She Likes to Move It Move It

Zoe's 3 Year Portrait

It's been increasingly difficult to get Zoe to sit for a picture. But I've found that nearly anything can be accomplished with the right bribe-- especially since I know her currency. This photo shoot cost me 30 minutes of Cinderella and unlimited access to the fancy gown she wore for her birthday. (She wore that dress every day after school for a whole week following this picture.)

From Zoe 3 Year Portrait

From Zoe 3 Year Portrait

From Zoe 3 Year Portrait

From Zoe 3 Year Portrait

From Zoe 3 Year Portrait

From Zoe 3 Year Portrait

Film Festival

I have a serious back log of posting to do (I know, I know). While looking through my video files I came across two instant classics that I can't believe I never published before.

The first is a video from our adventures in potty training last year. Please note that she's leafing through the L.L. Bean Catalog as she does her business.



The next one is also from last year. One of our bedtime songs is "My Favorite Things" from the Sound of Music. She knew most of the lyrics, but as you'll see, the chorus is by far her favorite part.



Next up is a video from this morning. Zoe received Spin Art for Christmas from grandma YaYa(my mom) and we create new masterpiece with it every weekend. (Can you tell that she's sick of me taking her picture???)


Finally, a modern classic shot at dinner this evening. Zoe saw me twirling my linguine around my fork-- a somewhat difficult technique for a 3 year old to master. So Zoe did what she always does...finds a work-around.

Santa

For the past two years we've tried unsuccessfully to get Zoe to sit on Santa's lap. I never forced her for fear of causing some sort of holiday trauma. Last week Zoe and her classmates had a Christmas concert at school and Santa showed up. When Santa called her name Zoe walked right up to him and sat on his lap. It's a miracle!

We took Zoe bowling for the first time yesterday. It's embarrasing to admit, but Zoe was beating both of us for most of the game. (Keep in mind- we all had the benefit of the bumpers on the lane.) I don't think the pro bowling tour will be knocking on our door any time soon.

They have this cool ramp that little kids can use to give the ball some momentum down the lane. Zoe tried that, but was rather fond of the shot put method (otherwise known as lob and clunk). The ball took about 10 minutes to meander down the lane...

Princess Party

It's hard to believe, but my little girl turned 3 this weekend. We had a princess party to celebrate. She was quite the diva in her purple gown and tiara.




Okay, so maybe I went a bit overboard with the decorations, but her highness needed a royal cabana for coloring and eating cake with her "loyal subjects."




We played "pin the kiss on the frog." Some had good aim.....others not so much.



Zoe got her very fist Barbie dolls for her birthday. I never cared for them as a kid, so I wondered how she would respond. She toted them around all night and desperately wanted to sleep with them in her bed, so I think they were a big hit.

From Princess Party

From Princess Party

Trick or Treat

Zoe has been dressed as a princess nearly every day this week. In fact she informed us that her middle name was now Cinderella. She wore her costume to the bank, BJs, Home Depot, etc. And if you've ever tried to wrangle a hoop skirt into a car seat, you know this was no easy task. So when it finally came time to wear her costume for Halloween, I thought she'd be thrilled. What was I thinking? It was time to get dressed and Zoe wanted no part of wearing her costume. Instead, she marched upstairs, pulled out a sundress (2 sizes too small) and announced that this is what I'm wearing. Fine. That lasted about 20 minutes until she saw Daddy, Grampy and her cousins all dressed up and she finally changed her mind.

Trick or treating was a major hit. Our little Cinderella pulled in quite a haul of candy. Although I'm not sure who was more excited about Halloween...Zoe or Daddy. (When you get to the end of the photos you'll get what I mean. Argh matey!)

From Halloween 2010

From Halloween 2010

Daddy totally gets into Halloween.

From Halloween 2010

I think everyone's costume is pretty self expalanatory-- except for Zoe's oldest cousin. He called his look "disgruntled teenager."

From Halloween 2010

Seashell Dress

Zoe has a favorite dress. The seashell dress. This wouldn't be a problem except now it's 55 degrees outside and the seashell dress has no sleeves. Zoe wants to wear this dress every day which has launched us into an entirely new realm of preschooler/parent wardrobe bargaining.

I've started to chronicle the many creatively layered ensembles that my 3 year old fashionista has put together:

Here's the seashell dress:



Here's the seashell dress worn over a pink t-shirt and "slippery" frog print pajama bottoms:



This is a classis. Underneath the seashell dress we have a hot pink thermal shirt, black leggings, a hot pink animal print dress paired with striped socks and orange crocs.





The latest look was designed at 6:15 this morning. She had received a package of halloween goodies from grandma and I took a little video of her opening her gifts. Pay special attention to the outfit: Footy Pjs, the hot pink animal print dress, topped off with....the seashell dress.

Cheerleader

It's been ages since I've had a minute to post. I have to get back to doing this regularly because Zoe says something hysterical just about every day and I know I'll forget if I don't write it all down.

So Daddy ran a half-marathon last weekend with Auntie Jenn (AJ). Zoe was just about the cutest cheerleader ever!



Daddy was very excited to see his little cheering committee on the side of the road.



It was quite windy and chilly that day, so Zoe set up shop in the back end of the car. She was all hooked up with paper, crayons, snacks, books, snacks, toys, juice boxes, snacks.....did I mention snacks?

Zoe vs. Golf

Zoe had her first miniature golf outing today.....and it was a giggle-fest from start to finish. This little girl dives into every new experience the same way: head first, with a little attitude and a lot of style.....

Danger Girl in the Pool

So we're at the Cape this past weekend and Uncle Mark is launching our nephews into the pool as they balance on his shoulders.

From Cape Code August 2010

Zoe refused to be outdone in the stunt department by a couple of boys. She is, after all, Danger Girl.

From Cape Code August 2010

Santa's Village

We had a fantastic trip to Santa's Village in NH this weekend. For the two weeks leading up to the trip, all Zoe could talk about was petting a reindeer. I think her idea of what a reindeer would look like and what a reindeer actually looks like were quite different. So when she saw one- she looked at me with a furrowed brow and said, "That's not a weindeer. That's a moose."

In an effort to convince her the reindeer were nice, Daddy did something that only Daddy would do: kissed the reindeer. Gross. Eeeew. Yuck.

Some of my favorite moments from the weekend:

• Zoe pointing to the 3 wise men in the life-sized manger exhibit and exclaiming, "Mommy, look at those princesses!" (I can understand that robes may have looked like gowns, but since when do princesses have beards??)
  
• After securing Zoe on the carousel, I started to climb up on a horse of my own. That's when Zoe informed me, "Hey Mommy, this ride is for little butts."
• At the tail end of the 3 hour road trip, I finally told miss miss bossy pants in the back seat that mommy doesn't take orders from a 2.5 year old, to which she replied in a mocking, sing-song voice, "Oh yes you doooooo."
  

Here are some photos from the adventure. (Click pics to launch album.)

From Santa's Village

From Santa's Village

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From Santa's Village

From Santa's Village

From Santa's Village

Spicy Girls Reunion

We had our second annual reunion picnic with the families that traveled to China with us. It was wonderful to see how much the girls have all grown and changed. Although some things remain exactly the same-- they still refuse to sit for a group photo.

Here's a little trip down memory lane. This is the totally out of control "red couch" photo we tried to take of all the girls in China. Total mayhem. (Zoe's in purple in front.)


Fast forward to our first reunion last year. Everyone was mobile now so good luck getting them to sit still, or even sit.



And then there's this year. Three of the other girls had already walked out of the photo and Zoe was on her way too. We finally bribed all of them with cupcakes (we're not proud). But even then, Zoe still wasn't going to cooperate. Oh well, there's always next year.

From Spicy Girls Reunion 2010

Here are a few more of my favorites from the day:
(click any one to launch the album)

From Spicy Girls Reunion 2010

From Spicy Girls Reunion 2010

From Spicy Girls Reunion 2010

From Spicy Girls Reunion 2010

From Spicy Girls Reunion 2010

Ice Cream Cone

Zoe had ice cream in a cone for the first time last week. Daddy wasted no time teaching her the fine art of "cone maintenance."

That's what it's all about....

So we're sitting at the breakfast table over the long weekend and one of Zoe's cousins was explaining that his older brother was missing breakfast because he was still sleeping. I responded that's it's good to sleep in on vacation-- that's what it's all about. Without missing a beat Zoe says "just like the Hokey Pokey!"

Because...that's really what it's all about :-)

From Yard May 2010

The Best Trick Ever

Zoe calls her somersault "the best trick ever." I know it's certainly the cutest somersault I've ever seen :-)

Danger Girl

Had a blast with Zoe in the backyard this morning. She has a small "roller coaster" and we had to up the Danger Girl factor by setting it up on a hill. And then we had our first "look mom, no hands" moment on the swing set. My nerves are shot :-)

From Roller Coaster

From Roller Coaster

From Roller Coaster

What do bumblebees taste like?

Zoe and I were sitting in the hammock yesterday and we had the funniest conversation:

Z: Mama...the wind is blowing. I'm going to stick my tongue out and catch it.

M: What does the wind taste like?

Z: Ummm...it tastes like bumblebees.

M: What do bumblebees taste like?

Z: Cheese.

Pooch Paparazzi

Zoe tries to take Emma's picture with an old camera phone.

Happy Easter

5:56 am Easter morning

Zoe: Mooom-my.... Mooom-my.
Mommy: [cracking one open slightly]
Zoe: MAMA...You sleepin'?
Mommy: Not anymore. It's early Zoe, do you want to climb in mommy's bed?
Zoe: No. I go downstairs.
Mommy: Why do you want to go downstairs?
Zoe: Because I want to see da bunny.
Mommy: Why?
Zoe: Because I good girl. I get candy and prizes. [Followed immediately by the easter bunny happy dance.]

Chocolate for Breakfast
Zoe doesn't get candy at home. I figure she has a lifetime to rot her teeth, so we tend to keep her away from most of the really naughty stuff. On Easter morning, however, I believe there's a rite of passage that all children should experience: chocolate for breakfast. Don't we all have some memory of sitting in our PJs, biting the ears off a chocloate bunny before 8am? Zoe was particularly fond of the jelly beans.

Photo Follies
After I got her all dressed up, I tried to take her picture. I don't know if it's the terrible 2's or the morning sugar rush, but the cooperation level on her part was z-e-r-o.

Here's how this played out:

"Zoe, can you sit for a minute please while I take your picture?"

From Easter 2010

"Zoe, please put your arms down."

From Easter 2010

"Just one nice picture please. No sweetie, no one wants to see your belly button."

From Easter 2010

"Zoe, you can have one more jelly bean if you sit still." (I know...bribery.)

From Easter 2010

And there she goes......

From Easter 2010

From Easter 2010

From Easter 2010

From Easter 2010

Ok, new plan. Let's try taking a picture outside.

"Zoe, please put your dress down."

From Easter 2010

Ooh, you look so cute.

From Easter 2010

Oh sweetie, please stand up so we can see you.

From Easter 2010

Hey Zoe, I can't see your face.

From Easter 2010

And then she was off. Catch me if you can.....

From Easter 2010