Saturday morning outing

Many Saturday mornings, we get up and start doing things around the house, so we just don't venture out. But, this morning was different. Mary Ellen wanted pancakes, and we were out of the mix for daddy and her to make them, so we decided to venture to IHOP. We hadn't been there as a family before, so it was a great time. Mary Ellen loved trying the different types of syrup. Her favorite was strawberry! After leaving there, we went to Target for Dr. Seuss storytime that they had going on today. It included a story and a special goodie bag. We also had to make a stop in the toys at Target. We then ventured to Petco to see the animals. We had a great time, and Mary Ellen kept talking about how all of the different things she got to see and do!


Mary Ellen "inside" the Dr. Seuss book.


Trying on some work goggles at target.


Checking out the birds


Charlotte trying to decide if she wants to go to sleep or not.


Mary Ellen loves the fish. She asked me if she could get a goldfish and take it home to watch it grow!

Wonder place outing

On Friday, I took the girls to Wonder Place. This is the first time that we have gone without meeting up with friends. That didn't matter to Mary Ellen at all. She immediately found her favorite things and had a great time. Charlotte started out sleeping, but then enjoyed watching all of the activity. There were actually a lot of people there to start out with and then a small school group came. I thought that Mary Ellen would get intimidated by that, but she just kept doing her own thing. We had a lot of fun and it was good to have the time with both girls. It won't be long before Charlotte will enjoy playing with the stuff too!


Enjoying the water


Cooking for me and Charlotte


Checking everything out


Mary Ellen enjoyed putting on a puppet show for me!


I didn't have Charlotte buckled in her car seat, so I thought that this picture showed how long she is these days.

A few of Charlotte

Here are a few of Charlotte being Charlotte these days! She loves her thumb and has discovered a lovey that she likes when she is playing on the floor or in her car set. She is so cute with it bringing it up next to her face and usually having it in her mouth too! She loves her fists and could look at them or suck on them for a long time. She smiles when she looks at you and loves to see her big sister. She coos a lot, but she also lets you know when she is tried of doing something, especially, when she has had enough of me taking pictures!

Matching Girls

I love getting outfits for the girls that match or coordinate! Right now, they don't have a lot of matching items, but I am preparing for spring! Luckily, Mary Ellen thinks that it is really neat to match anyone and loves matching Charlotte. If I put anything on Charlotte that Mary Ellen knows that she has something like, she immediately wants that on. In the first picture, I actually was just putting something on Charlotte hoping that we could make it through the rest of the day without changing. Of course, Mary Ellen had to change to match!








I do realize that they don't match in this picture, but Mary Ellen asked to have their picture taken, so I wanted to share. Also, Mary Ellen was wearing red to support the Hogs as they played against Kentucky in basketball. I guess she brought the Hogs good luck!

Valentine's

This is really late, but here are a few pics of Mary Ellen from Valentine's Day. We had just a little goodie bag that she went through before breakfast. When we gave Charlotte a stuffed animal, Mary Ellen took it and said, "Sorry, Charlotte!" Luckily, Charlotte didn't know, and I have been able to get it back in Charlotte's room! Since Valentine's Day, Mary Ellen gives us presents and says, "Happy Valentine's Day!" She loves making holidays last for a long time!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day to all of our family and friends! We love you!

Last few days

Here is a sampling of the girls from the last few days in no particular order. We were stuck inside because of the snow, Mary Ellen being sick, and mommy being sick this week. But, today, we took advantage of the wonderful weather and spent some time outside!


Mary Ellen loves to just sit in her wagon! She told me she was going to collect treasures!


She decided to pull her wagon herself.


This was Charlotte's first time to "play" outside. She seemed to really like it, which you could tell by her kicking her legs in the air!


She is really getting good at holding her head up, while she is sitting in her bumbo.


Paul and I went to the Valentine's Banquet at the church, so Caki and Bo kept the girls. Big Sister helped give Charlotte her bottle. Mary Ellen was so proud of herself!


The girls hanging out!


Another picture, Mom?!?!

Monday morning, I went to the grocery store early before Paul went to work. I got this picture sent to me showing them both sitting there!

Potty training

With the snow days, we ventured into trying to start potty training with Mary Ellen. I was sick two of the days, so we aren't doing it hard core yet, but when we are at home, Mary Ellen goes around with no pants on and panties. We have her little potty in the living room, so she can have entertainment as she goes! She has been really great about going and is starting to get the realization of when she needs to go. She hasn't quite figured it out when we leave the house, and I have made the decision to use pullups right now, but I am definitely seeing that there is hope for this process!

Thumb sucker

I have made the comment that I thought that Charlotte was going to be a thumb sucker and here is the proof. I have walked in on her in her bed sucking her thumb, but I turned around and found her laying on the couch sucking her thumb. She is doing it more and more and really using it to soothe herself. She is sleeping great at night, and I have to think that it has to do with her being able to find her thumb, so I am not complaining at all!

Snow day = picture taking time

When we are inside because of the snow outside, it seems to lend itself to some great picture taking moments. Of course, if I get the camera out to take pictures of Charlotte, Mary Ellen has to join in. But, with Charlotte becoming more and more animated, she responds to her sister, and I was even able to get a picture of her smiling!











Charlotte loves to lay on our ottoman and examine her fist. She can really get into it with kicking her feet and moving her fist around. She is also cooing a lot too. Hopefully, this video gives a glimpse of her excitement and fun with this activity!

Snowman

The snow that we got this time was perfect for making a snowman. Mary Ellen actually got to make two snowmen, but here is a picture of one of them. This was their second one, so they had figured out how to do it the best. Mary Ellen came in telling me that her snowman speaks Spanish and told her, "Hola!"

Warm day in January

Last weekend, it was in the 70s, so I dressed the girls in their first matching outfits and headed outside for some picture taking. It was a beautiful day and a great chance to capture some precious moments between the two of them!














This is not from the photo shoot, but rather passed out before going into her doctor's appointment. She got woken to be examined and have shots. She looked about like this right after wards too!

Two month stats

Charlotte had her two month appointment on Monday. She is a growing girl! She weighs 12lbs 5 ozs and is 23.25 inches long! She had to get immunizations, which she cried through, but she was pretty easy to console. She is meeting all of the milestones that they asked about, but mommy has got to be better about having her do tummy time! She doesn't like it, but we have been trying to do it for at least a few minutes every day! She would much rather be on her back and look at her fists!

(Sorry, no pics with this post. But, I wanted to make sure that I documented her weight and height, so I have some place to go back and look it up if I forget! I have been comparing her with Mary Ellen when she was these ages!)