Cooped Up and Stir Crazy

RAIN RAIN GO AWAY
Come again another day...
Uhh...more specifically...
could you give it a rest for ONE day!
We really want to go outside and play--or go swimming--or go to the park...

HEY! We don't need no stinkin' sunshine to have FUN. Maisy had a great time catching raindrops in her hands.
And Wilson had as much fun as Gene Kelley did as he twirled his umbrella and stomped around in the rain. There wasn't really any singing going on though.

Swimming Lessons: mission accomplished

Last week, Wilson forged his first session of swimming lessons. He did an excellent job. His attitude toward the water is completely different from before he started lessons.

The first day, he was really apprehensive about putting his face in the water. He didn't want to get his head wet at all...or his ears either. His homework every night was to put his face in the water during his bath and blow bubbles through his nose 5 times.

His teacher, Miss Sandy, was really patient with him. By the end of the week he was swimming like a mini Aquaman!

Wilson's favorite skill he learned in the water was the FLYING ALLIGATOR. Here's a picture of him practicing the maneuver.

Our favorite skill to watch was the back float--mainly because he looked so cute when he was doing it.

Of course, Wilson had an audience of loyal supporters--including Shaki, his badger. He just really needed Shaki there, especially on the day he jumped off the diving board(GASP)...oh yes. Wilson jumped off the diving board--one time and one time only.

Maisy said that Wilson looked like a superhero when he was swimming. Wilson liked that. "Which superhero, Maisy?" he asked.

"Superman," she replied.

"I think I looked more like Batman," Wilson said thoughtfully.

"Yeah. You Batman, Wilson," Maisy replied with a hint of awe in her voice. Overall, swimming lessons were a very positive experience. We are so proud of you Wilson!

My princesses

Okay, so here's an example of the kind of situations we have at our house on an average day:
The other day, Wilson found Maisy's PRINCESS DRESS in the closet. He began to persistantly urge her to put it on. "No! It ouchy me!" was her continuous reply.
Wilson, realizing he must do something drastic if he was to get results, formed a new tactic. "Watch me, Maisy. I will put the dress on and show you it doesn't hurt." So, Wilson gallantly stepped into the dress. "See Maisy. It doesn't even hurt me at all!" (Yeah, Wil--we can see that it is not hurting you at all.)
Maisy just giggled and replied, "Oh Wilson, that looks sooo pretty!" As you can see, Maisy finally succumbed because she did try the dress on for herself.
I'm glad she did because she is a Petite and Pretty, Perfect little Princess. And just a little disclosure: Wilson did allow me to take pictures of him, but I had to promise not to send them to any of his friends. Posting them on the blog is my way of getting around the disclosure!

Baby Eliot's Visit

Baby Eliot came to visit this past weekend...oh and his parents came too. My brother Cameron and his wife Kressyda have a cute, enjoyable 11 month old cherub. We had the best time with them. Wilson and Maisy were so excited to see that Baby Eliot could crawl. Wilson expected Eliot to devotedly follow him around; however, the opposite transpired. Wilson and Maisy trailed Eliot around the whole weekend saying, "Hey Baby Eliot look at this!" or "Baby Eliot, do you want to play with this?"

We learned 5 first-rate facts about Baby Eliot this weekend:

ONE: He has the potential to be a wrestler like his daddy.TWO: He's a fantastic and focused eater and drinker.
THREE: He loves to share toys with Wilson and Maisy (much to the chagrin of Maisy.)
FOUR: He is one heck of a ball player. Once he had a grip on this ball he was not letting go!
AND FIVE: He endured Maisy's affections very patiently.

We love you BABY ELIOT and your Mommy and Daddy too! Come back and visit soon.

Restaurant Review: Sicily's

We LOVE going out to eat; therefore, we have decided to start a new tradition. We are going to review the restaurants we frequent and chronicle our culinary adventures.

The first recommended restaurant is our favorite Italian eatery, Sicily's. It is located on University Avenue (the 380) and Waddill in McKinney.

We love the friendly atmosphere of the restaurant. The owner, Eddie, is omnipresent-- shaking hands, kissing babies, and hobnobbing with the clientele. The place has a very cozy, yet happily frenetic feel that you're not going to get at the Olive Garden. A great tradition at Sicily's (for wine drinkers) is that people bring in their own wine to drink with the food they order at the restaurant. The food is outstanding for adults and kids. Feast your eyes on this:

This is Maisy eating a roll (complimentary appetizer) that was nearly as big as her head.

Here we have Spaghetti with sausage, devoured shortly after this picture was taken by Kasia's brother Cameron.

Cameron's wife Kressyda ordered the Chicken Rossini highlighted with a pink sauce (red sauce with added cream) and chicken topped with ham, provolone cheese, and tomatoes on the side. Mmmm...

Kasia ate the Chicken Piccata. Its lemony, buttery taste left her palette happy.

Are there some picky young eaters in your dining group? Not even they can resist the tantalizing pre-cut cheese pizza.

We waved farewell to Eddie, as we left through the famous red door. The meal was inexpensive ($5-10 per plate) and exquisite. If you want some great incontestable Italian food, Sicily's is the place!!

Aloha Hawaiian Falls

We took a dip into the Hawaiian Falls in Garland last weekend. Everyone enjoyed themselves. Brett tried BIG RED for the first time--lots of exciting things happening.

Above we have Wilson and Maisy with their friend Hailey Ashby. Below we have Wilson with Hailey and her dad, David.

How does Hawaiian Falls say hello? It WAVES! (pause for laughter--contributed by Brett). Maisy had a lot of fun with our friend Aaron, battling the waves.

Here is a picture of Maisy taking a break from drinking the pool water (YUCK). If you think she looks cold, well...she was. So we decided it was time to go home.

It was a good we left when we did because we barely escaped a torrential downpour. Hooray! We would like to take this opportunity to say Mahalo to the good folks at Hawaiian Falls. We look forward to our next visit.