stuff rowan says that i want to remember

when asked to do something: "ummmmmmm.....................no thanks."

"you're a bank robber" (huh? i'm trying to figure out what she' s really saying with this)

"i slept good, mom"

told me the other day "you're beautiful, mom"... if that doesn't make your day, i don't know what does.

"i'm so happy" to which i reply "you're happy? good!" and she says "no, i'm not.  i'm sick!"  wha??

i love roro.  she's so hilarious.

*post edit-- rowan just said "hey mom...chill out" i'm in for a wild ride when she's a teenager, aren't i?

my girls

i kind of like them.  just a titch.

MJ the Missionary

My baby brother went into the MTC on Wednesday.  I would've posted this that day, but since some strange June flu bug hit us this week, this is my first day back at 100%.

Good luck MJ!  We'll miss you, but you'll be great.

H and R

can't really explain why i love this photo so much.  it's blurry, but it's the essence of how i think rowan feels about her relationship with her cuz:  unadulterated fun.

Harper: 6 Months

My little lovebug is 6 (and a half) months old.  Do I even have to say it?  I will anyway.  LOVE HER.

Stats:

16.4 lbs {60%)
26 in {62%}
17 in head {72%}

Harper (pronounced HAW-puh by her sister) at six months is:

-squirmy
-squishy
-hungry
-clingy (to mommy)
-giggly
-slobbery
-grabby


She's eating solids, but still nursing a lot.  She wakes up once every night, twice if she didn't eat enough during the day.  She is very tolerant of her big sis.  She's sitting up (but still a little wobbly.)  Her eyes are bluish-greenish-grayish but NOT brown like her sister's.  She's so cute.  Love you Harper!!

happy father's day

happy father's day to the daddy at our house.  couldn't imagine life without you.  thanks for all you do! 

we love you.

fall behind, catch up, repeat

that's pretty much how life has been these past couple of months!  lots going on, lots to blog about.  it's all coming.  soon.

5 months

I just looked at my calendar and saw I have Harper's 6 month doctor's appointment in 2 weeks.  So I thought I'd better get a 5 month photo of her up.

Harper at five months:
-is a squirmy worm, rolling over a little, but mainly just grabbing feet and toes
-is eating a few solids--rice and oatmeal, carrots, sweet potatoes, and bananas
-has rubberband wrists (hehehe)
-has the brightest smile! especially in the mornings
-is loved on a little too much by big sister at times, but rolls with it
-wakes up usually only once at night to eat, and only for about 5 minutes.  some nights it's more, but I'm ok with it.
-if she's full, but fussy, she's tired, and will usually suck her thumb til she's out if we lay her in bed.  if she's around the action, though, forget it.  she stays awake.  and fussy.

Love this little girl so much!  I cannot believe she'll be 6 months old in two weeks.  Seriously?  Time needs to slow way down!!

Lots and lots to post about; just need to find the time to get the photos sorted from our NJ trip, brother's wedding, beach, and other random things we've done.  It's all coming soon...

To clear up some confusion:

The post below is HARPER sucking her thumb.  Not Rowan.  For those who asked.

Well, what do we have here?

I was a little wary at first...all I've ever heard about thumbsucking has been bad.  But, then some friends told me thumbsuckers are supposedly better sleepers and generally happier.  So I'm ok with it.  For now.  It's just so cute.

Hello. I'm cute.

That is all.

Easter 2010

{the loot...even mommy got some stuff from "E. Bunny"}

Well, I must say we had a nice Easter.  Justin had the day off work {hooray} and we had a nice relaxing morning, watched General Conference, and enjoyed each other's company.  I really wish every day was like that!!

{admiring some of her treats}

I know, isn't her morning hair awesome?  Wait, here's an even better one:

She sweats a lot in her sleep, so her hair is always super curly in the mornings.  And all over the place.  Rag-a-muffin Rowan.  So cute.

We got the girls some $1 bunny ears from Target.  How cute are my lil' bunnies??

We hid a few candy-filled eggs around the house for Rowan to find.  Obviously she enjoyed herself!  I had tried to talk up the Easter bunny in the days leading up to Easter, but by that morning she'd forgotten all about it and only got excited about finding eggs because we made it seem exciting.  We'll get there, along with teaching her about why Easter is really important.

While Rowan found her eggs and dug through her goodies (consisting of bubbles, books, and way too much candy) Harper just hung out like a champ,

sporting her new shades.  Look at that sassafrass.  She's totally digging them!  I love her.  So much that I want to get up right now and go munch on those cheeks.  Yum!!!

After conference and naps, we headed over to Nana's for another egg hunt and some dinner.  I was bummed that the weather wasn't great, but Rowan didn't mind.  She had a great time with this hunt as well.  I have a feeling we're going to need to tone it down with  egg hunts next year....or get her to eat hard-boiled eggs and just hide those instead.

{futile attempt at getting everyone to look at one camera at the same time. I am convinced this will never happen.}

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter (two weeks ago...I know, I'm so late)!!  We sure did!

She chose her outfit, down to the headband

Someone woke up at 4:30 this morning (not saying who it was, but I'll tell you it was NOT the baby.  or me.  or Justin) and while this would usually mean grumpy, clingy, and temper tantrum-y, it has been a surprisingly smooth morning.  She's been entertaining herself all morning, and came and got me when she needed a diaper change.*  I changed her out of her jammies (SHOCK!) and after I told her no when she asked to wear a church dress, she settled on jeans, a long sleeve tee, her tutu, and my yellow felt flower headband.  Then, she asked me to turn on the radio in her room so she could dance (and sing, apparently.)


While I don't enjoy waking up (and staying up) at 4:30am, I do love mornings like this.

*we've been throwing in subtle hints to try to prepare her to use the potty.  she usually says no, but she brought it up on her own this morning when I changed her.  maybe she'll be ready soon!!  I don't want to force her into anything, so I'm taking my time, but I secretly (or not-so-secretly) really really want her to hurry up already.

Rowan vs Harper: 4 Month comparison

This is one of my very favorite photos of baby Rowan.  Makes me sad to look back and remember her being that small.

Rowan's hair may have been a titch longer at this point, but Harper definitely has MORE hair.  Rowan's eyes were definitely changing--Harper's are still light.  We will see what happens in a month.

I love the chubby cheeks that look like jowls.  Harper usually has the same look going on when she's sitting up.

Have I mentioned that I just love these munchkins?  

Well, I do.

Harper: 4 Months

{the old me would've photoshopped those coldsores out.  but I am a changed person.  she's cute even with that nasty scab}

Oh my goodness, I can't believe she is 4 months already.  It has gone so fast---too fast, as it always does when they are babies.  Harper had her 4 month check up today, and is healthy as a horse.  Hooray!  We love hearing that from the good ol' doc. 

Stats:

14.55 lbs {72%)
24.5 in {61%}
16.5 in head {76%}

Still nice and big on the scales, and we wouldn't have it any other way.  I know I say it all the time, but I love just gnawing on her chubby cheeks.  I love it.  I love her!! 

Some things about Harper at 4 months:

She is completely sweet, smiley, and mellow. 
Hardly cries, and when she does it's only when she's hungry. 
Her sleep schedule is great.
She looks for me!  I love it.
She loves to look around--she does NOT like to be held with her face toward me,  unless of course she's eating.
She's gorgeous.
Her eyes look blue/gray still (though not in these photos).  I don't remember when Rowan's changed to brown, but it feels like Harper's are taking longer to change.  I hope they don't!!
She loves to be held (again, facing OUT).
She's starting rice cereal today. Crazy right?

Harper, I love you sis!! 

Easter 2010: Decorating the Eggs

I thought it would be fun for Rowan to decorate eggs this year.  We got an egg dyeing kit {ahem, a *princess* egg dyeing kit} and got to work for FHE on Monday.  We may or may not have gotten brown eggs.....but, I actually liked how the colors turned out, even though they didn't really match the princess theme.  They look pretty cool, right?  Don't tell me if you don't think so...I like them.

So, Rowan didn't help very much with the dyeing process.  She just wanted to stick her hands in the dye.  But, she did help with putting the princess stickers on.  Which, might I add, is one of her favorite things to do.  (Put stickers on things, I mean.  And not just on just eggs.)

{Don't mind the not done hair and comfy clothes.  If you recall, someone has been having a hard time changing out of jammies these days.}

She also tried a hard-boiled egg for the first time {after throwing an egg on the floor, forcing me to peel it} and she DID NOT like it.  "It's yucky" were here exact words, paired with spitting out the tiny bite she'd taken.

The final product.  Remind me why I bought a princess kit?  Couldn't I have gotten something prettier? {Don't tell Rowan I said that.}

And just because she's so cute and squishy:

She didn't help with the egg dyeing/decorating....she must've been too tired from sleeping and being held and cuddled all day long.  Oh, and the coldsores are healing!! Almost gone!!

...

I have been wanting a pretty "Did you think to pray" image to hang in our room and even though I found some very, very cute ones, I thought I'd do one myself in the colors I want.  The font for "pray" isn't exactly what I wanted, so I'm still searching for the perfect font, but overall I am very happy with it.  And, I definitely need this reminder a lot of the time.

Cheesin'

Look at this kid!  She's hilarious, and I am seriously so surprised she actually posed for me without a bribe {wait, I don't do that......................ok, I do}.  She was wearing a dress that my mom had given me--one that either me or my sister (or both) wore when we were little girls. 

Smiles didn't last long though....ten minutes later she had the most dramatic meltdown {throwing herself on the floor, screaming, crying etcetera, etcetera} over PAJAMAS and not wanting to eat her lunch.  What?  When did this start happening?  Aren't girls so fun?!? :)

my monthly post

I love my kids.  I know that's such an obvious statement, but it's nice to express how awesome they really are.

Sometimes, Rowan misses her naps, and falls asleep right as we're about to get ready to go to her Nana's for dinner.  Ok, so that happened once, but it was pretty hilarious when she conked out in just her diaper in her sister's carseat.  Really, Rowan is such a great kid.  She has the best personality, and her awesomeness really outweighs a lot of the "terrible two" behaviors she's picked up {tantrums, telling us "no" or simply ignoring us, etc}.  OH, but she did pick up a little shoving habit--she'll shove the neighborhood kids away when they try to play with her toys.  It's very frustrating and she tends to pull the ignoring mom thing when I talk to her about it/bring her in from playing.  Tips on this one?  Anyone?

Fun things about Rowan:

She ALWAYS says thank you.  I can't tell you how relieved I am that she's learning manners.

She LOVES to sing and dance.  And by sing, I mean lip-sync fake words to songs that we're listening to, while making funny expressions.

She loves to read books.

She loves Mickey Mouse (good or bad...I don't know...)

She is so great with Harper.

She can count to 10

She can pretend to say the alphabet (funny....we're working on it though)

She loves to run around in circles.  Around me.  When I'm working out.

She is so full of energy, and she loves being around people.  I'm so glad she's such a happy kid.

Speaking of which, this little kid has had thrush and coldsores the past couple of weeks, and has been a complete angel through the whole thing.  Not fussy, even when I have to give her medicine.  She is super mellow, which is such a nice thing--balances out Ro's energy.

Harper is getting good at holding her head up, talking (read: cooing) to us, and generally being a super adorable baby.  Her smiles are probably the best thing EVER.  I just love her, and every little roll on her.

As for Justin and I, we've been staying busy!  The basement is coming along...almost finished with the painting.  Can't wait to finish! I forgot to take before photos (picture an unframed, concrete room) but I will be sure to take after photos.  Promise.

Update

We've been busy!! This week especially. Quick rundown:

• We started finishing our basement. Hoping to have it done by the end of March. When it's done, Rowan will move into a big girl bed, Harper will move into the nursery, and my "office" consisting of my desk, 3 printers, a huge paper cutter, and lots of other supplies, will no longer be in our bedroom. To say I'm excited for the basement to be done is an understatement.
• Justin participated in a study for pain relievers following bunion removal (had surgery to have his bunion removed) and he's in a boot/on crutches for a while.
• Lima Bean Kids.
• A two-year-old and an infant have been keeping me on my toes...just a little bit.
• Never-ending housework. I think I need a housekeeper.
• OH!! And Harper is starting the coo-ing stage. LOVE.

I know it may not sound like much, but my days are full--with not enough hours in them to get everything done. Maybe one day I'll take photos of the girls. Until then, this will have to do (warning: phone photos):

Ro got her hands on some of my liquid eyeliner and thought it would be fun to color on her nose, hands and feet. LOVE the coloring with/on anything stage. (SARCASM)

Mama got bangs, and Harper's cheeks continue to inflate. I gnaw on them daily, don't worry.


Hopefully the weather will start to warm up soon and we can go outside! And take pictures! And use up some of the pent-up energy. When all that happens, I'll post more :)