three

Olivia and Violet turned three this past Monday, November 29th. Daddy and I surprised them by picking them up early from daycare. We showed up right after their nap, and they came running to us yelling "Mommy! Daddy! I'm so excited!" We got in the car and told them we were taking them to a surprise place. They said they didn't want to know where we were going so we kept it a surprise. We ended up at the Mall of America where the girls enjoyed riding on the escalator. We walked into Nickelodeon Universe and the girls were excited because they immediately saw Dora. They both received a free unlimited ride wristband for their birthday, and then we went on our first ride: the merry-go-round. Olivia loved every minute of it, and talked throughout the whole ride about all of the other animals she wanted to sit on. Violet cried throughout most of the ride, and after we got off she announced "I'm done." However, she did come around and continued to ride on rides, even though she was much more hesitant. Her favorite ride was Azul, a blue train that drove around a track. Olivia loved all of the rides, and even started going on some of them by herself. She would exit a ride, then immediately want to go on it again. Her favorite though was the merry-go-round. She loved every minute of it.

We took a break from riding to eat supper with my sister Terri and her family. They even bought the girls ice cream as a birthday treat. When we got home, the girls opened a few birthday presents. All in all, I think they had a pretty fun birthday!

The girls are both pretty excited about being three years old. They think they are so grown up! It is so much fun to see how much they have changed, and how their personalities are different. Olivia is our social butterfly who loves to talk. Sometimes we can't get her mouth to stop moving! She is super goofy and loves to make us laugh. Violet is more independent, and will play by herself. She is so focused and detail oriented, and loves to play with toys that she can sort and organize. She also loves to color very precisely. They sure love each other though, and we love them more than anything! We have certainly had some parenting challenges this past year, but we look forward to the joys and challenges of age three.

Birthday girls Violet & Olivia:

Violet & Olivia at Nickelodeon Universe:

Mommy & Violet riding Swiper's Sweeper cars:

Olivia & Daddy on the merry-go-round:

Olivia & Violet riding Azul the train:

Olivia showing how old she is:

Violet showing how old she is: