All you need is love in February

February is one of my most favorite months of the year.  The weather warms up in Texas this month and we celebrate Valentines as well as my baby, Olivia's birthday.  This year we also had fun at Creekfest where Belle rocked her two mile race and both girls loved the after party.  We baked, played tinker toys, started soccer again and ended basketball.  We did chores, grew more independent and enjoyed sharing love all month long.  Happy February Y'all!

Our Olivia at FIVE

Olivia is the sweetest, most thoughtful, kindest little girl and wants nothing more than for everyone to be happy. At five years old she continues to love ballet and shows great promise as she learns all of the steps names in french and is graceful with her long legs. Olivia is tall and lean and was in the 98% for her age at her well check. She is much taller than most of her buddies and is also a good example to her friends trying to include everyone and always being nice. Her favorite colors are "blue, yellow, pink, purple, silver and gold" and she loves to eat Cheezits and dessert. She resists going to PreK every day and her and her mama both have anxiety about the Kindergarten transition coming up in a few short months. She can read many of her sight words but would rather play make-believe and wants to be an artist when she grows up. Olivia loves nature and cries when a tree is cut down or someone litters and comments on the beauty of the earth on a daily basis. She idolizes her big sister, Isabelle, and never wants to have anything more than Belle does. Livi is very upset if and when Belle gets in trouble and is the first one to say I'm sorry if they disagree. She loves anything fancy and wants to wear a skirt or dress everyday. She loves cats, Sheriff Callie, coloring, her scooter and legoes and plays with them all several hours a week. We love you Olivia. Our home is a better place because you are in it.

Take 5 at Disneyland California

It is no secret that we love all things Disney. We love the movies, characters, store and of course the parks. We think about taking other vacations every now and then but we always decide to head back to The Happiest Place on Earth. It is the perfect vacation spot with our little girls and after many trips there, we now feel like we know just how to DO Disney. We spent Isabelle's 5th birthday in Orlando at Disney World so when we found great airfare for sunny California the week of Olivia's big birthday, we booked quick.







We know the scene pretty well and boarded our early flight, napped on the plane, hopped in a cab and found ourselves at the Disneyland Hotel before lunch. Thankfully Aunt Tara had a few days to play this week as well and soon we were all skipping down Main Street USA. We enjoyed the next several days smiling from ear to ear as we ate our favorite treats, watched our favorite shows and rode our favorite rides.

Our birthday girl was in little girl heaven wearing a special pin that announced it was her special day for everyone to see. Each character gave her extra attention and every Disney employee wished her a happy birthday for 5 straight days. Grammie and Grandpa Elmo gave her some Disney $$ to buy herself a special gift before we left and she knew just what she wanted at Disneyland...a princess flip doll. Her doll rode around with us for the week and she loved showing it off to all of the princesses. We celebrated her actual 5th birthday with a Minnie Mouse Breakfast and it was perfect for our little Livi. We ate a delicious buffet of waffles, omelets, fruit and more, all done Disney style while we mingled with a variety of fun characters. One interesting and funny moment happened when Olivia declared that now that she was 5, she was ready to go on all of the rides she had been too nervous for just the day before. And she meant it. She put on her big girl face and rode Indiana Jones for the first time and Goofys Sky School, etc. She is a determined little girl and when she decides something, you can bet on it. She is never too sure about being the center of attention and shys away from having the spotlight directly on her so it was extra fun to see her enjoy all of the special treatment.

So far we have never spent too long in the California sun and both girls were in tears when it was time to leave. They had both missed too much school already and reality was a rude awakening to all of us when our feet touched back down in Texas. We love our annual Disney trip and can't wait until our next magical vacation is on our calendar.

When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are. Anything your heart desires, will come to you.