siLLy

LL continues to be a little ham and loves to make us laugh. Here are a few recent antics caught on camera. Above, she's giving us semi "sweet eyes"...with a blueberry stuck on her teeth! Below, I came into the room to discover three red books and three blue-eyed babies lying on the floor...

Playing "phone" on the way to Texas...

The old "Blankie on the head" act always works...

We came in during one of her naps in Texas to discover that she'd gotten her hands on her bag of diapers and her Daddy's WCF before going to sleep... definitely a few steps above "Goodnight Moon" and her other usual bedtime reading!

Bluebonnets!

Great timing for our trip...we were able to capture our two little Texas-born belles together in the bluebonnets for the first time!
Beautiful!!!

Back to their Beginnings...

Last weekend we went back to where it all began for our girls! They had a great time playing with friends during our visit. Above, AG plays with her sweet friend that we stayed with while we were in town.

Patiently waiting for a table when we went out for a taste of Tex-Mex!

A rare moment of "down time"...Do you think these two might be sisters?

Playing ring-around-the-rosies at church with another sweet friend...

Here we are after a wonderful time of worship at our church there.

It was a great trip! Other than all the kids having grown visibly and the addition of a few new babies and progressed pregnancies(!), it seemed like no time had passed since we'd been there. We were glad to see and catch up with the dear friends we've missed, go to the church we are so thankful to have been a part of, and of course, have a great meal at Chuy's and even a chance to shop at HEB... oh, I no longer take fresh chips and salsa and fabulous produce sections for granted! We have so much to be thankful for, then and now, there and here.

Spring is Here!

Spring has arrived in our part of the South with a burst of azalea blossoms and some wonderfully refreshing warm-but-not-too-warm days. Last week we celebrated the official first day of Spring with small gifts, cookie-making, and an egg hunt in our backyard.
"Eggs!!!" T came home from work in time for the festivities. (I have to take a moment to tell you how great he is... Earlier that day we stopped by his work for a quick visit with him, and his good friend Andrew was with him. They were talking about when they could play racquetball, as Andrew is from TX and only works here a few days a week. Trey said, "It'll have to be tomorrow...I have to go home today to do Spring stuff." Talk about dedication!)
AG gave LL a chance to find a few eggs...
Some of the funny bunny and butterfly cookies AG helped decorate...just like real life, no two were the same!

Hope Spring is off to a lovely start for you wherever you are!

The Why's One

It has started...the insatiable toddler question: "Why?" Though not totally unexpected, it has begun with much greater intensity than I would have guessed. (And all you more experienced parents can laugh now and say, "Just wait...") It seems any comment is fair game for this response now. Like last night, on the way home, she asked, "Is home very far away?" I replied, "No, not very far now," to which came the question... And though that one was not too tough, I know she'll only up her game... Should make for an interesting drive to Texas this weekend!

The Zoo Crew

Last Saturday one of my oldest and closest friends from high school came to visit with her husband and their three kids, ages 7,5, and almost 2. We all loaded up and headed to the city zoo for a morning of exploring!
Just the girls!
Our family with the giraffes, who were having a "dinner on the grounds."
This was taken on our way out...as you can see H's daughter had bonded with LL. She actually pushed LL's stroller almost the whole time, but at the end decided to ride for a while and just hold hands with LL...which LL was all for!
This scene has been seen rarely, if ever, in our stroller! AG's never been much of a stroller sleeper, but by the end of our zoo adventure she'd had it! She got just enough of a nap to get perked up for lunch and playtime at a nearby park.

Playtime at Mimi and PawPaw's

Mimi reading AG a Curious George book...
LL mailing a letter with PawPaw...
LL taking a little break to ponder how she can get her hands on...
the "FLAG!" she discovered in Mimi's laundry room, which is now at our house. If I haven't mentioned it before, LL is quite taken with "FLAG!"(s)
and patrols for them everywhere we go, happily announcing everytime her amazing flag-radar spots one. And then it usually takes me several minutes to find it... Anyway, this was her first hands-on experience with one and, even though we need a few more lessons in "flag safety" (or "how to not put your or your sister's eye out with a stick that's fun to wave"), I am sure it will not be her last!
AG helped Mimi get the rice cooking, then stood at the counter and read her mail (one "letter" said, "Cook some rice." Seems like we were right on schedule!) and talked on the "phone" (which looked suspiciously like an unplugged, unattached electrical cord, but it seemed to get good reception!). We also got to visit with the girls' Grandpa and Aunt Nanoo while we were there, which was lots of fun. This day trip to Lafayette on Friday was the start of a busy weekend, so we'll post more pics and news of the rest of the fun soon!

Say Cheese!

Here are some views of LL's first ponytails. She was pretty patient with my attempt to wrestle with her wisps!

AG and LL love their time with their Daddy...and it's mutual!
AG, the happy hugger!

Spring Fever

We've loved the warm, sunny days this week! I took these Monday afternoon in our backyard. The girls have gotten interested in exploring the "outer limits," as you can see.
Big smiles for spring-like weather!
Our mischievious little elf...
Going up...
Success!!

LL is a little parrot...she has been imitating so much of what we say for several weeks now and adding so quickly to her vocabulary that I can't keep up. Some additions: plane, monkey (added at the zoo), nose, eyes, cheeks (said while pinching the cheeks of whoever's holding her), ears, flag (she patrols the neighborhood/city for these in the stroller or van), tiger (OK, only a few times, but at least she's acknowledging that not everything is a puppy or bunny now!), bunta (belly button), nightnight!! (said with a smile while waving with her arm stretched all the way up by her ear), and Blankie (finally her other lovie gets some respect after being called "Ellie" for months!).

Waking up with the Birds

This morning I had one of those moments when I knew before I even opened my eyes that it was a beautiful day. First of all, I'd slept in after T left for work, and felt rested when I woke up on my own (!!!). With my eyes still closed, I could tell that the sunlight was already streaming in the windows. But the most notable part of the experience as I took my time "waking up" was the overwhelming sound of birds... a veritable chorus of the most beautiful birdsongs I ever remembered hearing. "Wow, that's amazing," I thought..."Spring must really be on the way! Those birds are going nuts!" I must say it was quite a relaxing sound, and I enjoyed listening from my cozy haven. A while later, when AG awoke and came into my room, I realized there was something I didn't hear... the "waterfall" of the noise machine T always turns on in the hallway when he gets up to get ready for work. "Maybe it's drowned out by the birds..." It was only after getting out of bed and having trouble finding a working clock that I realized the power had gone out briefly...just long enough for the noise machine to reset itself from "waterfall" to "rainforest"...apparently a rainforest with plenty of birds. No wonder I'd never heard such amazing birdcalls outside my windows before! Oh well, it was a beautiful day anyway, and Spring is still on the way!

Good Times

Is this a yawn, a high note, or is LL just showing off her new teeth?

Playtime at the zoo last Saturday: The biggest frog we've ever seen...and ever hope to!

LL is more interested in going up the slide than down these days...

AG in the belly of a hippo...looks like fun, huh?

LL sits down, but her hair stands up!!

The World as AG Sees It

AG is such a little thinker, planner, and explainer...I guess all almost-three-year olds have these characteristics, but I can't help but be amazed and often amused when those little wheels are spinning in her head and I get to witness the gestures, facial expressions, and articulations that go along with them! It seems she is constantly figuring out what needs to happen, why it should happen, and how it can best happen (from her perspective!). I know the whole process is going on, even when I only catch fragments of it...like yesterday, as we drove to the store, she said, "And when the new baby comes it can ride in Laura's seat and she can ride in my lap."

A while back, we were on our way to take a pair of tennis shoes to Trey at work so he could play tennis with a coworker later that day. I told her we were taking him his shoes, and she said, "Is Daddy walking tippy-toes?" like she does sometimes when she is shoeless outside the house.

Because so much of what she says these days makes perfect sense and she knows so much, it's even funnier when things happen that make us realize there's still SO much to learn... Last week Trey's parents came to stay with the girls while we traveled and the night before we left, I was in LL's room doing something when I overheard "Nana" telling AG about cherry blossoms (a conversation brought about by a tube of cherry blossom hand cream AG'd just discovered and, of course, the fact that we just happened to be heading to DC the next morning). I even heard her tell AG, "Go tell your mom that cherry blossoms come from Washington DC" so, needless to say, I thought I knew what to expect when AG bopped into the room with her announcement: "Mommy, cherry blossoms come from washing machines!" I still wonder if she thinks I just went away and did laundry somewhere else for a few days...:)