Renaissance Festival and Chocolate War Paint

This past weekend we decided to go check out the Renaissance Festival, and my sister Annie came with us.  The festival runs during February and March, so it is actually built like a little olde time town.  It was pretty neat the way they made the festival grounds.

We did a lot of walking around and spending money we didn't need to on things like strawberry cheesecake, a frozen pomegranate italian soda, and a bracelet and halo thing for Baylee.  Some people dress up for the festival, and there were some interesting costumes to be seen. 

We took a little stop at the petting farm.  Baylee loves baby chicks, geese, ducks, etc., so she was excited to see baby geese there. 

They also had some food you could buy to feed the animals.  Ben got suckered into buying some, and we were surprised that Baylee actually fed and pet the animals.

Baylee saw the elephants and had to have a ride.  I was a little disappointed that they made us ride with some other kids.  I guess the other night Baylee told Ben that she loves to ride horses and elephants.

Baylee also surprised us when she wanted to go on a ride, and was okay with riding by herself!  It was a pretty cute little kiddie ride, and it was neat that the people running it made it turn themselves.  I guess that should be expected for the Renaissance Festival, right?

We didn't make it into any of the shows or entertainment things like the jousting, where you had to sit for awhile to watch.  It was a little hot and a little crowded, and some of us were ready to be done after not too long.  It was a fun time though, and we enjoyed seeing what it was all about!  

Here's how Baylee kept herself entertained during the car ride.

Here's one last picture I though was too funny (I couldn't get her to look at me for the picture, though).  No, Baylee did not get beat up.  Yesterday we were eating a trail mix that has dried fruit, nuts, and chocolate chips in it.  Next thing I know, I look over and Baylee was covered with chocolate.  Apparently she thinks chocolate chips make good makeup....

Recent Adventures

We've had a fun past couple of weekends.  Here's what we've been up to:

A couple weekends ago, we went up to Glendale for a Chocolate Festival.  

Baylee and Ben posing with our yummy treats-Chocolate covered cheesecake and a crepe with chocolate and bananas!

Baylee was loving the cheesecake!

I also got these beautiful roses there.  They will last forever-can you tell they are wood?

This past weekend we decided to take a trip to not-so-sunny So. Cal.  We went to Disneyland on Friday, but didn't stay too long because it started pouring.  By the time we got done taking a food break at Rainforest Cafe, it had stopped.  However we were so drenched and cold that we just decided to call it a day and try to come back again when rain is not predicted in the weather forecast...  We didn't make it into the main park, just California Adventure, but we still were able to do a little bit. 

Before the rain hit-Baylee waiting in line for Playhouse Disney.Baylee loving Playhouse Disney.

Ben and Baylee in line for Monster's, Inc.  We also got to see Aladdin The Musical and Turtle Talk With Crush before we all got fed up with the rain.  Thank you Missy (Ben's sister) and kids for being good sports and braving the rain with us!  We had fun, even if we didn't seem to get to do too much.  We were thinking about drying off at Missy's and going back, but once I had dry clothes on and heard more rain, I was not about to go back.  So, we just hung out at Missy and Brant's, talking and watching some weird movie Brant found us on tv (ok, it really wasn't that bad).

For Valentine's Day, we packed up and headed to Mike (Ben's brother) and Laura's for a yummy brunch Mike cooked.  Thanks again guys!
Baylee loved playing with her cousin, Abby!
We eventually headed for the mall, and Ben and Mike took the girls on the Merry-go-round.  
Also at the mall, we went to a cute little cupcake place where you can decorate your own cupcake with candies.  Baylee loved this little Valentine's treat.  She's been really into Valentine's and wanted to do some Valentine's activities, so this got us off the hook.  We headed up to Jenny (Ben's sister) and Andre's for the afternoon and night, and hung out with them.  Ben and Baylee even got to do some swimming with the kids (the pool was heated).  For Valentine's dinner we had some yummy Thai Food and enjoyed watching the movie Taken after all the kids went to bed.  It was nice not having to leave the house for dinner or the movie, so we avoided the Valentine's crowds. 

Sunday we decided to use our Sea World passes for a few hours before heading home.  
It was a little chilly, so while I was in the bathroom Ben bundled Baylee up in his jacket.  It was just too funny and cute.Baylee enjoyed some hot chocolate while we watched the dolphin show.  I think more of it ended up on her than in her.  But, it kept her distracted.

Since we didn't get too many rides in at Disneyland (we actually only went on one ride the whole time), we made sure Baylee got to enjoy some at Sea World.  We did a few more things while we were there, and then headed home.

We've had fun, and are starting to get back into our little weekend adventures.  Hopefully I will have more to update on soon! 

An Outlet For Baylee

I wish I had some pictures to go along with this post, but it didn't really work out to take any.  

Baylee and I tend to spend the day inside, and then go out later when Ben gets home.  We are still trying to find Ben a car, but with trying to buy a house we don't want another car payment on our credit report, which kinda limits our spending amount.  We have money saved up, most of it will probably need to go towards our house.  So, like I said, we are a little limited and so it's taking us a little longer.  It hasn't been too big of a deal since I was pretty sick and didn't have a desire to leave the couch for a few months.  Now I've been informed by my doctor's office that I have a low placenta, so I can't do any heavy lifting or carrying, anything strenuous, etc., because I am at high risk for bleeding.  This makes things pretty hard with a two year old who climbs repeatedly on kitchen and bathroom counters all day, and loves to be picked up, carried and cuddled.  She's also hit the terrible twos pretty bad, and we've found it's hard to take her anywhere now (anyone have any advice on this?).  So, it's probably best I'm not taking her anywhere by myself for now.  But, we have realized that she needs to be able to get out and run around and do something fun.  I've been wanting to put her in a gymnastics class for quite awhile, but was waiting until I got a car.  Then I wised up and realized I should look into night classes and Saturday classes.  This ended up being a better solution for now anyways, since for her age they all seem to be Parent & Me classes.  Last night Ben took her to her first class-and they both loved it!  It was so cute to watch.  She loved swinging on the bars, and especially loved jumping into the foam pit (aka the hole in the floor with the little pillows).  She walked across the beam, jumped down the tumble track, and loved the big parachute they played with at the end.  One of the best parts is that she actually seemed a little calmer and less cranky last night, and it's also supposed to help her listening skills.  My mom asked Baylee if she was going to go back and do it again, and Baylee told her "Ummm....tomorrow!"  I'm so excited for her to take gymnastics and have something she likes, and I love that it's something her and her daddy get to do together!