today in pictures

I'm tired.  Just am.  So, today's blog update will be mostly in picture form.  

We went to Target where we got all the supplies for Abby's new Treasure Chest.  To be used as rewards for sitting on the Potty.  I get it, she's not ready to train yet - and I'm not going to force it on her (no good ever came of that for anyone).  But, I am going to up the incentives and encouragement. 

Abby was pretty excited about her treasure chest.  She sat on the potty twice today - which, I think, doubles her yearly total.  

We saw this packaging paper at Home Depot.  It's free.  So we took a bunch home for art projects.  We spent some time just coloring on it - then decided to do tracings.  Again, Abby was pretty impressed.

E was not so excited.  

We changed her face to match and Abby added a beard...I dunno why. 

After nap, Abby ran out with this around her head and said "Rawr! I'm a Lion!"

while putting E to bed,  got a text from Kyle that says "what gets crayon off walls?"  

This is after her time out.

(and no, clorox doesn't get it off - but it was the principal of having her help clean.  Will be getting more magic erasers tomorrow)

Abby chilling with her two treasure chest prizes - a bouncy ball and a sucker. 

She was really proud of these.

And finally - reading with daddy. She's been insisting on wearing her mickey (minnie?) ears lately during story time.

And thanks to everyone who has asked how Abs is doing.  She's doing better.  She's still afraid of things, but we've made small gains everyday.  Last night, she stayed in bed all night for the first time since her big freak out.  She still woke up crying twice (three times?), but stayed in bed.  She still refuses to get under the covers, but we've occasionally convinced her to use a blanket on top of the covers. 

Tonight, she asked for her magic spray again and she went around the room and sprayed everything before getting into bed.  We (um, she) lost her flashlight, but she's not asked for it either.  We did nightlight for a few nights, but we haven't used it for two days or so now.  

So - small gains, and she'll be fine.  This is just a phase and it'll pass.  Eventually.  

I hope you all had wonderful days.  Enjoy the weekend.  :)

3 months

Can you believe she's 3 months old already?

Let's see.  At 3 months old, Elizabeth is, I think, a pretty typical baby. 

Let's start with sleep.  Her sleep is still regulating.  She goes to bed between 6:30-7:30 most nights.  I try to get her down closer to 6:30 or 7, but sometimes it's later.  She'll typically sleep from then until around 1am.  Sometimes midnight, sometimes 2.  And then she usually wakes up once more before morning - usually around 3 or 4...or 5.  It really just depends.  It's not nearly as consistent as Abby was at this age, but when Abby was this age, I had nothing to do other than work on her sleep.  Now?  We can't just stay home all day, so E's naps are here and there too - which directly impacts night sleep.  

As far as naps go, she takes about 3-4 naps a day.  The times, again, are inconsistent, but most days she takes one around 9ish and then again around 1 when Abby naps, and sometimes one or two more in the afternoons.  Just depends. 

She loves being swaddled for the most part.  She tries to get her hands out sometimes, but I'm pretty good with wrapping her up so that she keeps them in.  

Last night, I let her cry for the first time (happy 3 months, sweetheart).  I was sick and rather exhausted from being up with Abby for the past two nights.  I tried for nearly an hour to get her to settle back to sleep and she just wouldn't.  So, I tucked her in and closed the door.  She cried for an hour and then slept till 6:30.  That was awesome.  I mean - I don't *like* hearing her cry, but in this instance, it didn't bother me either.  I knew she was fine, and I knew I wasn't doing her any good.  It's better to let her cry than for me to get too frustrated with her.  We'll see how tonight goes I suppose. 

Stats? I don't know how much she weighs.  I'll probably find out at her next doc appointment, which might should have been this week.  I have no idea.  I need to call and find out.  She's not small though, and I'd imagine she's well within the average range, or maybe just above it. She's still in size 1 diapers (for at least the rest of this pack) and she's starting to fit into her 3 month clothes pretty well.  Newborn clothes are still wearable, but snug. 

Temperment.  She's a happy baby. She really is, and her smiles are so great.  She cries when she's hungry or tired or, just recently, when she'd rather be sitting up than on her back.  She smiles most for Abby.  And Abby just loves on her, constantly, all day.  We were driving somewhere the other day and E was crying.  She cries in the car a lot because if she's tired or hungry, there's just nothing to do.  Abby is used to it and it doesn't really bother us.  We got home and I opened the back door to get the carseat out and I see Abby has been letting Elizabeth hold her finger while she cried.  Abby said "I just trying to make her happy"  I'd never stop typing if I tried to document all the sweet things Abby does to and for her little sister.  

Nicknames.  Obviously, "E" is the most common just for simplicity's sake.  E-train is still a big favorite.  Abby likes that one a lot.  Kyle calls her E-biscuit, which always makes me laugh.  Little Miss Mae and Mae fly get used as well. Lizzie and Lizzie Mae are being used more too.  We've got tons of them.  

Nursing.  We've had quite the journey.  To recap - we started nursing, and then I got really injured from it and I turned to exclusively pumping.  I pumped for weeks with no nursing at all.  Eventually, I got brave enough to try again and we started trying to nurse once a day.  It was probably more like once every few days...but it was something.  Sloooowly, we added more nursings.  As I started to exercise more and eat healthier to lose some weight, my supply plummeted.  That was annoying.  I started taking Fenugreek to help up my supply.  

Right before we left for vacation, my supply was at it's lowest point.  I was afraid I wouldn't be able to keep nursing.  I was also very worried about traveling and vacationing and not having our fall back frozen stash to pull from (which we had been doing at home) if I couldn't produce enough.  Well, we planned to bring a few frozen bags with us for peace of mind and we left them at home.  

During that vacation week, I went from my lowest supply to going home with 3 extra bags of milk.  Since then, we've been exclusively nursing.  I pump less, but I still try to do it once or twice a day.  

I'm pretty proud of our turn-around.  I didn't know if we'd make it here or not.  I have no goals for how long I want to try to nurse, I'm just taking it one day at a time.  My next big challenge will be when I return to work...but let's not think about that now. 

Tricks. At 3 months, E's tricks are limited.  She is able to roll from back to side, but hasn't really made it all the way over yet.  She can sit for short amounts of time in the bumbo seat and is getting better controlling her head.  She is starting to grab things more.  It's a simple life. :)

Ok, I guess that's all for now.  I feel like this was pretty scattered, sorry if it was.  Just wanted to try to document a few moments about E before these things fall out of my head. 

scaries

I don't even know where to start.  I think I'll start with two nights ago.

Abby woke up screaming.  This has happened before, and usually she's having a bad dream and doesn't even wake up all the way while we tuck her back into bed.  Kyle intercepted her in the hallway and tucked her back into bed.  As usual, she wouldn't say what was wrong.

The screaming woke up E, so I got her calmed down and went bed.

At 3am, E started stirring again so I went in.  As I was putting her back in her crib, I hear Abby screaming again.  Really screaming.  The kind of screaming that makes all your mommy sensors stand on end.  I put E down and ran into her room.  I crashed into Kyle in the hallway.  Abby ran into my arms as soon as I opened the door and sobbed into my neck.  I sat in her chair and calmed her down.  When she could breathe again, I asked her what was wrong.

"there's a mouse in my bed"

Well, so here's the thing.  I was 90% sure she was dreaming.  But, we have had mice before.  Never upstairs, never in a bedroom, but...I couldn't 100% rule out the possibility that she really did see one.  Besides, she was SO freaked out.  It wasn't normal.  So.  I took her to our bed.  First time, ever?  And that's where things really disintegrated.

She was calm for about 3 seconds.  Then she screamed "ow!" and jumped as if something had bitten her.  She kept saying there was a mouse under the covers.  There was not.  She clung to me like a white-knuckled monkey.  I could barely even lie down.  Every time she'd calm down, she's think something was on her foot or under the covers and scream and cry and yell "ow ow ow ow owie ow ow!"  in a really high pitched, terrified voice.

I tried everything.  Holding her, not holding her, talking to her, reasoning with her, everything I could think of.  At one point, I took all the covers off the bed - stripped it down to the fitted sheet, turned on the lights and said "See?  There's NO mouse here"  Abby pointed right to the middle of the bed and screamed "It's there!  There's the mouse!"  She was screaming - I was already holding her, but it wasn't enough - she was trying to climb and sit on top of my head.

It was probably then that I knew something was really off.  This wasn't just a nightmare.  This continued with her telling me she was afraid of the mouse, and the buzzes, and at one point, the bunnies.  I eventually got her settled watching youtube videos.  That gave us about 45 mins of relative down time.  Then she freaked again.  At that point, it was 5 or 6 am and I told Kyle to take her downstairs and let her watch cartoons.  E woke up shortly after.

OK.  So, I take Abby to run errands while E is napping later that morning so that Kyle can get some rest.   She fell asleep in the car pretty quick... I mean, she'd been up all night.  About 15 mins later, she woke up crying.  She threw off her rain boots and kept crying and screaming that there were "somethings" in her boots.  She was freaked.  I was driving.  I told her that we would go to Target and buy magic spray.  Spray to make all the scaries go away.  She liked that idea.  *whew*

passed out in the car.

after she woke up screaming, took off her coat and boots because she was scared of them.

she was trying to climb out of her seat :((

When we got home, she sprayed the whole house with febreeze magic-no-more-scaries-spray.  I also bought her a flashlight.  We braced for naptime.  Much to my relief, naptime went well.  I started in the bed with her, then moved to the chair when she was asleep.  I stayed the whole 2.5 hours.  I wanted to be there when she woke up.  And when she did - she was so happy.  On the way downstairs, she said "I just love you so much mom"  No mention of anything scary.  On occasion, through the evening, she'd say "Hey, there's no mouse!" or she'd comment on the magic spray.

spraying her magic-spray

We got ready for bed - Kyle and I were bracing ourselves.  He got her ready and I put E down.  Kyle asked as he was brushing Abs' teeth if I thought the Benadryl was causing her to be weird.  I didn't know she was still getting any - we bought her some in FL when she got a cold to help her sleep and dry up.  Kyle had been continuing to give her a little bit before bed for her runny nose.  As he usually gets her ready, I thought she'd stopped taking it a week ago.  But, I didn't think it would mess with her.  I said "well, maybe it'll help her sleep"

I started the night in Abby's bed again and as I waited for her to fall asleep, I googled Benadryl side effects.

*faceplant*

Anxiety.  Paranoia.  Hallucinations.   ...bingo.

Then it all started making sense.  About the time she started taking it in FL, she developed all these fears.  Fears of "buzzes" (a generic term for any bug that flies), she was afraid of the ocean of course, but also floor fans.  We chalked it up to changing locations to a new condo and being overtirred and over stimulated, and being two, etc etc.  But - it totally coincides with the medicine.  Since we've been home, she's been skiddish around noises. Especially "buzzes"  Sometimes, her sippy cup will make a squeaky sound when it traps air and she'll scream that there are "buzzes in my ear!"

It is so sad to see her so scared.  Anyway - last night.  She did fine.  She woke up once and wanted to know where I was.  Kyle told her I went downstairs (where I was) and she went back to sleep.  She woke up this morning fine.  We didn't have nap time today because we were out and about.  She freaked out again this evening, but wouldn't say what was wrong.  She kept her hands covering her ears and screamed/cried any time she took them off.  I think she was afraid of buzzes getting in her ear.  :(

Bedtime was a battle.  We sprayed magic spray - twice (maybe thrice?), she had her flashlight, I put on a CD of music, I plugged in a night light, I got in bed with her (she will NOT get under the covers)  I waited until she was asleep and crept out.  I feel bad about leaving, but I cannot have her depending on me sleeping with her all night.

pre-bed time spraying

We're hoping that the Benadryl will be completely out of her system by tomorrow.  Then, we'll just have to deal with the residual fears caused by drug-induced ones.  This ain't easy.

There's a fine line between comforting and enabling.  I don't want her sleeping in our bed, I don't want her afraid to sleep in her bed.  We're taking it one day at a time.  I really do think most of this was  caused by the medicine.  But, also, some of it is her being 2.

Wish us luck.  It breaks my heart to hear her so scared.  Truly terrified.  I told her tonight that I wanted her to be a big girl.  She hung her head and whispered "I don't want to be a big girl right now, I just want mommy"  She also told me, despite spray and lights and my reassurances that "there is a mouse.  there is a mouse on abby's floor and in her bed.  there is"  She was barely audible, but it just shows that she really does believe it.

advice appreciated.

You Capture - plants & babies

Whoo-hoo!  You Capture two weeks in a row.  Gotta start back somewhere. 

So, this week's theme is beautiful plants, babies and trees.  I got flowers pics for the most part.  Several times a week, we all take a walk after supper.  The light was sooooo perfect the other evening...so perfect that I  just basked in how perfect it was and didn't take a single picture.  Sigh.  So, I took flower pictures last night instead - there wasn't the same perfect light, but I still like them. 

gettin' my depth of field on.

hydrangeas = *love*

purple star flowers? yes please.

And, y'know?  You'd think with having my own baby and all that I would have taken more baby pictures - but not so much.  It's hard to find time, honestly.  I'm really going to work on that.  She totally needs more pictures!  But, I did snap this shot of her with her Ouma on our last day of vacation.

I like how both their eyes are smiling

AND - even more excitingly - my best friend gave birth to her first child, a little girl, last night.  And, all of you get to look at her, aren't you lucky! There's nothing like a newborn...and this one isn't even a day old yet. *melts*

Now head over to Beth's site to see some other really great photos!

Dear Joie

Dear Joie Elise,

Happy Birthday and Welcome!

You were born today. All 8 wonderful pounds and 9 oz of you.

My name is Laura, and my husband and I are your godparents.  Your mom and I have been the best of friends for a long time and I have been eagerly awaiting your arrival for, well, years, but especially these last 9 months.  I've watched your mom and dad get ready for you and I think they've done a fabulous job.

Being just hours old, you have no way of knowing how lucky you already are.  But, that's what I'm here to tell you.  Your mom is one of the most amazing people I know.  She is organized and she works hard at everything she does.  She never quits and she knows how to balance work and play.  She is subtle and classy.  She's really smart and she will teach you so much.  She is kind.  She will love you unconditionally, in fact, I'm sure she already does.  You are going to have so much fun with your mom.  There will be lots of girl time, lots of books, lots of being silly, and lots of giggles. I'm sure of it.

And, as if that weren't enough, your dad is one of the best guys I know.  He is fun and adventurous.  He will teach you how to go fishing and how to cook (your mom makes great rice krispie treats, but your dad is the king of the kitchen).  Your dad knows how to have fun and has a million hobbies that he can teach you about.  He's a great photographer, which is good news for me, because I'm going to need lots of pictures of you until I can see you in person.  But one of the best things about your dad is that he takes such good care of your mom and will do the same for you.  I'm sure you already have him wrapped around your  tiny tiny fingers.

I can't wait to hold you.

Until you decide otherwise, I'm planning on you going to college with my little girl.  She is just three months older than you, her name is Elizabeth.  You can room together and talk about how crazy your moms are.

Joie, you are surrounded by people who love you so much already.  And, as you grow older, you'll realize that not everyone is born that lucky.  But you are. We are so eager to get to know you and to watch you grow up (but take your time doing that, ok?).  I can't wait to see your personality develop and bloom.

You're in for a really fun time.

And while you are already surrounded by family and will never want for attention - I want you to know, from day one, that I'm always here for you too.  Always always always.

Welcome to the world sweet baby girl,
We love you so much!

Laura (& Kyle)

this is the first picture I saw of you.  you're perfect.

ouma & e

:)

spoiled rotten

This morning, the girls and I headed to Target.  It's been a few weeks since we'd made our weekly trip. It was nice to be back into the routine of things again actually.  We had two goals: to return an item and to get laundry detergent.  I know, I know.  But, that is all I had planned on getting.  I mean, other than drinks of course- tradition is tradition, after all.

I mean, just look how happy she is.

Well, we returned our item and we got laundry detergent, and (in my defense) there's a LOT in that store I didn't buy.  :)  But, we may have gotten a little side tracked by some sale items.  A little home decor and kitchen ware never hurt anybody.  But, our favorite find of the morning was this clearance hat. I spotted it, the last one, and picked it up to check the price.  Abs took it from me, put it on her head and said "am I cute now mommy?"

...so in the basket it went.

She's loved these hats ever since her uncle Michael came to visit and let her wear his fedora. 

We got back in the car to head home and Abby was chattering on about her new hat and how much she looooved her new hat.  I started thinking about taking some pictures of her in it, but wanted to look for a matching outfit.  I'm thrifty (usually), so we headed to the thrift store.

I normally wouldn't go with both girls, but E had just fallen asleep and I have the double stroller to help - and it really did make all the difference.  We browsed around looking for an outfit to match Abs' new hat.  I didn't really find anything.  I'm thrifty, but I'm also picky.  So, before we left, I told Abs we would browse through the toy section.

Some days at the thrift store are winners, and some aren't.  Today, was a win.  I walked into the toy section and was surprised to see a big doll house.  One that looked pretty nice.  I went to inspect it closer - it had some water stains, and some shingles are missing, and it could use some new paint all around, but still - it was big and wooden and seemingly well constructed.  A doll house has been in my mind for Abs' birthday/Christmas, but they're pricey and they'd been off my radar for a few months.

So, by this point of course Abs is in the stroller saying "I like that house mommy!"  I braced myself for the price tag - sometimes I'm too cheap for even thrift store prices. Much to my surprise, it was listed for $12.99.

Sold!

I'll buy some paint and we'll fix it up nice- but Abs and I are both pretty excited about the new addition.  I emailed Kyle a pic before I bought it and asked what he thought.  His response was "Sure, why not?  I mean, with two girls - it's inevitable"  ha.

But wait, there's more!  I did a quick scan in the rest of the toy department for doll house furniture or something, but there wasn't anything.  And that's fine, Abs is perfectly happy playing with trains and baseballs inside for now.  But, we did pick up one new addition...

don't you think Jesus should be the first official resident?  We did. 

I was pretty set then, but on the way out we saw just one more thing.  


Abs has outgrown a lot of her puzzles, so I'm about to put many of them away and save them for E.  So, I thought this little set would make a great replacement.  Abby is very much into patterns and organization, so what better than a pattern board?  We love Melissa & Doug toys anyway, and this one was seemingly brand new.  It came with a magnetic board, 12 designs, and over 100 magnetic shapes.  We played with it before nap for a while and Abby really loved it.  She's pretty good at it too.  I thought it was a good purchase for $3.  Besides, the school psych in me loves it too.

concentrating

So, it was an exciting morning for us.  Almost like Christmas.  :)  I'm looking forward to giving the doll house a makeover, but, that will have to wait a few days.  We've got the farmer's market planned for this afternoon and playdates tomorrow.  I love summer.  And deals.  And spoiling my kids. ;)

Vacation recap

Ok, so here we go. A two week vacation summary.  :)

First things first.  The day before we flew out, we still hadn't decided what stroller(s) to bring with us.  We kinda needed one (especially for the airports) but didn't want to bring two.  Long story short, we decided to bite the bullet and buy a double stroller.  We got one that will last us a long time.  It came with 2 seats and we got a car seat adapter as well.  So, for now, E rides up top and Abs in the front, but once E gets a little older, we'll be able to use the two seats in a myriad of combinations.  It's pretty awesome.  As far as double strollers go - it was important for us to have a compact one for maneuvering around on trains and through the city - and this one is about as compact as they come.  So, while I may have to sell a kidney to eventually recoup the cost, it has been very nice to be able to stroll both girls around with ease. 

At the airport, ready to go with our new ride. 

...also, the last time we saw that snack tray as it didn't make it out of the plane. :( 

Once we got to FL, Kyle and I split ways for a bit.  Kyle spent the first week at the annual National Federation for the Blind convention and the girls and I hung out with Kyle's parents at a little condo in Orlando.  Our week was low key and laid back.  It included shopping, trips to the pool and playground, chick-fil-A, and a good bit of down time. No complaints here. 

For the 4th of July, we drove to Cocoa Beach to celebrate with some family friends.  Abs made a little friend about her age and they had a nice time together.  

Papa, Ouma, and E on her first 4th of July

we had lots of accessories 

Abs and her friend - we're in love with our patriotic sequin cowboy hat.  ;)

bffs...for a day. 

Later in the week, we all packed up and took a trip to the mall.  The trip was two fold.  Our first mission was to find me something to wear to Kyle's fancy NFB banquet later in the week.  The second was to take Abs to the M&M (her favorite candy) store.

Well, I found a dress and Abs found some candy.  She had a blast in that store - she was bouncing here and there and everywhere trying to see everything and take it all end.  It *is* a pretty colorful store.  She got a few souvenirs (and we all got some candy, of course).  It was fun!

M&M World

Friday night came and I got to join Kyle for the NFB banquet.  The whole affair was really nice and I had a great time.  The convention hosts around 3000 attendees, so there were at least that many in attendance at the banquet I'd guess.  It was really neat to see so many blind people in one setting - all perfectly capable of, well, everything.

Kyle went to convention as one of 30 scholarship finalists.  All week, the finalists meet with various committee members, and at the end of the week, the committee votes on who wins what.  So, you're basically trying to convince everyone that you deserve the big scholarship all week.

When it came time for them to announce the winners at the banquet, all 30 finalists stood on stage as they read off the names, starting with the lowest amounts.  Well, when there were only 5 scholarships left to be given and Kyle's name hadn't been called yet, my heart started pounding - much to my surprise.

4 left.  3 left.  2 left.  *holding my breath*  and then they announced the grand prize winner - Kyle Shachmut.  I was so proud.  It was a bigger deal than I had imagined.  Everyone cheered, lots of people stood up, and Kyle got to give a speech to the whole convention.  He did an Awesome job.  I was so happy for him.

After the banquet, we hopped around from group to group as Kyle was a semi-celebrity for the night.  Everyone wanted to congratulate him and I think maybe everyone did.  We had a great time.  It was fun to get dressed up and to have a kid-free night.  And of course, prizes and scholarships never hurt either.

(sorry, no banquet pics, I only had a tiny purse ;)

The next day, Kyle's sister and her boyfriend had joined us as well and the whole lot of us moved from Orlando down to Cocoa Beach for the remainder of our trip.  Staying in Cocoa was nice - the resort was nice and Abby loved both the beach and the pool.  Well, she loved the sand.  She was down right terrified of the ocean.  More on that later.

We enjoyed the low key days and managed to get out, kid-free, more than a few times as well.

Awww.  Hanging out with Kyra & Blake at the Pier

twins

We bought Abby a seashell.  I know, I know - bought?  But there were NO shells on the beach this year.  That's always my favorite part - hunting shells.  Abs would have loved it too, but no go this time.  So, we bought her this one.  We taught her how to listen to the ocean, and she loved it.  The next morning, she ran to the sliding doors that looked out onto the beach and said "I see the ocean!  But, I can't hear it."  Then she went and found her shell, came back, looked out the doors with the shell on her ear and said "there we go, that's better"

It made us laugh.

Elizabeth made it out the beach a few times as well.  It's so much work to get the kids ready for the beach - especially with E.  The amount of prep time vs. the amount of time she can be outside was a little  disproportionate.  But, we did take her out, and she liked it.

E's first beach nap

awake and happy

Abby went down more often, and she could make sand castles and dig all. day. long.  The girl was so so so sandy all the time.  She loved it.  But the ocean?  No thank you.  She flipped out.  I mean, I get it. It's big and loud and endless and, well, scary.  One of the last days we were there, Kyle and I worked and worked and eventually we did get her in the ocean.  We discovered that she was not afraid of the water, but the waves - specifically.  It took some time and lots of coaxing, but she came around and she and Kyle had an especially fun time jumping over waves and playing in the water. 

...and we dug holes.

The 13th was our 4th anniversary.  Whoo-hoo!  I think Kyle and I both agree that it seems like it's been longer that 4 years - but not in a bad way.  It's just that, well, we have 2 kids.  Once again, we were told to go out without the kids and have a real date.  And we did!  We had a nice dinner and then decided to go play putt-putt and drive go-carts.  Kyle beat me by just a hair at putt-putt, and we both really had fun with the go-carts too...I'd never tried that before.  Mario Kart makes so much more sense now.  We wrapped up the evening with ice cream and headed back.  It was nice.  Happy 4 years to us. :)

The next morning I took Abs and my camera out to watch the sunrise.  Abby liked the sunrise, but was extremely upset about being taken so close to the water (this was before our wave break through).  She cried the whole time.  That made for poor pictures.  

she's actually crying her eyes out in this picture. ha!

good morning sun!

Despite her fears and tears, we stayed anyway and she enjoyed seeing "the sun wake up"  Eventually, I gave up on getting any good pictures of her and we headed back.  Once she had some distance between herself and the ocean, Abby was happy again.  She found some flowers and insisted on picking one for everyone in the family.  So, that allowed me to get some pictures after all.

 my wonderful little girl

 Eventually, everyone headed back to the airport one by one, and then it was our turn.  It was a great vacation and I was so happy that Kyle's parents and sister were able to spend some time with Abby and Elizabeth.

That's the "short" version of the past 2 weeks.  We all got home on Saturday.  Kyle and Abs were sharing a cold that E has picked up on as well.  I'm holding out as the healthy one in the house for now.  Wish me luck.  It's back to the daily routine now and hopefully a bit more blogging as well. :)

You Capture- Summertime

One of the only real downsides about vacations - is that I get behind on blogging. And when that happens? I get overwhelmed with all that we've done and I don't know how to start documenting everything.

Add to that, the fact I've missed You Capture for like 5 years or something (slight exaggeration).

So, I'm just going to jump into this week's theme of Summertime. I mean, that's easy. :)

summer sunrise

(I've been trying to upload other pics, but our internet out here is wicked slow.  I'll update more later perhaps. ha!)

Go check out the other posts at I should be folding laundry!

Happy 4th

Elizabeth would like to wish everyone a happy fourth of July!

You, too, may celebrate by chewing a hat.




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Vaca

Well, we made it to Orlando yesterday. We'll be here for a week, and then we'll set up on the beach for a week after.

My Internet access is limited to my phone, so blogging will be short, but I'll try to keep up. :)

Travels went well. E flew like a very sleepy champ, and Kyle gave me his upgraded 1st class tickets on both flights - so that was a treat (husband points).

The girls (I love that I can say "the girls") have done so well so far with being off schedule and overstimulated etc etc. We're rollin' with the flow of things, and I'm glad they're transitioning well.

We're looking forward to a fun few weeks! I'll be around. Talk atcha later. :)

First flight. Holding on and snoozing




My other sleeping beauty. She crashed at 10:30pm - mid sentence. Just toppled right over. Funniest thing ever.


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all by myself, mom

Abby wants to do *EVERYTHING*  all by herself.  And, honestly? Most of the time she can do it.  She wants to get in her carseat alone, buckle into her stroller by herself, wash dishes, sweep, get dressed, brush her teeth...everything all by herself.

But today?  She impressed me with a new one.

"Mom, I change my diaper, all by myself"

Abby, you'll hate me one day for these pictures, but it's ok.  I'll still love you.

unfastened, wipe at the ready.

all clean, rolling up the wet diaper

see?

clean diaper all ready

putting it on

ta-da!

So, to answer your question -no, we're not potty training right now.