Spa Day

Ahh...a spa day. Sounds relaxing right? Not when your doing all the pampering for 9 kindergarten-aged girls! But such is a day in the life of being Cienna's mom.
When you arrived at Cienna's Spa you were greeted by the butler, AJ, and immediately escorted to the nail polish selection station. After choosing your favorite color or colors, you then slipped on a pair of new pink flip flops that you could decorate with ribbons to your liking and take home with you.

We had several fabulous beauticians working that day. Tony's mom, one of her friends and our neighbor's teenage babysitter. There was no need to wonder who was a worker and who was a guest. We made it easy.

We even had a very handsome smoothie maker. Word on the street is that he is very hard to get at your spa. Good thing we know some people who know some people.

After everyone had their 10 little fingers and 10 little toes painted (including AJ!) we moved on to a light snack followed by a heavy lunch of pizza and birthday cake!

After more squealing, running around and present opening we bid adieu to our spa guests with some swag that even the mom's wanted to steal.

A fabulous party for a fabulous 6 year old girl. We love you baby girl!

6 Years Old

It is hard to believe that our baby girl turned 6 years old this week. The reality that life is quickly going by is not lost on us. Having children will do that to you. Every birthday that they celebrate is a concrete reminder that your time with them as little innocents is getting shorter. I do my best to savor every moment, which is easier as they become "easier." And I am all to aware that I will miss these days before I know it.

Cienna began her 6th birthday with a special treat...a 2-hour snow delay for school. Fitting, considering she was born on a snowy Dallas day back in 2007. We decided to brave the slick streets and treat her to breakfast hot cocoa. A perfect start to the day.

After school, Mimi and Papa picked her up and took her to It'z, which is like Chuck E Cheese on steroids. Games, prizes and food fit for a princess. They arrived home around 6pm to open gifts and have some cake. A perfect ending to a perfect birthday.

In just a few short weeks we will celebrate with a party at the house...stay tuned!

At 6 years old:

-Love animal print anything
-Are quickly learning Spanish and will make up words that you think sound like Spanish
-Are learning to read...but not quite yet!
-Your favorite toys are your toddler Disney princess dolls
-You can't sleep without your "B" and your cruise ship Minnie Mouse doll
-You love gymnastics, cheer leading and now want to learn archery (thanks to Merida)
-Your best friends are Nadia (from school), Payton (from preschool) and Amelia (next door)
-You are working on getting along with your brother
-Your favorite places to eat are Mariscos, Buca di Bepo, and sushi
-You love spending the night at your grandparents house
-You still believe in fairy tales, Santa, and Tiny Quinn
-You can't wait for your first tooth to fall out
-Your favorite books are any Frog and Toad or Fancy Nancy, but you also love to go to the library and pick out new books every 3 weeks
-You use big words
-You are absolutely the most beautiful, loving girl I have ever known
-You sometimes cry and tell me that you just love me so much

We super love you Cienna Elise. Happy 6th birthday girl!

Happy New Year!

Hello 2013! I am so happy to see you! Not that 2012 wasn't great...but a new year means a fresh start and fresh perspective on life. It is a time to party like a rock star on New Years Eve, regret it the next day, and then vow to never do it again by the 2nd. Maybe not for everyone...but definitely for us!

See...Rockstars

We headed up to the cabin the day after Christmas and spent some quality family time snowmobiling and pushing each other into snowbanks. We had a blast freezing snot against our faces with the wind (mostly) at our backs.

Showing Some Sibling Love

The next day Tony's brother Chris and girlfriend Wendy arrived to join the festivities. In their luggage they packed a 5 lb gummy bear that was to be spiked with the cheapest liquor that money could buy and enjoyed on New Years Eve. (Don't worry...we made a virgin version for the kids to ingest.)

The tale of the gummy will be one for the history books. It started out so cute and cuddly...

But then he was sliced...

And diced...

And doused with libations and then, when we tasted the masterpiece...

It was totally disgusting. Big disappointment.

Now I know what your thinking. We threw it out. NOT! Never ones to be quitters we forged ahead with the gummy bear and the night!

Say What?

The kids were also in a festive mood. Cienna felt very grown up sipping sparkling cider out of a wine glass and AJ, well he had fun destroying his party hat and waving sparklers in the sky!

The remainder of our time in Colorado was spent building snowmen, sledding and visiting the hot springs. A perfect end to 2012 and an amazing beginning to 2013!

Happy New Year!