Sound Asleep

I'm so very behind on my blogging. Life has been busier than ever lately, and I just haven't taken the time to sit down and sift through the thousands of pictures we accumulate monthly with these beautiful girls. While scanning through pictures tonight, I noticed that I've taken quite a few pictures of my kids sleeping. I love sneaking into their rooms while they're fast asleep, and then just sitting next to their beds to stare at their sleeping faces. They radiate such peace while they're sleeping, and they really do look like little angels. I have a hard time capturing the true essence, but I just keep trying, and these pictures will just have to do one day when I don't have sleeping babes in the house and need something to look back on.

Back in September...

Emily's favorite stuffies at the time, Kitty and Lambie. Emily always has a favorite stuffy or two, and when a stuffy becomes her favorite, it becomes well worn with love. She bought Kitty with her birthday money at the toy store in the spring, and she got Lambie from Uncle Bob for her first Easter. Lambie comes in and out of rotation, as it was one of her earliest favorites. Other favorites have been Ducky, who came from Aunt Cathy and Uncle Eric, and Ball Kitty who came from CeeCee and PopPop. Ball Kitty has spots, and back when she got it and wasn't speaking as clearly, she called it "Spot Kitty" but I kept mishearing her and asking, "Ball Kitty?" which really frustrated her because that very clearly was not what she was trying to say. Eventually, Spot Kitty became Ball Kitty, and I'm really not sure why.

And in October...

Sometime in the fall, I started noticing that every night when I went to tuck Elizabeth in, she was laying with her head on her bunched up blanket. I took this to mean she was ready for a pillow, so soon after I took these pictures, she began sleeping with a pillow.

And in November...

This is a funny sleeping picture from back in July. Emily was beginning to skip naps, even though she really still needed the sleep. She would sit at the top of the stairs, waiting for nap time to be over. One afternoon, I heard Addie wake up from nap and looked up to find Emily had fallen asleep on the top step. We have a fairly steep staircase, and I'm really happy there wasn't any tossing or turning going on in her sleep!!

Two Turn Three

The realization that our babies have turned three has taken a while to sink in. But here they are, our two three year olds.

On the eve of their third birthday, I took some pictures of my little sleeping angels while they were still two....

The morning of their birthday, the girls came downstairs to decorations and birthday morning presents.

After a breakfast of french toast and a little playtime while Elizabeth napped, it was off to the Orchards for a trip to the beauty salon and Monkey Bizness.

Here are the proud big sisters posing with their brand new three year old haircuts...

Monkey Bizness is probably one of the girls' favorite places on earth right now. It's a place where all three of them can just let loose and focus on nothing but FUN.

There is a huge inflatable slide that is probably the favorite thing to do in this favorite place. The ladder up to the top is tricky and slippy, but Emily and Addie have both mastered it, and they love to climb up and slide down over and over again.

It's a tricky climb to the top

But this is the excitement that comes at the top

ZOOM! (Blue Airheads really leave their mark)

Down to the bottom and ready to head back up!

Elizabeth had a blast in the crawlers' section

 For dinner that night, we headed to Red Robbin with Dad. Emily and Addie were super excited to CELEBRATE!

Chocolate milk with dinner and ice cream sundaes for dessert...a whole lotta YUM

Elizabeth flirted with everyone at the tables around us and had a great time

 When we got home it was time for presents!

Tutus and T-Ball

Happy Birthday to my two favorite three year olds in the entire world!

September Elizabeth

Well hello there! 

I started doing lots of new things in September, wanna see? 

Dad put me in the deck hole. Haha! I'm in a hole!

I started doing that cute thing babies do where they lay on their back and grab their toes.
Mom tried to get pictures, but I just wanted to be on my tummy!

 

Alright, I did lay on my back a bit, too, but I wasn't in the mood to grab my feet.

But then a few days later she caught me in my crib!

Aren't I a precious sleeping angel?

Daddy let me stand all by myself by the coffee table. I was SO excited!

I learned to sit all by myself. I like the view from this position!

I got to try my first solid food.
Mom made me sweet potatoes, and she and Dad fed me for the first time on my six-month birthday.

I really like to hold onto the spoon all by myself.

 

After those potatoes, I needed a bath. I've got a pretty cute baby bum, don't you think?

Mom gets to see this face every night before bed. Isn't she lucky?

I mean, really, I'm just pretty cute.

I love feeling the grass on my toes. And check it out, one of the first signs of fall...

I got to taste puffs for the first time. I have a pretty good pincer grasp going on here.

 Mmmmmm, Mum Mums

And I'll leave you with some of my giggles...

Sleep in Heaveny Peace, and Wake with a Smile!

In July, Elizabeth had been breaking out of her swaddle every night, and I went in to get her one morning and realized I didn't have any pictures of her in her swaddle. So even though she wasn't bundled tight anymore, I decided to take this picture.

But that picture didn't quite capture the sweet peace of her sleeping, so I decided to try again.

And as I snapped away, I woke her up. So I undid the swaddle, and got her usual appreciative smile and morning stretch.