Random Pics

I know I've done a terrible job lately of updating (sorry Aunt Rachel!). Here are some random pics of what we've been up to...at least the things that managed to get photographed!

pushing our friends around in a doll stroller!


crowding in daddy's lap



painting masterpieces


bouncing at birthday parties

shopping like big girls at Target

By the way, Grace turned 11 months old today!!! Her 11 month post will be up soon.

Easter Fun

We had a full weekend, that's for sure! After dinner Saturday, we went to Dairy Queen to get dipped cones! When's the last time you had a dipped cone? Yum! We made Annalee wait until we got home to share hers with Daddy...it was the most torturous 15 minute ride of her life (especially after watching me devour my cone in front of her eyes). I know that sounds kinda mean, but I was afraid it would melt and fall in my lap!

Grace was drooling and counting down the days until she gets to share one with Mommy!

After naps we dyed our Easter eggs. They really should label those little tablets because I totally put 3 of them into the wrong colored bowl!

So proud of her work!

The Easter bunny came! Funny side story; when I was putting Annalee to bed Saturday night I was telling her that maybe the Easter bunny would leave a treat in her basket. She said, "Miss Deborah is going to come in my house and bring me a treat??" At school on Thursday the "Easter bunny" came to visit our egg hunt (it was really our friend Lauren who was in a cute little costume...no big bunny head, just ears/hat and whiskers painted on her face). Annalee kept calling her Miss Deborah, no idea why. It cracked me up inside picturing Miss Lauren hopping in our house and leaving us treats!



At 5:30am, Annalee woke up, ran in our room yelling that the Easter bunny had come and brought her a treat!! I acted super excited for her, and then immediately told her to get in bed and go back to sleep!

Yeah, we eat some of our treats first thing in the morning, doesn't everyone?

After church and naps we headed over to JoJo and Papa's for some more fun. I wish you could see the girl's dresses better...Jodie made them and they have their monogram on the collars.

We had to get into our comfy clothes for some good ole egg hunting. Caleb was really comfy in his new jammies that his Nana put in his basket!

Watching all the fun from Papa's lap!

Happy Birthday JoJo!

Our JoJo is out of town today...so this is her birthday message!

and another...

We hope you have a great day!

10 Months!

Where is the time going?? I cannot believe that Grace is 10 months old today! I have already started planning her first birthday and I'm in a little bit of denial about it! This child is so wonderful, I can't even explain. Her new major milestone this month was learning to stand up all alone without holding onto anything! She will pull up on something and then let go and grin from ear to ear about her accomplishment. Unfortunately, it's short lived because she sits down after a few seconds. She is consistently eating dinner in her high chair and soon we'll move to a lunchtime routine also. She has the loudest squawk I've heard in a while. If she wants more of something, she'll bust out a super loud holler. We're working on the sign for more-more so she doesn't have to yell at me! The other day I was trying to teach her and I said "can you say more-more" while doing the motion, and from the other room I hear Annalee say, "Mom, she can't talk yet!" Thanks for pointing that out. She has also learned to wave 'bye-bye' this month. So precious. She usually does it when we leave a room or sometimes when I pick her up out of her bed. She also loves to point to things with one finger...I have been trying to get a good picture of this...she's letting her little light shine! We love you Grace!

Happy St. Patty's Day!

Hope you all had fun wearing your green today! We sure did! We had a lovely picnic with JoJo, Papa, and Aunt Betsy (Jodie's youngest sister who is visiting from Alabama this week). We spent loads of time just enjoying each other and the gorgeous weather and flowers. Grace was in a super mood...all smiles and claps. She showed off one of her new tricks to JoJo too...pulling up on your leg and then standing up on her own! Annalee had fun on an adventurous walk with Papa. What a beautiful spring day.

Sweet profile

Who's that peeping up from the big tree log??

Poor Baby

Imagine my horror when I picked Grace up from her nursery class yesterday and found her front tooth missing a large chunk!! I freaked...so much so that Annalee burst into tears as well. The most amazing part of the whole ordeal is that it was a complete mystery of how it happened. Her teacher noticed it within a few minutes of her being in class and assumed that it had happened at home since Grace hadn't even been set down to play yet and had definitely not fallen or banged her tooth on anything. I was 100% sure that it had not happened at home or when I was around because I would have noticed it that morning. After a frantic call to the pediatric dentist (lucky for us we already had a great one since Annalee just recently had her first visit) we were scheduled for an exam. Yesterday morning I had to take my 9 month old to the dentist! I was SO dreading it, but she was a trooper. She sat perfectly still for the exam and let the doctor get a good look at the damage. Apparently there are 3 layers to our teeth and her chip goes well into the 2nd layer (luckily not the 3rd layer which is where the nerve and blood supply are). She is at risk of loosing the tooth since it can abscess or die and fall out on its own. Super. The dentist had to polish and file it smooth since it had some jagged edges. She did really good during this part, but about half way through she'd had enough and started crying and moving alot.

We're still not sure how exactly it happened, but the dentist thinks she bit down hard on something because of the way it was broken, possibly my stroller bar since that was one of the only things she came in contact with in the short window of time that it could have happened.

So, until she looses that sweet jagged tooth...this is the precious grin that we'll get to see!

I took this right before we headed to the dentist, so it looks a little smoother now.

Beautiful Day

Today was such a beautiful day outside! We had a fabulous time hanging out with the girl's cousins, Caleb and Carter. We went to a park near their house and just let the kids run and play. Grace got to experience a park swing for the first time! She was in heaven...I couldn't choose just one pic!

The big cousins driving a car.

I'm just gonna throw this one in because I love her so much and I think she looks like such a grown up little lady here!

Blast from the Past

I just found this pic on my computer and I don't think I ever posted it here! What a fun memory. Micah and I drove up to visit his sister and her husband. We went to an Arkansas football game and camped out! It was on this trip that my morning sickness started with Grace (I was about 8 weeks preggo). I remember stopping at the drug store to get some Vitamin B6 to help with the nausea...ha! Good times, Rachel!

Booyah

What can you get for about $100 at Just Between Friends you ask....

2 complete summer wardrobes for my sweet baby girls!

Thats:

8 pairs of shorts

a bathing suit

4 sets of jammies

13 shirts

11 dresses

3 pairs of pants

I was absolutely giddy today to get to shop at my favorite resale event. I look forward to it every fall/spring. It literally saves our family hundreds of dollars!

9 Months!

Yay, I'm 9 months old!!

Sweet Baby Grace is 9 months old!! This has been a big month for her...she started crawling and pulling up! She also started eating better for me as far as table food/pureed food is concerned. She loves to clap her hands and wrinkle her nose at you. She is still doing great at school (2 days a week while I teach), but now she gets sad if she sees me in the hall and I don't pick her up. They push 6 babies at a time in the "Bye Bye Buggy" and it's the most adorable thing I've ever seen! I try to stick my head out to get a glimpse, but now it makes her sad. :( She has 5 teeth and 3 more that are about to cut through...we are over achievers in the teeth area. She thinks it's funny when she bites my shoulder and I tell her No No...she laughs at me. Yep.

In case anyone is wondering..no, she doesn't have a perpetual wound on her forehead...it's her birthmark. Technically it's called a hemangioma, basically a cluster of blood vessels just under the skin. It wasn't there when she was born, but formed at about 3 weeks of age. It has a very high possibility of shrinking and disappearing in the next year or so, but if it doesn't we can have it removed after she's a year old...or not, it makes her special! (She also has one on her tummy). Just wanted to clarify because I get stopped at least 3 times a week by strangers asking me if she has hurt herself!

Yo Gabbba

Ummm...is it bad that my 9 month old has a favorite show? We don't watch a ton of t.v. around here, but this show is absolutely mesmerizing to Grace when it comes on.



If you haven't seen it before, you ought to watch a few minutes of it...pretty trippy.

Will and Grace

We had a great playdate with Karson and her kids today...
Can these two be any cuter?? Grace and her baby boyfriend Will.



Our best attempt at getting all 4 kiddos to look at the camera...3 out of 4 isn't bad!



My, how our hang out time's have changed, Karson! For the better, of course! :)

Almost There

Here's some video of Grace trying to crawl...she's almost there! Of course, Annalee had to get in on the footage too!

Snowed In

I know you've all heard about our record breaking snow by now. It was so gorgeous! We woke up Thursday morning to see our yard covered with it. I watched the news for 45 minutes waiting on school to be cancelled (we follow a local districts cancellation schedule)...it never happened, so I loaded up the girls and headed to Mother's Day Out. By the end of the day it had snowed 6-8 inches and local districts were having early releases. I am terrified to drive in bad weather, even more so with my 2 babies, so I had Terry and Jodie pick us up from school (a 5 minute drive from their house) and that's where we stayed until I got brave enough to venture home. It snowed non-stop all day for a grand total of 12 inches! Amazing.



We had to improvise for Annalee...those are Target bags on her feet!



Trying to eat the snow.




More snow eating!

The Run-Down

How about a run-down of what the girls have been up to lately?

Those pesky top two teeth FINALLY made their way through! It seriously took a month, wow! Grace has discovered them and now grinds them on her bottom teeth...makes my skin crawl.




This is the face of a happy baby just moments before the stomach bug took over our entire family for 48 hours. As I say every year, why us and why does it always start with the youngest?? See ya next year nasty virus!




Grace is loving her life in the big tub now and Annalee loves that she can hop in and join the bath party.



Asher and Grace have been trying to get to know each other a little better...he's 4 months younger. Notice the beginning of a terrified look on his face. He's not so sure about her grabbing and squawking!




Annalee had a very successful 1st dentist trip. I mean, who can't when it's set up like a carnival? She came home with more treats and goodies than when she goes to the grandparents house! Certificate, toothbrush, floss, toothpaste, fancy ring, balloon fish...it was greatness for her. They were playing Snow White and had toys everywhere. She was such a big girl. She let the doctor examine her teeth, count them and then brush and floss them. Next time we'll have an actual cleaning and x-rays.

Master Bath Before and After

Master bath time...before, again...wowzer!



And after...sorry it's dark, my flash wouldn't work with the sunlight coming through the window.
This shot was taken from the same vantage point as the 'before' picture. We removed the corner vanity and replaced it with a single one on the right side. We cut a doorway that leads into the master closet. This was one of the major changes that we made to the house. Before, there were only 2 small closets in the master bedroom and one very large closet in Annalee's room...well, we decided to change some walls around in order to connect the larger closet to the master bathroom and leave Annalee's room with a regular sized closet.



The new vanity...



The view of the tub.



We also replaced the toilet, painted, re-tiled the shower and raised the height of it, and re-tiled the floor.

Sneak Peek Round 2

Alrighty, here's our kitchen....before. Yuck!

And after...ahh, much better!

This is the view from my sink looking out into our family room to the right and our dining room and the living room to the left.




This room needed a ton of TLC. We laid hardwood floor, painted, replaced the countertops and backsplash, upgraded appliances, painted the cabinets, replaced the weird table thing for a peninsula with cabinets and removed the awesome saloon doors that closed it off from the dining room...pretty much a complete overhaul! I love the square coziness of it and the fact that it overlooks our family room.