Ally's New Friend

A few weeks ago we took Ally to the mall for a special treat.  She has been doing so great on the potty that I thought it would be fun for her to go to Build-a-Bear and make her own new friend.  Ally had no idea where she was going but she got excited when we got there.  She inspected all of the options of bears, bunnies, frogs, cats, dogs and decided on a monkey- we were not surprised.  We helped her with the computer parts making the birth certificate but she did the rest.  The staff there is paid to be super helpful and friendly so Ally got to stuff it, kiss it, give it a heart, brush it and more.  She picked out a Minnie Mouse PJ outfit for it and pink bows for her hair.  She decided that the monkey's name needed to be Do Do Bird like in the Alice and Wonderland book she likes to read.  We went with it and call it Do Do for short.

Making a birth certificate

Making her big and fluffy

DoDo is dressed and done!

Visit to the Benders

I am way behind on blogging but the weekend of July 13-15 we took a brief road trip to Des Moines, IA to visit our friend's, The Benders.  They have almost 2 year old Elizabeth and 5 month old twin boys Evan and Zachary.  Ally was so exited to play with Liz and we were excited to meet the twins for the first time and catch up on some adult conversation.  Adam does business in Peoria sometimes so we see him now and then but we haven't had a real chance to get everyone together in a while. 

We made it in time for dinner on Friday and the girls ran around and we all took turns playing with the boys. Saturday was really hot so we made some adjustments to our plans and just hung around the house. Adam put out the kiddie pool, sprinkler and bubbles for the girls and they had a blast.  In the evening we got everyone fed and the boys in bed, a wonderful babysitter came over to play with the girls so we could have some adult time.  Adam and Crystal picked a great restaurant downtown so we got to walk around the city a little bit and enjoy a nice dinner.  We had no idea the city was so large but the downtown was very cool.  They love it there and its easy to see why, there seemed to be so much to do and very kid friendly.  On Sunday we played some more after a pancake breakfast then headed home in the afternoon.  Ally loved playing with the babies and was very gently with them.  She was a little disappointed they couldn't really talk or follow her around but after awhile she got used to it and started bringing them toys and books to play with.  She even helped feed one of them.  She was very concerned if one of them cried and enjoyed teaching Liz how to jump on the bed.  Hopefully we were helpful and gave the Benders a little break.  It was tough to manage 4 under 3 just for a few days so I can't imagine how people do it with multiples and kids close in age like that.  Adam and Crystal seem to have a good system worked out and the kids are doing great.  Hope we didn't leave Liz with too many bad habits either.  Wish more had more free time to visit friends more often.  Getting kids together is really fun and we miss so many of our friends, but its tough when we are all so busy all the time and spread out. 

Ally holding Zachary

Playing in the pool

Fun with bubbles

Ally's First Movie

A few weeks ago we decided to take Ally to see her first movie in the theater.  It was a really hot day and Madagascar 3 was playing at 10am, which is usually her best time of day.  We gave it a try and she loved it! We got in during the previews so it was already a little dark and sort of loud.  She was scared at first but once she sat in my lap and the movie got started, she was engaged the whole time. The endless handfuls of popcorn helped but the movie was full of fun music and she already knew most of the characters from the previous 2 movies.  She danced in her seat and ate up all the popcorn.  She was ready to go wen it ended but did great the whole time and is already looking forward to our next movie date: Finding Nemo 3D in November.

Ally loved the music so much that we had to download the soundtrack and she goes crazy every time she hears "Afro Circus". Its too funny.  Video on that to come soon.

Bye Bye Privacy

We have hit a new milestone with Allyson.  All of a sudden she can reach light switches and door knobs. This means that she is always turning lights and fans on and off.  It also means that no closed door is off limits unless its locked.  There is no such thing as a solo trip to the bathroom these days.  We are trying to teach her about privacy and that she can't just go opening doors whenever she wants in a room but its a slow process.  Its sort of funny because she is in no way quiet when she is trying to "peek on you" so she does give you plenty of warning that she is coming. 

She is also becoming more independent in the bathroom herself so if she needs to go while we are home, she will just get up and do her business herself.  She can pull herself up on the big potty and has learned to flush it but sometimes she still prefers her little one downstairs.  These seem like small things but she is very proud of these latest accomplishments.

Dominican Vacation

Karl and I took our first true "all-inclusive" vacation for a friends wedding in the Dominican Republic in early June.  I realize I am way behind in my posting but better late than never.  We had a busy travel schedule so we took the girls (Ally and Ella) up to Oshkosh on a Tuesday, hit up a Brewer game in Milwaukee on Wednesday then flew out super early on Thursday morning.  We were in paradise by 1pm and weren't quite sure what to expect when we arrived. 
The trips to and from the airport were by far the most interesting parts of the weekend because there are no rules when it comes to driving in the Dominican.  The resort was a 90 minute bus ride through the very poor country full of winding roads, livestock, and families of 4 on little scooters.  We stayed at the Dreams Punta Cana along with about 50 other people that were there for the same event.  The hotel was fantastic with both a huge pool and beach access.  This was out first time at an all-inclusive resort which was really great.  All we needed was some tip money and everything was taken care of.  The food was the most disappointing part of the trip for everyone and most people weren't feeling their best at one point or another (me included but Karl was spared).  Karl enjoyed a day of golf with friends and I enjoyed a lot of time poolside.  It was also our first vacation with other couples which was really fun too. 

The wedding itself was very beautiful and the setting was amazing.  Beyond hot but still beautiful and a very fun reception.  We headed back home on Monday to get Ally then make the trip back home on Tuesday.  Ally had a great time on her vacation as well, spending lots of time with grandmas, grandpas and other family members.  We only really got to talk to her once but we knew she was in good hands.  She didn't mind we were gone at all.  It wasn't a real long vacation but just enough relaxation and adult time for us.  We will definitely consider going back in the future or trying another all-inclusive somewhere else.