Krazy Kiddies

And more snow... yet again

2008-12-22T18:23:00.001-08:00

I don't have a solid measurement, since i couldn't get the ruler through the sheet of ice, but we have at least 6 inches of snow on top of over an inch of ice on top of another couple inches of snow. The girls had a wonderful time outside trying to find big pieces of ice and romp around in the snow!

More snow!!

2008-12-19T09:26:00.000-08:00

Our snow almost completely melted last night. The girls were quite disappointed, so we were excited to wake up to a fresh blanket of snow to play in!!

Snow Angels

2008-12-15T22:54:00.001-08:00

Snow!!!

2008-12-14T19:04:00.000-08:00

We thought we'd have to wait until morning, but we looked outside one more time and discovered a winter wonderland!! Yes, I let my kids play in the street, but.... all the other kids were doing it, too!

Santa!

2008-12-13T15:42:00.001-08:00

O Christmas Tree!

2008-12-09T11:12:00.000-08:00

We went and cut down our Christmas tree - both girls were quite excited once Mikayla got over pity for the tree being cut down. They had lots of fun picking a tree, seeing it baled, having hot chocolate and candy canes, and decorating it at home!

Swimming Lessons

2008-11-11T14:18:00.001-08:00

Both the girls are loving their swimming lessons! These pictures aren't the greatest, since they're from my phone, but still cute! Mikayla can swim half the width of the pool underwater. She's making pretty fast progress. Next week she gets to move up to the "big pool." She's pretty excited about that!

Today was safety day where they all got to use life jackets and talk about safety in lakes, on boats, etc.

Lily cast her vote!

2008-11-04T17:59:00.000-08:00

Baby Keziah Anne!

2008-10-31T21:02:00.000-07:00

Yay, she's here! I've spent an exhausting few days watching a bunch of kiddos while Becky was at the hospital... but mine wasn't nearly as exhausting as hers! Keziah's such a little cutie - we're so glad she's finally here!

Halloween!

2008-10-31T20:55:00.000-07:00

My cuties had a pretty fun time going to the church pumpkin party and then trick or treating!

Where's Lily?

2008-10-17T23:27:00.000-07:00

I went in to wake Lily up from nap to discover this scene... She had completely trashed her room, wasn't in her bed, and took me a couple seconds to figure out where she had fallen asleep.

Bauman Farms

2008-10-03T14:23:00.000-07:00

We went with our home school group to Bauman Farms. We got to see how apple cider is made and got to taste the fresh cider! There was lots of play equipment and a hay ride out to pick out pumpkins, gourds, and corn to take home. The girls had so much fun!!

Our group watching the apple cider demonstration

The cider press

Feeding the goats

Lost in a hay maze!

The kids in our group... this is actually a third of the group. We had over 85 people there, so they split us into 3 groups.

hay ride!!

Both girls were nuts about the hay bale pirate ship!

The rain wasn't that bad. We had boots, nice coats, and umbrellas. :)

Craft day!

2008-09-26T16:06:00.000-07:00

The girls have a wonderful little group of friends to get together every month for craft days or field trips. They all made and decorated cement stepping stones today. All the kids had a ton of fun!... and my arms are sooooo sore from mixing cement!

Kalindi and Mikayla

Lily and Faith

Natalia

Abigail

Isabelle and Kira

Isabelle

More Star Wars

2008-09-22T00:07:00.000-07:00

The comic store had Star Wars people again! Mikayla was disappointed she forgot to bring her light saber, but seeing Princess Leia there made up for it!

Back to school party!

2008-08-28T17:54:00.000-07:00

We've been going to the park each week to meet up with our local homeschool group. The girls have loved it and met several new friends! Today was the back-to-school party with potluck, games, goody bags with school supplies, and yearbook signing. It looks like a really good group, so I'm pretty excited for the school year! There were 53 kids age 1 to 16 or so, which seemed pretty decent sized! The girls loved the pillow sack races. Mikayla won the race for the 5 and under age group.

Lily and her friend may have come in last in the 3-legged race, but I think they had the most giggles and fun during it!

State Fair!

2008-08-25T17:24:00.000-07:00

We went to the fair today since it was $1/ride day. Grammy Thelma was able to go with us, and both girls had a wonderful time! We rode the skylift, saw all the animals, went in a reptile house, got attacked by goats and deer in the petting zoo, got to race ducks, and rode a ton of rides. Lily skipped nap and had a lot of fun - she rode all the rides she cried on last year and loved them this year. Mikayla graduated to the "big kid" area, and went on all the "scary rides". Her favorite was the Gravitron (called the Starship at this fair), but she loved the Octopus, Scrambler, giant ferris wheel, swings, and several other bigger rides! Mama loved going on them with her!

Round trip on the skylift! Both girls loved it... good thing since it was a loooong trip.

Mikayla getting ready for a "scary ride."

The view from the top of the teacup ferris wheel!!

Mikayla loved the Octopus!

We have pictures of Lily crying on this last year!

Lily loves the swings. Mikayla's trying to make a point of how boring they are.

The petting zoo was a little scary. Anyone with food got attacked!

Both girls got to pet a dragon, snake, and turtles!

Big change for Mikayla!!

2008-08-10T23:26:00.000-07:00

Well, we finally did it! Mikayla decided she wanted short hair. We gave her a few days to be sure, and then took her in to get it cut. She's very excited about donating it to Locks of Love! I think daddy and Papa are in a bit of shock, but they'll get used to it! Her new hair cut looks absolutely adorable!

Pony rides!

2008-08-07T07:35:00.001-07:00

Actually, it's a miniature horse, not a pony. We were at Thelma's yesterday, and right as we were leaving, a friend we hadn't seen for quite a while happened to stop by on a walk with her horse! The girls both got to rid him and had quite an exciting time!

Getting Inspired...

2008-08-04T10:54:00.000-07:00

School's only a month away. Which means this month is my very, very late "spring cleaning" month. This morning I turned the girls room completely upside down. Well, maybe it was already upside down - and I spent a few hours getting it right side up again. They're thrilled with their nice clean room where everything has a place. Blinds and curtains are back up, some things are rearranged, and it looks... well, like a little girl's room should look!

Mikayla's excited about going through things with me and getting rid of all the dressup clothes, toys, and animals that we don't play with or have outgrown. It was pretty nice having her hand stuff to me saying, "Put this in that box, because it's getting old and we don't need it anymore."

Mentor Picnic

2008-07-20T15:34:00.001-07:00

Mark's work had a wonderful employee picnic that we got to enjoy today! There was a lot of food - including things Mikayla would eat like cotton candy and Dippin' Dots. The girls had a lot of fun with a bouncy castle, bouncy obstacle course, face painting, and balloons.

Juicer!

2008-07-13T12:30:00.000-07:00

We just got a nice juicer today... I'm trying to be eating better (and getting Bill and the kids eating better too!), and this seemed like a great way to help us out! The girls were pretty excited going to the store to get the juicer and then going to the grocery store to get fruits and veggies to juice.

We may have gone overboard - spending $50 on produce. I had no idea those pre-bagged apples and oranges would come out to $20 each! The $1 off coupon on the side of the bag misled me!

We got home, got it all set up, and both girls thoroughly enjoyed putting fruit in the juicer. Lily refused to try any. Mikayla tried it and loved it. I think it's great. Bill passed out (long day photographing a wedding yesterday). 50% success for the first round seems pretty good! Mikayla loved her first juice combo of apple, carrot, and strawberry. I figure this is an excellent way to get produce - especially veggies - into the world's pickiest eater. I can't wait to find lots of yummy, healthy combos!

Video of Mikayla's juice

4th of July family videos :D

2008-07-11T08:07:00.000-07:00

Cannonball!

Playing in the pool!

Whirlpool

Lily's Wipeout

Bill gets hit by a firework

Fireworks!!!

Lots of pics of the 4th!!

2008-07-11T07:17:00.000-07:00

The whole family!
Top row: Becky, Titus, mom, dad, Annie, Brian
Bottom row: Thad, Raquelle, Sarah, Mikayla, Lily, me, Bill

They made a "whirlpool" by running, and then floating with the current.

at least someone's having fun!

Aunt Annie flew in from NY to join us!

I am the S'more master!

Sarah's such a good sport!

All Hail Mama!!

2008-06-11T08:35:00.000-07:00

I swear, I had nothing to do with this and don't even know where this came from or how she picked it up. Of course, no one believes me. :P

Return of the coffee table!

2008-06-06T08:05:00.000-07:00

Well, we fished the coffee table out of the garage so we could put it to good use again. The girls responses this morning were great. Lily's first response was, "You shrunk the table! It's just the right size for Berry!!" (it's the same color/shape as our dining room table). Mikayla took one look and said, "That's the table I got my foot stuck in!" and looked at it like it was going to bite her.

Sicky household

2008-05-31T08:04:00.001-07:00

Lily was throwing up yesterday and has a fever today. Mikayla has a fever and bad tummy ache. Sarah is in terrible pain with kidney stones and desperately hoping not to catch anything from the girls on top of dealing with that. I'm chugging Airborne and vitamins... Fun times at the English household. :(

Hair cut!

2008-05-27T15:24:00.000-07:00

Lily's never had a haircut before - not even a trim. So at 3 1/2 years old, we cut some bangs for her! She's very proud of her new bangs... and Mikayla is rather jealous.

The beach!!

2008-05-17T16:16:00.001-07:00

It's been about 3 years since our family went to the beach. We decided that was completely inexcuseable, and packed up 2 very excited girls to enjoy an amazing day at the beach! The weather was perfect, our timing was great for getting there before it got crowded. Both girls had such a good day!!

Mikayla was fascinated finding ladybug friends!!

Sprinkler on a hot day!

2008-05-16T19:07:00.000-07:00

camera phone!

2008-05-14T18:06:00.000-07:00

Well, we got new phones - both will be free after the rebate! Yay!! This is the first time I've had a camera phone! It also plays mp3's. So first thing, I found a good Michael Buble ringtone, took an absolutely ridiculous picture, and set out to play with my new toy!!

The cuter pics (ie: NOT the one of me!! hehe) are at NW kids club. I take the girls there whenever I feel like I'm about to go crazy. :D

Star Wars!

2008-05-03T19:00:00.000-07:00

Today was free comic day, and our local comic shop had some Star Wars visitors! For those who don't know, Bill has redeveloped his love for comics, so this was a big deal for the girls to come to the shop and get pictures with Vader and some Jedi! Lily had a death grip on Bill, but other than that the girls had fun, and Mikayla was thrilled to bring her light saber to a store!

Congrats Erin!!

2008-04-27T10:35:00.001-07:00

My brother's girlfriend is training for the Olympic trials in pole vault. This weekend she jumped 15'1" which puts her at 2nd in the world in outdoor track and field!!

Europe pictures!

2008-04-27T10:30:00.000-07:00

I keep thinking I'm going to go through and post my favorite pictures from Europe, but I'm having a horrible time deciding!! So here's a couple favorites of me and Bill, and then check out Bill's site that has a TON of pictures!

The whole group we travelled with!!

Dancing Kiddos!

2008-04-13T07:50:00.001-07:00

While in Europe...

2008-04-07T07:25:00.000-07:00

Sorry Europe pictures are taking so long! Bill's putting in a ton of hours after being gone 2 weeks - there's so much at work for him to catch up on. So hopefully soon I'll have pictures to blog! It was absolutely amazing, and we saw so many places and sites that it was nearly overwhelming!

Meanwhile, I have pics of the girls while they were staying at my parents for 2 weeks. It sounds like they did a pretty good job, and my parents kept them quite busy! It was so nice to not be worried about how the girls were doing and getting constant email updates on activities and quotes from them!

They went to a children's museum and had lots of fun on stage and brushing teeth!

Does anyone else wonder how many other mouths that toothbrush has been in?? Gross, Sarah!

The girls slept in a tent in the family room and "camped" for their stay. How fun!

Snow!

2008-01-30T08:53:00.001-08:00

It seems quite funny to be excited about this little amount of snow, but we were! The girls and I made sure to go out nice and early before it had a chance to disappear later today. We've learned our lesson before on that one!

I was surprised how long the stayed out there, even when it started to rain a bit. They didn't seem to notice at all. I forgot how at that age, you don't care if your gloves, socks, and shoes are getting wet or if it's raining, or if your nose is frozen. They were so excited!

Of course, when we came in, they realized how wet and cold they were. Luckily lukewarm chocolate (and coffee for mommy!) thawed everything out. :D

Mikayla's 5th birthday!

2008-01-21T18:16:00.000-08:00

This is the first year Mikayla had a party with other kids at it. She was able to invite the girls in her sunday school class, and had a My Little Pony party. We played pin the tail on the Pony - though the "tail" was the little picture on My Little Pony's bum and it was sticking the sticker in the right spot. We also were able to find a Pony pinata that was the highlight of the party! One of the dads had to help out with breaking it after the kids all got a few chances to beat on it.

Yes, she got a light saber and loves it

On the more adventurous of her birthday endeavors, I made a princess castle cake... twice. The first attempt reduced me to tears and ended up being thrown away. The second attempt, we had a better idea of how to give the top layer more support so it wouldn't keep falling over. In the end, the castle was a huge success and worth all the pain and agony!

Happy 3rd Birthday Lily!

2007-12-03T18:10:00.000-08:00

Lily had a wonderful 3rd birthday! I think she loved every minute of her party at Mark and Thelma's house and enjoyed all the attention she got being the birthday girl. Thank you, everyone!!

See lots more pictures on Bill's Flickr gallery.

Make a wish!!

For trying to impress a 3 year old, my butterfly cupcake-cake wasn't half bad!

Raquelle and Lily dig in!

Is there any cake left, Bill? hehe

Grandma Reed's first time to hold Titus!

Lily and Grandma Jane

Lily and Grandma Reed

Lily and Grandma Kathy

Lily and Grandma Thelma

All the Grandmas!

Grandpa Bob and Raquelle

Happy Birthday Lily!

2007-12-03T18:08:00.001-08:00

Lots of presents!

Scott models the new lipstick

Lots of food! Thanks Mark!

Kiddos enjoy the new trainset

The princess and her train set!

The Pirate and Little Red

2007-10-31T22:33:00.001-07:00

The girls had a pretty fun Halloween! We first went to the church for the pumpkin party. They had snacks, a little kiddo play area that Lily loved, carnival style game "booths," and a walk-through spooky cave.

The highlight was the cave, especially for Mikayla - I think the girls went through it about 8 times. It had black walls, spider webs, tunnels, a strobe light room, and some kinda spooky sounds (wait - that might have been the high school helpers). I went partway through the first time until I hit a tunnel a bit small for my liking. From that point on they were on their own! Mikayla was a wonderful big sister, holding Lily's hand and making sure she got through the cave ok.

We went trick or treating around the neighborhood when we got home. I put 2 long sleeve shirts on each kiddo under their dresses, and that did the trick for keeping warm. They loved it, and every house they went to and person we passed on the street thought they were adorable. lol The first house, Lily walked right in and started playing with the dog. I guess we didn't explain the whole point of not sticking around to socialize.

Cupcakes!

2007-10-30T16:00:00.000-07:00

We decorated Halloween cupcakes with Emily. The girls had lots of fun but thought they should be able to eat everything they decorated right away!

Let the training begin...

2007-10-22T16:17:00.000-07:00

Ok, all you peoples who have been horrified that this little girl isn't potty-trained... here we go! Lily and I had a wonderful trip to the store yesterday for her to pick out panties (princess and Little Mermaid) and m&m's (bribes for potty hitting the toilet and not my carpet). Well, we're almost through day number 1. Apparently she wanted to be able to use every single pair of new panties on the first day, but I will persevere... after doing a load of laundry! She's actually done a very good job and had the to-be-expected-accidents. She's quite excited about it, so there's probably no going back now!

In Mikayla news, she got a pirate costume for halloween and has been wearing it around constantly - complete with eyepatch, bandana, and sword. Luckily we convinced her to put the sword away until halloween so it doesn't break. Lily has a cute Little Red Riding Hood costume. I'm sure Bill will get wonderful pictures of the girls next week!

When we picked Mikayla up from Sunday School yesterday, she ran and hid under a table, cowering, and yelling, "Who are you people!!! I don't know you!!!" Needless to say, we were shocked. I told her, "Oh, I'm sorry, I thought you were my little girl! I'm sure your real parents will come soon." She changed her mind rather quickly about recognizing us... but still! I have the horrifying thought of what if she does this at a store?! I think I need to start carrying a family picture to prove she's mine.

Adventures with Sweetie

2007-10-08T08:28:00.000-07:00

Don't worry, I'm sure we'll have pictures of Sarah soon, too! Sarah and Sweetie moved in and seem to be doing well (don't ask Sarah - she might tell you a different story! hehe). Sweetie and Sassy don't get along. Sassy's so paranoid now, she hisses at anything that moves. We like to give them their space... except Lily who will pick up Sweetie and dangle her right in Sassy's face. I'm amazed she didn't lose a hand over that one! As feisty as Sassy and Sweetie are with each other, Sweetie will let Lily pick her up pretty much in any position and carry her around.

Sarah's started school and got 2 jobs - at a coffee cart and Costco. I'm enjoying the free drinks she brings home!!

Bill's still working a lot of overtime. As Mikayla says when he leaves for work, "Did they break those computers AGAIN??"

Mikayla started her second year of AWANA, and we started doing some homeschool preschool with her. I'm also watching Emily again part time. I might think of potty training Lily sometime soon. I think she's ready. Diapers are just so much easier! I know, that's terrible - but she's still younger than Mikayla was, so I'm not too worried!

Oh - and I think I have grounds to win the haircut battle. I'd love to cut Mikayla's hair, but Bill is somewhat protesting. But when she was getting dressed the other day and said, "My hair always gets stuck in my panties!" - well... there's no fighting that one. NO ONE should have to deal with that problem!!

Completely Neglectful

2007-09-15T16:25:00.000-07:00

Well, I had one very happy little girl on my hands... due to me forgetting to turn bath water off.

I started water for Lily and went to do some dishes while it filled. When I turned the dish water off, I realized I could still hear bathwater and had forgotten I'd left it running. I got in there pretty quickly, expecting to find the bathroom flooded (I could hear Lily splashing, so I knew she was fine). Luckily, it was only getting close... and Lily was thrilled. I guess I've gotten too used to them taking baths together and Mikayla yelling for me when it gets deep enough!

Mika Cam

2007-09-11T17:19:00.001-07:00

Yes, here are more exciting pictures from the world of Mikayla. All of these are how she took them - uncropped, colored, whatever. She's nearly ready to replace me on picture-taking!!

It's been a long day...

2007-09-05T17:50:00.000-07:00

State Fair!

2007-08-28T09:55:00.000-07:00

We took the girls to the fair yesterday, and they had a wonderful time!! Mark and Thelma came, and it was quite nice to have 4 adults for 2 kiddos! They had a lot of fun looking at sheep, cows, and a few horses, but even more fun petting and feeding them.

And almost as much fun pretending to be them!...

The canoe ride was by far Lily's favorite. I lost count, but she went on it at least 4 times.

Next time I'm bringing more than 1 change of clothes for her!

Lily barely scraped by on being able to ride the kiddie rides!

2007-08-28T09:49:00.001-07:00

The girls had quite different opinions of this one!

Mikayla was an excellent big sister helping Lily through the walk through!

Lily cried on this one too... time for more canoe rides!

This was by far Mikayla's favorite. I went on the tiger roller coaster twice with her! Can't wait til she's about 12. I'll have a fair ride partner again!

Lily stuck with the canoes while Mikayla and I went on the "scary" rides.

I was 2 feet taller than every other person on these swings...

Mikayla only tried a little bit of the cotton candy - guess I get leftovers! Meanwhile, she was nuts about the elephant ears.

Big changes ahead!!

2007-08-25T18:33:00.000-07:00

And no, not the kind you probably just thought. Although it does involve a new member of the household. My sister, Sarah, will be moving in with us in September - probably for the school year. I'm quite excited and think it will be a lot of fun! That means the next few weeks are pretty crazy for us. We're clearing out the office, moving furniture around, and getting things in order.

This weekend's big task was the girls room - they made the switch to bunkbeds. The bunk is absolutely beautiful, and they really love it. Tonight will be their first night in it. We'll see how it goes! Lily napped on the top bunk instead of on her lower bunk, so hopefully she's willing to give up the top tonight. I also moved several items from the playroom to their room. They're pretty excited over new beds and lots of toys in their room. Hopefully it stays cleaner than the playroom did!

Shameless plug

2007-08-24T15:32:00.000-07:00

Mikayla tried her hand at some wall-art when she was napping in our bed. We've had this lovely drawing above the head of our bed for a little while now - with me afraid to scrub it for fear of taking paint off. Thelma brough me a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, so I decided to give it a try. I'm now in love. Mr. Clean is the ultimate stud. I had so much fun I found myself crawling around on hands and knees looking for more spots in the house to clean. Many spots are magically erased from the hallway with the lightest touch!

Now... it DID claim to work for many uses. Apparently once over in the house is counted as many uses. I'll assume next time I won't be trying to scour every wall with one magic little sponge. Also, it didn't work on ball point pen marks or nail polish. I suggest, if you have kids, you find a better place than I did for nail polish.

Chilimac talks

2007-08-14T18:44:00.000-07:00

Bill was hungry for dinner tonight and decided that the kids looked like decent meal replacements. He was growling at them pretending to be hungry for toesies.

Mikayla: "Daddy looks hungry enough to eat a whole blanket!"
Me: "Daddy looks hungry enough to eat a whole Mikayla!"
Mikayla: "But what would I do all alone in daddy's tummy?"
Me: "I guess you'd have to play with the chilimac."
Mikayla (starting to panic): "But chilimac doesn't talk or walk!"

Artistic Pictures

2007-08-06T09:52:00.000-07:00

We set up the lights and backdrop and actually got some beautiful pictures of the girls last week! I think Bill would have been happy with only the black and white ones - which he did an amazing job on! But I insisted I wanted the traditional style also. I'm so happy with how lovely they all turned out! And, believe it or not (although anyone who knows us will) Mikayla was crying and yelling just 30 seconds before this b&w pic of her. lol

Traditional pictures

2007-08-06T09:48:00.000-07:00

Bowling

2007-08-06T06:33:00.000-07:00

The girls had their first trip to the bowling alley yesterday! Both of them had a great time, though it sure is a handful to take them bowling!

Just a regular day

2007-08-02T16:00:00.000-07:00

Mikayla proudly shows off her camera (see last post!)

Lily found a box under a bed with lots of fun non-summery stuff in it. You can't see in this, but she's wearing striped socks with jingle bells hanging from them. The bells didn't last more than an hour before they were all gone.

Mikayla's photo post

2007-08-02T15:48:00.001-07:00

Mikayla got her first real camera. A cute little digital camera, and she's now a photo-taking nut! She's truly daddy's girl. lol She'll walk around the house taking random pictures of whatever toy, person, item, tv show she thinks is worth note. She's actually quite good - I couldn't seem to get people's heads in pictures even in 8th grade, so she's ahead of me already! I'm so glad I have the final say of anything that will ever actually be shown!!

Little Einstein - her favorite tv show right now

the horse (obviously)

She had Lily go pose for this one

One of the not-so-horrible catch mom by surprise pictures. Trust me - there's way worse!

A self-portrait

Good job taking a cute pic of daddy and Lily!

Sassy's a little unsure of the new picture-taking Mikayla

Once again - good job with the pic of uncle Zach and Lily!

Grandpa and Zach move some of their stuff out of our garage... although I swear more was supposed to go... this means everything left is ours. Drat!

She lined all her friends up herself for a group shot

The return

2007-07-24T10:11:00.000-07:00

Well, the ballpit has been in storage for about a year, and I decided it would be a nice new thing to pull out again. Both girls are thrilled! I've stressed to them that they have to help keep all the balls picked up when they're not playing in it, or I'm gonna have to put it away again. We'll see how it goes!

Food woes

2007-07-21T18:04:00.001-07:00

After throwing out several failed dinner suggestions such as chocolate pudding or m&m's, Mikayla finally said quite dramatically, "Nobody's ever gonna give me any food!" I replied (after being rather frustrated over her whining), "Well, that's ok, cause you don't eat food." Her indignant response: "Yes I do! I always eat dessert!"

Fashion statement

2007-07-15T14:19:00.000-07:00

I got the girls matching shirts the other day. Well, Lily's not about to accept that they're matching shirts. She's sure that Mikayla's shirt is really the matching pants to her top. It's not quite working as she planned, but she's determined to make it a 2-piece set for herself.

"I'm a kitty spaceman!"

2007-07-15T07:55:00.000-07:00

Shoulder lickin' skills

2007-07-13T18:31:00.000-07:00

My girls never cease to stop me flat in my tracks with the completely random things they come up with. Tonight I got the girls out of the bathtub, got Lily dressed, and told Mikayla to get dressed while I made her a sandwich. A minute later, she was running around the kitchen stark naked crying about how cold her hair was making her back. I proceeded to explain to her that I was making her sandwich and she needed to go get her pj's on. She fussed and whined and shivered all while I told her she'd just have to wait since I could only do one thing at a time. She stopped and stared at me puzzled for a minute. Finally she asked, "Well, can you lick your shoulder? I can. See!"

I give up with logic with these kids.

Hot days!!

2007-07-12T18:11:00.000-07:00

We broke 100 degrees this week. Way too hot for us Oregonians! Bill believes in freezing to death. At least this is my claim as I shiver in the air conditioning. He thinks I'm quite silly and just need to put socks on. I'm not complaining about the air conditioning - I really appreciate it!! But today, the girls decided on their own attire. Methinks the scales have now moved to 3 against 1.

Rocker girl

2007-07-12T18:08:00.000-07:00

Fun at the park

2007-07-07T10:21:00.000-07:00

We spent a few days for the 4th up at my parents. It was quite the crowd! Thad and Becky came with their kiddos. Brian and Erin flew up from southern Cali. Nate came to spend the week with Sarah. We enjoyed an afternoon at the lake, fireworks that made big booms, and some good park play time. The girls even stayed up until almost 11:00 on the 4th. I can't believe they made it that long! They had a couple late nights but did pretty well!! If only they'd sleep in when they stay up that late!!

Grandpa Bob and Lily - she lasted about 15 seconds each time she got on one of these park toys. One busy girl!

Mikayla didn't realize til she was walking the beam that she might have some height issues.

Nate and Lily became slide buddies

Grandpa and uncle Brian took advantage of unused play equipment

Brian didn't make sliding very easy!

Fireworks!

2007-07-07T10:16:00.001-07:00

A family picture!

Mikayla very carefully dropped one popit at a time.

Snuggle time with Grandma! Or "Gamma Kaffy" as Lily says.

Mikayla likes big booms!!

Erin's first experience with Washington fireworks... Now THIS is what she was more used to!

Me and my girls!

Sarah and Annie - you guys owe me for picking this pic instead of the other one. hehe

Uncle Thad and Aunt Becky

Aunt Sarah and Nate

Uncle Brian and Erin

Who needs water to have fun in a canoe?

Lake trip on the 4th!

2007-07-07T10:08:00.001-07:00

Mikayla loved her new big turtle

Brian does his best to assist Thad and Nate!

The girls loved the floating island - although they were slightly scared any time it rocked... or someone rocked it.

Lily could have played all day just in the canoe on the shore!

A peaceful moment with Sarah and Titus!

Sarah didn't believe us when we yelled at her that a "crocodile" aka: Brian was coming.

Erin and Brian put their jumping skills to good use.

Raquelle loves her backpack!

Sibbling Conversations

2007-06-27T07:32:00.001-07:00

Mikayla and Lily interact quite a bit. They play well and fight well together. Sometimes their conversations are so off-the-wall, I just have to laugh.

Lily: I want a cracker!

Mikayla: Me too!

Lily: Me three!

Mikayla: Me four!

Lily: Me three!

Mikayla: You're supposed to say "me five."

Lily: Me three!

The world of make believe

2007-06-23T08:19:00.001-07:00

Lily had this running conversation with Berry... mind you - Lily was speaking both hers and Berry's parts.

Berry: You're a silly monkey!

Lily: I'm Lily!

Berry: You're Lily?

Lily: That's right, Berry!

(Lily sneezes)

Berry: Bless you, Lily!

Lily: Oh, thank you!

Berry: Silly Lily!!

Then and now!

2007-06-21T18:40:00.001-07:00

I did this quite a while ago and thought it'd be fun to revisit and do again. These are pictures of Lily now, and Mikayla 2 years ago when she was exactly Lily's age. It's fun every once in a while to compare and see how alike they look at the same age. They definitely have their own look, although still quite similar. :)

Visit from a kitten

2007-06-12T07:43:00.000-07:00

Sarah spent the night last night with her new kitten, Sweetie, on their way home to Tenino. The girls loved waking up to finding a baby kitten (and Aunt Sarah!) in the living room!

Bullwinkle's fun!

2007-05-28T20:45:00.001-07:00

We enjoyed an afternoon at Bullwinkle's with Bill's parents for Memorial Day. It was the girls' first time to try mini-golf. Their form leaves some to be desired, but they both had a great time! I got to play in the go-cart with Mikayla. I admit, I may have enjoyed it almost as much as she did! Bill was a bit jealous and already has dibs on taking her next time.

The process of retrieving a golf ball

2007-05-28T20:40:00.000-07:00

Lily did this nearly on every hole to get her ball back.

Awana awards night

2007-05-23T07:31:00.001-07:00

Mikayla had her last night of Awana last night. She got to walk across the stage in front of everyone to get a certificate and bear for her vest - it was quite exciting for her! She also noticed the big trophies on the table and was quite interested in those. I explained that those are for the kids who work extra hard for a long time. It's hard work to get one of those!

Lily did a wonderful job sitting with us to watch Mikayla. I think it helped that we were clapping after each kid, and she loves to clap. She also provided comic relief for several parents when, as we were leaving, she ran straight into the glass window pane next to the door and walked back to us looking slightly dazed and confused as to why that didn't quite work.

And this is what happens when you actually try to get 3 of us smiling at the same time... No one was screaming, so this is about as close as we can get!

The truthfulness of children

2007-05-21T09:58:00.000-07:00

Lily came to me after my shower proudly holding several of my hairclips...

Me: "Lily, were you standing on my dresser?"
Lily: "Yes!"
Me: "Are you supposed to stand on my dresser?"
Lily: "No!"
Me: "Why did you stand on it, then?"
Lily: "Lily be trouble!"

Well, at least she's honest. Morning showers may have gone out the window yet again.

Doctors in training

2007-05-21T08:46:00.000-07:00

Here comes the bride

2007-05-20T07:41:00.001-07:00

This is the flower girl dress that Carly wore in our wedding. She passed it down so Mikayla can play dress-up with it. I almost cringe to let Mikayla use it for dress up, but if you saw the way her face lit up when she saw the dress... priceless! Mikayla is THRILLED to be able to pretend to be a bride.

In other news on the wedding front, Mikayla had the shocking revelation that she isn't married. I can see how that would be a shock if you've assumed for a while that you are. She always talks about "Remember when I got married?...". I always correct her: "You mean when you were a flower girl and threw flowers out of the basket?" But apparently that's as good as being married - at least so she thought. Last week she came to me quite distressed. "Mommy, I'm NOT really married!! I didn't kiss a boy! That means I'm not married! I need to kiss a boy!"

Well then, all I can say is all little boys who see us in the near future - you've been properly warned. She's on the hunt at age 4.

And just for kicks... Carly in it 7 years ago. :D

It's a small world after all

2007-05-17T18:23:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed a family bike ride... twice around the block. Now mind you, it's a big block. Mikayla expressed her enthusiasm by exclaiming, "I love going around the world again and again and again!"

Meanwhile, Lily's in the childseat on my bike yelling, "High Five, Mommy!"

Awana and Snuggles

2007-05-16T06:45:00.000-07:00

Mikayla only has 1 week left of her first year of Awana! Last night they had a carnival complete with face painting. She had a wonderful time!

Lily's feeling much better and bouncing off the walls as usual... and also getting up early as usual. Bill snuck a picture on his way to work of our typical exciting morning activities when she gets up earlier than I deem sane!

Poor little sicky

2007-05-10T17:51:00.000-07:00

Lily's had a rough couple days complete with a traumatic doctor trip today. We were up all night Tuesday night with her throwing up. By Wed morning, that finally stopped, but now she's fighting a fever. She's been refusing most foods, liquids, meds... everything. The doctor trip was because I'm hitting the point of being worried about dehydration.

So when she refused to drink at the doctor's office, they decided to send a nurse in to show me how to force-feed her liquids with a syringe. I'm thinking... "Yeah right. Does that actually work on toddlers?" Apparently it's supposed to. Apparently they've never seen one as stubborn as Lily. The more nurses we added to the task of trying to get her to drink, the more people that got wet when she just spit it back. One commented, "I've never seen one put up a fight this hard... usually they give up long before now!" Well - they should see her big sister. Sigh. It took several attempts with them giving her a break in between syringes. She even fell asleep in my lap in one of the 3 minute breaks. Finally, they decided they got enough liquid in her. I kinda thought my soaked pant legs showed otherwise, but I just wanted to be done. They topped it off with forcing some meds down her... so... add stickiness to the spitting also. Lovely.

Now we're just praying that she drinks on her own so we don't have to go through forcing fluids down her, since I know how well that goes. Luckily it doesn't look like there's anything else wrong with her besides fever and not wanting to eat/drink. She's had a whole cup of water since nap - a huge step in the right direction! Wish us luck on getting her to take meds before bed! Hopefully my little tyke will be back to herself and jumping off headboards in no time!

Meanwhile, Mikayla decided today was a perfect day for the beach and got herself all ready for it.

Easter pics!

2007-04-23T06:46:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed Easter lunch at Bill's parents house... our last big family event before their big move! The girls had a wonderful time going on an egg hunt and playing with everyone. Thanks for the pics, Mark!!

2007-04-23T06:44:00.000-07:00

Titus is here!

2007-04-21T15:42:00.000-07:00

Becky and Titus!

Proud aunt and uncle!

Three girls waiting patiently for their little man to arrive!

Feeding the Ducks

2007-04-09T06:47:00.000-07:00

The girls had a great time feeding ducks last week. Mikayla carried around a sack of bread for about an hour before actually feeding them. Luckily by the time the gang of geese showed up we were ready to go. They looked scary - definitely the kings of the park!!

Sisterly Love

2007-04-09T06:43:00.000-07:00

River Front Park

2007-04-05T10:44:00.000-07:00

We've been enjoying the chance to go to the park on afternoons with good weather. The girls love going down on the dock and looking at the boat (which they talk about being excited about riding it sometime!) and feeling the water. We're working on safe dock behavior - staying away from the edge, only being on their belly if they're going to feel the water, etc. I need to get these kiddos into swimming lessons!! lol Special thanks to Nate for the pics!

Sticker Fun

2007-03-26T09:07:00.000-07:00

Mikayla was extremely proud of herself for decorating Bill's desk beautifully with tiny little stickers. Once I made it clear to her that she can't be putting stickers on furniture, she found other surfaces to keep her occupied. Lily quite enjoyed it also!

What will we be remembered by?

2007-03-14T22:49:00.000-07:00

Tonight I found out a good friend from years past died. He was one of my closest friends all of my growing up years. His mom was my mom's best friend from high school, so of course it was natural when they had a boy and girl 3 months apart that they would play match-maker. Well, Micah and I never got married, but we did manage to stay good friends despite our parents match-making attempts. Even though we haven't talked as much in recent years (he lived in Utah), I still think of him with fondest memories that highlight my childhood.

He had a failed liver transplant over a year ago. This month, they were able to finally find another liver for him, but his body wasn't strong enough to handle the surgery. At only 3 months older than me, Micah died after years of struggling with kidney issues. I can't imagine the things he's been through. His strength and steadfast faith throughout all his trials astound me. He never doubted God once. He admitted his weaknesses and had his depressing times, but his faith stood through it all. And so the legacy he leaves behind is a trail of people who bore witness to his amazing faith. I cried harder tonight than I've cried in a long time. But I've come out of it realizing that so many people have been praying for him - his health, his body, his strength. And now he stands before God. His body renewed. In no pain. He'll never see a hospital again. His joy is more than I could ever imagine... until I also am there.

And yet I still weep. I don't even know - is it tears for him? Over a lost friendship? I know I'll see him again. It makes me examine my own life. What am I doing to leave a legacy and example to others? And it makes me feel incredibly inadequate. Even starting in my own home - I want my children to see a role-model they can admire and look up to. Someone with rock-solid faith to show them what is important and what to hold on to. I fear I've fallen short so many times.

I don't know where I'm going with all this, but to Micah - thank you for your example, your faith, your love for God, your steadfast committment even in the midst of so much pain and hopelessness. I can only hope to live up to your legacy.

Snuggle time

2007-03-14T22:43:00.000-07:00

Lily has a wonderful new obsession with sleeping in Mikayla's bed - usually with Mikayla. Of course, this has extended bedtime by a good deal, since I have to go in there several times each night to get Lily out of Mikayla's bed.

The geniusness of parents and other such things

2007-02-20T08:27:00.000-08:00

I'm a genius. No, really! Mikayla told me so. She was telling me, "I really miss Grandma Kathy," after my parents kept them for a weekend. I told her she should go visit them again, soon. Her response: "Mom, you're genius!" My IQ has been judged by a 4-year-old and found adequate.

We took the girls to the store the other night for a little grocery run. They both got to pick out their own kind of fruitsnacks. Mikayla picked Princess ones - her usual. Lily picked Cars, though Lily will go back and forth among Nemo, Care Bears, My Little Pony, Dora, and whatever other cute picture may be on a box. Never princess, because she considers that Mikayla's. So as Lily sits in the cart, does she want to hold her new Cars snacks? No. She's chewing on the package of balogna yelling, "Meat! Meat!"

And saving the best for last... We've made the great swap. Most of you have heard about this, but I wanted to post a picture, too. Berry, Lily's beloved bear, has gotten absolutely disgusting. I don't think any amount of washings could salvage him. We've had 2 bears on standby for a while in hopes of swapping them out. Well, a couple weeks ago, Lily was eating yogurt and holding Berry. Shocking that he got a bit yogurt covered. So Bill had a wonderful idea and said, "I'll go wash Berry!" He made a big deal over taking Berry to the sink, "washing" him, pulling him out, drying him off, and presto! Nice, new, clean Berry emerges!

Lily was rather skeptical. So was Mikayla. Lily cried a little. We ooh-ed and ahh-ed over how clean and fluffy Berry got. Mikayla was the first to be convinced, and with all 3 of us calling him Berry and talking about Berry's bath, Lily finally accepted him. New Berry now goes everywhere with us and is loved with an equal passion, with Lily telling everyone how he had a bath.

Silly Girls

2007-01-23T11:24:00.000-08:00

We had fun this morning with sunglasses and candy canes. Obviously... Lily's was blue.

Perfect for a chilly day

2007-01-12T11:37:00.000-08:00

I don't think it's supposed to even get above freezing today. So what do we do? We have homemade icecream-popsicles! A big, messy hit with all three girls (I had Emily today).

Mikayla and I attempted to make icecream yesterday. It just didn't want to set... I may have to tweak my recipe. So we decided that it might make good popsicles instead. No complaints, so it seems to have worked well!!

A picture's worth 1000 words

2007-01-08T11:40:00.000-08:00

O Christmas Tree

2007-01-06T17:35:00.000-08:00

I'm still not sure who won - Bill or the tree. But we're making a step in the right direction!

Girly Girls

2007-01-06T14:43:00.000-08:00

The little daredevil

2007-01-03T07:09:00.000-08:00

Lily has no fear. And no common sense. I guess that's to be expected since she's 2. Things she does that make other people gasp have ceased to worry me. She climbs in and out of her crib - no big deal - most 2 year olds still in cribs probably do, too. For diaper changes she insists on climbing the changing table herself - no problem - she'll be potty-trained eventually. She rides her new, big bouncy horse by standing on the sadle and going to town with the rocking - she hasn't flown over the head yet, so all is well.

Thanks to Mikayla, the drama queen, she's started doing daredevil stunts and yelling out dramatically, "Help! Help! Stuck in the mud!" Yeah - that's from Dora, but Mikayla likes to pretend she's stuck in the mud, and now so does Lily.

She had a bit of an accident yesterday (just tripping and hitting a corner) and got a decent head wound worthy of a bandaid. So the eyes are a bit red from all the crying that just happened, but luckily bandaid boxes can be fascinating. Looking at the pic, I shoulda used one of the bright pink or orange bandaids. Oh well. :)

Santa surprise

2006-12-16T09:42:00.000-08:00

You'd think I'd learn. Or at least remember to figure out the schedule of when they do this. I stepped out of the shower this morning to the sound of a couple short fire truck siren blasts. Not the "this is an emergency, get out of our way" siren, but the "letting you know Santa will be here in 2 minutes" siren. Trust me, there's a difference. We missed this event last year, being our first Christmas here and not realizing the significance of the siren.

This time, I shocked the family by yelling at them all to get their shoes on and get out there while I frantically got dressed to help Bill with the girls. We made it out just in time. Lily didn't want to get down, but was fine accepting a candy cane from Santa while being held by me. Santa was a bit on the young and thin side, but the girls didn't notice. Mikayla loved seeing the firefighters, so I'm glad we got out there in time this year. So - not the greatest pics of me, but hey - we were successful this year!! The neighbors were out in bathrobes, so that helped a little. :)

The bear was let out of the bag!

2006-12-15T14:07:00.000-08:00

Well, we didn't expect this to happen, oh, ever! Mikayla made a shocking discovery while falling asleep in our room for naptime. Apparently she must have been playing near our closet, because somehow she found... Teddy2. We've always wondered what would happen if she ever found out there were two of them. Well, now we know. She has no idea that "Teddy" has really been swapped between 2 bears for the past 2 years. All she knows is that she couldn't be happier that she now has two of them and he has a wonderful friend!

Oh... dear...

Oh, Christmas Tree!

2006-12-04T09:27:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Lily!!

2006-12-02T21:52:00.000-08:00

Ok, ok. I've been slacking. I'm completely ashamed I've gone a full month without blogging, and I'll try to get better. Especially with Christmas photo opportunities coming up. :)

Today was Lily's 2nd birthday! We celebrated with Bill's relatives and family on Thanksgiving, so it was rather confusing to Mikayla that Lily was having a birthday again. We went to Target, and Mikayla was telling people, "This is my sister, Lily. Today's her REAL birthday!"

Bill's parents got Lily this bouncy horse, and it's a big hit... with both girls. :) Luckily Mikayla is doing very good at understanding it's Lily's horse, and Lily is being very good about giving Mikayla turns.

We also got our tree this afternoon. It's in the garage, and hopefully we'll find a chance tomorrow to set it up and decorate it - which means tree pictures to come. I promise!! :D

Kitty time!

2006-11-01T07:51:00.000-08:00

Lily always tries so hard to pat her lap and get Sassy to come join her. This time, Sassy jumped up and actually curled up and fell asleep on Lily's lap. Of course picture taking woke her up and scared her away, but Lily didn't seem to mind.