Swing Set Assembly

The Swing Set is finally here and we are ready to put it together. Addie was more than happy to help take all the pieces out of the box!

I'm going to go with I THINK this is how this works. Mom and Innona started to work on the swing set and then when Dad came home early we quickly put him to work!

Addie and her Ellette were also willing to help us figure out this massive puzzle of a swing set! The instructions could be truly helpful all while being completely baffling!

I wasn't joking when I said that Addie was excited about a giant box!

Ellie Dog was also there to help. We like to include the whole family in our projects.

Innona was happy to give her two cents and Avery was just happy to watch!

When People said that they put their swing set together in a couple of hours. They had to have been smarter than Me. Once the temperature started to cool off, I volunteered to go pick up dinner! With warmer clothes on, Addie is back and ready to help!

After dinner and a good nights sleep, we were ready put up the last of the swing set.

Addie wanted to make sure that Dad had everything just right!

Now that everything is just right, we can't keep her off of it! Last night when it was pitch black dark outside, she was trying to sneak outside to play.

An Exciting Week

This being week 2 of Avery's life, catching her awake is rare. I never would have thought that I child could sleep so much, Addie has never been a huge fan of that sleeping business. So when Avery sleeps through an entire afternoon at the water park, Addie or the vacuum i'm left in awe.

Don't be fooled by that innocent face on sweet Avery, she can make a mess. She is the queen of blowouts! In her short life she has already had more than Addie ever made the entire time as a baby.

While Avery is busy pooping, Addie is taking a break from her super hero duties to watch a "mooie".

Why is it that both of my girls refuse to look at the camera? We have been enjoying Innona's bed. Addie wakes up and goes into Innona's room and watches a "mooie" and enjoys a nutritious breakfast in bed! Mostly powdered doughnuts.

We finally put sand in the sand box. Thank goodness Addie was there to help haul the 50 lb. bags of sand. Mom and Innona said that we did all of the work of buying and loading the sand. Dad could have the workout of hauling the sand from the car to the sand box.

Oh how Addie loves her Sand box! We could barely get all of the sand in the sand box before Addie was trying to get in it and play.

What an exciting week for Addie Pie. All of her Birthday presents are finally coming. (well this one has been at the store waiting to picked up for a week, but what she doesn't know can't hurt her!)

Yeah I love big boxes!

Thanks Bebe and Pops!

Oh wow there is stuff in this giant box! I'm not sure what it is, but I like it!

An afternoon at the water park can be truly exhausting! Even for Avery who slept most of the afternoon!

Addie's 1st Haircut

Last Sunday Paul asked me if I would trim his hair because it was getting to be a little unruly. He wasn't sure when he would have time to find a new girl and make an appointment. Whitney our hair specialist has since moved and now we have to start all over and find someone else who can read our minds and just know what we want for our hair. We all know that me as a hair cutist as we call them in my family just don't go together, skills, patience and attention to detail are too many of my less than stellar abilities all rolled into one task.

You may be thinking, if you were cutting Paul's hair why are all the pictures of you cutting Addie's hair? While I was outside working on Paul's hair, and yes it turned out fine we didn't have to buzz his head. Addie came out and wanted her hair cut as well. Since I had been trying to get Addie to let me cut her hair for weeks now, I was eager to try.

Addie soon realized that getting your hair cut wasn't as much fun as she had anticipated! She did not like that she had to sit still and could not watch and look around!

Luckily we had plenty of adults to get the job done. One to cut, one to distract/entertain, and one to document! What can I say it takes a village.

All said and done, with zero tears and millions of little hair clipping later Addie's hair is manageable. 3 years is a long time, her hair was screaming for a good trim. Those 3 inches lived a good life.

Still Adjusting

Addie loves being a big sister, and Mom likes it best when she practices her big sister skills in her baby doll! Don't mind the powdered sugar. Addie is the queen of sneaking donuts out of the pantry.

Avery mostly enjoyed her first bath.

Addie loves her sister and LOVES to hold her, especially when Mom isn't looking. Luckily I was close with camera, good thing that Avery is easy going.

Sweet Avery loves to snuggle into a soft blanket. It is kinda nice having a baby that actually sleeps, I hope that it lasts!

Lately we have all needed a little extra sleep around here.

Addie knows how to have a good time. Her parents may be a little sleepy and sometimes grumpy, but she won't let that stop her.

Innona hasn't even been here a full day before we wear her out! We all needed a little nap this week. Baby Avery is a such a good baby and Addie has been a sweet big sister but it all can be exhausting!

Somehow Addie doesn't seem to let it keep her down for very long! It is a good thing that I have had a quick recovery and that Avery is a pretty mellow baby. Now if I could only have Addie change diapers and do laundry.

We all are adjusting to having a baby in the house again. It is amazing what one can forget. I am adjusting to napping throughout the night, lots of laundry and the occasional geyser of bodily fluids. I can't say that I would ever be okay with any of my friends pooping on me, only my own flesh and blood could get away with that one! Its a good thing they are cute!

Celebrating Baby and Birthday!

Grandma came to meet our early arrival and to celebrate Addie's birthday.

Weeee, higher Mommy higher!

The Three Amigos enjoying the tire swing!

All the girls hanging out with Grandma.

Avery needed to catch a few Z's, her cousins wore her out!

Yesterday we played at Uncle Dave's house today Addie's house! It is amazing how a little pool can keep them busy for hours.

Thank you Albertson's maybe next year I will break out my super baking skills and attempt a birthday cake!

Abby just wanted to inspect Addie's presents to make sure they were going to be fun enough for a 3 year old. If not she was volunteering to take them.

Thank You Innona and Big Daddy. I'm not sure about this but my Mom seems to think I will love it!

What an exciting weekend we got to hang out with Grandma, celebrate Addie's birthday and play with cousins! Avery and Mom are definitely going to need a good long nap!

Helpful Sister

Friday was my first day to have the girls all by myself. Paul was fortunate enough to be able to take Mon-Thurs off, but Friday was not an option. Friday the 13th was true to its hype a little scary. Luckily we were all able to survive, it seemed questionable at times.

After a rough morning, the afternoon proved to try every ounce of patience my tired body could handle. Avery seemed to have a geyser of poo, Addie seemed to need me more than ever and my house was a mess. Oh not to mention, I ran out of diapers that fit my teeny tiny child. Evidently some newborn diapers are smaller than others.

I put Avery in her crib, so that I could clean up lunch and get my living room vacuumed. Since she is so teeny and doesn't move I didn't even bother to clean out the crib, mistake #1. I didn't even get all of our lunch dishes put away before I found Addie IN the crib. Mistake # 2, leaving Addie alone in the same room with baby for more than 1 minute!

It is true, Addie went from helping me in the kitchen to 2 minutes later helping her little sister. All day I had been trying to give Addie special attention to make sure that she wasn't feeling left out, and when I walked in the room and saw Addie in the crib and Avery in the chair that I left in the crib, I had to take a few deep breaths and remind myself that Addie is 3 and thinks that she is helping! It was really cute and totally scary all at the same time. Luckily the camera was right there, so I took a few pictures and then had the calm talk about picking up baby. Staying calm and not yelling was way harder than I thought it would be. I think, "I think I can I think I can" will be my new mantra for a while.

Welcome Home

Ahhhh the first 24 hours are finally over and we get to go home! I have decided that hospitals put all of their money into the birthing rooms and leave all the left overs for the recovery rooms. Seriously, we went from the nice spacious, comfy room with a decent size TV to a tiny room complete with an even smaller TV fully equipped with a VCR. We were more than ready to leave and enjoy the comforts of our own home!

Avery is such a good sport. Our infant insert wasn't the one that came with the car seat, thus they would not allow us to use it because it was not used in the official crash tests. So, clearly a rolled up towel would be safer than a plush supportive head cushion.

Avery is such a nice sister, she brought Addie a really neat Tinker Bell doll. Addie was really excited about it, she thanked me numerous times.

Ellie was excited to finally have her family home and meet its newest member. Ellie Dog seems indifferent, but I am sure she loves her deep down.

Addie is all about holding, kissing and hugging her little sister. After playing with her cousins for 2 days she was ready to be home and play with her little sister.

Sweet kisses!

Snug as a bug in a rug! Bundle her up and give her a full belly and she is perfectly happy for hours.

Honestly, you guys think your tired. You two have to easy job, but I guess playing at the park can wear you out too.

When Big Sister isn't trying to over love Little Sister she is often found watching a show!