Vacation!

I got to go on a vacation for Christmas! It was really fun. I got to swim in the pool everyday and on most days twice! They even had water slides. If you looked really close you could find turtles walking around in the grass and see real parrots up in the trees! Here are some pics of me.

Favorite places around Sucre

Now that I've been here for 4 months, I have a few favorite places around Sucre that I like to visit. The first is Simon Bolivar Park. There are a lot of fun things to do there. I love to swing, go down the slides, and every time I go, I get to go on a "ride." You can see some of the pictures below of the park.

Going down the cement slide! Jeans on cement go surprisingly fast!

In the airplane, one of my favorite rides! It only costs 0.25 cents. Eat your heart out Kings Island!

The other place I love to go is the Plaza. There are a TON of birds there and I like to take bread and feed them. Then I chase them around.

SLEEPOVER!

My friend Noelia got to come to my house for a sleepover for the last 2 nights while her parents were busy having her new baby brother! We had so much fun together. Here are some highlights of our time together.

I really wanted to hold Noelia...and she let me!

I showed Noelia my favorite thing to do when I get undressed!

Eating and saying Cheese!

Getting ready to eat!

Coloring outside for inspiration.

Pigtails and play-dough.

Mom just had to take the classic bathtub picture that will magically surface again for my highschool graduation.

Ready for Bed!

Manners

I am learning new things everyday and am becoming quite a little talker. My parents are trying to teach me to be well mannered. Check out my video below. I think I'm doing a pretty good job...what do you think?

Heat Wave!

I know for most of you back home, you are enjoying the cool fall weather. Well, here in Bolivia we are starting summer! The last week has been hot, hot, hot! Most days get up into the mid 80's, but then it cools down in the evenings.

Luckily for me, my friend Noelia has a blow up pool at her house. She has already invited me over a few times to go swimming! Here are some pictures of us swimming together, and playing afterwards. So glad I have a friend here to hang out with.

Pool time!

Stayin' cool

I gotta get my hair wet.

Helping Noelia get her hair wet!

Even though it's hot, it was still a little chilly getting out of the pool.

Snack time in our own little house.

Toilet de Pinata

Hi Everyone!

Today I discovered a great new way to pass the time when you are suppose to be taking a nap. I like to call it ~Toilet de Pinata~

** As a word of warning, this does take a lot of time, so I would make sure your parents are sleeping before you start.

Step 1. Start with a lot of toilet paper. You want to make sure you build a good foundation or else the water will get in your way. If you can still see water after this step, you need to add more toilet paper. I recommend using at least 5 rolls. See picture below.

Step 2. Put aside the left over toilet paper rolls. You will get to use those later!

Step 3. This is where you can be creative. Just look for what ever you can get your hands on. In my pinata I used 20-30 hair bows/clips, a bottle of lotion, a hair brush, a thermometer, and a bottle of perfume. Now is when you can add those toilet paper rolls and for an extra flair, I added 3 more full rolls of toilet paper.

**Make sure to get a good side view. You don't want to fill it too full. It's important that you are able to close the toilet seat so that your parents don't see right away that it's full!

***Also make sure that you are ready with your cutest face when your parents do finally find it, because for some reason adults don't seem to think this is as cool as us toddlers do!

Happy Napping!

Potty Time

I have exciting news to share with all of you. Over the past week and a half I have started to use the potty! My parents are really excited and proud of me. My goal is to be fully potty trained by February. In February I will be starting preschool here and I will need to be using the potty while I am there. This week was especially exciting for me because I reached an important goal in my potty training. Check out the pictures below and I will explain more!

Here I am with my "potty chart." Every time I go in the potty I get a sticker. After I get 5 stickers I get a prize.

Yesterday I got my 5th sticker! So here I am with my prize. I got a very girlie gift set that included a barbie, a cell phone, dress up shoes, lipstick (plastic), makeup (plastic), earrings, necklace, nail polish and a princess crown!

The earrings and "lipstick" are my favorite.

While this was a prize for me, my mom and dad have both benefitted from numerous makeovers!

I love my new prize! Now that I reached my first goal of 5 stickers and got my first prize I have definitely caught on to how the whole system works. This week I have been much more motivated to try to sit on the potty than last week! Looking forward to the next prize! Mom and Dad are looking forward to using less diapers!

Hey, I'm 2...

So that means I just have to:

Be a little wild!

Want to help with everything!

Use my markers like they are chap stick!

Be a 'little' messy when I eat!

And...dump an entire roll of toilet paper in the toilet while I am suppose to be in time out for dumping 1/2 a gallon of water on the kitchen floor!

PS ... My Mom had to scoop all the toilet paper out of the toilet because you can't flush ANYTHING but the "natural stuff" here in Bolivia.

BEING 2 IS SO FUN!!!

Play Time

I wasn't able to bring very many toys with me to Bolivia because we couldn't fit them all in the suitcase. The toys that I do have I really like, but they are all small ones. So, my Mom came up with a really good idea. We made a really big toy for me. It's my very own house. I got to help my Mommy make it. Here are the before, during and after shots.

First step, make a door and test it out.

Next, start to paint...

And some markers would be nice...

TA DA! My new house!

I'm not sure what got decorated more, the house or me!

New House! New Bed!

We have been living in our new apartment for 5 days now! For the past 3 months I've been living in a different place about every 2 weeks. My Mom and Dad said that we are going to be living here for a long time now! YEAH! There are a lot of fun things about our new home.

We don't have a table yet for all of us to eat at. So I have my own little table! Isn't it cool!

Mt Closet is big enough for me to play in!

My new BIG BED!

The best thing about our new house is that I got to pick out my own new room AND I now get to sleep in a new BIG BED! I have been doing a really good job. Sometimes after Mom and Dad put me down to sleep I get up about 10 min later, just to see if they will let me stay up. But they always put be back to bed, so I usually just go to bed then. I really like it in the morning, when I wake up can just go right into my Mom and Dad's room. I usually go tell them I'm awake around 6:30 in the morning. I think it's great. I'm not sure what my Mom and Dad think.

Adventures in Bathing

There are a lot of things that we have to do different here in Bolivia. One thing that is always tricky is to figure out how I can take a bath. Most homes do not have bathtubs, including the home of the host family that we are staying with. It was also a challenge at the retreat center in Cochabamba. I seem to get so dirty playing here that I need a bath almost every night! Here are some pictures of the different 'containers' I have taken a bath in. I have enjoyed them all!

New Friends!

I’ve been meeting a lot of new people here in Bolivia. I played with Alana in La Paz and had fun with her at the park. She had a baby stroller like me so we would take our baby’s on walks together. Now that we are in Sucre I’ve meet even more friends. Our host family has a granddaughter named Isabella (Bella). She is about 5 years old I think. I like to follow her around and it’s fun to play together even though I can’t understand what she is saying.

Another new friend I’ve met is Noelia. Her parents work for FH just like mine. I have been to her house several times already and she always lets me play with her toys. I found out that she likes to dance just like me!

Going to the retreat was fun because I got to play with Noelia and Alana. Alana is about 6 months older than me and Noelia is about 6 months younger than me. So I am in the middle! Here are some pictures of us!

It was hard to get all of us to stand still at the same time for a picture! But those parents...they finally did it!

Taking a rest!

Last Hurrah with the Cousins

So much has happened since my last blog! I have to start all the way back before we left for Bolivia. My Aunt Amy and Uncle Greg had my family over for a really nice meal. (My Uncle Greg is a good cook!) It was really fun because I got to play with my Cousin Emma and Cousin Olivia. One of my favorite things we did was play dress up. We all looked like princesses! My Cousin Olivia even let me put on some of her play makeup! It was fun to play with them since I won’t see them for a long time. Don’t we look great!

Uncle Dan and Aunt Katie

I got to spend some time with my Uncle Dan and Aunt Kate in South Dakota too! I don't get to see them very much, but when I do, they always bring me cool toys and cute clothes. My uncle Dan even got me my very first baseball glove. It's hot pink of course! I'm not exactly sure what to do with it yet. I think my Dad will have to work with me. I'm not sure if the kids in Bolivia know how to play baseball, but now that I have a glove I will have to teach them

Being Silly!

Rocking out with Uncle Dan in the Car! Wish you could hear the music!

Thanks Uncle Dan and Kate for all the toys and clothes! I had fun playing with you!