Kate and her makeup and Hannah lost her tooth

Okay, Kate got makeup for Christmas and she has been working really hard on putting it on. She was so excited when she opened it up because that was on of the things on her list to Santa. So far she has just put a little blush on and some lip stick but today she got a bit crazy.

And today was an awesome day for Hannah, she lost her second front tooth. That tooth has been hanging on for the last 3 weeks and we really thought it was going to go before Christmas. My money was on Christmas Eve so that Santa and the tooth fairy could come on the same night, we thought that would be silly. So now she has a toothless grin and she suddenly looks so big.

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day photos

What a wonderful Christmas we had. The girls enjoyed everything about this holiday season. I loved watching them look at the tree and listing to them wonder what was in the gifts under the tree, the excitement and energy on Christmas morning could have run a small country. We opened the gifts over a 3 hour period, enjoying and playing with each thing as it was unwrapped. I took as many pictures as I could but some things got opened and played with before I could snap a shot. Thank you to everyone for all the wonderful things you sent. The girls loved each and everything and played with everything all day today. Here are some great shots from Christmas eve and then from this morning, enjoy.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2044103&id=1122309468&l=c5196f6d44

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2044214&id=1122309468&l=edc11a677c

Snow snow snow

I'm a little behind on getting pictures up from our wonderful snow adventure. The entire family had a blast sledding and playing in the 10+ inches of snow we got last Friday. Enjoy the pictures.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2043672&id=1122309468&l=627a672ff5

Hannah's school picture

We just got Hannah's school pictures back. My little Kindergartner looks so big, when did that happen???

Letters to Santa

The girls worked really really hard on their letters to Santa the other day. I scanned them in the computer before they mailed them off. I hated seeing the letters go because they where so cute and they put so much work into them, but they so badly wanted Santa to see them and who can stand in the way of Santa. So off the letters went. And little did the girls know that Santa has already filled their wishes. Its so much fun being Santa, I wonder how much long it will last. I think Hannah will be able to keep the wonder up long than Kate. Kate is very fact driven so it might be a bit harder for her. But this year its still all magical and wonderful and I'm going to keep it that way.

A month ago

Wow has it really been a month since my last post - almost. Since the start of school I don't have much to update. The days are long and the evenings go fast. Hannah is still loving school and is starting to read a few words, she is really proud of herself. Kate is also enjoying school everyday and can't wait to go to kindergarten next year just like her big sister. Both girls are looking forward to Christmas and have put together the list that they will take to Santa when we see him next week. I'll send pictures. Greg is still home and hasn't started his new job yet, hopefully he will soon. But it is still really nice to have him home and he has really enjoyed it.

Can't wait for Christmas.

Kate's school pictures

Here are Kate's school pictures from Nov. 2009 at River Rd. Preschool. She is really loving school this year and has been having a great time going every morning. I think she really likes the structure of every day.

Hannah was sick on school picture day so we'll get hers in Dec.

Bruswick stew festival and a lost tooth

Yesterday was our 6th annual Brunswick stew festival. Its a family favorite in Richmond. We've been going since Hannah was 6 weeks old. Lots of yummy stew and fun music.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2039822&id=1122309468&l=5514a03182

Also here is a before and after picture of Hannah's front tooth. It has been loose for about 3 weeks and finally fell out today while eating a cracker.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2039827&id=1122309468&l=eb2356dcd5

Halloween 2009

The girls had a great Halloween. And it was a halloween that almost didn't happen. We have all been so sick in this house for weeks and last week I hope was the grand finale of illness. Both Hannah and Kate had a fever up until Friday and I told them if there fever was gone for 24 hours they could go to the Halloween party and go trick or treating. So they rested and rested all day Friday and Saturday and there fever was gone (thank goodness because I don't know how I would have kept them home). We only went to the party for a little while and then hit about 10 houses at which time Hannah looked exhausted so we headed home with our loot. It was a fun time and the girls looked very cute in there "princess buttercup" dresses.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2039002&id=1122309468&l=07a16a6398

Hannah's art at school

We are very lucky at Fisher Elem. to have a wonderful art teacher. Hannah really loves going to art class and has a great time. They just put up some of their hard work in the halls at school and its so cute to see my little girls work up on elementary school walls. So fun. The teacher has a blog about what the kids are doing and I wanted to share the lastest project. The owls are so sweet and so cute and are allot of fun to see in the hall on the way to her class room.

http://clarewilkinson.blogspot.com/2009/10/hoooooo-lives-in-forest.html#comment-form

Look at the picture that is 3rd from the bottom. That is Hannah's hand working very hard on her owl.

A fun rainy weekend

Fall has come into town with gusto. The gray rainy days are so blah, but we've been making the best of them. The girls and I went for a rainy day walk yesterday and then today we went to the St. Christopher's Fall Festival, drove around U of R campus and then the children's museum. It was full day. Here are some fun pictures.

Happy Fall to one and all.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2037455&id=1122309468&l=f696fd033c

excuses, excuses

So you might have noticed that I haven't posted in a long long time. Welllll, we have all been sick sick sick. I came home from Chicago in Aug. with a wonderful sinus infection that moved to my chest and ears. I then passed it around the family and got it again. Those where some fun weeks. And to top it all off Greg was laid off from his job the first part of September so we have had a handful of stress around here. And with the start of school and other stuff that comes along with that I just haven't even thought about my blog. But things are getting back under control, well except for today when Hannah threw up 15 times my 11a, but dad dealt with that while Kate and I ran out of the house as to not get puked on. We then got a call from Greg around 3p that she hadn't thrown up for 3 hours and that the house had been disinfected and was ready for us to come home again. But I have to say Kate and I had a great time hanging out together today. We don't get much one on one time these days so it was nice just the two of us and Greg said the same thing about just him and Hannah, although allot of it was her puking, but he said once that stopped it was nice to just hang with each other. Which reminds us that we need to do more one on one stuff, I think it really helps the family.

So on our adventures today Kate decided to wear a black cat costume that was Hannah's a few years ago. It was fun having a little black cat in tow all day and she even got her face painted to match, what fun.

Hannah's 6th birthday

Sorry for the very short message. Long day, large headache, Hannah had a great birthday. Here are a handful of pictures from the day.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2034918&id=1122309468&l=148d384e73

Kate's 1st day of school, River Rd. 3rd year

Yesterday was Kate's first day back at River Rd. We are so very excited because she has Mrs. Waldruff, Hannah's teacher from last year. We really loved her and I think Kate is going to also. And so far so good. Kate has been having a great time and she has allot of old friends in her class. So now Kate is gone from 9a-12n and Hannah is gone from 830a-330p EVERYDAY, ahhhhh a mom can breath.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2033785&id=1122309468&l=f8493dcd0a

First Day of Kindergarten

Drop off went great today. At breakfast Hannah said her belly felt a bit funny but we concluded that it was just nerves and she said by the time she got to class they were gone. I couldn't be more proud of my big girl today. We walked her into school and met her teacher in the cafeteria, she gave us big hugs and said goodbye. And off she went. I stayed strong until I got to the car and Greg asked how I was and then I burst into tears. Such a hard day for a mom. 6 years of my hard work. All the fears of will she be okay, will she be wondering the halls and not know where to go?? Will she make friends?? Oh the worries I had all day. And then at 330p we met her back in the cafeteria and she ran up with big hugs and said "I didn't cry at all today". Such a big strong girl. And then one of her friends said we're going to get ice cream and Hannah wanted to go so off we went to baskin robins for some first day of kindergarten celebration. As we arrived we saw several other kids from school and one little girl ran up and gave Hannah the biggest hug, it was so sweet. She made friends, and all will be okay. Mom can now breath and worry about other things, like Kate going to pre-K tomorrow morning.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2033517&id=1122309468&l=27074f4d9b

Kindergarten starts tomorrow

Yes, my little girl is off to kindergarten tomorrow and I'm a total mess over it. Hannah is very excited. We got a cute letter from her teacher and Hannah thought that was the coolest thing ever. It looks its going to be a great year and from what I hear Hannah's teacher is awesome and I think there will only be about 12 to 15 kids in her class, that is unheard of for public school. So all my stress and worry over what school she is going to go to has been settled and I'm very happy we have made the decision to stay at our Fisher Elem. and not go to private school. And especially now that Greg's job is on the line its a good thing we didn't do private.

So think about us tomorrow morning around 840a. I'll be dropping off my big girl for her new adventures.

Pictures to follow tomorrow.

Beach trip to Duck NC - 8/30-9/5

We had a great time in Duck NC this year. Although the weather could have been better. But all in all we made the best of our time. Sorry I didn't blog while I was gone. Life has been a bit crazy around here and just slightly stressful. Greg got notice the day before we left for our beach trip that he is being laid off. So we headed into our vacation on a stressful note. It put a little damper on some of the fun but we did our best. The Lyons family had a blast hanging with the kids and getting to see what crazy little nuts they are. Hannah kept them going with her stories and Kate kept them laughing with her insane little comments. In between the rain we got to run around on the beach, take some great pictures, jump in the pool and go crabbing with Grandpa.

So enjoy the fun pics.

Photo shoot on the beach:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2032875&id=1122309468&l=906ab1bcdb

Kate 0 - Atlantic ocean 1
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2032876&id=1122309468&l=f5dfb6c5bf

Hannah's first bee sting
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=30662747&l=438eb39b35&id=1122309468

New iphone application

I just heard about a new iphone application and its awesome. Its called Shake it photo and it mimics the old Polaroid cameras. So fun. Anyway here a few pictures from today.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2032039&id=1122309468&l=958bca4abb

Remember us???

Hello again family and friends. We have been having a very busy and fun summer. We just spent the last 2 weeks in Illinois with our friends. We had a great time and we were so busy I barely took any pictures. Although I captured just a few fun ones on my iphone. Hope you enjoy them.

The summer is coming to an end. The girls start school in two weeks and that means that Hannah starts Kindergarten - yikes. But before then we're off to the beach for a week and you know I'll have a ton of pictures from that week to share.

Hope everyone is doing great and enjoying the last days of summer.

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=30638715&l=7cefc965e0&id=1122309468

July 10th @ Teta and Papa's boat

Steph and Jack headed to Teta and Papa's boat for their last weekend in VA and we invited ourselves down for the day to have some fun. The girls and I had a great trip. This was Kate's first boat ride and first fishing trip. She caught her very first fish and was very very excited. She even got a T-shirt from the coast guard that said that she got caught wearing her life jacket, she was very excited.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2028369&id=1122309468&l=509bfa3730

And we even behaved ourselves so I think Teta and Papa will have us back for some more fun :)

Have you missed us???

This has been such a busy crazy summer that I have found myself completely exhausted at night and haven't had the energy to update my blog, I apologies because I know that for so many of you this is the only way to get to keep up with us, and I will start doing better.

To give you just a little taste of what we've been doing lately. We recently had a fun day at Forest Hill park, I took all the kids to see Teta and Papa's boat and Kate got a taste of Sassy sauce for the first time.....all those stories to follow.

And on Tuesday we'll be heading to IL for two weeks to hang with the Grandy family and celebrate Jack's 6th birthday. I'll update as much as possible while I'm gone. And don't forget to check me out on Facebook for daily updates, I do those from my phone so I can do it more often. Oh and I've been trying to download pictures to my blog lately and have been having the worst time. So bare with me, I'll keep trying.

June 26th Weekend @ the boat

Hannah was invited along with Jack to Teta and Papa boat for the weekend. Teta and Papa are Steph's parents and they have a boat on the York River and asked if the kids could come with them for the weekend. At first I was so excited for Hannah and then it set in that this would be her first weekend away from home and not with her parents. It was a big step for all involved. But off they went and had a great time. They got t-shirts from the coast guard that said "I got caught wearing my life jacket", they went fishing and actually caught a few fish and had a great time sleeping on the boat. Here are some great pictures from the weekend.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2028368&id=1122309468&l=357ebbcc6a

And while the big kids where having fun on the boat Kate and dad got to spend the weekend together and enjoyed some daddy daughter time (see pictures). And well Steph and I went to Lynchburg and enjoyed some no kid time.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2028364&id=1122309468&l=d595627c97

4th of July 2009

We had a great day of neighborhood parades and a great BBQ at the Cushman's. It was just the best way to spend the 4th of July. Here are some pictures of our day. I hope everyone had a fun and safe holiday.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2027159&id=1122309468&l=5f0ce29a3d

June 11 & 12, 2009 Days 11 & 12 of CA trip

***To start from the beginning of the trip scroll down to day 1***

-Off to the airport to fly home.
-checked in at the long Beach airport at 1130a, flight was suppose to leave at 1220p, it is already delayed until 140p.
-had a fun lunch at the airport.
-got held up in security because I had filled the girls sippy cups with water, they are now calling out names over the speaker and the TSA agent will not let us go until she checks the contents of two pink sippy cups - argh!
-finally we arrive on the plane only to sit on the run way for another 10 min. now wondering if we will have time for our connection in JFK.
-Arrive into JFK with 20 min to spare for our connection, only to sit on the runway for 30min, yes that's right, we missed our connection.
-it was the last flight out of JFK to Richmond for the night.
-we are stuck in JFK and have to find a hotel it is now 1130pm and the girls are done including me.
-The airline puts us up in a hotel although they made it very clear that it was due to weather and that they normally don't put people up in hotels but I guess I looked extra pitiful.
-the girls and I ordered pizza and watched TV until we fell asleep at 1a.
-we got up at 530a to get back to JFK for our flight home.
-we arrived back home around 10a, I got home and slept from 11a until 6p - awwww it felt good to be home.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025544&id=1122309468&l=b0c7055451

June 10, 2009 Day 10 of CA trip

-Mom arrived back after a great over night without the girls, Grandpa and Aunt Anita survived the kids
-Lunch at In-n-Out
-Said Goodbye to Aunt Terri
-Long Beach Aquarium http://www.aquariumofpacific.org/

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025542&id=1122309468&l=1fd5893d47

June 9, 2009 Day 9 of CA trip

-Dana, Anita, Terri, me and the girls hang out at Seal beach
-Lunch at Nicks
-Dana and Anita took the girls overnight so I could hang with Terri
-Dinner at Walt Warf with Terri

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025540&id=1122309468&l=d8e7e91547

June 8, 2009 Day 8 of CA trip

****after two great nights of sleep I was feeling a bit better and got many many more pictures, also with some help from the girls***

-Huntington Library with Aunt Terri http://www.huntington.org/

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025538&id=1122309468&l=665d5add2b

June 7, 2009 Day 7 of CA trip

-Magic castle for breakfast and some shows http://www.magiccastle.com/
-La Brea tar pits http://www.tarpits.org/

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025536&id=1122309468&l=a1cd0b4739

June 6, 2009 Day 6 of CA trip

****I didn't take very many pictures today. I drank to many cosmos with Aunt B last night and was feeling a bit tired. I also was feeling the heavyness of the week. I was starting to get home sick.***

-walking with the geese
-Aunt Darlene visit
-Drive back to Long Beach
-Aunt Anita's arrival
-Girls night out with high school friends

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025534&id=1122309468&l=ff14f5a5d4

June 5, 2009 Day 5 of CA trip

-Aunt Barbs house
-Santa Barbara museum of natural history (butterfly exhibit) http://www.sbnature.org/
-lunch on the pier
-fun on the beach in Santa B

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025533&id=1122309468&l=7f20be7424

June 4, 2009 Day 4 of CA trip

-Simones Donuts
-drive up the coast
-tidepools in Malibu
-drive to Aunt Barbs house

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025498&id=1122309468&l=634a08aeba

June 3, 2009 Day 3 of CA trip

-Disney

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025497&id=1122309468&l=64aa740bc6

June 2, 2009 Day 2 of CA trip

-Base ball with Grandpa Dana
-Aunt Loni visit
-lunch at the end of the pier
-playing at the beach

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025496&id=1122309468&l=0709ca2fab

June 1, 2009 Day 1 of CA vacation

Since I'm 11 days behind on my blog and I want to get the pictures posted so everyone can see them I'm just going to give a list of what we did on each day and then I'll update as I go on with little stories - enjoy.

-Travel Day
-Frozen yogurt
-Went to Long Beach to walk on the beach
-Went to Eco's pizza

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2025214&id=1122309468&l=842ffa653e

Stay tuned for pictures

The girls and I are on our trip in CA. I've taken a ton of pictures but don't have access to the Internet. And the one day I did have the internet I am having trouble with iphoto and can't get the photos to download - argh!! So stay tuned for tons and tons of pictures. We're having a great time and the girls are having a blast. We're staying really busy but still doing some of the normal stuff. I'll update all our fun when I get home next weekend.

Lunch, shopping and sunglasses

The girls and I are getting very very excited for our CA trip next week. I've been making tons of lists and making sure that we have every thing we need for our adventures. I have such a fun filled 11 days planned for us and can't wait to start the fun.

Its also been great hanging out with Uncle again today. We got to go have lunch and then we went on a shopping spree at Toys 'R' Us courtesy of Papaw Len and Joyce. Jord and I took the girls and just bought a bunch of fun summer stuff and a few new kitchen things for their new play kitchen, it was a ton of fun.

And last but not least the girls got some sun glasses from Grandma Janet for the CA trip. The girls look like movie stars. I think their ready for Hollywood.

Check out the pictures:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2024262&id=1122309468&l=d813c847b6

What a fun surprise

We had a knock at the door around 8a this morning - very strange. I looked out and there was Uncle standing on our front porch....you could have knocked me over. What a fun surprise. He is in town helping a friend and he stopped by our house first thing to see us. The girls and I got to spend most of the am with him and then he met us at the pool after my workout, yes I worked out even though I knew it would have been more fun to hang with Uncle. But I'm skipping tomorrow so we can go have some fun hang time with him. I've missed him so much and its great to see him.

Kate's 4th birthday

We had a great day around here. Full of presents, cupcakes and bike riding. Here are some pictures and videos to show the day.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2024015&id=1122309468&l=ba4e623482

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byLhNhZj5b0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9k09HzgmjM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaHmBfe4O6U

3 kids??? Yes or No

So I sit here on the eve of Kate's 4th birthday. I just can't believe my baby is turning 4. It feels like just yesterday I was pregnant with her wondering when she was going to make her arrival. I remember sitting with Hannah on this day 4 years ago before Kate arrived and talking to her about having a little sister and how mommy is going to be busy but that I will always have time for cuddling and reading books. And Hannah just sat there (at 20 months) and smiled and then I'm sure asked me to sing a song with her. Just the innocence of a small child having no idea what was about to happen in her life, I wish I could look at the world that way, what freedom.

And then little Kate arrived and life was never the same. Juggling a toddler and a newborn was tough but we all survived and I think did pretty good. And now I will have a 4 year old and an almost 6 year old.

I often think about having a 3 kid. Some days it consumes all my thoughts and other days I might only think about it when I see a baby, but either way I have to make a decision soon because I'm not getting any younger and the kids just keep getting older and I wouldn't want to much of a gap between Kate and the next one. And believe me this is not an easy decision, I have my long list of pros and my long list of cons but some how my heart just yearns for it. But is it enough to follow your heart or does your mind have to win at certain things??? I wish I had the answer.

Last day of preschool

I did better than I thought today. Its just so hard seeing your girls grow up. Kate gave everyone hugs and said goodbye and made sure to tell them that she will see them next year. And Hannah gave her friends hugs and they chatted about getting together over the summer, so big. I just can't believe that Hannah wont be going back to River Rd. Its been such a great place for us and she has blossomed there so much over the past 4 years. And next fall I'll be dropping her off at a new school with new friends and new teachers....the thought just makes me want to cry. But I've done a great job not putting my stress and anxiety onto Hannah. She is oblivious about how I'm feeling...that is all mine. I'll just listen to her and hold her up when she needs it and Greg can hold me up when I need it :) But enough with that, summer is here and we're ready to swim. We have a quiet 3 day weekend ahead of us and then its off to the pool next week - I can't wait.

Here are some pictures from the last day of school. Check out Kate's poses, what a ham.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2023780&id=1122309468&l=10d40f55a8

The eve of the end (of Preschool)

So I sit here on the eve of the girls last day of school. Tomorrow will not only mark the last day of school and the beginning of summer but it will also mark Hannah's last day of preschool. Its such a bitter sweet feeling. I'm so excited for Hannah to start the new chapter in her education but I've had such a wonderful time at River Road that I just can't pictures anything better. Hannah is such a big girl and is going to do great in elementary school. She is poised, smart, confident, energetic and above all she is just down right a good kid. But I'm going to miss River Rd. for her so much. I'm happy to say that Kate will remain at River rd. for another year and maybe 2 and for that I'm very very grateful.

Here is a picture from the first day of school this year and tomorrow I'll post the last day of school and hopefully my tears wont get in the way.

My new project

I've been in search of a play kitchen set for the girls. Kate loves to pretend play and she really loves to pretend to make yummy food. I love the sets they have at pottery barn but I'm just not willing to spend the money and I really didn't want a plastic kitchen, so I kept looking.

So one day I was at a friends consignment shop and she was having a big sale because she was closing the doors due to the economy. I hadn't been to her shop in a while so I was nosing around looking for some fun stuff and back in a corner I saw a cute little hutch all alone and I thought that it would be really cute in the play room so I asked her how much it was, and she replied oh I haven't pulled the rest of it out there is a sink/stove and a refrigerator that goes with it. I just about fell over, it was perfect and I got it for a steal. It needs some fixing up and a little paint, but its in great shape. Here are the before pictures and I'll send some after pictures when I'm done. I picked out a really great apple green to paint it and I bought some new knobs. I can't wait until its done.

NOTE: I took some of the doors off before I took the pictures.

Mothers day

First I want to wish all the mommies out there a very happy mothers day! I hope your day is filled with love and hugs.

We had a great mothers day around here. The day started off with a nice big sleep in, just what I needed. And then the girls gave me their gifts. Hannah made me a bookmark and a pin at school and Kate gave me a hand print she did at school, both where awesome. And then they gave me the gifts that they went and picked out with dad. They got me two new charms for my bracelet. I just love that they go and pick them out themselves, it has truly been a fun gift to receive. Here is a picture of my bracelet that they have been adding too, its so cute.Then after gifts we went down to the river and took a nice long walk. The weather is perfect and the water was really high and moving fast so we had lots to look at. Then off to the cemetery to wish Grandma Sue a happy moms day. We always enjoy going to the cemetery, its such a peaceful location and just a wonderful spot for mom to be. And then after the cemetery we headed to O'tools for some yummy lunch.

Now we're all at home and the girls are watching TV, I'm playing on the computer and Greg is snoring....all is well in the world.

Here are some pictures from out day.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2022880&id=1122309468&l=ddf5eb790c

Such a bummer

I posted Kate's video under my last post!

So Thursday night was suppose to be Hannah spring concert, but unfortunately she missed it. She woke up on Thursday morning not feeling well and with in an hour her fever was 103. I called the dr and made an appointment since she has been congested for the last 3 weeks, I thought maybe she had an ear infection of something. So off to the dr. we go and on the way Hannah says "mommy by tummy feels funny", so I ask the simple question, "do you feel like you need to throw up?" and she says "I don't know". Well she wouldn't know that feeling very well because she has only spit up twice before. Yes its true we have made it 5 1/2 years without the dreaded tummy virus. But just as soon as I passed the car trash can to her she threw up in it - thank goodness for car trash cans and a 5 1/2 year old who knows her body. So we get to the dr. clean Hannah up and get her in side. The dr. checks her out, test for strep and no such luck, its a tummy virus and it has to run its course. It could last anywhere from 24 hours to 5 days - oh boy fun. So I break the news to Hannah that she wont get to go to her concert tonight and she was so heart broken. She was soooo looking forward to it. And if you watch the video from Kate's concert you can see Hannah doing a few of the songs along with them, so poised and ready to preform.

But on the up side it looks like the bug only lasted 24 hours. Hannah has felt great today and just a very low fever. Kate on the other hand stayed home because she was complaining of a belly ache to daddy, and he was a sucker and let her stay home. Which was fine with me because my head cold put me in bed all day so he had to keep them both busy all day.

Kate's spring Concert

Tonight was Kate's spring concert at school. This was her first year singing at River Road. It was sooooo cute. She was very very excited about it and she did awesome. It was so fun to watch her on stage she really really loves being in front of people.

So leading up to today Kate and I were talking about what she might want to wear. I was trying to ease her into being in front of everyone since I really didn't know if she was going to do it or run off stage, it really could have gone either way. So last weekend I pulled out all the spring dresses out of the attic and filled her draws with fun pretty new (to her) clothes. And when I started talking to her about what she was going to wear she said that she wanted a "just Kate" outfit. When I asked her what she meant she said "one that Hannah hasn't worn yet". I just about fell over, she has gotten the fact that she has hand me down clothes, I thought that realization didn't happen until about 13, but no, Kate has to start at 4. So I took her out yesterday to a little store called Once Upon a Child (its a gently used kids clothing store) and she picked out her very own "just Kate" outfit. I think she was very very happy about it. I was glad to make her day. But if she tries to pull it again with the hand me down clothes, she'll be going to school in a paper bag because her draws are full of wonderful clothes, hand me downs or not.

Videos of the concert:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUg8xUScW-Y

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-jbRF8i_K4

Polka dot nails

So I broke down and painted the girls nails. The break down was not that I didn't want my girls nails to be polished, I just didn't want to be the one doing it. I had reserved that for special times when other people want to polish them, i.e. Jackie May or Lise. Because I knew as soon as I started to polish them they would want it done alllll the time. But Lise brought over some really cute polish the other day and it was raining out side and Kate was hounding me.....so I did it. And I have to say it was fun. Kate picked out a yellow/green polish and then I added black polka dots, it looks like a cheetah print- pretty cute. And then Hannah picked a dark pink and wanted black polka dots so it would look like lady bugs. We all had a really great time. Now they want there toes done also, so maybe this weekend. I'll try and catch a picture of their nails and send it out.

Suffocation or love, you pick

So our morning ritual is dad leaves for work and then the girl crawl into bed with me, but not before 7a, that's the rule. I wake up slow and they watch some morning TV, I know I know, not the best way to start the day but it works for us. We're all pretty slow in the am, but anyway, its what we like. And I found the other day that Hannah had curled up on my left arm and was nice and cozy, Kate had curled up on my right side pinning my arm against me, the cat was laying on my chest and the dog had my legs pinned down. It was an odd feeling, I couldn't move, I could barely breath and yet I was perfectly content. I think I just figured out my life, pinned down by the ones I love, I could move if I wanted but if I just sit still everyone is happy.

NEVER!

So today I asked Kate to pick up her blanket off the floor and she responded by yelling NEVER at the top of her lungs and ran away. I have to admit this was a new technique and it worked quite well because I was so in shock that I just stood there and didn't know what to say. And it wasn't so much her yelling the word NEVER but the passion she put behind the word. Awww the teen years flashed before my eyes. So I sent her to her room until I could figure out what to do and when time out (for both of us) was over she picked up her blanket off the floor. Now if she had just done that in the first place I wouldn't have had anything fun to write about, now would I???

Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden - field trip

Kate and I tagged along on Hannah's field trip with her class to Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens today.
http://www.lewisginter.org/
The weather was wonderful and all the kids had a great time. We held worms and learned all about compost and how helpful worms are in the process. We then walked around the gardens and checked out all the flowers in bloom and all the critters that are out and about getting things ready for spring.

Here are some great pictures.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2021563&id=1122309468&l=941648294a

Mike & Lise's wedding and a weekend away

Last Friday some dear friends of ours got married. The ceremony was amazing and the reception was so fun. And since the wedding was on a Friday Greg and I decided to take the entire weekend as a Greg and Syd kid free weekend. Greg's mom and sister came down from NJ and took great care of the kids while we hung out in a hotel about 10 miles away. It was so relaxing and fun and we will be doing it again soon, or at least sooner than 5 years. I can't believe it took us that long to get out together without kids - silly us. Here are some great pictures from our weekend.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2021418&id=1122309468&l=c4cb1382a2

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2021410&id=1122309468&l=dcd25812e0

A day on the farm

One of Kate's friends from her preschool class invited us to his Grandparents farm today. We had a blast. The weather was perfect and the farm was awesome. Both Kate and Hannah rode a very large horse, Kate was the first one on and the last one off - she loved it. We also went on a hay ride and the girls went on a barrel ride, it looked like a ton of fun. Enjoy the pictures.

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=30400582&l=9d8e7b6616&id=1122309468

So back to school tomorrow. It will be nice to get back into the swing of things and get our routine back. And the count down starts for Grandma Lyons and Aunt Nan's visit on Friday, the girls are very excited. And mom and dad are very excited because we're getting away TOGETHER for the first time in 5 years, where are we going you ask....oh just about 10 miles up the road to a wedding. We decided to book a hotel and make it a vacation, it really doesn't matter where you go, just as long as your with the one you love....awwwwww.

Easter morning

We had a great Easter morning full of scavenger hunts and egg hunts. Greg was able to video the entire scavenger hunt for baskets this morning, its long but fun to watch. Here is the link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8hL9WqHHJw

Also the egg hunt was a ton of fun. The girls had a blast and loved all the fun stuff they got. Here are some pictures.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2020802&id=1122309468&l=298b64f4d9

The Eve of Easter

Well the girls put out there baskets and eggs all ready for the Easter bunny to come hide the eggs and fill there baskets. Several years ago I bought about 50 or so wooden hand painted eggs that we use every year for hiding. The night before the girls put the eggs in their baskets so that the Easter bunny can hide them. Its just helps cut down on the plastic eggs and all the candy inside the eggs. I love having these pretty little hand painted eggs to hide in the yard and the girls love finding them. And so far we have found all of them each year. Although I remember last year we had to search the yard a few times for the last few, but they where found and ready for another year of hiding.

As I was putting the Easter baskets together tonight I realized that Lulu was going to have a blast during the night playing with the baskets and most likely eating some of the stuff so I decided to put the baskets in the laundry room behind a closed door so she wont damage any of the fun. And since I was hiding the baskets I decided to set up a scavenger hunt for the kids to find their baskets. We hit 5 clues around the house that will lead them to the laundry room. I hope they have fun with it in the morning. Here is a video from tonight. We'll take tons of pictures tomorrow and more video of them searching.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Up1jLVGH5Kg

I survived spring break

Here are a bunch of pictures from Spring Break. I didn't post much this past week because we kept really really busy, as you can see in the pictures. I tried to label the pictures to let you know what we did and when so I hope it worked okay. Enjoy.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2020608&id=1122309468&l=a89b83fbe8

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2020610&id=1122309468&l=1b554b1c4d

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2020611&id=1122309468&l=51b77c5115

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2020613&id=1122309468&l=acb84f98a1

If you have any trouble viewing these pictures just let me know.

The conclusion....sorry to keep you waiting

So last Friday I went to a hypnotist. It was awesome. My conscious mind let go and she spoke to my sub-conscious mind and it was so relaxing. She went for just over 30 minutes and when it was over she gave me a recording to listen to every night as I fall asleep. It has been so awesome to listen to it every night and relax. Most nights I fall asleep as she is talking and I don't even know that she is just chatting away with my sub-conscious. The main thing I had her talk about was food. I'm trying to change my views on food and change my behavior with food. So far so good. I have felt so empowered this week when it comes to food. She talked allot about making the healthy decisions and how my body will reward me with energy and not so much about "don't eat that". Its been great this week just feeling like I'm making the decisions from my sub-conscious mind and not battling myself so much. I highly recommend it to everyone for so many different issues, not just dieting.

I'll let you know how I do in the next few weeks. Right now the hardest thing is falling asleep at night without the TV on. I've been watching TV in bed for almost 20 years and falling asleep to it, so that has been a huge adjustment. But on the other hand I've been falling asleep allot faster listing to my hypnotist so its been okay.

So much to post about

Well lets start with a school update. We got an acceptance letter to Fisher Elem. school. This was our third choice on the public school list, but its better than nothing. And with this acceptance we were able to turn down Good Shepherd private school before we paid any money out. This was a huge relief because honestly I had no idea how we where going to pay for it, but I had to have a back up just in case nothing came through with the public schools. So that is a huge relief. We are still on the wait list for the other two school and I'll have to make the decision at that point if we get accepted to either of those - I'll climb that mountain when it comes.

Friday was a big day for me. I was given a clean bill of health and was taken off my CPAP machine - yippie happy day. All my hard work at the gym is paying off. I'm very very happy to be off the CPAP because it really was hard to sleep with, but it helped me a ton to get the sleep and energy I needed to kick start my workouts. So yay me.

Kate and Hannah are doing great. Next week is spring break so I'm trying to fill there days with fun activities so non of us loose our minds. I think I've done pretty good so far (with activities not loosing my mind, although...) I'll report next week on all the fun stuff going on.

Oh and I was hypnotized on Friday.....stay tuned for more info on that :]

Uncle has moved

Well Uncle Jordan moved to Philadelphia yesterday. He stopped by the house for one last goodbye and we all did great until he drove away and then Hannah looked at me and burst into tears. She really is at that age where she is starting to understand the comings and goings of life. And well as soon as she started crying and I burst into tears. So if you can picture me and Hannah sitting on the curb crying and Kate running around the yard picking flowers and Greg not really sure if he should comfort us or play with Kate. It was quite an emotional time and I'm sure it was a site to our neighbors.

We sure are going to miss you uncle, you've been a huge part of our life for the past several years. And the girls and I are going to miss our lunches with you and just hanging out.

I of course wish you and Lala the very best and support whatever ventures you guys decide. You have made a great choice on cities and we can't wait to visit. Send us lots of pictures and keep in touch, the girls and I NEED it.

I love you guys.

Art by Kate

This is by far my favorite piece of artwork that Kate has sent home from school. For some reason it just really sums her up. I have to find a frame to fit it in so I can hang it on the wall. I know it doesn't look like much but really look at it and you'll see the detail and the focus along with the madness. Its awesome.

Wii are family...

So we broke down and bought a Wii this weekend. And we have been having sooo much fun with it. The girls are really really good at it. Hannah has mastered the beginners level at golf and Kate, well she loves the boxing. I however love the cow racing. It has been allot of fun to play as a family and to cheer on the kids. There is nothing like cheering your kids on to during boxing - funny stuff. So the next time your around our house you have to try it out - it really is that much fun.

Picture time

The girls got their school pictures back today - so cute. Both girls look soooo big in their pictures, and you can see the delight on their faces because they got to hold a bunny.

We're going to California

I just booked the tickets today, the girls and I are going to CA this summer. We are sooooo excited. We're going from June 1-11 and staying with Grandpa Dana. This will be my first time traveling with both kids and also Kate's first airplane flight. Hannah has been on many many flights since we would travel back and forth to Chicago the first few years of her life, but we have been grounded since Kate was born. Kate is a bit more active than Hannah was and I just didn't think I had it in me to keep track of her in an airport and on a plane. But she'll be 4 in May so I'm hoping that it will work out just fine for this trip.

I just can't wait to take them to Disney land and also to Seal Beach where I grew up. We are going to have so much fun...come on June.

3 kids kept me busy

The girls were off school for most of this week so the teachers could go on a retreat. Good for the teachers, bad for me. I love the routine of school, it keeps us moving. And on top of having my two I took on another little boy from Kate's class, his name is Addison and is a cute little guy. I am very pleased to say that it went great. We stayed very busy and did lots of fun stuff. Here are some pictures from our adventure out to lunch yesterday, all 3 of the kids did awesome and had a ton of fun.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2018589&id=1122309468&l=ccf70

Watching the Bald Eagles

The girls and I have found that watching a bald eagle sit on her nest is fascinating. I got this link from another blog and showed it to the girls and now every hour or so we have to check in with the eagles. We haven't actually seen the eggs or even seen the bald eagle stand up, but any minute they will. The eggs are suppose to hatch and then I'm hoping there will be more excitement. Check them out and get hooked like we are.

http://www.suttoncenter.org/eaglecam.html

Hannah sick update and another lost tooth - but this one is really lost

Hannah still has her fever but its getting better. No other symptoms arrived so it looks like it is just a fever virus. She got as high at 104 over the weekend and was miserable. But as long as we kept Tylenol and IB in her she did fine. I took her into the Dr. today just to make sure it wasn't ears or strep and all checked out fine so we just have to ride it out.

Hannah's second tooth has been really really loose the last few days and we've been watching to see when it might fall out. And tonight while eating pizza she was talking to me and I noticed it was gone. When I said to her that her tooth was gone she said "no its not its right here" and put her finger to her mouth and at that point she realized it was gone. She looked and me and Greg and said "did I eat it?" We nodded our heads cautiously to see how she was going to react and she just kept eating and said "well how is the tooth fairly gonna know that I lost it?". We promptly said we'll write and note and let her know what happened. And she was fine with that - whew, we didn't know how that was going to go.

With Hannah sick the last few days Kate has not gotten as much of the attention as she usually does and she has been really acting out about it. I think I'm going to need to spend some one-on-one time with her this weekend to get her squared up, its been a bit hard the past few days. Maybe her and I will go shoe shopping (that kid loves shoes). That might be a fun mother, daughter date.

A fun day in Kate's class and a sick Hannah

I had the honor of hanging out in Kate's preschool class this morning. Their were 16 three year olds - that was allot of energy. We played in the gym and Kate was able to do 2 bars on the monkey bars today - that was a first, good upper body strength. We then went to music class and sang lots and lots of fun songs and after that we had snack. Kate ate all of hers and half of mine, glad I brought extra. It was so much fun watching her interact with her friends and to meet all the little ones she talks about. It was also fun watching Kate beam with excitement with me there, she was so proud to have me hang out with her.

After I left Kate's class I left the school to go run some errands while the girls finished out their day. I left at about 11a and the girls wouldn't be home until 330p so I had tons of time to run around and do lots of stuff. But as soon as I got to my first stop the school called and said Hannah was running a fever. This was very strange, she left the house perfectly fine this morning with no symptoms and also Hannah never ever runs a fever so I figured it must be bad. By the time I got back to school she was looking pretty ill. I got her home and put her in front of TV where she proceeded to doze on and off for the afternoon. Its so hard watching your little ones feel so sick. She has no other symptoms other than the fever so I'm just watching and waiting. The last time I took her temp it was 104 - yikes. I'm just hoping that the Tylenol and Motrin take it down a bit.

I had to take some pictures of her asleep on the couch, this never happens so its always funny when it does.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2018077&id=1122309468&l=4d115

Snow snow everywhere

We got about 10 in. of snow over night - wow was it pretty when we woke up this morning. The girls have been having a blast in it all day. We went sledding, took a long walk and built a snow man. Here are pictures of our adventures - enjoy.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2017819&id=1122309468&l=cd438

The tooth fell out

Yep, Hannah's first tooth fell out yesterday. I was gone but Greg was here and said she was eating pop corn when it fell out. They promptly put it in a baggie so she could keep it for the tooth fairy that night. She put it in her special tooth fairy pillow when she went to bed and she woke up this mornings she had gotten 8 quarters for it, she was very excited.

I had to search for a picture of Hannah when she first got her two front bottom teeth. So cute.

Tooth watch and a visit to the dentist

Hannah's front tooth is still loose and is so close to falling out. She is so excited about it, so much so that everyone she talks to she says "you want to see my loose tooth?" Today she can almost push it completely forward - crazy. Its such a bitter sweet thing for me. I remember when those first two teeth came in and how cute she looked with just those two bottom teeth and now she is about to loose them - awwwww. I'll keep you posted.

The girls also had a 6 month dentist appointment this week. They both did great and just love going to the dentist. I'm so happy I can start the dentist visits off to such a great start. It really means allot for kids to now have to stress and worry about the dentist. So far it hasn't been a painful experience. I'm just hoping that when they do have to have a procedure done they wont stress to much over it since they have had so many positive times. Oh the things we worry about :]

Hannah also got her first set of x-rays done. I wish I had taken a picture of the x-rays. You can see all her big teeth under the gums ready to come out. She looks like a sharks with rows and rows of teeth.

A new AC/Heat pump and a public schools update

So we finally shelled out the money for a new AC/Heat pump. It was a good time to do it also because the companies are hurting and want to sell as much as they can for next to nothing. I have to give a shout out to the guy we worked with at Atlantic Heating and cooling. He put up with us and got us the best deal around. So if your in the Richmond area and need a new AC/Heat pump give Jason a call :
Atlantic Heating and Cooling
Jason Manes
(c) 426-2315

And on the public school front. Richmond public schools held there lottery on Friday for the out of distract applications. I'll give you a brief idea of how it works. Our neighborhood school is not up to par so we would like to go out of zone. We have to fill out an out of zone application that then goes into a lottery. On the application you can put down your 1st, 2nd & 3rd picks for schools. Our first pick was Munford, our send was Fox and our third was Fisher. I was not able to attend the lottery but a friend of mine went and called me with our numbers yesterday. We fared okay. We are #20 on the waiting list for Munford and # 56 on the Fox wait list. We have an okay shot at Munford but next to no way of getting into Fox. My friend was not able to stay long enough to hear the Fisher numbers so I'll have to wait until March to get those. I'm still happy I have our back up private school for Hannah just in case everything falls through. And actually she is at Good Shephard today for a meet and greet with the teachers and other applicants for Kindergarten. We dropped her off at 830a this morning with her lunch packed and we'll pick her up at 1230p. I can't wait to hear how she liked it. She is such a big girl. When Greg dropped her off this morning she said her tummy felt funny but that she was excited to go and then off she went - so proud of my big girl. I'll keep you posted on the fun she had.

personal trainer and the cat chases the dog

So I started working out with a personal trainer. Its going great. She focuses on strength training and really works muscles that I haven't used since I was about 15 - ouch it hurts. But it is going really really great and I've even seem some weight loss - which is awesome. And it helps that my thyroid is a little on the hyper side, so that is a bonus in helping with the weight loss. But enough with me, how about an update on the cat and dog front. It was great to see Lulu (oh that is what we are calling her) chase Bilbo around the house yesterday. Bill has no idea what to do with him self. She is now out and about and running the show. I think Bill needed to be put in his place and the cat was just the thing to do it. So its one big happy family.

Everyone has adjusted nicely

All is wonderful on the cat front. She has gotten very comfortable in our house and even came out of hiding and walk around with the dog. Bilbo is still not sure what to do but as long as the cat isn't scarred than Bilbo will just have to learn to live with her around. She is so friendly and lovable and all she wants is love so she figured the only way she can get this is by coming out and seeking it. I think we're all going to be fine. Bilbo is whining less and that makes us all happy.

I built a cat condo for her so she would have a place to escape and also we would have a place to keep her food and litter box. I converted an old TV cabinet into a place where she can hang out away from the dog. Bilbo wants to eat all her food and all of her poop - and well that's not going to happen - yuck yuck yuck. So with our new condo she can keep her food and poop to herself. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2016340&id=1122309468&l=0aaf6

Day 2 with our new cat and off to the zoo we go

The weather is amazing here this weekend - in the 60s. We decided to take full advantage of this and go up to DC to visit with some old friends and go the National Zoo http://nationalzoo.si.edu/
We had a great time visiting with friends and seeing all the animals. And the girls where on there absolute best behavior - yeah girls. It always warms my heart when they show there good side out in public - because you just never know what your going to get with two kids. But we all had fun and we all survived. Here are some pictures of our great day - enjoy. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2016079&l=b3a72&id=1122309468

Day 2 with our new cat. The night went allot better. Bilbo slept great, which means we slept great and the cat seemed to be fine down stairs again. Hannah said she whined a little but that she didn't keep her awake, so that is good. We had a few run ins between the cat and dog but no one has gotten hurt yet. And since we went to DC for the day the cat and dog where alone and they seemed to be fine. I moved the cats food and potty pan into the playroom so she wouldn't have to cross Bilbo's path to eat of potty. She seemed to be fine and Bill was calm (well calm for a Jackrussel being along all day) when we got home. So all is well so far.

New cat day 1

So we went to RAL yesterday and met our new cat. She is sooo sweet and the family fell in love with her just like I did, so we brought her home. I talked to a animal trainer before we brought her home so I would know how to introduce the dog and cat together. She said to isolate the cat in one room for the night and then the next day let her roam free in the house while the dog is contained. This was working great until Kate wanted to go into the bathroom where the cat was and let Bilbo in, I have never seen a cat jump so high. She leaped from the floor to the top shelf in our closet - I think Bil freaked her out. So after that we took Bilbo downstairs and kept the cat upstairs until we could figure out a better way. I thought if we could just put the cat somewhere that Bil could see her but not get her we might be a bit better off. So we pulled out the old baby gates and closed in the playroom. We put the cat in the playroom and left Bil in the hallway/kitchen where he could see her and the girls could pet her. For the next 4 hours Bilbo cried and paced back and forth and the cat completely ignored him, so I felt like it was going well. And then when we went to bed we took Bilbo up with us - like we do every night - and we left the cat downstairs with food and water. Well little miss kitty has never been alone so she cried all night and kept Bilbo up whining. It was like having a new born in the house again. Finally everyone calmed down and we fell asleep. And Hannah said the next morning that she let the cat in her room because she was crying, so sweet.

Today went well as long as the cat is in the play room and the dog is not we're fine. But at one point the cat decided to venture out and Bilbo went after her and it sounded worse than it was, so I think the cat will stay in the playroom from now on. I think all Bilbo really wants to do is sniff her and love her but she really doesn't want that, you can't blame a girl for putting up a fight.

Everyone is quiet tonight so I think we'll get some well needed sleep tonight.

We're still trying to give her a name, we're thinking of Lucy, we'll let you know.

Bill's last night as an only pet

So with much thought and discussion we have decided to get a cat. I grew up with cats and have always wanted to have one. Greg has never had a cat nor does he want one now, but he has put aside his dislikes and has agreed to get a cat. I visited the Richmond Animal League http://www.ral.org/ last week and talked to the staff about adopting a kitten. I thought I wanted a baby kitten so she/he could get use to living with a dog. I certainly didn't want an older cat who was set in their ways and would get pissy with Bilbo, poor dog is going to have enough to worry about without a cat jumping on him. Anyway after talking with the staff they told me about this sweet little kitten who was 10 months old, her name is Stryker (which we will not be keeping) and they got her as a baby kitten. She was one of 70 kittens that they had last spring and for whatever reason she was picked over and has been at the shelter for 10 months. The staff said she is the sweetest kitten and is really surprised she is still there, at least I'm hoping that she is still there because she has been looked over and they are not selling me a line. But I have to have faith in them that they are looking after the cats best interest and mine. I'm taking the girls back to RAL tomorrow so they can meet her and see how the cat response to kids and from there we'll know if we're getting her. I've talked to Bilbo about this but I'm guessing he really hasn't understood the trauma that he is going to face tomorrow. So sleep well little Bill because tomorrow we're getting a cat.