Swim Meet

Andy is out of town for his last weekend at Seton Hall and it's me and the girls on our own. Today I really wanted to go watch Stephy swim in her last Wahoos swim meet and finally decided I wouldn't let 2 small kids stop me! I strapped Ella on my chest and held Lilly's hand and off we went! We had a good time and I love the smell of chlorine!!! The memories...

The pictures are blurry since Jackie took them with my phone but it documents our day's events nonetheless. Lilly loves watching swim meets but was a bit upset about posing for a picture since we were on our way to get her her very favorite... a soft pretzel.
Ella slept in the Baby Bjorn the whole time - whistles, shouting, beeping and all! She is such a good baby and it helps that I'm much more relaxed this time around. I never in a million years would have 1. taken Lilly out at her nap time, 2. taken Lilly out of her car seat after she'd fallen asleep, and 3. exposed Lilly to chlorine at 3 months old. I'm growing as a mom!!!

I got my swim meet fill and we passed the time while Daddy's gone.

Happy Baby

Lilly's Birthday

Lilly's birthday is over but it sure was fun celebrating! Yesterday we had a really nice day. She had dance class and we made chocolate mold suckers and took them to each of the kids in class. She wanted to go to McDonald's for lunch so after dance we picked up Andy (who was home sick) and went to McDonald's. She ate and played in the play land area. Then we headed home for her to nap. When she woke up we made a birthday cake and she opened some presents that arrived in the mail. She received some adorable cookies for her kitchen from Savannah and Mickey Mouse fur crocs from Jordan. She was very excited. Jordan's card turned into a crown...
For dinner we headed to Olive Garden with Babcia and the DiNunzio's. We had our own little private cove which reminded me of family outings when I was little. We always had our whole family to a restaurant for special occassions and we were always in a private room. Lilly was very happy.
Lilly wanted to dress like Ella. Good thing I've been buying matching spring clothes.

Lilly ordered her favorite - fettucini alfredo and she ate more than half! She also ate 2 helpings of salad and 2 breadsticks. She loves Olive Garden (so do Mommy and Daddy).
After dinner the wait staff came out and sang Happy Birthday to Lilly and gave her a dish of ice cream with a candle. It was adorable and she was grinning from ear to ear.

We headed home from Olive Garden to finish her birthday celebration with the cake we made together. I can't believe she's 3!!!

Jackie gave Lilly the Elefun game and she and Stephy had fun playing. We played again today (many times). She giggles and tries to catch the "butterflies" but for now she stands still and doesn't try to follow them as they fall. She's too cute.
It was a fun birthday. The celebrating spanned over 2 days which was nice. We gave her a butterfly pavilion where she'll be able to watch caterpillars turn into Painted Lady butterflies. We're just waiting on the caterpillars to arrive. She's very very excited and so am I!

3 Years Ago

3 years ago today you entered this world...
3 years ago today I first laid eyes on you. It was a beautiful, unforgettable moment.
3 years ago today you arrived perfect in every way. Precious cargo sent from God.
3 years ago today my life changed forever... in the best possible way.
3 years ago today we created the family I have always dreamed of.
You are my love, you keep me laughing, you are so beautiful inside and out.
Happy Birthday sweet girl. I love you very much.

Birthday Weekend

We had a great weekend full of new adventures and new toys! Ella tried out her Bumbo seat and was loving that she could sit up.
Lilly got roller skates (they're actually inline) for her birthday. She really wanted them and Sophia gave them to her.

We went out to get her some pads and a helmet for her skates and came home with a new bike! Andy thought it would be easier for her than her tricycle (which she's very good at riding) and he was right. She zips all through the house on it. It's so adorable and of course it's a princess bike. She can't wait to ride it outside when it's a bit warmer.

It's always fun to have new toys to play with!

Tomorrow is Lilly's actual birthday. I can't believe my baby is going to be 3 years old! We're going to make a funfetti cake together and she has requested pasta and hot chocolate for dinner. She has dance so we're making a special treat to take to her little dancing friends. More to come on the big day tomorrow.

Jesus Loves Me

Lilly knows who loves her...

She was reading a book (just as you see) and singing away. Of course I always have my camera nearby.

Lilly's 3rd Birthday Party!

Today was Lilly's princess birthday party! Last night Andy and I got the house ready. We hung all of Lilly's dress-up clothes for the kids to try on.
We also put out all of her jewels, wands, and shoes.
This morning Lilly took a bath and I dried her hair so it would look like "princess hair."

Ella dressed for the party too!
Lilly's friends Abby, Sophia, Lindsay, and Nate came and they danced to princess music (Nate, Abby's brother, hung out in another room and played with toys), made a princess craft, changed dress-up clothes, played "Place Cinderella in the Castle"...
...pulled the pinata strings (one string releases the suckers that we placed inside)...

...and ate pizza and cake. Lilly's princess cake was so pretty we didn't want to cut it!

We sang Happy Birthday and then each little princess took turns blowing out the candles. Sophia actually blew Lilly's candles out the first time and I was thrilled that Lilly handled it just fine (considering she's blown many other kids' candles out at their parties!). So we relit the candles and let each little girl have a turn blowing them out.
The kids were adorable. It was just the right amount of friends. I'm pretty sure Lilly had a blast. She's napping now and when she wakes up she'll open her presents! Birthdays are so much fun!

Sick Baby

My poor sweet baby was up all night last night. I think it was gas pains but can't figure out why or how. I'm not eating anything different and I eat a fairly bland diet. I burped her twice before bed. Who knows, but I eventually put her into bed with me and I stayed awake all night while rubbing her back and belly. It was very sad.

She was happy briefly this morning (maybe she was excited to be in her first pair of jeans??)... ...but then started crying and whimpering nonstop.
*Lilly took this picture!!!*
It was such a change in her personality that I took her to the pediatrician to have her ears checked. She did have a temperature but the doctor said she checked out fine with the exception of some mucous. I asked about the fever but he didn't really address it. So I'm left wondering what's wrong with her!?

Tonight I'm planning to burp her well and give her some Tylenol. Hopefully it will be a better night... if not I will appreciate our time together in those wee hours and be grateful that we were finally blessed to have her.

Lazy Day

We stayed home and lounged around all day today. It's been so nice! Ella, Lilly, and I stayed in bed watching TV until 10:00!! That was a first but it was fun. Ella slept and Lilly and I watched TV and chatted. We were too cold to get out from under the covers!

Then Lilly went and got herself dressed while I showered...
(those are capri pants from last summer)
We headed downstairs and painted and played. Ella slept some more.

Lilly's been so good about using the potty on her own (when naked) that today I suggested she put on panties. She was happy to do so and she went about the day playing. I guess she didn't feel like walking to the potty so she used her (play) kitchen sink...
Ella just watched her little toy and had fun swatting at his legs.
We got our electric/gas bill today and I am not happy. A few months back it was almost $600 so I turned the heat down and it went to $500. I was so fed up that I dropped the heat to 66 degrees (yes we've been freezing) and we have not touched it since. The bill went UP $25!!! So here I sit in a sweatshirt, pants, socks, etc. but the cold house will not stop Lilly from dancing naked. I think that's why she's always warm! She danced until nap time.

Yummy

Today we went to the grocery store to order Lilly's birthday cake and to do a full grocery shop. Lilly asked me for a (BIG) pickle in a big round container near the deli. She helped me put one in a bag. Then she asked me if she could eat it and this is how she walked around ACME...

I can't stand pickles so this totally skeeved me.

Ella slept the whole time.

Baptism Weekend

Dad, Kay, and Grandmother came to New Jersey this weekend to visit with Lilly and to meet Ella. Lilly was very excited on Saturday when I told her they'd be here when she woke from her nap. It was nice that they were able to spend some time with Ella before Lilly woke up. Mama bonded with Ella...
Nana Kay and Ella. Check out the cheeks!
Papa is a natural...
I forgot that Grandmother is quite the pianist! She surprised us with a hymn while Lilly joined in. So cute sitting there together at 92 and 2 years old!
Papa and Ella had a great conversation. I wonder what she told him!?
On Sunday Ella was to be baptized at our church - Haddonfield United Methodist - at 9:30 a.m. It was so nice to have our friends and family there for the service. Nana Kay was behind the photographer sticking out her tongue so Lilly reciprocated...
As we went up for the baptism Lilly's shoe fell off. I thought I bought them a little big! Oops! Andy was calm and collected as he put her shoe back on.
Our Pastor, George, was out of town so our new pastor, Brian, baptized Ella. I only love this picture because of how Lilly's standing. I think she was contemplating her next move which was to run back down to see Thomas and then back to us and then finally back to Jackie who was waving a large candy stick in the air for her... It was just fine since it's a casual service and we know most of the congregation. I really feel so comfortable in our church and at this service. It's something I look forward to each week.
He really soaked Ella with Holy Water. I had to choke back the tears. Such an emotional moment.
We woke Ella up to be baptized so she was ready to go back to sleep when we sat down.
God is so great. I hope that we can raise our girls to know Him and to live their lives as He would have us all live. What a beautiful occasion.

We tried our best to get a family shot but it's much harder with 2 kids and I have learned to take what I can get.
The family...
Once again our great friend Kat made us a cake! She is such a wonderful person and always offers to make cakes for our special occasions. It has come to mean so much to me to have her cake displayed at our gathering. Everyone loved the cake and it was as beautiful as it was delicious. What a wonderful sentiment to a perfect day.
Enjoying time with family and friends is really what it's all about. I'm so glad our girls were able to spend time with grandparents and family on both sides of our family. It doesn't get much better than that!