Baby's first Easter

Hope everybunny had a good easter! It was Taji's first, so we had to go all out. Hence, the easter bunny coconut carrot cake I baked above! The Grovers hosted an Easter Sunday Brunch this year. The Fetters family joined us on the fun, and my friend Beth (from Hawaii) even stopped to visit so she could meet Taj for the first time (he was tired and cranky in this photo.)

We feasted on bagels, cream cheese, and lox, as well as an egg scramble of peppers, cheese, and ham! I made fresh squeezed OJ too!


This was Taj's easter outfit...... he was modeling it standing and walking.

His new favorite "spot", sitting on the first step of the stairs. He's also challenging himself to walk down the stairs standing, holding on to the wall (life has become A LOT more interesting for him and us!) Taj's new saying of the day was "wow wow wow"
After Brunch (more like lunch!) we walked over to our neighborhood park for Taj's first ever easter egg hunt!



I swear they enjoyed hunting for eggs!!!! LOL
FAMILY FLANNEL "FOTO" SHOOT (my sister's idea since the weather was so dreary and cold!)





After the park, we headed home to paint some eggs....... Nice job Chloe!
And in perfect Czech tradition made these beautiful personalized easter egss for the kids (that are a keepsake and get brought out year after year on Easter.) The shell of the egg is pierced on the top and bottom and the yolk is blown out so it ends up being hollow! All my sister's creativity!

hop hippity hop

So, apparently Taj LOVES the easter bunny! He could not take his eyes off of him and smiled from ear to ear. Here he is leaning on his new buddy, happy as can be. I bet he loved how soft and furry he was! And when we show him this picture he gets very excited!

Happy Easter and Vesele Velikonoce from our family to your's!

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Last wknd's F.U.N.

Okay, so i'm a week a late but I had to post these pictures from our fun-filled "when daddy's away, mommy and Taji will play" last wknd! I love my mother-son time! Last Saturday, Taji's buddy Regan celebrated his 1st bday and we were there to witness it! The gorgeous "hungry caterpillar" themed party at the park was so creative and fun. Jamie did an incredible job with the details and the caterpillar cake and cupcakes. As you can see below, Regan enjoyed his first taste of sugar!

Then right after the party we headed home to meet up with Auntie Peta and cousin Chloe who drove up for a slumber party weekend! We took the kids to the Pet Expo at the OC Fairgrounds. We saw lots and lots of doggies; Taj was in puppy heaven. We watched the "jump" dog show and "splash dogs" dogshow, and bought the kids the cutest puppets. You could spend all day at the expo.... I love that they had adoptions there as well. We saw the prettiest miniature Huskies with blue eyes, they were a rare breed!

Taji loves his aunt, she is always there for him!

We picked up sushi on our way home, the kids took a bath, we put them to bed, and then we had our sister time. We stayed up till 1am talking.... haven't stayed up that late in soooo long! Love the time my sister and I have to catch up and discuss life.

The next morning we tried to sleep in and get as much rest in, skyped with babi and deda, and then we went to Chloe's first soccer game!! She was one of 2 girls on the team, the rest were boys! We are proud of her, and even though we weren't supposed to be keeping score, her team, the Lightnings won! Taji and I came dressed in yellow to support the team's colors, he was fascinated with the ball being kicked around and tried so many times to crawl into the game!

So there you have it! That was our last weekend.... this weekend we are bracing for another jam-packed mommy-daddy date, easter family sunday kinda weekend!

Taj turns 11 months old!

Happy Palindromic Birthday big boy!! Our Taji Baby has magically turned into a toddler overnight! He walks, he talks, he hands you things, he puts toys away, he initiates games, he cracks jokes and makes silly faces to get your attention. He also waves hi and bye, claps when he's excited (and claps for himself when he accomplishes something!), and blows sweet kisses! He is a flirt, a snugglebug, a little rascal, and a stinker all in one! At 20 lbs 10oz, Taj is our toddler who is already so self-sufficient and independent around the house. He crawls up and down the stairs as he pleases, he walks down the hallway and turns the corner, he will say exactly what he wants (BABA (bottle), MAMA and DADA, WAWA (water), PAPI (security blanket puppy), KAKE (Krtek), BU (book), BA (ball), TATE (truck), NE (no: czech word), NA (here: czech word). He is a little parrot who tries to copy everything we say, every facial expression we make, and loves to copy sound effects when we read to him. This last month has been a whirlwind of one accomplishment and milestone after another!

Taj's own individual personality has emerged: fun, outgoing, and headstrong! He can be very easy going, smiling at everyone out and about, but when it comes to eating his dinner and sometimes sitting in his stroller, he's pretty impatient and demanding! I think he has definitely taken after some of Brad and mine qualities (both our determination, easy-going nature, positive attitude, my talkativeness (if thats even a word!) and confidence, and daddy's playfulness, humor, and temper! ha ha! We couldn't be more proud of the little boy Taj is growing up to be. He has developed his own signature style--- the fuzzy electric shock hair! Its definitely growing thicker and longer, VERTICALLY! I think it reflects him perfectly..... and i will be sad the day it folds over and no more fuzzy wuzzy :( Before I forget, here is a list of his latest favorites: he stills loves doggies but now he's gotten into dinosaurs as well, loves bubbles, cups, eggs for breakfast, PRUNES!, puzzles, aquariums and koi fish, books & storytime (speaking of storytime, we LOVE going to the local libraries to check out books and Baby Einstein and Brainy Baby DVDs, and just recently started going to the storytimes.) Taji adores lounging on the bean bags, turning pages of a book, playing with the puzzles and cardboard stacking boxes, and pulling books off the shelf! He's turned into a bookworm, enjoying books about dogs and dinosaurs, animals, peekaboo books, pop-up books, and books that have different textures! I'm so glad he's this interested and loves when we read to him, hoping this will turn him into a great reader! Taj continues to be an AWESOME sleeper and napper, is off the bottle and only drinks from his trainer cup! Congrats big boy, you are just 4 weeks away from your BIG BIG birthday, and the big celebration mommy and daddy have planned for you! Can't believe you have managed to accomplish all the big milestones right before your 1st birthday, we are SO impressed and love you like crazy!

Our Grover Family Bed

The Grover Family bed is a very special place for our little family. Ever since Taji was a newborn, every morning we would take him into our bed and snuggle, and it has become our family's special intimate tradition. Its where I would nurse him. It's where he first looked up at us to reveal his elvis smile. It's where we continue to snooze together. It's where we always cuddle, play, laugh, relax, and socialize each and every morning. And no matter how big Taj gets, we will always have our morning time together. Whether its sleeping in, reading stories, wrestling with daddy, breakfast in bed, planning for the day's activities, or watching weekend morning cartoons. This private little photo shoot has been a long time coming, I have had this idea for a very long time and felt we needed to capture our special time together while Taji is still a baby. These are just the kind of moments at home we treasure.