June

Their favorite place to play is outside..even in 112 degree heat

Update time! Let's see what I can remember about the month of June..or at least what's been happening since my last update.


Diana got her ears pierced last Saturday, June 29th! She was SOOOO excited! She's been asking me for several months now, off and on, to get her ears pierced. I'm not one to make her wait until she's a certain age to get her ears pierced..my thought has always been, when she's old enough to ask for it and understand the responsibility of taking proper care of them and not touching them, etc, then she's welcome to have them pierced. Well, she's been asking for a really long time, and for most of that time I pushed it off, because I was worried that she didn't understand all of what goes on with ear piercing..and really, I was worried she'd freak out when they pierced them and that she would mess with them and let them get infected, etc. But, finally, after a while, I told her she could get her ears pierced if she understood what that meant and was willing to go through it all and take care of them. I made her watch videos of ear piercings being performed, I explained to her myself, step by step, what they were going to do, including the fact that it just might hurt (even though mine never hurt...except for the one time my mom pierced my ears using a needle...that hurt like a mother!), that she couldn't play with them, that we had to clean them at least every morning and night, that we had to leave those earrings in for a couple of months until her ears had healed before she could put of different earrings, etc, and then asked her if she still wanted to do it, and sure enough, each time she very enthusiastically declared that she wanted her ears pierced. So, last Saturday, Mike told Diana (after she'd been asking all morning) we were going to get her ears pierced. She was SO jazzed!! She and I sat on the computer for a while, looking through all the earrings, narrowing it down to the least expensive pair she liked, then when Daniel woke up from his nap, we headed off to the Outlet Mall on Las Vegas Blvd to get them done. I was so nervous! I was scared it was going to hurt and that she was going to freak out...I was scared she wouldn't take good care of them...a lot of emotions. But Diana was just excited, so I hid my emotions and was excited with her. When we got there, we had her pick out her earrings, and of course she picked out a totally different pair than she had before, but they're beautiful, so I was happy with the choice. The guy who pierced her ears was very nice and very professional, he made Diana  (and me) feel very at ease. And, he was SO GOOD with the piercing, too, explaining to Diana exactly what he was doing and he did each thing. Then, he pierced them, and to my utter astonishment, she didn't cry! Not even a grimace!

I was so shocked/happy/proud I could have burst! She jumped a little when he did her second ear, but I think that was more because she knew what was coming and was anticipating it. But she really did fantastic and has been awesome about them ever since. She lets me clean them twice a day (and at other times that they need an extra cleaning, like after swimming, but those don't happen too often), she protects them and when we dry her off every night after bath, when when take off or put on her shirts, when we brush her hair, etc, she makes sure that we are VERY CAREFUL with them. She puts up her hand and says "Be very careful of my earrings. Don't touch them! Be very careful, okay?" She's so good! The first day she touched them a few times because she was so excited to have them in, but after we explained to her really well that they'll get infected and we'll have to take them out if she messes with them, she was very good about leaving them alone. And boy, do they make her look like a big girl!! I love them and I'm so proud of my girl! She's growing up too fast!!

Diana's still doing daily chores and it's great, for me and for her! She gets that sense of responsibility that she wants (and some allowance money), and I get some help around the house. Win-win! We expand the chores she does over time as we see what she is capable of. It's really nice to have her help, and she's excited to save up for her new Princess Belle Barbie doll.

*she loves to dress herself :)

Diana doing chores!

For Father's day, I made Mike a road map t-shirt (thank you, Pinterest!), and the kids LOVE IT! Diana asks Mike to put it on every once in a while so she can race the little cars around. And Mike loves it because he can "play" with the kids while taking a nap and getting a massage. Another win-win! ;)

Daddy's gift

Diana has been doing well with school..she can count to 20 (though she needs help with a few numbers in the teens at times), she can recognize most of her numbers in 1-10, she knows all her colors and shapes, of course, she knows her ABC's and can recognize most of them, she knows her full name and recognize it spelled out, and she's working on her sight words. Her vocabulary and clarity of speech have grown by leaps and bounds since she's started the ABCMouse.com. It's really helped her more than we've been able to help her up to this point on our own. It's definitely a nice supplement to have. She's learned so much more, but I won't list every single thing. Only know she's way smarter than me or most people my age when we were 3, that I'm sure of! Kids nowadays...it blows me away.

Daniel is such a cute beast. Emphasis on beast. Daniel, I know one day you'll be old enough to read, and just know, you're a beast at times, but I love you to bitty bits and have spoiled you to the point that you've become a beast..so really, it's my fault. But, I still love you bunches!!!!!! (Diana, you too, my drama queen princess! You're full of drama and sass, but you're my beautiful sweetheart and I'd do anything for you! Know that I love you more than I can say.)

Daniel can still sleep anywhere

Anyway, Daniel is growing up too. He's still very needy and clingy, but he loves to explore and play on his own...just as long as I'm not the one leaving him. He's doing well communicating through sign language and even with some words. It's nice to know what he wants some of the time instead of never. :)  He can sign please, all done, eat, more (and will clap his hands when he wants to be put down..but that's not an official sign, it's just what he does). He can say bye, I did it (though it's not crystal clear..he says it), mama, dada, Di, cracker (he says that when he wants to eat something), yeah, & all done (he's only said this one a couple of times, but he can say it). There are other ways, too, that he chooses to communicate with us, like walking over to the tv and pointing when he wants to watch a movie, or if he wants an object, walking over to it, pointing, then signing "please", etc. Again, it's nice to be able to communicate with him. He's also very good at taking commands and comprehends extremely well. He understands things that I swear he shouldn't at such a young age. He'll go get things for me when I ask, put things away where they belong when told (and sometimes when he's not told), etc..it's crazy! He's also very independent. He likes to try to put on his own shoes, he opens and closes doors on his own and likes them closed, he likes to help put toys away, mop the floors, wipe up his messes (on himself and on other surfaces), he likes to wash himself up in the bath, though we make sure we wash him up thoroughly ourselves, he likes to try to get himself food, etc. Again, it's very nice, and so weird to see him do such big things...but I guess maybe he is plenty old to be doing this stuff himself. Either way, I love it.

He loves to play with Diana's toys (though he still loves cars and balls best)

Daniel's new favorite food is grapes. What so fascinating about that is the first time he had them they were cold, and if you know anything about Daniel, he does NOT do cold ANYTHING! It has to be warm or room temp or he won't touch it. Not so with grapes! They can be ice cold and he'll still devour them. It's crazy to me!

We went to the temple a couple of weeks ago and walked around, they loved it!

Daniel's most-favorite movies are Corpse Bride, Cars,  Madagascar 3, & Ice Age 3.
Diana's most-favorite movies are Corpse Bride,  Ice Age 3, Cars, and Princess movie, Alice in Wonderland...actually, she loves pretty much any movie. It just depends on her mood that day. She's a movie-holic.
Well, that's pretty much it for June!

 Playing together like good children!