Happy Birthday Daddy!

Today is Mark's birthday! We began celebrating this wonderful day this morning by baking cupcakes for daddy which we later delivered to him at work.

My husband loves ANTHING that's cake and frosting and I knew he'd really appreciate a plate full of yummy cupcakes to munch on all day long at work. By the time Avery and I were finished with the baking and frosting, I don't know who I'd say loves cupcakes more: Daddy or Avery???

She was covered from head to toe in frosting. It was in her hair, her eyes, all over her shirt and pants and all over her blankey (which is never far from her side). Pretty darn cute! Emerson was around too, while we were baking...

...she just happened to be sleeping through the whole ordeal. She got to miss out on the clean-up! :) This day is very special to us. Mark works hard and is the best Daddy myself and these girls could ever ask for! Yes, I was crazy in love with him when we got married; floating on a cloud that day three years ago. We had a baby 10 months later and another 2 years after that. Life at our house is pretty wild, tiring, chaotic, wonderful, beautiful and all those things. Sometimes we have hard days, but at the end of the day, I'm constantly reminded why I married him three years ago, or even fell in love with him seven years ago. He is perfect. Perfect for me, that is. He is my rock. He makes my tough times better, yet he doesn't always know it. He completes me. He is my girl's Daddy and I find that so sexy! ;) He's the best Daddy. I always knew he would be good, but I never knew he'd be this good.

Happy Birthday Mark/Daddy! We love you so much!

My little girl is growing up...

She is really tugging at my heartstrings these days. I'm so proud of Avery, I'm crying as I type this post. She will, of course, always be by baby: my bugaboo, my luv, my sweetness. We are potty training since Thursday night and it's going great. She had zero potty accidents today. I'm so happy that she is succeeding with this and I'm thrilled that she hasn't worn a diaper since Thursday evening, but at the same time I feel like I have to let go of a part of my baby. Don't get me wrong... I love this pottying in the potty chair thing and I already love not having to change her diaper, and she is LOVING watching mommy do a 'Happy Dance' after she potties, but like I said, she'll always be my baby! Mom's do you get where I'm coming from? I look back on Avery's 2 1/2 years and I wonder where it all went. It still feels like just yesterday we were blessed with the miracle that is her. Mommy loves you, Bug! You are my sunshine!

And so are you Em!

Yes, I get all blubbery over this one too! How blessed and lucky am I to have these two girls? What did I ever do to deserve them? Today Emerson was lying in her boppy gym staring up at this big green, crinkly, squeaky dragonfly hanging down to her just begging to be grabbed. She watched it so intently, kicking her feet so hard. She reached out, grabbed it and devoured it with her sweet little mouth! Avery and I cheered for her and hugged and kissed her like we hadn't seen her for days! She must have thought we were crazy, but she liked it! She cooed and babbled at us while we gushed over her accomplishment!

Yes everyone, this is what I do all day, every day. I am a stay-at-home mom. I potty train, change diapers, do 'Happy Dances', clean up messes, make meals, color in color books, fingerpaint, kiss owies, kiss piggies (our word for feet in our household), jump in piles of leaves, and make everything alright for these two precious loves of my life. And if I had a recent picture of my husband, who makes this all possible for me, I'd put it in here, but I don't. But I am crazy about him!! I love my life. I'm the luckiest girl in the world!

Emerson Paige ~ 3 months!!

Yep, she's 3 months old as of yesterday! And boy, has she ever gone through some changes! Em's a very happy baby, pretty easy-going now that we have her poor little tummy figured out. As you can see... we did it again! She's just beautiful! She has eyelashes 10 miles long, wavy hair so think and dark that only grows more with each passing day, and creamy porcelain skin. She is constantly cooing and talking and she's smitten with her big sister!

A few of Em's accomplishments thus far:

*She sleeps in two six hour stretches at night, only eating once during the night (HEAVENLY!)

*She holds her head up completely... she's been doing this since day one!

*Em now eats soy-based formula (LONG sad story) but thriving! :):)

*She is laughing! The cutest noise ever!!

*She adoringly gazes at her sister and daddy...she would do this all day if she could

And who wouldn't love having this girl for a big sister??

Fall Leaves!

Avery and I raked up the leaves in the front yard this morning while Em was sleeping. We had a blast! It took quite a long time cause my piles kept getting jumped in over and over again... but so worth it!!!! Who wouldn't want to jump in a pile of leaves... heck, I was jumping with her! :):)

The potty may no longer elude us....

... well it seemed that way yesterday morning. Yesterday, I changed Avery out of her morning diaper and put her big girl panties on her without asking her if she'd like to wear them or not. She objected at first. Then I showed her the new Dora stool she could use to step up to the sink to wash her hands all by herself when she finished pottying and that did the trick. She sat down on that potty and peed like she'd been doing it for years. She stepped up on the stool and washed her hands... and then it all went downhill from there. For the rest of the day she refused to go to the potty and I ended up putting a diaper back on her (after two accidents on the carpet.) What do I do??? Today she is wearing a pull-up but will not sit down on the potty. Will you guys leave me some comments for what I'm supposed to do??? I don't want this to be a fight of wills.... and now I know she's more than capeable of doing this and being successful at it! What's a mommy to do??? HELP!!!!

Halloween! {& crazy times!}

I absolutely hate getting so far behind with my blog posts. But the second I try to do anything someone needs something from Mommy! :) But everything is going great... the girls are beautiful and healthy and life is good! :) Halloween was interesting. A few weeks ago Avery picked out her costume. She was going to be Thomas the Train. Never though, from the day we bought the costume to Halloween night, would she put it on. ( I should have known better!) So, after watching child after child come to our door and leave with candy she finally said, "Mommy, I go trick-or-treating." I said, "Absolutely you can go trick-or-treating," (I'd only been talking about it all day and asking her if she'd like to go...) "Do you want to wear your Thomas costume?" Avery: "No, I don't want to wear my Thomas costume, but I go trick-or-treating." I asked her if she'd like me to draw kitty whiskers and a kitty nose on her face with make-up and she all but jumped through the roof with excitement and off we went trick-or-treating down the cul-de-sac with our little kitty dressed in normal everyday clothing.

And each night that has come since Halloween, when it gets dark, she asks if she can be a kitty and go trick-or-treating some more! Ha ha ha! Pretty darn cute if you ask me! So I explain that we only go trick-or-treating on Halloween night, one time only. So now, imagine how much turkey talking we do getting ready for the next holiday!! Life through the eyes of a 2 and a 1/2 year old is pretty exciting every day and I'm loving every second of it!

Here are our jack-o-lanterns and that Avery and Daddy worked hard on Halloween night! (Pics of Em coming soon...) :):)