Saturday, April 28, 2012

52 Weeks of Joy: Week 17

Nap Time Motivation. Joyful? Today, yes. Because the fridge was cleaned out for the first time in a LONG time.

About a month after Miriam was born, Mommy decided that the fridge needed cleaned. Now. So she did. And then when Vivian was born...the fridge needed cleaned. Now. So she did. Apparently, Mommy gets post-baby nesting.

But Vivian is almost 18 months old. And we can't remember when the fridge was last thoroughly emptied and scrubbed down. Certainly (hopefully) not sixteen plus months ago. Either way, it's Spring. Let's do some Spring Cleaning. The weather's too nasty for windows, so the fridge finally got the loving it needed today while the girls slept off the grocery shopping whiplash from this morning.

Only one...wait make that three...moldy items were tossed. All dairy related. Bailey's that expired six months ago. Gone. Some kind of gross syrup explosion. Wiped away. (Where did that syrup come from???? How was it running behind the back of every shelf and under the produce drawers without us noticing????)

See, sparkly clean.


Ahhhh...that's better.

Sorry to make you look at a picture of the inside of our fridge. To make up for it, here's some sister love.

Monday, April 23, 2012

52 Weeks of Joy: Week 16

This one was easy. We help out with a group at church called Couples with Kids. Each month, couples from the parish who have kids (hence the name of the group) get together for some teaching, food, fun, etc. Sometimes kids are included, sometimes not. This month we held a food drive at church and put out the word that anyone in need could stop by Sunday afternoon for free, non-perishable food. The generous response from our fellow parishioners was joyful. But we were particularly joyful that we could show our girls how to give. And that we have been blessed with so much. And that God will provide for us, even/especially when we give until it hurts.

Just some of the food!
Mom and the girls getting ready to help sort and bag food.
Miriam helps unload bags of food to be given away.

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Haircut

Vivian's hair...soft and wispy. Still very baby-like and very sweet. Growing slowly on the sides and fast everywhere else. Not quite a mullet (party in the front and party in the back). Until she got to the point that we just couldn't see her anymore! Eyes frequently disappearing behind a thin layer of fringe. Food too often rubbed into her hair as she attempted to push the stands out of her vision.

The time had arrived for a haircut. Vivi had just finished her dinner, was in a great mood, and strapped into place.

Before

Mommy holds her steady.

Just another snip...

After
She can see! We saved the tiny little offending hairs in a plastic baggie and tucked them into her baby book. Parents are sentimental (or weird) that way.

Sunday, April 15, 2012

52 Weeks of Joy: Weeks 14 and 15

We are cheating. Two weeks at once. But it's the Easter Season. And that makes us joyful. We celebrate the whole season so it's only fair that we get some extra joy, too, right? (Gotta get some blogging miles out of the holiday.) So prepare yourself for a photo bomb.

We had a Christian version of the Jewish Sader Meal on Holy Thursday at our house. Sarah's family has been doing this for years; Tim's parents and grandparents were able to join us this year, too. We reflect on the Jewish Passover meal and include how Christ is the new Sacrificial Lamb with New Testament scripture passages. Matzos, lamb, bitter herbs, wine, and other traditional foods are shared.

Homemade matzos
The lamb...yum.
On Saturday, we went to the Easter egg hunt at our church. Both girls had a great time. Vivian was able to participate on her own this year...what a difference a year makes! By popular demand, we've been doing our own Easter egg hunts in the living room and the yard all week.


We also made a Peep Cake. Both girls discovered they can't get enough Peeps. Vivian learned very quickly to ask, "Mo Pee Pees!?!?" (Translation: More Peep Please.) As you can see from Miriam's face, they loved tasting every step of this cake. The batter. The shavings from the tops of the cakes so they would stack. The fudge icing. The Peeps (of course).


We decided to keep the mess going and color eggs. And thank goodness it was nice enough to take this activity outside. While fun, it was also complete chaos. We had to check each egg every few seconds to see if it was "done." Fingers (and clothes) were "colorful", too. We were a little rough with the eggs. Most of the had LOTS of color on the inside, too. There is a good reason for hard boiling. Don't skip that step. 

Miriam was so proud of her eggs.
Check out Vivian's "Hulk Hand". It was BRIGHT teal by the time we were done.
Easter morning the girls cuddled with the milk cups before Mass. This is the sweetest time of the day in our house. Vivian is still and often tries to hold her sister's hand. Miriam likes worry her own little earlobe while drinking her morning milk. They are just both so warm and cozy.


After Mass, we went to Tim's parents' house for brunch. But we didn't take any pictures there...what were we thinking?!?! We'll have to dress the girls back up in their Easter outfits and show them off in another blog post. Afterwards, the girls napped in the car as we drove across the state to Sarah's aunt and uncle's home for another party.

The girls received a water table for Easter! They love it...for Miriam it's an endless supply for her plant watering obsession and Vivian has another excuse to be soaking wet. Perfect.



It has already been hours of entertainment. We highly recommend this toy. Even Sarah's older cousins were getting into it.



For the most part, Mom just got to sit back and relax. Good Easter.


Oh...and we'd like to introduce you all to...


STELLA! Uncle Michael, Sarah's brother, adopted a Great Dane. She's massive. At one point during the day, Sarah tried to stop her from running out the gate. Instead, Stella pulled Sarah through the yard. She's a very good dog, despite her huge size, and tries to be careful when Miriam and Vivian are near. But we still keep a close eye on her because she just doesn't know how powerful she is! She is absolutely in love with Michael and hates to let him out of her sight. And we're pretty sure he feels the same way.

Just want to share a few more pictures of our day with you. Then we're done (for now). Promise.

"The Three Little Girls"
Sarah's goddaughter and cousin, Amelia
Miriam's mastered bubble blowing!
 We pray you all have a wonderful Easter season, too!

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Pillowcases


Mommy's been sewing...when is she not sewing? These are a couple of pillowcase dresses she made. Super fast and easy to personalize. Vivian's has a little extra cuff/trim around the bottom and Miriam's has a pocket. Miriam was thrilled about the pocket. They are pretty big...room to grow into and probably even wear as a shirt someday.


Vivian wasn't too interested in posing so this is the best view we have for you. As a bonus, she did actually leave the bow in her hair.


Miriam liked her dress enough that she smiled at the camera!


During their photo shoot, the girls got distracted by their library books. We love to watch them read to themselves. Vivian is very animated. Yelling all kinds of made up words. Pointing to the pictures. Turning pages quickly (hopefully not ripping them). Love the little curled up foot.


Miriam has memorized some of the words to her books. Including this one, Fancy Nancy. She reads her memorized words and then makes up a narrative for the other pictures. Some books blend together as she reads. Love You Forever can show up in Pajama Light. Olivia might make an appearance in Brown Bear. Pizza at Sally's, in particular, likes to show up anywhere!

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

The Help

It was "the help" that got us through this sickness. After Vivian got it, then Miriam, then Mommy, and finally, Daddy. Aunt Maria, Sarah's youngest sister and a superstar in Miriam's eyes, came during her Spring Break to help. She played with babies while Mommy tried to keep up with which baby should be taking medicine right now and have they had anything to eat in the last day and where is the extra container of Boogie Wipes...

Gross out alert: Can we just note that it is difficult to know when a diaper change is needed if we can't smell anything.

The Aunt Maria entertainment included a lot of painting. 

Everyone is looking at the camera and (mostly) smiling. It's a miracle!
These babies LOVE their Aunt Maria.
 Miriam, as is her personality, is very attentive to her painting. She works hard and enjoys it!

Vivian, likewise, prefers to paint everything else and then gets around to painting her picture...


We also made homemade cinnamon rolls for breakfast. With icing. Tasty. At least we gave Aunt Maria something enjoyable for her Spring Break.