Thanks For Sharing, Connor

Connor was so nice to share his car seat with us, his toys, and even his crib, but I think Nolan was most grateful that Connor shared his jumper with him.

Nothing Like An 8:30 a.m. Swim

On Sunday Megan spent the night at Grandma and Papa's house with us, and when the girls woke up both of them wanted to go swimming. I tried for about ten minutes to get them focused on something else, but it did not work so I figured what was the harm. We got both of them in their swimsuits and off they went. Grandma made them breakfast on the patio that morning and they loved it.

Swimsuits on and Buckets in hand

Filling up her bucket

Squirting each other in the pool

Breakfast on the Patio

Letting me know they are done

Granna and Double G

While we were in Texas Granna and Double G were there too. They had been in Missouri helping out family there and on there way home they stayed to visit with us for a few days. The kids love them so much. Rylee really liked playing with Double G's puppy, Liesl! We are excited to see them again at Christmas time.

Cinderella Nightgown

After Christmas Aunt Erica picked up a nightgown for Rylee and saved it for her birthday, and it is perfect for our little girl. Rylee loves it and has already worn it two more nights since this picture.

All Four Cousins Together

This was the best we could get of the four all together at Grandma's house.

Aunt Joan

Thursday night Rylee had her first slumber party at Cousin Megan's house. To let you know how it went, at 10:45 Erica and I had four children still awake! Rylee and Megan giggled and giggled until roughly 11:30, but when Megan was ready to sleep Rylee was ready to get in her own bed. They slept relatively well until 4 a.m. when Rylee fell out of bed and woke up Megan, Nolan and myself. We all got back to sleep eventually, but we were pretty tired most of the day. The girls spent all morning playing and playing, and then in the afternoon Grandpa Rick's sister, Joan, came down to visit. Rylee had not seen Aunt Joan since she was 4 months and Nolan had never met her, and meeting Aunt Joan is a very special thing! Aunt Joan was so great with girls, suprising them each with their choice of a box of candy. She showed Rylee three boxes and without hesitation she grabbed the Junior Mints (I'm sure that will make Papa Steve proud). We had a fun time chatting and watching the girls terrorize Erica's house. Matt has already decided these two are not allowed to go out alone together when they are teenagers, together they are a mischevious pair.

Texas Birthday Party

This evening we celebrated Rylee's birthday with our Texas relatives. In my mind I just planned on a little cake and family time, and we were blessed with much more. Rylee received many more great presents, including: 2 Cinderella Dolls, an apron, a few new books, a Ranger's outfit, a tool set of her own, and a Cinderella nightgown. We are so lucky to have such a great extended family, thank you for making this such a special night for Rylee.

"I Know, I'm Cute"

Nolan and Connor

Nolan got to meet his buddy Connor yesterday. These two were so fun to watch try and figure each other out. Only once did Nolan attack Connor, he was really just trying to say hi, but Connor was not so sure about the head butt to the back. The second picture was just so cheesey I couldn't resist putting it on to share.

Swings

Yesterday Megan and Rylee wanted to go swing in the rain, and I was the lucky one who got to go with them. When I say lucky, I am not being sarcastic, these two are so stinking cute together!

Day 1 in Texas

We arrived in Texas for our visit on Wednesday. The flight went really well, it was my first with both kids alone. Rylee was extremely excited to get here, but was as patient as a 3 year old can be. Grandma, Double G and Granna all picked us up at the airport and then we headed out to lunch with Aunt Kari and Caity H. Once we got home we let the kids play a bit, but then it was nap time. Rylee has quikly become attached to a tool set at Grandma's house, and is a fantastic carpenter. After naps Grandpa Rick got home, and Rylee got to help him cook dinner while Granna fed Nolan dinner. We were all quite tired by the end of the day, but Rylee was very eager to go to bed so Megan could come over the next morning.

Playing Together

These two had so much fun playing together all afternoon. Rylee has been learning her shapes, but when I asked she had not interest in telling me what it was instead she told me what color it was. Nolan loves to bang the toys together and make lots of noise. Nolan is still figuring out the activity table, he gets a little wobbly, but loves standing up and playing with his sister.

Sitting So Big

In the past few weeks Nolan has really mastered sitting. He really likes his new view of the world around him.

3 Year and 6 Month Check-Ups

Rylee had her three year check up at the beginning of the month and I have not gotten around to posting about it. She was 26 pounds (7th percentile) and 33 3/4 inches (1st percentile). They checked her eye sight and she passed, she got to use the big girl scale and she loved that.
Her best friend is our doctor's nurse, Shaylee. Rye ran straight through the door and gave her a big hug while I was checking in. Rylee got to "shadow" her nurse friend the whole visit. She helped check other people in, showed them where the scale was, and even got to pump someone's blood pressure. You would think we are at the doctor's a lot with how much she likes her, but really we have been only for check-ups.
Today was Nolan's six month visit and he is doing awesome. The doctor asked if we had any questions, and I actually didn't. Something about being a second time mom and having a great baby. Nolan has already surpassed Rylee's 1 year weight, and is close to the same length. At 1, Rylee was 19 pounds 2 ounces and 28 inches. Today Nolan was 19 lbs 5.5 ounces (65th percentile) and 27 inches (50th percentile). He is reaching all his developmental milestones, sitting, rolling and starting to crawl! His favorite toy is his voice and Rylee loves to imitate it, so it tends to get loud around here!

Sunday Drive

With 1:00 Church we tend to get a little cabin fever in the mornings, so yesterday we decided to drive the Alpine Loop. It is so pretty and Rylee loved it. She wanted her window down the entire drive so she could see the pretty trees and mountains. We found a little waterfall for her to splash in, it didn't last too long -- the water was freezing. The drive ended as a complete success, both kids were sound asleep for the drive home.

The Sleep Chair

After lunch today Rylee wanted to watch a show with me, so I found something that was okay for her to watch, but not a cartoon, so we watched "Sabrina, The Teenaged Witch!" About halfway through the show she was sound asleep, so she stayed on the couch for her nap. After she was sound asleep I took Nolan up and put him down for a nap, but within 25 minutes he was crying again, so I went and got him. When he came down she started to toss and turn so I snuggled her back down while snuggling Nolan down too. I ended up with Rylee asleep in my lap and Nolan asleep on my chest for nearly an hour and a half, it was great. When Rye woke up, Nolan was still asleep so he stayed in the chair for another half hour sleeping. Then tonight the chair is where Daddy sang songs to both the kids!

Lots of Fun at Maddi's

On Wednesday and Friday's my friend and I go on a run together and after we let the kids play while we chat. Today we went to Maddi's house and had so much fun. The kids love the runs because they like being outside, and who doesn't enjoy being pushed along for 5 miles or so! After the run we played with Maddi's pool and water play mat. The girls had a great time and Nolan enjoyed sitting on a blanket and playing too. We went in for lunch and then the girls played even more. We had a princess lunch today with Cinderella and Barbie Princess!! Rylee is now taking a great nap and Nolan is still torturing Mom with no afternoon naps all week.

Driving Range

Papa Steve and Grandma Michelle got Rylee her very own golf clubs for her birthday, and she loves them. Tonight was the first night we went to the driving range and she was so cute. She hit the ball in every direction, but she had fun and she is a good listener when we are trying to help her. Nolan came and watched and was a good boy. She had so much fun we will definitely be going back.

Snuggles With Grandma

As Happy As Ever

We are happy to report Nolan is as happy as ever!! After his little procedure last week is back to his old self, and today he only had two doses of Motrin!

New Pool

Grandma and I found a great deal today at Kohl's and I couldn't pass it up. We were returning a present from Rylee's party there, we got two of the same, and found this cool pool 50% off plus an additional 15% off! We got it all out and then realized we should have set it up much sooner then we did. The pump was not working well so Grandma and I blew the entire thing up by ourselves. Rylee had a great time playing in the pool, so that made it worth it. She was, however, a bit scared of the slide. We hope the slide will be a lot of fun for the rest of the Summer.

Playing With Grandma

Nolan and Grandma Michelle had a great time playing together the other night. His favorite game is currently peek-a-boo, so Grandma played a little with him and then tickled him a little.