Emily is 3 Years and 3 Months Old!

It's time for the monthly update!  Emily is doing so well and continues to grow and amaze us.  Here's what she is doing right now:

- She loves to cut with scissors (she has a little set of Fiskars Preschool ones that I bought and keep locked up at ALL times...3 year old girls are notorious for cutting their own hair!)  She will gladly cut any piece of paper into about 200 little pieces if you'll let her.

- She loves to dance in the car.  On the (mostly rare) occasions that it'st just she and I in the car, she will ask me to "play it loud" and we will bob our heads around and wave our arms and dance.  It's so cute and totally makes my day!

- She is VERY into Pretend Play now.  Paul and I are constantly getting roped into her games (2 favorites- A) when she is the teacher [her name is Iddie] and Paul and I are her students [Paul is named Coco and I am Marlo and when she is given a chance to play, Audrey's name is Cutie] and B) when she is Tinkerbell and Paul is Terence and I am SilverMist and Audrey is Rosetta and Katie is Cheese the Mouse, from her Tinkerbell movies).  She sets up very elaborate scenarios and we just go right along with it!

- She only wants to wear her Sketchers Twinkle Toes shoes to school (the light-up shoes from Santa).  Any other shoes require a lot of negotiation and usually I just give in...

- She is so hungry- it seems like she is always getting into the kitchen or pantry or asking me to get her something.  She is also very specific about what she wants- 2 nights ago she insisted that her dinner should be a "great big sandwich" so I made her a ham and cheese on 2 pieces of bread....and she ate almost eery bite!

-  She is IN LOVE with Dora the Explorer. Seriously- every single day she begs to watch episode after episode.  I wouldn't normally mind her loving a new show (you won't hear me complaining that Barney is GONE from our lives now!) but she internalizes so much of what she sees on Dora and it's making me nuts!  Here's what I'm talking about: It's 7:45pm and she should have been asleep half an hour ago.  However, she's unable to sleep because there's a crocodile in her room.  Or Baby Jaguar needs help.  Or there's a Grumpy Old Troll out in the hallway.  Or lions in the kitchen.  This happens all the time right now!  So for as much as I love the absence of Barney....not sure how much I love the presence of Dora!

- She is learning to drive her Barbie Jeep and bicycle but the weather hasn't been very cooperative...she's only getting a chance maybe once every 2-3 weeks because it is SO cold here right now.  I thought about taking her out today (it was a balmy 42 degrees) but the wind was blowing so hard that it felt much colder. I wish it were spring!




Hat over her eyes and no hands....look out!


- I think she's going through a growth spurt... her pants are starting to get a little high!  She is wearing 3T shirts and pants right now but starting to look like the floods are coming, haha.  Hopefully the weather will change and she will be able to wear warm weather clothes soon!

- She has started asking a lot of questions about "when Audrey gets big". It's so precious!  She wants to know if, when Audrey gets big, will she swim with her? Will she eat pizza? Will she sleep in Emmy's room? Will she play outside?  Will she be Emmy's friend? It totally melts my heart!  When you combine her questions with Audrey's adoration (seriously...that little girl freezes when Emily comes around!) I am just so excited to see what the future will hold for my sweet babies. 

- She is very into dressing herself and picking out her accessories right now- it seems like every day she needs a belt, hat, tiara, scarf, jewelry, hair clips, sparkly shoes, etc....  and HEAVEN HELP YOU if you try to talk her out of it!


Wearing her pink belt!

So there you have this month's update. Enjoy the new pictures (I posted some tonight!) and please check back! :)

Picture Update!

 I am learning to use my camera on Manual mode...it's proving to be a challenge but not too difficult.  It has actually been easier to shoot Audrey and not Emily- Emmy is a little bit too busy being 3 years old and does NOT like sitting still for me to get ready!!  Audrey, however, has no choice. ;)

Here's some new shots (minimal editing done- just some sharpening here but not messing with exposure...this is all me!!!)  New albums are up on the Picasa page- Audrey Month 5 and Emily 3 Years 2 Months.  Enjoy!! :)

I love this one- she was looking at Emily as Em was singing and dancing.  PRECIOUS!

Audrey's 4 Month Appointment

Today Paul took Audrey to the pediatrician for her 4 month appointment (he is on vacation this week and I would have had to take time off work).  Here's her stats:

Weight: 13lbs1oz (25th percentile)
Length: 24 inches (50th percentile)
Head circumference: I will have to check with Paul!


While she was in the office Audrey threw up pretty significantly (Paul said the most he's ever seen).  Poor girl!  Dr Y watched her for a few minutes and decided that Audrey PROBABLY has reflux/ silent reflux like Emily did (and Paul and I both deal with it too).  So, she wrote her a prescription for Zantac and she will begin taking that 2x/ day.  I hate for her to already be on medicine but I hate for her to be uncomfortable, too.  She noticed that Audrey HATES tummy time and basically just lies her head down and cries....I seem to remember another little girl who did the same thing!  She did say that Audrey has good head control (we sit her up away from us a lot and her head hardly shakes anymore at all).  Overall, a good appointment!  She had some shots and Paul was surprised at how hard she cried....I was not sorry to miss that at all!  She goes back in 2 months for her 6 month visit. 

Audrey is 4 Months Old!

Audrey is four months old! I can't believe how quickly she has grown and all the things she is doing right now- she is so precious and we just love her so much.  Here's a glimpse into life with Audrey this month:

- she has discovered her hands and plays with them constantly.

- she is a BIG fan of sucking on her thumb...not sure we love this but SHE loves to suck her thumb, that's for sure!

- she has discovered her voice this week and she really, really is learning how to use it.  She's constantly shrieking and yelling now!

- she is wearing size 1-2 diapers and size 3-6 month clothes, although the clothes are getting tight!  She is very long- she goes to the doctor on Tuesday and I am excited to see how long she is!

- she likes to lie on a quilt on the floor as opposed to sitting in her papasan chair now.  She likes to watch us cook and play from the floor instead of her little chair.

- she likes the TV...a lot!  She will be all sneaky and watch it whenever she gets a chance.

- she ADORES Emily and watches her every move.  It is so cute to watch her looking at Emily- you can just tell that she really loves her so much.

- she is learning to laugh and does so just about every day.

- she smiles constantly- at everyone.  I love it!!!

- she gets angry when she can't make her toys sing or light up- especially a little VTech bear she has.  When he stops singing she gets so mad!

- she is now sleeping around 5-8 hours in a row at night (HEAVEN!) and is learning to take 2 longer naps during the day instead of 3-4 smaller naps.

- she met her grandparents (my parents) and aunt (my sister Aran) for the first time after Christmas.

- she has tried out the Bumbo chair a few times but does NOT enjoy it much at all.  She cries and cries!

- she is getting better at Tummy Time, but, like the Bumbo chair, she hates it!  However, when she does do TT she is able to hold her head up pretty high now and can look in front of herself. Big girl!

That's a little snippet into my sweet girl.  Be sure to check out the pictures in the Picasa albums! 

Singalong with Emily

Emily's new favorite thing to do is sing. Loudly.  And so, I began listening carefully to her songs...and this is what I have heard:

Jingle Bells
Vashing frew dee snow,
In a one-horse wopen sleigh,
ghrie ogngreioghr infkbn gfgieorg hewnbf [indiscernible jibberish]
Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all dee way
Oh what fun it is to ride in a one- horse wopen sleigh
HEY
Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all dee way
Oh what fun it is to ride in a one-horse wopen sleigh.

Jesus Loves Me
Jesus loves me, this I know
For dee Bible tells me so

Little ones to him be gone (<---- OMG!!)

Day are weak....[mumblemumblemumble]
YES, JESUS LOVES ME! YES, JESUS LOVES ME!
YES, JESUS LOVES ME!
Dee Bible tells me so.

Jesus Loves the Little Children
Jesus loves a little chiiiiiild-REN,
ALL DA CHILDREN OF DA WOOOOOORD
Red and yellow....precious precious night
JESUS LOVES A LITTLE CHILDREN OF DA WOOOOOOORD!

Baa, Baa, Black Sheep
Baa, baa, black sheet,
have you any rule,
Yes sir, yes sir,
flea bags fur.
One for my master,
one for a day,
one for my little buddy who lives in the way.
Baa, baa, black sheet,
have you any rule?
Yes sir, yes sir,
flea bags fur!

That's only a sampling of some of the entertainment we're getting these days...so funny! I'll post more as I catch all the new lyrics.. :)

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Today was Daddy's Golden Birthday- 30 years old on the 30th!  We celebrated him all day long.  First, Emily and I headed to the Dollar Store where she hand-picked several gifts for him (more on this later).  Then she helped me to wrap them.  We presented him his gifts after Birthday Breakfast, which was French Toast (Daddy's pick). 

First gift: a small ceramic handyman!

Next gift: a bag of cotton candy!

Third gift: a set of "bracelets" for Daddy (really cup coozies but Emily insisted they are bracelets)!

Last gift: a beautiful ceramic African American angel!

Finally Paul opened his gift from me- a t shirt quilt I had made of all his old fraternity and college t shirts.  It's really amazing!

Then we had a yummy birthday dinner of pork ribs, sweet potatoes, green beans, and of course birthday cake!  Paul had actually asked for a birthday apple pie so we only bought a very teeny tiny cake:

And of course he had to have help blowing out the candles:

It was such a special day.  Here are 2 more of my favorite pics- a close up of some of his special gifts from Emily and one of the card she picked out for him.... his "cupcake card" as she said it...but it says, "For a Good Friend".  Ooooh Emily.......  never a dull moment around here!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!  We love you so much!

Christmas Recap 2010

We had a terrific Christmas! It was so wonderful getting to experience the excitement through Emily's eyes and have precious Audrey there to share it with us.  We headed to WV to spend the holidays with Paul's family. Emily treated all the people at Aunt Mary's house to a free dance recital:

Then we headed home to Granny and Grandaddy's house.  We donned our matching jammies (my BFF Aid even found a sock monkey sleeper so Audrey could match too...thanks Aid- you rock!) and got things ready for Santa. Emmy opted to leave him cookies, milk, and carrots, and she sprinkled her reindeer food on the front yard.

Do you love how I'm the only one looking at the camera? We took 10+ shots and this was the "best" one!

Then Emily and Audrey went to sleep and Mommy and Daddy commenced setting things up for Christmas morning:

We finally finished everything and went to bed around 11pm.

The next morning, of course, was Christmas!! Emily woke up and headed downstairs...and was so excited!  She loved the new things Santa left out:

Audrey even enjoyed her gifts!

Finally we let Emily into the living room for her BIG present from Granny and Grandaddy:

Her Jeep is being delivered to us later this week when Paul's parents come down to visit.  I know she's going to LOVE getting to ride it on our street!! Neighbors...watch out! :)

We are so thankful to have made so many good memories and to have our sweet girls to celebrate with.  There are plenty more pictures in the Christmas 2010 album...enjoy!  :)