One of my great friends sweet daughter, Madeline, turned 4 a couple of weekends ago - and what a party she had! The theme was pirates and princesses - what fun! Madeline always has the best birthday parties and this year was no different! We gathered at the new Vestavia Hills Library (so nice!!) and started the party off with a magic show - a real hit with everyone and then ended with yummy cake and ice cream! While Catherine Ellis did not partake in the dressing up part it didn't stop her from having a blast .... she also took along Lulu to the party and I think Lulu had as much fun as a doll can have :)
Happy birthday sweet Madeline!! We can't believe you are 4 years old - seems like yesterday you were a tiny newborn .... we had such a good time and can't wait to celebrate again next year!
The magic show ....
Front and center with baby Lulu and Madeline's sweet mama
Miss Madeline as a pirate ... cutest pirate I've ever seen!
My sweet girl getting a kick out of the magician
Henry and Cole (who belong to good AU friends Summer and Tricia)
Lovin' the show ... this girl knows funny when she sees it
Next thing you know baby Lulu had her own seat
Next she switched sides ....
Then she gave Lulu away ... just like that ...
What a good sport (I might add CE had never met him before)!
Checking in on Lulu - looks like he's doing a great job :)
When I was a little girl my parents had an 8 track in the basement where we spent many afternoons and evenings playing .... one of our favorite 8 tracks was "Rain Drops Keep Fallin' on my Head" by B.J. Thomas. I have great, fun memories of playing with my brother and dancing for hours to this song .... so it's only fitting that I name this blog post after a song that brings great memories to mind ... because Catherine Ellis made some great memories (that she probably will not remember, but we will!) with new friends and a little rain a few weeks ago.
I think you all know by now that Catherine Ellis LOVES water! I'm not sure there is much else on this earth that makes her more giddy - maybe her baby sister - but water is her favorite thing right now. And rain - well she loves the rain. They had a rain week this spring at school and she got to wear her rain jacket, rain boots and take her umbrella and they played in and talked about the rain for days - it was her favorite week. She can not resist a puddle .... if she sees one she takes a dive into it and will insist that whoever is with her do the same. Lots of joy in rain for this little girl.
So - during a wonderful, calm rain a few weeks ago - she played - and played - and played - till her hearts content. It started out on our front porch and ended with 3 new friends from our street and one happy and worn out little girl!
So we started on the porch - letting her run back and forth and scream "it's raining, it's raining" and then she got her umbrella ....
Showing off her umbrella
Open it
Close it
So much fun!
And then she headed to the front yard .... and shortly thereafter, she was being invited across a few yards to join our neighbor's children up the street ... it started out so cute and innocent ... they were waving to Catherine Ellis and she was waving back and running and hiding from them ..... they kept calling her to come play ... and she was so excited that they were waving at her. She finally crossed the yard and met them in the middle and the real fun began!
waving to her soon to be new friends!
There they are ... three new (bigger and older) friends ...
Not sure what to think at first ...
Then super excited as the friends moved closer ....
Giddy!
waving, waving, waving
Making sure her Daddy is still back there ... just in case she needs back up :)
Finally meeting her new friends ....
What I don't have pictures of are Catherine Ellis and her new friends running up and down the drain ditches on our street and playing in the storm sewer .... they had THE best time! David was such a patient Daddy and sat outside for an hour in the light drizzle watching her play and laugh and have the time of her life. She thought she was so big - her new friends were 8, 5 and 4. I just wish I had one picture of her running with them in the drains screaming "it's raining, it's raining". Priceless.
Caroline had her very first day of school on Monday, August 8th and she did great!! I guess a change of scenery is what she needed - or as David put it "it's official, she hates us!" HA! We have certainly had a time with colic at our house, but school seems to be much better and Miss Sabrena is indeed the baby whisperer and we are grateful for that!
I survived the first day as well and still feel like I run a rat race every day - but I guess with time I"ll build my endurance back up and life with work and two children will be very normal for me! In the meantime, I'll take all the help I can get as we are transitioning!
Here are a few pictures from our first day back to reality:
Chilling before loading up for school ....
Posing for our daily pic
Sweet C sleeping away in her new crib at school
Lady, where on earth are we????
How many people does it take to get Megann and children loaded - 3 adults -
Lord a mercy!
All in all we had a great first day back to reality - now if we can just keep on keeping on :) So many sweet friends checked in on us Monday and it sure made the day easier - we appreciate all the thoughts and prayers as we continue to adjust to our new life as a family of 4! You won't waste a prayer on us!
Caroline is 3 months old today! She turned 13 weeks on Sunday and 3 whole months today! I know I will blink my eyes and she will be 6 months, then a year, then three!! A friend told me that her mother used to tell her "the days are long, but the years are short" .... I must say I agree. Our days are certainly full around here - and sometimes feel very long, but in all honesty it really flies by. The first year they grow and change so much - more than they will at any other time in their life - a lot of accomplishments in such a short time. So, we're holding on tight and trying to cherish these sweet moments with our wee one!
August 15, 2011 - 3 months old
(trying hard to sit up by yourself)
This past week was a HUGE week for sweet Caroline - she started school and had a great week - only one really fussy day - WOO HOO!! We are so proud - and she still seemed to like it today too!
So here is what our 3 month old is up to:
sleeping great again - you have gone 6-9 hours every night this week
you are on the move - you can scoot yourself around in circles in the crib and on the play mat
you can hold your head steady now while pulling up to a sitting position
you want to see the world... you don't like to be carried unless facing out
you rode in the BOB stroller for the first time this week without your car seat - you loved it!
you are smiling more and talking lots
you are still a bit fussy when nursing, but typically only the second feeding of the day - the rest are all fine
you are eating 6 times a day - and I'm still able to feed you at work - which is so nice!
you are able to wear a lot of your 3 month clothes
you are having more good days - we are SO hopeful this is the end of colic - 3-4 months is when it ends - at least that is what everyone has said - here's hoping to it being 3 months.
you have been working hard on rolling over - you are just about a centimeter away from being able to roll completely to your right side
you are starting to grab objects on your play mat
your birth announcements finally went out :)
we sure love this sweet face
Some sister love - Catherine Ellis 28 months, Caroline 3 months
Joy indeed
"....I will sing for joy at the works of Your hands"
Psalm 92:4
The past several Sundays we've headed to the pool for morning swim time. Typically we are in church, but since sweet Caroline didn't have her vaccinations until a couple of weeks ago we've stayed home. Catherine Ellis had too much energy to burn so we decided we needed to get out and about and the only thing that sounded remotely fun outside was the pool! And it's been a big hit! We're members of the JCC (Jewish Community Center) that is about 2 miles from our house and has the best swimming pool in town - it's HUGE - Olympic sized, separate diving area and a baby pool.
The first time we ventured to the pool we had no floaties and spent a lot of time in the baby pool. Both sets of grandparents bought Catherine Ellis floaties and this toddler has been a fish in the water since! She loves the pool! We are so glad she does because it's a nice break from the house for Caroline and I and good outside time with her Daddy. So here are some pictures from our last couple of trips to the pool:
Mom, let's get in the water .... that serious face ....
Showing off her new floaties .... girlfriend can swim in these!
Baby sister chilling in the shade - it was a little bright that day :)
Swimming on her own
Taking a break with Daddy
What goes up (way up!!) .....
...Must come down!
And back up again!
Sweet sister still snoozing away ....
And we even take books to read at the pool ...
We've had such a good time spending our summer mornings at the pool - we can't wait until Caroline can join us - we hope she loves water as much as the rest of us do! Hope everyone has a great weekend!
She can sit up - with the assistance of the bumbo!
She can kick the elephant - wonder whose team she'll be pulling for this fall? :)
Watch her crazy Mama hang over her play mat
Watch her crazy Mama hang over her play mat
And be in awe of herself and her mad tummy skills ...
And be in awe of herself and her mad tummy skills ...
