Their big day!

Today was a big day in our house... 

I no longer have the ability to say I have 2 2-year olds... and I can no longer blame all the tantrums, misbehaving and general mayhem on the fact my girls are two....

...now I can blame it on the fact they are THREE!  :)

Happy Birthday to my little sweethearts...

I can only imagine life without both of you in it would be unbearably boring...

I love you and all the craziness you girls have brought into my life!

Happy Birthday, Joslyn

Happy Birthday to my sweet niece who turns 7 today.  We got a chance to do a little mini 'session' last weekend at my parents house and I was so excited for a chance to capture her gorgeous blue eyes!  She is such a beautiful little lady with a personality to match!

Lots of love to you, Joslyn ~ I wish I could sing you happy birthday in person today...

10 on 2sday

1.  This is my 3rd week in a row with a 10 on 2sday post!!  I think that's a recent record... Ya know why?  I started writing it in the to-do list section of my calendar...  I REALLY love checking things off my calendar...  even if it keeps me up past 10pm... (which is when I turn into a pumpkin...)

2.  We've had a pretty busy past week...

3.  I had a really fun family session...

4.  Evan graduated from preschool...

5.  I had the bizarre realization that we all matched what I dressed Evan in for his graduation 2 years in a row (2011 = blue, 2010 = red)  (Dan thinks I'm crazy for remembering this stuff... especially since I forget so much else...)

6.  We took a weekend trip to my parents' house in SW Missouri to celebrate my Grandpa & Grandma's 50th Anniversary...

7.  My parents actually live in Joplin, but thankfully just enough outside they weren't in the path of the tornado that hit last week.  We ended up driving through the town and witnessed some of the most unreal sights a person could see...  pictures don't do it justice...  but I will say, it is nothing short of a miracle that more people weren't hurt. 

8.  We said goodbye to Penny... she was my parents dog and part of our family for 12+ years...

9.  My Grandma E also came for a visit to my parents place, so we got another 4 generation photo... and the best part was my girls were NOT screaming while taking the picture!!!

10.  That's it.  It's 10pm and I'm turning into a pumpkin as I type...

The birthday boy...

This little boy...

...isn't so little anymore

...is smart

...is funny

...is the best big brother ever

...loves his sisters and his entire family more than you'd think possible

...loves to read

...has such a strong desire to learn

...wants to be an astronaut

...can do math

...had grown an inch in the last month

...has the memory of a champ

...loves all things Toy Story

...loves all things Cars

...likes writing his alphabet

...has a particular fondness for playing the Wii

...has been asking to go to Chuck-e-cheese for his birthday for MONTHS

...has just turned 5

Happy Birthday, to the bestest, most funnest, awesome-est little man... ever!

Our lives would be nowhere near as cool without you in it.

10 on 2sday

1.  I got a wee bit of good news a few weeks ago...

... and I wasted no time in booking our trip, lining up babysitters (thanks Mom & Dad!), and I'm sure I will come back with a ridiculous amount of pictures!!

2.  Just before the good news we had our winter birthday celebration with my side of the family... it tended to revolve around Avery & Brynn a little more than everyone else (ity bity's will tend to do that, I think?), but it was nice to get everyone together... and get a picture of the cousins where my children were NOT screaming!  (although it was a close call until my Mom rushed in with a snack for Brynn!)

3.  Speaking of birthdays, my Dad celebrated a pretty momentous one... not sure if it's ok to post his age or not, but when have I ever really let that stop me??   :)  He turned 60!  With the help of lots of his family and friends, I created a book for him (using blurb.com - and I TOTALLY recommend them!) that had pictures from baby to now including letters and notes that were written to him for the book.  I was really happy with how it turned out... and I think he was too... a kid at heart...

4.  We got a new laptop not too long ago ~ which was a much needed upgrade.  I edited a photo session in about a 1/3 of the time it took my on my old laptop... soooooooooo sloooooooooooooooooooow it was.  Anyway, it's been a bit of a headache transitioning documents, making sure programs were moved over... and I lost every font I liked for my blog and my photog biz.  Very frustrating... I need to figure out how to get those fonts loaded back on the new computer, but I just haven't yet.  phooey.

5.  Avery & Brynn have been skipping at least one nap a week lately.  And they don't just skip a nap and lay quietly and play... they fight, they scream, they pound on the door, and they tear apart the little bit that is left in their room.  They have starting pulling each others hair during their little scuffles too.  lovely.  (I guess that's what sisters do?)

6.  So in light of their occasional nap-skipping (and general fondness of destruction), we turned their drawers back around... so dang frustrating that I can't even use a chest of drawers in their room.

7.  The girls have finally started pulling their weight around here and helping with the dishes...

8.  Brynn and Avery are still far more interested in the potty than I'm ready for... but again, I'm not totally discouraging it either... I figured for now we would just work on getting clothes on and off... but Brynn has taken it to a whole new level.  We now find her with her PJ's pulled down around her ankles at night when we go check on the kids before bed.  One night, instead of trying to put them back on and risking waking her up... I just pulled them off and let her sleep in her diaper.  I felt kind of bad about it, so the next time it happened I tried re-dressing her... she was a limp noodle... didn't even phase her...
 

9.  Evan and I were looking at the February calendar, you know... back in February... and he started counting... from 1 to 28, and he says... Mommy - it's missing 29!!  Up until that moment he was still forgetting a teen number here and there while counting, and all of the sudden he's counting all of the 20's!!?!?!? 

10.  Evan asked me to take a picture of him with all his favorite toys... and I couldn't resist...

The birthday girls...

Guess what we did today?

We turned TWO!!!!

 Mommy says we aren't supposed to grow up so fast... but we don't listen.  I mean, really, we have to grow into our new tricycles and all!!

And we really want to be able to help daddy clear the snow someday...

heh, heh... just kidding... we'll let Evan do that...

Mommy also says we need to work on sharing... see... we can do that!!

My Mommy tells me that I have a big heart, and I'm kind of a momma's girl ~ and I totally agree, I'm always trying to be her helper.  Sometimes I like to hang out by myself with my nose in a book.  I really like to sing and dance, and my Mommy thinks my fake laugh is adorable.  Mommy puts me in a big girl bed at night, but I usually just sleep on the floor behind the door.  Who likes sleeping where they are supposed to anyway?  Mommy and Daddy keep telling me to "use your words," and it kind of makes me mad when they do, but I sure have been trying!!  I use my manners really well and say peez & tank-uuu all the time!  I like to push buttons too.... mommy says the literal and figurative kind, but I don't really know what that means.  I really like to color, especially when Mommy leaves her planner and a pen within my reach!  Goldmine!!  Mommy says I have a really good pincher grasp, I guess since I was first given a crayon or something ~ and she can always tell my coloring from Evan & Avery's.  I'm pretty laid back, like Daddy, and I don't talk much unless I have a reason to, and Mommy seems to think I have a bit of a temper... not sure if I agree or not.  But I do know I'm loved a lot... but really, could you resist this face?

They gave me a really neat cupcake tonight for my birthday, and I figured out how to blow out the candle!

Well I like to be a little mischievous, although I usually feel bad and end up telling on myself.  Like when I find Mommy's phone where I can reach it, I usually play with it a little bit, then take it straight to Mommy!  I really love Evan & Brynn.  I tell them hi every morning and give them hugs.  I like to repeat everything Evan says, well, anything anyone says for that matter.  I prefer to talk in full sentences, and unless I get into my mumble-everything moods I can usually get what I want if I ask nice enough!  I really like to take baths, and my hair gets really curly when I get out!  I sure hope I grow out of my food allergies some day... I've been noticing everyone else eating bananas and cheese and peanuts and I really want some of that too!!  Mommy says I'm the most determined child she knows.  She's right.  If I don't get what I want the first time, I just wait for the right moment when Mommy isn't paying attention.  And I get it.  I really like to jump and tumble.  Mommy says I do things with GUSTO ~ like when she goes to change my stinky diaper, I like to jump over to her and plop right on my bottom! My mommy is always sticking a camera in my face, she thinks it's hard to get me to smile for her... but I don't think so... well, maybe a little!

They also stuck a cupcake in my face tonight and I really didn't like the fire... but once they got rid of those things, I sure liked to eat it!!

The Birthday Flowers...

I finally 'bit the bullet' and bought a seamless backdrop to play around with, partly for the girls' 2-year pictures (that I attempted already, but failed miserably at... so try, try again!)

Anyway, I found a subject that would hold still for me...



Thanks Mom & Dad, I love them!  They are perfectly bright & cheery for the drab, cold days of January!

Christmas Traditions

The Christmas Chain
Last year I started doing a Christmas chain with Evan, in the hopes that he would stop pestering me with... "is it Christmas yet? Is it Christmas yet?"  This year we did it again, and got the girls involved a little bit!









Elf on the Shelf
This is our first year with the Elf on the Shelf, and I must say, this is the perfect year (4-1/2) to introduce it ~ Evan is TOTALLY into this.  And I must admit, the past two days that our little "Santa Spy" has been with us, has gone much more smoothly... and Evan named her "Nare".  Now I just need to figure out a way to incorporate this concept year-round!



MOM Christmas Party
Last year was our first year going to our Mothers Of Multiples (MOM) Christmas party, and of course Santa and Mrs. Claus are there! So, this year we went again and Evan was SO excited to see Santa that he just about knocked over the kids that were finishing up in front of us to get on his lap!



Brynn... not so much...



But she was ok sitting on Dan's lap, so we at least got one picture of the kids not flipping out!!



Santa's beard...
I'm not sure if this is actually going to stick around as a tradition or not, but Evan's preschool class did these and took them home.  It's a cute idea, and Evan loves gluing the cotton ball on every morning!




What are some of your favorite traditions??

Happy Birthday, my dear!

Happy Birthday, Dan!

Even though our lives often resemble this:

It's still fun to share the craziness with you!  I love you!

Being a Mom is AWESOME

                  Always:

       hard Work

                       Exhausting

                self Sacrificing

               lOving

                  Mostly:

                              the bEst job in the world

Sending lots of love out to all the Mom's I know and love.

Happy Birthday, little man!

At 2:24am on this day 4 years ago, my world was rocked like I could never imagine.

I became known as Mommy, Mom, Mother.

I entered into parenthood.

Holy crap!

There is nothing that prepares you for it. The long nights, the longer days, the feeling like you do nothing right, and not even knowing what right is for that matter. No advice, no book, no talk show can help you. You just do the best you can and hope you don't screw up too bad.

The challenges, the growth, the love I have experienced in the last 4 years is like nothing I can describe in words.

My little man is 4 today.



Happy Birthday, Evan.

I love you more than I can express in words.

A beautiful day...

...for a wedding!

Welcome to the family!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Dad!

After the past year, I can't even express how happy I am that I got to celebrate with you in person last weekend with the girls!  I love you, Dad!

Oh so happy!

Bringing a smile to my face, Why Men Can't Cry awarded my blog with its first award!  The "Happy 101!"  

The rules of this award are to list ten blogs and ten things that make you happy. 

The ten blogs:

This is Our Life - This is a friend from H.S., and really the first blog I ever read, I love to keep up to date on her family, and she really has a great perspective on parenting (and her husband posts as well - a great combination)!

The Larson Adventure - Another friend from H.S., they just had a baby recently and I am loving watching her baby grow!

Hannah in the Kitchen - Yet another friend from H.S., and her yummy sweets make my mouth water! 

Texas Size Hull - A friend of my family in AZ, I get to see pics of my extended family, and she has a lot of fun, creative ideas on her site - most recently her son's Thomas birthday party! 

Black Lung Crayola - Another friend who is on a brave mission to quit smoking after I-don't-remember-how-many-years!   It's a neat concept for a blog, and I think it has great potential to inspire others to quit smoking.


Everything That is Nice - I found this blog from a friend, and she has such *nice* projects (one of which I am attempting right now). 


Pioneer Woman - This is just a great blog, she has no idea I exist, but I love her photography, recipes, and the giveaways (I haven't won anything yet, but I'll sure keep trying) ~ and it's just a beautiful blog.   

A Year of Slow Cooking -Perhaps the most influential blog I've read - I started cooking with her recipes, and that really sparked a true love of cooking!


Knock Off Wood - This is a newly found blog (actually, I think I found the link from Everything That is Nice) - and it inspires me to want to start building things!  I haven't yet, mostly because it's too cold to go out in the garage and start working (and I'm a wimp) (and I have too many other "projects" to do), but I may try to build a simple shelf sometime this summer... we'll see!


Heaps of Laundry - Last, but certainly not least ~ this is another blog I recently found through a friend on facebook - they post projects for little kids - which is perfect, I am horrible at thinking of projects for the kids (well, just Evan right now), and this blog has some great ideas!



And the ten things that make me happy:

~Being with my family and friends
~Reading to my children 
~Warmth
~Beautiful photography
~Baking cookies
~Licking the spoon after baking cookies... totally.  after.  not during.  (that would be gross)
~Fixing a problem
~Finishing a project
~Flowers
~Unexpected kindness




Thanks for making me smile!  It really wasn't my intent to take two weeks to finish this post, but my brain has been consumed with planning Avery & Brynn's birthday party - pictures to-be posted soon eventually! 

A Letter to Brynn

To My Angel, Brynn ~
At 12:40pm, on February 2nd, 2009 - you joined our family. I call you my angel because of the amount of patience you have ~ I am given opportunities to learn patience from your siblings, but you are showing me how to do it.

The games you love to play are opening and closing cabinets or drawers (fortunately I think you finally got the hang of NOT closing them on your fingers anymore), and pulling everything out.  You also love to look at books and turn the pages.  You have 4 teeth, and are very proficient at using them to bite everything (sometimes your sister... and me).  You smiled and laughed very early on, and you still love to laugh ~ it is possibly the most infectious laugh I've heard, and I can't help but laugh with you!  You have been trying very hard to walk lately, but at times your left foot turns in and makes you kinda flop to the floor, although the last couple days you have been taking 4-5 steps at a time!

You have such a beautiful personality, like your sister, it was obvious since birth.  You have always been a little more introverted - sometimes preferring to play by yourself, and more comforted by being alone.  You have always kind of been Mommy's little girl, which is quite alright by me.  The amount of patience you exhibit amazes me.  (Mostly because I have very little)  Each new milestone you have mastered has never frustrated you ~ you just keep trying until you have it down.  And you are SO curious.  Every new thing you see requires a lot of observation.  You seem to be drawn to the smallest details (like a tiny piece of fuzz on the carpet, that inevitably ends up in your mouth).   

Some of the words you say are mama, dada, hi, all done (ah duh - and you can sign it).  You have also signed more.  Mostly you are pretty quiet, and just observe your surroundings.  You are a lot like your Daddy, though, when you have something to say - you will say it! 

Happy Birthday Angel,
Mommy