What's the smell?

Sophia is at the age where her sense of smell is really developing. For the past 6 months or so, everywhere we go she'll try to smell everything and tell me how good it smells. I've been assuming that she's just pretending to sniff and doesn't really smell much yet. Well, this morning was different.

"Mommy, Stella has a poop. I can smell it. It smells BAD! That is a stinky poop!" This was all said so innocently and it was just so funny. We started laughing when she said she could smell it and just laughed harder as she said each sentence. And, Stella did have a big, smelly poop, so Sophia was correct!

The girls have some toys called Snap'n'Style dolls and babies. One of the babies came with a little bathtub, seen here.
Stella put the tub down on the floor, turned around and tried to sit on it, as if she was going to take a bath. She's never done that before, but she had a big smile on her face because she knew she was being quite funny!

Monkey see, Monkey do

Tonight, after dinner, Sophia took a basket of toys from the living room and dumped it out. She wanted to use the basket for a fire engine so she got in it. The basket is not very big and I did not want it to break so I told her she had to get out. Her solution was to put the basket on her head and use it as a fire helmet! I thought that was a very creative idea. She was running around with Stella following her for a few minutes when Stella stopped at the hutch. She opened the door where the tupperware containers are and took out one big enough to fit on her head....she wanted to be just like Sophia! What a great little thinker! She chose the tupperware container you'll see below, and proceeded to wear it around the house for over a half hour just playing with toys as if it wasn't there.



The blue thing around Sophia's arms is the decorative elastic bow that goes around the basket. She took it and wrapped it around her arms and back to it looks almost like she has a backpack. Once she ditched the basket, her next helmet of choice was this play dog bed. What goofy girls I have!


This all occurred right before bed and now they are both sleeping peacefully. Sophia did seem to have a harder time going to bed tonight. I do think it's because she really misses Drew. She does know that he's coming home tonight and will give her hugs and kisses while she's sleeping. She is really excited to do her big I Spy book with him tomorrow...she's been waiting the whole time he's been gone. We also have a birthday party tomorrow and the theme is Cinderella so she is SO excited! She's especially excited that Daddy will be home to go! Our friends didn't get to come over tonight because Cole is sick so I'm sure she'll be excited to see her other friends tomorrow. Drew's flight in Portland was delayed, of course since both flights going there Wednesday were delayed multiple times! He did not miss his connection in Newark because he had a layover, so we're hoping that flight leaves on time. He's supposed to get to Charlotte around 11, which means home around 1am. I'm sure he'll be so tired tomorrow, because on top of everything he just went through with interviewing and traveling, he's also sick! I will let him sleep in tomorrow, but I'm not sure how cooperative the girls will be about that. They are going to be so excited to have Daddy home!

Do boys wear....?

I had a funny story about Stella from today to put here and I forgot it already.

Here's a conversation Sophia and I had today on the way to a playdate at Jocelyn's house:

"Mommy, do boys wear barrettes?"
"No, Sophia, they don't."
"Mommy, do boys wear earrings?"
"No." This was the easy answer rather than explain that some boys do. Sophia paused for a moment.
"Mommy, I'm glad boys don't wear barrettes or earrings. You know why?"
"Why is that, Soph?"
"Because then they would look like a girl." She was very serious, not intending to be funny here.

More pictures

Something was very funny this morning:


Sophia is helping Stella rock on her moose:


Stella is done wanting help:


Sophia is REALLY into those Brain Quest things for 2-3 year olds and 3-4 year olds. She can answer every question correctly in all the packets, but she insists on doing them at least a few times each day! At least they keep her busy. When Matt and Allyson and Cole were over Monday, she even had Matt and Allyson each do one set with her. I hope it's a sign that she'll love school when the time comes.


This is Stella after dinner tonight. She was standing in the middle of the living room chanting, "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!" over and over again. She really misses him (and Soph and I do, too)!

Cute pictures

Stella is ready for the birthday party at her friend's house last weekend:

Sophia's ready for the birthday party, too:


At the birthday party, there was a gate from the living room to the dining room/kitchen area. Stella has never experienced having a gate since we have none at our house. She spent lots of time desperately trying to figure out how to open that gate!


Ready for musical jamboree today:


Ready for musical jamboree, too:

Dinner

So, today was rather good considering the girls certainly notice that Drew is gone. We were all eating together but the girls finished before I did. Since I rarely get to finish a meal (although you'd never be able to tell), I decided to stay at the table in the kitchen while the girls nicely played in the living room. They were quiet and were in a corner where I could not see them, so I decided to peek. This is what I found:


Sophia is reading her Brain Quest that Yiayia and Papou gave her just before Christmas, and Stella was getting a book to read on the couch beside Soph. I thought that was so cute. You know when kids are too quiet and you always think they are up to no good? Well, that is rarely true with my girls. Whenever they're quiet and I check on them, they are almost always playing nicely together or next to each other. I just love seeing them together like this. It was so nice of them to give me the chance to finish dinner, too!

This morning we had plans at the library for musical jamboree. That means I had to get showered and ready early, so I had the girls watch Curious George in my room while I was in the shower. I gave them each a bowl of dry cereal and some water since we had not eaten breakfast yet. Halfway through my shower the door opened and Sophia came to tell me she needed more Kix. I told her when I was done showering I would get her more. She said, "Well, I don't want Stella to eat by herself so I'm going back to sit with her on the bed. I'm going to pinch the door just a little bit, ok?" She says 'pinch the door' meaning leaving it open a tiny bit. We're not sure where that expression comes from but we use it now, too. I thought it was funny that she was concerned about Stella 'eating by herself' a few feet away so she had to rush back to her. They had a great time at the library and Sophia even went to sit with her friends and picked an instrument herself. These are big steps for her. At musical jamboree, it is always very crowded and Sophia is intimidated by all the people. Normally she stands or sits RIGHT next to me or on me and does not move. She is starting to get comfortable there since we're trying to go once a week. I'm trying to expose her to lots of places with lots of people so that she's not so nervous. Stella is not nervous at all but curiously does not dance with the music. At home, the second she hears any music she starts swaying.

Tomorrow we have a playdate at someone's house in the morning with a bunch of other kids 2 and under. Tomorrow night Allyson and Cole are coming for dinner again so we're not alone again. It'll be nice to have company for dinner and the girls love playing with Cole.

At dinner tonight, Sophia told Stella to say thank you for a bit of food that I had given her. Stella looked right at Sophia and said, "No!" Then Sophia repeated herself and again Stella said, "No!" I told Stella to say thank you and she looked right at me and said, "No!" It was very funny! Usually she always says what we tell her in a situation like that (and sometimes without being told) so tonight just made me laugh. I was talking to the doctor yesterday about how much she can say (not a whole lot, I thought), and she actually says a lot more words that I thought once I actually wrote them down.

Drew in Maine

This is probably what Stella will look like tomorrow or Friday morning, once she figures out that Daddy is still gone. She is VERY attached to him lately and will be sad to not see him in the morning. She was just practicing...


So, today is the day Drew left for Maine and the girls have been FABULOUS! I'm so glad they made it so easy for me and the day was a normal one for us. I wish Drew had had an easier time getting to Portland, but at least he's there and probably eating a great dinner right about now. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that he's also having great conversation and winning the department head over with his humor, intelligence, kindness, etc. I know the girls can feel something different...they certainly know Daddy is always here for bedtime, but we'll see how it goes tomorrow night when he's been gone for two whole days. He left at 5am this morning and won't return until after midnight Friday so it will end up being three whole days without him. They each listened to him on the phone today once but didn't say anything. Maybe by tomorrow night they will want to say hi or goodnight.

Stella had a well-child check today. It was supposed to be in November but because of switching doctors and getting medical records, etc, it is a little late. We actually had an appointment last week but because of the 2 INCHES of snow they got here, the office was closed! I was not surprised but thought it was pretty funny because the roads were totally fine by early morning. Anyway, she is healthy and happy, but she did get FIVE SHOTS today! The poor girl. And, nurses typically try to give them very quickly or a few at the same time so that the child does not suffer too much. Stella's were very slow! She got one in each arm, two in one leg and one in the other leg. She's got these little band-aids all over. She's actually been really good today considering how she must be feeling, but we'll see what tomorrow holds. She is 24 pounds, 11 ounces and is 31 inches long. That puts her in the 65% for weight and 55% for height. I'm surprised about the height because she towers over her friends who are either her age or a few months OLDER. She is definitely a growing girl and is just soooo darn cute. She's learning LOTS of new words every day and is very funny with Sophia. Today at the doctors office there was not one person we saw (moms, nurses, doctors, receptionists) who did not tell me how cute my girls are. Their curls and adorable faces just draw attention. Our nurse actually called another nurse in to see how cute they were in their little track suits, barrettes and curls.

Monday we had some friends over with their two-year old son for dinner. It was fun and the three kids play really well together. Yesterday we had a playdate at the mall play area and then ate lunch with another little girl named Sophia and her mom. Tomorrow we go to the library for Musical Jamboree and Friday we have a playdate at a friend's house. Saturday we have yet ANOTHER birthday party. That means THREE Saturdays in a row we'll have gone to birthday parties, and if we do one for Sophia, it will be the next Saturday. That's just crazy! Sophia is SO excited about turning three. I think she's most excited about having a Tinkerbell cake and getting her toenails painted pink. I promised her that months ago and she still remembers.

Tomorrow morning we're making muffins before our playdate and then Friday we'll make something special to welcome Drew home for Saturday morning. I'm going to let Sophia decide what she wants to make. I'm sure they will both be SOOO excited to see Daddy!!!

Pictures

Princess Sophia. She insists on these pajamas, even though it's winter and it's chilly when we sleep. So, we put a pair of pajamas on underneath the princess ones. At least that keeps her warm. This is right after her bath the other night.


Today, out of the blue, Sophia asked if she could wear barrettes. It's been MONTHS since we've even talked about barrettes. Here she is, looking all grown up. It's scary to think that she's almost 3!


More barrette pictures:



If you click on the picture to enlarge it, her barrettes says SOPHIA!

On a typical day, this is what the girls do when I take a shower. They are enjoying a snack on my bed while watching a show.


Stella is being silly while Sophia has no interest in having a picture taken.



Stella has a new habit when eating her pretzel sticks. She puts one across her mouth so that it sticks out to her cheeks on either side. Then, she bites down on it to snap it in half and shoves both pieces in her mouth. She has never seen anyone else do that, so it's funny that she came up with it. She is quite the character.


Sophia finally decided to mug for the camera. She wore this shirts, which says "love at first snow" so that it would really snow on Thursday. It ended up snowing about 2 inches and Sophia wore her "I love snow days" shirt the next day. It's also supposed to snow again tomorrow. It's unheard of for South Carolina to get two snow storms in a winter, especially back-to-back like this. Sophia REALLY wants to build a snowman. Thursday the snow was mostly slush because the temperature rose and it continued to rain most of the day. I did buy her some boots on clearance tonight so that if it snows tomorrow at least her feet will be ok. Stella has boots that were Sophia's two winters ago and next winter Stella can wear the ones I just got for Sophia. This morning Sophia woke up, came in our room, opened our blinds and said "All the snow at my house is gone, you know why? It melted, like Frosty." Frosty the Snowman is one of her new favorite movies. She relates everything having to do with snow, winter, etc., to that movie.

Stella

Just a short story about Stella...more to come later.

I think Stella is going to have some OCD like Drew and I. She LOVES playing with Sophia's snap and style dolls. She brings one girl to me with a hat in her other hand. I hold the doll while she puts the hat on, then she lines them up like the picture shows. She will repeat that with EVERY doll. I just think it's great that she can get them to stand up next to each other without knocking them all down!

It's snowing!

When Drew got home tonight, Sophia was in bed but not asleep yet. He went in to say goodnight and rock with her for a few minutes. He took her outside to see the snow and catch some on their tongues. She LOVED it! When I told her today that it was going to snow tonight, she said, "not at my house in South Carolina. Yiayia and Papou have lots of snow for me at their house." Then when I finally convinced her that it WAS going to snow here (only an inch, maybe) she said, "when I wake up in the morning we can make snow angels and snow butterflies and a snowman!" She was SOOOO excited so I just couldn't tell her that there was not going to be enough snow for that. Hopefully in the morning she'll see that there is not enough. In her mind, next time we're up North there will still be lots of snow, even if it's in the summer. I wonder what Stella will think of it. She was already asleep before it started snowing.

Funny story

So I have a few things to post but this funny story from tonight will be first. Drew was having dinner tonight with his boss and his group, so I was on my own with the girls until after bedtime. I fed them dinner and then put them both in the tub. Stella was fine until I washed her hair. Then, she stood up and refused to sit back down, crying the entire time. I took her out and wrapped her in a towel but I still needed to wash Sophia's hair and body. When I stood Stella up next to me, she was very upset, but I couldn't hold her or I had no hands to wash Sophia. So, I took off Stella's towel and sat her on the little potty (she LOVES this) and gave her a book. She thought that was great. I washed up Sophia's hair and Stella got off the potty to get another book. I looked down into the potty and there was a big poop!!! Stella had pooped on the potty! She was totally oblivious, which is really funny. I started clapping and yelling and making a big scene so that Stella would be proud and Sophia would be excited. Sophia yelled "Now Stella can have a lollipop!!!" That is one of Sophia's bribes for going on the potty. Anyway, Sophia is yelling "Stella, I'm sooo proud of you!" over and over. It was the cutest thing. So, once Stella looked in the potty and realized what we were yelling about she was upset. She would not sit back on the little potty until I emptied the poop into the toilet and flushed it. After that she sat back down so I could finish washing Sophia and get her out. Sophia insisted that Stella needed a treat but I didn't have any treat that Stella could or would eat. Sophia insisted on Smarties, which I figured Stella would try, but she's so picky that she wouldn't even put it in her mouth. Sophia and I shared Stella's potty treat!

Busy week...and party fun!

Here is Sophia with a few of her friends at a birthday party today. Cole, all the way to the right, turns two in a few days, so his parents had a birthday party at the park today. We had pizza and cake and opened presents inside a church social hall and played on the playground before and after. The girls had a lot of fun! It was a bit windy so their hands were cold, but by the end of the party it had warmed up quite a bit outside.


Sophia is climbing up the big ladder at the playground. She is VERY proud of the fact that she can do it all by herself.

Stella was NOT interested in posing for any pictures today. When I'm trying to take a picture, she'll look anywhere but at me!

So, this week was very busy and I think the girls are worn out, which means they're going to bed easily and sleeping well at night and for naps. Stella is getting a cold, but we're hoping it goes away fast. She's still be in great spirits! Monday we had a playdate at McDonalds where they have a play area, Tuesday we watched my friend's daughter at her house while her mom had a doctor's appointment, Wednesday we went to the zoo, Thursday we went to Musical Jamboree at the library, Friday we went to a pretend play activity at the library about castles, and then to the park in the afternoon, and today we had the birthday party! Sometimes it's so nice to get out every morning because the girls really enjoy playing with others and having some fresh air. This coming week we have something every day as well so we're definitely keeping busy. I feel like we need to maximize our time with our friends here. If Drew happens to get the position in Maine or another position for next September, we'll need to be moving around the beginning of July. That means only 5 1/2 more months with our friends here! We do miss our friends from home dearly (and family, of course) and are very excited at the prospect of moving back soon. I am nervous about packing, moving and finding a suitable place to live if we do end up in Maine. I'm hoping we can find a nice little apartment or possibly house to rent for the same or less than we pay now. Ideally we won't end up in two bedrooms because the girls do so well with their own room. I do want to combine them eventually but Stella is still kind of young for that. Sophia would be climbing in her crib each day I'm sure! Anyway, hopefully we'll know for sure in a month or less what will happen and where we'll be this summer!

At the park yesterday (and again today) Stella figured out how to go up the steps to the small slide, turn herself around and come down the slide with her feet first, on her belly. Every single time, she says "Wheeeeee" all the way down. It's so cute! She really loves it.

Last night after dinner the girls were playing for a bit. Drew put Stella down and Sophia was going to have a few minutes extra to keep playing. She remembered that I had told her if she ate a good dinner she could have half of an orange after dinner. She LOVES oranges. So, she remembered and it was just before bedtime. Normally we would never let her eat at that time, but we had promised. She climbed up to the table and I got her orange out. Then she shared some of my orange (we eat them differently). While I was peeling some of mine, she looked over into the living room and saw Drew on the couch. She had me wash off her hands and got down from her chair. "I want to go snug with Daddy," she said. It was sooo sweet. She climbed up on the couch and just cuddled with him. She's our cuddle bug and just loves to sit with someone to read, watch tv, etc. It just melted our hearts to here her, out of the blue, just want to snug, as we call it.

Sophia is doing SO well in her toddler bed. She loves having the ability to come out after she wakes up. She normally calls to me and I go to get her but when I get to her room, she tells me she's not ready to get up. So, I turn on her light and turn off her fan and tell her to come out when she's ready. She takes a few minutes to sort-of gather herself and then comes to find me (and Stella when she's already awake). Tonight we were talking about my friend Allyson (Cole's mom) and her husband Matt coming to our house for dinner with Cole. We were talking about how maybe Cole could go to sleep here and we could play games or something after all three kids were asleep. Sophia was obviously listening and decided she wants her friend Cole to come sleep over in his own big boy bed! He is actually still in a crib and would use or pac'n'play, but it was funny that Sophia wanted him to bring a bed just like hers. I love that she's at the age where she really cares about friends now.

Speaking of caring about friends, we're having a bit of a dilemma at the moment. We have asked Sophia if she would like to have some friends over for her birthday. We were thinking of inviting a few of her friends and their parents for lunch and cake. It will be kind of hard to choose who to invite only because she has a lot of friends and they're not all the same age. However, when we asked her, she said she does not want anyone to come because she does not want to share her cake. She knows I'm going to get her a Tinkerbell cake (by her request) and she wants it all to herself. She's normally GREAT at sharing! I have told her that if she doesn't share it with anyone, she doesn't get any either. So, sometimes lately she's said she does want friends to come, and other times she doesn't. What I don't want is to invite people and have her be upset about it when the day comes. I think we'll try it with some friends but make sure it's pretty small. Our house is not huge so we can't have too many people but if the kids are playing in a few different rooms maybe it won't seem to crowded.

Enough rambling...here's our agenda for this coming week. I'm hoping Stella doesn't get too sick or we'll have to cancel some things. On Monday, I'm hosting a playdate at Barnes and Noble in Greenville. They have a free storytime at 11. Tuesday, we have a craft playdate at another child's house. Wednesday, we're going to a playdate at the mall play area. Thursday Stella has a well-child check at a new doctor's office. That afternoon we're going to play at Cole's house. Friday we have a lunch playdate at a new McDonalds and that evening I'm going to take Sophia to an indoor mini-golf and play place with some friends. Saturday, I'm going to a movie and lunch with some other moms. I figure with Drew going out of town most of the next week I'm going to need some time for me! I'm excited. We're going to see 27 Dresses, so hopefully it'll be good. A few nights after Drew gets back I'm going to a game night at another mom's house, too, because I'm sure I'll need it then, too. I've just started in the past few months, once in awhile, getting out with friends for some much needed girl time. Now Drew and I just have to figure out how to do a date night once in awhile...we've only been out once in almost two years, and that was just for dinner (about an hour and a half) on my birthday this past October. My neighbor came over after the girls were asleep and just watched tv. Hopefully once we move and get settled we'll be able to get out a bit since we know more people up North that we trust to watch the girls. I spoke to Katie, Sophia's old babysitter, and if it works out that we get up there, we'll probably have her watch the girls a few days a week so that I can either work those days or work overnight and attend nursing school and then get some sleep, as long as she's still free a few days a week. I can't wait to be able to work a bit to contribute to our income so Drew isn't wearing jeans with big holes to work. I'm actually applying to a grocery store tomorrow, and to CVS also. I got offered a job at three different nursing homes, but I'd have to work all night and still watch my girls all day, 5 days a week! That would leave me with, at most, 4 hours of sleep a day (6-10pm). I decided that was unreasonable for our family. If I can do 20 hours a week working 6-10 at night and weekends then the girls won't need daycare and I'll still get sleep! I will be sacrificing dinner and bedtime with the girls a lot during the week, but we can't survive without me making some grocery money at least. Ahhh...rambling again...I'm sure I'll have some funny things happen this week, and I'm going to post a blog entirely on Stella's silly new habits, quirks and words.

Zoo today

So, today was in the seventies and we decided to get out of the house and head to the zoo. I got lots of pictures, but the sun was shining in the wrong spot in a lot of them so their faces got washed out. Below are a few good ones, and a funny story about Sophia from the zoo. This first picture is at the beginning of the zoo...Sophia has just started looking and smiling for me to take her picture:


Here Sophia is standing on a little shelf looking at the lemurs:


The new giraffe and lion exhibits just opened and this is our first time seeing them. Sophia LOVED the giraffes!

Stella loved standing on the little shelf to check out the giraffes, too!

Here's Stella's reaction to being put back into the stroller after the giraffes so we could keep walking...she was not happy:

While we were at the playground in the middle of the zoo, a trash man came and changed out the trash bag right near where we were sitting. As we continued our walk at the zoo a little later, we saw that same trash man sitting on a railing, obviously taking a break. Sophia said,

"Mommy, what is that man doing?"

"Looks like he's taking a break," I replied. We kept walking, but he said, "yeah, taking a little break."

As we walked, Sophia said, "Well, maybe he wants to go home and take a little nap." Since Sophia never talks quietly, especially when we're out, the trash man heard her and thought that was so funny! She really does say some things that just make you laugh!

Our day at the zoo was so nice. There were very few people there and it was a perfect temperature. We really got to enjoy all the animals and just have a great time! I think we'll make it a weekly or twice-a-month trip.

so sweet

One of these days I'm going to do a post entirely devoted to Stella, but I just have a quick Sophia story.

This morning, I needed to get out of the house by 7:45 because I offered to watch my friend's daugther for the morning while my friend had her glucose OB test for her pregnancy. We had to be at her house at 8:15, and it's 30 minutes away. Stella has not been getting up until 8, so I knew we were going to have to wake her. So, Sophia woke up around 7 and I got up to start getting ready. I was in the bathroom in front of the mirror straightening my hair when Drew got up and took Sophia to get dressed. After getting dressed, they came back into my bathroom and were talking to me while I finished. Sophia looked at the wall next to my sink where I had taped up some unflattering pictures of myself in workout clothes for some motivation to get in shape (I've joined a group of friends in getting healthy this year). Sophia saw the pictures and said:

"Mommy, are those pictures of you?" I cringed and told her yes. I braced for what she was going to say.
"Aww, they're so cute, Mommy! Those pictures of you are so cute." Then, looking down at my pjs, which were still on, she said, "And those pajamas are so cute Mommy. You look so cute in those pajamas."

The innocence made my heart melt. Only a young child can look at an unflattering picture of her mother and still look through loving eyes because it's Mommy! She certainly made my day. I was ready for her to say something embarassing....what a good girl!

Quick funny story

We just finished eating lunch and Drew was washing up Stella's hands and face. Here's a conversation out of the blue between Sophia and Drew:

"Where is your tuna, Daddy?" (That's what he ate for lunch)

"It's in my tummy, Sophia."

"No, Daddy, what are you doing with your tuna?"

"I'm digesting it." (Drew looks at me and says "I know where this is going.")

"And what are you going to do with it after you digest it?"

"I'm going to feel good." (Drew's testing to see if Sophia is trying to get to a certain point)

"No, Daddy, what are you going to do after you digest it."

"Poop it out, Sophia."

"That's right, poop it out."

Sophia has asked what happens to food after you eat it. We have always told her that it goes into your tummy, but the past few months she's been more curious. So, Drew has told her that you eat food, it goes into your stomache, your body digests it in your intestines, and then you poop it out. She has been obsessed with anything potty-related for the past few months at least, so of course she LOVED hearing this information. She has brought it up many times, but this was the funniest because you could see her intent to get Drew to say what she wanted to hear. Cute only from a child's mouth....

Dinner

Sophia's trying to get Stella's foot unstuck after Stella tried to stand up.


The girls enjoy a catalog. Sophia is looking for any toilets because she is obsessed.

Stella points out something interesting.

The girls eat their yummy dinner.

They enjoy a special treat. This is Stella's first time with a freeze pop and she loves it, but it is quite cold when a piece breaks off in her mouth.

So, today at lunch, my girls decided that Stella didn't need her high chair anymore. She used a booster seat at the table and thought that was great. While I was starting to make dinner tonight, Sophia climbed into Stella's booster and buckled herself in. Stella then tried to climb in Sophia's booster so I placed her in it. Sophia pulled Stella's chair right next to hers and that is where they stayed, looking at a catalog the entire time I was cooking. A few times Stella tried to stand up in her seat and Sophia very politely told her to sit down and then proceeded to help her sit back down. They ate dinner together there at the table and then both enjoyed a freeze pop. I have a feeling Stella will not want to use her high chair anymore. She got a taste of freedom. I was quite impressed that they both ate most of their dinner...I made a new meal for them - carrots, zucchini and orzo boiled together, then tossed with butter and shredded cheddar cheese. Neither girl has tried zucchini and Stella ate her whole bowl! Sophia is not a fan of carrots (yes, she is Drew's daughter), but ate almost all of her orzo and zucchini, eating around the carrots.



Before dinner, Sophia said "excuse me" so I assumed she had something to say. When I spoke to her, it was clear that she was excusing herself for something, so I said, "Did you pass gas?" and she looked right at me and said, "No, I passed burp." It was too cute. She already knows to excuse herself regardless of whether anyone hears her or not.



After some playtime with Daddy, it was time to get ready for bed. I was brushing Stella's teeth when Sophia ran away from Drew and headed upstairs. He figured she'd come right back down, but when she didn't, he went after her. She was sitting at the computer moving the mouse and pushing buttons as if she knew what she was doing. She has never used the computer for anything, so she was obviously trying to imitate what we do. When Drew took her to bring her downstairs, she looked at him and said, "Daddy, I was just sending some pictures to Diane." She was so matter of fact. I couldn't stop laughing. Obviously she's heard me say that when I email pictures of the silly things they do to Diane. She hears and remembers everything!

Pictures

Here are a few pictures of the girls being cute yesterday:

Now that I've gotten this all caught up over the last few weeks, here are two pictures from yesterday. Sophia, for the first time ever, got into something without permission when I was not looking. She took out a stamp and ink pad and was putting stamps on the back of her hands and feet and Stella's hands and feet. It was washable ink and that's what they do at the end of gymnastics, so I had to laugh, but also let Sophia know she has to ask before doing that again. So, at 10am I put both girls in the bath. We always do baths at night, so it was a fun experience for them. When I was undressing them to get in the bath, Sophia says "Look Mom, there's a stamp on my knee!" I had washed the others but had no idea that she pulled up her pant leg and put a stamp and then pulled it down again. These are post-bath pictures on the changing table. My girls are so silly! I must say I have the cutest frogs around!

Bike riding

Drew is helping Sophia ride her new tricycle. It was very windy this day so we didn't get too far.


They went to the stop sign and back.

Stella just wanted to sit on this bike but not move. She watched Sophia go down the street. Their hands were freezing from the wind so we went inside.