Cheap Fun

Who knew a pile of dead leaves could be so much fun?

Merry Christmas!!!

We had such an awesome Christmas this year. This is the first year that Emerson 'got' Christmas, she recognized Santa or "Ho Ho" as she called him, as in "Look Mommy, there's a Ho Ho" when we drove down the street and saw an inflatable one in someones yard. The whole season was magical for her and it was really awesome to see it through her eyes.

We didn't put any presents under the tree until after Emerson went to bed, so she sure was surprised when we told her to come see what Santa left. She saw her kitchen and immediately screamed "Daddy, it's a kitchen!!!". She was blessed to receive many generous gifts from friends and family.

Emerson and Buzz Lightyear (Mrs. Nesbitt) having a post present opening breakfast.

One of Emerson's favorite gifts, her Jasmine sno-globe that her father got for her. He went to 2 different malls 2 days before Christmas to find this for her.

All dressed up and busy cooking dinner for the family in her new kitchen. Lets just say that we all ate a huge amount of deliciously prepared plastic food! We were fortunate enough to spend Christmas with our loved ones. We had a great meal and great fun after dinner, enjoying being together and playing our new Wii (our family gift to ourselves). We are truly blessed and so thankful for all that we have. Praise God for all His blessings, especially for giving us his Son.

She is not a queen

Because her mother is still alive.......

So she's a princess. Emerson received this Princess dress-up outfit for her birthday from her Tio and Tia, and she just loves it. It's usually accessorized by her wand (because she is a magical princess?) and her ballet shoes, for dancing of course. We think she is a beautiful, magical, dancing princess.

He's got good taste in beer...

And I've got good taste in men!

Monique and Puppy Woof Woof

Say "Hello" to Monique and her new nemesis, I mean friend, Puppy Woof Woof. Emerson received the toy dog from her Grandma and Grumppa for Christmas (she named it herself). When turned on, the puppy sniffs, barks, walks, wags it's tail and whines, but in a cute puppy way. It's actually the perfect pet. Emerson loves it and Monique doesn't seem to mind sharing the house with the new pet. I guess we'll keep her. Or him.

In the (St.) Nick of time!

Well, I set a goal to have this finished by this Christmas, and after weeks of diligent work, it is finally done. I am proud of the way it turned out. I chose it for Rico because of his love of animals. And singing.......


I think they all look nice together, better than the grocery bag that served for Rico last year. His conversion is complete!!!

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas, 2009

My Girl

Emerson Elizabeth Castillo
on her 3rd birthday, 11-16-2009

Happy Thanksgiving

This past Thanksgiving, we were lucky enough to be invited over to Tio Aurelio and Tia Dailen's beautiful house to eat. They cooked a full spread and everything was wonderful! Emerson wore her new black and pink dress and looked super cute. Of course, she didn't eat one bite of food. Too excited I guess.

Sitting at the table with Grumppa, Lilly, Grandma, and Laura.

Tio Aurelio

Grandma and Grumppa

Dailen and Sarah (and dessert!)

Grandma, Grumppa and Emerson.

We had a wonderful time eating and visiting with everyone. It was also nice to give the mess and stress over to someone else. It was a relaxing day! We are thankful to have been able to spend it with our loved ones. We are abundantly blessed.

4 days and 14 pairs of panties

That's what it took to get Emerson potty trained. We had been trying to get Emerson potty trained for a few months now with very little success. While Emerson had exhibited a lot of the signs that she was ready, she just wasn't ready emotionally. So we decided to back off the training for a while and then set a date to get it done. We had a 4 day weekend over Thanksgiving and after reading about the best strategies, we hunkered down with a chart, stickers and prizes. After sitting down with Emerson and letting her know that the training was in her hands, we took off the pull-up and let her hang around bare bummed. And something finally clicked and the rest of the weekend was a breeze. Emerson got a sticker every time she was successful and you can tell by her chart that she did a great job over the 4 days! We are so proud of her for reaching this milestone. She is still in a pull-up overnight, but she usually wakes up dry, so it won't be long before we are completely trained! GOOD JOB, EMERSON!!!!