OHIO: Part One!!!

After waiting for 6 long months, May was finally here and it was time to go back to Ohio to see my friends!

With a car jammed packed full, Dad drove us to the airport. Our flight to Ohio went incredibly well, and Mom was proud of our behavior- no tantrums at all! Stepping off the plane we felt a chill in the air, and boy did it feel nice (it was 100 when we left Arizona that morning). After loading 4 suitcases, 4 carry-ons, 2 car seats, and one stroller into a Ford Focus (Mom is a geometrical genius when it comes time to loading vehicles), we drove straight to the Grzelaks.

It was as if we had never left- Ashlyn, Riley Thomas, and I all picked up right where we had left off.

The following morning, after a family style breakfast with the Grzelaks (something I'd been looking forward to ever since we left), Ashlyn, Riley, Macie, and I all went to a park in Powell for "touch a truck!" I couldn't believe our timing was SO perfect(the event only runs once a year)!

Right when we got there the fun began-

We ran in and out of vehicles,

and posed for pictures with all the characters.

Macie was particularly fond of the milk truck,

while the rest of us flocked to Sponge Bob!

It wasn't until Macie saw a big skunk that her interest was piqued again...

We had an amazing time at "touch a truck" with our friends!

Early Monday morning I went with Ashlyn to gymnastics and even got to participate in class with my old teacher Miss Mel and all my friends. They couldn't believe how much I had grown, and really couldn't believe what a big girl Macie was!

After gymnastics we went over to the BIG RED BARN for some more runnin' around.

Later that afternoon Mom, Macie, and I went over to Jeannie's house. Jeannie is our friend from Kroger (the florist we visited almost daily) whom we couldn't wait to spend time with.

We had a pizza party at her house and Rose, another friend of ours from Kroger, came over with her grand-kids!

The three of us girls had a blast running around Jeannie's yard together.

Macie got a little nervous watching Mom give attention to another baby, so she spent most of her time on the porch. The second Mom would pick up the baby she would run over and yell "no baby", while pulling at the babie's leg and hitting Mom. Though she played some games with us around the yard from time to time, she methodically kept one eye fixed on Mom.


After pizza, while the rest of us were playing, Macie stalked the baby waiting for the perfect time to pounce. Because Mom knew what Macie was doing she made sure to photograph it from afar.

First she nonchalantly walked onto the porch and spyed the baby alone in his infant seat...

Then she "lay in the weeds" while plotting her next move...

When no one was looking, Macie ran over to the baby, pulled his socks off and hit him...

Good thing there we lots of adults near by to catch her before she could do any damage! For the rest of the night everyone kept their eye on Macie, and intercepted her about a dozen times as she tried to bully the baby.

We stayed at Jeannie's long into the night, until finally Mom insisted we go back to the Grzelak's to sleep.

We said our goodbyes to Jeannie and her family, and promised to come back and visit again soon!

The next morning Mom took Macie and I to the Columbus Zoo to visit all of our animal friends.

It was great to see Nile, and he even shuffled over to the wall to greet me!

Macie and I had such a great time at the Zoo catching up with friends and familiar places.

Of all the exciting things to see at the Zoo, my favorite was visiting the Snakes!!!

All of the reptiles were happy to have me back, and even Macie enjoyed watching them slither around their tanks.

Our trip to the Zoo was filled with fun, and I loved reminiscing with Mom about all the time we spent here when I was young.

The Grzelak family came down with a bad case of the flu for a couple days, so Mom kept us out of the house. One morning we drove downtown and visited the science center- I couldn't believe Mom had never brought us here before, and neither could she- it was AWESOME!!!

There were tons of things to play with, look at,

and, most importantly, there were TONS of photo ops!!!

One of our favorite exhibits was the water room. Inside there were pools of water with different fountains, currents, and spouts. Because kids got so wet, there were rain coats for us to put on while we played.


Our time at the science center was amazing, and I hope to go to the one out in Arizona after we get home!!!

On Friday, after another morning at the Zoo we drove by our old house and stopped in to visit with Caroline and Megan, our old neighbors. It was SO much fun seeing them and playing in the yard- I sure miss that!!!

The Piatt's couldn't believe how big Macie was, and I couldn't believe that Megan had grown so much that she towered over me (keep in mind she is over a year younger than me)...

We stayed at their house for about an hour and Charles even set up the hammock so we could lounge around.

I had a blast with Megan, and remembered how nice it was to live so close to great friends-wah!

Before leaving for open gym we made sure to give everyone big hugs goodbye!

Driving away was hard; I missed my old house and neighbors in Ohio, but know that we will always be able to go back and visit!

We had a ton of fun that night at Open Gym. A ton of my friends were there, but seeing Jordan and Morgan was definitely the highlight!

All of us tooled around being silly and catching up on the last 6 months.

By the end of the evening I was exhausted, and neither Macie nor I had any trouble falling asleep that night.

Our first full week in Ohio lived up to, and exceeded, all of my expectations. I saw a ton of friends, and had already visited many of my favorite places. I couldn't believe that I was fortunate enough to still have one more week of fun in store. Check back soon to see all the fun that Mom had in store for week two in Ohio...

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!!!