Amelia’s Second Birthday

Milly’s second birthday was here in a flash and she (and Big Sis of course) loved every minute of it.  On her actual birthday, we surprised her with a new backpack (just like Everly’s) and a new Aurora nightgown and slippers.  The girls both took their first train ride with Ganny and Gobble that day, and that night we took the birthday girl out to her very first haircut – it was time to part with the little blonde mullet. 🙂

Literally, every picture of this kid was blurry at her birthday party; she was having so much fun and just couldn’t sit still.  Sticking with tradition, it was a Pointer’s pizza and Lubeley’s cupcake kind of day.  As always, Marty and I were overwhelmed with how many family members and friends came out to join us in celebrating her big day.

 

Summer

I think my last post touched on the fact that Spring was finally here… Well here we are well into June and I’m finally getting around to posting again. With the warm weather, the girls are loving being outside as much as possible.  Whether it’s swimming, swinging, or exploring, we try to get out as much as we can!

Everly is loving the water these days! Give the girl a pool or a watering can and she’s as happy as can be.  We had a rainy Sunday and Everly decided to suit up in her snow boots and rain coat, and armed with Uncle Kyle and her princess umbrella, she was perfectly content heading out in the wet weather to search for puddles to jump in.  Besides adventuring in her big backyard, she’s looking forward to turning THREE in August and starting preschool later this summer!

Amelia is just the happiest, most joyful little soul.  She is constantly cracking up at her sister, or flashing these huge smiles when you catch her eye – she just makes my day!  She is so close to crawling and is always on the go.  The kid can clear the length of a room with a handful of body rolls, squealing with laughter the entire time.  Such a stinker!

We’re counting down the days til our family vacation in Destin next month!  We’ve been going to the same beach for the past three years and it’s definitely a family tradition that we plan on continuing each year with the girls.  Check out our pics from Destin 2012 and Destin 2011.  We can’t wait!

Love,
E

Lately

We’ve been venturing out as much as possible lately, now that the warmer weather has finally found it’s way to us.  I usually rush out the doors of work as close to 5 as possible and hurry home with the kids to meet Marty.  I usually put together a quick dinner, clean up, and have just enough time left to load the girls up in the double stroller, harness the dogs and hit the neighborhood for a walk at the most perfect part of the day.

If there’s not enough time for that, we’re happy enough to explore our big backyard, as long as we get to enjoy some fresh air, hear the birds chirp, and catch a glimpse of the sun creeping down over the horizon.  Spring is finally here.

Everly usually goes straight for her swing, which she has just about outgrown…  Otherwise, she’s exploring elsewhere or peeking through the garden looking for things to collect.

She recently discovered the trampoline, which obviously was a huge hit!

always smiling

And Mila is absolutely enamored with all of her surroundings when we’re outside.  She loves the cool breeze, the chatter of finches through the bamboo, and watching Everly lead the way, taking it all in while tucked tightly against me in her sling.

It’s raining this weekend so we’ve got some indoor activities lined up and spring cleaning to do, though we are all looking forward to much more outdoor time soon.  Here’s to many more summer adventures!

Love,
E

Sisters by Chance, Friends by Choice

sisters by chance

friends by choice

and always making each other laugh

My girls, 5 Months, and 32 Months old.

Love,
E

No Words, Just Pictures

Heaven for me, is at home in my rocker with my girls.

snow day.

 

cutest little chef.

Sisters 🙂

I hope they’re best friends forever.

 

That smile is perfection.

Love,
E

The Girls. 30 Months and 3 Months.

One of my favorite things about this blog is logging on at night to look through my archives at some of my earliest posts, when Everly was just a wee little thing and I did a little monthly-or-so update on how she was growing.  Since it’s usually a rare occasion when I get the chance to write, I decided it’s probably best to do a little rundown of both girls.  So here we go…

Dear Everly- it is the eve of your half birthday.  You turn 2 and a half tomorrow, and you are one of the most intelligent little ladies I know.  Your favorite things these days are your two bears – Elvis and Purple Bear – who accompany you pretty much anywhere and everywhere you go.  You love chocolate milk, dancing, Cinderella, and makeup!  You’re a pretty independent little girl, though you still love to sleep in Mommy’s bed any chance you can (I love it too) and you are such a proud big sister.  You have not shown an ounce of jealousy when it comes to Amelia, and you’re always kissing her and gushing over her every chance you get.  It’s all happening so fast, my little love, you grow up a little bit more each day.  You are the happiest person your Dad and I know, our Sunshine girl.

Dear Amelia – it’s hard to imagine that you turn 3 months old this week.  You are 100% perfection; a bundle of sweetness that I thank my lucky stars for each and every day.  Your smiles are the best thing ever.  Sometimes I’ll be nursing you, and all the sudden, you’ll stop.  When I peek down at you, you’re just gazing up at me with the happiest, biggest smile I’ve ever seen.  It’s the best feeling ever.   When I’m having a rough day, I just think about that smile and all my worries fade away.  These days, you pretty much love two things – nursing and naked time!  It’s true.  When you’re cranky, sometimes we just strip you down, and all the sudden, you stop crying and start smiling.  Works like a charm every time. 🙂  And your big sister, of course.  You find her more interesting than any toy around.  I have a feeling you girls are going to be very close.

Love,
Your Very Proud Mama

Trick or Treat

Wanted to share these pics from Halloween night.  This was the first year that I think Everly’s eyes were truly opened to what Halloween and Trick-or-Treating is really all about.  After an early dinner and lots of anticipation all day, we bundled Ev up in layers and changed her into her pink princess/fairy/ballerina costume and ventured out into our neighborhood.

There were tricks, treats, and a few spooks along the way.  Everly loved seeing the other kids and parents in their costumes, and seeing all the houses that were decked out along St. Clair avenue (THE Halloween place in our neck of the woods).  She wasn’t even scared of the scary spook house and insisted we go back for one more spook before we headed in for the night.

After we got back, we let Ev choose one piece of candy to snack on.  The winner:  a grape Tootsie pop.  She had a blast and has been talking about it ever since.  We can’t wait to Trick-or-Treat next year with our TWO little girls!  Until then, we’re holding down the fort and waiting for Baby A to make an appearance.

Everly is two years and three months old, and I am 40 weeks and 5 days pregnant.

Love,
E

Pumpkin Picking at Rombachs Farm

These pictures are about a week or so old but better late than never, right?  We enjoyed some fun times and plenty of sunshine at Rombachs’ a few weekends ago.  Here are a few shots from our day…

See our pictures from last year’s pumpkin patch visit here and here.  And see Everly’s very first trip to the pumpkin patch here.  It’s amazing how much she’s grown! (sob) 🙂

I am just three days away from my due date on Halloween so we’ve been trying to wrap up loose ends at home and in the office.  While I’m extremely anxious to meet the little lady who keeps me up and night and likes to kick me throughout the day, I’m pretty content with letting her decide when her birthday will be.  So we’ll see… I’m not positive but I’m thinking this Halloween baby may be a November baby after all.

Love,
E

Mommy of One

Who’s more excited – Ev or Marty?

It seems like quite some time since I last posted.  Now that it’s October and technically the month this baby is due, I’ve decided to dedicate this whole month to Everly and making sure we get plenty of Mommy/Daddy/Everly time together.   We’ve been staying up later together, watching movies and going on lots of weekend adventures whenever we can squeeze in the chance.

This past weekend was a chilly one, but we managed to stop by Eckert’s to pick up some apples and treat Ev to her first PONY ride!  Of course, her Daddy was right by her side the whole time and let her choose which pony she wished to ride.  Right away, she pointed to a spunky little paint named “Brenda,” and the minute Marty set her in the saddle, her eyes twinkled like Christmas lights.  It was the cutest thing ever to see her enjoying her ride so much, and hearing “Giddy-up Brenda!” as the ponies went round and round.  She’s been talking about Brenda ever since, and we can’t wait to take her on more rides in the future.

Our next adventure will hopefully involve the Pumpkin Patch, which we’re super pumped about.  Here are a few pics – we’re off for some more weekend fun!
Love,
E

Happy girl

Mommy Daughter Day

My gorgeous girl

I mean, seriously.  Look at THOSE LASHES.  This kid kills me, she really does.  Today I had the day off to kick off our long holiday weekend (Yay!).  Today is all about me and this girl in the photo.  We woke up early, we made breakfast, we visited a good friend, we bummed around, we had french fries and strawberry shakes, we watched movies and napped.  I’ve decided I think we need more of these days, period.

Love,
E