A Special Trip to see the Big Guy!!

So who gave me the bright idea to plan a trip to see Santa on the Saturday before Christmas? I didn't learn until this day that it's called Super Saturday - and it's called that for a reason. The mall is out of control with those last minute shoppers... kids running everywhere... packed play areas and everything but the warmth of the holiday season! I mean why can't everyone be like me and finish up all Christmas shopping by the first week of December (this was the first year ever that has happened!!)? So Grandpa Mike was in town and we packed up the car and headed the the mall... we got lucky. We got there right at 10am and there was not much of a line to see Santa. Gray doesn't like lines - she doesn't have much patience so she ran wild with Daddy & Grandpa while I waited patiently for our turn. I thought she might do ok but I really had no expectations. Even if she was screaming and crying I wanted a picture of her with Santa - I want one every year!! They had Elmo behind the camera which I just knew was the answer to my prayers - Elmo always makes her smile!! So it was our turn... Paul and I went up with her in hopes of getting her warmed up to Mr. Clause. She was interested for a few minutes and then just got a little scared - no tears, just scared. Look at that face!! I didn't have the heart to leave her there for more than one picture....but I got my picture, right??? And for all you mommies in Charlotte - the Santa at Carolina Place is just great!! He was the best Santa I've seen in awhile and so great with kids!! Happy Holidays!

20 Months & Oh How I Love You!!

Our little Graylin is 20 months old today!! To be honest with you I used to hate the fact that women counted pregnancy in weeks and parents counted age in months... but now I understand why. They go by so fast - and you don't want to make them seem any older than they really are. You don't want to lose one moment of time - and believe me sometimes if I had the chance to stop the clock, I would!! It's almost like saying Gray is 20 months old still makes her a baby. She's not 4 months away from being 2... no way!! I can't believe how much our little girl is growing... changing... every single day it is something new and we are having the time of our lives!! Gray is talking in sentences - full sentences. She wakes up talking and she doesn't stop. I love it - I love the sound of her precious little voice. I could list a million reasons why I love her but here are a few...

* she has the most beautiful blue eyes and the longest eyelashes you have ever seen

* she squeels at the top of her lungs when I tickle the inside of those chubby thighs

* she loves to stand on our furniture and jump into my arms

* she is so independent, yet very cautious about trying new things

* sharing her ice cream with Mommy & Daddy makes her so happy

* she has such a tender motherly instinct - even if it is with her babydolls and stuffed monkey

* she loves animals - jake, joey and bob are so important to her

* she wakes up talking and happy and she goes to bed saying the A,B,C's in her crib

* when I put her to bed at night she says "Mommy Scratch" and I love to scratch her back and stare at her

* she has daddys outgoing personality

* she has loved MOOSE on Noggin for the 20 months of her life!!

* she loves to watch Mommy & Daddy kiss

* she reminds us to say the blessing at night before dinner and she screams "AMEN"

* she smiles so big when you ask her to show you her teeth

* SHE IS ALL OURS!!!

Its tough to describe what makes you love your child so much - it's every thing she does (even the not so happy moments) that make us fall in love more and more everday!!

Video - Testing, Testing!!

I think I have finally figured out how to post a video onto this blog... we'll see if this works!! This a video of Gray and Paul making lion noises to each other before dinner! Oh the joys have having 2 toddlers in this house :) They do play very well together!

December.... so far

Goodness it has been awhile since i have posted on the blog... life is keeping us pretty busy these days! Everyone around here is very excited about the Christmas holidays - the tree is up, the shopping is done and Gray just loves riding around and looking at the Christmas lights!! Paul did a little decorations outside this year including a blow up penguin that Gray loves with all of her heart!! She stands at the window and just yells 'penguin... hey penguin'. She loves the tree and the lights and so far so good with not destroying the ornaments!!

I have these two nutcrackers and Gray adores them! They are just her size and she's enjoying having a few friends around to share her toys with :)

Grandpa Mike came into town over the Thanksgiving holidays and we surprised him with a visit to Monkey Joes. He could not believe this place - and he was smiling the entire time because of the way Gray just lit up with excitement when we walked in the door.

Finally I must give you an update on the potty training.... it's not going very well!! For a few weeks Gray was telling us every single time she had to go pee pee. She actually did go on the potty a few times and we thought we were well on our way to having Gray out of diapers. Well her interest in the potty went away completely - except when she just wants to sit, wipe and flush. I guess I was crazy to ever think we could be so lucky - and now we will continue to wait until she's ready. We sure are ready for no more diapers!!

Happy Holidays everyone and stay tuned for more frequent blog posts....

FISHY FISHY

We proudly announce a new addition to the Zytnik family... BOB the fish!! At Gray's daycare they have a fish tank and she just loves those fish!! Everyday she goes in and goes directly to the fish and says "hey fishies." It is so precious and this weekend Paul and I decided to get her one of her very own!! We arrived at PetSmart and didn't realize that it was pet adoption day. There were kittens and puppies everywhere. Kids were crying and begging thier parents for a new animal and I realized that maybe this wasn't the best idea. Once we got through the maddness and Gray saw the WALL of fishtanks she just started squeeling. "Fishies.. Fishies... Fishies." While Paul and I picked out the mini-fishtank Gray was lodging her entire arm into the tank trying to grab a fish. It was hysterical!! She was amazed at all the fish - the tanks were endless and she loved all the different colors. We originally thought we were getting a goldfish but after talking to the store associate we quickly found out that a beta fish would be the best fish for us - easy and low maintenance!! We picked out a little tank and our red beta fish and that was it!!

On our ride home we were saying different names... none of which Gray really cared for. As a joke I said... "What about Bob" and from that moment all we heard was "BOB". Gray loves her Bob so much. She talks to him everyday... waves to him and always has to tell him goodnight before going to bed!! Who knew an 18 month old could love a little fish so much??

We heart FALL!!

Thank God for fall in North Carolina... it's beautiful!! This really has become my favorite time of year and Gray loves being outside so it was a perfect weekend for a playdate! We got together with Jaime, Jeff and little Tucker last weekend. They have a great park within walking distance from thier house and the kids had a blast playing on the slide, swinging and just running around in the grass!!

Gray just loved the swing... but the slide was her favorite! This little girl has no fear - nevermind the mini slide for the little kids...she climbed up the steps and went to the biggest slide there was!! After our morning at the park we enjoyed a great lunch at the Lodge. We heart fall!!

Bathtime and Pigtails!!

Gray loves, loves, loves the bath!! On our old website I often posted pictures of her in the bath - it really is her favorite time of the day. If she walks into a bathroom and sees a bathtub she says "take bath... take bath." I guess she got this from her mommy!! Her new favorite toy is her bathtime Dora doll. This is one clean Dora - she gets washed from head to toe every night! These bathtub smiles are my favorite!!

I had to post these pictures of our sweet baby girl!! First of all I want you to take a look at this hair! When Gray was born she had no hair - which was really suprising considering how much hair both Paul and I have. My hair is so think and often unmanageable - so I just knew our little girl was going to be born with a headful of black hair. Wrong!! She was born with very little hair and the few sprigs she did have were very blonde! The blonde hair comes from Paul - he had bleach blonde hair until he was 2. Even now as I look back to pictures of Gray's one year old bday party - she had very little hair. Well the hair has arrived... it's here, it's thick and it's curly curly and blonde!! I can actually do pigtails now...and ponytails...and bows. Gray loves getting her hair brushed and doesn't mind the girly pigtails and bows either.

Happy Halloween 2009!

Happy Halloween from the Zytnik family! We spent Halloween day at home and it was wonderful!! We have been so busy the last few months it really was nice being at home for the weekend! We went to a neighborhood halloween party and Gray had a blast. They had a bounce machine and all kinds of games for the kids. Gray participated in an egg racing contest and actually did pretty good. After the party the Mark family came over and we went trick-or-treating! We only made it to a few houses before the rain came! We enjoyed a great dinner together and Gray and Ayden enjoyed playing together and giving out candy to the neighborhood kids!!

Don't you just want to squeeze this little ladybug???

Pumpkin Time!

We took a trip to our church pumpkin patch on Friday afternoon... Gray loves pumpkins! For the last few weeks she would yell "PUNKIN" when we would pass a pumpkin patch or walk through the neighborhood and see the pumpkins on our neighbors porch. She loves those big orange balls! She even got her very own pumpkin that she decorated with a sharpie marker! Carving the pumpkin was lots of fun - although she did not like those grimy seeds. She cried until I wiped her hands off..... and she enjoyed watching Daddy do all the work!

Party Time!!

Gray's daycare had a Halloween party on Friday afternoon! I just love being a mom and getting to attend these fun parties. The kids were full of energy and so excited about all the goodies! Ginger is the best and thought of everything... she had cookies, candy, cupcakes and even Halloween baskets full of goodies for the kids! The house was covered in fun decorations - including eyeballs and rubber rats! The kids loved it!! Paul and I were both able to attend and we were full of smiles as we watched Gray interact with her friends! We were able to get all the kids in costume long enough for one group photo.... enjoy!

Gray and Sophie digging into thier Halloween goodie baskets! These two girls are the sweetest friends!

Gray and Jesse the cow!! Gray loves, loves, loves this little boy!!

Happy Halloween!

We're Back....

Welcome to the Zytnik Family blog...

After cancelling our baby website I have felt a little "lost" not being able to update friends and family on our family news and most importantly our precious little Gray! I really hope this blog will be a way to keep you connected to our family!!

Life couldn't be better for us! Paul and I just got back from a week long vacation in Jamaica. My brother, Travis, got married and Paul and I were able to go a few days early to celebrate our four year anniversary! Gray stayed with her MiMi and had a great week! We have never been away from her for a week and it was so comforting to know that she was in good hands! It was a wonderful trip and a beautiful wedding. We are so excited to have Anna in the family and Gray just loves her so much!

Gray is growing and changing so much these days! She is really starting to talk more and more everyday. Yesterday we walked in the door from school and she said "Hey Jake".... "Hey Joey". It just cracked me up! She is saying new words everyday and she repeats anything and everything we say! She is such a happy girl.... always laughing and playing. Her new favorite toy is a shopping cart filled with plastic groceries. She pretends she is going shopping and always piles her babies in the cart for her adventure! Gray loves to read - we have one A,B,C book that she loves and I can't believe how well she knows all of the objects and letters. She can say A,B,C,D and count 1,2,3,4. Time is flying by but each day brings something new and exciting!!

Have a safe and Happy Halloween!!