Anna's 2nd Birthday!

This post is mostly dedicated to Anna since she turned 2 on the 19th. We didn't do anything really exciting for her birthday, mostly just had cake and presents. Barrett was at school all day, but my sister Rachel was here visiting. We had just moved to a new apartment in our complex that is bigger so we just enjoyed the day instead of worrying about cleaning and organizing. Anna got to play outside for a little while and then spent most of the afternoon in her room because she wouldn't take a nap forever! I was so frustrated with her because I wanted her to have a fun day and she ended up spending hours in her bedroom! She finally went to sleep when I lay down on her floor next to her bed. Anna really is the sweetest little girl, she is just such a sleep fighter.

Playing outside on her birthday

She loves collecting rocks and pine cones in her bucket

When Barrett came home we let Anna open her presents. She got spoiled as she got presents from both grandparents and Aunt Miriam as well as us. I think she actually got tired of opening them! She played for a while and then we ate dinner and had cake. She was so cute when we sang to her and sang along. It was so good to see her so happy! She got one candle blown out on her own, but needed a little help with the second one. Then we enjoyed some yummy bunny cake!



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Cute girl!

I just want to list some things about Anna for my own record. This is in no way supposed to be a brag list! I just want to list some of her funny quirks and abilities and interests as a 2 year old. I haven't taken her to the doctor yet, but she weighs about 26 lbs and is about 34 inches tall (I think). I can't believe how much she has grown in the last few months. She's growing out of all her clothes!

• Anna LOVES books and looks through them all day long. She loves to be read to, but she is very content just to flip through the pages on her own. She has no interest in board books anymore because she can't flip the pages. She loves the Friend magazine.
• Anna also loves singing and knows so many songs. I can't believe how quickly she picks up songs. Barrett and I performed at his sister Bethany's wedding reception and Anna knew almost all the words to the songs we sang. She also listens to primary songs when she goes to sleep and we often hear her singing along when she's supposed to be sleeping! Some of her favorite songs are I am a Child of God, Horsey Horsey, How Much is That Doggie, and the Little House in the Woods.
• Anna really likes to count things. She can count to 10 on her own and is constantly counting her toys and things in books. She is also learning her colors and likes to point them out. She also asks me a lot, "What color is this, Mommy?"
  
• Anna is such a good talker and I take it for granted often how well she expresses herself. We've really been working on getting her to ask for things nicely instead of whining or crying. It is so cute when she's been crying to hear her say "Please, Mommy. Can I have some milk?" through her tears. Her latest thing that she does many many times a day is walk up to me and say "Hi Mommy! Whatcha doing?" often over and over again. It's pretty cute.
  
• Anna's hair is getting so long and pretty. I love how it has natural curl at the bottom. She is so good about letting me do her hair and holding still. Sometimes we sing songs or I let her look at books, but she does really well for the most part. I think she likes getting her hair done because it bothers her when it gets in her face. She keeps getting new little bangs growing in, so I have to use lots of little rubber bands to keep it back.
• Anna has become quite the little helper lately. She loves to help me stir things in the kitchen and loves to stand on a chair and "help" me do the dishes aka fill up cups and dump the water out. Sometimes if I am cooking she comes in and says "Mommy, I need to do the dishes." Whenever she wants something it's always "I need" this or that. Pretty funny.
• Anna really likes to be outside and asks me constantly to put her shoes on so she can go out. It is so nice that we have a balcony outside the dining room in our new apartment because I can just let her play on that while I am doing other things and she still feels like she's outside. She loves to go for walks and collect rocks and pine cones.
  

The little helper! She loves to help me sweep, cook, and do dishes. If it would only last!

March Madness

March was a busy month for us. Between spring break, house sitting, a wedding, and just everyday craziness the month just flew by. Here are some pictures of our adventures. Warning: there are a lot of them!

We went to Mesa for a few days during spring break and visited Barrett's grandparents. This is in their little park model trailer. (We stayed in a motel because there was no room for us!)

Barrett's grandparents took us for a drive in the hills above Mesa. It was so beautiful and green after all the rain they got this winter.

This is a place called Tortilla Flats that was once a stagecoach stop.

Riding on the golf cart that Grandma and Grandpa Gibson use to get around in their 55+ community. Lets just say Anna got a lot of attention!

It is so crazy to me that they just grow oranges and grapefruit in their yard! Talk about a different world from my native Idaho! Anna had fun trying to pick them.

She tried so hard to get this one off, but it just wouldn't give!

A little help from Dad

We went to the Phoenix zoo and loved it! It helped that it was 82 degrees. So nice! Anna of course had a blast looking at all the animals and still likes to tell us about all the animals she saw.

My handsome husband and my little monkey at the zoo!

One of my best friends from high school, Amber Blaylock, has been in Mesa doing student teaching so she met us at the zoo and we were able to catch up on our lives since she went on a mission to West Virginia. It was fun to spend time with her.

We house sat for the lady I visit during spring break. They have 3 dogs and a cat that we took care of. They may look cute in the pictures, but I am not a fan of shih tzus or any little yapping dog for that matter. Nor was I a fan of having 4 dogs (including Cooper) in the house. We were so covered in hair!

This is an 80lb Rottweiler on my lap! She is a really sweet natured dog but I would never have a dog this big in my house, especially with black hair! We don't let Cooper on the furniture (except to take this picture) so it was crazy having these dogs all over us all the time. I was definitely ready to go home by the end of the week! On the up side Barrett really enjoyed being able to watch the NCAA basketball games on their satellite all week!

Barrett's Grandma and Grandpa Gibson. They don't like to smile in pictures for some reason

Anna with Barrett's parents at Bethany's reception. It was in the Legacy Flight museum in Rexburg. It was different, but turned out really cool. We drove all night Thursday the 25th to get to Rexburg for the wedding on Saturday and then drove home all day Sunday. It was a fast trip, but went pretty well. Thank goodness Anna is a good little traveler. Can you tell she loves her grandparents?

Anna's "smiley" face. She does this anytime the camera comes out. So silly!

My family was awesome and took care of Anna most of the time we were there. Barrett and his brother Jason and I did the music for the reception, so we had to spend time rehearsing and setting up and stuff so we didn't have time to take care of Anna. She loves her extended family!

Auntie Rachel

Double trouble! Good looking guys those Gibsons!

Sisters!

Yep, we're crazy!