Daddy's Birthday

Oussama's birthday was April 10. As a surprise, I decided to get tickets to a Naturals baseball game that Sunday. I figured it would be something different for us to enjoy as a family. It was family day, so there was tons of things for Samir to do. He loves baseball and all the extra stuff made it really enjoyable for him and, in turn, us! I also made Oussama a cake. Nothing fancy, but it was golf, so he loved it!

The cake

My two cool dudes :)

Spongebob....I should mention that I don't allow Samir to watch Spongebob, so he spent a while trying to figure out this giant sponge guy!

"Hi Daddy!"

Easter

Over Spring Break, I decided to have Samir's Easter pictures done. After our last scare with men dressed up as characters (Santa Claus) I figured I wouldn't even attempt the Easter bunny at the mall. No offense to that person, but the suit is kind of creepy! I opted instead to take Samir to a local photographer who had live bunnies. Samir loved those rabbits! Here is a couple....

Our next Easter activity was dying eggs. This was our first time dying eggs, and my first attempt on my own. I think the last time I dyed eggs I was about eleven years old and my mom was there of course. What a great tradition to pass on!

Samir was so curious....we ended up with some colorful hands! He loves eggs, so it was only natural that this would be so interesting to him!

Very proud of his work!

Our finished product. I'm quiet proud of these!

Saturday we are going to an Easter egg hunt and Sunday we will be in Paris with our family. We will also have another egg hunt at my mom's Sunday.

Happy Easter!

Spring Has Sprung!

Spring is officially here! I love this weather, the smell of cut grass, opening the windows, snow cones...well, I love just about all of it! Samir's favorite part would have to be playing outside. He has been so worn out the past couple of days! He's been eating supper almost as soon as he gets home from school, then playing outside, eating a few bites of our supper as a snack, taking a bath and going straight to bed. Not that I'm complaining at all, because he's been sleeping so well!
A few signs of spring.....

Our first attempt at growing something this year. I by no means have a green thumb, but I think it's important to try. Samir needs to learn how things grow and, if it doesn't, that sometimes things don't go as planned! Grandma picked these up for us at Lowe's. They are actually Sesame Street brand greenhouses that you start the seeds in and then transplant the sprouts. Everything you need comes with them and they're some of Samir's favorite characters? Yes please! We got peppers, baby watermelons and tomatoes as starters.

Samir and Lily waiting ever so patiently on Daddy to finish mowing. This is literally the longest I've seen Samir sit still without being belted down! He wanted to help, but only when the mower was turned off of course. And Lily, well, she's pretty vicious until the mower starts making noise!

Spring Break

Over Spring break, Oussama went to Morocco to visit his family. We missed him as much as he missed us. He neglected to take pictures, though, so I have nothing to post for his trip! Britney and I took Samir and Bryleigh to Saint Louis for four days, so I have plenty of those pictures to post! The first day, we arrived and got settled in, did a little shopping and then it was bedtime. The second day we went to the zoo, which is one of the largest in the country.

We rode the train, which Samir liked a lot!

Samir also enjoyed the penguins. I think we all did, really. How can you not like those little guys?!

We went to the Build-A-Bear at the zoo. This is the second time he's ever been to a Build-A-Bear workshop and he did much better this time around. He understood my instructions a lot more, though, because he's older. I'm sure that helped!

Samir and those goats....he LOVED them! I mean, loved them. he could have spent all day in that goat corral and been perfectly happy. He wasn't scared a bit.

We tuckered Samir out that day :)

After the zoo, we still had some daylight left, so we went exploring downtown. Busch Stadium was clearly a stop!

The next day, we went to the arch. Let me tell you, I think I about had a heart attack riding up to that thing! My heart was racing, I was sweating, it was HORRIBLE! I would totally do it again though! 630 feet above ground and I lived to say I did it!

downtown Saint Louis

That day, we also went to the Magic House, which is the children's museum. It was so awesome and had a lot of things for the kids to do. Totally hands-on!

The last day there, we went to the City Museum and Aquarium. The aquarium was fun, however the city museum was a total bust for us. There wasn't anything there that Samir could really do and it was overrun with teenagers EVERYWHERE. Not a great experience on our last day :(

Checking out the turtles!

There was a toddler ball pit, but there were so many kids in there that were older and bigger than Samir that I had to take him out. He really liked it though, so as soon as I took him out, he had a huge meltdown!

We arrived home Thursday night, and I have never been happier to be home. The trip was a lot of fun, but you can't beat your own home and your own bed!

Mount Magazine

When my dad was alive, there was nothing he loved more than a trip to Mount Magazine when the weather was nice. We have tried to preserve this tradition, and so far, have managed to go at least once or twice a year. I just love the atmosphere up there, so relaxed and peaceful. If it had been finished when we got married, we totally would have had our wedding there. Who knows, maybe vow renewals will be there! Now who am I kidding? If we do vow renewals, we are totally going to Hawaii! :)

Samir's Loves

I know it's been a long time since my last post, so to make up for it, this post will be extra long! As promised, I have some pictures of Samir at Granny's farm. He loves cows and was sure not afraid to go right up to them! The cows weren't afraid of him either, which is a good thing I guess? They didn't want anything to do with me if I was with Samir, so maybe it's a size thing. Or maybe they know Samir is not a big fan of meat, while I had beef for lunch :)

Another love of Samir's ....his boots! He would wear those darn things every day if I let him! On this particular day, he was pretty messy after school, so I was changing his shirt. In the middle of this, however, he decided he needs to wear his boots. I had to grab the camera because, let's face it, this is stinking cute!

Samir has also recently became obsessed with this trike that Britney got him for Christmas. It rocks, so we used it as a rocker while it was cold. Now that it is warm out, we unfolded it into a trike with a handle. I decided it was time to do this after Samir tried to run across the street and steal the neighbor's bike!

As you can tell, he even rides the bike as soon as he gets out of bed!

Samir has discovered money. None has gone into his mouth (yet) but he loves to put it into his piggy bank. Note to self:must have an easter egg with money in it!

This is a piggy bank that we bought and let Samir decorate. You have to love how he knew where to put the tie!

Samir is a little computer nut. We bought a kids' keyboard that fits over ours and lets him play kid games. He was not having that though! He wants the real thing and is quite content to just type in word.

*WINTER FUN*

So here we are again, at home because of snow! The first time, great! The second, okay. Now I'm just ready for spring! It doesn't help that we are planning vacation right now and all I can think of is the beach, either :) This summer, we are planning a trip to Gulf Shores. If you've ever been, please send any tips you might have. Oussama will be going to Morocco over Spring Break, so me, Samir, Britney and Bryleigh are planning a trip to Saint Louis. It's going to be fun! 
Here are some snow pics to tickle your fancy :)

 

  

Think he's a ham? Wait until you pull out a camera and hear him say "CHEESE!"

I've been working on planning Samir's second birthday....it's only three and a half months away! We're doing a farm theme, on a farm. For the rest, you'll just have to come see!

Valentine's Day is a week away. Samir and I have already been baking up a storm!

 

 

 

We also made some handmade Valentine's art to give as gifts. I even bought some window stickers to let Samir decorate. I probably should have bought more, though, because Samir has now realized the other windows are bare and is ripping them in half to decorate the others!

 

Before we go on our wagon ride, let me leave you with Samir relaxing at grandma's house. They were watching Wheel of Fortune together! :)