Hip Hop Hooray, Baby William is on the way!

Exciting news!  Our friend Cathy is going to be a mommy again very soon!

We held a "sprinkle" in her honor to welcome Baby William who should be here at the end of April.

We had some unplanned guests, but they turned out to be the life of the party and were very excited to attend and play with each other.

Best Friends

Dad won the MVP award for the event since he acted as "wing man" and entertained the girls with food, tattoos, coloring, hiding Easter eggs, feeding ducks, and just general little girl craziness.  Thanks for helping us out!

Our first Circus

 After watching an episode of Sophia the First that included a circus (and hearing about that non-stop for a few weeks), I snagged some tickets to the Ringling Brothers circus that came to our town.  I am always weary about how the animals are actually treated in the circus and don't want to support animal cruelty, but since we had never been I thought it would be fun to give it a try.  And Vi couldn't wait to go!

*and the animals seemed to be very well-trained and cared for as a plus; their website states that they maintain an elephant sanctuary as well*

We had great seats, and there were lots of  lights with music and showmanship.  Vi said that her heart kept beating really fast.  She was mesmerized!  We saw camels, elephants, horses, dogs, mini ponies, motorcycles in a cages, the strong man, tight-rope walkers, acrobats - you name it!  We especially liked the mini-pony that could Moonwalk to Michael Jackson.

We came home with a new friend, elephant Princess Heart Heart.

It was one of our only beautiful days in March, and the circus was enjoyed by all!

Funniness

Poopie found a new super secret sleeping spot in the closet...shhhhhhhhh

Vi finally got a watch!!!!  She has become fixated on what time it is each and every second of the day, so this has helped reduce the question "what time is it" to only about 10 times per day.

Vi went to a kids only salon where she rode a pony while getting a haircut and got stick-on earrings to match her outfit.  What a way to make a girl feel special!

Daddy and Uncle Bini were seriously competitive on Just Dance and provided us with some entertainment.

Cousins

Meet Rocco!

The fam

Proud Aunt Cindy and Uncle Tony

Rocco fulfilled Vi's lifelong wish to be a "big cousin" and she could not be more ready to have someone younger to help (aka boss around).

Vi snapped this blurry shot of Uncle Joe, although I'm pretty sure it reflected pretty well a cloudy head as a result from baby exhaustion :)

Santa came to town!

Breakfast with Santa was a big hit with Vi this year.  Although she is still in awe of him, she LOVED visiting with Santa and Ms. Claus this year.  This photo will definitely go in our yearly Christmas frame!

Vi has really loved singing along to "O Tannenbaum" (Oh Christmas Tree) with Andrea Bocelli.  Here she is in front of our family tree.

Mom gets together with two very special friends from college each Christmas.  It's so special now because we all have a kiddo to bring with us.  They definitely had fun at Mr. Gatti's while eating pizza and opening gifts together.

more memories

Our stage beauty is all made up and ready for the 2nd performance

a special gift from Mamaw and Paw

more flowers from Grandma and Grandpa, here she is "in costume"

having fun backstage!

The most wonderful time of the year

 So, our Christmas season started WAY early this year due to extra ballet practices for the Nutcracker.  It's very exciting because it is Vi's first year doing ballet.  "I just want to be on stage, Mom" - Vi

Here's your chance, kiddo!  The Polichinelles are the little children that come out from Mother Ginger's big hoop skirt in the second act of the Nutcracker.  They had only a few practices before actually coming out from underneath the skirt because the prop was too big to fit into the studio, but they did a great job!  Here they are practicing before the big show.

Dance partners looking cute before their big debut!  This was also Vi's first time being beautified for the stage which included French-braided hair, blush, mascara, and lipstick.  Daddy was in a state of shock for a moment, but she was very excited to get dolled up.  100% girl!

We have already had one small chat with Santa and hope to see him again soon at Breakfast with Santa.

Happy Holidays, everyone!  It really is the most wonderful time of year for making memories!