april iphone gems

 Bev came to watch Brooke for our ward temple night, then stayed over to play with Brooke the following day.  We took Grandma to Brooke's favorite spot to feed the ducks.

 We met these lovely friends at a park for a little brunch to celebrate Andreia's belated birthday.  It started out as a very blustery day, but the weather cooperated for us, and we had such a great outing.  I love that after 8 years, although we don't all live in Arlington anymore, we can still get together for play dates, etc.  It's also crazy to think that when we became friends, Eva was the only child in the mix.  Now, between the four of us, we have 10 kids and one on the way :) (Missing Maddy and baby Nora from the pic)

 Easter was apparently a little rough for Brooke, haha.  We had a great time in Flower Mound, but she didn't really nap, so she totally crashed on the car ride home.  If only I would have remembered to remove her headband before me made the drive home!

 Brooke finally let me paint her toenails!!  Whenever she would comment on my toe or nail polish, I would ask if she wanted Mama to paint her nails.  Her immediate response had always been "No".  Then one day, she decided that she was ready :)  We watched some "Brookie movies" on my phone to help her sit still, and used my LED light to cure the polish quickly.  I know it's silly, but I was really excited.  She seemed pretty excited about her toenails, too.  In fact, she was in her high chair eating when Kevin made it home from the work, and the first thing she said to him was "Pink" and held up her feet.  Hahaha.

 These two pictures are from one of our cloudy boat outings during Kevin's week off.  The squishy cheeks are my favorite!

 Kevin decided to set up his one-man tent in the loft for Brooke to play it, and it is still up there.  Although I hate how it looks, Brooke has absolutely loved having it up there to play in.  The simple joys of being a kid :)  I guess I might need to look into purchasing a cute tent for her to play in.

 Giant baby!! Kevin was playing with Brooke downstairs and she was throwing a bit of a fit about going upstairs for bath time.  He scooped her up like a baby, and she immediately stopped her complaints!  I think she knew it was funny for Daddy to carry her like a baby.

 Brooke "helping" me put the clean sheets on my bed.

 My friend Jen asked me to watch her son Brooks for a few hours, which Brooke really enjoyed.  She needs to work on her sharing skills though!  She didn't want him to touch her train, but surprisingly didn't care when he was playing with her stroller.

 We played outside A LOT, and Brooke was especially happy when Daddy wass home to play skateboard with her.

Then this happened...

 I was driving home from Home Depot one evening, when all of a sudden, my window totally shatters!  I almost had a heart attack, and I panicked that Brooke might have been hurt. I immediately pulled over, and figured out that one of the landscapers must have spit up a rock as he was weed wacking along the edge of the grass.  He didn't realize what had happened, but when he saw me standing outside my car, he stopped what he was doing.  I informed him that my window had been shattered, and he was very apologetic.  He offered to pay for the damage right away, which was great, so we exchanged contact information.  So, the next day we had the window replaced and then I went and had the tint replaced.  I am seriously grateful that our windows are tinted in the first place, because that was the only thing holding all the glass in place.  Just imagine if Brooke would have been next to the window!  Thankfully, she still rides in the middle seat.  We were definitely being watched over that day.  

 On a happier note, Brooke was thrilled to ride in this sweet shopping cart at Kroger.  She has seen other kids riding in them, but they are always taken when we get there!  When one was available, Brooke thought it was her lucky day.  When we were done with the shopping, Brooke was NOT done "driving car". As I peeled her out of the little car, she kept shouting "More Kroger", haha.  It's funny now, but I was super frustrated in the moment.

 And we finished the day with a little more nail pampering.  This time she wanted me to paint her fingernails :)  She is part girly-girl, just like her mama.