BUG Bites!

And I don't mean "those" kind of bug bites, ha! My Sweet Kiersten is just growing up so fast. I can't believe that she is a walking, talking, toddler. She is an independent thinker, player, doer. She keeps herself occupied, and is perfectly happy doing so. Sometimes I just sit back and watch her play and smile at her curious nature.

We had her 15 month well child check up 2 weeks ago, but summer is just bustling...and I barely have time to stop and breathe so I'm lagging on these posts. Anyway, Bug was 31.5 inches and weighed 22 lbs and 12 oz. She is maintaining in the height department developmentally. Still hovering around that 75th percentile, but she finally made some headway in the weight area. She has crept up into the 40th percentile. The longer I've been a mom, the more I am starting to realize that those "percentiles" really don't mean a darn thing. Babies in the 10th percentile are just as healthy as those in the 95th most of the time, so what does it matter? It doesn't take a genius to figure out that my girls will probably be a bit on the shorter, squater side of things...look at me, and their grandma and their great-grandma. The odds are stacked against them :) On top of that their Daddy is 5 foot 10, so no super model height girlies in this household...I'm almost for certain! Regardless of the percentiles, My Bug is healthy and happy and that's all that counts. Her hair is really starting to grow out and I can't believe the perfectly coiled golden ringlets that fall from her head. Her cousin Shelby has the prettiest red ringlets so I'm wondering if some day Kiersten will share Shelby's beautiful curly locks. She FINALLY got a 5th tooth on June 16th. It's been torture for the poor kid and it seems that there is another one trying to push through still.

Not a whole lot of new words to add to the vocab. Gigi, Colby, Macy came along in May. She says Thank you, and Sissy. She mentions lots of toys by name. My favorite is when she tries to fold her hands in prayer at the dinner table. She starts the prayer perfectly with "GOD" but then she's lost, and when we are done she claps her hands in excitement and says "YAY". There is just so much I love about my sweet lovebug, Kiersten. And I know that love will only continue to grow.

Leotards, Letters and Laughs with Leah

Leah is doing tumbling for tots at Richland Community College here in Decatur this summer. It is for kids age 2-4 and is the "prerequisite" for Pre-Ballet. I've been doing a lot of research on the different dance studios in Decatur. Believe it or not there are tons of them! I wasn't quite sure how to make a decision. My cousin Sarah does Ballet at a center in Bloomington-Normal so I had my Aunt talk to her instructors and find out what places they would and would not recommend. Actually Richland came the most highly recommended and just my luck, it was the cheapest, YAY! They have classes year round and they do 2 concerts a year. They do the Nutcracker every December and they do a Spring show every May before the summer session starts. This year they did Cinderella. I would have loved to have taken Leah, but we were in Minnesota all 3 days of performances. This summer my mom is taking all of us girls (Laura, Cynthia, Macy, Leah and myself) to see the Pinkalicious musical in Chicago. I know Leah will love it...maybe I should have her wear her pink tutu! Anyway, these are some pictures of the first day of class. I put her leotard on for the first time and a few minutes later she was running around the house yelling "Mom, there is something wrong with my butt!" I think her leotard was creeping up on her, but it was so funny I couldn't help but laugh. Eventually it stretched out and she was fine by the time class started and was ready to strut her stuff!

Another thing we are working on at home is writing her letters. Somedays she does great and other days she could do a little better, but I am so proud of her. And you can tell by the smile that she is proud of herself as well. We are trying to get into the habit of writing her name every morning after breakfast, sometimes Mommy forgets. Considering she turned 3 just a month ago, I think she is doing great, and she loves the stickers for rewards that I give her. Leah makes me laugh so much. I love that I can document all her little quirks here so we can look back at them later and smile. Love you so much, LeeLee!

Fire! Fire!

Last week we were fortunate enough to have a "private" play date at one of Decatur's fire stations. My friend Laura, and her two kids Dustin and Scarlet met us there. Her husband, Bryce is a firefighter so he gave us the royal treatment. He let the girls sit in the truck, he showed them his gear and his hat. Leah thought that his boots were really big and she told her daddy that his hat was "smelly" it was pretty funny. The girls got to "handle" a fire house and see the ladder. He even turned on the flashing lights for us. It was very exciting. But the best part was the mini-candy bars that Bryce handed out before we left. To add to all the excitement, the men at the station got a call to assist as back-up at an emergency while we were there so we had to quickly rush out of the way while they geared up and hopped on the truck. We waved as they sped away. Now every time we pass a firehouse, or Leah sees a station she is quick to mention how she sat in a firetruck...and how firemen are so nice because they give her chocolate! It was a great day. Thanks, Laura and Bryce for including us.

Birthday Fun Times Two!

My nephew Colby turned 2 on June 5th! I love him, he is just so darn adorable. We got to see him on the 5th when we picked up the girls at Gigi and Papa's house after the Cardinal game, but his Birthday party was on June 11th. It was quite a turn out. David and Sanya were there with Lia and Ryan. Tara came with her 2 boys, Jameson and Liam and an extra special guest Melissa. Tiffany, Preston and Brooklyn, Paul and Michele and their boys Spencer and Tyler. It was awesome having so much of our family in one place.

Cynthia and Matt did a great job organizing the party. It had a construction theme. There were little hard hats for the kids to wear. A bulldozer pinata, and little hammer, saw and screwdriver cupcake toppers. It was so fun and kind of made me want to have a little boy. The kids were all great playing in the moon bouncer that Matt and Cynthia rented and playing on the quad and battery operated police car. They were so good about taking turns and at a party with about 15 kids I don't recall any major meltdowns...that's good stuff. Anyway here are some pictures from the birthday boys party that was loads of fun!

Birthday Fun

About a week and a half ago I celebrated my birthday...yes I am 30+ but I still like to make a big deal out of my special day. Actually this year I had multiple special days and it was AWESOME! On Thursday the 2nd, we went to Charleston because I had a hair appt. After my hair was did we had dinner and Dairy Queen Ice Cream Cake (MY Fave!) at my mom's. Friday the 3rd was my actual birthday. When I woke up that morning there was a tiny little package from my husband that contained a beautiful vintage alexandrite (my birthstone) ring. I love it when he surprises me with jewelry. That evening Mitch and I got a babysitter and went to dinner at the Beach House. It was fantastic! We had a table by the window...overlooking beautiful lake Decatur. I know what you are thinking but literally it's probably the best seat/view in town. We took our time and had dinner over the course of 2+hours...Why not, we knew the girls were in good hands.

On Saturday we got up, actually Mitch got up while I slept in. Then I went to Step Aerobics (my new love). After cleaning up and having lunch with my girls I loaded them up and headed over to Tuscola. My mom met me there and she took the girls home with her for the night...KID free 2 nights in a row~SCORE! I proceeded to spend all my birthday cash on some new clothes for me, and the girls and the hubby. When I got home Mitch and I took a fantastic nap on the couch together. When we woke we headed out on the town and tried a little Mexican restaurant, we probably won't ever go there again but live and learn. Then we just strolled around a strip mall doing a little shopping. We came home, had some mixed drinks and curled up on the couch to watch a movie.

Sunday was the BEST! I heart the Saint Louis Cardinals Big time, and my dad graciously let us have his season tickets to Sunday's game. They were playing the Chicago Cubs...BIG TIME rivalry!My friend Ellen and her friend Valerie who I have met several times mey us there. It was a slow game. Their pitching ace Zambrano against our star pitcher Carpenter. Few hits, even fewer runs and Pujols wins it with a homer in extra innings! Then on to my parents house to get the girls, who I was missing terribly by then. It was also the 5th...my nephew Colby's 2nd birthday so we had dinner and the rest of the ice cream cake and let him open a few gifts. It was a fantastic way to end my birthday hoopla! Can't wait for next year.

Paging Dr. Kiersten

All of a sudden this seems to be one of Kiersten's favorite toys. I put the jacket on her one day just for fun...she has always loved all the medical tools, and she was hooked. Now whenever she pulls the Doctor Kit off the shelf we have to get the whole ensemble out and on. She is still trying to figure out how to work all the equiment and more often than not she just wants to use the whole set as one big teething ring, but still a mother can dream, right? And even if she has no future plans for a career in the medical field, I can look back at these pictures and smile at how gosh, darn cute she is.

All Dressed up...

Yep, All dressed up with no place to go! Memorial Day Weekend (I know I am slacking) we went to Charleston to have dinner with my family. The kids had a great time playing in the water. Grandpa Merle, Matt and Cynthia and kids joined us and it was a house full. The weather was great and the Cicadas hadn't fully invaded yet so we spent the whole time outside...until after dinner that is. Macy and Leah found the wonderful assortment of dance recital costumes that Susan and Valerie gave us. They were so excited to dress up, as they should be. Then they took it a step farther. They had to have glass slippers to match their royal gowns so off to Gigi's closet they went. From there it took them no time at all to discover all the makeup and Jewelry that Gigi had to offer. If you look carefully the girls lips are BRIGHT RED, they said they asked Gigi for permission. Can you believe she helped them put it on! Mom shared when she went upstairs there were invading her "Collection" of jewelry and Leah had of course picked out my great-grandmothers wedding ring to adorn her finger. I'm so glad that my mom caught them and found a suitable alternative. The girls then came outside to model for us and it was pretty cute. Leah tells us all the time that Macy is her cousin and her best friend and I am so happy that they are getting to spend so much time together. Bug had to get in on the fun too...her dress isn't nearly as regal but I think she looks pretty cute, just the same.

Water Fun

It seems that summer has arrived. We went down to Charleston this past Sunday to have dinner with my family. It was a house full! The weather was great so we packed swimsuits and the sprinkler and let the kids play...and play they did. We went from having cool wet weather to hot, sunny and in the 90's overnight, but we enjoyed it none the less. The kids love being outside and it was so nice for the grown-ups to sit and watch them play together. It's so wonderful to see our families together. The girls love Macy and Colby so much and it's awesome that they get to play together much more often now. In fact Macy and Colby are two of Kiersten's favorite words.

Mom wants to have Sunday dinners on a regular basis and we are IN! No cooking and fun for the kids...we totally jumped on that bandwagon. Now let's wait and see how we feel about it come winter when we are all stuck in the house :)

For now though, we are going to relish in the sun, bask in all the happiness and smiles that the day will bring. Drink up Lemonade slushies to our hearts content. Kiersten especially was fond of them and probably drank 3 or 4. So cheers to Sunday's at Gigi and Papa's house, can't wait to do it again.