Easter Fun in AZ

April turned out to be a very busy month for all of us. Mom had a bunch of tutu orders she had to complete, so Macie and I became her guinea pigs, trying on new designs, colors, and styles. I love being her model and posing for pictures,

and so does Macie- she is turning into quite a ham...

Mid month, Uncle Will flew out to Arizona to celebrate Hayley's birthday with our family. It was SO hot when he arrived (in the high 90's) that we all decided to try out the pool. It was still way too cold for Mom, Macie, and Hayley, but Will took one for the team, doing some laps, jumping off the diving board, and even sliding down the water slide- what a trooper!!!

I managed to brave the cold with Will for a few minutes, but it didn't take long for me to wimp out and end up in the spa.

Macie did her best on the edge of the pool, but refused to submerge herself in the water.

When she got bored with splashing around she kept Hayley entertained by leap frogging around the pool.

That afternoon we all went to see Bugs and I got to ride him while Macie, Will, and Mom hung out with the barnyard animals.


The following morning it became official, Aunt Hayley got a job at a local animal hospital and became a working Veterinarian. Here we are posing with her very first job contract- We were all extremely proud of her!

Can you believe she is a doctor? We can't either- good thing it says it on her lab coat...

I told Mom that I want to be a veterinarian just like Aunt Hayley when I grow up!

Tuckered out from all the excitement, Aunt Hayley and her crew caught up on some sleep that afternoon.

Rested and ready for some more fun, the family went out to Sushi to celebrate Aunt Hayley's 29th birthday.

We had a great time at dinner, and always LOVE any excuse to go out for some SUSHI!

At the end of the week Macie and I were invited to a friend's house for an Alice in Wonderland Easter party. Dressed in costume (Macie was Alice, I was the White Rabbit, and Mom was the Queen of Hearts), we spent the afternoon playing games and eating. Mom couldn't believe how amazing the party was- not only were we greeted by the actual Easter Bunny when we walked in the door, but every thing around us was decorated. After an Easter egg hunt upstairs we were taken down a winding staircase into the "rabbit hole." Downstairs we had an AMAZING tea party with all sorts of yummy goodies- cakes, mini sandwiches, petite-fores; Macie couldn't get enough of the miniature cupcakes and kept stealing more when Mom wasn't looking.

Once our tummies were full everyone played games in the Queen's courtyard, and when we were done went outside for some pinata action- it was a SUPER FUN party!

Macie and I spent the remainder of the party running around with our friends in Wonderland!

Back at home Mom began our Easter preparations, and before bed that night Macie and I helped Mom dye Eggs to leave out for the Easter Bunny.

Macie's favorite part was coloring on the eggs with marker (her favorite writing utensil),

but I enjoyed putting them in the dye by myself, since I am finally "of age" to do so!!!

After finishing with the eggs, Macie and I wrote some letters to the bunny.

In the morning we woke up to find that the Easter Bunny had come while we were sleeping and left some baskets for the family (he also left a mess- if you look closely on the floor you can see a trail of carrot mess that he must of made as he was eating carrots on his way out the window).

He left us some pretty awesome baskets full of fun activities.

Macie didn't seem to care much for the toys, she wanted only one thing: CANDY (she is just like Mom).


When we were done inspecting our baskets, Macie and I hunted around the room for the Eggs the Easter Bunny hid. Mom was super excited that Macie was old enough to participate in the hunt this year!

Now that I had 3 Easter's under my belt, I was a PRO at hunting eggs!

Before heading to the Kovacic's house for Easter dinner Macie and I played in the yard with our new toys- Mom hoped that the new bubble maker would provide hours of entertainment, but we both tired of the excitement within minutes.


Instead we reverted to torturing the dog with our new jump ropes- an activity that will never tire (well, maybe for Jackson)...


After out naps, Mom dressed Macie and I in Easter outfits and made us take some pictures in the yard. Macie was the first up, and actually wore an outfit that someone had gifted to Grandma Judy when Mom was a baby. Macie sure made a cute bunny, but she didn't stay still for pictures since she was more interested in playing with her new hula hoop.

Mom chased her through the yard and managed to get a few pictures

before she started to jump in and out of the hula hoop.

Since Macie wasn't interested in being a bunny any longer, I asked to try the apron on for size. It fit quite nicely and I paraded around the yard.

After playing around, Mom dressed us up for dinner, and before leaving made us take some more pictures in the back yard.

I was hesitant at first, but came around a few minutes later and turned on the charm.

Macie went exploring in the yard while I soaked up all the camera's attention.

Mom continued to try and coerce Macie to come take pictures, but it didn't seem like she was in the mood.

I decided to help Mom out, and retrieved Macie.

She was not interested in being held, carried, hugged, or confined,

so unfortunately my efforts were in vain.

Good thing Jackson is always looking for attention!

Mom realized that there was no way Macie and I would sit still for pictures, so she just photographed us as we played in the yard.





Dad came out dressed and ready for dinner, but before getting us in the car, helped coerced us to take a few more pictures to make Mom happy. It's amazing what Dad's are able to do- check out these smiles...





Our Easter holiday was filled with fun, family, friends, and love. We couldn't have asked for anything more!!!

Uncle Shawn Comes to Town for a "Grand" Visit!

The beginning of April reminded Mom and Dad that it was time to get their taxes done, so in a haste we drove out to California.

Waking up at Grandma's was awesome; we played around in her front yard in the early morning, and after breakfast our friend Aidan came down to play at the beach with Macie and I.

Macie had a great time playing in the sand,

while Aidan and I traipsed in and out of the water.

We made drip castles in the sand,

and on our arms...

Our trip to San Diego lasted only 2 days and although it was quick, we all enjoyed seeing the family and playing at the beach! Back at home we went about our normal activities while preparing for Uncle Shawn's arrival in Arizona!


It had been a while (about a year) since we had spend time with Uncle Shawn, and our family was SO excited that he would be staying with us for almost a whole week! On his first day in Arizona we took him miniature golfing. We weren't the worlds best golfers, but we definitely had a fun time.


When the weekend came we loaded the family in the car and drove north to the Grand Canyon. It was a long 3 hour drive, but we managed to make it fun by rockin' out; I'm sure glad I have such a cool family!

Even Macie got her groove on a little bit...

We arrived at the Grand Canyon shortly before nightfall and couldn't believe how massive it really was.


We also couldn't believe how cold it was (in the LOW 30's), thank goodness Dad made Mom pack our winter clothes because there was snow everywhere.

Despite the cold, we were able to walk around and enjoy the view.

When the sun began to set the temperatures really dropped and it was way too cold to stay outside. We toured some of the stores, played a little dress up,

and did some more rockin' out- check out my sweet air guitar...

Macie couldn't stop pulling things off of the shelves, and wouldn't listen to Mom, so she had to be carried for the remainder of our shopping trip. Dad couldn't help but laugh at the face she made as she was getting in trouble...

I was sure glad that my Uncle Shawn came to visit with us, because he was a lot of fun!

That night we went to dinner and discussed our plans for the following day. Unanimously the family all agreed that the best way to see all of the Grand Canyon most efficiently would be to tour it by air, so Dad booked us a helicopter tour for the morning. We were all excited when we got back to the hotel, and both Macie and I had a tough time sleeping.

The girls (Macie, Mom, and I) all woke bright and early in our room (at 5am), while Dad and Uncle Shawn slept in. Mom tried to keep us busy, but we were eager to start the day. After breakfast we drove to the airport where they prepped us for our flight. Killing time inside was tough since we had to wait a half an hour before boarding, so Macie and I did our best to stay occupied...

We crawled like dogs;

Climbed like Monkeys;

and shrieked like eels- when that became too irritating for everyone, Mom used a sticker to keep Macie quiet...

Finally it was time to board the helicopter!

I was the first one to board the helicopter, and couldn't believe how cool it was inside.

Dad and Macie boarded next, and Macie had a BIG smile on her face.

Once we all loaded inside the helicopter the pilot turned it on and boy did it get loud. Dad helped me put on my headphones so that the outside noise was minimized and I could here everyone inside as they spoke into the microphones.


Macie looked a little uneasy as we took off, but Dad was super excited and helped keep her calm.

Before long the fear and uncertainty ceased and she began to look around in awe with the rest of us!

Seeing everything from the air was amazing, and the whole family agreed that it was worth the expense to share this experience with each other!







We toured the Canyon for almost an hour and couldn't believe that Macie had the audacity to fall asleep on her first helicopter ride...In retrospect we all agreed that it was probably the best thing to happen considering she stayed quiet the whole flight.


I had a great time flying through the sky and seeing the amazing scenery, but had the most fun talking into the microphone and hearing my own voice in the headphones. I think I told everyone in the helicopter that I loved them about 10 times each...



After our helicopter tour we packed up the car and drove back to Scottsdale- our trip was a success!

Back at home we tried to entertain Shawn around the house by showing him all the cool things we can do. Macie worked on riding her tricycle (something I couldn't do till much later since my feet didn't reach the petals till I was 2),

and even showed off her skills on the trampoline:

After exploring the town by bike Uncle Shawn pulled us around the yard in our wagon and we couldn't get enough!

The following day I went to Lifetime for swim lessons, and Mom, Macie, and Uncle Shawn lounged by the pool while they waited.

Mom laughed at Macie's bizarre style of swimming- seems she prefers going backwards...

On Uncle Shawn's "Last Day Ever" we went on another bike ride and found some really neat trails and parks around town. In the afternoon Dad came home early from work and took Mom and Uncle Shawn on a hike at Sunrise. It was a 30minute uphill hike and they said that Scottsdale looked really beautiful from the top.

Uncle Shawn left the following morning, and Mom informed me that I had to go back to school (I got to play hookey all week)-I was NOT happy. I had really enjoyed spending time with Uncle Dangley, and pouted right up until I left for school...


We have a big month ahead of us as Hayley's birthday and Easter are rapidly approaching. Hopefully the entertainment will keep me occupied...