Enjoying the weather

It's been great weather for bike rides and bubble blowing! Hope you're enjoying it too!

New Favorite Accessory

Ever since the stock show, Annalee has loved wearing her boots. She even managed them on a rather long bike ride, that's commitment. So, it was only fitting that they wore them to Micah's birthday dinner last night at a semi-western restaurant. Of course, Grace had to wear hers too! Unfortunately, she was Stinky Pants McGee and wouldn't cooperate for pictures.

Case in point...

Oh well.

Stock Show Fun

Last weekend when we were relaxing in Buffalo Gap, the girls had a big time with JoJo and Papa at the stock show. Thanks for sharing these pictures, Jodie!


bundled up for the parade



enjoying a pony ride



riding the dragon roller coaster

Of course a visit to the stock show wouldn't be complete without coming home with boots and a hat! These will be perfect for western day at school in a few weeks!

Annalee was so excited to tell us all about her adventures. Thanks guys!

Pizza, Pillows, and Princesses

We've been having fun just hanging around the house lately.
Today, David joined us to make homemade pizzas. They were pretty cute little chefs.




Then, the other night, the girls were extra silly before bedtime. This was supposed to be "ring around the roses," but we had to have some snuggle time too!

Our days wouldn't be complete without someone donning a princess dress.

On a side note, Grace's words of the week are 'me my'...anytime you take something away that she was holding, she repeatedly yells 'me my' at you! Although this one is a little selfish, I love hearing her learn new words.

Perini Ranch Get Away

Well, it was that time of year again....Perini Ranch weekend! We always look forward to our weekend of eating, relaxing, and catching up with the Snelsons. The boys have birthdays a couple of weeks apart, so for the past 4 years we've celebrated by staying at the guest quarters at our favorite steakhouse outside of Abilene.

The food was delicious as usual!

We spent hours by the campfire just hanging out and talking.

Can't wait until next year! (by the way, it was great running into you Mauri!!)

Tower Building

Grace has always been an expert at knocking down towers....





But, today she perfected her tower building instead!





She was really concentrating and trying her best to make a tall tower.




I'd say seven blocks is pretty good, Grace!!

Playdoh Playdate

We had a fun playdate with Judah the other day. A lot of the girl's friends are boys, so it's funny when they come over to play with all of our girl toys. If you need your boys to get a lesson in sensitivity and how to take care of babies...come to our house for a few hours! The three of them played so well together though, all on the same task. Playdoh has a way of breaking the barrier...even if it's a cake making shop!

I haven't forgotten about my garage "after" photo. I had a garage sale today and got rid of a huge pile of stuff, now just a tad more organizing and we're good to go. I even parked my car in it tonight!!

Stay Tuned

Ok people, don't judge....




this was my garage before Saturday. I KNOW! It's a little embarassing...this was my "Monica closet" for you Friends fans out there! Wowzer, I can't even believe it myself! Anyway, we worked for hours on this little beauty with the amazing help of Papa, JoJo, and Grammy. It takes a village...one grandmother per child and a grandfather for hands on help. You'll have to stay tuned for the after photo because I have a trash pile and a garage sale/goodwill pile still lingering, but rest assured, it's in much better shape today!

Grammy and her girl

Happy Birthday Grammy! Here's some cute pics of you with your gal the other day.

Happy 4th Birthday Annalee

Annalee,

How in the world are you already 4 years old?? You are such a sweet little girl and we are so blessed to be your parents. You love your sister so much and are so gentle and kind to her and she loves you back just the same. You love to work with your hands painting, drawing, writing, doing playdoh, coloring, cutting...you are very much a fine motor/detail girl. You can write your name using lowercase letters where appropriate as well as several other words from memory. You love your baby dolls, princess castle, dress-up, reading and helping mommy cook. You also love for daddy to do "dead-bug swings" at bedtime and you enjoy bath time until it's time to rinse your hair. You love to hug and kiss us throughout the day, but especially at bedtime and when someone leaves. Even though you are slow to warm up to new people sometimes, once you do, you are completely yourself and such a silly girl. You were so excited to turn 4 and tell everyone how big you are getting. We've talked about what happens when you are 5 (kindergarten...sob, sob), so when you turned 4 you asked what 4 year olds do! We pray many more blessings on you this year and expect to see you blossom even more! You've asked to take a dance class, you'll be practicing riding your new bike, learning more in mother's day out, and taking in new experiences every day. We love you Annalee, you're the most awesome 4 year old we know!

(listening to JoJo and Papa sing Happy Birthday)

Girly Day

With 2 girls, we've had/will have lots of girly days! I love every one of them. Today, we had our first American Girl Doll Store and Bistro experience. It was too cute. We browsed all around for a good while, checked out the dolls getting new hairdos in the salon, and then settled in for a yummy lunch. Of course, the girl's dolls joined us. The waitress set them up with highchairs and tea cups! Thanks JoJo for the fun b-day memory for Annalee (and me too!).





After lunch, we headed over to see the huge Christmas tree and watch the ice skaters.




Grace had a blast too!

Swimming in December

This weekend we celebrated Annalee's 4th birthday! (I'll save the sappy post for her actual b-day on the 27th!) We had her party at an indoor pool because we had some credit left over from a cancelled swim lesson. It was a pretty random thing, but ended up being a really fun party! Thanks to all of our friends and family who came to help Annalee celebrate and for braving your bathing suits in December to do it!! :)