trick-or-treat

2009 - a flower and her butterfly2010 - strawberry shortcake and her strawberry

"Witch and ghost make merry on this last of dear October’s days." ~Author Unknown

together

"When sisters stand shoulder to shoulder, who stands a chance against us?" ~Pam Brown

19 months

holy smokes big girl......you are 19 months old! 19 wonderful blessed months.

it is hard for me to believe that when your sister was this age we were just a week away from welcoming you. but that is not what we're here for...

you, my sweet ad, have been up to lots of good stuff....and NOT so good stuff this past month:

the good: speech. you are putting words together. you've always said the ones that go together (bye bye, poo poo, night night, bless you, love you, etc). but now you are putting 2 words togther. your first was about 10 days ago, "bye bye poo poo!" and the next day was "hiiiii daddy" when he came home from work! you are very proud of your new accomplishment. and you've been 2-word-chatty for over a week now and are showing it off consistently with lots of different combo's. yay ad! you are, in general, much more talkative and articulate than just a month ago.

the NOT so good: sleep. you have been going through a MAJOR sleep regression this past month. as in your not sleeping. for hours and hours. every 2-3 nights. you stop and lay down as soon as we set foot in your room. we don't even need to touch you, you just want our presence. you scream and scream the second we take a step out. maybe it's cuz of seperation anxiety...or maaaaaybe...it's cuz we've been putting nice warm fuzzy pj's that are one piece and you can't hold your toosh while you sleep...

those are the big things this last month. you are such a fun gal full, and i mean FULL, of spunk! you know what you want, you have such a sense of humor and you are your own person...for sure! like when you touch your food to you foot before you eat it... yep, you really do that.
thank you for giving me so much bribe material for your pending difficult teenage years.
i also want to note my favorite thing is your hugs. you give big squeezes and sometimes smash your face as hard as you can (seriously you shake) into our face. it's the best!

my sweet adelyn, you're amazing (especially when you sleep). i'm in disbelief as each month passes us by, but watching you grow and learn and love more and more and more is so fulfilling and we love every moment with you (even from the hours of 12am to 4am).

"There is a garden in every childhood, an enchanted place where colors are brighter, the air softer, and the morning more fragrant than ever again." ~Elizabeth Lawrence

shhhhh

i'm going to let you all in on a secret. it's a big juicy secret. one that i just want to curl and wrap up in. like a snuggie.....if i had a snuggie. but i would never have a snuggie. i can't stand the things. even though i probably would really really like a snuggie.

anyways - the secret....shhhh.....

i liiiiike being with my kids.

not juicy enough for you? .....for a long time now i been getting slack for being with my kids TOO much. (if there's such a thing at this age would be a whole 'nother post...so we won't get into that.) and for a long time now i've been going along with it.

yep...i just don't like to pass off my responsibilities. (also true) yep...i just like control. (a little true) yea...my husband works very long hours. (true true) i don't want to miss a moment...no one can do 'it' like i can, i know i need to get away more, etc, etc, etc.

but the most true. the deep down honest to goodness truth of it all.

I LIKE IT.
i really wanted to insert a dirty word in there for emphasis but decided against it. but know i mean it. i really really mean it. imagine the dirty word if you must. go ahead and read it again... inserting a curse word.
I _____ LIKE IT.

i like it. i like everything about it. i like pushing their hair out of their eyes, painting their toenails and freeing their nose from boogers. i like getting them out of time out, feeling their small hand in mine and when they look up at me. i like filling their bellies, wahing their hands and wiping their butts. i like drying their tears, giving them a high five and kissing their boo boo's. i like when they try to wink back at me, sing me a song and dance like a rockstar. i like kissing their foreheads, "eating" their necks, and pulling the covers up to their shoulders. i like answering their questions, buckling them up for safety and hearing their sweet voices and giggles. i like brushing their hair, tickeling their feet and when they call, "mommmmmmmmmmy!"

actually i love it. i love it all. there's few moms that don't. duh.

and don't get me wrong. i'm not always farting rainbows over here. not by a long shot. i get frustrated. i get impatient. i experience moments where i want to run screaming from my house. but to be totally honest...i like that too. strangely. i do. i like trying to see the world through their eyes. i like being held accountable because my girls don't yet know how to ignore or brush off. i like the raw emotion of it, learning from it and doing better next time. i like who they make me strive to be.

i just like it. i like it all.

i just do.

so yea, i spend a lot of time with my girls. about every waking moment actually. and plain and simple, i _____ like it! now ya know.

ps fingers crossed that they do too. ha.

"The most dangerous untruths are truths moderately distorted." ~Georg Christoph Lichtenberg

school's out

my favorite thing about lanie going to school...

is picking her up!!!

school's out e from Molly Leone on Vimeo.

followed by a big tight squeezed bear hug! it's the best!

this video is a month old, but she has done this every single time i've picked her up from school. how lucky i am! she's the only child in the 3 and 4 year old preschool classes that consistently runs out with such excitement. and i can't wait to show her this when the upcoming 'pretend you don't know your own mom' stage passes through.

and no, she does not have 'duck feet,' her shoes are on the wrong feet. ha. she said she had an itch during school.

"Being a full-time mother is one of the highest salaried jobs in my field, since the payment is pure love." ~Mildred B. Vermont

it's fall ya 'all

and we're out playing in it...
like sisters do...
and we've been feeling the beauty of fall...


e loves the leaves! it's so much fun to watch her. ya know when i'm blocking out the thoughts of possible tics, spiders and dog poo in those beautiful leaves...
ad, on the otherhand... she's content watching...
or being held...
or climbing stairs...
e's more of a hands on...
get completely buried in it...
kinda gal...


now you see her...
now you don't...
ad did finally TOUCH a leaf...
and even walked through...
to her big sis...
it became a family affair...after the possible tic, spider and dog poo thoughts got pushed aside of course...
this was the first of many weekends of raking leaves, so hopefully ad will get more comfy with it...

"Winter is an etching, spring a watercolor, summer an oil painting and autumn a mosaic of them all." ~Stanley Horowitz

catch up

i will try harder to keep up. i greatly dislike getting so behind, but i need about 4 (or 8) more hours in my day to get what i need to get done done!

so for now...i will catch you up quickly in the past week.

elena put her pants on backwards and it took us several hours to realize. haha.
elena went to her second football game, her first night game...AND loved it!
with bobbi and uncle t-bone (my ma and bro)... we were watching papa's team...who won!
she always does that...cracks me up.
we went on a long car ride...
to a princess party for our friend addison...
then we headed to another party...a fall themed party for our friend charlee...
where we got face paintings...e wanted to be painted like a witch (which wasn't an option) so then i suggested a butterfly or balloons or rainbow...we setteled on a spider. ha.
and got to bring home lots more pumpkins...
we experienced a drive-thru car wash for the first time...

we of course nestled in with our sister and baby dolls for a princess movie...

we also did quite a bit of fall festivities this past weekend which deserve their own posts, so to be cont...

"If you wish to forget anything on the spot, make a note that this thing is to be remembered." ~Edgar Allan Poe