Two of a Kind

When Anna was only a few month old we decided to have another child very close in age, so that she would have a playmate. So that the two could grow up together and have an always friend to play with, day in and day out; two of a kind, or so we hoped. Well, Elise was born one year ago, 14 months after Anna, and it has been a challenging year raising two “babies.” They haven’t been quite old enough to play together.

However, something changed in the last week it seems….. They all of a sudden started doing things together, to our delight. The other day as Anna headed down the sidewalk she called out in her toddler-ese, “E-ise, come on.” And they toddled down the sidewalk together looking for the neighborhood cats; I was amazed.  Even so, they are just beginning to play together but we are excited.

Here are some fun pics of the girls:

In this pic below both girls wanted to put on their dad’s socks.

 

Rock Climber and Grapefruit Girl

One of my favorite things to do in my young adult years was rock climbing. I found challenge in trying to use my muscles and body to scale walls and rocks and cracks. I absolutely loved it and actually still do. Well, I think I must have passed along some of my genes to a certain daughter of mine….and she is not even a year old yet.





I hope taking the photos of these did not reinforce the behavior. I wanted evidence, but then quickly got her down and told to her that we do not climb chairs. Don’t even think about climbing onto my computer desk Elise.

I have always loved citrus, I can eat it and eat it. I know it is one of my weaknesses, sometimes I get carried away and the next thing I know I have eaten 10 oranges. Well, I think I must have passed along some of my genes to a certain daughter of mine…

And yes, she did eat that many grapefruit and wanted more when she was done.

Minot, ND and the Return of Uncle Curtis!

An account from the perspective of Elise as recorded by Kent.

Dad and I decided to surprise Uncle Curtis when he came home from his mission in Spain, so we flew to Minot, ND. I’ve never met him before, so it was exciting to see him though I was awfully tired when his plane arrived at 9:05 pm.

I had lots of fun playing with my Uncle Chris!

One day, we decided to go rock climbing. I’m not even 1 and I’m already a pro. Someday, I’m going to climb high like Uncle Curtis.

There were so many cool things to explore! I had lots of fun with the noisy door stopper that went twaaang, and I loved watching the laundry get tossed about.

There were lots of things for me to climb on. I learned how to climb onto 5 gallon buckets so I could push the buttons on the microware. I also figured out how to climb from the baseboard heater to the chair so that I could play on Uncle Chris’s computer.

My favorite thing was to spend time with my grandma. We had lots of fun! We colored pictures, played in tubs, chased around the apartment, and even played in the sink!

We had lots of fun as a family!

Let’s Go Fly a Kite

We had the perfect windy weather Saturday so what better thing to do then go out and fly a kite as a family. The girls loved it and even Elise flew the kite.

Easter

Once Anna discovered there was candy in the Easter eggs, she would pick one up, open it, eat all the candy inside then then continue the hunt. The only thing Kent and I bought the girls for Easter was new toothbrushes but on Easter morning when they opened the door the Easter bunny had brought surprise Easter baskets for the girls. We have a sweet neighbor. Anna went right to the big chocolate egg and, no, she did not take a bite, but put the whole thing in her mouth at once. I need to work with her on that.

 

At our Easter gathering Anna could not get enough of Claxton the rabbit, I think she loved that rabbit a little too much. And Elise just loved tagging along with everything.

I was fortunate to get off early from work this Easter Sunday to I could enjoy the day with all the family at Grandma’s house and see my girls in cute Easter dresses.

Fun Little Things

Anna and Elise also got their first pair of matching outfits. Yea, now I can do the cute matchy matchy sister thing! I really love it and now want to attempt to make matching skirts for them when I ever have the time in my life.

Elise Loves to hide in the little space between the sink cabinet and the wall when we are in the the bathroom. She will pop her head out now and then and laugh like she has the best hiding spot in the world.

She also had learned what different objects are for. She will grab the broom and sweep the floor, or pick up a phone and put it to her ear and walk around, or pick up a comb and run it through her hair.

We have recently been teaching Anna to pray, it is so precious. We will say a phrase and then she will repeat in her little toddler voice usually only saying the last word of the phrase. This afternoon when I handed her a snack at the table she folded her arms said, “…Nana, Papa, GG, wolf..Amen.” Funny that she prays for a wolf doll that belongs to my grandmother. 

She found a little frog suit at the DI the other day and wouldn’t put it down. It being only $3 I got it for her and she loves  jumping around in it. She wouldn’t even take it off for dinner. Silly little frog.

Our Little Songbird

Around our house we have a beautiful little song bird. You can not always understand what she is singing, but it is beautiful none the less. She flits and flutters all about the house singing and dancing. We hope you enjoy this as much as we do!