Phoenix Turns 2!

We started off the week with Daddy making yummy donuts on Sunday night. We all enjoyed them on Monday morning, after we ate oatmeal first! Daddy wanted to make the entire week special for Phoenix. 

Axel being his over the top cute self !

On Monday morning we headed to the park to get out the donut jitters while Daddy went to work. After a morning of fun play we headed home for lunch and nap time.

After nap time we made play doh. Later that night we were able to skype with Grandma Sonia and Grandpa Bruce. It was an action packed and very fun filled day. I really enjoyed the day off with the kiddos!

On Wednesday morning Phoenix got all dressed up for her birthday! Here was a quick selfie of the kids and I before heading to school and work. I made chocolate chip pancakes, but Phoenix woke up with a cold and didn't eat any. Axel scarfed down a whopping 4 pancakes and thoroughly enjoyed the chocolate chips!

Here is Axel in his new sweater that little Grammy made him. He absolutely loves it. It happen to be color spirit day at school on Wednesday. The kindergarteners were told to wear purple. Axel wore a tie die shirt with purple in it and this sweater that had a little purple in it as well.

I was able to change my work schedule on Wednesday to get off early in order to get to day care in time for cupcakes. Phoenix loves chocolate so I made chocolate cupcakes. We all sang happy birthday to her and she just stared at the candles. When it was time to blow them out the other kids kept blowing them out for her. After over 5 attempts Angela gave up. For some reason she was too shy or timid to blow them out herself and the other kids couldn't resist themselves :)

That didn't stop her from enjoying her cupcake. She didn't eat well all day because of her cold, but she did manage to eat a cupcake at day care and then a cupcake later for dinner. I didn't force her to eat dinner because of her cold and I couldn't say no to her having another cupcake when Axel, Daddy and I wanted to celebrate with her as well.

Axel went to a birthday party after school on Wednesday so when Phoenix and I were done at Angela's we headed over to the park where Axel and Daddy were. Daddy was able to take a half day off of work to spend the afternoon with Axel and then us. Pheeny was able to play and swing for over an hour. Once we all got home and ate dinner, we opened up presents. We got her a shopping cart, which has turned out to be a big hit.

Grandma Sonia and Grandpa Bruce sent a new tricycle. She was really excited to see it because she does love to ride bikes, especially other kids tricycles. Her legs are not quite long enough, but I am sure they will be soon!

On Friday after we dropped Axel off at school we headed to the doctor for Phoenix's 2 year check up. She weighed in at 23.5 lbs which put her at the 11%ile. She measured 2 feet 9.5 inches, which put her at the 50th %ile. The doctor thinks the drop in height is because of the way they have to measure the kids in standing versus lying down. It is hard to get an accurate measurement when they arch their back and their knees are still a little bent. We are happy with the growing despite her drop in percentiles. She is an amazing little girl and Keith and I feel so blessed to be her parents. She is funny. Yes, just like Axel, she has a wonderful sense of humor. She loves to dance. She is quite girly and loves to accessorize and dress up. She is very physical. She has to get outside and climb or run. She is quite smart and has a memory like Daddy and Axel. She is very in touch with her feelings and the feelings of others. She will tell us when she is scared and what she is scared of. Like, "Pheeny is scared, monsters are coming!" We have to thank brother for that one :). She gives so much love. She hugs and kisses those she loves. When she is mean and hits she will admit it, apologize and then kiss or hug to make up. She is just the sweetest little girl! Her favorite lovely is doggy, although she does not exclude other animals and dolls that she loves on different days. She mimics everything Axel does. She is very articulate and loves to read and do puzzles. She is getting into trains, magnitiles and little Lego's. She loves to cook in her kitchen. Her favorite foods are still fruits, with buttered bread and pastas next. She eats most foods though and has quite the sweet tooth like the rest of the family. She loves Louis our dog and takes great care of him. She loves to feed him, pet him and walk him. Oh, what a joy she is!

She was so sick on Friday, after our doctor's appointment and a quick stop at the park, she was having trouble sleeping because of her congestion. She woke up after sleeping only 45 minutes in her crib. For the first time in her 2 years I asked her if she wanted to sleep with me. She said yes. To my surprise she was out in 2 minutes. I just had to get a picture of our cute and precious little girl. I enjoyed a 15 minute nap next to her, but had to attend to her birthday cake that was in the oven!

When Daddy got home from work he got right to work on decorating Pheeny's cake.

I thought he did a great job!

Here is our beautiful princess yesterday on her birthday party day!

Auntie made great decorations for her.

And a crown that matched her dress perfectly!

And here is the birthday girl on her favorite person's lap, Annika, as we sang happy birthday to her.

And a quick family photo! I tried to capture pictures of Grandma Susan, Grandpa Brian, Auntie, Uncle and Braylin, but unfortunately they were all blurry. We had a lovely time with everyone.

After cake Phoenix opened up her gifts from the grandparents and Auntie. She picked up on the opening of gifts really well this year. She loved everything she received and we want to thank everyone who sent a card, present or email. Phoenix and the Szolushas feel very loved as always!

After our guests had to leave we headed to the park so Phoenix could go swinging. Daddy captured a picture of me riding Axel's bike, since Axel was too tired to ride it back to the car. We had a blast playing at the park until dark and actually had our neighbors join us and other friends we ran into, so it was a splendid day for Phoenix's birthday party!

Cousin Fun

Axel has been maturing by leaps and bounds over the past few weeks. It is so nice to see him blossom and grow. 

We went to the neighbor's house on Tuesday for Nishka's 2nd birthday.

The kids enjoyed cake while I was able to capture the evening on film for the Reddy's.

On Friday, Axel had no school so we went to Auntie's house. Auntie has an awesome trail system and an amazing park a short walk away.

The kids had a blast playing together.

Here is one of the moments Axel is being his helpful loving self with Braylin.

We really enjoyed visiting and spending time with them.

We hope to do it again in February when Axel has another teacher development day.

Braylin is a bit shy, but warmed up quickly to Axel.

Phoenix is full of such life and spent most of her time bouncing on one of the three toys that bounce, including this bumble bee below. It is hard to believe in three short days Phoenix will be 2 years old. We are going to celebrate with just the four of us on Wednesday and then we will celebrate with the Jolley's and Grandma Susan and Grandpa Brian on Saturday. We are looking forward to more family time this week. We are going to wait to take 2 year old pictures for Phoenix until February when we plan on taking family photos as well so I likely won't be mailing out photos until March in case any family members are wondering.

Check back next week for Pheeny's 2 year birthday post!

Sibling Fun

I remember the stage where Axel always wanted to see the video or picture I took of him. Phoenix has begun that stage. Here she is saying that "Pheeny wants to see". I was trying to get a picture of her in her cute new outfit that Auntie got her for Christmas. 

Here was a fun game that turned sour. Axel was pushing Phoenix onto her couch. All was well until he pushed her so hard that she hit her head. Did I like or encourage this game, no. I was actually trying to hold Axel with one arm as I was talking with the neighbor on the phone about a play date. The conversation ended sort and both kids were crying. Phoenix because her head hurt and Axel because he was made at himself for hurting her. It seems more and more that both kiddos have to learn things the hard way.

Phoenix loves books and loves to play dress up. Here is another cute outfit she received from her grandparents. The shoes are from the neighbor and I allow them indoors since they are still a bit big for her and she doesn't wear them outside.

Axel's reading continues to improve as does his math skills. He can count by 2's, 5's, 10's, 100's and 1000's. He loves to do basic addition and subtraction. Daddy recently taught him the first 4 powers of 2 and 10 which he has been able to retain. I love this picture!

Daddy got me an awesome new Shark vacuum for Christmas so of course the box had to turn into another fort. Axel spent a lot of time making "stained glass" windows and a stained glass door. He used the new markers that he made with his Marker Maker that he received from his Aunt Josie for Christmas.

The kids received gift cards to Toys R Us from Grandpa Paul. Phoenix got the bouncy horse that she has been wanting.

Axel got another Nano V2 kit to go with the other one he received for Christmas. I love this picture because you can see Phoenix insisting on putting clothes over her pj's and Axel with his underwear pj's. It is still a bit of a fight to get him to wear his slippers and spider man top from bath time until bed time. He rather just be cold because it feels good on his skin, so he says.

We found Louis inside the art supply box that was under the kids work table in his room. Keith pulled out the box so I could snap a photo of the old man lounging in the box.

I took Phoenix to the Discovery Museum and Zoo in Palo Alto that Axel use to love. This is one of the first play dates that I have done with only Phoenix now that Axel is in school.

She loved the same things Axel loved, except she was a bit afraid of the animals. She clung onto me and said, "Pheeny don't like it. Pheeny scared." I was really proud of her for articulating her feelings.

Of course, we had a picnic in in the park next door and she played for over an hour before heading home. I was a bit disappointed that I discovered she will no longer transfer from the car to her crib without waking. She only slept 10 minutes in the car and then played in her crib for over an hour.

It was such a beautiful day out I let the kids play on the school play ground before heading home. 

Phoenix always wants to do everything that Axel does.

I think they are the cutest brother and sister ever!

The kids were so good on Friday that I even treated them to popcorn while watching Potty Bear. When daddy got home and saw that I had made popcorn we decided to have a date night for the first time in a long time. We enjoyed a nice bowl of popcorn and a movie as well!

Axel has 4 days off of school starting this coming Friday. We are planning on visiting Auntie on Friday and should have a fun park day on Monday if the weather holds out. The following week our little angel will be turning 2! We are getting excited for her upcoming milestone!

Family Fun, Potty Training, and Eating

The day after Christmas we headed to one of our local big parks, called Vasona Park. 

The kids have fun playing on the play structure and looking at the local geese and ducks. 

We had a nice walk through the park on this cold winter day. 

Axel was so tired from running up the steep hill on the way back to the car he decided to lie down. When Phoenix finally caught up she decided to lie down just like big brother. Then Axel said lets roll down the hill and before he could finish his thought Phoenix started to roll down the hill. Luckily I was there to catch her. 

Phoenix has gone poop in the potty a couple of times. This was her second time. She was very proud..

as was big brother. We decided to try to potty train her starting today, January 1st. So far she has sat on the potty about 6 times with no pee or poop. She had one pee accident while standing in Louis's room. She knew she had to go and was doing a great job of holding it until she starting crying. I wouldn't let her on the office chair because I didn't want her to pee on it. Good thing I went with my instinct. She is now taking a nap with her underwear on and a diaper cover over it (because I don't want to have to change her sheets!) I think we will try for a couple more days and if she gets the hang of it we might be done with diapers. If she doesn't get the hang of it I will wait a few months and try again. 

Phoenix has been cutting teeth all month. I think I put in one post a month ago that she was on her last tooth, but I misspoke. She has cut all 4 of her canine teeth. One is fully in and the other three are on their way. After they come in her second year molars I assume will be on there way. 

We decided to try Chinese food. Keith and I have never had Chinese food together in all of the years we have been together. We were pleasantly surprised that the kids enjoyed the seafood claypot that we got as well as the fried rice and chow mein. We had to be very careful. Apparently they add chicken broth and powder to their dishes. We were lucky that they were able to make all the dishes without chicken and therefore Pheeny friendly. She is still very allergic to chicken. 

Axel did not like the fortune cookie though! Bummer!

Yesterday we opened up a savings account for Phoenix. She got El Toro the legendary horse for opening her account. We plan on counting their money this weekend.

They were absolute angels for having to wait as long as they did at the bank! 

We ended the year with family bath time (the kids are washing daddy), sushi (yes the kids ate sushi too!) and tirmasu!

We are looking forward to lots more family time the next 4 days. We want to wish all of our family and friends a Happy and Blessed New Year as well!