Liv's Birthday Videos

Sweet Liv is officially 3 years old!  There are photos and stories to come, but for now here's a whole bunch of videos from her big day.  Yes, it's overkill but I'm pretty sure there are a few (read: very few...) of you who would like nothing less than to spend the next x amount of time watching all these :)

Have a great day!


http://youtu.be/Kx08TtBdh2w (Singing to Liv at Red Robin for dinner before her birthday)

http://youtu.be/4u_MVZXruhE (The girls eating Liv's Red Robin Ice Cream)

http://youtu.be/_3fTZ80JMeM (Before bed, still two interview)

http://youtu.be/FI3BQudvxIE (Good morning birthday girl!!!)

http://youtu.be/NAdZ-pviJ5A (Jillian gives Liv her present)

http://youtu.be/h_Kz9zVUIOk (Jillian sings Good Morning Happy Birthday Song)

http://youtu.be/ELMWgxtkdX4 (Liv during her trip into DC making a smooched penny)

http://youtu.be/59wdcvrCZjE (singing Happy Birthday at home)

Jillian's 5th Birthday!

Our sweet girl Jillian turned 5 on May 16th!

To see all the photos I took for Jillian's 5th Birthday photo shoot, click HERE!  

And if you have not already seen them, click HERE for the photos from her birthday party.  

Jillian's birthday was full of fun.  The day started with a surprise mini watermelon waiting for her by in the kitchen (awhile back I had a mini watermelon that I drew a face on for Jillian.  She carried it around the house and pretended it was her baby.  A couple days later I told her the watermelon was going to rot if we didn't eat it.  She was a bit crushed and had a hard time eating our lunch that day.  HAHA!  I promised her I'd get another one and draw a new face on it for her, so these photos are featuring watermelon baby #2...)  and birthday cake for breakfast.  A few pictures of how big she looked, and Ryan took her to school. (Photo LINK)  Later, I brought Jello to her classroom to share with her preschool friends for snack (Photo LINK).  After school she had soccer practice (Photo LINK) and then we went to the park (Photo LINK).  After the park we brought the little two home to our babysitter, and headed into DC to see her monument of choice for this year- The Jefferson (Photo LINK)!

To say we were exhausted by the end of the day would be an understatement.  It was a wonderful celebration for a wonderful little girl! 

Photo highlights from her 5th Birthday shoot:

(her birthday letter is below all these photos...)

Dear Jillian,

Happy Birthday sweet girl- another year of growing and changing!  Your Dad and I stare at you in disbelief over the things you are able to say and do.  You amaze us.  You are incredibly smart, thoughtful and helpful.  We could not ask for a better example for your sister and brother.  We adore you.

You are a very mature little person, but you also know how to be silly.  Very silly sometimes!  You like to read, play with your sister, play with baby dolls, legos, and make art and crafts.  You love to be fancy and wear ballet clothing around the house the majority of the time.  You like to dance.  You like to sing.  You often remember the lyrics of songs before the tune and create some very interesting song 'mash ups' where you blend together lyrics and different tunes.  It's very creative.  You like everything about nature and often talk about what things we should be doing to help the planet.  You sing to plants and animals and have written a special song to sing to butterflies in order to make them land on your finger.  When you're singing this song, you've had about 7 butterflies land right on your index finger.  It's really unbelievable, but I think your song really works!

You've been a fluent reader for years now.  I know that sounds ridiculous when you're just turning 5, but it's true.  I asked you if you remember not being able to read and you said, "When I was in your belly?"  I guess it just feels like something you've always been able to do.  What a gift!

You are empathetic and optimistic.  I hope these are life long traits.  When something sad/bad happens you are quick to verbalize how it made you feel, or how another person must be feeling.  Sometimes you even cry.  But before even a minute passes, you shake it off, and think of what the silver lining of the situation could be.  I'm so proud of you for this.  Your heart is purely good.

You like to point out when things are "similar".  You often use the phrase "such as" when you are talking.  You often "anticipate" what I'm going to say and like to "make a prediction" about things we are going to do.  You start sentences with the phrase, "Speaking of ____".  You're incredibly well spoken.

This year you went to preschool and rocked it.  You're an amazing student.  You are very respectful to the teachers and the other children.  When you first started school you were very quiet during the day and upset at drop off.  Both of these behaviors faded as the year went on.  You are soft spoken in group situations, but you always answer any questions asked of you and have fabulous manners.

Outside your favorite things to do are swing, and play in the sand.  You like to "bake pies" with your sister and "explore for new worlds" in our backyard.  You also really enjoy monkey bars and can make it all the way across by yourself.  You can also flip around when holding a bar and land on your feet.

Your favorite foods are peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, quesadillas, carrots, raw bell peppers, turkey sandwiches, thinly sliced cheese, spaghetti (with LOTS of parmesan!), chicken strips with ranch to dip in, pinto and kidney beans, salad with blue cheese dressing, steak and cheese fries from Outback, rolls and peanuts from Texas Roadhouse, and burrito bowls from Chipolte. You favorite treats are ice cream with cherries and sprinkles and popcorn.

You are incredibly complimentary to your Mommy.  It's just about the sweetest thing and I really appreciate how much you appreciate me.  You like to say, "Ugh... MOM.  I just CAN'T BELIEVE how much I love you!" and "Being a Mom is a lot of work- you're so good at ________ Mom..." or "Wow, this dinner is really great.  I seriously like everything you make."  Talk about sweet.  You make being a Mom the best job on the planet.

Your future profession has been changing a lot this year- you seem to be leaning toward being an artist at this point.  You have also promised me "many many grand babies.... maybe 6.  They will be crawling all over the floor talking to you".  Can't. Wait.  -smile-

You try really REALLY hard to be a good big sister.  You are very patient with your siblings and only need a reminder to "use kind words" or "be patient" occasionally.  The vast majority of the time you do whatever is asked of you without questioning, and you are eager to be helpful however you can be.  Thanks for that, baby girl.

I could write about all your wonderful qualities for pages and pages.  I hope you know how much we love you, how proud we are of you, and how much our hearts swell with pride when we think of you.  Thank you for being the first baby to ever call me Mommy.  We're the luckiest parents on the planet to call you our daughter.

Happy Birthday big girl!  This next year is going to be amazing!

Love,

Mommy

Where have you been?!

No, there have not been updates you are missing... it's just been 2 months since I updated.  I went ahead and made the blog private which means if you are reading this it's because you're getting the email updates you (at some point) subscribed to.

If you don't want email updates anymore, just let me know and I'll take you off the distribution list!

Hopefully you can see this video above- it's Jillian singing her, "special butterfly song that makes butterflies land on her finger."  As you'll see in the video, it works.  And, this is about the 5th time it has worked.  I'm honestly amazed.  She's the butterfly whisperer!!!

:)  Nancy

Test/Awesome art!

Test:  I'm thinking about making our blog private, and I'm wondering if people who are subscribed to get updates will still get them if I change that setting?  Let me know...

Awesome Art:

Jillian took an art class every Tuesday this school year.  She then attended a one week summer art camp with the same teacher.  Today she brought home her work from this week and the piece below is my all time favorite she has done so far.  It's a really large sheet of paper, folded in the middle.  The top half is a city skyline, the bottom half is the reflection of the buildings in the water.  SUPER cool!  It's so nice looking.

In addition to the reflections, you'll see that Jillian decided to add a few boats in the water.  When I asked her about them she told me these boats were, "bringing money to this country because the people who lived there did not have enough money."  She also told me, "there were more boats coming to help also."  She calls those bags, "Cents bags."

Do you see the little bags of money in the boats labeled with a $?  I love this kid.

The Wizard of Oz

A little while back, Jillian went on a school bus for the first time.  We went with her school to see a play based on the Wizard of Oz.  I always teased yelled at my Mom for watching me, watching things. I gotta say... ya...  I kinda understand now.  -smile-  Sorry, Mom.  The play was sub par at best, but watching Jillian watch the play?  Awesome.  We had a great time together. 

Happy Mother's Day, 2012

Click HERE to see all the photos from our Mother's Day!

It was a great day.  I love this family.  Very, very much.  We woke up, snuggled and then went out to a beautiful golf course for a snazzy brunch.  After brunch Ryan and I brainstormed some about changes/additions/planting we are going to do in the yard.  It's super awesome to be rounding the bend with our inside of the house projects so we can start to focus a bit more on the great outdoors!  Just in time- our weather is awesome.

Enjoy the photos!

 

Bliss.

Preserving my thoughts...

I'm not sure what it is, but lately I've taken to watching our sweet kids as though I'm someone staring through a window.  Just silently standing there, trying really hard to make sure I don't disturb the magic of what's happening.  It's Jillian and Liv playing so sweetly with each other, or both of them running toy after toy to Evan in an attempt to make him happy.  It's each child in the same room playing completely independently from each other.  It's Jillian in her room crafting something very important at her desk while Liv whines for attention from her big sister.  It's Evan bouncing happily in his jumper babbling sweet baby noises. It's pure bliss.

And then, there's the moments I'm a part of.  Liv running over to me with an open chap stick (red tinted no less) and I thank the powers that be I managed to swallow my scolding sentence for her to "put that back inside my purse young lady" long enough for her to run to me with tiny pursed lips and offer, "Some for you Mommy?"  I nearly have tears in my eyes as she oh-so-generously briefly taps the stick on one part of my lips and announces, "That's enough for you." Thank you baby.  It is enough.

There's Evan- starting to get so brave with his tiny body- lunging for me any chance he gets, usually in an effort to eat my face or chew a button from my shirt.  He usually ends up with his face planted in my clothes or the bed and comes up covered in smiles and drool.  He melts my heart.

And Jillian, our sweet girl that is so expressive with her love.  She says the sweetest things to us.  Every. Day.  She loves so hard.  She likes to cuddle, she writes love notes, she adores any attention she gets and she is ridiculously appreciative for all things.  She seriously makes parenting a complete joy.  While the little two are napping she and I have taken to watching a cooking show together.  I really like that and feel beyond lucky to have a situation that provides me the flexibility to do that.

And, on the less rosy side of things (which exists too, of course) there's those moments where you go from the picture perfect moments above to all 3 kids needing you at the same time.  Demands for ice packs, and tears of frustration or pain.  It happens.  Less than you might think, but it does happen.

Liv is frustrating me with her lack of interest in potty training. (*Although after typing this we ended the day with multiple successful trips to the bathroom today, a dry diaper during nap, and no accidents! Wa Hoo!)
Jillian tries SO hard to be helpful and sometimes that can be a bit draining ;)  She is also developing a bit of school aged humor I could frankly do without.  Ha.
And Evan, let's just say he is likely breaking 4 new teeth right now and is very interested in trying them out. (Ouch.)

And so, life is perfectly imperfect.  And, we're loving it.

Everyday I do go to bed feeling like I should/could have done more.  I am hopelessly ineffective at doing laundry and have delayed grocery shopping so long that at this point we have hardly have anything fresh to eat in the house.  I'd like to straighten/do my hair more.  I know I take a ridiculous amount of photos but I wish I took more.  I have complete anxiety about this- why is it that I feel like something barely happened if it's not documented?  Probably because I don't really have the best memory.  Probably because I don't trust my memory to remember what it's like to have a sleeping baby curled up next to me breathing their sweet little air into my face.  Probably because I know in my heart that no matter how many pictures I take or journal entries I write these moments are just that... moments.  I am trying SO hard to soak them in as deep as I can while I have them happening to me.  And, while I know that as our kids get older these sweet baby times will be replaced with new 'moments' it's hardly a comfort.  Will someone please invent a way for me to slip back into today for just a minute or two in 10 years from now?

I've been wanting to write all this down for awhile and as I re-read this post it's hardly doing justice to just how lucky I feel like I am.  But, it's here at least.  So, Nancy in 10 years from now...  I'm trying.  I know you miss this time like crazy (and rightly so) but I hope some of the pictures and videos transport you back at least a little.  It's the best I can do.

Enjoy your day, everyone.  I am!

Nancy

Happy Valentine's Day!

The story behind the picture:

I hurt my shoulder... not sure what's going on but I had to put the camera down between photos it was hurting so bad.

I watched cooking shows with Jillian during 'quiet time' and almost went out to the store to buy nice ingredients to make a fantastic meal for our family but ended up serving everyone bean burritos for dinner instead.  Although, I did make my own flour tortillas which turned out pretty nicely.  I even made a heart shaped one for Jillian.

I hosted a play date at the house today for some new friends in the area.  It was nice to get to know some new people but a little bit exhausting due to my shoulder.

Tonight I have about 1 million things to do online but my computer is so full of photos I had to stop and move pictures around so it would work properly.

Ryan had roses delivered for me today (very pretty!) but aside from that (and a gift the girls gave him this morning) we are pretending Valentine's Day is this coming Friday.  I thought I had a couple simple things for the girls but I guess my order was not recorded properly?!  Argh.  Oh well.  Also, Ryan overheard me telling a friend of mine what I got him for Valentine's Day so I'm thinking a few extra days for him to forget won't hurt.  Ha!  Why Friday?  Because that's when something Ryan ordered for me will arrive.  I guess we are Valentine slackers this year!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Nancy

Smart Jillian

I know she's mine so I'm naturally bound by the oath of Motherhood to think she is one (of three) of the most brilliant creatures on the planet.  However even if this notion was not mandatory, I think I'd be amazed by her.  I'll assume you don't have 9 minutes to watch this video, and that's okay. But... if you do, prepare to be impressed.  -smile-   

She's getting so big!

It's not just the kids I attack with the camera...

Also, I just think this is so cute...  I told Jillian Evan could sit all by himself now, but she's "too nervous to let him do it" because...

"He might bump his precious little head."

Love this. 

Christmas, 2011

To see all the photos from our Christmas, click HERE!

The note we left for Jillian before going to bed.  She snuck out of bed in the night and read it but, "knew it was not true yet because the sun was still in Egypt."  Side story for Christmas this year- Jillian does not believe in Santa.  Long story, but the short version is that she asked me point blank, and I answered.  Ryan and I never had over the top Santa experiences as children so we're not heartbroken about this.  The only trouble is at the grocery store (or insert other errand here) where adults ask, "Are you excited about Santa?" and she nods politely or says things like, "yes, wouldn't that be a fun idea."  lol.  After this happens she always wants to have a conversation about how silly these people are and how they, "didn't know she already knew the secret that is for adults".  Oh... this kid...

Ryan was VERY excited to buy a telescope "mostly for Jillian but to share with the whole family".  He was however, unaware this gift would require him to get a serious education in astronomy.  We're getting there...

I ADORE how Liv is excited about anything anyone else is excited about.  She's such a sweet girl.

Liv's favorite gift:  Jillian's new rain boots.  And, candy.

Evan got a football & other fun baby items.  He looks less that enthusiastic in this photo because he was EXHAUSTED and his mother thought it was a good idea to make him push through his morning nap for the sake of Christmas morning photos.   That mother of his is obsessed with photos. 

Love her. 

Love him.

Love how our kids will "cheers" with any beverage they may be drinking.  Bonus if they are drinking out of glass cups.

Love how Jillian said her favorite thing I "made" for breakfast was a sliced strawberry.  She went on and on about how nice it was.  Of course using as many descriptive words as possible.  She was far less enthusiastic about the eggs, or hash browns. 

Liv was less verbal about how great our breakfast was... more visual, and more appreciative of hash browns. 

Evan checking out his new toys. 

Last one...  I love that these people are mine.  I love that even though sometimes I feel a little left out hardly being on the other side of the camera I feel better knowing that the photos I'm capturing are the things that MY eyes are seeing.  These are my memories in concrete form.  You can't beat that!  I love these people with all of my heart.  They are the most important things to me in the world.  Merry Christmas, everyone!