More recent pictures

The above pictures show Alexis and mommy at
the beach and her first excursion to the putt putt
course.

The pictures below show Alexis with her favorite
type of people---babies.

The others are of Alexis enjoying her time at
a playground while in Naples with Nana.

Another Trip South

This past weekend, the three of us made our way down to Naples to visit the folks. We had a great time and of course the weekend went too quickly. Mom and dad always enjoy playing with Alexis and it's quite nice because Dean and I get a little break. Alexis had a great time swimming, playing with Casey (the dog), playing with uncle Todd and reading books. Since my mom is a teacher, I think there are roughly 500 kids books in my parent's house. Alexis will read them but as of late she has been stacking all of her books as high as she can before they fall over. It keeps her entertained for quite a while. We made our way down to Olde Naples and took a stroll on the pier. We were able to see a few dolphins in the water. The weather held out most days until the afternoon when the thunderstorms would hit.
The trip home was another story. Dean had to leave and go directly to Houston for training which meant Alexis and I were on our own. We've done it several times before, however Alexis was much better behaved. I figured the time of the flight would be perfect. Right around nap time and that would mean Alexis would sleep, right? NO of course not. She fell asleep in the car on the way to the airport which meant once she has been woken up, there is no other sleep to be had. Once we made it through security, we made our way to the bathroom. Alexis did not want to use the potty and she did NOT want to be changed. She screamed so loudly that I think people thought I was beating her. I mean it was blood curdling. I didn't know what to do and I really wanted to stay in the stall until the bathroom emptied. But we didn't and I think we got a few looks. I wanted to say, What the ____ am I supposed to do? Anyway, we made our way onto the plane. It started out okay. We had a dvd player with The Wiggles movie so I thought we'd be set. 20 minutes into the movie, the video went out. So much for that. Now what. I have crayons but they wound up all over the plane. Then the bad behavior really started. I must say I can usually keep my child from hitting and biting when I have a corner to put her in for time out, but how are you supposed to discipline a child in a small seat with strangers staring at you wondering how you're letting your child get away with this. I really wanted to throw her out the window. Okay not really but I did want to pull my hair out and scream at the top of my lungs. Lets just say that was the longest 2 1/2 hours of my life for a while.
All things considered, we had a great trip and enjoyed our time. I know I am always ready for a vacation.

Learning my ABC's

We have a theory about learning ABC's in this house. It's called see how many letters you can place on your body and name them as you pull them off. Every day we get a little more accurate.

Potty training update

Well Alexis seems to be getting much better about going to the potty. She's been staying dry for a whole day at a time. The only problem is that she is now addicted to m&m's. She does not forget about her reward at any time during the day. At night before we go to bed, we use the potty before we take our bath and then we get ready for bed and brush our teeth. By this time, I figure she has forgotten about her treat. But NO she reminds me as we're running toward her room. Mommy, I get my 3 m&m's. I guess I can't complain, at least she's going!!!!

Busy Weekend

Mommy and Alexis smile for the camera

Alexis loves to be in the drivers seat

Catching a cat nap before the thunderbirds fly over

Sorry that I've been slow at updating my blog. We had a busy weekend this past week. Lots of things to do in Cleveland. On Saturday as you all know, college football got off to a bang. Since there is a new big ten channel that is going to be broadcasting several games this year, I (for some ungodly reason don't have that channel and I even live in the freakin state of Ohio) had to go and find the game at a bar. I wouldn't have been complaining as much a few years ago when I didn't have a toddler to entertain, especially near nap time. So we were able to take in the first three quarters and then had to leave before Alexis had a true melt down. We even made it home to hear the great news that Michigan had lost. My weekend was off to a great start by now. Later that evening, Dean and I went with some friends to the Indians game. The Tribe has been playing well and are in the hunt for a playoff spot, maybe even winning their division. We had a great time and the Indians won too.
On Sunday, the air show was in town and we decided to take Alexis since she loves looking for airplanes. She was great and seemed to really enjoy the day. She loved being able to sit in a few helicopters and pretend like she was flying/driving. She thinks sitting in the front seat and steering is better than sliced bread. We were smart enough to bring the stroller and let Alexis get a few zzzzzzz in between shows.
On Monday, we decided to try our luck with putt putt golf with Alexis and my nephew Andrew. We thought they would have a good time. Lets just say we won't be going back for a few years until they are a little older. All they wanted to do was run after the balls, pick them up and place them in the hole. It made it quite difficult to keep score.
We had a fun filled weekend that seemed to fly by but enjoyed it all the same. Once Monday comes, I find myself looking forward to the weekends for some quality time with the family; you know when work doesn't get in the way. Unfortunately we didn't take too many pictures but here's a couple from the air show.