Busy, busy, busy

It is that time of year and I seem to have not enough hours in the day to blog or find a moment for myself. We put up the Christmas tree last week and it was a lot of fun. Abby loves seeing the ornaments and hanging them on the tree. Emily on the other hand likes to take the ornaments off the tree! Here is a photo of our tree with all the presents we have received underneath!

Emily-11 months old!

Emily is now 11 months old and a very busy baby! She has been walking since late August early September and now she practically runs everywhere. She still has no teeth though! We are waiting anxiously for the first tooth to arrive but so far no luck. We were hoping that when Abby lost 2 teeth maybe Emily would gain a tooth or 2! Emily seems to be into a lot more trouble than Abby ever was or maybe I have just forgotten! Everytime I turn around Emily is into a drawer or cabinet that she shouldn't be. Here is a good photo I shot of her yesterday when I was making Biscotti's.

Tooth Fairy

The tooth fairy finally made a visit to our house a few weeks ago and then again this past Monday. Abby's bottom 2 front teeth have been loose since last May! She lost the first one the last week of October and then exactly 2 weeks later I was able to pull the other tooth out. Abby was very concerned about how the tooth fairy would know she lost a tooth. She was also concerned about how the tooth fairy would get in her room, where she lived, what she looked like, etc. She made out well though, she got 5 dollars and then 1 dollar and we went to the store and bought her a Barbie DVD.

Farts are funny

Okay so I'm going to say what everyone else is already thinking, Farts are funny. No matter how hard you try and say it's not true it is. Here is the proof. Enjoy this video!

Dancing!

Emily really loves to dance these days. Everytime you turn on music or sing to her she bounces up and down to the beat. She even sings along with you when you sing to her. We were cleaning the kitchen today, actually I was cleaning and she was getting into Trouble like she always does and we had some music on. I turned to look at her and she was bouncing up and down like she always does. It's a quick video because as soon as she see's me filming her she stops dancing and starts walking toward me. Hope you like!

More Bath time fun

The girls really like to take baths together and tonight was no exception. The bath started off like it usually does with lots of giggles and splashing but it got even crazier when I decided to put on Abby's shower cap. First I had it on then Abby wore it for awhile. Abby and I exchanged a quick look and we both reached for it and put it on Emily's head next. Needless to say the results were hysterical!

Soccer Time

Abby's team, The Bruisers, had their first official game last night. At this age the kids are playing more for fun and learning soccer skills. In fact there is no official score kept. Abby got a chance to be a goalie for a quarter. She let a few balls get past her but she was not afraid to dive after the ball at all. Ever time she let a ball past her she would come up with a smile on her face. Our team may not have scored a goal or even known what direction to kick the ball at times but the kids did have fun.

More Walking!

Emily has started to get more comfortable walking these days. She used to only take 2 or 3 steps at a time but now she is taking more like 5 or 6 at time. Here is a quick video of her walking around the living room. Enjoy!

First Day of Kindergarten

Today was the official start of school! Woohoo! Abby has been looking forward to school starting for quite some time now and was more than ready to head back to school. I'm sure this excitement over school only lasts for a few more years! She did have a little case of the nerves last night and then again this morning but overall she was ready to get on the bus. Since our neighborhood is currently fenced off due to the ongoing housing construction on base there is only one way in and out of our neighborhood. I waited with my friend Carol for the bus to come back by so we could wave good-bye to the kids. Well as the bus drove by Abby was busy talking to another little girl across the aisle! She didn't even care to wave good-bye to her dear old Mom. Oh well! I knew that she would be fine, the social butterfly that she is.

Baby Steps

Yesterday Emily decided that she had enough of crawling and took her first solo steps. I was sitting on the living room floor and I stood her up about a foot or two in front of me. I held out my hands and she just started walking toward me. All together she took 3 really good steps. Jason and I were so happy with her and so excited that Emily started to get really excited too. She wanted to keep trying to walk. She kept trying and trying until her little legs were too tired to try anymore.

Firsts!

We've had some really nice weather here the last few days. We've gotten a little preview of fall weather and it's wonderful. I was able to dress Emily in some jeans and some cute shoes the other day and she for such a tiny little baby she looked awfully grown up!

Emily Crawling

Here is a brief video of Emily crawling and screeching! Enjoy!

Big Tub

Emily has offically graduated to the big bathtub! It's still kind of weird to see her in it considering how little she is. She loves the water though. She splashes around, yells and laughs. Overall she has a great time in the tub. Last night Abby joined her little sister in the tub for the first time!

Weekend Family Fun

Last weekend we went to a free 60's flashback weekend at the Doughboy Fields on Fort Dix. They had free games, live music, horseback rides, bounce house and all sorts of other activities for the military families. Abby had her first horseback ride and she loved it! Emily decided that she would venture out onto the grass for the first time and not cry. Abby and Jason also went on a go cart ride. Here are a few pictures of the family fun!

Bath time!

Well once we got back from our trip to Omaha Emily really took off. She started crawling and pulling herself up. Emily loves everything that Abby does and watches her like a hawk. Last night I was getting Abby's bath water ready and according to Jason, Emily heard the bath water start and took off like a bat out of hell to chase us down! She quickly made her way to the bathroom so she could watch her big sister take a bath. I'm hoping this means she is getting ready to get into the big bath tub and we can eliminate her baby tub!

Jason's knee

Jason had knee surgery for the 3rd time this past Monday. Thankfully this time it was not a torn ACL but just some torn miniscus. He has bounced back quickly this time and isn't even on crutches anymore. My Mom was able to come and stay with us for a week to help out while he was at the hospital and just in general when he was unable to do much around the house. Overall we had a great visit with Mom and we were all sad to see her go! We miss you already!

Pool Time

A few days ago it was finally hot enough and not raining that we could break out the pools! Abby of course loves her big pool in the backyard but Emily is not that impressed with water in general. I filled her little baby pool with a little bit of water so it would warm up quickly and then we put her in the pool. At first she just wanted to stand but once her big sister got in the baby pool with her she sat down and started having some fun.

SAC Museum

Hotel Crib

7 months old

Emily turned 7 months old on July 10th. She may be a tiny little baby but she doesn't let that stop her from doing anything. She is now crawling and pulling herself up from a sitting position to a standing position. She thinks she's hot stuff these days. Hopefully she will start to pack on some pounds soon and start wearing 6 month old sized clothes instead of the 3 month old size! I have yet to get a photo of her standing up by herself. As soon as I do I will post it.

GM

On our trip back to New Jersey we came across a General Motors plant in Ohio that was empty. Jason and I both had a good laugh about our tax dollars being put to good use. There were literally less than 75 cars in the parking lot of this massive plant. Anyway I snapped a few pictures to show everyone how our taxpayer dollars are paying for the union workers to sit at home and continue to collect a paycheck on the taxpayer dime while no cars are being made!

Baseball Game

Abby is a huge fan of baseball. I personally think the only reason she likes it so much is because of the cotton candy, snow cones and the hot dogs! We planned a family trip to the local minor league team and all of my siblings, parents and most of the cousins were able to attend. Lucky us, it was $1 beer night too!

Trip to the Zoo

We were lucky enough to visit the Henry Doorly Zoo while we were in Omaha these past 2 weeks. Abby had a blast in fact we all did. Here are a few pictures from our trip to the zoo. We got to see the Desert Dome, the Jungle, Aquarium, Gorilla's and the Butterfly house. All in all a great day!

Omaha Trip

We have been on vacation for the last 2 weeks so I apologize that post's are scarce. We will be back in NJ on the 16th so I will start posting again when we get home. I have lots of cute pictures to share with everyone.

New Hair do

Abby has been wanting her hair cut very short for some time now. I finally got off my butt the other day and we had a mother-daughter day at the hair salon. She instructed the stylist how she wanted her hair cut and styled. Here is a picture of the new look!

I tried to get her to smile more naturally but it seems she has lost that ability for the time being. Anyway she got her hair cut nice and short and off her neck.

Field Trip

Yesterday was Abby's last field trip of the year. I was lucky enough to attend and eventhough it rained we still had a great time. The preK classes traveled to PAWS farm and nature center in Mt. Laurel. The kids got a chance to see horses, cows, swans, emu's, deer, peacocks, a variety of birds, lizards, frogs, snakes and turtles. Overall the trip was great. A little muddy, but great. I was pleasantly surprised with Abby when she showed no fear touching all the snakes and lizards. This is the girl who runs screaming from little bugs! Jason's work gave him a free day of leave so he could attend to Emily while I went with Abby. We were grateful they allowed this since he is the only one in his office right now.

6 month check up

Emily had her 6 month well baby check today. Everything went well and she is doing just fine. She weighed in at 13lbs and she is 24 inches tall. She didn't quite double her birth weight but she is darn close. She is such a petite little baby compared to Abby. Weight wise Emily is in the 5th Percentile and Abby was always in the 90th! What a difference! They may be polar opposites as far as growth is concerned but Jason and I are both in agreement that they are two peas in a pod. Looking at Emily is like looking at Abby 5 years ago!

Emily is so close to crawling these days. I figure we give her a few more weeks and she will have it mastered. She already scoots everywhere and is grasping everything in sight.

College World Series

Since we can't be in Omaha this June to attend the College World Series we do our best here in NJ to support our favorite teams. Jason was wearing UT orange today and so was Emily to show their support. Unfortunately Abby doesn't have any UT orange anymore so she will be forced to show her support by wearing Husker Red, ( even though the Huskers are not in the CWS this year). Abby can't fit into her UT orange outfits anymore so she let her little sister wear her old outfits.

Bottle Time

To those of you who know us well you know that Emily has been a completely breastfed baby for the first 6 months of her life. This is something I am very proud of and enjoy. But we also realized we need to get her on a bottle at some point so Mommy can have some much needed "me time." We have been trying unsuccessfully since February to get Emily used to taking a bottle. Well, Jason finally broke her down the other night and he enjoyed his first feeding with Emily the other night. This has been a long process for us and I am personally so excited because this means Mommy can have a little more freedom now!

Cheese anyone?

Tomorrow is Abby's big Field Day at school. I told her I would be coming in the afternoon to watch some of the activities. She informed me that I need to look pretty. She said put some sparkly stuff in your ears and wear a nice top. I looked at her and said, " don't I always look pretty?" She said, "Yes you do and make sure you smell nice tomorrow too!" I asked her , " Are you saying I smell right now?" She leaned in sniffed my arm and told me that I smelled like cheese! Gee thanks. Cheese! Apparently I need to change my lotion!

Jason

Good news from Jason. This week was the annual RFO at his work. RFO means Ready for operations. He passed his portion of it with flying colors and received a 2 day liberty pass for his hard work. We are super proud of him and all the hard work he puts in at the Strike Team. Yea Daddy!

My Bad

Kids, it never ceases to amaze me what comes out of their mouths. Yesterday after dinner, Abby, Emily and myself were getting ready to go on a walk/bikeride. I was just walking out to the garage when I heard this crash. I asked Abby what the loud noise was, as she was already out there waiting for me. She said, " oh that was my bad, I hit the chairs while I was riding around the garage." Oh, my bad! At least she used it in the right context!