Rainy Day

Yesterday I had to work late. David picked up Daniel and couldn't resist going to buy him some rain boots and taking him out for a fun time in the puddles. Daniel couldn't be happier running down the street in the rain and stomping in the puddles. When I came home and helped him take off his boots, we poured out at least 1/2 cup of water from each one! The first thing he said this morning (still pitch black outside at 6 am) was, "Wanna go out in the rain."

Ant Bites: Part 2

So if you'll remember back in May, Daniel had a pretty bad reaction to an ant bite. He broke out in hives, or as he said, "you turned pink!"

Yesterday, while I was preoccupied talking to the new neighbor, Daniel stuck his hand in an ant pile in our front yard. The neighbor saw him do it and quickly alerted me to the problem. I ran over and started flinging off the ants from his hand, but he got bit - 3 times. That's the bad news.

The good news is that he didn't have an allergic reaction! Yea! David had read that some kids only have an allergic reaction the first time they're bit, and I guess that's what happened. I'm so happy we don't have to stress about the ant bites anymore....well, sort of. I guess it's still a little bit of a problem that I didn't realize my 2 year old child was sticking his hand in an ant pile, but I still think this was good news! :)

Trade Up

Did you ever hear about that guy that started with one red paper clip and kept trading up until he eventually got a house? I think he moved from the paper clip to a pen shaped like a fish to a doorknob and so on and so on until he got a house - seriously!

Anyway, I think that someday Daniel may acquire his first home in that same way. We were walking to the car after church on Sunday, and he started his "trade-up." He typically takes one little piece of treasure home with him from wherever we go. Mommy allows "just one." So Sunday he started with a little rock. We walked a few feet, and he traded it for a stick in the shape of a Y. We walked further, and he traded it for a nut that was cracked down the middle. A little further down the road, and he made the final trade for a non-cracked nut. I think he would have kept trading up, but we had made it to the car.

2nd Birthday Celebrations

Daniel's 2nd birthday was September 9, but I feel like we celebrated for a week straight! We started with a trip to Lubbock over the Labor Day weekend. We got together with Abuelo, Abuela, Uncle Luis, Uncle Brian, and Aunt Cristi. I had figured we'd open presents and eat cake, but Abuelo & Abuela turned it into more of a party! We ended up having a little birthday party and invited Brian and Cristi's other 2 adorable nephews, Kolbe and Reagan, as well as their parents and grandpa. Here are some pics from the party:

Abuelo & Abuela bought a giraffe pinata, and the boys enjoyed taking turns trying to open it. None of them were very successful.

David had to finally help Daniel. When the giraffe's legs started falling apart, Daniel started bawling. He was so upset that the giraffe was breaking! I guess we should have explained the whole concept prior to cracking it open. He cheered up when toys started falling out.

Kolbe, Daniel, and Reagan enjoying dinner - or at least forcing a little down in order to be allowed a piece of cake later.

The much anticipated birthday cake.

Daniel blew out the candles all by himself! He did really well during the whole singing of "happy birthday," but started crying when everyone clapped at the end. It was too much!

Enjoying the red velvet cake.

Daniel opening presents. He received a Mr. Potato Head and forbidden snacks from Uncle Luis, an AquaDoodle and big-boy underwear from Uncle Brian and Aunt Cristi, a dump truck and a Highlights subscription from Abuelo & Abuela, & 4 new books from the Asmussen's. He hasn't even opened all the presents from my side of the family yet! That will come next weekend in Roswell when we extend the birthday celebration for one more week!

Group hug!

Sanchez side of the family

So then we had Daniel's actual birthday. Here are some pics of our spoiled boy!

Mommy made a special breakfast of peanut butter and berry waffles. He ate it up!

Ms. Sarah (his sitter) had helped him make a birthday crown the day before. She said she let him pick the activities all day, which I'm sure he enjoyed. She also gave him a Thomas the Train puzzle!

After breakfast, we spent most of the day outside because that's what Daniel wanted to do. We also went to the library (one of his favorite places) and played with the new AquaDoodle a lot! We opened a few more presents that afternoon. He got a new outfit and Tikki Tikki Tembo (a book Mommy loved as a little girl) from Grandma and Grandpa, money from Great Grandma Fox, a toy plane, shirt, and book from the Gonzales' and some PJs and vitamins from Mommy and Daddy. Before you think we're torturing our child by only buying him PJs and vitamins, you must understand that Daniel has been looking forward to taking vitamins for a long time! He's been telling people for months, "When you turn 2, you get to take vitamins!"

And to spoil him even further, in the evening we all went to Sonic, and Daniel ate his first ice cream cone. It was fun teaching him how to lick the ice cream!

Sonic has a sand volleyball court and playground, and Daniel loved rolling around (literally) in the sand. By the time we left, he was covered in sand, as all the sticky ice cream allowed it to stick tight!

It's raining, it's pouring...

I love to watch Daniel run in rain puddles. It makes a great big mess of his clothes and, later when we come in, of my floors. But I love it anyway. He's so incredibly happy when he runs as fast as he can through the puddles on the side of the road. When we came home from work today we spent a long time running - well, he was running. I was walking quickly....he's not that fast yet! He ran and ran and ran until he slipped on some unseen mud at the bottom of a puddle and fell flat on his back, soaking himself to the bone. He cried. Then he got up and ran some more. The only reason he finally stopped running was to play in a pile of mud that he found.

Lawnmower Shadow

I think Daniel's starting to understand that he's a boy like Daddy. He's wanted to follow him around more and do all the cool things that Daddy does, like mow the lawn. So David let him help for the first time the other night. I thought it was too cute to see him wearing his ear plugs and pushing his mower around, just like Daddy.