Mallory Vivienne is 4!

At 7:21pm tonight, December 31st, my little baby girl turned 4. I know that she is no longer a baby, but it is hard for me to let go of her. She has accomplished so much in her 4 years of life and she is such a blessing to our family. Just this year she has learned to read, she has really developed an artistic side. She enjoys making pictures for her friends as well as mine! She continues to be the sweetest daughter and sister that a family could ever ask for.

While we napped together today she wrapped her tiny arms around my neck, kissed me and said, "Mommy, I love you as big as the universe." One of those moments that I will always treasure.

Below are some pictures from her previous birthday celebrations and a video that I found from her birthday last year.

This was taken on her third birthday at Jose's. At first she was a little nervous about the whole singing/sombrero thing, but she embraced it after a while.



We celebrated Mally's second birthday at home with a party to follow on a later date. This was taken at home. I love her sweet little smile in this picture.



This was Mally's first birthday. We stayed home with the kids and had a blast. They ran around the house and danced all night. Mally was so little but could really run. It was so fun to watch.

Meyer's Belt Test Updated

I am so proud of Meyer. Meyer passed his belt test, which really, I don't know what he would have had to do not to pass, but he did. He practiced and tried his best and I am so proud of him for that.

This was a big step for Meyer and I have to admit, I was a little nervous that he would not go through with the test. My fear is that when it was his time, he would get nervous and decided not to go up and test, but he did it!



It was fun being there. Bradley was there along with some of his other friends. After the test we went to McDonald's with our neighbors whose daughter was also testing. She also goes to school with Meyer and Mally.

Snow Day

Here in Racine on Friday, we got a lot of snow. A whole lot of snow. It was our first snow day of the school year so we brought our dog Oscar and the kids outside to play.



The snow almost came up to Mally's belly, and it came up to Oscar's neck. The snow wasn't the best packing snow so spent most of the time attempting to run, then throwing snow for Oscar.



After we played outside, I took Meyer to get his haircut, then we went to decorate cookies at a friend's house before Meyer's belt test. It was a great first snow day.

Tai Tai's New Hair Style

While my dear friend Maritza went to Canada for a much needed girlfriend visit, I got to take Tai Tai (her daughter) to get her hair styled for the first time ever! It was really fun for me. She was so excited to have braids in hair with beads. It was wonderful. I just love that little girl. She was excited to give me some sassy poses and when we returned to school she was eager to show off her new style to all of her friends.

Meyer's Belt Test

Meyer has been taking Tae Kwon Do at Chay's in Racine and is loving it! He gets so into practicing his moves. It is wonderful. On Friday, he has his very first belt test. Stay tuned in and we will let you know! He has really been practicing.

Adventures in Sledding

We truly enjoyed a Wisconsin Saturday afternoon. We took the kids sledding near our house at North Beach. We even brought our dog Oscar, who really enjoyed himself. At one point we connected his leash to Mally's sled and had him pull her. That perhaps wasn't our best idea, but it was really funny.

Unfortunately, our sleds were not too fast, but we really had a great time. The weather was perfect!

Finally!

Mally is a perfect balance of girl. She loves getting dirty, but also loves fancy things. She literally shakes with excitement when I ask her to help me pick out earrings to help accent my outfit. When I put my earrings in, she wants to do it for me, and always asks if she can wear my earrings. When I remind her that her ears are not pierced yet, she responds by saying we should go get them pierced.

One weekend, we decided to let that happen. I explained to Mally that getting your ears pieced hurts and would require a lot of aftercare. She said she wouldn't cry and that she would let me wash her ears.

True to her promise, she did not cry and was amazing through the whole procedure. She picked sparkley pink flower earrings which she shows off with pride. I am excited to let her try on some of my earrings. Some of her fanciness seems to be wearing off on me!

Auntie Mandi Rocks!

A couple of weeks ago Ryan's sister Mandi came in for a little visit. The purpose of the visit was to have her make some of her famous sugar cookies. We did do some of that, but mostly we just enjoyed her company.

Meyer was especially excited about her visit as they really do have a special relationship. Meyer adores her! As we all do, but he especially does. Probably because she has a DS and enjoys Star Wars, which makes her pretty cool in his book. He couldn't wait to see his Auntie over Thanksgiving so he could trade video games. We hope she comes again soon!