We are so ready for Spring!

We find lots of ways to have fun inside during the chilly winter days but the glimpses of warmer days and sunshine make me eager for Springs arrival. More so now then ever I think with three little ones. We spend our days playing with cars and trucks, blocks, baby dolls, bouncing on the couch, coloring, practicing letters and writing, reading and looking at books, playing tag, hide-N'-seek and Whoosh (Lucas' fun made up chase game where we end up jumping onto the couch) and of course watching a little Nick Jr. or Disney too! We venture out for a walk/bike ride every now and then when the weather permits but that is challenging with everyone bundled up I must admit.
But I am so ready to get outside and enjoy the fresh air. Let them run wild in the yard,have picnics, play in the sandbox and on the swingset. And venture to the park more for playtime too. With the time change today I know it will be here soon and this lady is HAPPY about that!

Especially since both Peyton and Kayleigh are officially toddlers. Yep, over the last three weeks Ms. Kales has tried to catch up to her sister. She isn't running with Peyton just yet but I think she will be in no time at all!

Here's to Spring being just around the corner!!!

Buds

These two are buds. Two little boys who are the epitome of BOY. Wild, boisterous, energy filled, car/truck lovin', outdoor junkies. Lucas and Russell only get to get together a handful of times each year. Yet just like their daddy's (and mommies too!) they get SO EXCITED when they know they are going to get to see each other. Even if just for a few hours on a sunny cool late winter day...they are over the moon to.. run, jump, and play

swing, slide, and glide.

Trek hand in hand through the woods on fun-filled adventures.

And pose on a stump or rock with one of their favorite buds.

I think these two are going to be lifelong friends. I know our lives have been blessed by the friendships we all share- young and old! :) Love you guys!!!

Furbabies

A good friend just lost her doggy this weekend and my heart hurts for her and her hubby. This wasn't any old doggy but it was their first baby- their furbaby. They have gone on to adopt another sweet pup into their family and have also welcomed a sweet little girl since Neo joined their lives, but he was their first baby. Does this sound like another family you know of? ;)
Yes, I know he is a dog and not a human, but we love them just as much as our human babies and they love us- UNCONDITIONALLY. There are not many beings are on this Earth that we can say that about. Furbabies are such a blessing in our families. We as humans tend to hold grudges, have crummy days when we take it out on others, are cautious in our relationships in fear of getting hurt. But not these sweet puppies, they are always ready to dish out a kiss or love you no matter what.
I remember vividly the night before Hunter died laying on him crying about missing my mom and he never moved. He just let me sob on him and that brought me such comfort. After the tears slowed he picked up his head and gave me a wet, sloppy, warm kiss and I loved him that much more for it. Little did I know that about 24 hours later he would leave this world and our family forever and enter into Heaven to pass those warm, sloppy, wet kisses onto Mom.
We were supposed to go see the movie Marley & Me the day after Hunter died, which was also my mom's birthday. At that time we were both off for the day and looking forward to our daytime date while Lucas was safe at school. I was so excited to see the movie after reading the book, even knowing how the story ended. I love my furbabies so much and am a sap for good pet stories. Needless to say we never made it to the movie theatre. We instead spent that day saying goodbye to Hunter and in tears over his sudden loss.
Well, we finally watched Marley & Me over the weekend and it was so great. It was such a wonderful family movie that Todd & I completely identified with through our life together growing our family along side our furbabies. Especially Mr. Hunter, the first one to fill such a special part of our hearts. I'm sure you can guess that there were LOTS of tears in the end as we watched them say goodbye to their beloved Marley as we relived that moment with Hunter. But it was so wonderful to be reminded just how special these furbabies are in our lives. Much like many other families with many small kids running around- the pets can sometimes live in the shadows and still love us, nonetheless. So we are not taking another day with sweet Bailey for granted and Nala too of course.
As they say- "Pets come into our lives and only stay for what seems to be a little while. But the footprints they leave on our hearts last a lifetime." We love you and miss you Hunter and we know you are romping with sweet Neo over that Rainbow Bridge! I know his family is hurting now but I hope they will hold their memories of their first furbaby so close to their hearts and know he had the best doggy life ever with them :)

She did it!!!

Here is our first little walker! She started the last week of January with the four steps or so and then BOOM..Well here she is last week :) I love to see her get so excited about her big accomplishment. She beams as we cheer her on- I love it!!!
Let the real fun begin around here- well, guess we better wait for Kayleigh to get there too. I don't think she is too far behind in that department. She is getting braver by the day...
Look out momma!!!!

Bows

I knew that once I had little girls that I would put bows in their hair once it was long enough to stay. I say that because I had barely any hair as a baby so I had no idea when I would get the chance with these two! But they have quite a bit of wispy, kida curly locks to adorn. So their bow collection started with the typical store bought variety. We even got some really cute ones for their birthday from a good friends mom. I too have made a few for them to wear in my "free time" for special occasions like Christmas and their birthday. They are so stinking cute whether it is just in their hair or if I pull it into a little crazy top of their head ponytail. If only I could get a cute picture of them together with the bows IN!!!
Or so I think...
So I have taken the time on occasion to brush their hair, and put it in a cute little bow helping to clarify the fact that yes....
they are two little girls(I actually got this question when they were dressed in pink with PINK coats on..)and yes....
they are twins...do people really wonder? :)

But sometimes these two have their own opinion about the subject....

It is a game called how many bows can I take and eat?

Sigh...maybe one day they will stay in for that perfect photo opp???

A Birthday we will never forget

I can't believe my sweet girls are one!!! This year has to be the fastest (even on somes days that went by about as slow as molasses in terms of accomplishment) one so far in my life. Three sweet kiddos 3 and under is a fantastic blessing that I am forever grateful for but my feet rarely stop moving. That would explain the speed in which 2010 blew by I suppose ;)

Our littlest munchkins are not so little these days. At their 12 mo. appt. Peyton measured in at 22 pounds and 6 oz., and Kayleigh was 22 pounds and 10 oz. I can't seem to find the paper with the stats (imagine that) but they were in the 50-75th %ile for their height too! This would explain the 18 month clothes we are rocking out these days! And even some of those are snug :) Very different then there big bro, keeping us on our toes...
They are great sleepers and eaters. Nighttime is around 11 hours and naps are 2 for about 1.5-2.5 hours. Kayleigh will eat ANYTHING and lots of it. Peyton is a little pickier and seems to love her carbs, fruits, and most meats. Veggies are already a struggle for us with her. That is a new one around here at this age...They are switched over to whole milk now (love the savings in that dept!) and we are working on the sippy cup. They love juice and water in it, milk is another story. I just got some Nuby cups that I will try this week and hopefully that will go better than the Playtex..Let's just say they FLIPPED out and threw them down with my first attempt..
Peyton is walking these days- short distances- we haven't made laps around the house or anything but she beems with pride as she toddles over to see us or pick up a toy. So sweet to watch, I need to get it on video soon before she gets much farther. Bad momma..Kales is watching her for pointers and has attempted walking between furniture pieces that are a step or two apart. I had to sneek to watch her yesterday but she bravely let go of the couch to get to the train table and made it. If she would have seen me she would have got down and made a beline for me. That girl is a SPEED crawler- bulldog style. She balls up her hands and flys to her destination, sometimes even putting her head down to ram it into you or something. So silly but so sweet! I give her a few more weeks and she will be moving like homo erectus too!
Both girls are saying Ma-Ma and occasionally Da-da. I think we are working on Dog, Meow, Nala, and baby. You know how they are at this stage... Sometimes it sounds right on the money and other times you just hear jibberish...but they pick up on things we ask them pretty quickly, pointing or going to get something like their baby to feed it the bottle... So much fun at this stage!
I just can't believe that they are so far from the helpless little newborn that wore those teeny little clothes and easily fit in the nook of my arm. I just wish I could stop time every now and then and soak it all in. Before I know it they will be running to get on the bus!;)

Here are some pictures from my attempted birthday shots, please note that photographing two babies is NOT an easy feat! I need Photoshop ;)

Kayleigh had a cute little bow but our little tomboy kept ripping it out...So I gave up!

They can tag team and unload a drawer in no time flat!

They LOVE their ride on's!

Here are some birthday party pictures, I am so sorry that all of this is late but I am trying to catch up. My only excuse these days is LIFE HAPPENS and TIME is precious...I wasted a whole heck of a lot of it before we had these babes ;)

Erica's sweet little girls- can't believe they are almost two!!!

Sweet Kales and Ne-Ne

Peyton was super excited about her special birthday cake ;)

Kayleigh was too, she ANNIALATED it!!!

Crazy birthday girls

Singing Happy Birthday, we sang it twice so they each had a turn...

Their giant cupcake birthday cake

complete with special smash cakes for each birthday girl :)

Some if the birthday festivities

It looked like Christmas all over again, these two girls are so loved and we are so thankful for such loving and wonderful friends and family! We slowly opened their gifts over a few days to enjoy each one of them. That was a great idea suggested by a good friend. Especially since they are so little and really didn't know what was going on :)

Daddy and his sweet little girl, well one of them ;)

Ahh, relaxation at the end of a fun day!

Christmastime

Best buds enjoying posing for their rivalry picture! We love you Scarlett- VT and all!!!!

Christmas around here was full of fun, love, family, friends, and laughter! And obviously it was all a "little" hectic but we have come to expect nothing else around here these days. I know one our house is quiet one day I will miss it and all of the chaos that goes along with threee little ones. All in all the tree stayed standing with most ornaments on it (Thanks P & K- I was really forseeing disaster here)...The presents stayed wrapped until the big day...and Santa's arrival was eagerly anticipated by all! It is so much fun to "live" through your child's eyes at this time of year and I have to admit, Lucas brought so much joy to the season for us. I have a hard time this time of year especially but Lucas reminded me of the joy and innocence. We enjoyed many Christmas stories, homemade Christmas cookies, and slowly unwrapping the gifts throughout our lazy Christmas day. Peyton and Kayleigh even seems to enjoy to fun and special time together :)

Everyone loves Stinky the Garbage Truck around here, this was one of the Santa requested gifts from Lucas.

The girls enjoying a leisurely dinner with their BFF- Shelby :)

Playtime!

Lucas jamming on his cat piano, another Santa hit!

Loving his new garbage truck from Ne-Ne

Crusin babies! Minus the silly face from Kayleigh :)

Who is taking who for a ride???

Boxes make the BEST ramps!

We love our new hats Aunt Jean!!!

sharing snacks with Bailey

Pretty girls :)

I had more pictures but Blogger is driving me nutz recently, I tried adding the pics SEVERAL days and didn't get to far. But hope this gave you a glimpse into our fun festivities. Lots of love!