Mirror Mirror

Who is that good looking girl in the mirror?  Is that me?  I look good!

Come here and give me a kiss you hottie!  Love you.

Are you guys checking this out?  Hello?  Are you paying attention?

Are you looking at me?

Whatever, I must play now. 

Best $35 I've spent in a long time!

I am very happy with two recent purchases:

A $19.99 circus tent from IKEA and a $15.00 tunnel from IKEA. 

Both totally easy set up and store pretty nice!  And the girls love them.  A LOT.

I love the kid toys at IKEA.  They have some great plush and wooden toys too.  Its a fun trip if you are looking for something different.

Charlotte approves for sure!

Family Photos

Here is how family pictures goes around here . . . multiple starts and stops trying to get a date and time worked out.  A week of anxiety leading up to the big event, with wardrobe, planning, and prepping all creating issues.  Scott telling me to chill out, me freaking out that no one appreciates the work I put into making this happen, Addy complaining about having to get ready, me again reminding everyone how much effort I put into this and that mommy only asks for a few things and this is one of them . . . I am sure there is eye rolling here on the part of Scott and Addy but I don't see it because they sense I am close to the cliff and so they do it behind my back.

On the way there praying that Addy doesn't mess herself up, that Charlotte doesn't spit up . . .

And then we run around the location carrying changes of clothes, props, etc.  In the end we are hot, sweaty and wondering if anything turned out.

And then our absolutely awesome photographer Eddi @ Simply Snapped by Eddi, delievers these to us and it is all worth it!!

Enough said . . . I had a hard time paring down the 250+ photos, here are some highlights:

Excited to have a great momento of this time!

Pics

Couldn't resist a shot of this little sleeper.  Bottom's up!

If you look really close you can see a little bit of hair is starting to grow.  Just a little. :)

Where is it?

This is another video I was trying to get of Charlotte on the move with her new little scootchin techniuque.  This makes me laugh.  She makes her way to the couch and keeps bending over.  I finally realized she was looking for Addy's hula hoop we keep under the couch.  You can see her looking for it and then get right up next to the couch and try to reach under looking for the hula hoop.  What you don't see is the break down she has when she can't find it!  She was not a happy camper.  She wanted that hula hoop!

Baby in the Box

The other night I was watching these two play together and I was wondering how their relationship will form.  What type of sisterly relationship will they have?  I can't wait to see as they get older. 

Scootchin

Charlotte has transitioned in the last week or so from a stay put baby to an on-the-go girl.  Although not traditional in her method she is getting around.


She scoots all around the house, in fact, I am finding it hard to keep an eye on her.  She's got it down to a fine art now.

This weekend will be the house prepping weekend: gates, stuff off the floors, etc.

The Boss of Reading

When you become a parent I am not sure you are prepared for how proud you feel about your child's accomplishments and growth and development.  Every little milestone is such a source of joy.  I have to say that out of all the wonderful moments I have had watching Addy grow, develop and learn nothing has been sweeter then watching her love of reading develop.  In the last year she has taken off with her reading.  At night after we tuck her in she reads in bed and tonight while we were doing chores and hanging out, she grabbed a book and curled up to read. 

Addy has a ton of books - we rarely seem to make it to the library these days and so we buy a lot of books at the store.  And I don't feel bad about that.  I am okay with breaking the piggy bank on books.  She has pretty much fully transitioned to chapter books and has a wide range of interests.   She'll bring a book along in the car and read outloud for us sometimes.  I love to sit in my room and listen to her read to herself through the monitor.

I love to read.  In fact it might be just about the best thing ever.  I am so thrilled to share this love with Addy.  I can't wait to share the loads of great books out there with her as she grows.

I was telling Addy the other day what a great comfort reading can be to me.  She tells me, "you should read more and not boss me".  She is really hoping the day will come when she doesn't get bossed anymore.  I keep trying to explain to her that she'll be waiting a long time and that Mommy and Daddy get bossed plenty.  She says "yeah, you boss Daddy and Charlotte and Biscuit and the house."  Hmmmmmmm . . . the house?  Perhaps my muttering as I am doing the chores is a little bit bossy.   I told her that the more she reads the more she'll learn and then she can boss others.  No wonder she's reading up a storm.

SPLASH

These speak for themselves.  It is good to be a kid!