Full Weekend

We decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather this weekend and spend lots of time outside. On Saturday morning we went out for breakfast and to the park to play. After nap time, Alex took the girls back to the park to swim. Then, that evening we had the Stevensons over for dinner. Their two children and our two (minus Stella) had a great time playing outside. Tina introduced us to a new medium - sidewalk paint! It was a BIG HIT and gave the adults lots of uninterrupted talk time.


Addie loved the paint and only got upset when she realized that it stung when she painted her multiple scraps on her knees!


Mina calmly sat and painted and contemplated.


Drew painted a lion and was a great big brother to all the girls!


Claire was clearly enjoying herself as well!


Here's some sweet photos of Stella. She is filling out like crazy! Although we are still 3 weeks out from her next doctor's appointment, I'm so curious to see how much weight she has already gained!


Our first attempt at watercolors. The girls were so excited to each have their own paint trays and kept telling me which colors they were painting, "I'm painting blue, Mom, I'm painting red, Mom"...and on it went since toddlers like to repeat and repeat and repeat!


The girls finished out the weekend with some swimming at a friend's neighborhood pool and then everyone came back to our house for dinner. We are loving how independent the girls are becoming - able to play for quite some time on their own with friends, eat unassisted, etc.

All in all it was a great weekend! Stella continues to give us lots and lots of sleep, only waking up once a night. We feel like life is very "doable" right now...and are amazed regularly that we feel this way since we have a newborn and two 2 year olds!

Happier With Three

I was telling Alex last night how I'm enjoying being a stay at home mom of three children WAY more than being a SAM of two children. Perhaps it was because the girls were getting to the point where they wanted me to entertain them frequently and they were easy enough that I had plenty of free time to feel guilty if I didn't oblige them! However, now with Stella joining the mix - the girls are learning to play a bit more independently and I have LOTS more to keep me busy and free from boredom!!!

I know I'm sure I'll be wishing for boredom soon enough... I think because I'm more pressed for time, I'm enjoying each moment a bit more. The bits of time I have to solely focus on the girls or Stella or myself or talking with Alex, etc. I guess all of this is in keeping with the fact that I tend to get more done when I have more to do...I'm one of those people who needs a deadline and tends to relax if there are only a few things on the to-do-list and not accomplish much of anything!!



Here's pictures of some of the produce from the garden my Dad planted for us. The girls had fun picking the vegetables...but eating them...not so much! We had the green beans for dinner last night and plan to have BLTs tonight.



Bath time with bubbles as requested by Mina & Addie.



The girls were dying to lay in Stella crib and watch the mobile one day while she was napping in the bassinet in my room - I finally caved. They have grown & changed SO MUCH in the two years since they were babies laying under the same mobile!

And yes...no pictures of Stella this time...she's such a sleeper that she's usually tucked away somewhere snoozing when all of the action is happening!

Family of Five

Someone asked Alex and I recently if we felt like a family of five yet...and strangely we don't. Perhaps it is because Stella is such an easy baby or the girls feel like one combined SUPER child...but I'm sure soon enough we'll realize we are a family of five bodies sharing space!!!


Sweet Stella sleeping in Mina's arms.


Addie working on her baby care...impressed? She also breastfeeds her baby...


All five of us on a walk at the local Nature Center - it was a fabulous time thanks to my mei tai from my friend Lindsey.


And our two new LARGE strollers...perhaps they will make us realize we are a family of five. We just got the Triple Jogger off of craigslist today. The girls wanted to go for a ride as soon as they saw it in the garage...and they were quite annoyed that Stella was too little to occupy her designated seat! We are going to have quite the biceps after pushing around 70+ lbs of children!

Family & the 4th

Alex's family joined us for the 4th of July weekend. It has been a long time since we've all been together in the same place - actually it was when Addie & Mina were baptized! We decided on a low-key baptism at 10 on Saturday morning, rather than one on Sunday morning during a church service. I'm sure the girls were disappointed that they didn't get a chance to perform for the congregation...but it was nice for Alex and I not to worry about their whereabouts during the baptism!


Auntie Hayley was the first to arrive on Thursday afternoon. She managed to arrange a work trip to Kansas City and then drove down to Springfield at the end of her work trip. The girls didn't take long at all to warm up - clearly from the picture! This was one of many times when both girls were in Auntie Hails lap simultaneously.


Alex and I had a good laugh when Hails said it was "good to be in the country." We don't think of Springfield as country...but the big city for Missouri. Hails is currently living in New York City...so I guess Springfield is a bit more country... : )


Auntie Claudia & Uncle Jason arrived at noon on Friday and although the girls love Clauds - Jason was the BIG HIT, especially with Mina. All weekend long we heard, "Jason do it, Jason kiss it, where did Jason go?" Thankfully, both Clauds & Jason have a big heart for busy toddlers! Clauds is expecting, and we can't wait to find out the end of this month what they will be having so the shopping can begin!


Alex with sweet baby Stella - one of the rare moments that I let him hold her...we both are anxious to soak up baby snuggling time since we now know how fast this phase will go!


Auntie Hayley arrived with two glitter filled dresses from the Disney store. The girls had the biggest grins and paraded around the house in their pretty princess dresses!


Ang, Alex's mom, hit a home run with the girls by buying them their first tent! They love zipping themselves inside or having adults come inside their tent...which can be quite interesting since the tent is pretty small!


Clauds and Jason helped the girls with their patriotic spirit on the 4th. They got hats, and flags, and glow rings, and saw their first fireworks. They were petrified and asked to go inside immediately...so it was a brief introduction! They like the fireworks much better from the safety of the car as we drove them home from my parents house later that night.