School Easter Party

I volunteered to coordinate Savannah's school Easter Party. The celebration was today, and we had a great time!

I was in charge of the craft & decided on cottonball lamb pencil holders. The kids enjoyed putting them together...



We also had a big egg hunt--I think Savannah got every bit as excited as she did when she went trick-or-treating. It was fun to watch the kids go for it!

My Little Helper...

At 16 months old, Will is capable of a LOT more than I typically give him credit for.

He understands pretty much everything we tell him, and he really wants to be part of the action.

This morning, he was so sweet to dive in & help me unload the silverware--Way to earn your keep, Hinze!!



Oh, and here he is, showing off our latest Hinze Family Favorite Food--whole wheat breadsticks (I've made them twice this week, and the kids DEVOUR them!!)

Savannah's Acting Debut!

The parents of Savannah's preschool class were invited to attend yesterday, to watch the children lead the chapel service.

They performed a small "play", and Savannah turned out to be the star of the show...as Jesus.

I just had to laugh because, at 3 years old, I'm certain this was my daughter's one & only opportunity to play the role.

Anyhow, she was absolutely adorable, and I couldn't help but be proud of her, as she was the only child with speaking parts & she did a great job with both of her lines (great voice projection, kiddo!)

Here are a few pictures:

Happy Half Birthday, Savannah!

This post is late, but...

On February 12th, Savannah celebrated her 3 1/2 birthday!

Her school is kind enough to celebrate the half birthdays of the children with summer birthdays (so they don't feel quite so jipped!)

I was excited to take Savannah to the bakery, where she scoured the ENORMOUS book of cakes with literally ANY & ALL themes you can possibly imagine. After a thorough review, Savannah completely fell in love with the Cinderella cake. Actually, it was ALL ABOUT THE PRINCE. She saw Prince Charming on that cake, and couldn't get her mind around anything else--she wanted The Prince. So, she got exactly what she ordered, and here it is...

(Although it's completely inappropriate, I just can't resist mentioning that Savannah got a BIG laugh out of her poop the next day...it was bright blue!)

Ringing the bell at Chapel (the honor of the birthday girl):

A satisfied birthday-cake-eater:

As a side note, Rod can't help but remind Savannah that, when he was a kid, "we didn't have half birthdays..."

ALONE IN ARIZONA!!!!

Last weekend, Rod gave me one of the best gifts of my entire life...

He "held down the fort" from FRIDAY MORNING until MONDAY NIGHT while I whisked away ALONE to Arizona & spent 4 fabulous days & 3 relaxing nights with one of my very best friends, Christie.

Christie lived in Dallas for two short years, while her husband was finishing orthodontic school. We spent so much time together, just being moms & enjoying life. Christie was there for me at some very critical times, and I will forever be grateful for her listening ears, her inspiring ways, and her great example. Somehow, we just never seem to run out of things to talk about & (most of all) to laugh about.

So, the weekend was fantastic. We enjoyed shopping, eating, exercising & movie watching, but most of all we enjoyed just spending time together--catching up and talking about life. (Much thank is owed to her husband, Alan, for being so supportive & tending their two boys while Christie & I played.)

Thank you, Christie, for providing me with JUST what I needed--some real relaxation & true friendship. I look forward to the next time!!

Fortunately, my in-laws also live in Arizona, so I was able to spend Sunday evening at their house, enjoying a wonderful dinner. My mother-in-law whipped up an amazing meal & called in the troops (7 of Rod's 8 siblings live in Arizona, and they all came to see me!) I REALLY enjoyed my visit (I just can't get over how different it was to be ALONE!!) & I was so grateful to see them!

Here I am, with some of the girls (Rod's mom, 3 of his sisters, and 1 of my sisters-in-law):

Girl Weekend: The Rest

The rest of Girl Weekend was absolutely spectacular.

On Saturday, we spent three hours at Lakeshore Learning, doing art projects & reading books.

Savannah, focused on her creation (a kitty cat door hanger):

The proud artist:

My little reader:

Afterward, we cruised over to Subway (of course) to grab a roast beef sandwich for Savannah.

Historically, Savannah always stands at the Subway counter & announces her dislike for tomatoes (which she calls potatoes).

All of a sudden, however, she surprised me & said she wanted to try tomatoes on her sandwich.

Well, she tried them...and she liked them!

So...

After our lunch, we hit Lowe's & grabbed a couple of tomato plants. (Along with a basil plant & an oregano plant, so we can grow our own Italian feasts!)

We came home to plant them & we are now eagerly awaiting the arrival of our very own home-grown tomatoes!

We spent Saturday evening watching the all-too-fabulous "Annie". I hadn't seen the movie in years, and it was even cuter than I remembered. Savannah LOVED the music & now (more than ever) wants to get a dog (& name it Sandy, of course...)

Sunday was a long, relaxing day. I just treasured having my little girl all to myself.

We began the day with a yogurt parfait, whole-wheat waffles & blueberries, in the tub:

We enjoyed church together, then came home & made a big batch of cupcakes to deliver to friends. Savannah REALLY struggled with the decision of making vanilla or chocolate cupcakes. HER favorite is vanilla, but she was just certain that some of her friends preferred chocolate. So, of course, we ended up making both! I guess it never hurts to have a couple dozen extra cupcakes! We had a fabulous time delivering the cupcakes & visiting with friends.

A cupcake for Lulu:

Monday morning arrived with tears & a big sob of, "Oh, Mom, is girl weekend OVER?" Of course, we were both sad to see girl-time end, but we were also beyond thrilled to see our boys. They had a GREAT time in Arizona (thanks to my wonderful in-laws for loving & entertaining Will!) & we are so happy to be back together again.

Girl Weekend: Day 1

At 6:00 this morning, Savannah & I dropped Rod & Will off at the airport.
The boys flew to Arizona for a business meeting & a visit with the Hinze family.

Meanwhile, the girls were left behind to have a fantastically wonderful Girl Weekend!

Our mission is to have as much fun as possible, specifically focusing on activities that are difficult to do with a 15-month-old brother in tow!

The day started out with arts & crafts (Savannah's very favorite thing to do).
She chose a set of 6 ceramic ponies & a new set of acrylic paints. She carefully completed each one:

After pony painting, Savannah took a long bath. We then made a handful of beaded bracelets. Here she is, showing off the 2 special name bracelets she made for her school teachers:

While Savannah was at school, I had a relaxing time getting my hair done. In the late afternoon, Savannah napped while I took the quiet opportunity to organize closets (seriously, one of my VERY favorite things to do). My house is so clean at this moment...it just thrills me to pieces.

When Savannah woke up from her nap, we grabbed dinner at Subway (her pick) & headed out to the Dallas Children's Theatre for a musical production of "Good Night Moon." The show was adorable, and I just savored the time to hold Savannah on my lap & to treasure my sweet little girl.

Savannah, diving into her Roast Beef sandwich:

Posing outside of the theatre:

We're sleeping together in my bed tonight & looking forward to more girl fun tomorrow. What a great day!

A Very Happy Valentine's Day (But No Pictures to Prove It...)

We had a very sweet Valentine's Day.

We have been SO lucky with Savannah's preschool this year. She attends in the afternoon, from 12:30 - 3:30. The timing works out perfectly because we have our fun & happy morning together, and then she is thrilled to be off to class. While she's out, Will takes a nap & I get some alone time. For whatever reason, most other parents prefer to send their children to school in the morning. So, Savannah has 2 fabulous teachers for a class of just 8 children. The kids are so sweet & we have had a really fun time being part of that group.

So, on Valentine's Day, all of the parents came to class & joined the children for a celebration. We passed out Valentines (Savannah chose princess bags & filled them with Rolos), decorated heart-shaped cupcakes, read stories, made Valentine boxes, and just had a wonderful time.

That evening, Rod & I left the kids with a sitter & escaped to Eatzi's, our favorite take-out spot. We grabbed a delicious dinner and took it to a quiet, hidden, beautiful spot in old Highland Park. The 2 of us sat in the trees, under the stars, and enjoyed the quiet of a perfect evening. It really was just peaceful & exactly what I had in mind.

Rod even remembered the red roses & chocolate--I'm so blessed to have him as my Valentine!

Ballet Pictures

Savannah has been taking ballet classes for the last 8 months.

The studio conducts the class in a private room, with a VERY strict "no parent viewing" rule.

Recently, however, we had one special day when we were invited to watch our little dancers perform.

Savannah did a great job!

Family Night on the Katy Trail

Monday night was BEAUTIFUL in Dallas.
We took advantage of the good weather by loading up our bikes & heading down to the Katy Trail.
We enjoyed some good exercise on the trail & a fun break at the park.

Field Trip to PetSmart

My kids (especially Will) are SO into animals these days.
A couple of evenings ago, I decided to take them on a "field trip" to PetSmart. It was a HUGE hit!

I explained 2 ground rules:

1. We are LOOKING at pets, not TAKING HOME pets
2. We DO NOT get out of the grocery cart.

Rule #2 was key to the trip's success. The kids stayed completely contained & we all just had the best time checking out the animals. I think they would have been content to stay all day long!

Fish

Kitties

Birds

Rodents

What more could you want out of life?!

The Training Has Begun...

Savannah had her first official tennis lesson this week.

Although Rod frequently takes her out to the courts to hit (and she loves it), we thought Savannah would enjoy having regular tennis lessons (with 2 of her girlfriends) from a non-parent coach.

Coach Sean did a great job (my favorite part was watching Savannah run laps around the court for warm up) and Savannah is eager to go again next week!

I'll have to improve on my picture taking next time...

Savannah, amidst the tennis ball chaos:


Will, helping Coach Sean with the clean up:

Dental Success!

Today, Savannah took her first trip to the Dentist!

I have to admit, I was a bit nervous going into it. Savannah clung tightly to me as we walked through the exam room, and she initially wanted nothing to do with the hygienist.

That all quickly changed, however, as the talented staff completely won Savannah over.

First, the hygienist asked Savannah about her favorite Disney Princess. As soon as she replied, Savannah was handed her very own purple Belle toothbrush. Then, the hygienist whipped out the cleaning tools. She let Savannah play with "Mr. Tickle" (the water squirting tool) and "Mr. Thirsty" (the sucking tool). Savannah was given her choice of about 10 different kinds of toothpaste (she chose bubblegum), and she sat so still & happy for her entire cleaning.

By the time we were ready for x-rays, Savannah was in her own little happy dental land. Seriously, she loved loved loved it.

We left with a big bag of dental goodies & a very clean bill of dental health.

Good work, Savannah. We're so proud of you for being such a big kid!!!

Sucking on "Mr. Thirsty":

Sitting Tall for X-Rays:

Opening wide for the dentist:

Showing off one of her prizes:

Trip to Disneyland

We just got back from our BIG trip to Disneyland!

We met up with my family (my parents & 2 married brothers) to celebrate a late Christmas. We all stayed in a nearby hotel & enjoyed 5 full-of-fun and full-of-love days together.

As expected, Savannah completely loved Disneyland. She loved the rides (her favorites were Small World, Matterhorn, Peter Pan, Pirates, and Pinocchio), the princesses, the castle, the parades, and (most of all) the insane amount of attention she received from her grandparents, aunts & uncles.

As UNexpected, Will also COMPLETELY loved Disneyland. I just didn't think a 14 month old would get much out of the Magic Kingdom. I was SO wrong. With the exception of the large roller coasters, Will was able to board any and all rides & he LOVED them. I just threw him in the Bjorn and enjoyed the day. He is SO happy to go along with the crowd and, so long as he's being given his proper fill of attention, he's just delightful. Favorite rides were Dumbo, Nemo, Peter Pan, and Pirates.

I have SO many wonderful pictures, but here are some of my favorites...

My two little treasures:

Savannah, throwing out a courtesy wave to the camera, as she launched off on the Dumbo ride:

Will & Uncle Nate, defeating Zorg on the Buzz Lightyear ride:

Savannah & PaPa, also attempting to save the galaxy (notice Nate & JoLee in the background):

Will & PaPa, pointing at Pirates on Tom Sawyer's Island (Will's favorite thing to do these days is point. Seriously, he points all day long & it's really really cute)

Will, happily eating his buffet breakfast, while watching Nemo, in his jammies. What a life!

A highlight of Savannah's Disneyland trip: Finding a red Tic Tac in the dirt outside of the Jungle Cruise. She was so happy, you would think she won the lottery...

Adorable William

Will is very very very very cute right now.
He is really starting to walk more often, but he's been pretty slow to transition from his beloved quick crawl. I can't count how many times I've heard the comment, "he is the fastest crawler I've ever seen!"
He loves to keep up with whatever interests his big sister and, therefore, loves to take hold of the coloring crayons.
Such a happy kid...

Savannah's latest food obsession...

Quizno’s new flatbread sammies (or slammies, as Savannah likes to call them).

She specifically enjoys the Bistro Steak Melt (Thinly-sliced black angus steak, mozzarella and mild peppercorn sauce on toasty flatbread).

She seriously LOVES them and, at $2 & 300 calories a pop, it’s a quick, cheap, reasonably healthy way to fill her up!

For about 2 weeks now, it’s exactly what she requests, any time I ask her what she wants to eat.

We visited Quizno's twice today, and I can’t even begin to explain the enthusiasm with which she eats her slammie. So funny, considering she just has never before been very fired up about food...