Breakfast at Mummy's office and Spring has sprung

What a busy couple of weeks we have had. It had been a few months since the girls had visited the office and they wanted to see Collette (a lady I work with) so they came in early one morning to have breakfast tacos with us before going to pre-school. Of course they were all excited and didn't actually eat much but oh well they had fun. In fact the following week we had picked up Collette on the way to work as she had dropped her car off for a service. When we stopped to let Collette out at the office on the way to pre-school poor little Caitlyn was all upset because she thought we'd all be getting out and having breakfast together again.

On Wednesday this week Amy was in a play at pre-school. It was called "the tall tall grass". Each of the kids were a different animal and Amy was a Firefly. She was so excited because she was the only one with props....a flashlight! At the end of the play she thanked everyone for coming to watch. It was so cute. I am still finishing decorating both Amy and Caitlyn's bedrooms and I'm nearly done. Last weekend the shelves I bought them were put up and in Caitlyn's room she has a clock and growth chart up too. Caitlyn also finally is out of her crib and into a toddler bed. Two weeks ago she was climbing out of it when I put her down for a nap so I converted it to the toddler bed. She has done really well too. Knowing her I was expecting that she would get out of it when I pit her to bed at night, but she hasn't. She goes to bed really well and stays there for the night!

This weekend we have had lots of time outside planting flowers in our garden beds. I bought the girls each their own watering can. Caitlyn ended up taking a nap but Amy was a big help in the garden. She had an important job of stacking all the empty plastic pots after I had planted and then she went around with her watering can watering all the flowers. Of course she would only let me pick pink, purple or white flowers. But I think it will look really pretty as they all bloom. Today nothing excited planned, just grocery shopping and laundry. But we may go to the park again this afternoon since it is so nice outside.

Snow in San Antonio and Amy turns 4!

It's hard to believe we have been back in the US for 3 weeks now. Sorry to those of you who read this blog, I have been REALLY slack and haven't updated this for months. So to bring you all up to date since October.......the girls and I moved to our new house in November, then Grandma Liz came to visit us for a month and spent Thanksgiving with us. Then the 4 of us flew back to Australia for 5 weeks to spend Christmas there and celebrate Grandma Liz's 60th birthday. I was so worried about flying that far with the 2 girls but I have to say they both behaved really well. They are little experts at getting through airport security!

So we left extreme heat in Australia and came back to San Antonio where the temperature has been all over the board. One day it was 80 and 2 days later it got down to 9 overnight and we woke up to snow. OK - so it's not like you can ski in it or anything but this is San Antonio and we don't get snow often. So of course as soon as the sun came up the girls and I headed out to play in the driveway and the sidewalk (of course as soon as the sun came up it started to melt too). It may be years before they ever see snow again so I had to make sure they got to see it.

Last weekend Amy turned 4! It was also Devyn's 1st birthday, so we headed over to Devyn's party and Ashley also had a little cake for Amy. It was a fun party and the kids got to play all afternoon. Amy did very well with gifts - Grandpa Jeffrey bought her a scooter & helmet. Of course since Amy got a ride on outdoor toy Caitlyn got one too (a pink radio-flyer trike)! We've also got some new DVD's and Grandma Liz is buying a Disney Princess T/DVD combo. This weekend while the girls are at Jerad's I am decorating Amy's room. I have bought her a new "big girl" bed and bedding from Pottery Barn. So by Monday she'll have a pink and brown room with ballerina/dance accents. I guess it's time to move on from the Winnie the Pooh nursery stuff.

Caitlyn's 2nd Birthday

We had a busy week last week as we celebrated Caitlyn's 2nd Birthday. She had a great time!! We went to Gymboree and all the kiddies loved playing on all the equipment, dancing and trying to catch bubbles. The birthday girl wore the cutest little outfit and loved being the center of attention. After all the playing was over we went into the party room for cupcakes, ice-cream and juice boxes :-) It was a really great place for the party as the activities accommodated a range of ages. All the boys and girls seemed to really have a good time.

Caitlyn received some lovely gifts (clothes, dolls, books and toys). Now Amy is asking when will it be her birthday.... Last week Caitlyn also had her 2 year well visit at the doctors and she now weighs 25lb 10oz and is 34 3/4" tall. She is a little bigger than Amy was at the same age but seems to be the same as Amy in that she is tall for her age (75th percentile) and fairly lean (only in the 35th percentile for weight).

Amy is a little sick this weekend with an ear infection, so it is antibiotics again for her at the moment. I am going to follow-up with her pediatrician next week as I think she will need a consult with an ENT and possibly tubes to stop these recurrent ear infections. But for now she is having some Mummy/Amy time, getting cuddles and watching some of her favorite movies.

Next week the girls and I are going out with Blake and his family to the pumpkin patch to enjoy all the Fall activities, paint pumpkins, build scarecrows etc. Then the following week is Halloween, so trick or treating for sure. Will post more pics then.

Cheeky little ones growing up so fast

Once again I seem to have taken forever to update this blog. Sorry to those of you who like to read it often. These days I am just so busy and wiped out by the end of the day I just never seem to get around to doing it. A couple of weeks ago the girls and I went and had some photos taken so I figured it would be nice to post some recent pics. Fortunately this time they both behaved really well and I was able to get some really cute pictures. I know I say it often but it continues to amaze me how quickly they are both growing up. Amy develops more little personality (a.k.a attitude) every day and Caitlyn doesn't seem to be afraid of anything and is always getting into something. Caitlyn still doesn't talk much really but is saying more words now. I guess she will be just like her sister in that Amy didn't talk until she was at least 2 1/2.

Caitlyn's 2nd birthday is next month and I have booked a small party at Gymboree. I'm sure the kids will love the play area and who doesn't love cake and ice-cream afterward? I bought her the cutest little outfit with the number 2 on the front for the birthday girl. Amy is still doing her ballet and tap at daycare and they have a concert coming up in the fall at the Boerne Dance Festival. While I'm sure all the little ones will probably have a hard enough time standing in line I'm sure it will be cute to see all the little ones perform for us.

We're all getting excited about our trip to Australia too at the end of the year. Let's just hope the excitement lasts for the length of the flights!!

Summer is here

It didn't take long for the hot weather to start in San Antonio. These photos were taken Memorial Day weekend when the girls were with their Dad. They love splashing in the water. Amy gets to swim twice a week at Daycare and she really looks forward to it. She asks every morning "Are we swimming at pre school today?". Caitlyn is a little more apprehensive of the water but once she is in there she has fun too. It will be fun during the summer though being able to take the girls to the pool!

On Monday they are both moving up to new classes with new teachers. Hopefully they will adjust OK. Caitlyn is usually OK and likes just having a new room with new toys. But Amy gets attached to her teachers and likes routine so changing teachers she can get a little upset.

Last Saturday the girls had fun at Olivia Garner's 1st birthday party. They got to decorate party hats with all kinds of stickers and glitter and of course Amy had to find the little fake gems and add some bling to hers! Then they got to enjoy birthday cake (made even better because it was ice-cream cake!) Yesterday we went and had lunch with Ashley, Chris, Blake & Devyn at Sea Island. Despite the 90 degree weather the kids wanted to play on the slide. The poor little things looked so hot and Amy's face was nearly as pink as Mummy's shirt. They had fun though.

We are now getting excited because Uncle Tim will be here to visit soon. Mummy may have to produce the Elmo guitar Tim bought Caitlyn for Christmas and make it go off at some opportune time (like when he is trying to sleep in) then he will realize there is no volume control nor off switch and the slightest little movement sets the bloody thing off.

Easter and Spring 2010

It's hard to believe Easter has now been and gone. This year is just going by too fast. Both of the girls are continuing to grow and develop their own little personalities. They both of course were excited about Easter and Caitlyn got the hang of hunting for Easter eggs really quickly. She loved snacking on the goodies that were inside the eggs. Amy has had a few ongoing problems with her asthma and is off to see an asthma/allergy specialist on May 10. At the moment they think it is more allergy related and the poor little girl is now taking 2 more medications. Hopefully after May 10 we'll get it more controlled.

They are both still having fun at daycare and each day they seem to come home with new stories or activities. In the last couple of weeks Caitlyn has been naughty and bit a few kids in her class when they try to get a toy off her. Of course the situation is not helped when big sissy sits there and tells how good she is and that she doesn't bite! (Thanks Amy for rubbing it in). Amy will sit there and recite all the rules to Caitlyn.................no biting, no pinching, no pushing etc and then on Friday on the drive to daycare we hear No throwing mulch! I'm like where did that come from :-) Amy loves her rules and of course Caitlyn just laughs at her.

With it starting to get warmer we'll be going for a swim each week. I bought the girls the cutest new little swimming outfits (matching of course), so I'll get some pictures when we're at the pool for the next post.

Spring is here!

The cold weather seems to be finally behind us and we are having some great sunny days (which is nice on the weekends!) It's hard to believe it will soon be Easter. March has been another fun month for us girls and we are certainly reaching some milestones. As many of you know potty training with Amy started over a year ago. Since that time I have tried getting her to use a potty, a step-stool with a Dora toilet ring and tried bribing her with M&M's, Tinkerbell underpants (whatever it would take). But she just refused to even sit on the potty (clothed or not). She would scream and stiffen up so I would let it go and try again in a couple of weeks time. I was starting to think she will be at school still in diapers. Well about 2 weeks ago we were at babies R Us buying diapers and Amy announces she wants a pink potty. I thought great so of course I buy the one she wants. We get home and for 3 days she wouldn't go anywhere near it and even told me I can take it back to the store. One night before bath I had Caitlyn undressed and sat her on the potty. Low and behold she tinkled in the potty - little sissy used the potty before Amy! The other night out of the blue while I was on the phone with Tim, Amy walks into my bedroom naked with the potty and she had pooped in the potty all by herself :-) Now for the last week while she is at home she tinkles and poops in the potty, no prompting necessary! She will undress herself and go and use the potty. Looks like friendly competition from Caitlyn did the trick. We are going out this weekend to buy her some more underpants. Although she did tell Grandpa Jeffrey the other night that he had to buy her Tinkerbell underpants.

Amy is so funny with little things she does - she certainly won't do anything until she is ready. Each day now it seems she comes home from preschool with the funniest little phrases and mannerisms. She is so brutally honest too. In the bath the other week I was washing her hair and told her how her hair is getting darker like Mummy's, she said "Yes, dark like you and silver". Gotta love it when your child points out you have grey hair. Caitlyn too - she isn't talking yet but has her own little personality. She is so loving too, she loves to give kisses now and wave goodbye. When I pick the girls up from preschool I get Caitlyn first and take her to Amy's class room. All of Amy's friends come up to me and want to play with Caitlyn so I put her down on the floor and all the little boys and girls hug each other and say goodbye every afternoon. It is so cute to watch!

The girls were with their Dad last weekend and he took some cute pictures of them sitting in a field of blue bonnets. It was cute seeing them hug each other. Another nice Spring weekend coming up this weekend too. So we will be off to the park today for sure.

Growing up way too fast

It's been another busy 2 weeks for the girls and they are both growing up so fast. The phrases that now come out of Amy's mouth continue to shock/entertain me everyday! Not to mention the fact that she is only 3 - god help me at 13. The other night (like most nights) I was asking Amy if she wanted to use the potty. She told me "No, just at pre-school." We then had a bath and after bath I asked her again. She refused again and I said "Well you use it at pre-school." Her response, "Actually.....no I don't." I guess you had to be there to hear her attitude. I had to turn away so she didn't see me laugh. And her latest word of the week seems to be "Remember?" For example..........."I told you last week Momma. Remember?" Where does she get this stuff? She also bugged me for the last 2 weeks to get her hair cut. Since she has never really been to the hairdresser and she is so into her hair clips etc I kept asking her if she was sure. Apparently she wanted to get her haircut like Emily's (a little girl in her class). Peer pressure at 3 - my god. So after 2 weeks of nagging I took her to the hairdresser yesterday to get her haircut. It does look adorable, just cut to her shoulders. She says she is a big girl now! Of course the big girl won't let me get a photo of the new hair style.

Caitlyn is an expert walker now and gets upset with me if I try and carry her to the car. When we leave the apartment in the morning she walks from the living room out to the garage and then tries to climb up into the car. She has also learned how to give real kisses and is so cute when she says "Uh-oh". There is a pause in between the sounds and real emphasis on the "oh". Somehow with all the trouble Caitlyn find I am sure she will need to use this phrase a lot!

Mummy did have one victory this week though. Monday night both of the girls decided they didn't want to eat the chicken and pasta they were given for dinner. So they got it again Tuesday night. Caitlyn nibbled a little but not our stubborn Amy. So Amy got it again Wednesday which is where I think she realized that Mummy wasn't letting up. So then on Thursday night they both ate all their carrots and peas!! Too scared that they may have been able to predict Friday's dinner I guess.

Amy turns 3!

Well another month has flown by for us and the girls are just grwoing up way too fast. Fortunately we have not had any more illnesses to worry about so that is good news. Caitlyn is now walking everywhere and getting into absolutely everything, more often than not things she shouldn't be in of course. I don't normally give her messy food to eat as I usually prefer a peaceful dinner for the 3 of us (i.e. mummy wants to be able to eat her dinner without tidying up mess every 30 seconds). However, the other night I gave her some of my spaghetti and sauce - she went to town. Absolutely loved it!! She of course got her hands and face messy but for the first time didn't actually drop half of her meal on the floor. She had a tantrum when it was time to get down from the table! She was having so much fun eating it I couldn't resist to take photos.

We also had a fun week this week - Blake is now officially a big brother, I went to visit his new baby sister Devyn in the hospital on Tuesday. Amy was all disappointed because she wanted to go to and didn't understand why she wasn't allowed in with the newborns. In a few weeks we'll visit at home though and then I'm sure her and Blake will be in their element. Then of course it was Amy's birthday yesterday. I didn't plan any big party this year, we just went across the road to Brindles and had some yummy ice-cream. The girls then went to their Dad's and kept on celebrating I'm sure. She did get some lovely gifts though and of course Tinkerbell featured in there. She also now has an adorable dance bag for her ballet and tap stuff. I also got her a cute little girls charm bracelet. It came with a heart charm and I also bought her a fairy charm (since that certainly reminds me of what she is into at this age). I will be taking Amy for her 3 year check-up tomorrow so we'll see how much she has grown and hopefully find out whether she needs to continue with the twice daily pulmicort.

Things are tough for us right now with everything that is happening but I am so blessed to have those 2 little girls in my life. I love watching them grow and change and develop their own little personalities. No matter how tired and exhausted you are at the end of the day getting a hug and a kiss from them before bedtime each night is my idea of perfect!

A new year

Here is the first post of 2010. We didn't really do anything to bring in the New Year, in fact didn't even make it to midnight (but what's new there!) Amy has been able to start back at daycare after her month off recuperating. She is in a new class with new teachers but seems to be adjusting well. She is especially excited because now she is old enough to start the ballet classes they have on a Thursday. While Grandpa Jeffrey was here we went and bought her leotard and shoes that she needs. She looks so damn cute. This week they are doing tap which I think will become her favorite because she loves putting the tap shoes on and dancing in the kitchen on the hard floor already.
Caitlyn on the other hand continues to be my "mischievous" child. She is 1 and I already had to the front office! She bit someone at school the other week while fighting over a toy. Thankfully she hasn't repeated it. She is walking more though and is very proud of all the extra things she can do now (usually revolves around getting into some cabinet she shouldn't be in. She had her 15 month check up on the 7th Jan and she is now 30.75" and 21lb 14oz. She's like her sister though in that she is not saying any words yet. So she probably won't talk until she after her 2nd birthday too.
Grandpa Jeffrey went home on the 8th and we miss him. While he was here Amy had an obsession with counting red cars and McDonald's. So now during the week we keep a tally so that she can tell him on Sunday's when he calls how many she has seen. Both girls have also seemed to carry on the game of squirting water on me while in the bath. Thanks for teaching them that one Grandpa Jeff!
It has been really cold here in San Antonio (well for Sth TX anyway). However, I'm about to get a lot colder when I head to Boston tomorrow for the week. I think the high all week is 38. Hopefully there are no snow related travel delays. I am busy today washing and getting the girls stuff ready for them to spend the week with Jerad. So I'll go and finish that and post again later.

Christmas 2009

What a busy week we have had. Grandpa Jeffrey arrived last Friday and while Amy isn't allowed back to daycare until the New Year (because of her pneumonia/asthma) she has been spending her days with him (telling him what to do!). Last Sunday we went to Jennifer Garner's house to decorate Christmas cookies. Amy was a little shy at first but was then having a great time with all the other kids. During the week I took Dad and the girls downtown for dinner and a ride on the boat along the Riverwalk so we could see all the Christmas lights. It was a long wait in line for the boat but definitely worth it once we got on - Amy loved it and wanted to stay on the boat. Caitlyn was looking all around too and clapping her hands. Although little Caitlyn fell alseep pretty quickly on the way home in the car!

Christmas morning was exciting for the girls and I think Caitlyn was better at tearing apart the wrapping than Amy. Both girls got plenty of things to play with and mum had trouble finding places to put it all. We spent Christmas lunch at the Eckert's place. There was plenty of food and drink for everyone. Caitlyn spent most of her time trying to get to the stairs and Amy loved playing outside with Stephen's daughter Maddie. Amy even came inside wanting her own scarf and digital camera so she could be like the older girls!! The most exciting Christmas present of all though would be that Caitlyn has started walking :-) She only takes a few steps at a time but it is so cute to watch. She'll be into everything now. The day after Christmas Grandpa Jeff and I took the girls to the park - where we were once again instructed on what to do by Miss Amy - this time we were to push her high on the swing. Caitlyn loves the swings too and seems to like going higher than Amy.

So long between posts

To those of you that follow this blog i am sorry it has been so long between posts. Life has been very hectic and i just never seemed to find time to get to this. So here i go trying fill in the last 2 months!

September was fun when Grandma Liz came over for a 5 week visit. The girls loved it of course and Amy for some reason calls her Grandmother instead of Grandma - sounds very formal when she says it. Amy is really talking up a storm these days and singing little songs to herself - it is so cute. Caitlyn is saying sounds but not real words yet. She is really cute when she blows kisses and plays peek-a-boo. Caitlyn is a real cheeky little thing. Both of the girls are now in daycare at Country Home. Amy loves it and goes running in to play with Miss Samantha each day. It was embarassing the other day when I went to pick her up and she proceeded to tell me (in front of all the other kids) how some other kiddies had been naughty and were running in the calssroom. Hopefully she will learn in time it is not wise to tell on your classmates! Caitlyn surprised me and actually cries some mornings when I drop her off. She is usually so laid back and doesn't get bothered by much. She of course is fine within minutes of me leaving.

While Grandma was here Caitlyn turned 1. We had a little party for her at home but it was rescheduled to a week later because Amy had been sick with a tummy bug. She had a little cake all of her own but needed some encouragement to get in there and get messy with it :-) Amy loved it because she seems to think all the new toys that Caitlyn got were for her. She might as well enjoy it now because I am sure once Caitlyn is bigger I know who will win those battles out of the two of them!

Fall is here of course, so last month Blake and Amy had fun at Lovecreek Orchards (about an hour away in Medina, TX) at the Harvest Festival. They built scarecrows, painted pumpkins, petted the farm animals, went through the maze and just had a great time. Amy is also looking forward to next weekend when she goes to Blake's 3rd birthday party.

We had a bad week the other week. There was a Saturday night where poor Amy was coughing literally all night long. I took her to the med clinic on Sunday morning and we were sent to the ER at Methodist Children's. After 9 hours, blood tests, chest x-rays etc she was admitted to the intermediate care ward with pneumonia and has been diagnosed with asthma. Our poor little girl looked so tiny in that hospital bed with tubes and monitors everywhere. She was a real trooper though and takes her medicine every day, she even did well with getting her iv put in. So now we have daily albuterol and flovent morning and night. We go back to the doctor on Friday and we'll see what they say for long term treatment of her asthma.

Despite Amy just getting out of hospital we were still able to have a fun Halloween. We headed over to Jennifer's house to go trick or treating with Nicholas and Olivia. The kids all looked so cute. Amy was a pink pirate, Caitlyn a pink leopard, Nicholas was Harry Potter and Olivia was Piglet. The kids had a great time and certainly bought home plenty of candy. Mummy will be rationing it out for weeks to come.

The other exciting news is that Grandpa Jeffrey is coming to visit us for Christmas/New Year for 3 weeks. So plenty of fun to come.

Caitlyn walking (kind of)

Well it was a week of firsts this week. On Tuesday Amy had her first day at daycare. She seemed to really like it and was talking to me all the way home in the car about pre-school. In fact when she got home she had a little bit of a meltdown and kept saying she wanted to go back to pre-school NOW. On Thursday however, when she had day 2 she was in tears in the morning when I dropped her off. That afternoon when I picked her up she was fine though. She said in the car that she didn't like Miss Betty (the morning teacher) but Miss Samantha in the afternoon is nice. The only downside of daycare was that Amy of course picked up a little bug and all weekend has had a runny nose and cough. She seesm to be doing well though and tells me she "feels much better after having her med-med". But then 10 minutes later she'll say she "feels terrible". I hate seeing her sick but she is so damn cute! We'll see how she does this week at daycare.

Also on Tuesday when Amy and I got home, Caitlyn had started saying her first sounds (Ba-Ba-Ba). Then this morning at breakfast Caitlyn got up herself behind the walker and started walking!! So of course I had to get a video of it. She certainly loves getting all over the place and into everything she shouldn't. It's hard to believe she will be 1 soon. Our little girl is definitely growing up fast. She has the cutest little smile and giggle. Even when she is in trouble she is a cutie.

We were going to go to Seaworld today as the weather finally seems to be out of the triple digits. But with Amy sick it will be another day at home for us.

Amy is starting Daycare

Today was the last day of the summer semester at Little Gym. We have not registered for the Fall/Winter semester as there has been a change to class times. The class for Caitlyn would start at 9 and Amy not until 10:30. With the 45 minutes wait in between and the fact that your entire Saturday morning is then shot -we have decided to have a break from Little Gym for a semester. But this Tuesday Amy is starting Daycare. She is going to go 2 days a week to Country Home Learning Center (near my work) http://www.countryhomelearningcenter.com/
So on Tuesdays and Thursdays she will drive to work with mummy and then I will pick her up on my way home. I hope she has a fun time there. They provide breakfast, lunch and 2 snacks, she gets a nap after lunch and lots of play time (inside and outside) in between. Most of all I hope she makes some friends there and enjoys interacting with the other kids. I've been trying to explain to her what will be happening and for a while there she somehow had the idea she was going to Seaworld and would see Shamu! Now she tells me she is going to play with other kiddies! With Amy at Daycare it also gives Caitlyn some time just with Dad - no competition for his time from big sister. So I'm sure it will involve some golf games!!

Well I'll post some pictures later in the week on Amy's first day of daycare.

It's been a while between posts!

Where does the time go? For those of you that follow the blog regularly I'm so sorry I only got around to posting once last month - no excuses I guess. Since my last post I turned 1 year older! It was a fun birthday, friends at work bought me candy, starbucks voucher, took me out for lunch and we had cake. I got another cake when I got home too - lucky I like chocolate cake!

Amy is talking up a storm everyday. She is so cute trying to sing her ABC's and counting to 10. She has even started making up her own songs and just singing away to herself (and to Caitlyn of course). It took her a while to start talking but she is doing just fine now. She of course has also mastered how to tell Caitlyn "No" when she doesn't want Caitlyn touching "her" stuff. Most of the time Caitlyn just laughs and continues doing what she wants to do anyway. Can't wait to see some more sisterly love as they grow older. All in all though they love playing with each other and I'm sure in no time they'll be scheming with one another.

I have also had my first trip away for work since Caitlyn was born with a week long trip to Boston at the end of July. Poor Jerad was counting the days until I returned I think. It was a busy week and it was nice to be in cooler weather for a change, but equally nice to get home. The heat here in San Antonio this summer is incredible. It is officially the hottest year on record with 42 days in triple digits and the summer isn't over yet! I am surprised that we have not gone to stage 3 restrictions yet - I guess I better not speak too soon.

Caitlyn turned 10 months old this week. I really can't believe where the time has gone. It doesn't seem that long ago we were adjusting to having 2 kids and now she is crawling and pulling up on furniture. She also has 7 teeth with others coming in. She has a cute little smile but definitely has a gap in her front teeth - looks like we may be up for braces if her permanent teeth come in the same way! But then again, it looked like Amy had a big gap in her front teeth when they first came in and now they are fine.

One of my favorite times with the girls is still bathtime each night. They love splashing and playing together. I place the small tub inside the big tub and usually Amy sits at the end of the bath but lately she has started getting into the small tub with Caitlyn! It's gets very squishy in there when they decide to both try and start kicking.

Caitlyn's 9 month check-up, Circus & Tinkerbell!

So much has happened since our last post. Last weekend we enjoyed the 4th July weekend and went downtown to see the Ringling Brothers circus with Blake and his family. It was a great show. We were allowed in 1hour early so we could get up close to the animals and see some of the performers. Then the show itself lasted 2 hours plus an intermission. Amy and Blake loved seeing the tigers, elephants and acrobats. Mummy and Daddy were impressed with the 7 motorcycles that rode around inside a metal cage. It was certainly a full afternoon and everyone was tired that evening.
On Monday Caitlyn turned 9 months old so during the week she had her check-up visit with Dr Gideon. Caitlyn is 28" tall (70th percentile) and 18lb 6oz (40th percentile). Luckily this time she only needed 1 needle instead of 4 - she seemed to handle it OK. Big sissy went along for moral support too. Also during the week I bought a new camera since my old one had started putting this pink line through the top of the photos. When I bought the new camera I was amazed at how much you get for your money these days. I paid nearly half of what I did 5 years ago for the first digital camera I had and yet this new camera has double the features it seems and is tiny.
Jerad and I are continuing to plan for when we move back to Australia. We have my house back home on the market and then we plan to invest the profit so we can build something when we go back. So we have been looking at different house designs online and getting an idea of what we could afford.
Yesterday was time for little gym again and while we were there they have started selling little girls dance costumes (they now have a dance class for 3+ yrs). One of the costumes had Tinkerbell on it so I couldn't resist getting it for Amy. She wore it all day yesterday and it was quite the drama last night when it was time to take it off! Needless to say I have hidden it today. Amy and I also had a fun night last night - the girls "camped out" in the play room. Amy slept in her little indoor tent while mumy slept on a mattress on the floor outside the tent. Amy kept talking and talking and of course not wanting to go to sleep until well after 10pm. It was hard to get Caitlyn off to sleep in her room too as she seemed to sense she was missing out something and was crying from her bedroom. She came to the playroom with us for a little while but after 3 attempts I did get her to sleep in her crib.
This afternoon I am taking the girls downtown with Jackie, a friend of mine from work. It is the annual River City Dog Show and another lady I know, Kathy, is showing 2 of her golden retrievers in the agility course. I'm sure Amy and Caitlyn will love seeing all the dogs down there and it gets us out of the house. Maybe Amy can start training Domino and Buka after she sees how well the other dogs do :-)

Hot summer days

Once again this week every day is over 100, the low at night is only 78. and we're about to go stage 3 water restrictions. Gotta love south Texas in the summer. Needless to say with this heat we stay in the air conditioning as much as possible. It's been another busy week for us. Jerad and I have been looking at options for when we move back to Australia, so step 1 has been looking into selling the house in New Lambton and then using that money to buy or build something else. At the moment we are leaning towards buying a block of land and then building something closer to the time when we would move back. There are so many things to consider with selling and moving from here, shipping things back and then getting set up back there. I'm sure we can do it though - many have done it before us. It's a bit of sticker shock though when you look at the cost of things in Australia compared to the same item here in the US.

Caitlyn now has four teeth - two on the top and bottom - she looks so cute when she smiles! She is still crawling everywhere but it doesn't look like it will be long before pulls up on the furniture and stands on her own. Amy of course still loves being the big sister and gives Caitlyn kisses all the time. It was funny yesterday with Amy when I was grocery shopping. Since she is such a "big" girl now she likes to walk rather than sit in the shopping cart. So we head off down the aisles of HEB getting groceries and Amy wants to help mummy push the cart (of course this makes it easier for mummy to push the cart and walk behind her while having Caitlyn in the sling.....not). Anyway, we're walking along and whenever someone was up ahead Amy would say "scuse me". I don't think the other shoppers knew where it was coming from - very cute though.

Not much planned for us today - just a trip to Babies R Us, off to Target to pick up some photos and then I might take the girls with me when I go to the gym this afternoon so that they can play in the Kids Club there. We might go for a quick swim too late in the afternoon. Looking forward to next week with the long weekend for 4th July. We are all headed downtown to see the circus with Blake and his family. Then we may go on Sunday night to Seaworld to see some fireworks from their "Summer Nights" show. Well until next week here's to wishing the weather cools down and hope we get some rain.

Caitlyn's crawling!

Well i tried to post last week with a cute video of the girls but the video wouldn't upload. So we got another this week of Caitlyn starting to crawl.

Last week was a busy week this week not made any easier when both Amy and I had a bad stomach bug on Wednesday night. It was a long night - if Amy wasn't being sick, mummy was. Poor little girl ended up having another bath and change of clothes and then she finally got down to sleep again in the wee hours of the morning. Amy bounced right back by the next morning (of course) - but it took Mummy until the weekend. Daddy also had an upset belly for a few days too. Thankfully Caitlyn wasn't affected by it at all. Amy has been saying more words each day - for some reason she likes to make a face like a pirate so she shows that off for the camera too! Caitlyn is almost crawling too, she pulls herself forward with one arm while her legs are out behind her. When she rolls from her back to her belly she almost has her knees in the right position to crawl but then for some reason just flattens her legs and drags herself along instead. It's amazing how much speed she gets though when she is trying to reach something of interest. I know I've said it before but it is amazing how quickly both the girls are growing up and changing. It's fun to see them together and developing their own little personalities but sad too that they aren't little forever.

Amy started her summer semester at the Little Gym last Saturday and thankfully some of the kids from the prior semester are in her class again, so she knows some kiddies. The Little Gym has also started to offer a new class for 3 yr and older to do half dance and half gym. So next year I'd like to get her started in that. Especially since she loves music and dance. Caitlyn will be old enough to start at Little Gym too next semester. Hopefully the girls classes will be back to back.

Today is Father's Day here in the US. The girls bought Daddy the new Tiger Woods golf game for the Wii. I'm sure there'll be plenty of playing this game while mummy is at work. Later today Blake and his parents are coming over for a BBQ. That should be fun and we may go for a swim after lunch since it is so hot. Will post some pics next week.

Show-week at Little Gym & Caitlyn turns 8 months old

Amy had fun this morning at Little Gym. It was the end of the Winter/Spring semester so she got to show off all the skills she had learned and took great delight in showing everyone how she can reach for the bar and swing (repeatedly!) Caitlyn was of course there to cheer her on too. Amy is starting to say more words each day it seems and finally will say her name. Another "skill" she asquired during the least 2 weeks was waking up in the middle of the night and going downstairs in the dark to sleep on the couch. She never cried or came to wake us up - just woke up and found her down there. Daddy got a bit of a shock when her was downstairs and heard this "Hi Dadda!". Needless to say Mummy will be closing the gate at the top of the stairs each night from now on. Speaking of sleeping habits, this week was the first week that Caitlyn consistently slept for 8+ hours each night - way to go Caitlyn. It won't be long before Caitlyn is crawling, she already drags herself forward on her belly with one arm. She can certainly get to wherever it is she wants to go.

Today the girls went to get some photos taken of Caitlyn and then we went for a walk around Barnes & Noble. Amy picked out a book about Little Girls using the Potty and we sat down in the Starbucks within the store to have a drink and share a blueberry scone. Amy quite liked licking the cream and chocolate from the top of my mint mocha chip frappacino. We don't really have any plans for tomorrow so we'll see what the day brings.

Caitlyn sits up on her own

Today Caitlyn sat up on her for the first time!! Up until now she has been rolling to wherever she wants to go but whenever you tried to sit her up she would arch her back and lay down. But not today - I was on the computer this morning and when I turned around she was sitting there smiling at me. You could tell she was so proud of herself. She seems to be more mobile than Amy was at that age. Already pulling up on things - so I lowered her crib yesterday. We think she is teething again because she has been waking up more than usual and just a little grumpy some times with bright red cheeks. Poor little thing. She has the cutest little smile right now with her two front bottom teeth shwoing. Amy is loving her "big girl" bed. I converted it when we got back from vacation. She is such a good little sleeper. She will walk upstairs with me around 8:30 each night, climbs into bed herself, lays on her tummy, I pull the covers up and kiss her good night and then we don't see her until 7:30 the next morning. Hopefully Caitlyn will inherit this trait too (although given her track record it is doubtful).
It's hard to believe our vacation was over 2 weeks ago. I can't believe how quickly the weeks are going by. It's Memorial Weekend here so it's nice to have a long weekend. On Saturday we went to work friend's place for a BBQ. Amy loved it because hamburgers were involved :-) Oh and Michael had baked some yummy brownies for dessert - so we all enjoyed that. With the long weekend it has also meant that Jerad got to play golf twice. So while Daddy was playing golf the girls went shopping. There were some really good sales that's for sure! Yesterday when we were at Lowes we picked up some really nice hanging baskets overflowing with petunias. So Amy helped me pot them when we got home and felt very important using her pink watering can to water them when Mummy was done. We had a few showers yesterday afternoon so Amy also enjoyed running around in the rain barefoot on the grass.
Amy is starting to talk more and more and picking up new words each day. The cutest this week is when she asks for grapes (sounds like gipps). But at least she knows to say please (peeezzz). The other cute one is when she says "Oh no" (imagine it with a Scottish accent if you will).
It sounds like Daddy needs some help peeling the shrimp for the grill tonight so I'd better go. Til next week.............