Picture Time

It was time again for Amelia's annual pictures. I thought I would take a few shots before we left to get her ready, and show how her hair was curled (it tends to fall flat quickly.)

Close up shot

Showing off a new cute fall outfit

She wore a dress for the second outfit.

Overall I was pleased with how they turned out. It is so much easier to get Amelia to stand still and smile than it is with Samuel. She did a great job posing. I can't wait to see the finished project.

Daddy's Helpers

This week our newest project arrived..... our shed! We are hoping to have it done before the snow flies (which hopefully won't be soon.) Between my working weekends and David's schedule and the friend from church that is helping him we are trying to squeeze it in whenever we can. Thankfully David is more patient than I am.

The other night David was doing some measuring for where we we were going to put it. Samuel and Amelia decided they should help him stake out the ground. It was quite funny to watch it from the house.

A little to the left Amelia says Samuel. We'll see how straight the shed ends up based on their measuring. :) They do like to help though!

Where has the week gone

It's funny how a week can go by so quickly. Just yesterday my mom was commenting on how it had been a week since we got back from California. Wow! It has been a full week for us. We spent a lot of time getting ready for the women's fall brunch at church that I was helping to plan. I was worried when the kids had colds over the weekend, but all went well and Tuesday morning was a lovely morning. I have been so privileged to have this wonderful group of women that I fellowship and study God's word with on Tuesday mornings. I'm now one of the tri-leaders of the group and realize all the details that go into making the group run. I'm excited about the year and where God will take us as we study the life of David. We had 26 women at the brunch and will have 32 studying with us!!!!
I have also been getting my house back in order. Mind you it wasn't out of order but I felt the need to putter around and feel like it was my domain again (after a week away I don't think I lost domain but you Mom's out there understand.) This has meant stocking the fridge and freezer, cleaning, and just generally getting back into a routine.
My other big project of the week was working with Amelia on potty training. I had a whole week without her going to daycare so I decided to go after it. Overall we have done better... wearing underwear on short trips (even sunday to church) I still have to put her on every couple hours, put a pull-up on during naps, and overall ride her to go, but I'm hoping we are making some progress. Dr. Sheri at her check up last week said "a large majority" of kids are trained by this age, but each child is different. Amelia was a late talker, walker, etc so I'm just figuring this will follow that trend too. Of course yesterday at daycare she wouldn't go on the potty at all. Mommy must be firmer than Ms. Sandy! :)
We are now gearing up for our next home project (pictures to follow soon!)
I'm getting ready to put out my fall decorations (thus the new background)
I'm updating my kitchen with some new accessories
And the list goes on.......

Good Memories

This is one of my favorite pictures of the week. I remember many great trips to see my Grandma and it was fun to reflect on those this week. Despite her health and circumstances she is still able to stop and smell the flowers and thank God for all he has given her. I'm so glad I had the chance to go out and visit her and hopefully provide some more memories for her to think on during lonely days. I love you Grandma.

California

We found some fun activities to do with my Grandma. She enjoys getting out and we were happy to oblige. We went shopping at the malls, to lunch, ice cream runs and to the Fullerton Arboretum. We realized it's a bit different than the Illinois Arboretum she liked because of all the cactus and trees. It was still fun to look around. I did try to capture a few of the beautiful plants.

Daugther and Son with their mother

3 Generations

Happy 85th Birthday Grandma!
We had a party at her place for all the residence and staff to enjoy.

Sunny California

My mom and I returned safely from a wonderful time in California visiting my Grandma, Aunt and Uncle.. It was good to see the place where my Grandma is living, meet the staff, and take Grandma on some fun outings. Thanks for your prayers. The trip really went quite well.

One of my Grandma's favorite things to do is sit outside in the Gazebo. They are several on the grounds and this one is her favorite. I took a wide shot to show the beautiful bushes, and flowers. I was surprised to know how knowledgeable about flowers my Grandma was. We enjoyed some great weather. 80's and sunny, but unlike Minnesota it doesn't feel hot because there is NO HUMIDITY! In the evening it would actually turn cool. We would sit out here and visit and play games of Uno.

An evening at the beach. We went with my Aunt, Uncle and Grandma for a birthday dinner at one of their favorite places.... The Laguna Beach Hotel. It is fun to sit outside in the cafe and watch the sunset. Not only was this a fun time to visit with my Grandma, but also to have quality time with my mom. We had some great laughs and conversations.

A view of the group

My uncle joins the picture
What a wonderful evening.

Relax

Tomorrow my mom and I are leaving to go to California to visit my Grandma. I'm leaving the kids behind! We have been planning this for months and at one point I was going to bring 1 or both kids and David said, "You know you could relax a lot better if they just stayed home." I agreed and went ahead with planning. Now as the day draws near I'm mixed with emotions... excitement at getting a whole week to relax and visit with family, nervous about traveling, plane connections, David with the kids, etc, etc, etc. You know I can be a bit of a worrier. So I'm asking my blog friends to pray for us this week. Pray that my mom and I have a fabulous time together, that traveling and driving go smoothly and that we can be an encouragement to my Grandma. Pray for David back with the kids (they will go to daycare 4 of the 7 days I'm gone). He is an excellent father and knows their routine well, so I know he is very capable of doing this ( I still felt the need to leave him plenty of lists though.) So I"m off to pack.... I hardly know how to do it without needing diapers, wipes, sippy cups, and toys.
Thanks!

More Birthday Fun

After lunch it was time for presents. Amelia had the whole schedule down and even went in right after eating lunch to start gifts (with all of us still outside)! Above is her last gift.... from us, hidden away in the basement for her to find.... A Princess scooter!! She was pretty excited. I'm sure you all enjoy looking at my work area of the basement too. :)

Another attempt at a family picture.... Samuel's party was better. We'll leave it at that. Again I have realized I can not host a party, watch over kids, and take great pictures. Some things I have to let go.

Amelia was very excited about her pink cake and enjoyed blowing out the candles.

Enjoying the cake.... the theme of the party by the way was Princess.

Enjoying a ride outside.
Happy Birthday Princess Amelia.
We can hardly believe you are already 3! You are a joy and blessing in our lives. We love your smile, excitement, enthusiasm and spirit. We pray for many more wonderful birthdays to come. Thanks to everyone who came and made this a special day for us

Happy Birthday Amelia!

Today, Saturday Sept. 5th is Amelia's 3rd Birthday party. The 6th is her actual Birthday, but it worked better all around to do it on the Saturday. The kids got up bright and early at 7am to begin the festivities. Amelia enjoyed the decorating David and I had done early in the morning. Amelia also looked forward to the arrival of her aunt and uncle Bryan and Stacy who stopped through on the their way on vacation. On a side note I wish you could hear Amelia say "My aunt and uncle" it is so funny... for some reason her saying some words just crack me up!

I made Amelia's cake. We always get a store bought cake for the first birthday but then last year I invested in some cake decorating supplies and have started trying to make my own. This year I decided to make a double cake (last years was a bit short) I put 2 9x13 pans together with frosting in-between. We won't go into what a challenge it was to flip the two cakes together. Frustration and a few tears occurred on Friday night as I was trying to put it together. Overall I think the princess castle and princess help to make it more festive (both found at thrift stores for a steal!) Amelia picked pink cake (strawberry) and pink frosting.

Celebrating with the guests. She always enjoys seeing her cousins,aunts, uncles, and Grandparents.

Showing off more pictures of the cake

Eating outside on another beautiful day. The kids table.

1 Year Old Stats

We just returned from Samuel's well child check and all is "well." Here are his latest statistics:
Weight: 22lb 9oz (50%)
Height: 30 5/8 (75%)
Head 18 7/8 (75-90%)
Surprisingly, I thought he would weigh more than 22lbs. He feels like a chunk to me.
He now can walk halfway across the room (if he wants too) and is loving whole milk.
He tolerated his 4 shots and finger stick like a trooper and is now taking a nap after this hard office visit!

Such a big boy!