We haven't really been up to too much lately; just the usual running around, entertaining the kids and keeping the house up. Oh yes, and growing a baby. I have been getting increasingly tired as the weeks go on and find myself really looking forward to May. The coming months bring us so much; Serena's first birthday in April, the birth of a new baby in May, and Calli's 4th birthday in June. Not to mention all the other holidays that fall between now and then. I find it somewhat bittersweet; on one hand I love to watch our children grow and learn and on the other hand it's sad to watch life passing by so quickly. I look at Calli's baby pictures and can't believe she is nearing four-years-old already. But then I look at her baby sister, who looks so much like Calli did at that age, and I feel like I get to watch our oldest grow up all over again. That is a bonus of having two girls I suppose; I love to see just how much they resemble each other.
We spent last Sunday watching the Super Bowl, like every other house in America. I made some fun football cupcakes...
And watched Calli devour them in just a few bites.
The girls got in some fun playtime in our backyard. Serena enjoys pushing around her toys on the lawn. It won't be long before she is running around unassisted.
Our weeks are filling up as I find new activities to take the kids to, mostly ones that Calli benefits from. She has started taking an art class every Monday from 12:30-2. We both love it; Calli gets to express her creativity by painting and playing with play dough and I get to drop her off and run some errands with just one kid in tow. Last week I got to go grocery shopping, just Serena and me, and I had forgotten how easy it can be when there is just one! Calli is always so eager to show me what she painted or drew that day when we go to pick her up. We are collecting artwork like crazy and I don't quite know what to do with it all! On Tuesdays we find ourselves at the library for Preschool Story time. The kids get to hear two books and sing songs and dance, followed by a special craft. The first week Calli made a penguin on a popsicle stick; last week it was creating an animal constellation from glitter glue pens and sparkly star stickers.
I recently switched Calli out of her Wednesday morning dance class and into a Thursday afternoon one. To make a long story short, we were unhappy with the teacher and needed a change. This new class has four of her dance mates from her class last year, so it is fun to catch up with all of them. There are also twice as many students in the class and I think Calli has more fun with more kids. We can't wait for her dance recital in June!
Yesterday the girls and I did a bit of shopping at Old Navy and picked out their cute Valentine's Day dresses. I am planning on having their pictures taken in them, but tried to get in a few of my own. I have decided that task is impossible. Here are my attempts at getting them both to sit still, smile and look at the camera.
I love her big blue eyes!
She's taking a few steps!
Today we went to the Barnes and Noble near our house for a special Valentine's Day story time and celebration. The kids heard two Valentine's Day themed books and then got to make a special sparkly pink and red bookmark. After that, cups of milk and sugar cookies were passed around. It was a really fun thing to do! Now we are just enjoying the rest of our weekend. I will try and get a video of Serena walking soon and so everyone can see that. This is probably my favorite stage of development. There is something so precious about seeing those first few shaky steps and watching a baby try and master putting one foot in front of the other. They grow up in the blink of an eye.
A pretty yellow outfit, perfect color for spring!
Serena playing with her dinosaur toy
Our beauties
Sisterly love!
Calli's favorite thing to draw for awhile now has been pictures of our family. She uses up paper after paper drawing the four (five) of us. Lately she has been branching out a bit more and drawing other things, like our cats or the sun (seen in the picture above). She is really impressing me with all the things she can draw! Yesterday she drew such a great picture of our family that I had to share it. Mommy is the BIG one in the middle surrounded by Daddy, Calli and Serena. And you can see in my tummy she has drawn her baby brother. She has taken to drawing all of her pictures of me this way now. (oh and of course she signed her name in the bottom left corner.) I am thinking we have a future artist on our hands!
