Daddy/Daughter Dance

Ryan took Clare and Ellen to a Father-Daughter dance a few weekends ago.  Ellen was thrilled she was old enough to attend this year and was SO excited about her big night out.  

Waiting for Daddy...

When they saw he had roses for them...

 

Pretty girls! 

  

Such a big girl! 

Keeping her eye on her prize!

 So sweet and excited! 

 And just because he could, Ryan wore his favorite jacket....

The boys and I had our own fun...pizza for dinner, an early bedtime for Michael, laundry folding, and then Jude read Dr. Seuess books to me.  Pretty nice night for us, too! 

Here's to another great weekend!

All Things Valentine's....

Here's a quick rundown of the holiday of love at our house...

School valentine mailboxes ready to go...

Our front door...

How I made it here.

Kindergarten concert...

Best I could do with my camera and an ear infected 11 month old on my lap...

How I know my husband loves me...

Hope your day/weekend was just as sweet!

11 Months!

This sweet boy is 11 months old! 

Passes the Time: Loves to look out the window.  The view here is snow snow snow snow.  Especially loves watching older siblings playing in the snow.  

Favorite Family Member: Jude!  Daddy is becoming a close second.

New Favorite Posture: Kneeling!  A lot!  Propped up on anything he can find and even on his own! We lowered the crib a few weeks ago because of his new trick.  

Also Seen: Crawling on all fours as opposed to his fastest method of transportation, the army crawl. 

Sleeps: Morning nap and afternoon nap.  (And I love that both are uninterrupted on snow days!) Usually up once around 1AM to nurse during the night.  

Favorite Foods: Loves noodles, especially spaghetti.  

Entertainment: Likes to "dance" to music.  Loves to clap.  Can do "SO BIG!"  

Loves to: Snuggle.  Especially in the morning and after naps.  Such a sweet sweet boy.  

I can't believe we will celebrate his 1st birthday next month!  

10 MONTHS!

I cannot believe this baby boy is 2 months away from his 1st birthday!  It seems like it was just yesterday I was starring down at my big belly wondering when he was going to make his debut!  Michael has been a bit more daring lately and is starting to pull himself up onto the bottom step and has also made his way into the cabinets more than once.  And so the "fun" really begins!

And his fans love his "model" pose...

Weight: 23 lbs., 2 oz.

Height: 29 inches

Eating: Thinks he is a big boy eating more table foods and feeding himself.  Especially loves breakfast time.  (Maybe because he is perched in the high chair with a good view of the morning action.)

Starting to enjoy: Books, especially ones with "touch and feel" pages.

Newest feat: Going from an army crawling to sitting position on his own.

Latest accomplishment: Growing more hair.  Mostly on the sides and over his ears sporting a bit of a Bozo the Clown do.

Disposition: Still very sweet and always snuggly.

Snow Ice Cream

We are part of the snowpocalyspe that has hit the US of A.  (So much that our Christmas break is continuing an extra day today...)  A friend sent us this Ice Cream Snow recipe and we made it after dinner last night.  Jude gave it 2 bouncing thumbs up (a sign he really really likes something).  And making it broke our cabin fever for a few minutes!  

4 cups of fresh snow 

1 cup of milk or cream

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and enjoy!

Plenty of snow here to make more tonight!!

  

8 Months!?!?!

Our sweet Michael turns 8 months old today.  

8 MONTHS OLD!  He is getting too old too fast!  

Nickname: Bubbs.

Eats: Still nurses, but eats solids like no other baby I have ever had!  He especially likes peas, green beans, and bananas.  

Latest achievement: Mastering the army crawl!  He made his way into the kids' bathroom the other day and tipped over the trash for the first time.  

Newest talent: Clapping!  

Teeth: 4 - 2 on top and 2 on bottom.

Says: "Da-da" and "Juuu" (I'm pretty sure that means Jude!)

Diaper size: Yes, that's a 4.  

Orange

Linking up today with Cari for Theme Thursday, which is "Orange." 

I'm sharing oldies but goodies of Miss Clare (and myself) right around her 3rd birthday...  

So sweet.  Of course it seems like we took these last week and not 5 years ago! 

Love my mini-me!

FIVE Months

I know it sounds extremely cliche to say it, but I can't believe Michael is already 5 months old!  He's getting too big too fast.  I feel like he was itty bitty for a day and since then has been a big boy.

He's not so sure about the "applesaucer" (as Jude refers to it), but still loves the bouncer seat.  Although now he has to be buckled because he's rolling all over and over and over.

He is the best nighttime sleeper I have ever had and slept ELEVEN straight hours the other night.  (I did not know this skill was possible at this age...)

He's discovered he has a voice and it's sweet to hear him babbling to himself or one of his admirers.

He was a champion in the car on our l-o-n-g drive to Destin.

His belly laugh is contagious, specifically when he's being tickled on any of his chins or thighs.

He is a very easy and sweet baby boy!

Destin 2013

We enjoyed a week of rest and relaxation (as much as possible when traveling and vacationing with 4 children!) last week in Destin, Florida.  The kids love the "squeaky" white sandy beach, and I'm a pretty big fan, too.  It was great to spend time with family, especially aunts, uncles, siblings, and cousins that don't live nearby.

Hang ten!

Looking for seashells.

Bathing beauty.

Grandpa treated us to a Pirate cruise on Tuesday and Clare and Jude had a blast!  

Jude wanted to keep his mustache for the whole week.  

He is the sweetest and most laid-back baby I've ever had!

Just the 6 of us!

Michael was a trooper in the car.  I'd have 100 babies if they all traveled as well as he did!  And now I'm somehow back to the reality that is Laundry even though our house had a washer/dryer...  

All worth it, though!

The Things He Says...

(We love our Best Guy.  I cringe that he loves his summer mohawk...)

As he is getting his nails cut: 

"I wish my fingernails were long so I could turn off the light from my bed."

A few minutes after lunch: 

"I can feel my food going into my esophagus now."  

(Ed. note:  Confirmed over-exposure to "The Magic School Bus Inside the Human Body."

When told to come out of the rain because it's starting to thunder and lightening and it's not safe:

"Because I've been a really good son?"

Who Wore It Best?

Outfit size 9 months.

Jude at 15 months

vs.

Michael at 3 months

(Linking up with Dwija.)  

Don't forget to enter my giveaway here.

Throwback Thursday

Kickin' it with Cari today for Theme Thursday: "Black and White."

I have a few favorite black and white pictures of my kids (these both just happen to be of my girls).

I love this one of Ellen on the deck at the OBX in 2011.  

(Picture by my sister-in-law Rosemary.)

And these of Clare way back when...  She was just learning to walk and standing up at the window was a favorite activity.  Things were much quieter and days were a lot slower then! 

Happy Thursday! 

It's the Little Things

Clare brought home her 1st grade journal during the last week of school.  Each Monday during the school year she wrote about what she did over the weekend.  The first few entries were a bit rough to read, but as the year progressed her writing did as well.  I noticed a constant theme in her journal throughout the whole school year.  It was the simplest things that she often chose to write about.  (Granted our weekends never amount to much!)  A trip to the park, drinking root beer, flying a toy airplane, reading...  It was so sweet to see the joy she sees in the little things.  And a good reminder to me to stop and enjoy the simple joys life so often brings.

Weekend Update

I hope you had a great weekend!  No baby news here, yet.  And that was a good thing because that meant Ryan and Clare were able to go to their much-anticipated Father-Daughter Dance on Saturday night.  Needless to say, Clare was very much looking forward to their date night!

And she was especially thrilled with her wrist corsage.  (I think she kept it on alllllll night!)

The happy couple.

Dancing the night away.

Jude, Ellen, and I enjoyed a cra-zy night of VeggieTales AND popcorn.  We know how to par-tay!

Here's to a great week!