Monkey Monday:

Friday Funnies:

 So I'm downstairs finishing up the dishes while Cie-J is upstairs helping Alanna with her bath, when all of a sudden, she comes down and surprises me with this foil hat.  I instantly knew this was the work of her daddy. But this was funny to me on several different levels.  Firstly, she was yelling about aliens and it was cute.  Secondly, her "Home Alone" pose was too much!  Love it!

Lastly, this top was a dress she wore for her six month pictures and the pants were added when she was about 12 months old.  I couldn't believe it still fit!  I asked her what was up and she said that daddy found these 'jammies' in her closet.  I know for a fact they were in the very top of her closet in a pile of keepsake clothes.  LOL!  He claims they were the first thing he saw, so he put them on her.  Such a man!

#Poordog

She always, ALWAYS has a bow or clip or dress or something on.

The Farm:

There is this cute little place not far from us simply called "The Farm".  They rescue animals of all kinds and charge a small $2 fee to get in, so that people can see the animals and be educated on which ones make good pets, and which ones don't. 

 They also sell produce and homemade items that they've created.  It's just a husband and wife team.  Look at these sweet potatoes that we found!  They were huge!  (BTW, that is Alanna's "I don't really want to smile, but I will because you said to" face.)

Some of the animals were just roaming the property, like this peacock, and pretty much allowed to do whatever they want.  I laughed out loud that this guy was just helping himself to the zucchini that was out for sale.  He was not afraid of people at all.

 This enormous pot belly pig was just laying there as all the hens and roosters were crawling all over him.  They also had a cage of feral cats.  Like 50 of them.   It was nuts.

 Later we found this pot belly pig just roaming around the yard.  Alanna was so proud to pet this pig and thought it was the coolest thing ever.  We saw the Charlotte's Web movie in a hotel while we were moving, so I think that might have had something to do with it. ;)  Cie-J looked at me and smiled and before he could even say anything, I said "NO!"

This little pony was Alanna's favorite part of the whole farm.  She announced that this was exactly what she wants for Christmas this year and that she would be telling all her grandmas about it.  HAHA!!!!!  He was a really sweet pony and let us pet him through the fence.

This was just the sweetest place and we can't wait to go back and visit.  Not pictured, were two cows, a lama, a donkey, dozens and dozens of chickens, quail, ducks, rabbits (we got to see newborns from that morning!), and other gerbils.  We stayed away from the goats!!!

Monkey Monday:

Is it just me, or does she all of a sudden look so big?!?

Friday Funnies:

1.  I was wearing an Arkansas Razerback shirt that a friend sent me, and Alanna said "Oh mom, I just love that aardvark on your shirt!"

2.  While shopping at Target, Alanna told me that she "had been dying for some chocolate milk".  (It's funny, because she's had it like twice in her whole life.)  I reminded her that she is allergic and that we can't buy it.  She said "But I'm allergic to cow's milk and that milk is bunny milk."  I asked her how she knew that and she said "it has a bunny on it!"  It was nesquick.

3.  We visited a new chiropractor in our new town and he was a nut!  We will NOT be going back.  When we got to the car, Alanna said that she didn't like that chiropractor and that she didn't want to see him again.  I agreed and mentioned how crazy he was acting.  She agreed and said "Yeah, I was like WHAAAAAT?" <---in a high pitched valley girl voice.  Maybe you just had to have been there but it was so funny!

Red Rock Canyon:

This gorgeous canyon is literally in our backyard.  It has a 13 mile drive through with many different places to stop and sight see.  It also has several different walking trails for beginners and the experienced alike.  We packed a picnic lunch and decided to spend the day here.

 It was sunny and bright and just a perfect day to explore the great outdoors.  It's hot here, but there is always a breeze, so it's not too bad.

Can you guess where it got it's name from?  Yep, the rocks are in fact red. =)  We decided to do a beginner 2 mile trail.  No problem...

...Until all of a sudden, the sky got dark and gray and the clouds looked really heavy.  Mr. Weatherman said it surely wasn't rain, so we continued on our hike.  About a mile in to it, we felt the sprinkles.  We turned around a high tailed it back.  It rained on us, but didn't pour until we got to the car thankfully.  And by the way, you have NOT heard thunder until you've heard it in a valley between tall mountains!  WHOA!  Alanna was not amused.

Look at this cool shot I got after the storm was over and the sun was coming back out.  So neat!  It is so quiet here, you literally can't hear a thing.  Silence.  Such a major change from being in the city.

We can't wait to come back here and do some more exploring!  A canyon full of beauty for sure!

Psalm 121: 1-4

" I look to the mountains; where will my help come from?  My help will come from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not let you fall; your protector is always awake. The protector of Israel never dozes or sleeps. The Lord will guard you; he is by your side to protect you. The sun will not hurt you during the day, nor the moon during the night. 7 The Lord will protect you from all danger; he will keep you safe.  He will protect you as you come and go now and forever.

Alanna's Family Birthday Celebration:

So we did the big birthday party in Texas, but we wanted to do something for Alanna on her actual day of birth.  We decided to have a day of fun.

 It started with lunch at In N Out burger.  We've heard about this place for years and now we finally had our chance to try it out.  To be honest, it was good.  It was great actually...but I like Five Guys better.

(GASP!) 

Then we took her to see a *REAL* mermaid!  This was her absolute favorite part of the day.  Maybe even her life.  She was amazed and would still be there now if we would have left her. =D  The sweet girl made such a big deal over Alanna because I'm sure she could see the sparkle and wonder in her eyes.  Below, you can see the heart that she made her.

 She also blew her several kisses and Alanna was sending hugs and kisses right back.  I wish I would have gotten the look on her face.  

As we were leaving she said "Mom, I really think that was the REAL Ariel!  And she loves me!"  The bad news is, if you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up, she no longer says a chiropractor. She wants to be a mermaid!  Oh! Mercy! 

Then we took her to Circus Circus on the strip!  The gas and water was still not hooked up to our house, so we rented a room there too.  She LOVES staying in hotels!  That alone would have been an amazing gift to her.  LOL!

She was so excited to ride this huge carousel.  

Then she wanted to ride the ferris wheel.  She has never done anything like that before and I just had no idea how she would do with heights and motion.  We all three rode it together and she loved every second of it.

Next she saw this whirl around ride and I REALLY got nervous.  She insisted that she wanted to do it, but I just had visions of her screaming and them having to stop the ride for her to get off.

She and daddy loaded up and gave me two thumbs up.  I was so scared for her.  She had no clue what she was getting into!  

Boy, was I wrong!  She laughed and squealed and rode with both of her hands up the entire time!!  As soon as the ride stopped, she said 'Let's do it again!"

(Please excuse my giggling in this video.  I was just so excited to see the sheer joy on Alanna's face.)

Next up was a kiddie roller coaster and she was over the moon excited!  As soon as it was over, she asked to go on the BIG roller coaster that flipped around and went upside down.  When she found out that she was too little she was COMPLETELY disgusted!  The good news is, she will eat ANY veggie or healthy thing I put on her plate once I remind her that it will help her grow big enough to ride the BIG roller coaster!  SCORE!  Haha.

I was so amazed that my child had ZERO fear.

Lastly, we saw this...and my heart stopped!

This thing would go up and then drop and then go up and then drop.  I just felt like she looked so little on it.  Why would they drop babies?  These poor little children!  I held my breathe as I recorded it.

(Again, please excuse my high pitched giggle.  I was just in shock and so excited that my sweet girl was having so much fun.)

We stayed until the amusement park shut down!  It was a blast and I am so happy that we were able to do this for her birthday.  It is definitely memories that I will never forget.

Daddy, Dance With Me!

So he did!  

Such a good daddy!

Monkey Monday:

Friday Funnies:

Playing games with dad and I caught this face!  HAHA!

Before we left Texas, they opened this new store really close to our house.  I had to check it out at least once.  Alanna kept asking me where we were going.  "Super Mercado" was really hard for her to say and remember I guess.  After we checked out, she said "I really liked this Super Hakuna Matata store Mom!"  Made me laugh, so I had to share.

Part 2:

We didn't like saying *goodbye* to friends...so we went for pedi's and cupcakes instead!  These little girls had a blast!

Wyatt enjoyed his special cupcake. 

Saying goodbye is hard.  Not fun at all. =(

But then we hit the road.... 

 Only in West Texas will you see a store like this! I laughed for a long time.

And then you will see absolutely nothing else because West Texas is full of nothing...boring nothing.

 But FINALLY after a long drive full of nothing, we saw mountains in the distance!!!

And they got closer!  Just beautiful!  Alanna was so sad that they didn't have snow on top of them.  She just knew that mountains were supposed to be covered in snow. =)  These were just mole hills compared to real mountains but I didn't have the heart to tell her that.

 Then Arizona happened!  More nothing!!! 

 But this nothingness was wide, open, and breath taking!  It just lasted longer than I wanted it to.  But just as I was completely OVER Arizona....

...Flagstaff happened!!  Mountains, pine trees, grass!  It was such a breath of fresh air!  It was 55* in the evening.  That's a temperature that we haven't felt in years! (or months)  If I ever get the chance to live in Flagstaff, AZ I will jump at it.  It is gorgeous and quaint and wonderful.  I hope to go back someday.

And then...drum roll please.....we made it to Nevada!

Look closely in the middle by the mountain.  Nevada greeted us with a rainbow!  We took that as a sign that we were in the right place at the right time.  Thank you God for your provision!

Then we had our first Nevada sunset!  

I hope I never tire of this majesty.

Yay!  We got to see our new house!  Look at that tiny little girl in front of it?!?  She was so excited!  And look at our neighbors!  I have never seen houses so close together in my life.

Then we had this sunset.

It's safe to say that we LOVE Nevada.

And now you are all caught up.  Next week I'll document all of our fun we've had since being here.  We got to play tourist and it was so much fun!

So...a lot has happened in two weeks...

I took a blogging hiatus for two weeks while we moved from Texas to Nevada.  BIG MOVE!  We took our time driving and tried to enjoy it.  I will try to do a quick catch up Part 1 today and do Part 2 tomorrow. 

 First up, Alanna had her 4th birthday party.  Our tradition is to wake up to balloons on her birthday.  She loves it and I love the squeals I hear once she wakes up and sees what day it is! 

(notice the packed boxes)

Alanna and her sweet friend Shyne decided to have a joint birthday part and to collect peanut butter and jelly instead of gifts for their party.  It was a total success!!

 Here are the sweet girlies with all their PB&J they collected.  We delivered it to a local food bank and they were so surprised that kids would want to do this instead of open gifts.  Alanna really understood what we were doing and she was so happy to do it!  I love her giving heart!

Then we skyped with Mamaw to open her birthday gift. FUN!

Then Nana and Papa came and we got ready for a swim party!!  Look at that stylin' girl!

We had roughly 60-70 people at the combined swim party and it was a total blast!  She didn't even miss the gifts because she was so busy swimming.  Plus...Grammy and Grandpa sent a card and Gigi sent a card, so this girl had plenty to open at home. =)

PART 2 tomorrow....

Raggedy Ann & The #PoorDog

Monkey Monday: Daddy Edition

Friday Funnies:

Alanna says we live in Las Angelo nine times out of ten these days.  =)  

She's said a million funny things in the last two weeks but I can't think of any right now!  AHHH!

I will leave you with a chocolate ice cream mustache instead.  haha.