monte Carlo for some appetizers and drinks (well, I just had a Pepsi).  The food was ah-maz-ing!!!  There was one appetizer called "Hot Rocks".  It was thin strips of beef served with literally hot rocks.  You place the beef on the hot rock for a few seconds to cook it.  It was pretty dang cool!  Overall, we had a blast, but I am completely exhausted. Although I left early both nights, I'm still recovering from just being so tired from this pregnancy.  I'm so looking forward to the 2nd trimester!!

Oh la la!!!

I visited my favorite store Charmin Charlies to get some last minute accessories for the trip.  I left the bag on the table and Paige opened it and kept saying "Ohhhhhhhh" in a very excited voice, as if it were the prettiest thing she had ever seen!!  It was so funny!

MIA

Sorry it's been forever since I posted.  I certainly haven't forgotten about this and do plan to continue.  I went to Las Vegas for a bachelorette party this past weekend and before that I was busy getting everything together.  Here is Miss Paige the night before I left.  Oh how I missed her!

Wiped out

You would think this picture would be taken late at night...but it was actually first thing this morning!!!!  I was cleaning up after breakfast and I look down to see her standing there without her pants on.  Then she comes upstairs and just smiles at me.  She was so proud to have taken her pants off...hope this doesn't become a habit. 

It's gettin HOT in here!

Paige and daddy had spaghetti for dinner.  It's become a standing rule in our house that Paige will strip down when she eats spaghetti since she makes such a mess.  This time, however, Paige insisted on keeping her socks on.  Nice huh?

Happy Cinco De Mayo!

My mother in law never ceases to amaze me!  She does the cutest, coolest things with Paige's hair.  For the life of me, I have no idea how she gets her to sit still long enough!  So to celebrate Cinco De Mayo she french braided her hair with ribbons mixed in!!!  Unfortunately, all I got to see was pictures since I was working nights.  This is the last time I have to work  nights for the duration of this pregnancy though, so that's good.  Anyway, when Joe went to pick her up, they ended up staying for dinner and playing with her Abo (my father in law) and cousins! 

Check out that hair!!!!

It's blurry, but she was watching her cousins wrestle on the couch...just dying to get in!!

Then it was her and Abo's time!  She is constantly asking for him!!  She loves her Abo!

Big Sister!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yep, that's right!!!!  Miss Paige is going to be a big sister come this December!!!!  I don't think she quite knows what she's in for - or us either for that matter!!!  She will say "sister" and point to my belly when you say baby, but I still don't think she quite understands!  She might understand once my belly starts growing!!  Our good friend Carol came over the other day (who's pregnant with triplets) and Paige just looked at her, then looked at her belly.  She then had this really confused look on her face and then stuck her stomach out real far!!!  We cracked up!!!  Anyway, we are really excited for our new edition!

Be careful what you wish for

I remember a time when Joe and I would say that we can't get Paige to watch any TV. Not that we are the type of parents to sit her down in front of the TV for hours on end, but a good 15-20 minutes so we can shower or use the bathroom would be nice!  So now, she will watch TV, well, only her Elmo DVD's over and over and over again!  First thing when she wakes up it's ELMO PLEASE...I know, I should be happy she is saying please!  She absolutely LOVES anything associated Elmo!!!  God love her!

Giggles

If you look close you can see Paige's little hand sticking out from the closet!  I guess her and daddy were playing hide and seek...funny think is she gives herself away because she will stand in the closet and just giggle!!! 

Woof! Woof!

First of all, I apologize for not posting pics recently.  Paige came down with her first ever double ear infection and was put on antibiotics, which didn't settle well with her tummy so we've been battling all that for a few days.  Anyway, back to the grind...

Paige is absolutely obsessed with anything outside, birds (Peio Peio's), dirt and especially dogs!!!  From the looks of the first picture, I think she's taken it to a new level!!  She slurps up the water as if she were a dog every night in the bath!  She's funny!

Our new neighbors, have two pit bull looking dogs (not exactly sure what they are) and Paige absolutely LOVES them!  If she hears them bark she will run to the window and say "Open" 50 million times until we open the window so she can see the doggies!  She now stands there and says "one...two! Mommy...daddy!"  Not sure if she thinks the dogs are actually mommy and daddy or what?!?!