Chuck E Cheese!!!

We celebrated Cami's cousin, Troy's 3rd birthday at Chuck E Cheese last weekend. Although Cami was a little fussy from being sleep deprived she really enjoyed her first trip to the fine establishment. Chuck E Cheese has changed a lot since I was last there, some 25 years ago. First, there was no ball pit-that was one of the best parts and most memorable, other than Chuck E himself. I have fond memories of jumping into the balls to get to the fun twisty-twirly slides. Second, it is a dirty place. I don't remember seeing so many crumbs on the floor when I was there last. Could it be that I was just a kid and couldn't care less about germs and dirt but have since grown into a major germ freak?!? Whatever the case, I used half a bottle of hand sanitizer on Cami's hands in the 1.5 hours that we were there. Third, Chuck E Cheese has a salad bar! As a kid you went to Chuck E Cheese because you wanted to play and eat pizza, I never remember a salad bar or any other food for that matter being offered there. It was very interesting to me to go back to a place that I haven't been to in so long and see it in a different light. I guess this is just the beginning of seeing things differently -as a parent.

1st Birthday Party

Cami had her very first birthday party this weekend! We had family and friends over to our house for a small celebration. Unfortunately "small celebration" does not mean less work! Cami was such a little party girl-she played and entertained until the last guest left, all with a huge smile on her face.

Cami received a lot of wonderful gifts at her party. She enjoyed helping me open each gift and checked each one out as it came out of the wrapping paper/gift bag. She has tried them all out over the course of the weekend and seems excited about all of them. The bubble machine was also a huge hit. All the babies played until their heads were wet with bubble solution:)

Neal and his mom made these adorable ladybug cupcakes. The cupcakes were fantastic, but we learned our lesson. Next time SIMPLE design!

Cami was so happy and loved every minute of her party.

The birthday girl in her new chair.

With her presents.

As we sung the birthday song Cami was shy and put her head on her shoulder, although I think she secretly liked all the attention! Once she was given the green light to go ahead and dig in she was unsure abut what to do...

She figured it out quickly, though! YUMMY!

Afterwards we had to hose her down in the bath. It was a good thing we took her dress off, she had chocolate everywhere!

BALLOONS!

Crazy balloon hair!

Overall, we had a wonderful time and want to say thank to everyone for your love and support over Cameron's first year. It has been amazing watching Cameron grow and change right before our eyes. We love the little lady that she is turning out to be.

Family Vacation

We took our very first family vacation this past week. Neal, Cameron, and I all loaded up in the car and drove 8.5 hours down to South Padre Island. We met Neal's family there and had a mini family reunion. Cami had her first experience with sand, the ocean, and boats. For the most part she loved it all. It was great for the whole family to get away and we loved watching Cami learn and experience new things and environments. We took a lot of pictures but here are some of the best ones...

Checking out the boats from the deck behind the house we stayed at. First steps on the beach.

I was showing her sea shells. She LOVED all the birds on the beach. She pointed at each one!

So unhappy.

This was the first day on the beach. She got upset when the waves came

up and hit her in the tummy.This is one of those pic's we can't wait

to show her when she is older.

The next day at the beach was better.

Daddy and Cami playing in the sand...

where it is safe.

Cami's first boat ride.

The family on the boat.

Nini and Cami enjoying the ride.

Nini and Pepe walking on the beach with Cami.

This is my favorite picture!

Her favorite thing to do, play with

plastic spoons in the sand.

So happy in the dry and safe sand.

Grabbing a starfish at the touch tank

at the Port Isabel aquarium.

She had no idea that thing was alive!

I hadn't held a starfish before.

It was neat!

Checking out the huge lobster.

Bubbles!

Cami is talking more and more and we absolutely love it. So far she can say "ma ma", "da da", "ball", "no" (this one gets used a lot) and "dog". Tonight at bath time she said "bubble" for the first time. It is so cute to hear her talking...we find her very entertaining. I hope this video brings a smile to your face as it did ours!

Busy Girl

This Summer has been a busy one so far! I have not had much time to myself, therefore blogging gets put at the bottom of the list. Cameron is working on transitioning to one nap a day which is good and bad. Good because she takes one long stretch of nap in the afternoon and I can plan our days only around one nap instead of two. Bad because I only have one time a day to get everything done....cleaning, dishes, laundry, picking up dog and baby toys, cooking-ok not really cooking. Our little girl is growing and changing so quick I can barely keep up. She seems so old and grown up, no longer like a baby. She is into absolutely everything. I have said this before but I didn't know what "into everything" meant until now! I have included a picture of her tearing through the Tupperware cabinet (the only one she is allowed to get into.) Just reaching in and grabbing things was not enough, she had to actually crawl in the cabinet, all by herself, to reach the most important pieces in the very back!

The Other Dube Family Visit

Neal's brother, Travis, and his wife, Michelle, along with their two kids, Lindsay and Cooper came in town to hang out for the weekend. We all had so much fun just hanging out around the house and chillaxin'! With both family's very busy schedules it is hard to find the time to get together but when we do we always have a blast and wish we wouldn't let so much time go between the visits. Here are some pics from the weekend...

Lindsay and Cami playing through the door.

Cooper pushing Cami around downtown McKinney.

Yeah, we did get out of the house a little-

it wasn't all chillaxin'.

Cooper has Cami's bow in his mouth. Apparently, it

was a fun game for Cami to take it out of his mouth.

Playing in the wagon they got her for Christmas.

The cousins!

It was so neat to watch the cousins play. Lindsay and Coooper are 5 and 7 years older than Cami, but we have high hopes of them being close despite their age difference!

Memorial Day

Cami went swimming for the first time on Memorial Day! She seemed to enjoy herself very much. The water was freezing cold, as Grammy and Papaw's pool is shaded by a big tree that keeps the water icy cold. Cameron didn't mind a bit, I did though! She wasn't too fond of the floaty boat we got for her, but as long as she was being held (which made me even colder!) she was a-ok! She splashed, kicked, and squealed until we finally decided it was time for her to get out. I am so happy she likes the water so much!

The end!

Tasting and Walking

Cameron tried several new foods this past week. I introduced her to some of my favorites: Olive Garden bread sticks, Mi Cocina guacamole (and a lime-not my favorite, but still fun), and s'mores! The bread sticks were a win, the others she could take 'em or leave 'em. She also has decided she likes strawberries, watermelon, and cherries. The always kid pleasers hot dogs, mac n cheese, mashed potatoes, and pasta are still on her do not eat list, though. Trying a s'more... Trying a lime... On another note, Cami has also started walking with her push toys! It is so cute watching this little bitty girl walk around our house. Hopefully our walls won't get too banged up as she has yet to learn how to steer. The grocery cart!

The wagon!

The Park

On Saturday it was supposed to rain all afternoon so we decided to take Cami to the park in the morning before we would have to be stuck inside in the pm. We had so much fun! We ended up going to two different parks, Frisco Commons in Frisco and Arbor Hills in Plano. We heard good things about both parks so we decided it was time to check them out. Here are some pic's from our fun times. By the way, boo to the weather man for getting the forecast all wrong the whole weekend!

She LOVED the slides :-)

Play date!

Last week our friends Heather and Ben came over to have a play date. Cami loved having someone new to play with at our house, and I did too! Cami had fun checking out Ben's shoes and digging in his diaper bag and Ben enjoyed checking out all of Cami's toys. We tried to let them take a dip in the baby pool but it was little too chilly since it was early morning. Luckily, the cold water didn't bother Cami a bit. She seemed to be energized by the cold even while she had tiny goose bumps :) Once Ben realized how cold the water was he opted

for the warmer and dryer grass. Cami kept trying to grab

his hat and toys. ( such a bully!)

They are practicing the toy swap.

Such a water baby!