Check This Out

I have uploaded a video of Alexandra on YouTube...it was easier than posting here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILQjTnS3E6o

A New School Year

A new school year has started for teachers today and I am here at home with my kids. I went to bed last night thinking about how anxious I would have been had I been going back to school and I'm pretty sure me thinking about being anxious made me have bad dreams. That aside, I don't think it has fully hit me that I'm not going back to school this year. Today I kept thinking about what I would have been doing, emptying boxes upon boxes of supplies, re arranging my room, wondering the halls and thinking about that feeling of something new and something fresh. While today is considered the worst day of the year because summer has officially ended for teachers...I'm still torn to what this day means for me.

I am really excited about staying home and being with my babies, but at the same time I'm wondering what the new year of teaching would have been like and what amazing things the kids would do (artistically and socially) . I have no doubt that Greg and I made the right choice in having me stay home... I have had an amazing 5 months so far, but this is when reality hits and my new adventure really begins. Bulletin boards are replaced with a family calendar of events, lesson plans are pushed aside for play time and reading, lunch in the staff lounge is now lunch on the ground watching the babies, and 9:30 pm is my new 3:50. apprehensive about these new ways of life, perhaps, however I've always been up for a great adventure!

Good luck teachers! It is going to be a great year! (I hear a hurricane or two is on the way)

My Little Gnomes

I'm trying out new features and Apps on my iPhone--here is some new coloring I'm tinkering with...thoughts?

When You're Flying High

you have to hang on tight!

FaceTime

Greg and I had our first real FaceTime conversation with our iPhones and it seemed to work out well. Today, and all Wednesday's are Greg's extra late night at school so we had the perfect opportunity to use this feature. Greg and I talked while I had the camera on the girls so he could virtually visit them and see and hear what they are up to. I have a feeling that we will be using this feature often esp. on nights like this where he won't be able to make it home before bedtime. Thank you iPhone for keeping us connected!

Up, Up and Away

Kaylee didn't go for a balloon ride; those who cry don't get to ride.

Feeding Time

Alex has a love affair with the rice cereal. Today she ate about 1.5 tablespoons (dry measurement) and 4.5 oz of milk!

My Thumb is Yummy

Kaylee loves the way her thumb tastes

Pre-Nap

My girls- <3 them

Tears?

I'm not sure if I mentioned this before but I really don't think it is fair that these little babies can shed tears! Now Kaylee is pretty good at letting a tear or two fall usually around 8:00 at night, but Alex hadn't picked up on that little trick until today. Sad face for mom and dad...babies are much better sans tears!

A Day at the Park

Kaylee took her puppy to the park...and he found a duck!

Are you sure about this?!

Because this is really fun Mom!
Kaylee had her 2nd go around in the exersauser today and she had SOOO much fun! Can you tell?!

Got Tickets to the Gun Show?

Please dad? Your arms have nothing on these Thunder Thighs...
Alex and I were hanging out watching Kaylee in her bouncy seat when she decided to grab ahold of the seat...from that point we tested to see how strong her legs were. Alex managed to stand on her own for about 15-20 seconds. Pretty good for a first timer :)

Mirror...conversation for 2

Oh, little Kaylee! Her voice is the cutest thing.

We've got a mover on our hands

Little Alex is busy growing up too quickly! I placed her on the ocean mat and about 10 minutes later she managed to move herself and her toy to where you see her in the picture.

She definitely moves to the beat of her own little drummer, I just want to find her a slower drummer.

Jump Around...

Jump around! Jump up Jump up and get down. (Channeling my best House of Pain impression)
Alex tried out our neighbors Jonny Jump-Up today. I think Alex was happier eating the rim rather than the actual bouncy aspect of the toy. Perhaps we will try again when she is a little bigger :)

Yum Yum! Open Wide!

Greg worked from home today so we had a perfect opportunity to try out something new with the girls. Today we introduced Alex and Kaylee to rice cereal! Kaylee tried it first and wasn't too pleased with what she was tasting- but we were able to get a few spoonfuls in her mouth. Who knows how much actually made it down. Alex surprisingly didn't mind the first few spoonfuls. But it didn't take too much more for her to realize she didn't really like the taste. I think the reason she was so eager to try the food was because she LOVES putting anything and everything in her little mouth.

I will try to upload the videos of their first cereal meal soon. You get pictures for now.

Good Luck Daddy!

Daddy, we hope you have a good first day of law school! We love you and know you will be great!
We are sending you off with our smiles (we know you love them)
Love,
Alex and Kaylee

Trust me...I know what I'm doing.

I'm turning the page in this book.

Do you see this?!

Daddy, Alex is reading me a story! This is so cool!

A Bumbo party

Thanks to our neighbors we now are owners of a Bumbo. Kaylee is so proud of herself when she sits in it, and Alex, well she goes along with it.

Are you ready for some football?

Greg and I are teaching the girls how to cope with disappointment at an early age.

The girls dressed up for the first Redskins pre-season game which turned out to be quite the victory!

Cleaning the Closet

Apparently I have a hard time getting dressed in the morning/afternoon..or whenever I feel like changing clothes. These are some of the clothes that I had accumulated on my closet floor and recently pulled them into the bedroom to sort, fold, hang, or discard. To my defense, I gave my dresser to the girls and I had not figured out how to store all the clothes that were in the drawers- the floor seemed to be the best option at the time. So yesterday afternoon I found myself busy cleaning up while Greg was at an all day orientation for law school.

The girls were not fans of helping me clean as you can see from their expressions!

All Dogs Go to Heaven

This picture was taken with my poor little Zoe in mind. The 'dog rainbow' is made of puppy toys that the girls love, and a pic of Zoe herself in the middle.

Rainy, Rainy Day

Since we were caught out in the real rain, Alex wanted to remember the moment in the comfort of her home :)

Babies are Growing!

This picture was taken yesterday after the girls had their 4 month appointment- the girls were great and did a fine job getting their vaccinations-then they passed out!

ALex and Kaylee are happy and healthy and growing like weeds! We are going to take Kaylee to the ENT to make sure her 'raspy' breathing isn't more than just some floppy cartilage. No worries. The current stats for Kaylee and Alex:

Kaylee
Height: 24.75" and 74%
Weight: 12 lbs and 20%

Alex
Height: 24" and 30%
Weight: 12lbs 13 oz and 30%

After the vaccinations Alex was just fine, Kaylee was still not pleased. The poor girl cried for about 2 hours and nothing seemed to help her; not even her thumb (it kept slipping out making her even more mad) It was rather sad. But i finally got Kaylee to take a little rest from about 7:45-8:50. Thankfully after a small meal both girls passed out and slept in! I think they are still pretty out of it- I took them out of their crib at 9 am for breakfast and it is now 9:59 and both have fallen back to sleep.

I hope your day is just as peaceful!

Butterfly Babies

Sister, I have a secret to share

While playing in all their toys the Alexandra took the time to share a secret or two to Kaylee.

Can you see us?

My sister and I used to bury ourselves in our stuffed animals as kids and so I decided I would do the same with our girls. I am amazed at how many stuffed toys the girls have and they are only 1/3 of a year old!

On a flying adventure!

Over the hills,
above the trees,
look to the sky,
if you want to find me!

Alex was on quite an adventure today!

Sunny Days

My neighbor Kim and her two kids and my two girls all took a long walk to one of the parks in our neighborhood. Hidden away past the single family homes, way up on a hill in the middle of the golf course is a great little playground- and since it is such a long walk, we must have hats! Thank you to Grandma Kruck for these hats (and matching outfits- a little too big now, but soon they will be perfect!)

Fresh Corn-on-the-Cob anyone?

Aunt Kim

The girls and I took a trip to school the other day to visit for just a short while and then we were off to visit Aunt Kim. The girls were a little tired when they got there, but woke up quickly because they wanted to play! Alex loved sitting on Aunt Kim's couch and talked for 30 minutes non stop, she had lots to say about the new place! Kaylee had fun playing as well, she really loved cuddling with Aunt Kim- as you can see. We spent most of the afternoon there having fun and I went shopping through Kim's closet (Thank you! I'm wearing the brown and white pattern dress today) and by the time we got ready to go it started to rain. Traffic was moving slowly because the rain was coming down in buckets- it only took about 5 minutes of rain to flood the roads- but the girls were lulled to sleep by the sound of the pounding rain (or more likely the vibrations of the car)- We got home safely and the rain had stopped just as we pulled into our neighborhood!

The Girls

Alex claims the sheep as her toy and Kaylee blows bubbles to show her disapproval for not sharing!

4 months?!

You have to be kidding me?! It just hit me that tomorrow the girls will be 4 months old- I have no idea where the time went! I am so thankful that I have the opportunity to stay home and help and watch my girls grow; I have a feeling it is going to fly by!

Our girls are Baptized!

Some of the pictures from the Baptism on July 31st. The priest who married Greg and me came to baptize Kaylee and Alexandra. We were/are so thankful that he took time out of his short trip to Virginia to share this day with us. We were joined by much of our family which made this day very special!

The girls Godparents are our close friend, we are so lucky and happy to have them as an even bigger part of our lives and the lives of our children. Chris and Ashley are Alexandra's Godparents and Brittany and Bryan are Kaylee's Godparents. We know that the girls are excited to get to know their Godparents!

After the ceremony everyone came back to my parents house and enjoyed lunch and the amazing weather!