Mah New Soos!

I ordered Harper a new pair of Spring shoes for her birthday and they came in the mail Thursday. She has worn them pretty much non-stop since.

On Thursday night, she cried because she wanted to call Daddy to tell him about "mah new soos" then made sure that I put them in her crib to sleep with her.

On Friday, she wore them the whole day at Mama's house, even though we don't normally wear shoes indoors. Finally, after bath last night she insisted on putting them back on and actually wearing them to bed. There was no convincing her otherwise. You may also notice her sunglasses in the picture below. She put those on right before I covered her up and kissed her goodnight. Luckily, when Allan and I went in to peek at her an hour later, she had taken them off and we snuck her shoes off as well.

Guess what she asked for as soon as she woke up this morning? That's right - "mah new soos!"

A Couple Silly Things...

Delaney has said a couple of silly things this week that have made me giggle:

The family was racing up the stairs for bath time
D: Last one up the stairs is a rockin' egg!! (instead of "rotten" egg)

Driving in the car on the way home from Mama's
M: Girls, we have to be sure to trim your nails tonight.
D (not too happy about this): Well, we won't remember you! (instead of "remind" you)

Brayden's Science Party

So February is the month of birthdays among our family and friends. This afternoon, the girls and I went to Brayden's 3rd birthday party at his house. The party had a Mad Science theme and a crazy scientist named Dangerous Dan came to do some neat science experiments for us. I think the adults were as impressed as the kids!

The only picture I got of the birthday boy

Delaney and Landon waiting for the presentation to start.

Peyton and Harper having fun!

One of the first parts of the show involved burning some flash paper. While it didn't have a loud noise, the fire still scared Delaney enough that she wanted to go upstairs.

Big brother Koen

Harper enjoyed the glasses that separated light into red, blue, and yellow - I forgot the scientific name.

Harper also stood against the photo-sensitive paper and made a shadow.

Delaney heard all the fun we were having and snuck back down to sit on the steps with Mrs. Lori. You can tell that the party was held during her nap time because she is sucking her fingers.

At the end of the presentation, all of the kids got to make their own slime then eat some cotton candy! Delaney is listening intently to the instructions (and trying to stay awake).

Harper's Birthday Party

We celebrated Harper's birthday by having a casual party with family and friends at our house. We served "Walking Tacos" - have you ever heard of them? You just cut open an individual sized Doritos bag, put in your taco toppings, smush it together and eat it right from the bag!

Harper had lots of fun playing with all of her buddies. Thanks to everyone who came and made Harper feel so loved.

Waiting for the guests to arrive

Mrs. Erin made this super-cute birthday banner for Harper

What a cutie! I love this little outfit from Target.

Some family and friends hanging out - sorry for the lame party, Jon :)

Tim, Erin, and Josh preparing their tacos

Peyton, Delaney, and Claire - beautiful, sweet girls!

Lucas takes a turn on the horse - ride 'em cowboy!

Waiting to blow!

I don't know how Papa could sleep with all of the noise - I guess he had his hearing aids out!

Harper, Lucas, and Tyler indulging in some cupcakes

Harper giving her friend Lilie a good-bye hug

The gift opening was a frenzy! I could hardly keep up with her! I also didn't write down who gave what so writing Thank You notes was a challenge. I'm sure I got at least one thing wrong.

The family

Delaney, Zach, Harper, and Peyton sneaking some more Doritos

Harper's Birthday Morning

Both girls were awake before I left for work this morning, so we let Harper open her presents from us.

Reading her card

Look at those sleepy morning eyes :)

Yay! Green sandals!

and two sundresses to match!

Of course, Delaney had to help open something.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Harper!

Harper-

I can't believe my sweet, silly girl is 2! I wouldn't trade the past two years for anything. You bring so much joy and laughter to our lives and the lives of anyone you meet, espcially when you flash your beautiful smile.

The best word to describe you is BUSY! You love to be on the go exploring new things and places. In fact, I just reread the journal I kept while I was pregnant with you. I wrote on more than one occasion that you were very active - I even called you a Dancing Queen and a soccer star - so I guess you've been a busy girl from the beginning!

You have recently started a new music class at school and now you are a singing, dancing fool! It makes Mommy and Daddy so happy to hear you sing both songs that you learned at school and nonsensical songs that you make up. We can't believe how your language has just exploded in the past couple of months. You say so many 4 and 5 word sentences. Of course, some of the things are unintelligible to most people, but we understand your silly words.

Some nicknames I call you are punkin, silly goose, little one, chicken, baby doll, sissy, and most often Harper-girl. You absolutely adore Delaney and want to do everything she does. You mimic everything from the way she plays with her toys to the way she sits and crosses her legs. It is not unusual for you to snatch a toy from her hand and run one minute and tackle her with hugs the next. Besides, Delaney, your favorite person is Daddy. It is Daddy that you want to take you out of your carseat, give you a bath, and put you to bed. I love that you and he have a special relationship.

Daddy and I are so thankful God chose us to be your parents. We pray that God gives us wisdom to help mold you into a special young lady that has a heart for God and people. We can't wait to see what adventures are in store for you! We will always love you and be so proud of you!

February 18, 2009 - 1 hour old

February 18, 2010 - 1 year old

February 2011 - almost 2!

Happy 16th Birthday, Jon!

Wow! My nephew is 16!! I can still remember the morning he was born! We're all very proud of the polite, handsome, sweet young man he has become.

Jon

Cate and Harper also both have birthdays in February.

Happy 1st Birthday, Brody!

Our good friend, Brody, had his first birthday party today. The theme was a Winter "One"derland and Erin went all out with the decorations. She's amazing! None of my pictures do it justice, though. Here are some pics of the fun: Harper enjoyed playing in the ball bit.

Delaney was inside the "igloo" practicing her penguin waddle.

Brody didn't disappoint and made quite a mess with his cake!

Delaney and her friend Peyton strike a pose!

Koen acts like Spiderman inside the bounce house.

Brody with his proud parents, Erin and Josh. Big brother Landon was off having fun somewhere else.

4 Miles!

My training is going great so far! I haven't missed a scheduled run yet. Today, the weather was gorgeous, so Deb, Ness, and I met at my house to do our first outdoor Sunday run. As you can see we all ran 4 miles. We ran almost half of it against the wind, but finished strong!

Hiding Place

Harper loves to climb under her crib and hide from us or have some quiet time. For numerous reasons, she didn't take a nap during regular naptime today. We were getting ready to go to Jon's birthday party this evening and guess where I found her sound asleep at 5 pm - under her bed!

Early Valentine's Day

We gave the girls their Valentine's presents early today because I wanted them to be able to wear their new rain boots while playing outside in the slush.

Delaney has been asking for rain boots and a matching umbrella for a month!

Harper likes her pink boots with butterflies on them.

Pretending she is surfing on a pile of snow from the slide.

This picture accurately portrays how Harper wants to do everything Delaney does. She is her little shadow!