We got to go out for a family dinner on the night of my birthday. We went to Rock Bottom, where we had celebrated my 31st. Last year, the girls slept most of the time in their stroller. This time they ate at the table with us!
Chris got me a birdbath, and without water, it's a great seat for the girls!
Presents! Chris gave me a locket with pictures of Emily and Addison
This year I turned 32, and I was lucky enough to spend my birthday with my two daughters and two of my grandparents. We went to Windsor Gardens for a visit, and had a great time with Grandma and Grandpa Hicks. Grandma Nicoll has recently moved to a new apartment in the Belmar area, so we won't get to do any more combo visits, but we're looking forward to visiting her new apartment sometime soon.
Before leaving, I tried to convince the girls that this would be the perfect day to wear clips. I even gave them each an extra clip to hold in hopes of keeping the clips in their hair. Here is the one shot I got with clips in:
Emily practices her new pouty look. She'll give this look for a few seconds and then break into a huge grin.
Ritz crackers taste best served on Great Grandpa's lap
Grandma had the great idea to let the girls use one of the chairs as their table. They loved it!
The cousins used to love playing with the poker chips, and Grandma was right, the girls loved them too! And then Grandpa brought out the wacky singing and dancing chicken. Now that's some great entertainment!
Earlier this month, we had a great outing to the Denver zoo. It was the first time we went as a family, and it was so much fun!
Checking out a big lizard
Hello Lion!
Emily's pretty cool in her sunglasses
Note Chris's shirt
The lorikeet exhibit is one the girls and I hadn't been in before because you can't bring in strollers. We spent quite a bit of time in here with these beautiful birds.
You can even buy little cups of nectar to feed the birds!
Lunch time!
Yum!
We ended the day with a visit to the giraffes, which Chris said was his favorite
I was thinking about getting the girls a water table, but before I could get one, they discovered this deck chair with rain water on it, and proved to me that a water toy would be a must for the summer!
~splash~splash~splash~
Splashing and licking water off dripping fingers can provide endless entertainment!
Sticking fingers in a sister's mouth is also incredibly fun!
After some shopping and Craigslist searching, I found this great water toy in Highlands Ranch. It was well worth the $5 and two hour car ride!
At the beginning of April, my Darling Doubles club had a parent-to-parent educator come talk about activities we could do at home with things often found around the house. We tried out putting poker chips through the slot in the top of a container right away.
Emily loved the activity. It was right up her fine-motor-skills alley, and she concentrated hard, putting the chips in until the container filled up, and then she'd want to do it again and again.
Addison, on the other hand, found that the poker chips fit perfectly in her mouth.
These pictures were taken on April 5th, and at that point, Addison was much more focused on learning to walk.
Later in the month, Addie mastered walking independently.
Here she is walking to Chris on his birthday
And then, when the poker chips came back out on the 23rd, Addison was ready to focus on her fine motor skills.
Here's a little video of Emily putting clothespins in a container (another riveting game) and Addie putting poker chips through the slot. Addie is shirtless because she's also learned how to take off her own shirt, and for a little while she was doing it constantly.
Oh, and here's what happens with Addie's shirts when she's taken them off. (Emily must see us doing this often as there's a lot of spilled milk in this house!
For Chris's birthday, we went to Bass Pro Shop so that Chris could buy some flies and we could look at the fish in the aquarium. The girls got all dressed up in the Radiohead onesies I made Chris for his birthday (using the Kid A and Kid B pictures he made from the Kid A album cover), Addie got some tylenol, and we headed out.
I almost didn't post these pictures, because we all know what happened as this day went on, but the beginning was fun, and we hope to return to Bass one day, so it will be important to remember the good times.
Kid A
Kid B
Looking at the giant fish
Lots of the fish swimming by were as big or bigger than the girls!
They made Addie a little nervous
Hanging out by the fish bench
Lots of stuffed animals to see. There's a beaver and a bear behind Addie but she's looking up at a mountain goat or deer
While it still gives me shudders to think of that day, I'm hoping we'll have another chance to visit the amazing "Outdoor World" that is Bass Proshop.
We have discovered a new playground that has the perfect equipment for toddlers. Everything is fairly close to the ground and there are plenty of railing to keep kids from falling off bridges and walkways. Emily and Addison had so much fun, and we hope to go back soon!
Addie and Emily surround Ellie as they all try to climb the stairs
