Kailyn's 3rd Birthday Party

It's been a really hectic couple of weeks as I have been planning and preparing for not only Christmas but also for Kailyn's 3rd birthday party. It wasn't a huge turn out, which I actually prefer, but still a few kids came and Kailyn had tons of fun. I don't think I saw Kailyn for a couple of hours while the kids were here, it was very strange. In fact, every time I went into her playroom to check on her she would say "go away mom". Lol...I thought she was turning 3 not 13!


Our theme this year was Toy Story. I kept going back and forth on the theme this year, she's been really into Handy Manny for most of the year but as soon as Toy Story 3 came out she has been addicted to it. So, I actually asked her what she wanted either Handy Manny or Toy Story and she said, "Toy Story!" loud and clear. So there it is.

Here are the kids piled into her chair waiting for the movie to start.

Look how cute the are and how luck Austen is, he's got 3 beautiful girls all to himself! :)

While they were doing their thing, Mommy was doing her thing, catching up with some friends I hadn't seen in a while. It was very much needed.



Present time came and I am not sure what happened but Kailyn got really shy when all the attention was on her and she had a bit of trouble opening her presents, she needed her friends help to open them. It was quite cute actually, I'm glad she included them. I think it was a big overwhelming for her to have everybody staring at her.
A big THANKS to everybody for their great gifts, she's enjoying them all to the fullest!


Then, came time to sing to her and blow out her candles on the cupcakes mom tried to make so perfect, and once again she didn't want the attention on her. I thought that would have been her favorite part, after all she had been asking me to blow out the candles all day.





All in all, her party was a success and I'm glad it's over, I was stressing a little to make sure that it was as perfect as I could get it. I am not a party planner whatsoever but it came out pretty good.
Until next year! :)

All Thru The Night

I am so proud of my big girl. She slept in her big girl bed all night without waking up once. I couldn't be happier! I actually woke up in kind of a panic this morning because she didn't wake up, but all is now very well in the Patin household. Thank you God for giving me the extra little patience that I needed.

Now, we are just counting down the days until Christmas and Kailyn's 3rd Birthday. This is going to be the best Christmas thus far.

Sleep Update

So, I thought I would update you on Kailyn's sleeping issues since getting her beautiful new fairy princess bed.

All I have to say is SCORE for us! She has slept so much better since getting her new bed, it's unbelievable! It still takes us a while to put her down but not nearly as long (maybe 1 hr instead of 1 1/2-2 hrs) and she hasn't been fighting us to put her down, let's just say she's going down more calmly and a lot easier. She will wake up maybe 2-3 times during the night but she only gets out of bed maybe 1 out of 3 times. A BIG improvement from before. I give her a cuddle, let her fall asleep and put her back in bed. What a huge relief! Unless you have actually experienced this, you have NO idea what an accomplishment this is for us and how relieved I am. I really wasn't sure how long this whole sleeping situation would go on for, I was thinking the worst, you know, like how it was when she was newborn! Up every few hours and getting hardly any sleep.

Let's just hope it just keeps getting better! :) Thanks everyone for your advice on helping me get thru this sticky toddler situation.

New Fairy Princess Bed

K in her new bed, her "fairy princess bed" as she calls it.

So, we got Kailyn's new bed yesterday and put it together right away. It is so frickin' cute!! I think I have been looking forward to this as much as she has! lol... I have been making a huge deal about her new bed, how beautiful it is, how special it is, and how now it officially makes her a "big girl", hoping that this will encourage her to stay in her bed.

I sat Kailyn down and had a little talk with her about her staying in her bed, that if she did, tomorrow she would get a reward. She woke up once, at 11ish, all wet and throwing a fit. After wrestling with her for about 5 min, I was able to finally change her and put her back to bed. She ended up sleeping until 8am! I woke up a few times during the night to make sure she was still in her bed because she was so quiet.

When Kailyn woke up this morning, I made it a point to tell her how proud I am of her that she stayed in her bed and slept all night. I kept my promise to her and she got her reward this morning for being a "big girl" last night. She said her bed is "so comfy". :) I'm glad.

Well today I feel well rested (FINALLY!) and Kailyn got a full nights sleep, I couldn't be happier! Let's just hope that this lasts! Wish me luck folks! ;)

Advice Please!

This post is for the moms of toddler's out there, I need some advice from you:

How did you keep your toddler to stay in their bed at night??

I am running very low on patience when it comes to keeping my almost 3 yr old to stay in her bed at night. She will not sit still or lay down for about an hour after I brush her teeth, read her books and gotten ready for bed. Once she finally calms down a little, the only way I can get her to fall asleep right now is by laying next to her or rocking her in the chair. She used to do fine falling asleep on her own, I think it's because she is no longer in her crib she feels she needs to assert her independence by leaving her room.

Might I also add that she started this just about 3 weeks ago. It's happened very fast. She went from sleeping in her crib (which she loved) for nap time and bed time and now she's skipping her naps and won't stay in bed. Let's just say I have a very cranky child in the evenings because she is so tired, I know she misses her naps but she just has this new found freedom she can't get quite enough of. I've tried bribing her like you wouldn't believe and even that doesn't work. She is getting her new "fairy princess toddler bed" next week so she is currently sleeping on her mattress on the floor. I am hoping once she gets her new bed, she will want to sleep in it all night. Wishful thinking on my part ;)

So, if you have been through this and you have found a way to keep your child in bed, would you please, please, please, share it with me so that I can get more sleep!!!??

Sure, she only looks innocent...lol.

The Big 30!

O.M.G. I'm 30.

I think I'm ok with it. There are a lot of people out there who dread being 30 but I accept it. I'm at a really great point in my life, I'm married to a wonderful man who is also a great father, I have a beautiful daughter (who's 3 wks shy of turning 3) , a house and yes, complete with a dog. I couldn't be happier with how my life is right now at 30. I'm looking at this as a new chapter in my life. What do my 30's have in store for me? I'm not looking too far down the line cuz I don't even want to look at the #40, now THAT scares the hell out of me, but luckily that's 10 yrs down the line.


I didn't have an over-the-top birthday this year, as it also landed on the same day as Thanksgiving. I spent my 30th at home with my family being thankful for everything that I have been blessed with. Kailyn helped me blow out my candles on my cake and just seeing the satisfaction and the enjoyment on her face just makes everything that much better.

Here's to another great year!

Priceless. :)

Our 3rd Anniversary

We went away early for our Anniversary this year since it was so close to Thanksgiving and my 30th birthday lands ON Thanksgiving. We went to Napa and spent two wonderful nights at the Old World Inn B&B. It was beautiful, the architectural detail that has been preserved, the food, and the cute little cottage that was all secluded in the back. I loved it!

The first night we were there, we had dinner on the fabulous Napa Valley Wine Train. It was so amazing! I know it sounds cheesy, but it was so nice and so romantic being able to sit and enjoy dinner with my husband while enjoying a 3hr train ride. No rushing to get out of there, just enjoying every bite of our 5 course meal and enjoying each others company. At times it felt like it did when we were dating, we were goofing around, flirting, nothing to worry about except what kind of wine we were going to get for our dinner. During "intermission" how they like to call it, or when the train stopped to turn the engine train around, we walked thru all the cars to check it out. Each car was like a different place in time. There was the "old west saloon" with nothing but wood on the walls and the floor and basic chairs and tables. There was the "waiting area" with big comfy chairs and plush carpets and walls. Then there was the "dining area" with plush carpets and fancy tables. And then there was the area where we ate, or VIP as I like to call it, the "Vista Dome" where there were windows that let you look at the starry sky, it was on the second floor, and the people from the other cars "were not allowed." It was pretty great, to say the least.

The next day we took it easy, we went and ate breakfast and met some other guests. I love how friendly they are, how open they are. B&B's are so small that you have to share tables with others and it gives you a chance to get to meet some pretty great people. We met this couple of guys who were telling us about their previous stay at that same B&B, they had the cottage that we were staying in, they agreed that the huge pull down projection screen on the bed was awesome! I mean who wouldn't like that??

After breakfast, we got ready and went out to Calistoga driving around, checking things out until our spa appointment at The Golden Haven. I have never had a mud bath before so I was really excited to try it. Well, it definitely shocked me when I went in there. It's stinky, very hot, messy but it is relaxing, rejuvenating and detoxifying. Once we got out of the mud we took a hot spring shower to rinse off then sat in a hot mineral water jacuzzi tub. After that they took us into a wrap room to sweat it out. I was so hot from the mud and jacuzzi that once they wrap you in blankets you sweat it out, a great way to detoxify. THEN... it was time for our massage...oh yeah!

Once our massages were over, we were famished. We decided to walk around downtown Calistoga until we found something that would satisfy our taste buds. We found a nice little family style restaurant with great food and cheap drinks! We went back to the B&B and watched a few movies on the huge projection screen that was at the end of our bed. It was great.

As much as I missed Kailyn during our trip, I really didn't want it to end. It was so relaxing to spend some stress-free time with my husband and not worry about anything.

Thank you to my incredible husband for setting this up and giving me (or us) a fantastic Anniversary. Here's to many more to come, I love you!!