Life Lately

My poor little blog has been so deprived lately. I used to do such a good job of keeping up with it, but that was before Paige. ;) By the time I have time to actually get on my computer the last thing I want to do is stare at a screen. The only time I get to myself is nap time and bedtime. It's a constant battle of what to do with my time. Blogging rarely wins!
Here is a little snippet of what has been going on with us lately...

Autumn and Ella went to Skate World one weekend. Ella loves to SKATE, and she also loves to do anything with Autumn. Ella wanted to get her picture taken with this creepy kangaroo. 

 A few weeks ago Ella had literacy night at school. Adam was out of town for the week so just Ella and I went. Ella's class recorded plays in the classroom for us to watch. Ella was the giving tree in the story "The Giving Tree." I made Ella shirt that looked like an apple tree. I was hoping to get a picture of her in it before she went to school that day, but it was NOT a good morning so that didn't happen. I think she was really nervous about reading her lines and being recorded. I can't say I blame her. 

Paige is into everything these days. We need some cabinet locks ASAP even though those things drive me nuts. She doesn't want to play with anything while she is downstairs except stuff she isn't supposed to have. 

Do you see the resemblance? Ella is on the left, and Paige is on the right. It's crazy how much they look alike. 

Ella has tried so hard to reach her AR goal (and did) this last quarter, because those who reached their goal get to attend a party with a bouncy house and slide. Ella was bound and determined to reach her goal. She has become quite the little reader this year. 

I will be SO glad when school is out. Not only does Ella need a break, but I do too. I am so over homework, reading, projects, making lunches, drop offs, pick up. I AM OVER IT! 

Paige loves to play, and loves to play with all of Ella's stuff. She loves to play with this little pretend grocery store. 

I pulled out Ella's old wagon and took Paige for her first wagon ride. She was a little unsure but seemed to enjoy herself. This wagon got plenty of good use with Ella, and now we get to do it all over again with Paige. 

Ella was home sick for two days two weeks in a row. I was up almost all night with Ella, and this was taken the day after. Paige was RARING to go while I was about ready to fall over, because I was so tired. Thank goodness for coffee. 

We went to Walmart to look for food fair shopkins. Ella didn't come home with any shopkins that day, but she was lucky enough to win two stuffed animals out of the claw machine on one try. I wondered why she was filling her change purse with quarters before we left the house. I should have known!

Disney on Ice as here a couple of weekends ago so we took Ella. Pretty soon she will be outgrowing that kind of stuff just in time for Paige to be old enough to enjoy it.

Paige LOVES her sippy cup. I think she would be happy if it was attached to her. 

We went for a walk one night, and Ella discovered this puddle. She was filthy when she came in, but she had the best time. 

Paige has this look down pat. It cracks me up when she makes this face. 

Who knew swim lessons could be so fun!? Paige loves to watch the kids in the pool.

Ella loves to ride her bike, but she has gotten way too independent lately. She likes to ride way ahead of us where we can't see her. It scares me to death. 

We had family photos and Paige's one year photos taken a few weeks ago. They turned out so cute. I just received the disc in the mail today. I will share those on her soon... I hope!

Autumn and Ella like to practice gymnastics when they get together. Maybe they will be circus performers together one day? 

I got this little sandbox for Paige to practice for the beach. I hope we get luckier with child #2. We have had some interesting beach vacations in the past with Ella. Fingers crossed for a fun vacation!

I love the little things Paige brings home from mom's morning out. This was for mother's day, and I will keep it forever. Mom's morning out is over for the summer. I will sure miss my few hours of freedom each week!

Ella brought home this questionnaire about me for Mother's Day. It still makes me laugh that she thinks I like to order clothes. She knows me so well! I love my online shopping. :) 

I love finding stuff like this in Ella's folder. It's fun to see what she writes about. She is obviously not a fan of using capitals no matter how many times she is corrected. 

Paige learned a new trick this week. I knew when it was quiet that she was up to no good. 

Holiday World Opening Weekend 2016

It's that time of year again! Holiday World opened this past weekend. We have been going to Holiday World on opening weekend since 2011 and have so many fun memories there. 

Ella has changed quite a bit in the past five years. We have been on opening day when it's unbearably hot. One year it was raining so hard that the parking lot was empty, and Ella was so soaked she rode home in her undies (still not sure what I was thinking). We also made it when I was 37 weeks pregnant, and I couldn't do anything but sit. The tradition had to live on and will probably continue to live on in future years. 

We have come so far over the years. We started off with Ella in diapers, brining a stroller and all the necessities. We finally made it to where all we needed to bring was ourselves, and now we are back to where we started again with diapers, a stroller, and all the necessities needed for a baby. 

Ella told me she has been waiting all year to go to Holiday World and the day finally rolled around. This year is a little bit different since we have Paige in tow. Let me just say it is not easy taking a seven year old and almost one year old to Holiday World. It had crossed my mind that I might be able to take them by myself this year, but there is no way. It is a ton of work. Paige is old enough to ride a few rides but not many. I think she might be happier at home. 

Ella spotted Holidog as soon as we hit the gate. Ella's relationship with Holding has changed through the years. She used to be scared to death of him, but now she obviously loves him. 

I can't believe my girl is old enough and TALL enough to ride The Raven. She was so excited, and I was scared. Definitely not scared to ride it, but scared that Ella might freak out. She said it was fun but scary. Time will tell if she will ride it again. 

Little sis is big enough to ride the canoes with the assistance of Ella. Ella had been saying all week she was going to take her on it but of course didn't want to when the time came. It took some persuading, but she did it. They went around a couple of times, and Paige loved every minute. 

We also rode the carousel....

By 1:30 Paige was DONE. She was exhausted (as were we), and it was getting warm. After a trip to the gift shop for a surprise box we headed home! 

It was a great day to kick off another season at Holiday World!

Paige || 11 months

I blinked and Paige turned 11 months old. My sweet baby is almost a year old and almost a toddler. How did that happen!? 

The past month has been busy. Paige keeps me on my toes at every waking moment. I forgot what it was like to have a mobile baby. Anything that Paige shouldn't have is what she wants. She loves plug ins, chords, cabinets, door stops, doors, knobs, and small toys. If it's dangerous you better believe Paige will want it. She is really good at finding every little speck on the floor/carpet and putting it in her mouth. She is a wild one which leads to one exhausted mommy!

Paige is full of life, love, happiness, joy and mischief!! 

So what's new....

• Paige has three teeth! They are coming in just like her big sister's did. Two at the bottom and one at the top. Her and Ella look a lot alike at this age. 
• Paige is pulling up into standing position. Her bed has been moved down, because I typically find her standing in her bed. She loves to try to pull up on chairs, steps, and our treadmill. 
• A few weeks ago Paige decided she was finished with baby food and wanted real food. She will pretty much eat anything except bananas. I hope she will always be a good eater. 
• Paige finally figured out how to use a sippy cup. I had to buy a couple of different kinds before she figured it out. She loves her sippy and loves water. 
• Paige started going to bed at 7:00 instead of 6:00 thanks to the time change. 

Sleep:

Paige is finally FINALLY sleeping all night consistently. I didn't think we were ever going to make it to this point, but we have. It's nice to actually have energy again (that I use to chase her around). Once the time changed Paige started going to bed at 7:00. She now sleeps from 7:00pm to 7:00am. She still takes two naps a day as well. She is a very good little sleeper. She has started to give me a little bit of trouble at bedtime. She has been fussing when I put her to bed even though she is extremely exhausted. I think she has realized that we are still up and about after she goes to bed. Overall, I can't complain with her sleep schedule. 

Eating: 

Paige loves to eat and is not picky. Paige and I are similar in the fact that food makes us excited and happy. Sad but true! Paige started eating regular food a few weeks ago and hasn't looked back. She loves to feed herself. I still get a kick out of watching her pick up her food with her little fingers. 

Paige loves lunch meat, grilled chicken, avocado, grapes, strawberries, mandarin oranges, plums, peas, cheese, quesadillas, waffles, cereal bars. You name it, she will probably eat it. 

Paige still takes eight ounce bottles for naps and bedtimes. I am actually starting to wonder how I will ween her from her bottle, because she loves it. 

Play/development:

Paige is on the go all the time. She is a very efficient little crawler. She is super fast and if she is crawling toward something she shouldn't have, you better run. I am much more aware of little toys Ella has laying around. Paige loves Ella's room and tries to go in there whenever the door is open. 

Paige adores Ella and loves to watch what she is doing. She tries to follow Ella wherever she is going.  Paige can also say "Ella" or something that sounds just like it. Ella is still very leery of Paige. I'm hoping someday they will form a bond, and Ella will realize what a blessing it is to have a sibling. 

Paige is pulling up on anything and everything she can get her hands on. She loves to explore and loves being able to actually see what's inside things like toy bins now that she can stand. She loves to push her walker around. She has not figured out how to push it standing yet. She pushes it on her knees. She gets around pretty good like that. 

Paige babbles all the time, but you of course can not make out what she is saying. You can definitely understand "mama", because she says that plain as day. She especially loves to scream it if she is getting impatient for something or if she wants out of her crib. 

She can also give Adam "skin". She won't do it for anyone else but him. He has been doing that with her for months, but she finally figured out how to do it. She can't really smack his hand yet, but she will touch it. So cute! 

Happy 11 months Paige! Can't imagine life without you now!