Princesses and Goats

Charlie's wish when she blew out her candles was to go to Disneywand as she calls it. (She doesn't have the "l" sound yet.) Since it's summer for me now (HOOORRAAAYYY) we woke up and went to visit all the princesses of course. First, she wanted to see the princesses, dance with the princesses and listen to Cinderella tell her story. During the story the prince guy even tried the glass slipper on her foot. Wow! After a morning with the princesses we rode It's a Small World which she loved and acted like it was her first time on the ride. Who knows how many times she has actually riden it? She was asking me what everything was and singing along. Then, she wanted to eat lunch so we got some noodles at the chicken place. She even got a free pink Minnie balloon at the restaurant. I still can't figure that one out. After lunch she wanted to ride the Buzz Lightyear ride. She has been wanting to go to a farm lately so I took her over to where the reindeer live in the winter and they had the goats out today. I'm positive Charlie is going to get bit by a goat in the near future. She was telling the goats all about her dogs Smokey and Bandit as if they cared. When we left the Disneyland farm she proceeded to tell me "Mama, now can we go to the zoo?" As if spending the morning and afternoon at Disneyland was not enough!
Hugging the goat like she hugs her dogs. She was actually being very gentle.

She wanted the goat to see her when she was talking to him...see what I mean about getting bit! It is SO going to happen.

We had such a fun morning. This summer is going to be AMAZING!

Just for the record...Charlie also just got her first ear infection this week. The goat will probably have an ear infection next...

Daddy Where Are You?

Everyday Jimmy goes to work we are sure to call him MANY times. Charlie enjoys talking to him on the phone when he is gone. I think this helps her not miss him so much. Sometimes he is away for many days and I know she starts to wonder when he is going to come home. She always starts off her conversation with "Daddy, where are you?" and it always ends with a kiss. She tells him she is holding him and sometimes she drops the phone and tells him she dropped him. She points the phone to show him things (like he can see through the phone) and they always call eachother to say good night. The love connection between these two cannot be put into words!




The other day she missed him so much she started asking anyone and everyone if they knew her daddy. She would then begin to tell them he is a fireman, that he helps people and that he is at the fire station. To end the conversation she would always ask the person "Do you want to go see my daddy with me at the fire station?" On these particular days we are sure to go visit him so she can get her daddy fix! Thanks Jimmy for being an amazing daddy and for being a hero and helping the world!





Happy Father's Day!

Our Plans for the Summer

As a kid I always had the best summers. (THANKS MOM!) My mom would take us everywhere and do everything with us. I want Charlie to think summers are the best just like I used to think they were when I was little. I came along this article titled Savor the Last Drops of Summer in a magazine I was reading and found a list all the things I LOVED to do as a kid in it. So this summer (and every summer) I will be trying to accomplish as many as I can.

So here it is...All the things I plan to do with Charlie this summer:

Be one with nature
Get lost in an adventure

Hold my breath under water and smile

Build a sand castle

Learn to do a cartwheel

Pick wild flowers

Do the hula

Pet a caterpillar

Go on a scavenger hunt

Build something

Eat ice cream sandwiches

Float away

Catch a sunset

Swing the day away

Watch the waves roll in

Take the plunge

Connect with a creature

Taste something sweet

Feel the sand in your toes

Make like a bird

Visit the seashore

Ride a bike

Sleep in a tent

Listen for the ocean in a seashell

Have a picnic

Pick berries

Ride in a hammock

Plant a garden

Fly a kite

Blow dandelions

Catch fireflies
Run through a sprinkler

Play in the rain

Watch fireworks

Take in a baseball game

Throw a frisbee

Chalk up the sidewalk

Roast marshmallows

Jump off a diving board

Go on a hike

Make a fort

Find a rainbow

Stargaze

Play your heart out

Have a water balloon fight

Look for cloud formations

Take a nap on the lawn

Search for sea glass

Skip rocks

Play hide and seek

Dig for worms

Smell the flowers

Set up a lemonade stand

Go fishing

Put on a play

Cozy up to a fire

Run barefoot

Goof off in the park

Make mud pies

Blow bubbles

We'll see how many I get to before September gets here! Maybe I can capture each moment with a photo and make them into a digital book...that would be awesome!

Smashing of the Cake

There are two things Charlie wishes for when wishes need to be made. The first one is to always go to Disneyland and the second one is to eat chocolate cake. Now if you are a Little Bear fan you would know that this is what Little Bear always wishes for. So when it came to ordering cupcakes for her party I thought I should get her that chocolate cake she has been wishing for as well. At her party she really didn't want to ruin it. She ate some bites of frosting and let her friend Logan have a few bites as well, but that was it. So when we got home we let her GO FOR IT!

It sure is a good thing Charlie didn't understand the meaning of a "smash cake" at her party. Pump It Up would not have been happy with us!

Presents, Presents, Presents

Charlie was so excited to see all of her presents when she woke up from her nap. She wanted to open them all at the same. She was so happy to see so many princess toys!
She stopped to dress up in the new Rapunzel dress and play with Cinderella's horses and carriage.

Then she discovered another princess dress...off went the Rapunzel dress and on went the Belle dress. She accessorized it with pretty pink wings and some slippers from a pajamas set.

She received many princess books. She loves them all and amazingly there were no duplicates. There sure is a lot of princess items in the world today. She has spent any moment she can in her new princess chair.

Her favorite thing to do in the whole world is to play "dress up." Her life revolves around princesses (and Little Bear). Thank you very much everyone for all the wonderful presents that have already brought so many smiles. She has played with everything and even has to sleep with most of it every night.

Washing the Car is Hard Work

Jimmy decided it was a nice day to wash the cars so Charlie thought it would be a nice day to wash her car as well.

She had too much fun!

Butterfly Babysitting!

Over the long holiday weekend I brought home my classroom butterflies so Charlie could babysit them. She was in love with them. We let one go in the backyard by our garden (We have strawberries, tomatoes and bell peppers growing in pots this year if you were wondering.) but it quickly flew over the fence and out of sight. So long butterfly!Tilt your head for the next two pictures...not sure why they did this because they were saved horizontally.

Charlie isn't quite ready for the idea of metamorphosis but she was really excited to have pet butterflies for a few days.

Here is the cutest Belle dress ever Grandma got her for her half birthday! She wears this dress daily and has decided Belle is her favorite princess. I wonder if it's because she kinda looks like her. Who knows?!

Another New Cousin

Charlie has another baby boy cousin who arrived today. Meet Caleb Vernon Rush. He is so cute and perfect! Charlie understands now that she is the big cousin, not the big sister. It was a huge fight when Logan was born. I know she wants a real baby of her own to live at her house. She tells me she doesn't have a family because she doesn't have one. For now, baby cousins will have to do! Mama is not quite ready for that adventure yet! We can't wait to play with you soon...we love you to pieces already:)

Daddy's Shaving Cream

Here is another blog post for you Nicole! Charlie loves to watch Jimmy shave his face. It is so cute to see her sit there and watch her daddy. I know she is always so curious about that white stuff he uses. She was so excited when I sprayed a little bit on her tummy. Boy, a little bit goes a LONG way!

River Trip #1

We started off the river season this weekend. Charlie loves the river and I think she missed it all winter. The water was a little too cold still to go swimming in but not for the dogs. We played by the shore, drove the golf cart around and had a nice relaxing time. See you soon river!

Bandit and Smokey

Katie's Shower and a New Pet

Charlie and I went to a beautiful shower today for Katie and her soon to be little boy. It was a book theme and each table was decorated so cute. One table had the book One Fish Two Fish...and it had real fish too. Of course, after Nicole and Adelyn took all the fish home we adopted one from her.

Meet Nemo...



Charlie LOVED her fish. She would say good night to him, feed him and watch him swim in circles every day. One night a couple of days later I noticed Nemo was "resting" at the bottom of the bowl so we said good bye to Nemo that night because he was leaving to go find his daddy Marlin in the ocean. She asks where her fish went from time to time but when I asked her if she wants another one she said she wants a turtle instead. So now we are in the market for a tortoise for our second pet. Well, it would be our fourth pet but Charlie does not consider her dogs pets. They are her brothers and there is no talking her out of this one.

I love her little curls in this picture:)
Thanks Katie for inviting us to your shower and thanks for the new pet. We enjoyed him while he lasted. Of course, we can't wait to meet your little man!

Rush Family Reunion

I'm not sure who planned the Rush family reunion but it was a success! It was great to see my dad's side of the family all together and happy. It should be a yearly tradition.

Candlewood Easter Egg Hunt

Charlie and I decided to head to the golf course a little early to get a round or two of golf in with Grandpa before the big egg hunt began... I should of known...my kid doesn't like the act of the ball going into the hole or it even being hit for that matter. She sure did have fun playing with all the flags though.

I love this egg hunt for many reasons. It feels so personal. There aren't a million kids fighting over the same eggs. It's very low key and the Easter Bunny is always ready to take a picture with Charlie without any line to wait in. Our mission was to find the golden egg this year.

Of course, only I would forget to take Charlie's Easter egg basket to an Easter egg hunt. Of course, my mom knows me too well because she brought one just incase. I'm so predictable. In my defense I think the Easter Bunny had secretly already filled her basket and it was waiting for Easter morning. I guess I was a little too prepared!

Last year Charlie was going for anything round and ended up with many golf balls instead of eggs and she could care less that there was something inside them. Well, NOT this year. As she found each egg she was sure to open it right up and see the surprise. Sometimes she would open one she already opened and say "Enty" meaning empty. Too cute!

She had a blast! Thanks Dad for the best egg hunt ever!