Giggles

I love this video of Hannah making Sadie laugh....

Our Tree

It's that time of year again! We got our tree last weekend...in the snow storm. We found a place called Meadows Farms Nursery...they had rows upon rows of trees. When you found the perfect one, you were supposed to ring these jingle bells...and someone came running up to help you. Then all we had to do was go into their warm little shop and sip on free cocoa while we waited for the tree to be tied to the van. I think that will be our special spot to purchase our tree every year. It was very fun!...and put us into the holiday spirit.

My monkey girl

I may not have any monkey boys in my house...but I sure do have a monkey GIRL.

Mickey Vacay

We have been renewed in the spirit of Mickey! Our first official family vacation was absolutely the highlight of our year. We had such a great time..and the girls were a dream. They slept well, behaved fabulously, and got to meet all of their favorite characters! ( or "Creatures", as Hannah called them). Hannah spent all week on cloud 9. She couldn't believe her eyes when she met Mickey, Minnie, REAL princesses, Donald, Goofy..etc. It was truly magical to watch the sheer excitement and joy on her face. We purchased an "official Disney world autograph book" and set out on our mission to get as many characters to sign our book as we could. Chad and I really got into it...it was just as much fun for us to meet Snow White as it was for Hannah.
I do miss Florida though. Where else can you dance at a wedding, feed dolphins, meet an entire slew of magical characters, go on a safari, sing with the Lion King, take a dip in the hot tub, cheer at a medieval sword fight, and ride Splash Mountain all in ONE week! Good times, I tell ya. Good times.

Anyhow, we are now back to our normal schedule and looking forward to Thanksgiving next week. This past week was full of school days, playdates, and doctor/dentist appointments. I like when we're busy...it's comforting. However, we are taking a break today and staying home from Dance class because Hannah's developed a yucky cough/runny nose. Ugg, it's going to be a LONG germ season!

One more thing. The girls are really starting to "play" together and make each other laugh. It's so fun and heart-warming to watch. It also provides me with a nice little break when they actually entertain each other.
Blue Lollipop Eating & T.V. Loving Girlies

i'm NOT the princess!!

Chad brought home a fairy princess costume last week for Sadie to wear. This is what she thought of it.
It was super fluffy and extremely itchy. She wanted none of it! But if it were socially acceptable, I would totally wear the wings on a daily basis!
So, Sadie will be a pumpkin...which matches exactly who she is. :) And Hannah still wants to be a monkey! The costume is actually more of a big gorilla-looking beast, but since Mikayla wore it last year, Hannah wants to do it this year. Monkey see, Monkey do...right? :)

Fall

We are having such a nice Fall. We've been keeping busy with Hannah's school days, Sadie's playgroup, and recent Fall festivities. This is my favorite time of year and there is much to look forward to over the next few months. Hannah and I will be heading to South Boston next weekend for Donna's baby shower...and then we'll have a new niece in the matter of weeks! Also, I'm enjoying following Erin's pregnancy day by day :) I'm so excited to become an Aunt....I think I'll be a really awesome one!
Something else has been keeping me busy lately...and that is trying hard to keep everyone healthy. Lysol is my new best friend.
Chad and I got our regular flu shots last weekend...and the girls go this week to get theirs. I have been on the fence with the H1N1 vaccine. I had actually decided NOT to get the girls vaccinated. It makes me nervous that the vaccine was just thrown out in no time flat...and first they needed one shot, then they needed two...so much confusion. I have seen interviews with well known physicians saying they won't be vaccinating their own kids. Anyhow, now I know of 3 families within MOMS club alone who's children have been diagnosed with Swine Flu. The girls have not been around the infected kids, but with Hannah going to school...I'm sure she will come in contact with it eventually. She's healthy to start with, so if she did contract it, she would most likely be okay...but why take the risk of her even getting sick if it can be prevented? This is something I've been struggling with ...and I still haven't made up my mind. I will probably make my decision on Thursday when I speak to her doctor. Chad thinks I'm down right crazy...and he's going to be the first in line to get his when Winchester actually receives it's supply.
Going to spend some time with Hannah while Sadie's napping... More later!
Oh- and Hannah says her favorite words are "Watermelon" and "Tasty Sweet".
LOL

Busy Bees...

Ooops, I'm slowing down on the blog posts. I've discovered Facebook is a much easier and less time-consuming way to keep everyone updated on our adventures. However, I want to keep blogging until the end of the year because I'd like to have at least one entire year that I can print out and keep for the girls. Cheaper than scrapbooking :)
We've had a busy couple of weeks. Hannah went back to school last week, and is already in love with her teacher. There are alot of kids in her class...the majority of them girls. I think she is having a blast and making new friendships. So that is fantastic! Also, she started her dance class. She really enjoyed it, but she was upset when the class ended and she didn't get to do a ballerina "spin". She thought that she was going to learn EVERYTHING in one day, so I have to keep reminding her that she'll learn a new skill each week. Her first class, she learned how to walk on her tippy toes like a princess.
Sadie had her first little playgroup meeting yesterday, and I think she will enjoy that. Hannah had the benefit of a playgroup when she was a baby, so I think Sadie should have the same. So on Mondays, while Hannah's at school..Sadie is playing with HER new friends. She is the youngest in the group by a few months...but is the same size as the oldest ones. It will be nice for me too!...It is always pleasant to have an adult conversation every once in a while :)
My Mom came up this past weekend and we had a fun visit. We went apple picking, but the girls mainly just wanted to run and play on the playground at the orchard.
As I suspected, Sadie woke up this morning with a super runny nose....which is probably the result of all the contact with new children. Oh well....it begins :)

Here, Yucky Ducky...

Little Lady Sadie has been sick this week, with a fever ranging from 99- 102. I finally took her to the doctor this morning....her fever is gone, but now she has a rash on her torso and face (even up into her scalp). My gut said it was just a virus, but I wanted to rule out strep throat...so I took her in for a test. No strep...it was just a yucky virus. Her rash may last up to a week, but at least she's not contagious anymore. Poor little thing....I can tell she's starting to feel better though.
Went to Hannah's school last night for "Parent's Night" and got to meet Hannah's new teacher. Ms. Gretchen has 23 yrs of experience under her belt and seems like she'll be great. Hannah's friend, Katy is in the same class....along with several other friends from her class last year. So it looks like she'll have a fun year. I'm so excited for her! I know she's ready to get rid of me-lol!
The weather has been gorgeous this week and we fed the ducks at the park the other day. These ducks were fearless....a few even reached up and grabbed bread from Hannah's hand. A bit frightening...so, once we were out of bread we high-tailed it out of there!

Looking Forward to Fall

I'm really excited about all the things that begin in the next couple of weeks. Hannah's first day of school is the 11th. Parent's Night is this week and I'll be finding out who her teacher will be. Today I took her out and bought her some new clothes for school...not as much fun as I anticipated. She was over it after trying on one pair of jeans, but at least I know what size she is now. She's really looking forward to seeing all her friends...hopefully she'll have some familiar faces in her class this year.
Also, we decided to enroll Hannah in a dance class..which will last the length of the school year. Every Saturday morning...same time her Little Gym class was. It's a dance studio in Stephen's City...and she'll be in a class of 3 1/2 yr olds, learning basic dance and rhythm and some beginning ballet! She's totally stoked! She got to pick out what color leotard she wanted to wear...along with white tights and pink ballet slippers. She tried her outfit on this afternoon and pranced around the kitchen.....I think she may be in for a surprise when she realizes that she'll have to practice the dance moves the TEACHER tells her to do...instead of just breakin' it down however she wants. The class starts the 12th. Yay!

I've put Sadie in a playgroup through the local MOM's club....so we'll be in a group with about 5 other moms and 1 yr. olds...she's actually the youngest in the group. (But I'm sure she will tower over them all!) We'll meet every Monday morning while Hannah's in school...so that works out well.
We are having a humid/rainy weekend. We decided to do the grocery shopping as a family this afternoon...and were reminded of why we don't usually do that! Between Hannah running every which way and Sadie squawking to get out of the cart, my head felt like it was going to implode. Now, we are having some quiet time as Sadie naps...Hope everyone is having a nice weekend!

She's Got the Moves :)

Sadie's dance moves crack me up. You better believe she'll be ready for her first Dave Matthews Concert.

For the Love of Cat P*ss

Just wanted to post this cute photo of Hannah giving Tinsley some (unwanted) affection. The darn cat has been peeing and pooping outside the litter box for months now, and I asked Hannah if we could give Tinsley away to a new family. She protested, "NO! Tinsley is MINE FOREVER!!". geeze. We have tried everything...even a special additive for the cat litter called "Cat Attract"....basically cat nip for the box. Nothing has worked...I'm thinking our little orange cat might be living the big life on a farm soon. I don't know how much longer I can deal with the smell of cat pee in my house.

Summer Vacation

Summer is continuing to fly by...and now that we are in the dog days of August, I'm ready for Fall! Hannah still has about a month before she starts school, so it's been a bit of a struggle trying to keep her busy while avoiding the steamy heat.
Last week, we had our vacation and went down the Virginia Beach to stay with my family. We crammed about as much as possible into the week and had a wonderful time. On Thursday, Chad and I took Hannah to Busch Gardens, where they have a new area devoted to Sesame Street! Hannah couldn't believe her eyes when Elmo, Grover, and a slew of other beloved furry monsters came right up and hugged her. There were tons of rides that she could do....she was even tall enough to ride the Big Bad Wolf! Chad was gunning for it...but I insisted that ride might ruin her love of roller coasters forever. Instead, she rode Grover's family coaster...FUN FUN FUN! .....boats, airplanes..and the swings (the swings used to be my favorite ride when I was a child, but when I rode them with her I totally wanted to vomit!) We ate lunch at the German Fest House, where Hannah danced to her heart's content. We dodged the rain perfectly, as it started to sprinkle right as we got to the car. She had a blast...and it was nice being able to spend some time with our big girl, while Sadie enjoyed the day with Mom Mom.
Our entire purpose of choosing that particular week for our trip was, of course, because our Dave Matthews Band concert was that Friday. It's our favorite summertime tradition and even better when we get to spend it with Erin and Matt. Then, Chad's parents and nephew came down to the beach for the weekend and we got to spend some time with them. Hannah had a ball playing in the hotel pool with her cousin.
All in all, an awesome trip....the kids even slept great!

an aFAIR to remember.......i crack myself up!

We headed out to the county fair yesterday, after dinner. What fun!...Hannah had a blast riding all the classic, fantastic carnival rides. The boats that went in circles...the cars that went in circles...the motorcycles that went in circles!!...A cute Ferris Wheel ride with Daddy...and a bumpy roller coaster ride with Mommy. A VERY FUN coaster! She rode and rode ...until Sadie said it was time to go home! We really enjoyed ourselves...and I can see why many locals wait all year long for the fair to come to town. It was the perfect size..not too big and crowded, with just enough crazies to entertain my "people watcher" bone. Chad and I had a good time observing people who we were sure only left their house for 2 reasons....Walmart or the County Fair :) Some people really got dolled up! Of course...Hannah paid no attention to the people..she just wanted to know "What can I ride next??!?!"

Tomato Harvest :)

Presenting.....our first cherry tomatoes!!!

Hannah's been waiting all summer for those little babies to turn red...sure does take forever! We ended up finding 5 tonight ....3 were ripe and 2 almost :) We've also harvested 4 or 5 cucumbers so far, too.
Hannah's been taking a lot of pictures lately with my camera. She'll take 30-40 at a time and max out the memory stick, so I go back and erase most...but keep the cute ones. Here's a couple of pictures she's taken of me around the house...and one goofy pic of Dave.

Ready to Ride?

It seems like I have zero down time lately. Even as I type this Sadie is hollering and banging a toy on my leg. I'm guessing she's about ready for a morning nap....but it seems like hollering is just her way of 'talking'. She must think her voice needs to be a few notches higher than Hannah's. Sometimes they try to outdo each other...see who can shout the loudest....or who can drive their Mom to an early grave...however you wanna look at it. Anyway, I just wanted to post this cute picture of Hannah with her first real, big girl bike! Chad believes she's road ready (I, myself am a bit on the fence). But yesterday he did a great job trying to teach her how to steer and peddle...and how to do both at the same time. I think she's more excited about how her streamers blow in the wind than actually riding...but hey, we'll see :) She sure did look cute in her full getup...and so proud of her princess bike!

Happy Birthday, Sadie!

Our Sadie Bug is ONE! This weekend, we celebrated her birthday with family and had a great time! I can't believe it's been a whole year since she was born....I have no idea where it went! I could not ask for a better or sweeter baby. And she is practically running now!....She's started walking so fast that the rest of her body can hardly keep up with her little legs. Now that she's walking...is she actually considered a (gasp) toddler now?? Here are some photos of Sadie's first year :) I can't believe this was us just a year ago...."tired" does not even begin to sum up how exhausted I was in this picture-lol. But we had our Sadie...and she was perfect....and that's all that mattered.




Happy Birthday, Sadie Everett! We love you to the moon and back again!!

Fireworks

We had a very busy and fun filled weekend. Mom came up Thursday night and spent Friday with us. Then we had family over for pizza on Friday night. Saturday, my Aunt hosted her annual 4th of July family picnic. This is a fun tradition that she started last year...luckily, I live in town and don't have to travel very far to attend! Everyone brings a dish and this year we even had a door prize drawing...Sadie won! Hannah had a blast...she competed in a potato sack race, got to ride on a golf cart...and played endlessly with Mikayla. We came back to our house to rest and have some dinner and got to watch a go-cart race in our own court. The people on the corner were having a HUGE shindig and they had kids racing in derby cars down the hill. We had fun cheering them on. After dinner, we headed back over to Joy's for some fireworks..courtesy of Uncle Tommy. Hannah was determined NOT to be afraid of them this year. She covered her ears for most of the show, but still smiled and clapped. We didn't get home until 10pm...and both girls were transferred (sleeping like the dead) from the car to their beds without even lifting an eyelid. What a great weekend!

Balloon

A few nights ago, we decided to put the girls to bed a bit early and have a "chicken on the grill" dinner..just Chad and I. It was still mostly light outside and we were sitting out back waiting for our chicken to cook..when all of a sudden, we looked up and there was a gorgeous hot air balloon flying over our backyard. It was SO close..it looked like it was going to land right on our house. I"m not sure if it was supposed to be flying so low, but nobody was sending a distress signal or anything. Anyway, I knew Hannah would still be awake so I went into her room and told her to look out her window. She was like, "Woah! A balloon!!" I let her come downstairs and wave the the people in the balloon..it was that close! She was amazed...but then afterward..when I was serious about her going to sleep, she continued to look out her window and watch us down on the deck.
....And so every night since the balloon spectacle, she's been out of her bed and lifting up the window blinds when she's supposed to be going to sleep. She asked me why she has to go to bed while it's still day time outside. ...and it doesn't really get too dark until after 9 now. I told her that just because the sun is staying up later doesn't mean she gets to. :) ....mean mommy.
We had a good weekend...we painted the dining room finally..it looks good. On Saturday, we went to the outlet shops in Hagerstown. That was fun..we found some great deals and the kids lasted a couple of hours. Worth the drive!

Splish Splash

I dragged our decrepit baby pool out from the shed this morning. It had a couple of holes that I had to patch, and was filthy...but with a little duck tape and dish detergent, it was as good as new. I thought for sure Sadie would have a field day, because every time I turn around she's splashing in the dog water bowl. But to my surprise, she wanted little to do with the whole pool thing. Maybe the water was a bit too chilly..but over time it warmed up. She didn't, though. I couldn't even get a good picture of both the girls in the pool together because Sadie kept climbing out. On the other hand, Hannah LOVED it! She stayed out there most of the morning...and again when Sadie took her afternoon nap. I just let her do her thing out there ...and every once in a while I'd hear a shrill scream, "MOOOMMMY, BUUUUUG!!! I'd have to go scoop out whatever little insect had jumped in the pool, and then she'd be fine again.

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Daddy's Day! I'm truly blessed to have some wonderful fathers in my life. My own stud-ly Dad, who is celebrating today on his Alaskan Cruise!!, is an amazing father & grandpa, great listener & problem solver, and one heck of an athlete! Though I'm sure I am probably responsible for at least 50% of his gray hair, he can rest assured that I turned out pretty normal and well adjusted. (twitch, twitch). lol
I couldn't ask for a better father-in-law, either. Whenever I hear people complain about their in-laws, I always thank my lucky stars for Joe & Charlotte. They are kind, genuine, and loving parents/grandparents!!..Not to mention...they spoil my kids rotten. What more could I ask for?
And of course, the Daddio of this house, my Chad. He is adored by both girls and that is evident by the way they both race to him when he walks in the door every evening. He is a really good Dad, but will be an adolescent boy's worst nightmare when Hannah and Sadie start dating! He's hardworking and completely dedicated to our family. I love you, babe! Happy Father's Day :)

yada, yada, yada....

1. Sadie's walking all over the place. I will post a video when I have more time.
2. I didn't realize that when the Paci Fairy took the pacifiers, she'd also be taking away nap time too. No Pacis = No Naps = No Break for the Mommy.
3. Joined the local Moms Club today...met another Mom who went to Longwood with me.....we talked forever about how much we miss it and how much the campus has changed since we graduated.
4. Made gorditas for dinner and Chad bribed Hannah with a Lifesaver Mint to eat hers. Didn't really work out because the mint was so strong, it burned her tongue and made her cry.
5. We discovered that Sadie LOVES chicken...she gobbles it up faster than I can cut it up and place the pieces on her tray.
6. The dogs got baths ( when I say bath, I mean Hannah soaped them up and sprayed them with the hose out back) and haircuts this weekend. Carter jumped suddenly while Chad had the clippers on and got buzzed. He now has a bald spot on his butt in the shape of a square.
7. Ever since we started planning our Disney World trip, Hannah nags at me every day to go to Mickey Mouse's house. I have tried telling her that we still have 5 months before we go...but when you're three, I guess you only live in the here and NOW! She says she's going to give Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Goofy, Pluto, and Cinderella all hugs and kisses when she finally sees them. We are excited ...plane tickets have been purchased!
8. My brain is fried....off to bed.
9 Oh yeah- and I mowed the grass all by myself!! Chad was very proud :) Yeah, I know...I've totally lost it!

Steps & Smiles

Here's just a short clip of Sadie walking about 3 steps. Before I got the camera out, she did 7 steps..not knowing I was watching. After she saw the camera, she just started diving for it instead. She's been walking ALL day today!! The new record is 11 steps without any assistance! What a big girl :)




Also, I'm so excited about Sadie's one year portraits. Becky did them for me at the Shenandoah Museum's gardens this week and they are just gorgeous!! Thank you, Becky--I'm lucky to have such a talented neighbor & friend!

A Visit From the Paci Fairy....

You'll never believe this--I'm still scratching my head. Yesterday Hannah woke up and told Chad she was ready for the Paci Fairy to come take her pacis to all the new babies of the world. So, throughout the day I talked to her about it and made sure she understood that once the paci fairy worked her magic on our house, there would be NO MORE pacis ...EVER. She agreed. !!!! So, Chad and I picked our jaws up off the floor and tried to act normal. I offered to buy a special, colorful gift bag for her leave all her pacis in for the fairy,..but she just wanted to stick them all in a ziplock baggie. She was concerned about her germs still being on the pacis, so we washed each one, then she said she needed to get them wet with her mouth one more time. I watched as she sucked each bink one last time, and then placed them (ever so gently) in the bag. Then she said "Mommy, I love my pacis SOOO much!!" That's when I started to cry....lol. I never thought I'd be emotional over this...I mean, I wanted those pacis gone more than anyone! But Hannah is not a baby anymore, and way too sweet for her own good....and that makes me a very mushy, teary Mommy.
So, I tried hard not to let her see me cry....while Chad laughed at me and said "Good riddance, pacis!!" She never asked for them last night after she went to bed, although it did take her a good while to fall asleep without them. She was probably up until 10 or so, but she never cried or begged for them. Thank goodness!!
I had fun playing Paci Fairy. I knew Hannah wanted this Dora House...which retails for over 100$....so I also knew she wouldn't be getting it. But for some reason the Gods were shining down on me because I found that Dora House at Walmart for 30$!!! It was the only one on the shelf and had been marked down because it had been returned and repackaged. I dumped it out right there in the aisle... it worked and had most of the pieces. Too cool!
Hannah slept all night without pacis and woke up a little before 6 this morning. She said "Is it morning time?..Did she bring the Dora House?" She was so happy to see it sitting right where she'd left her pacis for the Fairy. She's been playing with it all morning.
What fun!

Holah, Sadie

This is probably the closest it comes to the two girls actually "playing" together right now. Sadie likes it when we pretend to bite her fingers. You can tell Sadie desperately wanted to play with Hannah....but while Hannah was being nice, you can also tell she was getting annoyed because she wanted to read her book. Oh, and obviously she watches too much Dora.....hehe

Sadie's Steps

Sadie took her first steps yesterday.....well, about 4 steps to be exact! Chad stood, holding the cat, about 3 feet away from Sadie. She stood up by herself and inched 4 sweet little baby steps towards the kitty. Then she realized she'd get there quicker if she crawled, and dropped to her hands and knees. She is standing on her own and when I play music, she will stand there and be bop to the beat, but she hasn't made anymore steps since yesterday morning. She's getting more comfortable with walking along the furniture and standing up (not holding on to anything) seems to be effortless now. So it's only a matter of time before she really takes off for good! I have such mixed emotions....the majority of which are happy ( because this is a huge milestone and she seems to be tackling it early) and relieved (because I know that soon enough I won't have to lug a 22 pound turkey around on my hip 24/7 anymore). But there is some sadness too..because with the onset of walking comes the beginning of the end of babyhood!! Sadie's first year has just flown by me!!...Could be because I was in a cloudy haze for a third of it, still trying to balance everything while maintaining sanity.
Anyway, she is quite proud of herself ...and we all root her on and clap whenever she even looks like she might attempt a step. She's also saying "ki ki" for kitty...and I'm pretty sure "ba ba" for bottle.
We had a nice weekend. I took Hannah to the pool this afternoon....it wasn't really hot enough, but I had to make good on my promise. She's been wanting to go since last week when she picked out her new Dora bathing suit at Target. She had fun, but we only stayed about an hour..the water was freeeeezing!!

It's beginning to look a lot like Summer!

We had a really nice weekend visiting with Chad's parents and enjoying the beautiful weather. On Saturday, we went down to Old Town Winchester ...window shopped and ate some yummy hotdogs. The weather was lovely and I love that I don't have to bundle up the kids anymore! The girls had a really great time being spoiled by Mema and Mepa. Mepa and Hannah helped Chad plant some flowers out back. Chad found a wasp nest under one of the columns on the front porch and Hannah watched him wrap duc tape around the bottom opening to trap them. So, she thought the duc tape was some kind of wasp repellent and placed a small piece on each of the flower pots. She said "That will keep the wasps away from the flowers." So cute :)
Yesterday, we had a picnic in the park and let the girls play for a bit. Then, Hannah and Chad washed my van- inside and out! And of course it started raining around dinner time last night and hasn't let up since. Nice. I'm trying to map out a plan for this summer...I need to figure out how I"m going to keep the kids busy during the week. I'd like to enroll Hannah in some swim classes...The pool season is here, and she's still terrified of getting splashed in the face.

Schooooool's Out For Summer!!

Today was Hannah's last day of school! I can't believe she's done with her first year of preschool...I've loved watching her grow and seeing her confidence soar. She loved her teachers, classmates, and everything about going to school. We had a big end of the year party in her classroom this afternoon. One of her teachers, Julia does photography on the side and gave each parent a disc of all the photos she'd taken of their child all year long. This is the best gift EVER! There's about 150 pictures of Hannah on the CD and they are all great...I've uploaded them to my web album and will email the link. Here are some of my favorite ones.
Hangin' out on her soft reading spot. This is where I always put Sadie down when I dropped Hannah off in the mornings...until she became mobile and started charging for the toys.

On the playground..

And this one is adorable!!! Benjamin is her favorite friend in the class.....but I thought this was a Christian preschool!! :) LOL They are just too cute.