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Mommy and the girls

The girls and I have had a nice week.  Chris had a pretty crazy schedule this week, so unfortunately, we haven't seen him too much.  Maddie, Lena, and I made the most of our girl time together.  We went to the park twice (clearly I got brave after the first successful trip).  I was pretty nervous to take M and L on my own...Would one run off?  Could I watch each of them close enough that they wouldn't fall off the play ground?  Would they throw a fit when I told them it was time to leave?  Just a few of the many worries I had before we headed out on our first journey alone.  They were such angels, I couldn't believe it!  I swear I saw halos glowing above their heads!  We took our second park trip this morning.  There was no one else to be seen, so I let the girls run around a bit.  We played on the slides, crawled in the tunnels, and went in the swings.  While Maddie and Lena were swinging, they were really calm and quite- just enjoying themselves and the nice weather with a breeze.  After no one saying anything for a few minutes, Maddie looked up at me, and in a really quiet voice said, "Awesome!"  They say the funniest things when there is no one else to hear them.  Yesterday morning we played outside with our neighbors on their swingset.  The girls really like the sand box.

We took a trip to the zoo with three other moms and their kids on Wednesday.  We had nine kids (three sets of twins) between the four of us, so we slowly made our way around to a few exhibits.  It was such a beautiful day, and M and L loved watching all the other children around us...oh, and the animals too.  I think the elephants were their favorite.  They kept saying "elephant, elephant" the rest of the day.  It has been a little difficult to see how quickly the girls are growing up (the last couple weeks with the new bedroom and big girl beds has made it so obvious), but I love that we can communicate so much easier and do so many new fun things together.

Fun in Illinois

We had lots of fun excursions while we were in Illinois.  These pictures sum up some of our adventures.  Chris flew out of St. Louis Monday, so my mom, the girls, and I drove him over and had a day in Missouri.  We played at a playground for a while in the morning, then we met my Great Aunt Maria (she is 91) for lunch.  I haven't seen her since I was pregnant, so I was really looking forward to a quick visit.  Pretty cool the girls have met a great great aunt from each side of the family.  We took the girls into her house for just a bit before we left, and they immediately started rummaging through her things and climbing her stairs.  Maria thought M and L were fabulous, and she loaded them up with toys and books before we left. 

The next shot is from McDonalds in WF.  It was a super windy afternoon, and my mom and I had talked about taking the girls to the park to play.  It just didn't work out, so we grabbed a happy meal and hit the playland instead.  The girls are just big enough to climb through the whole thing.

Of course the next fe pictures are of cuddle time with gma and gpa (while gpa sneaks them candy).  Classic picture of Maddie with her finger up her nose.
The last shot is from a play date with two of my high school friends and their kids.  All the little ones ran around while Leah, Ashley, and I tried to catch up.  The three boys (Hudson, Brady, and Cade) are Ashley's (with one more baby on the way- yay!).  The two girls are Leah's (Kaylin and Avery).  The girls were so excited to see other kids their age that they were literally jumping up and down.

Big girl beds 2

These are the last pictures of my babies in their cribs.  Pretty clear to see why they went into big beds, huh?  I love the look Lena gave me right before she climbed up the side of her crib and over the top.  Stinker.  As soon as Chris brought the mattresses into the house, they figured out what to do with them...jump on them.  In the last picture they are finally getting the hang of it.  

Last night went surprisingly well.  We only had the one fall before Chris and I went to bed.  I woke up a little after 7:00 to a brown haired, blue eyed little girl in yellow pajamas standing next to my bed with a huge grin on her face.  She looked so proud that she woke me up (and that she had spent the whole night in her new bed)!  Soon another girl matching the same description was standing next to her.  I couldn't ask for a better wake up call.

One last thing, we made it into the daycare at church today without the stroller!!!  I know this doesn't seem like much, but to me it is huge.  Not having to lug that huge double stroller in and out of the car saves so much time.  M and L held onto my hands like perfect little angels...totally momma duck moment.

Big girl beds

Well, I have officially uploaded a ridiculous number of pictures and videos since Maddie and Lena were born. I am over my free storage limit with Google, and I just had to purchase additional storage (hopefully it lasts quite a while).

I have pictures to add with this post (of course!), but I can't until tomorrow. Chris worked hard this evening to get the girls' big girl beds all put together. We ordered the mattresses before we went to Illinois, and they came in while we were out of town. Nap time today was officially my babies last nap in their cribs- insert tear here. Pretty sad how quickly they are growing into little girls. On the other hand, they were really excited to see their new room. It is not totally done, so I will get some pictures up once we add the finishing touches. With all of the changes going on we didn't get M and L down until 9:00, so they were pretty tired. Maddie laid down in her bed and drank her water like it was no big deal. Lena was a little weirded out, so I laid down with her for about 20 minutes until I was sure she was asleep. She kept reaching over to touch me to make sure I was still there- pretty cute.

BREAKING NEWS- Chris just came downstairs to tell me Maddie fell out of her bed. Poor thing. He put her back in, and I think she is going right back to sleep. Apparently, she got around the safety rail...waste of $50. Keep your fingers crossed we do well the rest of the night. I am most nervous about nap time tomorrow!

Egg hunt

Lena and Maddie got the hang of this really quick.  The eggs were out of the yard before Max even had a chance to snatch one.  Grandma and Grandpa showed the girls how to pop them open to find the candy inside.  It was super windy.  I love that the girls' hair is getting long enough to blow around.  We spent the afternoon hunting eggs and running around outside enjoying the 80 degree weather.  Other than a mild stomach bug that has circulated through almost everyone here, the holiday was fantastic.

Easter

These are a few shots from Sunday morning...finding baskets the Easter bunny filled, playing with Brittian, Richard, Uncle David, and Grandma, and pictures after church.