flower princess

flower princess practice:

the stink face:
nani was smelling her (fake) flower petals. they must have been stinky.


aiyana was a fantastic flower girl!
"how did we get her down the aisle?", you ask.
daddy: take the basket to mama! (mama seated in the front row)
aiyana: runs down the aisle, clutching her basket of petals, passes it off to mama, and then runs back down the aisle to daddy.

technically, she did just as she was instructed...however, at the wedding, mama scooped her up and ducked out of the front row.

the "after-practice-party":
aiyana enjoyed a few bites of mama's chocolate cake. and then she RAN! and ran and ran and ran around and around the table. with her squeaky shoes.

BFF's from far far away

meeting sharrilyn at the airport. good thing she brought snacks!

zonked out from their much-anticipated introduction!
(or from the exhausting trip through ikea)

signs "COLD" when describing her applesauce
(this was our 1st "southern lowboil"... or something like that.)

on earth day, we planted houseplants. both girls loved the dirt! aiyana showed off her transfer skills. rocks from one pot to another and back again. dirt from the bag to the pot and then back to the bag. fascinating. whenever she needs "busy-work" we just give her two cups and a ball. she's good for an hour.

david, sharrilyn, and lydia, we love you!

aiyana's 1st ice cream at jason's deli
(though she did have gelato on her birthday!)

Easter pretty

this is how she looks when she laughs...

head tipped back and mouth open wide.

happy 18 months, baby girl!

egg smashing

....a little "pre"-easter on April 9th: our friends stopped over to say hello and goodbye (before they left for a few days.) They couldn't miss celebrating Easter with nani!

we introduced nani to one of her daddy's childhood traditions: "cascarones" -- children in Mexico hunt for these confetti filled eggs and then smash them on each others heads. nani thinks this is a tradition we will continue. she LOVES smashing cascarones! unfortunately, when her friends gave her egg-shaped sidewalk chalk...she tried to also smash those eggs on her friends' heads. OUCH!

two new games

1. orange-stomping

outside abuelos' house, aiyana stomps on tiny oranges. she likes the way they squish beneath her shoes.

2. bowling

juan pablo gives aiyana some pointers during her first bowling game.

el mercado y mas

on nani's 2nd trip to the market, she was able to do some shopping on her own.

(on her 1st trip, she was 11 weeks old, and was confined to momma's hip.)

1, 2, 3, Jump!
the pose in this picture pretty much sums up aiyana's favorite activity. she has nearly mastered the one step up and down. she usually doesn't even hold on to anything anymore. she just steps off the edge.

aiyana found this table/chairs set all on her own. she probably would have stayed there all day!

nani watched some bigger kids playing basketball
(i just thought the sun shone beautifully on her hair)


we watched the sunset at abuelos' church
(they tell people that their church is "next to the hole"...the hole in the wall is actually a result of digging out the mountain...but it makes a pretty cool landmark)

nani enjoys walking with abuela.
she says: "side? side?" and certainly someone always takes her out"side".

a touch of the flu?
nani took an abnormally long siesta (3.5hours), but it wasn't solid sleep, and since she'd had long days, we didn't equate it to anything...until she vomited blackberries all over the rental van.
i think she felt better after that. she snuggled in and fell asleep at the church, even though it meant missing the singing.