Be vewwy quiet. We’w hunting wabbits.

Well, the special treasures that the Easter wabbits left behind…

Let’s start with the Easter Egg hunt we went to last weekend! Just like last year, we went to an egg hunt put on by the Pinetree Church of Christ.

Look! A family shot!

Colton was the best looking boy there (next to Daddy, of course). Doesn’t he look handsome in his sweater vest?

Momma and Addy with our dear friends, Rachel and Hannah Clare.

Look how much the girls have grown in the past year! {{Hannah Clare and Adelyn, Easter 2011}}

Adelyn collected 9 eggs this year!

Colton says “Just wait until next year…”.

This morning, we partook in another egg hunt after the Easter bunny stopped by our house. Colton made sure he was dressed properly before getting started.

{{He sure knows how to model!}}

Addy is a master egg hunter now. She was moving so fast, most of the shots are of the back of her head. She found eggs on window sills…

In a stinky shoe…

By the pack ‘n play…

Colton found a few eggs too…

But he was more interested in inspecting Addy’s basket.

She wasn’t crazy about that idea… {{Mid “Nooooo.”}}

But Colton was a sweet lil brother and helped her pick up the spilled eggs. ::wink::

That’s a pretty good haul!

Happy Easter, everyone!

More Easter pics to come.

Adelyn is 2 years, 10.5 months old and Colton is 9 months, 3 weeks old.

In between the holidays

I know I said I would post Christmas pics next, but let’s cover the bit of ground between Thanksgiving and Christmas first.

I showed you how it was beginning to look like Christmas around our house here.

While it was looking like Christmas, it still wasn’t really feeling like Christmas. Actually, it felt more like fall. Comfortably cool weather, beautiful red and orange foliage… you know, fall.

It finally started to get cold…

Hey look, ice!

Perhaps the arrival of the cold weather had something to do with this guy, who journeyed all the way from the North Pole. Readers, meet Henry.

Henry is our Elf on a Shelf, sent all the way down here from Santa himself. Every day, Henry watches over the kids and then at night, he flies back to the North Pole to give his report to Santa (you know, whether or not the kids were “good, for goodness sake”). Every morning we found him in a new place. He managed to get into Addy’s stocking…

and ride a reindeer…

He even hung from a light fixture, got caught in a cage and sat on a wall clock. He’s a silly elf, that Henry.

Anyway, the cold weather and arrival of Henry helped launch us into the Christmas spirit. We decided to make Christmas treats, both for us and for our neighbors.

Making fudge with Daddy.

Addy says “It’s goooooddd.”

The makings of Triple Chocolate Whoopie Pies. Oh yes.

I made one and it was literally >1/3 of the size of Addy’s face. So instead of using two cookies, we cut each cookie in half and put the filling in the middle. Much more reasonable.

We wrapped up the treats for the neighbors…

And then hand delivered them the weekend before Christmas. I think this will be a fun tradition we will continue every Christmas!

Speaking of tradition, we had our 2nd annual Christmas dinner with our neighbors. We have dinner at one house, dessert at the other, and exchange a few small gifts. Such a fun thing to do with our friends

The Thursday before Christmas (and the day before we headed down to Austin), the underside of our tree was looking pretty full…

so we opened a few gifts from Derek’s side of the family.

Addy tears through presents like it’s her job, so before long we had a pile of awesome gifts.

Some of her favorite gifts were a “sparkle shirt” (shirt with sequins on it), a clock that teaches you how to tell time, and a barbie purse with a pretend cellphone and lipstick. Colton was content watching the whole spectacle from the comfort of Daddy’s lap. You just know that next year he will be all up in the action!

And with that, NOW we move on to Christmas pics.

Adelyn is 2 years, 7.75 months old and Colton is 7 months, 2 days old.

Adelyn’s 2nd birthday

Hey, didya hear?

Our daughter turned TWO!!!! I can hardly believe it. But then I realize, “well, we are about to have a second child” and maybe I can believe it. She is turning into such a big girl.

So, let me tell you about her birthday party! Her theme? This didn’t take too much thought. Addy loves the movie Finding Nemo. Loooooves it. And because Addy was born at the end of May when temperatures are a million degrees, we have to have water present at her party, right? So an Under The Sea theme was perfect. I did some research, started planning early, and with {a ton} of help from my family, I’d say the party went off without a hitch!

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To begin, I want to show y’all some of the decor:

I made this life preserver to welcome our guests when they first arrived at our house. Super easy to make! I used a styrofoam ring (Hobby Lobby), took my trusty hot glue gun and glued red and white felt around the ring. I found some white cord and twisted it to act as the accent rope, and then used black puff paint to write out our name. Voila! Life preserver for an underwater party!

Part of the indoor decor, inspired by this cute birthday party. Again, easy to do – blue tulle (Hobby Lobby), a couple different shades of blue balloons (local dollar store), blue table cloth (dollar store), colorful fish (Oriental Trading Co.), inflatable octopus (Hobby Lobby) and a few handmade starfish (thanks Mikaela!)

Part of the outside seating area. More blue tulle (Hobby Lobby), fishing nets (Oriental Trading Co.), wooden turtle bowl (already owned), large clam shells (already owned) and small shells collected from the beach during our trip to Florida!

Goodie bags! I decorated the little blue totes bags (Target, 3/$1) using felt and iron-on adhesive. I designed with the little underwater critters myself, and had fun doing it! My favorite is the whale Filled with Goldfish, underwater shaped fruit snacks, fishy bubbles, and fishy squirt toy.

We also had a bubble machine at the party (best $8 I’ve spent in a long time!), two inflatable pools and a sprinkler ring. Oh yes, and a gigantic whale that my Dad inflated with his very own lungs. Seriously. It was gigantic. Right Dad?

And although this may not interest anyone, I’d like to remember it: Menu included grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, chips and salsa, tortellini pasta salad, fruit salad, and of course, CAKE!

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And now, the rest of the pics from the day: preparation thru party!

My family arrived several hours before the party to help me finish up with the decorating and food prep (you know, since I was 36 weeks pregnant and all…). Thank goodness for their help! Poor Derek was already running around doing last minute things, so it was great to have the 8 extra hands to help out.

Mikaela was in charge of the fruit salad.

Mom was busy working on decorating Addy’s underwater cake.

Poor Dad was tasked with blowing up the ginormous whale. (You will be happy to know, Dad, that the whale is still inflated!)

Kim was at my beck and call in terms of decorating (so was Mikaela after she was through with the fruit salad). “I think that fish needs to go over there. A little higher. More balloons. Hmm, maybe try putting another tack over there?” Way to go, sisters.

Ta-ya!

Even the birthday girl got in on the preparation action, helping to fill up the pools.

She’s so excited!!

Fill ‘er up, Daddy.

Addy also had to make sure the lemonade was sweetened and stirred just right.

Auntie Kim giving P-squared a little lovin’.

Let’s get this party started! Addy had a good time splashing in the pools, even though some of the recipients of said splashing may not have enjoyed it as much (sorry Kenna!).

Addy and a beached whale. See?? GIGANTIC!!!!

Our neighbor, Hannah Clare, just enjoying her ring!

Addy’s 2nd cousin, Kenna, playing with the inflatable underwater creatures. I think those were a hit!

Benjy and Addy chasing the bubbles.

Wheeee, whales are fun!

Daddy, the chef.

Running through the sprinkler ring with lil’ Matt.

Basically the entire party! A fun group of people

Gracie, Addy and lil’ Matt in the “big kid” pool.

My mom, Grandma Lo, with Great-Grandmother and Great-Granddad Dollins.

Thinking about what a fun time she’s having.

Checking out the fishies with Daddy.

Is it time for cake yet?!?!?!

Check out the awesome cake my Mom made! A graham cracker and kitkat pier, swedish fish, gummy sharks, gummy lifesavers, raisinets, …she even used fondant to make Nemo, the jelly fish, starfish, turtle and seagulls! It was awesome

Blowing out the candles!

The cake was definitely approved.

The one “mishap” at the party? We forgot to hand out the goodie bags. ::facepalm:: After all that work too. Luckily everyone lived nearby (except little Kenna June, who came all the way from Dallas!) so we were able to hand them out over the next few days. Don’t worry, KJ, we’ve still got your goodie bag!

All in all, I’d say it was a great party and I think everyone had a fun time! Adelyn was given all sorts of neat and wonderful gifts, so she has lots to keep her busy and entertained when P-squared gets here. Thanks everyone for coming and sharing Addy’s special day with us!

I have more pics from the rest of the weekend, but that will be in a separate post. Right now, Momma needs a nap.

Adelyn is 2 years, 3 weeks old and I am 38 weeks, 5 days pregnant.

Bubble fun!

Bubbles are such a fun (and cheap!) form of entertainment. We rediscovered their awesomeness over Easter with my parents and sisters, and Addy has been a non-stop bubble blowing machine since we came home.

Look at those cheeks. I could just eat them up! ::nom nom::

She was not impressed with Daddy’s bubble blowing skills, so she decided to take matters into her own hands and show him how it’s done.

A fun game we’ve started playing is “Pop as many bubbles as you can, as fast as Daddy can make them”. Now that’s great fun!

Having fun popping bubbles with our neighbors!

She’s also quite good at catching bubbles on the wand. I ask you, how much more fun can you possibly have with a stick and some soapy liquid?!

Adelyn is 23 months, 1 week old and I am 32 weeks, 4 days pregnant.

Easter Egg Hunt

Guess what Adelyn did last weekend?

She went to her very first East Egg Hunt! And she even met the Easter bunny!

Scoping out her “competition”, the other 2 year olds. ::wink, wink::

She collected a total of 3 eggs! We almost lost her green Shrek egg to a super eager 2 yr old boy who saw it in her basket and wanted it (BADLY) but luckily his Momma steered him towards the unclaimed eggs instead.

Inspecting her eggs and prizes.

After the egg hunt, we settled down for a picnic lunch! Of course, dessert was consumed first.

Even our little neighbor Hannah Clare enjoyed the Easter fun!

Addy decided that she wanted to go exploring a bit more through the fields, so off she went with Daddy.

And by golly, look what she found!

Another egg to add to her collection!

Of course, we had to take a spin on the choo choo train, Addy’s latest obsession, before we headed home for the day.

And by “we”, I mean Addy and Momma, because Daddy is just too tall to fit into the barrel. That’s right folks, the pregnant lady managed to squeeze in, and Addy had a blast. She wanted to ride it again and again, but alas, the other kids needed turns as well.

This was good practice for the Easter egg hunt we will do with my parents and sisters this weekend. I hope she’s ready, because she is going to have to have a lot of Easter eggs to collect!

Adelyn is 22 months old, 4 weeks old and I am 30 weeks, 6 days pregnant.

Toddlerhood.

So far? I love it.

Adelyn is at such a great age right now. While the tantrums are not so enjoyable, she has developed such a neat little personality. Addy makes our life fun, surprising, and always entertaining!!

You need a few examples, you say?

She loves to cook. She’s quite the little chef, really.

She likes to wear winter hats and mittens inside the house.

She loves her toothbrush and insists on brushing her teeth when Momma and Daddy do.

She likes the mall because there is a ton of room for her to push her stroller around. She’s a “free range baby”!

She loves her princess tent and makes Momma get in it with her… which is no easy feat, especially now. We read books and have girl time. No boys allowed, Daddy!

She is very helpful. Yesterday, she found a stack of clean diapers in her closet, brought them out and started to refill her diaper drawer.

She loves her crib. She tries to climb into it. Two words kept flashing in my head as she did this: “Big-girl bed. Big-girl bed.” Of course, that came after “Don’t fall. Don’t fall”

She loves her friends. Sooooo much!

Hannah Clare says “What is this crazy girl doing??”

Adelyn is 21 months old and I am 23 weeks, 5 days pregnant.

What do you do when it’s 70* in January?

1. Help Daddy wash his truck.

2. Play outside with our neighbor friends.

3. Look grown-up. I mean, seriously. She looks like she’s at least 5 years old!

4. Garden. Ha!!

And here’s a cute shot of Addy helping us assemble the new desk we got this weekend. What a ham!

Adelyn is 20 months, 1 week old and I am 19 weeks, 3 days pregnant.

It’s a snow day!

Snow! In White Oak! Two years in a row! We didn’t get as much this time around, maybe only 1.5 inches… but that’s more than enough for us to get outside and play in it.

First things first, we had to bundle up. Adelyn got to wear her new snow suit!

Addy wasn’t quite sure what to think of the snow… it was chilly and sticking to her boots.

Our neighbors brought Hannah Clare out too and the girls enjoyed some quality time in the snow.

Chatting about this weird white stuff on the ground.

“Lemme back out, Daddy!”

The snow was still around yesterday, so that was exciting!

Addy was ready to go out and play this time around.

(Sorry, no sound… I don’t know why.)

Momma pulled her around in a makeshift sled (our laundry hamper)…

… and then Addy pulled her baby around for a bit too.

(No sound again…)

Adelyn is 19 months, 2 weeks old and I am 16 weeks, 2 days pregnant.

The Zoo

We went to the Zoo with our friends two weekends ago.

This was Adelyn’s second time going to the zoo (and Hannah Clare’s first), and now that Addy’s older we think she enjoyed it even more.

A little pre-zoo fun with Daddy. She likes to go fast!

Hannah Clare and Rachel, ready for some zoo time!

I think Addy’s favorite animals were the flamingos, just like last time. They were in the first exhibit we stopped at, and she stood there watching them for a while.

Parrots are such pretty creatures. What great colors.

Even Hannah Clare liked watching ‘em!

If we had let her, Addy would have climbed through the fences. But we didn’t. Aren’t we good parents?

The Momma anteater had a baby anteater in September and he was sleeping on her back as she paced around. He looks all snuggled in there.

Our good friends Adam, Hannah Clare, and Rachel!

Beautiful cheetah.

Addy likes looking at the big kitties.

Good friends

More pretty birds that Addy liked.

Time for lunch, of course.

Even the giraffe thought so!

Photo op for the Mommas. We’re good friends too

Derek liked this tortoise.

Addy decided to be a free-range baby and go visit with other zoo-goers. She’s very social, you know.

Big Kitty is so tired. It’s a rough life being king of the jungle, er, zoo.

Family photo op at the end of the day! We love the zoo.

Hannah Clare does too!

Adelyn is 16 months and 3 weeks old.

Fun at the playground

We love to go on family walks down to the park. Adelyn insists on walking because she’s a big girl and that’s what big girls do.

Hi Momma!

Sometimes as we head down the street, we attract the interest of others.

On this day, our neighbors’ cat, Kate, wanted some love and attention. Kate and Addy are good friends.

Addy decides when we continue on. She is, after all, eager to get to the park.

Once we get down to the playground, it’s all Addy can do to keep from climbing the fence to get in.

9/25/2010 – Addy really wants to get into the playground! (16 mos old)

Addy is a big fan of the tunnels.

We think the blue tunnel matches her eyes!

What do you think?

Big girl also likes to cross bridges.

And she loves slides.

And of course (as you may have noticed), another fun aspect of going to the playground is making friends! Addy has quite the knack for attracting the attention of fellow children, primarily little girls who think she is cute and just want to pick her up.

Exhibit A: Charity, age 8.

Can you blame her? Addy is just so hugable and pick-up-able!

Adelyn is 16 months and 1 week old.