Just Dance

We went out on a limb and got Samantha another video game for her birthday.  She loves to play Mario Kart Wii, but I’d rather she not sit and play video games all afternoon.  Mario Kart, by the way, is what brought this recent obsession with everything Mario.  Brian suggested the game Just Dance.

Oh boy.

Words cannot describe how she squealed with delight at the first time she danced alongside the game.  I can’t say I’m too thrilled about her dancing to K$sha, Nicki Minaj, or (I can’t believe) her favorite, Psy.  She loves to play, and I love that it gets her moving.  It’s a win-win.

The first night we played, we all had to get some of that action.  The best song for all 4 of us to dance with is Ghostbusters.  That’s better.  🙂

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I can’t play with the family too often.  I always win.  I’m good like that.

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Grand Canyon

It was certainly a whirlwind trip, but well worth it.

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We saw LOTS of elk.  Lots.  Most of the time, like this one below, we accidentally walked up to them without realizing it.  This one was at the Visitor’s Center just as we got off the shuttle bus.  Otherwise, we saw a lot of Abert’s squirrels, a couple of families of mule deer, butterflies, ravens, and vultures.  I was hoping to see condors, but no luck.

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View from Mather Point:

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On the Bright Angel Trail at the 2nd tunnel:

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On the Bright Angel Trail at the 1.5 mile resthouse (1.5 mile hike down, with 1100′ elevation change):

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We also hiked the South Kaibab Trail almost down to Ooh-Aah Point.  This picture was right before the many switchbacks near the head of the trail.

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Sunset from Pima Point:

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Harvest moon rise on the Fall Equinox from Pima Point:

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I’d love to post a video with a time lapse shot of the moon rising.  It was very awesome.  Maybe Brian can work on it in his spare time.

UPDATE:  Here is the time lapse video of the moon rise!

I think my favorite spot to view was Yaki Point because you could see the many trails, and had a great panoramic view of the canyon.  Pima Point was good to see and hear the rapids below, but the water was very dirty from all the flooding in Colorado.

Fort Walton Beach

After graduation, we made a fairly spontaneous trip down to Fort Walton. Once we got there, I realized that we had never been to the beach with just the four of us. It was a great trip, with fantastic weather. The condo was perfect for us: 2 bedrooms with bunk beds in the 2nd bedroom. It had an indoor and outdoor pool, right on the beach. We couldn’t have gotten a better place to stay. (And I got a smokin deal!)

We started out in the pool.

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And finished at the beach. Sam loved playing in the water.

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And Ellie loved playing in the sand.

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Like I said, it was beautiful!

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We had such fun.

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After spending hours in the ocean, I saw this sign. Oops. I did get sick, but nobody else did. I think I must have picked something up elsewhere.

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Ellie only wanted to play in the sand, but she would stand at the edge of the water requesting for someone to fill up her watering can. It made me think of the Coppertone girl.

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And we couldn’t leave without making Ellie into a mermaid.

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We had a great trip, and I’m so glad we went. We’ll go back soon on our annual family trip, and we’re also hoping to spend lots of time at the neighborhood pool this summer!

Happy Birthday Ellie!

Can you believe this little runt turned 3 last week?

Ellie is full of laughs and energy, independence and compassion, nerve and courage.  She loves her froggie, her big sister, and Rapunzel.  She just moved up to a big girl bed and hasn’t had any trouble adjusting.  Her favorite colors are green and purple.  She’s a lefty.  She eats at least two breakfasts, a decent lunch, and not much for dinner every day.  She loves corn (all kinds including popcorn).  She drinks way more than the rest of us (milk, juice, water, you name it).

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We had her birthday party last weekend.  Thanks for coming, friends!  I thought the weekend was going to be a wash out, but it turned out to be perfect!  We spent all day outside playing.

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On her actual birthday, we brought Krispy Kreme for her class.  I intended to take her out to lunch, but we are a one car household these days (what is with all the drama in the Mauter house lately?) so lunch was a no-go.  We had dinner on the porch, which is where we always have our birthday meals for Sam (October) and Ellie (early May).

Here are all three dresses that I finished just in time:  Rapunzel, Minnie Mouse, and Mickey Mouse.  Brian was thoroughly concerned about making a Mickey Mouse dress, but I knew she wouldn’t care.  Sam wants one too.

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And the finale was the tent!

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We had her three year check up too.  She didn’t get any shots, so we got out of there pretty easily.  The doctor is somewhat concerned about her speech so we will need to see an audiologist and speech therapist soon.  I’m not really that concerned because she has always been “delayed” on speech.  She’ll get there on her own time, but if we need to have her checked out, that’ll be fine.