The Life of Our Ladybugs

2nd Grade

2011-08-24T10:20:00.007-04:00

Today my sweet Leah started 2nd grade. Hard to believe! She loves her teacher and was so excited to start school today!

Her lovely teacher...Mrs. Bracken.

Remember this how distraught this girl was last year? This year, Carly doesn't seem to mind a bit.

Leah we hope you have an amazing school year!!

Carly Conversation

2011-06-22T09:45:00.003-04:00

Carly's conversation on the way home from the zoo last night.

Carly: Mom, Leah's taking a cat nap.

Mom: That's ok. Let her sleep.

Carly: But she's not a cat!

Mom: (laughing) Cat nap just means a short nap.

Carly: Oh! Well I'm taking a dog nap. (then her loud funny laugh)

This girl cracks me up!

Preschool Graduation

2011-05-23T11:39:00.004-04:00

My baby at her preschool graduation. She still has another year left before kindergarten but all kids participate on graduation night. It was such a fun year for her!

She had the sweetest teacher...Miss Darla. The epitome of church lady, grandma, and preschool teacher all wrapped in one bundle!

My Favorite People

2011-02-08T15:10:00.003-05:00

Could not imagine my life without these three gems!!

...and one of my favorite pictures ever!

7

2011-02-08T14:46:00.005-05:00

Wow! It's been a loooooong time since I've posted! So today, my sweet, adorable and loving Leah turns 7! So hard to believe! She is an amazing girl and I am blessed to be called her mama! She is loving, kind, beautiful and loves to care and think of others! She ADORES her little sister (most of the time). God has certainly blessed us!

I would like to thank Chick-Fil-A for sponsoring breakfast, Krispy Kreme for her school birthday treat, Subway for lunch and Bob Evans for dinner! A few of her favorite things for her 7th birthday!

So to my sweet Leah - May your heart always be focused on the Lord. May you always know you are loved and treasured. You are beautiful in every way and created perfectly! Thank you for 7 wonderful years! You may stop growing now!!

I LOVE YOU! Happy, happy birthday my sweet girl!

Carly Goes to Preschool

2010-10-12T09:06:00.003-04:00

Carly started preschool a couple of weeks ago. It's only on Tuesday mornings from 9:30 - 11:30. It's perfect for her and she loves it.

1st day of preschool

Her Dora backpack

Today was Donuts with Dad! She was so excited to take her Papa to preschool. This is his first time seeing her new school. Hope you two had a fun, sugar-filled morning!!

School Picture Day

2010-09-10T09:37:00.007-04:00

Leah wanted curls for picture day today. What a beautiful girl we are blessed with!

Monkey see, Monkey do

If you want curls, I want them too!

Our cute Carly-girl!

1st Grade

2010-08-25T09:52:00.002-04:00

Leah started 1st Grade today! Hard to believe that she will be in school all day, every day now. It helps that we love, love, love her new teacher!!

However, Carly is already having Sister withdrawal. This is her just moments after leaving Leah at school. Good thing she starts preschool in a couple of weeks!

She's my little Minnie Mouse...

2010-07-28T15:10:00.007-04:00

Way back in June, Leah had her dance recital. A cute little jazz routine to "Minnie's YooHoo". Here's our little Minnie Mouse.

Leah and Papa

Leah and her teacher, Miss Vanessa

I am so pround of you my little dancer! May you always dance freely like no one is watching!

Recent Conversation...

2010-05-25T12:35:00.004-04:00

Here's the conversation between sisters at the doctor's office.

Mama: Leah, what do you want to be when you grow up?

Leah: I'm not sure. (It used to be a doctor, a baby doctor, and that is just what Carly said she wanted to be right before I asked Leah.)

Carly: A clowoon?

(family is laughing)

Leah: No! I don't want to be a clown. (with slight attitude)

Carly: A horse? You wanna be a horse?

(more laughing)

Carly: A clown horse?

Carly is our very funny child and she draws out all her vowel sounds. Definitely some southern roots in that girl. It was quite a humorous conversation between a 6-year old and a 2-year old.

Land of a Thousand Questions

2010-05-18T09:11:00.003-04:00

I forgot how questioning a 2-year old can be. Here are some questions I hear multiple times a day...

What's that noise?
Who's there?
Where's my sister?
Can I watch Dora? (or Dragon Tales - that's her new favorite)
Can I do play-doh?
Can I wear a swimsuit? (her clothing of choice)
Can I do that?
Can I ride my big girl bike?
Can I do my scooter?
Can we read that (book) again? (and again, and again, and again)

Leah has even bigger questions.

How big is God?
If God created everything, who created God?

I think I'll take the 2-year old questions please!

Breaking the Silence...

2010-04-01T14:46:00.004-04:00

I have not meant to be so absent from the blog for this long. We have been in a state of transition and I may write about that in another post. But for now, I'll leave you with a couple pictures from our Fancy Nancy story time at the library. It was a marvelous time! And my girls had an extraordinary time getting fancy.

Random Updates

2010-01-08T11:16:00.007-05:00

Just some random stuff about the girls.

Carly: I would have said we are potty-trained since she has had no accidents and has been dry at nap and through the night for the last three days but today she decided to pee downstairs. Nice.

Breakfast: The girls love carnation instant breakfast shakes in the morning. We usually add a banana and peanut butter for some flavor boost. Carly calls them "chocolate movies."

Manners: When I encourage Carly to use her manners, she says "ok my dear". In fact, I think her favorite thing to say is "my dear". Here you go my dear. Yes my dear.

Christmas: The girls favorite Christmas gift by far is their dollhouse from Mimi. The both play with it so well together. Yes together! It's slightly taller than Leah and has an elevator! The L.O.V.E it! Here is a picture of what it looks like.

Picnic: Today we had an inside picnic complete with white paper spaghetti and pink pipe cleaner lemonade. Leah made Carly and I a delicious meal.

Leah: is starting to really read well. It's fun to have her read books to us. She is also designing and planning her own bakery. It's fun to encourage her to think about all the things she will need for it and what type of sweets and treats she wants to offer. She still says she is going to be a doctor or teacher when she grows up.

Carly: is alphabet obsessed. She calls all letters "super letters". She can spell her name and recognize most of the letters of the alphabet - upper and lower case. She can also count to twelve and recognize most numbers up to 10. I'm amazed by her knowledge and how she communicates with us. Her language skills blow me away sometimes. And speaking of blowing me away, she has started climbing out of her crib. AND THINKS IT'S FUNNY!! We are encouraging her to call us. It worked with Leah. But I'm not so sure it will work with the little daredevil.

We Wish You a...

2009-12-24T12:25:00.003-05:00

Merry Christmas!

We have had a fun and busy month preparing for Christmas and celebrating the birth of our Savior Jesus! Elfie has been a little bit mischievous - eating Leah's twizzlers and oreos, cutting balloons from a bouquet to float to the ceiling, hanging from the chandelier and other fun stuff. The girls loved having him here for the last 24 days. They awoke this morning, Elfie's last day, to find presents from him. New Christmas pajamas and new books. Carly got a Dora book and Leah got Priscilla and the Pink Planet. How did Elfie know their favorite things?? He must have been paying attention to the girls.

We hope your Christmas is full of joy and blessings and hope.

Live in freedom that Jesus was born for YOU!

Have a very merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Our Newest Addition

2009-12-01T16:05:00.005-05:00

Meet Elfie.

He's the newest addition to our family. He arrived very early this morning to greet the girls. Leah spotted him right away perched on top of a picture over the fire place. We read the book. Leah wanted to name him "Santa's Little Helper". I suggested "Elfie". She loved it. Carly loved it. Now we have Elfie. And it's the second most popular name behind "Buddy." I'm hoping he won't cause too much mischief around our house this month while he reports to Santa each night if the girls have been good or not. So far Leah has done the laundry, changed sheets on the beds and has been all kinds of helpful. I think we need an elf for all seasons. :) Stay tuned to find out some of Elfie's adventures this month.

I think we've created a monster...

2009-11-18T19:29:00.002-05:00

an M&M monster that is! Every time Carly goes potty she gets an M&M or two. Tonight she was purposefully sliding on the kitchen floor but fell really hard and hit her head. So I offered her one M&M to feel better. She said, "That's good." I asked her if she needed another one and she said "Yes." To this I thought, "Duh Mama, she is not going to turn down an M&M." After her second M&M she said, "I'm all better." Whew! M&M's to the rescue.

Later that same night, she fell in the hallway or ran into a door, something that caused her to get hurt. Guess what she promptly asked for? You guessed it, an M&M to feel better. So I think we are on our way to an M&M monster!

The ABC's

2009-11-13T09:11:00.004-05:00

Carly is quite taken with all things regarding the alphabet. She calls letters "super letters." Every time she goes potty (which potty training is coming along very nicely - I think it's the drive for M&M's and putting balls in her potty jar) we have to do super letters. She knows almost all the letters and we are working on all the sounds too as well as several words with each letter. It's so fun to see her so excited about learning.

She loves to sing! And when she sings the alphabet song she has several versions.

A B C D E F G (repeating those letters only)

A B C D E F O (I think the letter O is her favorite. I'm sure that has nothing to do with all the Buckeye cheers we do at our house! O-H-I-O)

A B C D E F G W X Y and Z (this is her latest version)

I think I may need to get her some alphabet soup!

Wacky Wednesday

2009-10-07T17:40:00.004-04:00

I really need to start updating the blog more. We have tons going on and lots of funny stories from both the girls.

But today and every Wednesday for the next month are going to be extra wacky - as in we are so busy. So busy shuttling Leah to her various and numerous Wednesday activities.

Here is a "normal" Weds for the girl:

1. school

2. daisy scouts (right after school)

3. home for a quick dinner

4. soccer practice

5. AWANA

6. home to unwind and bed

What busy days Wednesdays are going to be through October.

But who could resist shuttling this precious one around?

Oil Pastels

2009-09-24T14:57:00.003-04:00

So as Leah was coloring today, she said, "Oh look these are oil pastels." Which promptly stopped me in the midst of working to look over at her. How in the world does she know what oil pastels are? I guess she is paying attention in art class.

Dance recital 2009

2009-09-15T08:50:00.004-04:00

Here are some pictures from Leah's first dance recital. Her class did a tap routine to "I'm a Big Kid Now." Not only did she learn tap, but she also learned ballet and tumbling. Two of Leah's favorite friends, Ava and Phoebe, were in her class too. It was such a fun year of dance!

Touchdown Taco Dip

2009-09-04T15:11:00.005-04:00

I'm linking to BooMama's DipTacular! Just in time for the football season. Who doesn't need a few more good dips!

Every time I make this dip the bowl is wiped CLEAN. I have yet to see someone lick the bowl but there have been some close calls. I hope you enjoy it! GO BUCKS!

Touchdown Taco Dip

(from Pampered Chef)

Ingredients:
1 can of refried beans (15 oz)
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon taco seasoning mix
1 garlic clove, pressed
1/4 cup (1 ounce) shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 medium tomato, seeded and diced (about 1/2 cup)
2 green onions with tops, thinly sliced (optional)
1/4 cup pitted ripe olives, sliced (optional)
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh cilantro or parsley (optional)
Additional sour cream (optional)Baked Tortilla Chips (optional)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread refried beans over bottom of Small Oval Baker (or any small baking dish). In a bowl, combine cream cheese, sour cream, taco seasoning mix and garlic pressed with Garlic Press; mix well.

2. Spread cream cheese mixture evenly over refriend beans. Sprinkle cheddar cheese over top of the cream cheese mixture. Bake 15-20 minutes or until cheese is melted.

3. Sprinkle tomato, onions, olives and cilantro over dip. Garnish with additional sour cream, if desired. Serve with Tortilla Chips, if desired.

Sisters

2009-08-03T09:10:00.003-04:00

We had some new pictures taken of the girls this weekend.

Carly loves tea parties!

And this one of my big girls...makes me sigh and want to freeze them.

Thanks Bethany for the great pictures!

The Tooth Fairy

2009-07-17T06:30:00.000-04:00

Well, Leah had her first visit from the Tooth Fairy. We gently tucked her first tooth into her Tooth Fairy pillow and anticipated the arrival of the T.F.. BTW, the first tooth she lost was her very first baby tooth. Let's pause while I dry my eyes. It's too fast I tell you, too fast! Okay, back to the tale of the Tooth Fairy. The T.F. pillow came with a sweet story about how the T.F. came to be and how she takes each child's tooth and turns it into a star while leaving a coin in place of the tooth because she was taking something that wasn't hers and wanted to leave something in its place. Sweet, right? When Leah awoke this morning, the T.F. left her five gold coins (the $1 coins). Now she wants to stay up super late tonight to find her tooth-star in the sky. She says it's going to be the littlest one. Let's hope for a star-filled night tonight!

4:11am July 15, 2009

2009-07-16T06:36:00.004-04:00

This is the exact time Leah lost her first tooth! She woke up due to a bad dream about a fox. When she wakes up from a bad dream, she likes to tell you, in detail, about it. While she was telling me about her fox dream, she stopped and asked, "Want to feel how wiggly my tooth is?" As I went to see that wiggly tooth, she pushed it with her tongue and out it came. Total excitement because now the tooth fairy would come.

I Lub You

2009-07-12T13:20:00.003-04:00

Carly is becoming quite the little talker. Almost everything she says is a phrase or sentence. Some of my favorite words right now are "Tinkebell" and "elephant". Something about those three syllable words sound so cute. But yesterday I heard the words that were the sweetest of all. She kept saying, "I lub you. I lub you Papa. I lub you Mama. I lub you Weah."

Our precious Carly-girl, we lub you! Oh you make my heart melt.

New Things

2009-06-12T09:21:00.003-04:00

Lately it seems like Carly is doing more and more new things.

She loves nursery rhymes and one of her favorites right now is Bumpity-Bumpity. You may know this as Humpty-Dumpty. She will even say the last word of each sentence in the rhyme if you pause to let her.

Yesterday we did Ring Around the Rosy. We've been doing it ever since. She loves to fall down and then laughs, laughs, laughs.

When she climbs a ladder to the slide or climbs up on a chair she says, "Up we go."

She's even gone on the potty. #1 and #2 but not regularly. I tried to put her in training pants one day but she did not care that she peed in her pants. I'm thinking she's not quite ready.

This past week when I lay her down for her nap or put her down for bedtime, she'll blow me a kiss and say "bye-bye". It's so sweet!

She loves to play outside. When she's not sliding, you can find her pushing her baby around in the stroller for a walk.

She's starting to really get into pretend play. Her favorite thing is to crawl around like a cat saying "meow, meow". Funny girl!

Teddy Bear Picnics

2009-05-14T10:15:00.003-04:00

Carly has really been into picnics lately. She loves to spread out a blanket and eat her breakfast or lunch on it with Leah. Yesterday she decided that her bears and other various babies and animal friends should picnic with her. So she set them all up in a circle, set out plates, utensils, cups, and food from the play kitchen and had a picnic with them. It's is so cute!

Today, since Leah doesn't have preschool, she got to join in on the picnic. Carly is "feeding" Pooh Bear, Leah, Minnie Mouse, and herself with pretend cheese, strawberries, broccoli, chicken nuggets, all while saying "mmmmm" with every bite or drink. I would love to snap a picture but the camera's is upstairs and I don't want to disturb the picnic.

In the words of Carly...

2009-05-09T10:51:00.003-04:00

Carly is really starting to talk up a storm. She's even saying some phrases and sentences. But if you are talking to her, here are some words you'll need to know. They are core to her language.

1. Showder = shower (she LOVES to take showders)
2. Na-nas = babies
3. Oooh-ooohs = all types of bears
4. nee-nee = Mimi (this is a new one for her!)
5. nuts = milk (This one drives me, well, nuts. She was saying "nilk" and now it's "nuts". Dan, however, thinks it is funny. Probably because it drives me nuts!)
6. If I ask her if she needs to go potty, she always says, "Dora and Boofs" because she has a Dora potty seat.
7. fump = jump
8. Yesterday I asked her to say "cheese" for the camera. She said "cheese" and grabbed her cheeks. It was really funny. If I get the picture off the camera, I'll post it. I'm not really great about getting pics off the camera.
9. ickey = diaper (she has mickey mouse on her diaper and when I ask her if she needs a new diaper she says "icky")
10. yuck = anything on her hands or feet. She does not like stuff on her hands or feet. And when she's wrinkly from being in the bath or shower too long, she tries to wipe off her wrinkes saying "yuck".

Updates...

2009-04-27T21:20:00.003-04:00

We've had much going on and not a lot of free time. Hence, the blog not being updated. Hopefully I'll get some pictures up soon. I broke my camera, but that's another issue.

Anyway, here's a look of what's been going on with us.

Carly got her 1st haircut. She LOVED it!
Leah has been on a birthday party kick. Her last party was a soccer party for twin boys in her class. She was the only girl invited from school. When Dan took her to the party, one twin told a friend, "That's my brother's girlfriend." Dan wanted to promptly turn away and walk out with Leah but she did get to stay and had a great time.
I spent Friday and Saturday at the Women of Faith conference. AMAZING!!
We are in Project Basement overhaul. We've (well actually Dan and some guys) hauled out an amazing amount of stuff from the basement. The front half is repainted. Our new office/work space is almost complete. I still need to finish cleaning out and organizing the girls toys. Tonight, Dan and a friend started hanging drywall in the back half of the basement. Big changes going on! It's going to be GREAT.
Carly is really wanting to sit on the potty. I think it's just because it's a Dora potty seat. Time will tell.
Leah is registered for kindergarten. We have to have her hearing retested and her eyes examined. Nothing like failing both your hearing and vision before you start school.
Carly is starting to pedal her tricycle. She LOVES to be outside.

Hopefully your life is as busy and fun as ours!

5 Things for the Weekend

2009-04-17T10:20:00.004-04:00

We are having some gorgeous spring weather. LOVE IT!

I haven't done the Friday 5 in a few weeks. Maybe I'll get back on track. Here are 5 things we're doing this weekend.

1. Participating in the MS walk at the zoo. Maybe I'll get a glimpse of the new baby elephant!
2. Taking Leah to a birthday party. Happy Birthday Meaghan!
3. Getting rid of lots of stuff from the basement.
4. Painting the basement.
5. Having a date night with my man or we may take Leah to see the new Hannah Montana movie.

What are you doing this weekend?

In stores...

2009-03-30T13:17:00.002-04:00

So as Leah and I were practicing our verses today (Psalm 136), I was having her repeat "His love endures forever" after I read the first part of the verse.

Here's how it went:

Me - Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good.
Leah - His love in stores forever.

My Carly is 20 months!

2009-03-23T07:48:00.005-04:00

I can't believe my baby is 20 months old today! In honor off all her cuteness, here are 20 random things about her.

1. She ADORES her big sister Leah. That is the sunshine in her life.

2. She is very loving. Loves to give hugs and kisses and snuggles.

3. She is still OBSESSED with Dora and when she gets corrected or is in trouble she cries for Dora like that's her saving grace.

4. Blueberries are her favorite fruit followed closely by dried cherries.

5. She is not much of a meat eater.

6. Her favorite song right now is "Wheels on the Bus."

7. Her favorite book is Princess Baby by Karen Katz or if she finds a Dora book.

8. She can open all the doors in our house - not a good thing.

9. She is a very determined girl.

10. She thinks that anything Leah can do, so can she. There's a lot of Monkey See, Monkey Do going on around our house lately.

11. She loves to be outside and to "ride" her bike.

12. She loves the slides and swings at the park.

13. She's really good at kicking the soccer ball.

14. We're working on the alphabet and she can say almost every letter and can spell OHIO (repeating not on her own...yet).

15. She is always carrying something around in her arms - snugglies, babies, bears, dolls, etc. And there is at least two things.

16. She can say around 60 words and is starting to say some phrases like, "Hi Papa, Hi Eah, Hi Mama" or "up Mama".

17. She knows all the Diney princess. Ella is for both Cinderella and Snow White. She will not try to say Snow White, it's always Ella and Aurora is Rura.

18. She loves to thump against the crib when she goes to sleep and when she wakes up. We can't wait for this to stop!

19. She loves to help switch the laundry and unload the dishwasher.

20. In her language, all bears are ewe-ewes and babies are na-nas.

This picture is of her using a spoon to eat yogurt. As you can see, the spoon was not utilized very well.

My 5 Favorite Pampered Chef items

2009-03-20T09:42:00.003-04:00

1. microwave steamer (I use this daily)
2. cookie scoops
3. batter bowls (LOVE these!)
4. baking stones - I have several and use them all
5. chopper - I have two - that should tell you how much I like it.

What are you favorite kitchen gadgets?

5 pictures

2009-03-13T10:16:00.004-04:00

1. This is the face Carly makes when she see's the camera pointing at her.

2. First time eating spaghetti with sauce.

3. Leah going to her Fancy Nancy Tea Party.

4. Leah's family birthday party. It was a pig theme because she LOVES pigs. She didn't have any pig clothes, so she stayed in her favorite pig pajamas all day. We even make pink pig cupcakes.

5. Another birthday celebration for Leah. We had 5 total! Yes, seriously we did. You only turn 5 once, right?

5 Favorite Websites/Blogs

2009-03-06T09:19:00.003-05:00

These are outside of my family and friends, because you know I'm reading your stuff!

1. thepioneerwoman.com - she has some amazing recipes and has a great sense of humor and great giveaways!

2. j-a-girl.blogspot.com - I love her projects and decorating ideas.

3. yourhomebasedmom.com - she's got cool mom status. Great recipes, I made several at Christmas time and I love her decorating/crafts. She also has some great things she does for her kids (3 in college) that I would love to do when my girls are older.

4. orgjunkie.com - organizing inspiration. Check it out on Monday's when it's "Menu Plan Mondays". Lots of recipes and meal plan ideas.

5. luckymecraftsandkids.blogspot.com - she has great craft ideas and fun things to do with young kids.

What are some of your favorite sites?

5 Things I want to accomplish this year

2009-02-20T12:37:00.002-05:00

1. figure out how to use my sewing machine
2. read the bible - in its entirety
3. declutter EVERY room in the house (Goodwill may open a store just for us)
4. finish the basement
5. keep up with Leah's journal and start Carly's (sorry Carly that I haven't even started yours yet)

What's on your list?

Bit of an Update

2009-02-16T16:49:00.006-05:00

Ok, so I have a ton to update on, including Leah's 5th birthday bash!

But for the meantime, here are some tidbits of what's been going on.

Leah got 5 shots at her check-up. That was not fun! She's in the 90th percentile for height and 80th for weight.

Carly will now give you a hug and a kiss if you ask her and if she's in the mood.

Carly doesn't walk, she gallops. If you chase her, she will run and giggle. It's so great!

Carly is starting to really like "Ella" aka Cinderella. And I think she may be part Cinderella, she likes to help put away the dishes from the dishwasher and use the Dustbuster and vacuum cleaner. Wonder if she's too young for all the household chores?

Yesterday we had a birthday party for Leah's favorite doll, Maddie. This was definitely last minute. Apparently, Maddie's favorite treat is star shaped peanut butter/chocolate chip cookies. So that's what we served at the party. Maddie also got some presents. Two new books and some "new" clothes.

Top 5 children's books for this week

2009-02-13T13:17:00.005-05:00

1. Purplicious
2. Dora's Valentine Book
3. Does a Princess Wear Hiking Boots?
4. Sleepytime Farm
5. Goodnight Moon

What have you been reading?

5 shows on the DVR

2009-02-06T12:25:00.003-05:00

These are our top 5 shows we DVR every week or day depending on the show.

1. Days of our Lives (I just can't let it go!)
2. Burn Notice
3. American Idol
4. Chuck
5. Psych

Anything you can't bear to miss? Or a show that you just love?

5 Things

2009-01-30T13:48:00.003-05:00

Today's edition is brought to you by Dan. He noticed that I had yet to post something. Thanks love! You are the best! I'm not totally sure he wants me to post this but I'm going to.

from Dan:
5 Things I love about my wife:
1. Your steadfast support, even through the difficult times
2. The strong example you provide for our children
3. Your deep desire to follow God into an uncertain future
4. Your sometimes goofy personality that compliments mine so well
5. Your unconditional love for your family, despite our many flaws

Cheers!

2009-01-27T16:35:00.006-05:00

Carly is growing by leaps and bounds. I can't believe that she is 18 months old already.

One of her newest things is "cheers". Every time time she has a cup, she'll hold it up and say "chees" - her version of "cheers.". This morning we cheered our milk, pancakes, and a Winnie the Pooh bear tin that holds a couple of Leah's card games.

Here she is riding her inchworm she got for Christmas. Cute, isn't she?

5 Random Things

2009-01-23T17:15:00.002-05:00

So I couldn't think of a five theme for today. Maybe my brain is fried from everyone being sick...again. Thankfully we are all better now. So here we go...

1. My favorite pizza toppings: pepperoni and banana peppers
2. Carly is obsessed with baby dolls (she calls them na-na's) and Dora and will carry as many things as she can in her arms. This week she had 5 baby dolls in her arms at one. Usually it's babies but sometimes it's blankets, books, combination of different things.
3. Leah will be turning 5 in couple weeks and we are having so much fun planning her Fancy Nancy Tea Party.
4. It's a balmy 46 degrees outside and it's giving me spring fever today.
5. I'm currently reading The Bible in One Year. I'm determined to actually do it this year but I'm a few days behind.

Any random things you want to share with me?

five things I would have with me on a deserted island

2009-01-16T09:46:00.003-05:00

1. my bible
2. chapstick
3. matches or a trigger lighter
4. toilet paper
5. sunscreen

What would you have?

Childhood Flashback

2009-01-14T12:40:00.004-05:00

Let's just start by saying that it is so pretty outside! We have inches of snow and huge, falling flakes. We would so be outside playing if Leah didn't have a cold/fever that's kept her out of dance yesterday and school today.Since it's snowy and cold out, plus Leah's a tad under the weather, we had chicken noodle soup for lunch. Nothing too unusual since Leah loves soup. But today I made PB&J on saltine crackers. Have you ever had that? I remember my mom making them for us when we were little. LOVE THEM! Thanks Mom! My girls loved them too. Carly ate almost 3 cracker sandwiches alone! Leah wanted to make her own and she decided to add some apple pieces on hers. Of course I had to try them for her and they were pretty good. It was fun to share something I loved as a little girl with them.

What about you? Do you have any special childhood food memories that you have shared with your little ones?

Carly's 5 Newest Words

2009-01-09T14:16:00.002-05:00

1. down
2. button (sounds like uh-on)
3. Ow (this is my favorite right now. Whenever she get's hurt or hits her head she'll stop for a second and then say 'ow'.)
4. blue
5. green
(I had no clue the girl knew some colors. I'll have to start really working with her.)

Happy New Year and A Little Disney

2009-01-07T14:07:00.002-05:00

Happy 2009!

I can't believe it's been forever since I've blogged. We've had tons going on from our Disney trip, to Christmas and the New Year. I hope you all had a blessed and joyous holiday season. We certainly did - minus the plane trip home from Disney, but I'll blog about that later!

Here are some of the favorite Disney pics so far.

Leah meeting her all time favorite princess, Snow White.
I LOVE this pic of Dan and Leah with Minnie!

Carly napping in the stroller. We wore her out most days.

Leah and one of her favorite rides - the teacups!

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-24T10:49:00.001-05:00

To all my family and friends who lovingly read this blog to keep up with our family, our heartfelt Christmas wishes, blessings and prayers go out to each of you! We hope this Christmas is joyful and peaceful!

Merry Christmas!

5 Most Anticipated Disney Rides

2008-12-12T15:10:00.002-05:00

per Leah...

1. Splash Mountain (we think she's tall enough!)
2. Goofy's Barnstormer
3. Teacups (that is all Dan and Leah)
4. Snow White's Adventure (Leah's favorite princess)
5. The Carousel

Say Cheese!

2008-12-10T19:12:00.003-05:00

What do you get when you try to take Christmas pictures

with a very active toddler? This...

picture by Bethany Baldwin

Big Girl

2008-12-08T13:34:00.002-05:00

Carly is becoming such a big girl! Here are some things she does that makes me realize that she's not my "baby" anymore.

- She will answer any question you ask her with a nod, either yes or no, and it's usually the right answer. The "yes" nod is quite humorous because she uses her entire head/neck.

- She sat on the potty today. I knew she was going #2 in her diaper and asked her if she wanted to sit on the potty. She nodded "yes". She had already stunk up the diaper but after I got her cleaned up we went and sat on the potty. I'm sure at 16 months she's really not ready but it can't hurt, right?

- She wants all her food either on a plate or in a bowl and wants to try to use silverware with it. She also does not want you to cut up or break up her food. She's a big girl and wants to take bites. Only she shovels in anything you give her so you really have to hold the cracker, the sandwich or whatever else it is and let her take bites.

5 Favorite Christmas Songs

2008-12-05T15:06:00.004-05:00

1. Little Drummer Boy
2. O Holy Night
3. Mary Did You Know
4. Breath of Heaven
5. Do You Hear What I Hear?

There are more that I love but these are the ones that make me feel all warm and fuzzy and give me goosebumps. Oh Christmas, are you really just 3 short weeks away?

5 things I don't want to eat until next Thanksgiving

2008-11-27T08:00:00.000-05:00

1. Turkey
2. Turkey leftovers
3. pumpkin pie
4. Turkey
5. Corn casserole

I would have said turkey to all five but I mixed it up a little. I like turkey, but I don't love it. So I really only care for it on Thanksgiving Day.

Pumpkin pie - well I would rather have pumpkin bars, pumpkin bread, pumpkin torte, etc.

Corn casserole - well I love it, but it seems like just a Thanksgiving dish to me.

More Randomness

2008-11-25T17:46:00.003-05:00

There are a few things that I forgot about that I wanted to add to the last post.

1. I had a $1 off each gallon of gas at my last fill-up, so I was able to get gas for 64 cents a gallon! My total cost was $10.75. Exciting!

2. Carly is not only obsessed with Dora but also with Mickey/Minnie, Pooh Bear, and books. She should be a riot on our Disney trip in a few weeks.

3. Carly has started saying "shhhh" and holding a finger up to her mouth when she says it when I tell her someone or something is sleeping. It's precious!

4. Leah is hooked on soup. I think she would eat it at every meal. She's requesting my mom's potato soup when we go there for the Thanksgiving weekend. And she also LOVES the creamy, wild rice soup from Tastefully Simple. I'm wondering how much a case of that would be? Wouldn't that be fun to see under the tree?

Random Happenings

2008-11-25T09:22:00.004-05:00

Here are some of the happenings going on around this house lately.

Leah and Carly LOVE playing with empty cardboard boxes. The boxes have been boats, toy carriers (esp. for baby dolls), cars, and trains. Why do we bother with toys?

The girls also love to play with deflated helium balloons. Leah got one from a birthday party on Sunday and Monday afternoon we tried to see if we could keep the balloon up in the air. Carly got a kick out of the balloon hitting her head or trying to catch it. It was quite funny to watch her try to catch the balloon. Pretty entertaining that balloon was.

Carly is still obsessed with Dora. She is also becoming quite the little parrot and will try to repeat anything you say. Her newest words are: spoon, sock, shoe, bowl, spoon, banana (progressed from just na-na), balloon, ball (well this isn't really new but anything that's round is a ball, including peas). She's finally getting her animal sounds too and can point to almost any animal in her favorite book for the moment, the Little People Animal book. She's identifying her body parts too. Most likely if you hold her she will "beep, beep" you nose. Her top words are probably: Leah, Dora, Mama, Papa and ball.

Leah is busy planning her 5th birthday party. Forget Christmas, she's already planned out her list and has moved on to her birthday. The theme for now is Fancy Nancy. The one thing she is bonkers about is this doll that goes potty. Baby Go-Go I think it is. Why the fascination with a doll that goes potty?? We have told her that Santa wouldn't be able to bring that to her. Cruel? Probably, but she is also asking Santa for two American Girl dolls. Since they are best friends they HAVE to come together she told me. She's also busy planning our Disney trip that's fast approaching and is SO EXCITED to see her cousins. The one thing that she HAS to do while we're at Disney is...everything. Sounds like we'll be quite busy while we are there.

What fun stuff has been happening in your home?

5 Things you'll hear around our house this weekend...

2008-11-21T09:33:00.002-05:00

1. Go Bucks!
2. O-H-I-O
3. Beat Michigan!
4. Hang on Sloopy (singing this one)
5. Who's got the best team? We've got the best team. Gooooooo Bucks! (Leah's favorite cheer that she does)

Go Bucks!

Thankful Thursday

2008-11-20T09:51:00.003-05:00

Can you believe Thanksgiving is only one week away? Hello turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, corn casserole, oh excuse me, I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's get back to this post, shall we?

There are so many things to be thankful for. Here are my top ones for the week.

1. I'm thankful that tomorrow I get a date night with the husband and he's taking me to the Twilight movie! Yahoo!!

2. I'm thankful that the mother-in-law likes to watch our girls and the girls love it when Grams comes over. This allows us to get a date night in!

3. I'm thankful for Leah's beautiful voice and how she's been practicing her Thanksgiving and Christmas songs for her upcoming shows.

What are you thankful for today?

5 things Leah wants to be when she grows up

2008-11-14T12:58:00.004-05:00

1. Dentist
2. Nurse (who gives shots)
3. Fashion Designer (for jeans esp.)
4. Mom
5. Teacher

Thankful Thursday

2008-11-13T10:36:00.003-05:00

1. I'm thankful that our heat works. I've seen a lot of heating and cooling trucks driving around the area lately.

2. I'm thankful for great friends who live close and that our children LOVE to play together. And I also love the fact that they will take them at the drop of dime to let me run out and buy Christmas presents before my 30% off coupon expires!

3. I'm thankful for the invention of Cheerios - esp. when the baby wakes up in the middle of the night for no apparent reason but to eat Cheerios in bed with us.

Little Miss Popular

2008-11-12T15:07:00.002-05:00

Over the last few weeks at preschool I've been noticing how popular my Leah is. One day I picked her up first, which is a rarity, and all the kids were waving and shouting, "Bye Leah." I've never heard them do that for any other student before. Hmmm.

Today a little boy was waiting outside the classroom to wave bye to her after his mom picked him up. Hmmm.

Another girl, who got moved to a different class, always gives Leah a hug as we walk out through the gym. Her class just happens to have play time as Leah's class is dismissing.

Then we have Alex and Anthony. Twin boys who have popped up on Leah's radar. They are her "new best friends" as she declared today. She even asked me to curl her hair today because that's how boys like it. Oh my, I am so not ready for this. And when they arrived at school this morning she was giddy as a school girl. Hmm.

Not to mention that we get asked for more playdates than we have "free" time for.

I think we're going to have to watch out for our little Miss Popular!

Weekend in Reveiw

2008-11-10T15:26:00.002-05:00

I can sum it up in one word...sick. From colds, to the flu, to an ear infection - every single person in this house was sick this weekend and all on some sort of medication. At least it was gray and cold. There was lots of football and reading going on in our house.

5 foods Carly won't eat

2008-11-07T08:36:00.005-05:00

1. carrots (as soon as they hit her tongue, out they come)

2. peaches (same as the carrots)

3. green beans (she used to LOVE these - now just smashes them in her fingers)

4. chicken (she'll take a couple bites and then throws it on the floor)

5. scrambled eggs (esp. when I add too much milk making them too soft, like this morning)

My Little Cinderella

2008-11-06T15:45:00.002-05:00

Carly is truly a little Cinderella at 15 months old. She loves to help me with the laundry, squeals with delight when the vacuum comes out, and tries to unload the dishwasher when it's open. She also loves to help clean up when we're putting toys away - esp. if it goes into a basket. I wonder how long she'll like to clean as she gets older and realizes what it is.

Thankful Thursday

2008-11-06T15:39:00.004-05:00

For the month of November and in honor of Thanksgiving, I'm going to be posting things I'm thankful for. Poor Thanksgiving - the holiday of thankfulness and over eating and football but where no gifts or greed play in and is often overlooked in the rush to get to Christmas.

Today I'm thankful for the gorgeous Indian summer we've been having this week. Seriously, this week's weather should be bottled up. We brought out bubbles again, played outside, and planned a zoo trip, but it got postponed due to every person in this house having a seriously yucky cold and Carly's ear infection. So thank you Lord for the beauty you give us and the perfect weather this week. I know snow is coming but I'm thankful for the weather we have right now.

Halloween Candy

2008-10-30T09:39:00.001-04:00

Happy Halloween!

Here are my top five favorite candies that I wish to see in my daughters' Halloween bags. What are your favorites? I asked Leah this and she said only one: CHOCOLATE. That's my girl!

1. Reese's peanut butter pumpkin
2. solid Hershey bar
3. M&M's (all varieties, I don't discriminate)
4. heath
5. Reese's peanut butter cups (try these frozen - so good!)

Googly Eyed Girls

2008-10-28T15:42:00.002-04:00

Here's Leah with two of her good friends, Halley and Phoebe, sporting the eyewear of the season. Everyone is wearing them these days. Are you?

Bring back fall

2008-10-28T14:57:00.001-04:00

Hello Winter, could you please return fall? I wasn't quite done with her yet.

Friday Favorites

2008-10-24T09:21:00.003-04:00

Favorite Breakfasts this week:
Carly - pumpkin muffins
Leah - chocolate chip pumpkin muffins and ghost pancakes

Favorite Moments of the week:
Sara: surprising my dear friend Allecia, who is visiting from out of town, with a baby shower for blessing #2. It was so great to see her and shower her with love, diapers, and prayers! And then I came home to a clean house! Thanks my darling husband and darling daughter!! You're the BEST!

Leah: going to Mimi's house today and the opening of HSM3.

Carly: going to the doctor's for my 15-month checkup and getting 3 shots! Okay, that's probably not her favorite moment. But she is growing strong! Almost 23 lbs and 30.5 inches tall. 60th percentile for height and weight. Her favorite moment of the week was getting new Dora cups and early christmas presents from Miss Kristy in the form of a dora doll and a dora bag for her toys. Have I mentioned that she's obsessed not only with Dora, but chairs, shoes, and purses/bags? I'll have to expand on that in another post.

places I would love to see some day

2008-10-24T09:18:00.001-04:00

1. Hawaii
2. Greece
3. Grand Canyon
4. Austrailia/New Zealand
5. Iceland

Friday Five

2008-10-17T12:49:00.003-04:00

My sister-in-law has started doing this Friday Five, which I love. So imitation is the best form of flattery or something like that, right? You guessed it, I'm going to start doing it too. Thanks Kelly!

Five favorite things from the girls today:

1. Carly dancing whenever she's on the tile. Picture her stomping grapes, that's what it looks like.

2. Leah doing a moon sand cheer in hopes to be able to play with it sooner. (nope didn't work but it sure was cute!)

3. Carly "singing" the Dora theme song. Sounded like this, "da-da-da-da-da Dora".

4. Leah saying, "I love you mom, you're perfect." Melts a mama's heart.

5. Carly "smelling" flowers everytime she sees them - on her clothes, in a book, etc.

Friday Favs IV

2008-10-17T08:29:00.004-04:00

Favorite Time to Wake Up:
Carly: 6:30 a.m. - like clockwork. To this I say ugh.
Leah: Normally about 7:30 if she got her nap in and went to bed on time. Seeing that it's 8:30 a.m. now and she still isn't awake means she didn't get much of a nap in yesterday and went to bed late.
Mama: usually around 7:00 am is when I would naturally wake up
Papa: As late as possible

Favorite Words or Sayings:
Carly: Boo - she says it to every ghost she sees now. It's quite humorous. Dora - still obsessed with her.
Leah: for real life - if I tell her we are going somewhere or doing something, she'll say for real, for real life
Mama: No - okay it's not really my favorite saying but it's one I frequent the most right now. I have a curious toddler, I'm sure you understand. Go Bucks - it's football season after all.

Favorite Snack:
Carly: Baby goldfish (which she calls "sh") and Yogurt Melts (she goes crazy for these)
Leah: anything with chocolate (right now it's chocolate graham cracker fish) and string cheese

New Look...

2008-10-16T15:00:00.001-04:00

Fall always seems like a new beginning to me. So I decided to give the ol' blog a fresh look. What do you think?

First Crush

2008-10-14T14:03:00.007-04:00

Carly has her first crush - Sid the Science Kid from PBS. I caught her blowing kisses to him today while she was watching T.V. with Leah before dance class. This is the girl we're going to have to look out for and apparently so do the cartoon boys!

Friday Favs III

2008-10-10T09:28:00.002-04:00

Sara:
Favorite Book (of the week): Twilight by Stephenie Meyer I could not put this book down. In fact I would have stayed up all night reading it but I knew what the consequences would be. I'm waiting for the next one in the series from the library but I'm not sure how patient I can be.

Leah:
Favorite new toy: Her Boo doll from Monsters, Inc.
Favorite activity: Planning our Disney/FL trip for December.
Favorite nighttime music: We're back to Dora. I'm thinking big sis was getting a little jealous of Carly's newfound Dora addiction.

Carly:
Favorite book/toy: Anything Dora. She is officially Dora obsessed. Can spot anything Dora and can say Dora now.
Favorite cereal: Yogurt Burst Cheerios or Strawberry Chex. She needs to see and have both kinds of cereal on her tray for breakfast.
Favorite drink: Yogurt smoothies. She would not put her cup down to take a breath and got so mad at me when I tried to make her take a break from chugging her drink. Reminds me of when Leah had her first juice box and drank it in about three seconds flat with no breath.
Favorite nighttime music: lullabies - this week we're playing Heavenly Lullabies that Mimi got her.

Friday Favorites II

2008-10-03T07:17:00.004-04:00

Happy Friday! By far my favorite of the week is today - our 10 year anniversary!! YAHOO!! I have this thing with double digits and I love this one! Happy anniversary my sweet, loving, wonderful husband! You are my perfect gift and my life is blessed because of you and your love! Now let's work on 75 more!

For my ladybugs - it has been a hard week for them. Both came down with a little stomach bug. Carly was first and then Leah. Both seem to be back to normal and feeling good!

Let's move on to those favorites.

Leah:

Favorite Leah sayings:
1. For sure - her version is "fur schrizzle"

2. For real - "for real life"

3. Our favorite bedtime ritual: We always say "sweet dreams" but over the last few months it has evolved to traveling to Candyland where we meet at random, made-up places (candy castle, ice cream bar, candy car lot, chocolate river, etc.). It's a fun way to see where we're going to meet in our dreams and to talk about the next morning. You'll have to ask Leah about her Hot Fudge car some day.

Carly:

1. Favorite Carly action: Carly has started to jump and it's the funniest thing. She will squat down and then pop up and has even managed to get lift-off (both feet off the ground) once. The down side is she loses her balance quite easily and got a nice goose egg on her precious forehead. I need to try and get some video of my little popper.

2. Favorite character: She is all about Dora right now. She loves to listen to the Dora CD, constantly carries around this little Dora board book from the library which we seem to always read now too, and since she has to always have something in both hands (remember this?) she loves to play with Leah's Dora doll that has the twin babies because she can carry them both around.

Friday Favorites

2008-09-26T15:21:00.003-04:00

I'm going to try and do random favorites going on in the house each Friday. Keep me accountable if I forget, ok?

Leah:
1. Favorite phrase: she uses this for almost anything, "when I was three..."
2. Favorite food: cheese pizza
3. Favorite toy: her doll Maddie - who is currently sick and throwing up all over Leah's room, nice!
4: Favorite animal: the pig - she wants to redo her room into a pig room

Carly:
1. Favorite word: Leah which often sounds like, Eeah
2. Favorite food: yogurt and blueberries
3. Favorite toy: whatever her big sister has
4. Favorite book: There are two right now. Where is Baby's Pumpkin? (you don't want to know how many times this gets read each day) and Pat the Bunny

Completely Loved by Our Redeemer

2008-09-19T07:34:00.003-04:00

During my quiet time today I read this little tidbit and thought you (whoever you are) may enjoy or need. It definitely spoke to my soul this morning.

from Completely Loved by Shannon Ethridge (page 19)
Ephesians 2:10 reminds us that "we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do" (NIV). So by all means, devote as much time and service to God as possible. But don't underestimate the power you hold to accomplish the Lord's work by being the best, most well-rounded person you can be. Don't feel guilty about the time you invest in the routine things to simply keep life working for you and those you care for. Trust that God is not only the Redeemer of your soul, but also the Redeemer of your time.

Let there be light!

2008-09-17T09:14:00.004-04:00

We have power!! Yes! After 2 1/2 days of no power we are back in touch with the world. Although I think I may miss part of our "pioneer days." Thankfully our neighbor let us plug the fridge into his generator so we didn't lose anything there and we had hot water. But the peace and quiet that came at night was so refreshing. No TV, no phones, no lights (minus the flashlights), no laundry to do (ok I could have washed by hand - dishes too), no cooking, no vacuuming (thankfully the little dust buster still worked), a gaggle of girls in the house and outside (there were eight of them at one point).

But today it's back to regularly scheduled programming...dishes, laundry, email, work, etc. But maybe at night I can regain some of the solitude and peace that came with no distractions and no power.

And Lord I thank you for the peace and quiet that came with the power loss and I thank you that we lost nothing but gained a tremendous amount. Please be with those that are still without power.

Master of...

2008-08-19T22:09:00.003-04:00

Well Carly has seemed to really master one thing lately...The Point. Whether it's food, her drink, a book, a toy, her snugglies, or her zee-zee, she will get it with The Point.

She is starting to master the walk but right now she still looks like a little drunken sailor.

Feeding herself - she has definitely mastered. Trying to use any utensil - not even close.

BTW

2008-08-11T13:02:00.001-04:00

Should I be worried when Leah is quoting lines from Camp Rock?

Her favorite line is...

BTW, your lip gloss is soooo not glossy anymore.

A Child's Prayer

2008-08-04T18:02:00.005-04:00

I'm trying to type this as Leah is saying it...my comments in parenthesis.

Dear Lord,

Please hear my sister. (as she's groaning to settle in to sleep at 6pm - yes that's her bedtime)
Please help my mother to be kind, not jealous, to never punish me (there's was more I just couldn't type it fast enough before she moved on to the next phase of prayer)
And I really don't want a brother or another sister because I already have one who is sweet and loving and kind. Thank you Lord! (and again there was more, something like one sister being enough)

**Leah started VBS today and I think it must have evoked the little prayer warrior inside of her.**

Cock-a-doodle-doo

2008-07-31T12:22:00.003-04:00

How do you wake up in the morning? Or what wakes you up in the morning? Mostly the alarm clock helps to rouse my sleepy body but on occassion Leah becomes the alarm clock.

Here's what the Leah alarm clock likes to say...

wakey-wakey, eggs and bakey
Mama, Papa, I need your looooving
Cock-a-doodle-oink-oink

Hip, Hip, Horray! It's Carly's 1st birthday!

2008-07-23T11:26:00.004-04:00

Happy birthday my precious Carly girl! One year ago you blessed our family and my heart grew in ways I could not imagine. Thank you Lord for our perfect girl. May she be as much as a blessing to you and your kingdom as she is to our family. Carly I pray that you will always seek and follow the Lord. That you will always know you are loved and supported. That you will know the Lord is faithful, loving, and kind.

Oh you have grown and changed so much this first year and so have we. Thank you my precious child for all that you have given me this first year of your life. From your sweet wave to your sloppy kisses, the way you clap your little hands and the way you adore your big sister. You have shown me glimpes of pure, unfiltered love and it is good.

Happy Birthday babygirl!

a happy heart

2008-07-15T09:26:00.002-04:00

This morning was one of the best ones I can remember in a long time - filled with love and peace and contentment. I woke up with the alarm at 6 but didn't get out of bed until 6:30. Made my chai tea, started a load of laundry and then had some quiet time with the Lord. During my quite time I start to hear a happy, babbling Carly up in her crib, then the lovely sounds of Leah wishing her papa and sister a good morning. Then all 3 come sit around me on the chair. Both girls on their papa's lap, full of laughter, giggles, and smiles and papa loving every minute of it. It was the perfect picture of happiness and peace and perfection in our family. Thank you Lord!

Week in Review

2008-07-15T09:19:00.003-04:00

Some fun milestones for Carly-girl last week.

1. started clapping (finally! I've been so waiting for this. It's adorable, just like her.)
2. drinking from a straw (never too early to start drinking through a straw)
3. says duck, dog, zee-zee (her zebra)
4. books, books, books - she loves them and will now briefly sit still to hear the story

Leah's been enjoying the summer weather, especially playing outside, riding her scooter or her bike and playing in the neighbor's pool and waterslide. She's starting to really read and spell everything in sight. It's fun to see her brain working and putting things together. She's already really looking forward to school. Let's see if she still feels that way come September.

Another milestone...

2008-07-02T13:10:00.003-04:00

Today's milestone...crawling up the entire set of stairs and not looking back once. I think with this gem I need to put baby gates up.

Our Camp Rock Camp In

2008-06-23T23:10:00.003-04:00

If any of you watch the Disney channel, you know they've been advertising Camp Rock for months now. I've been asked several times a day if Camp Rock was on yet. Well Friday was finally the day. Leah could not have been more excited. We let her stay up to watch it and decided to have a camp-in. This was a BIG treat because the movie started at her bedtime. She got in her PJs, brought down her sleeping bag and flashlight and we had popcorn with M&M's (another treat). The movie was cute and has a decent rewatch value. We've seen it twice since Friday. Plus the music is fun and Leah is a big dancer and singer. I think at times she was more amusing and entertaining.

Here's a pic of her new haircut. Granted this was taken a month ago on her last day of preschool.

May in Review

2008-06-06T15:58:00.004-04:00

Well life it getting back to a slower pace these days and I'm so glad! Here are some of our May happenings.

1. Dan graduated! Way to go love! We are so proud of you!

2. Leah finished year 1 of preschool. She has changed and grown so much this school year. She's already asking if she can go straight to kindergarten. Ummm, no. I love the 4-5 year range. I really wish I could just freeze her!

3. Carly turned 10 months. Can you believe it? 10 months already! She loves eating regular, people food. Some favorites: pancakes, nectarines, grapes (peeled), blueberries (again peeled), yogurt, green beans and carrots. And of course, cheerios! Other Carly happenings: 6 teeth, almost walking, will try and climb ANYTHING, is way too curious and into everything, will hardly sit still for a simple book - she has to stand and then try and chew the pages.

4. Lots of parties: birthday parties, graduation parties, preschool parties

Wii got it!

2008-06-06T14:12:00.003-04:00

So Dan totally surprised Leah and I last night with a Wii and WiiFit! i can't even begin to tell you how excited Leah was (and me too!). I am not a great fan of the video game but I LOVE the Wii. Dan and I stayed up playing with it until 1am last night! We won't talk about our fitness levels and fitness age. Let's just say we've got some improving to do. Okay, maybe a lot but I did have 2 babies. Oh what fun we had! We bowled, hula-hooped, skiied, slolam raced and more.

Leah didn't see it until this morning and she was so excited! Her favorite, for now, is bowling. And she even beat Dan this morning. Let's not rub that in his face, shall we? We're having lots of fun with it and I think it will be a fun way to add a twist to our family fun nights!

Want to play with us? Come on over, it'll be fun!

word association begins...

2008-05-09T18:06:00.003-04:00

Well I don't think na-na was a fluke. Carly is definitely working on putting some things together. Here's her vocab breakdown...not to be performed on demand. Thank you very much she says.

na-na = banana

da-da = daddy (in most families. Her daddy is "papa")

papa = papa (nomally said with a brief pause between the syllables)

mmmmm - I'm sure this is supposed to be mama, which I've only heard a handful of times. I mean I know she's her papa's girl but c'mon, I'm the mama!

la-la = we think this may be Leah. Although Leah wants to be called Lee-Lee. Which Dan and I called Leah when she was in the womb and always thought that would be the nickname we called her. Not so.

ba = ball and block, but mostly balls

bye-bye: now we've only head this a couple times but we're working on adding it to her budding vocabulary. Watch out Webster!

you say na-na, I say banana

2008-05-07T12:52:00.005-04:00

As Carly was eating her lunch today, she looked at the jar and said "na-na". So I turned the jar around and sure enough there was a banana on the jar. Of course I'm sure she knew it was a banana so I praised her for being so smart and reinforced the word "banana". Some may call this a fluke, I'm calling her brilliant! :) That's what the mama is for, right?

at the firestation...

2008-05-06T22:08:00.002-04:00

According to Leah, here's what the firemen do at the firestation:

1. Wash their trucks
2. Rescue cats from trees
3. put water on fires

About sums it up.

Lost Dog

2008-05-01T23:42:00.005-04:00

So Dan and I were out for a bit tonight running some errands. Our goal was to get new glasses, a new blind for the bathroom and some groceries. Fun stuff huh? As we headed to our first store we saw a dog darting down the parking lot. We thought it was a little odd and saw no owner chasing the dog. There was a PetSmart in the plaza so we thought maybe it made a break from the store and wasn't looking back. That dog was fast! We went into the store, didn't buy our glasses and started to head to our next stop. That's when we met the dog's owner. She left the window slightly down and the dog escaped while she was in a store. Guess it was down a little too far. We told her where we last saw the dog, took her number in case we saw it again, and went on our merry way to the next store but looking for the dog along the way. But we couldn't just not find the dog. Now I do not care for pets in the least (sorry for you pet lovers) but it's nice that other people do and we felt bad because she felt so bad. Now if it was one of my precious children it would be a different story. I guess some pet owners feel their pets are their children, so the feeling must be similar. Plus the daughter was with the mom and who wants to disappoint a child? We went one direction, no dog. Went another way, no dog. Went back to the plaza we first saw the dog at and asked some ladies if they saw the dog. They pointed us in the opposite direction where they last spotted it. We headed that way and lo and behold the dog. We tried to call the owner, no answer. Dan tried to call the dog but it darted off again. Fortunately it stopped not too far away. I'm continuing to call the lady, still no answer. We saw her driving in our direction. Dan flags her down, she spots the dog now and calls it. What happens next? It darts off again! Pets! So we follow her following the dog. You didn't think we could continue shopping now do you? The dog runs a bit farther and finally stops. The owner gets out and calls the dog. It starts to run but right to her this time. Yahoo! The dog is safely and tightly in the owner's arms. Rescue mission accomplished.

We retold this story to Leah when we got home. When we got to the part of Dan calling the dog, Leah asks, "The dog has a phone?"

Pinecones and Pineapples

2008-04-29T20:32:00.004-04:00

Leah brought home a pinecone for me tonight after returning from the park with Papa. She was so excited about it and wants to plant it tomorrow so we can grow some pineapples. We tried several times to tell her that it would be a pine tree not a pineapple but she's determined it will produce pineapples.

Spring Snow

2008-04-29T09:39:00.002-04:00

It's almost May and we woke up to snow on the ground this morning. Leah was so excited she wanted to get out her snow paint. But by the time we left for school, it was almost all melted away. It's supposed to be really cold again tonight so she may just get more snow tomorrow. Ahhh spring!

9 months

2008-04-25T06:27:00.001-04:00

Carly has hit the 9 month mark and growing strong.

Her new stats:

Height: 29 inches (90th percentile)
Weight: 20.5 lbs (80th percentile)

New acheivements since her 6 month appt: crawling, babbling (esp. da-da and the occasional pa-pa), pulling herself up on EVERYTHING!, feeding herself, non-baby food eats: Cheerios, puffs, bread, bananas, green beans, juice

Some of her favorite things: Leah, bubbles, being outside, peek-a-boo, her sing-a-long stage, baths, balls of every shape and size, anything that sings- esp. some of Leah's dolls, the exersaucer, her bunny

And now Carly and Leah have their first shared experience...a staph infection. How nice! First thing the doctor asked, "Do they take baths together?" And guess what, they just started taking them together in the last week and they love it! Oh well...

Is there a Starbucks in Heaven?

2008-04-13T20:00:00.000-04:00

This was a conversation Leah and I had just before her bedtime time and after she spent a few hours with her Grams.

Mama: I really missed you today.
Leah: I missed you more than you missed me. I wonder if God missed me today?
Mama: Well, God is always with you.
Leah: Well, what if He had to get coffee?

Crawling Carly

2008-04-11T20:29:00.001-04:00

Here are things that attract my curious, crawling 8 month old...

anything with cords
shoes
balls
anything with lights (just like her sister used to do, she's attempted to turn off my computer)
anything that crinkles
paper (probably because it crinkles)
any small speck of whatever on the floor

Leah's 4th Birthday

2008-04-10T22:39:00.001-04:00

Here are some pics from Leah's 4th birthday...which was in February! Better late than never right?

Leah with her presents

Leah with Snow White (love Leah's face here!)

The cake...and yes, I made it!

Leah swiping some frosting...I think this was after her party. And yes she is dressed up as snow white. We had a Princess Tea party and all her adorable friends came dressed as princess'. I have to find those pics.

Leah's 1st pot of "coffee". Yep, all chocolate. The girl loves her chocolate!

Autumn Goodness...not so much

2008-04-03T13:05:00.000-04:00

As I was feeding Carly a new babyfood today, pumpkins with apples, I smelled it (and no didn't taste it) and it was like autumn goodness in a jar. Really, it smells that good! So then I flip around to read the ingredients. Normally I do this in the store but it wasn't a pudding, desset, or delight so I didn't think there would be any extra's added to it. Wrong! They added brown sugar to it! And cornstarch too. My 8 month old does not need extra sugar in her baby food. She'll be getting enough sugar soon enough - most likely from her big sister.

Easter

2008-03-28T23:05:00.001-04:00

Just a few quick pics of Easter. Carly - so precious! Leah LOVES pigs and her very best friend gave her the all-things-pigs Easter basket. (her mom, Miss Kristy had a lot of fun pig hunting.)

Carly's 1st Easter (She's so precious!)

from the Easter Bunny

Leah's pig basket (so cute!)

Leah's pig Easter basket chair

Leah and the bunnies