how time flies

We've had a busy few weeks, so the month of February is flying by. Jamie was in New Orleans for the week of February 7th. He attended the national physical therapy conference. Unfortunately, the weather was not the greatest, but I think he enjoyed the trip nonetheless. Olivia and Violet sang in church on Sunday, February 13th, with their preschool class from daycare. They sang two songs - "For God So Loved The World" and "Jesus Loves Me" - which fit in with the service's theme of love. Olivia did a great job singing while Violet spent most of the time looking around and playing with her friends. Oh well - we were proud of them anyway!

The girls loved Valentine's Day this year. They made valentines for their daycare friends and were very excited to wear their valentines outfits to daycare. Actually, their daycare had a different dressup theme for each day of that week, so the girls thought that was a lot of fun. Their favorite was "wacky day" where they wore completely wild and mismatched outfits. Anyway, back to Valentine's Day! They had a party at daycare and came home with a whole bunch of goodies. I planned a little scavenger hunt for them, which brought back memories for me since my sister and I used to make scavenger hunts for each other when we were little. I gave the girls a note that gave them a clue of where to look for the next note (for example: Look somewhere that is very cold), and in the last place they looked they each had a little gift (a puzzle). Olivia totally got into it and RAN from clue to clue to find the next note first. Violet enjoyed it, but she lingered back a bit and let Olivia do most of the work. It was fun though!

February 17th was the girls' last night of swimming lessons for this session. They really improved over the course of the lessons, and we will probably start them up again in March. Violet was very comfortable in the water, and by the end she was putting her face in the water willingly and floating on her back by herself. Olivia is still a little hesitant about getting her face wet, but she improved over the course of the lessons. They were both very sad when they found out their session was over!

My sister Rhonda and her daughter Emma visited us on February 19th. We met at my sister Terri's house and had a great time hanging out there for the day. It was so much fun to watch Olivia, Violet, Emma & William run around and play together. After naps, we took the kids to Chuck E Cheese because Emma has been dying to go. We thought we might beat the supper crowd, but boy were we wrong!! There was a line just to get in the door and there were kids running around EVERYWHERE. Emma was able to get her picture taken with Chuck E, but Olivia and Violet were too scared of him to be in the picture. The kids had a lot of fun playing games and climbing in the play area. Jamie was not with, so I was a little stressed out trying to keep track of Olivia and Violet, but it worked out okay. But never again will I do that on a Saturday. :)

On Sunday, February 20, we were hit with more snow. It was pretty warm the week before so most of the snow on the ground had melted, but then it was replaced all over again. We went for a walk just as it began to snow. It was a nice, light snow so we had a good time walking in it. Olivia and Violet found sticks on the ground and spent a lot of time "drawing" pictures in the snow. When we got home from our walk, they did not want to come inside. However, they started chasing each other around with their sticks, so I decided it was time to make them come in!!

Latest funny saying: When we were on our way over to Terri's house last Saturday, we saw several airplanes flying in the sky. I said to the girls: "Would you like to fly on an airplane someday?" Violet said: "Yes! I want to fly on an airplane to the Eiffel Tower!"

Violet & Olivia ready to sing in church:

My sweethearts on V-Day:

Violet, Emma & Olivia at Chuck E Cheese:

Violet on a ride at Chuck E Cheese:

Olivia on a ride at Chuck E Cheese:
Olivia and Violet chasing each other with sticks:

winter fun

Last Saturday, we went to the Plymouth Fire & Ice Festival on Parkers Lake. It was a fun community event. There were a ton of fun outdoor activities, but there were also a lot of people so we didn't wait in line for them all. We rode on a horse-drawn wagon, pushed the girls in Viking sleds, climbed on a big snow hill, and watched people ice skate. There were also pony rides, dog sled rides, recycle bin races, ice bowling, an appearance by Goldy Gopher, and fireworks. The girls lasted outside for two hours and then hit a wall, so we left for home just missing the fireworks. We had a really fun time though and enjoyed spending time outside on a beautiful winter day.

Olivia and Violet have still been enjoying swimming lessons. They are more willing to put their faces in the water and they have also been learning how to float on their backs. The challenge is controlling their bladders. The water does strange things to them, so they usually have to go to the bathroom three to four times during their 30 minute lesson. Not fun for mom and dad who have to take them constantly.

On Saturday, January 29th, we put the girls down for a nap. They were a bit restless, so I checked on them about 15 minutes later just to make sure they had settled down. Olivia was asleep in her bed so I tucked her in. I went over to Violet's bed to tuck her in as well and I could find her. I threw back the covers to make sure she was not in her bed. I was a little worried for a minute, but then I looked around upstairs and found her in the toy room like this:

Apparently she did not want to nap in her bed! Too funny. Here are a few other recent pictures.

Olivia putting her face in the water during swimming lessons:

Violet floating on her back during swimming lessons:

Olivia & Violet on the Viking sleds at the Fire & Ice Festival:
Daddy pushing Violet on a Viking sled:

good times

Olivia and Violet started swimming lessons yesterday. They had lessons back when they were one year old, so it had been awhile since they participated in a structured class. They both loved it! They were so excited and got right in the water with the teacher. They had to make sure that Daddy and I were watching though! They wore goggles for the first time and also were willing to put their face in the water. They would turn and give us a thumbs-up every time they did something new. The only downside was that I had to take them to the bathroom about three times during the 30 minute class. I apologized to their teacher afterward, and she said that it is pretty common for the pool to do funny things to a child’s bladder. Their teacher also said that the girls did great for their first class. She said they did not want to put their face in the water the first time she asked them to but then she asked them to do it just one time, and then they said “OK!”

We also enjoyed a great visit with my mom and dad last weekend. They are heading to Arizona for most of the month of February, so they came down to see us before they leave. The girls loved spending time with them and were very sad when they left!

I am enjoying this age so much. Several people told me that they thought age three was worse than age two, but so far I don’t think this is the case (knock on wood).

Violet is such a sweetheart. She would give you the shirt off her back if you asked her for it. She is very affectionate and cuddly. She is also very focused and loves activities such as coloring and painting. She takes her time and does a good job of staying in the lines. She still enjoys puzzles and can pretty much put them together on her own.

Olivia is also sweet, but she is our socialite. She talks nonstop (yes…I mean nonstop), and has no problem asking for whatever item Violet is playing with (which Violet usually hands over). She loves to be the center of attention and thrives on lots of activity. She is not shy about asking for a movie or other treat.

My favorite part of the day is when the girls first wake up. They usually stumble into the bathroom where I am getting ready for work. I kneel down and cuddle with them for a few minutes while they try to wake up. I love this moment.

I’ll leave you with this quote from Olivia: “I love blankie. I love Mommy. Daddy. Sister. I love everyone in the whole world!”

Violet & Olivia putting their faces in the water:

Thumbs up! We did it!
Violet jumping into the pool:
Olivia jumping into the pool:

Olivia being mischievious!!!