Happy 35th Birthday to Kallie

Happy Birthday to me!  But first...

Today's update in "Emmalyn, Hair-Watch" - Clearly getting more length but still curling around in the front 

Look - just barely getting longer in the back but very curly/wispy

Curls

I bit the bullet and got out Emmalyn's 12-18 month clothes.  Here's the pile of clothes.  Sheesh - what a wardrobe!

We also packed away a bunch of the baby stuff like the bathtub, jumper, nursing pillows, etc.  Sad.

Big girl taking on the step in the media room.  She loves going up and down this step.  She can either go down on her belly or basically fall/walk down.  However, she never cries when she falls or face plants.  She's just like, "whatever, I'm good".

For my birthday, we got to spend some with some of my very favorite people who spoiled me more than I feel I deserve to be spoiled as an adult.  They certainly made me feel special.  I adore Tida and Jason.

Yummy birthday desserts!

After dinner, we walked (in the rain) to a pub to listen to some live music.  The night ended with a sleepover at our house.

In the morning we went to brunch at Whiskey Cake.  The wait was tremendously long.  :(  Good thing the food was delicious.  Emmalyn was loving on Jason during this visit.  She went to him, no problem (A pretty big deal!).

That afternoon we took the kids to the park.

Video -  Emmalyn had fun climbing up the slide and sliding down on her belly

Tida had made me a birthday cake but we didn't end up eating it while she was here so we enjoying it on the night of my birthday.  It was the best birthday cake I think I've ever had.

Of course, I had help blowing out the candle.

Video - Maxwell singing happy birthday to me

Emmalyn can stand on her own so well now!  She's walking a little more but gets too exited and leans forward.  If she could slow down, she'd end up going really far.  :)

Based on how she uses her toys and hands, we think she is right handed.

I LOVE My Cheerios!

Here's the fantastic pics from the photoshoot I did with Emmalyn.  This was a mini-session my photographer was doing and seeing as how Emmalyn had the onesie and loves Cheerios, I couldn't pass up this perfect-for-her session. (One quick note about the onesie.  I bought it at General Mills corporate office in Minneapolis just a couple days after I learned I was pregnant.  I went with this one because I figured it could work for a boy or a girl. :))

I mean, isn't this the cutest thing ever!?!

This is my favorite!

She was so mad when we took her out of the bowl to go home.  :)

I used the pictures for a Father's Day present for Peter.

3rd week of May 2015

Maxwell's Kindermusik class has lots of homework this semester.  I'm awful at getting him going on in early.  Good thing I'm getting practice now before he's in school!  Here he is making a building with stairs and windows.

Not so sweetly sleeping.

Writing a letter to Pete the Cat at the library

Reading at the library

Multiple elevator rides are part of the magic of the library :)

My cute family.  

(Maxwell loves wearing his Diego bag.  This boy is going to rock a messenger bag someday.)

We stopped at The Snow Cone Lady for our first snowcone of the summer.  WOOO!  Max waited on the bench for us.

Video - Maxwell yelling at me and telling me he can't drive because he's not a grown up.  LAUGH

I think this may be Emmalyn's first snowcone

#truth

Enjoying some brunch 

She's unhappy because we aren't giving her food fast enough.  She just shovels it in.  I can't keep up.  I cut stuff for her and she's devoured it before I cut the next bite.

playing at the library with Landen

Enjoying Brittany's smoothie

I took Emmalyn for a secret photo shoot for a surprise for Peter (more to come on that...).  It's pretty dang awesome.

We made "ice cream" with frozen bananas, milk, and peanut butter.  EASY and YUMMY

Update on the kids recently:

Maxwell - 

Needs to have socks on his feet at night or he won't go to sleep

He's been scared of the dark lately at night in his room and wants the light left on in the bathroom so he can see a little bit.

Maxwell wants to cuddle and wants me to keep cuddling with him after he falls asleep.  He tells me he's keeping me and I can never leave.

Emmalyn -

She loves to eat fruit, cheerios, and water.  I mentioned above how much she likes to eat.  She will eat a bunch and then scream if she wants more or you try to get her out of her highchair and she isn't done yet.  She also loves to drink water, lots of it!

It's pretty painful lately to try and hold her and keep her entertained while on your lap.  She wants to be down and moving around.

She's doing great at listening and understanding.

She is pointing at what she wants and will scream if she's not getting it.

She is mimicking sounds and will mimic back to us her version of what we said.  She's very chatty!

She loves being outside and being in her bike.

She has super stranger danger.

I am still pumping at work and in the evenings. The stinky thing is that I only get 3-4 oz from those 4 pumpings a day.  It's pretty brutal but I'm sticking with it because I read that even only 3 oz of breastmilk still provides value to your baby.  So now, that is the only breastmilk she gets during the day and then Brittany gives her formula the rest of the time.  

She's starting to identify body parts like legs, chest, and hands.

Her favorite book lately is "bubbles bubbles".  She loves books.

She is walking about 3-5 steps now and she stood up outside all on her own without holding onto anything!
She loves to say "bye" and wave.
She's a Momma's girl and wants to be by me all the time.
She loves to sing!
She won't fall asleep and take a nap in the car lately.
She can go down the one step in the media room on her belly.
She loves to dump things out and can sometimes put things back.
Emmalyn's eyes are the color of Max's and she definitely has my hair, not Peter's.