Paige {Two and a half}

Paige just turned two and a half, and she is growing up faster than I ever imagined she would. She is pretty much always happy, goes with the flow, and is busy ALL THE TIME. She only naps about once or twice a week (if I'm lucky) so she keeps me on my toes from the time she gets up until the time she goes to bed. I finally took her bottle away at the beginning of October on fall break. She loved her bottle so much, but it was just a bad habit. One night while I was at a friends Adam forgot to give it to her before bedtime and she slept just fine so that was the push I needed to take it away. She asked for it multiple times over a span of a couple of weeks, but never caused a fuss about it. My days of rocking a baby with a bottle are over, and my days of changing diapers will be over soon enough. 

Paige loves being active. She is in Kindermusik and looks forward to that every week. She also started a mom and tot tumbling class a couple of months ago and enjoys that as well. 

She loves being outside, and especially loves the zoo.

I took Paige to feed the ducks one day, and she HATED it. Don't let these pictures fool you. She cried almost the entire time!!

Paige loves to play with play-doh although she called it "tomato". She likes to sit and tell you what shapes and figures to cut out for her. 

She loves to play basketball and is surprisingly good for a two year old!

She also loves to be fancy and put on a lot of jewelry. 

She went through a phase after I took her bottle away of putting a baby doll paci in her mouth. Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do;) 

Paige loves kindermusik. It's the highlight of her week. 

It took her MONTHS, but she will finally hug Ms. Julie at the end of class. 

Paige could live outside and always loves to play outside on a nice day. 

She loves stickers and markers but hasn't quite figured out that markers only go on paper. 

She also LOVES baby dolls. She is sweet to them most of the time but has been known to throw them across a room. 

Paige also loves tumble class. She didn't listen very well at first but she quickly got the hang of things!!

Target cafe is Paige's favorite lunch spot. You can find us there quite often. 

Family pictures 2017

I almost didn't get family pictures taken this fall. It's a lot of work to get them done, and no one really likes them (except me). I cancelled our first round I had scheduled out a fear they would be a disaster, and immediately regretted it. I found someone last minute, scheduled them, and hoped for the best. 

We took the whole crew that day, and they ended up being quick and painless. Paige wouldn't crack a smile, but I was still very please with how they turned out. They aren't perfect but neither are we!

Ella's 9th birthday party

I don't even know how it happened, but Ella is 9 years old (as of today). That makes me feel so old! She is growing and changing so quickly, and time is definitely not slowing down. These past 9 years have FLOWN by. I can't believe in 9 more years she will be turning 18. OMG! 

I had her party early this year since Christmastime is so busy for everyone. Ella always has to choose a party theme that is different than what I would choose. This year it was Minecraft. She had been planning that since her last birthday party. 

A creeper on the wall. Just what every little nine year old girl would want! :) 

Our big nine year old!!

The best family picture we could get. Paige was off to the side throwing a fit over the balloons pictured behind us. She enjoys popping balloons so those balloons ended up in our storage room. Never a dull moment!

I was barely able to take any pictures during the party. I always have good intentions of taking pictures, but I always get too busy. One of these years!

Ella is so unique and special to us. She is quiet in a group but very talkative at home. She enjoys doing fun activities but knows how to appreciate a relaxing day at home. Ella is a thinker, which often makes me wonder what is going on in that mind of hers. She has a vivid imagination. She has a baby family that is made up of four baby dolls, and Ella and my mom came up for a voice and personality for each other them. Those babies have brought Ella so much joy over the past year. Sometimes I think she thinks they are real! She loves playing minecraft. She loves coming up with ideas and building them. She also loves to play roblox while facetiming her cousin (and bestie) Autumn. Ella is becoming so girly and loves clothes, anything with fur or glitter, shoes, and hair accessories. She just asked last night if she can get her ears pierced so I guess we will be doing that soon (if she goes through with it). Ella has a unique personality, and I think that is what I love best about her. It hasn't always been easy raising her the past nine years, but it has been an absolute joy to watch her grow. The past nine years have flown by. I know I better hold on, because the next nine will too. 

Thanksgiving 2017

We had such a nice Thanksgiving this year. Thanksgiving is a day full of food and family, which are two things I love. I also love that it means Christmas is right around the corner. 

We spent Thanksgiving with my family this year. My mom (and dad) make the entire meal. I always look forward to my mom's dumplings. Thanksgiving is definitely not the same without them, and I miss them when I don't get to eat them on Thanksgiving! 

Paige ate very well that day and so did her baby.  

She especially loved the whipping cream my mom made up. 

It was a little chilly that day, but nice enough to play outside. I had to snap a few pics of Paige in her Thanksgiving dress before I changed her into play clothes. This dress was adorable but definitely not practical for playing. 

The girls had a great time pelting my mom with leaves!! Mammy is such a good sport. 

We had a great day playing (and eating). I hated to see it end. The end to Thanksgiving can only mean one thing though... Christmas is right around the corner!!