You've got a friend in me

My girls

My girls are going to be three soon. It's gone so fast, and yet I can remember many times wondering how I was going to make it through until bedtime. I remember when the doctor first told us we were going to have twins-- I couldn't stop crying for joy in disbelief. These sweet girls continue to surprise me and bring me tears of great joy.
Happy almost birthday, my sweet angels. Thank you for making me your mother.

Friends

I met my two best friends out here because of our daughters. The girls were born within two months of each other, and we were all first time moms needing to get out of the house and relate

to other women. I learned to be a mom with these two women and have a special bond with them that time and distance will not erase. They are like sisters to me. This past week, we all got together to celebrate Jessica's birthday. Three years later and our little brood has almost doubled. I look forward to more "family" reunions in the future.

Our first stitches

I added a few more stripes to my mom shirt this week when Lady cut her finger on broken picture glass. The girls were supposed to be in bed taking a nap. Instead, while I was feeding Baby in my bedroom, they decided to play downstairs. Lucky for me, I had to go to the bathroom and was awake and close to hear "the scream." I ran in to find Lady holding the above picture with shards of glass poking from it. I took the picture from her and took her to the kitchen to get a towel for her hand/arm. There was so much blood, I couldn't see how many cuts there were or where the blood was coming from. Thankfully, it was only one finger. I made a few calls to friends in town, but no one was available. So I called Daddy and told him to come home from work and get us to the hospital.
One of the pieces of glass.
We spent four and half hours in the ER and read every kids' book and magazine they had (not a great selection I have to say). We managed to make it through the stitches by recounting every scene from the Cinderella movie. Lady left having charmed every person who met her. She was very, very brave. Although, she did tell me she wasn't going to invite the doctors to have Cinderella cake at her birthday party.

Rosemary Lake

The first place we moved to out here was close to Rosemary Lake. We used to take the girls for many walks to and around the lake. Finally, three years later, I took the girls swimming in the lake. They LOVED it. Now, I'm sorry I hadn't done this sooner!Bell flicking her hair while she frolicks in the water
Lady practicing her swimming moves

The Zoo!

Our friend Naomi has passes to all of the fun parks and museums around the city, including the zoo. We have made several trips to the zoo with her and each time there has been a different animal experience. This trip we had a great view of the tigers.
Lady couldn't take her eyes off the tigers to give me a smile. Luckily, I caught Bell turning around.
Here Lady "drives" the safari truck with all of our zoo buddies: Bell, Naomi and the Hansen kids.

Lady was in awe of this huge boa constrictor. I was in awe of the thick plexi glass that separated us!
Baby G-- first time I put her in the stroller without her bucket seat.

Happy Six Months... posted a little late

Happy 6 months, Baby G. Thank you for bringing us so much happiness.

Vacation Part III- West Point & Sarah

So as if the drive to CT and NYC wasn't enough... we packed everyone back in the car and drove another hour to West Point. If you haven't been, it's an absolutely gorgeous campus. Here we are pictured overlooking the Hudson. And while the campus is beautiful and the history of the school is impressive and inspiring... there is only one person worth that drive...
My best friend from college... Sarah! This Southern Belle put out the royal treatment for us, making us an amazing home cooked meal (the woman can bake), and putting her husband, the Major, up to taking us on a personal tour of the campus. The Major was a cadet at West Point and is now teaching there. It made me so grateful for the sacrifices these young men and women are making (and their families) to keep my family safe.

True Freedom Fighters: Lightening McQueen, Sarah, Snow White, the Major and Mister Baby.

The kids took to each other like ducks on a June bug (that's the southern influence hitting me). We hadn't been there for more than 30 minutes when all of the girls were dressed in Disney princess attire. My girls even slept in Snow White's bedroom... the first time they have ever been willing to sleep away from their parents at someone else's house. They lasted until 5am, when they ended up in the guest room bed with Daddy and me (good thing it was a King sized bed). We were sad to only be able to spend a day. The kids would never have let us leave, except that Sarah packed a tasty snack bag for the ride home (Barbie fruit snacks, Cookie Crisp Cereal and Sarah's chocolate cake...okay, Mommy ate the cake). It was the perfect ending to a much needed getaway. Now back to reality...

Vacation Part II- NYC

I don't know what's crazier... taking our kids to the Big Apple, or posting this unflattering picture of myself on my blog. I swear it's the bad camera angle that makes me look heavier... or not. Anyway, I had visions of us visiting the Statue of Liberty, Central Park, etc, etc. What we actually did was probably the most fun for us (visiting our old neighborhood, including the grocery store... yep, everyone still speaks Spanish, the gas station where they pump your gas, and a drive by the old Parview Cafe... sigh) and most fun for the kids (visiting Toys R Us in Times Square).

The first thing you see when you walk through the Toys R Us doors is the giant Ferris Wheel. With the way the girls tolerated the wait in line, we are definitely NOT ready for Disneyland. However, all was forgotten as we went around and around and around for 10 minutes. Baby was asleep the whole time, snug as a bug in my Bjorn.

Our little bookworms... they read almost every Princess book in the store.

So if you were an almost 3 year old girl, what would sound more appealing to you... seeing the Statue of Liberty or visiting Barbie's Mansion? We'll hit Lady Liberty when the girls are a bit older and more able to appreciate her. If only Mattel made Barbie Liberty...

Vacation Part I- Yun!

Our dear friend Yun has visited us at least 5 times since we moved back to the East Coast. Every time he comes we put him to work: grilling at the girls' first birthday, cleaning our carpets, helping at our yard sale, etc. We did set him up with two of my close girlfriends... but it wasn't a match. We thought that the least we could do is take the whole family down to Connecticut and trash his beautiful new townhome that looks like it came straight out of a Pottery Barn catalogue (oh wait... it did). He treated us like royalty; crab, eggs and bacon and fruit galore for breakfast, steak and King Crab legs for dinner, Snow White and 7 Dwarfs on his 60" HDTV, and of course, letting the girls use his new couch as a trampoline.
One of the girls' highlights: a mega bubble bath in the jacuzzi tub. I put a wee bit of shampoo in the water and we had some good bubbles, but after I put the jets on, it was like the bubbles were on steroids. They filled the entire tub, leaving only the girls' heads to show life. The girls are sitting straight up in this photo.
We disrupted the serene townhome community with our infectious laughter and girly squeals.
Baby G loved the water. She and Mommy beat every one else in a race across the pool.
Thank you for a great time. Your bachelor pad will never be the same... you did find that permanent black marker, didn't you (and you think I'm kidding)?

Best Friends