Fancy Pants

Audrey found this outfit (given to Laci from Derek & Geena after their trip to India, and now passed down to her)  in her drawer yesterday.  She calls them her "fancy pants" and it's now her favorite outfit.

December 2013

Audrey was thrilled to meet Santa this year.

 So was I...

She's also thrilled about candy.

After our first good snowstorm we took the girls sledding.

Audrey couldn't get enough.  Even Bailey went down snuggled up in her sister's arms.  When I took her out of the sled she lunged forward to get back in.  Looks like we have some dare devils on our hands.

We got a special Christmas treat this year:  We FINALLY met our cousin DJ!!

He's just the sweetest little boy..

Christmas was so much fun this year.  Now that I have kids, Christmas is just as magical as it was when I was a kid myself.

Bailey's face in this last picture pretty much sums up how we all felt:

Raising a Daughter

My almost three year old came into the bathroom.  “What are you doing?”  “I’m straightening my hair.”  Naturally, she asked, “Why?”  The words were on the tip of my tongue but I caught them before they left my lips.  “Because it makes me feel better about myself.”  Do I really want to tell her, my beautiful little girl, that a person’s hair should impact the way they see themselves?  Instead I answered her, “Because sometimes I like it when my hair is straight.  And sometimes I like it curly.  And sometimes I like it when I don’t do it at all.”  That last part is a lie.  I don’t like it.  It doesn’t make me feel good.  But the thought of her looking into a mirror with disgust makes my heart ache.  This three year old, who knows how great and smart and funny she is, will someday be a fifteen year old.  What will she know about herself then?  Will she know that if she doesn’t do her hair she is ugly?  Will she know that if she eats a cookie she should feel guilty? Will she know that if you don’t look perfect you are not good enough? 

Not on my watch.  Because I plan on fighting for her.  I will fight long and hard.  And I’ll do it by telling her that I like my hair straight, curly, or not done at all.  I’ll tell her that I don’t mind leaving the house without make up.  I’ll tell her that I love to go hiking and swimming and jogging, but that I also love to eat cake.  A lot of cake.  I’ll tell her that I’m heavier than I was when I got married but I don’t mind.  I’ll tell her that sometimes I go swimming without shaving.  I’ll tell her that I love my skin.  I’ll tell her I know I’m beautiful.  And some of these things will be completely true while others I’m working on.  But maybe if I tell her these things now she will know them about herself someday.  And she will know she is great and smart and funny.  And she will know that she is beautiful.  Because beautiful is so much more than how you did your hair.

Thanksgiving Day

I don't have any pictures of the delicious Thanksgiving dinner we ate at my parents' house.  Nor did I take any of the fun time we had visiting with Chris' extended family in Maine the weekend after.  (I need to get better at taking my camera out of my bag).  It was not hard to remember it after dinner, when we went to visit my dad who was at the station working.  Visiting Bup at the fire station is always a fun affair.

 But this time it was different.  Instead of just sitting in the fire truck, he took us on a ride!  We were all like kids on a field trip.  It was wicked cool!

Chris was all geared up to go.

That was actually the first time all the grandkids were there at the same time.  It was a memorable day! That weekend we also said goodbye to our sweet Bennett.  My brother and his wife officially moved to Michigan.  We're going to miss having them so close!

On a side note, this girl has become quite daring.  I was standing in the living room and turned around to find her like this:

She now thinks climbing on things is pretty awesome.  And she took her first steps one week ago.  She's trying to keep up with her crazy older sister!

It's Great to Be 28!

We celebrated my birthday with a trip to the zoo.  It was so much fun!

The deer forest was one of my favorites.

And monkeys are always a hit. This little guy was staring at us with such soulful eyes I was sure he was about to start up a conversation.

Audrey's favorite was the "petting zoo".  Here we were, surrounded by amazing animals like a Bengal tiger, rhinos, giraffes, and lion cubs.  And all she could talk about was the goats.  Nice.

While we were there, Chris fell in love with this guy.  Seriously, I thought he was going to start begging to take him home.

Behind Bailey in this next picture is a one year old lion cub.  While taking the picture, her brother noticed Audrey and bounded toward her with hungry eyes.  Kind of freaky, but a great reminder of where we lie on the food chain.  

Chris and I finished the day with a huge plate of sushi at our favorite spot.  It was a great way to say goodbye to 27.  I'm excited for another year of life - it's going to be a good one!

Temple Trip

Last week we took the girls to walk around the temple grounds.  We were so lucky to make a new friend while we there who took some pictures for us (thank you!)

I love the temple and all it stands for.  I love the peace I feel being in its presence.  I love that someday I will be able to take these two beautiful girls inside and teach them to love it too.

Summer, Summer, Summertime

Last month we took the girls to their first carnival.  Audrey had a fun time on the Carousel.

But she really, really loved this huge slide.

 Both Chris and I took turns going down with her.  And I must say, when it was my turn I looked down from the top and my stomach did a slight flip.  What did Audrey do?  She begged to go down alone - no fear.

Bailey just enjoyed sitting in the stroller looking cute.  And she did a good job at it.  She doesn't, however, do a very good job eating, which we introduced to her a few weeks ago.

On the Fourth of July we had a little party.  Audrey and her cousins played on a little slip and slide.

She loves anything that involves her cousins.  Bailey, not so much.

Unless it is Juliette...they are getting so cute to watch.

Last weekend we took a 4 day trip to Cape Cod with my family.  We had a lot of fun.

We love summer!