And Just Like That...

And just like that... sleepless nights, newborn poop, infant tubs, night time bottles... are all over with.  We no longer have a newborn.  We can't even hardly say we have an infant.  We have a full blown baby!  Which makes me so sad and so happy... just like everything else in parenthood.

It's been awhile since my last post because things have been a little busy for us.  Jason and I both have extra responsibilities at work that keep us really busy whenever we're not being mommy and daddy.  Since it's been awhile, it seems a lot has changed!

Annie is eating baby food... which she LOVES!  And she's been sleeping 11 1/2 hours at night.  I saw a newborn in church today and it almost made me cry... I already miss the itty bitty, squishy, football, cuddle-in-the-middle-if-the-night phase.  Whether we're going to have a third has been a major topic of conversation at our house, but the only conclusion we come to is that it's too early to decide.

Deep breath... (this is long)... here's what we've been up to...

Hands down, the world's best nanny.  I seriously think she loves my girls as much as I do. And I think the girls love her as much as me! She even visits on the weekend once in awhile to give Jason and I a chance to go out together.  When you don't have family in town, that is priceless!

Miss Annie started rolling over... oh... around a month and half ago.

Since then she has mastered it and is now mobile.  She likes to roll to the Christmas tree!

Toes... she loves them!

Boots... she loves them!

We went with Aunt Danielle to the "turning on of the lights" at Pearl Street in Boulder.  (Santa is in the background.)  Lily is starting to pick up on the Santa thing.  I don't think she understands just how much more exciting she makes Christmas for Jason and I!

We had both of our families out to visit for Thanksgiving this year.  We rented a condo in Breckenridge.  It was a VERY enjoyable weekend!  We had so much fun!

The turkey weighed more than Annie.

Everyone in the cul-de-sac coordinated lights this year.  We love where we live!

Annie's first snow day!

Lily got some Dora's stickers.  And this is where they ended up.  

And that's what Annie has to say.

Other than the mess... she's become a really good helper!

And some more... CLICK HERE!

Not Forgotten

Little Annie is such a good baby!  She's quiet, sweet and hardly ever fusses!  Because of that, she sometimes gets overlooked!  Especially since we have a 2-year-old who seems to run the house!  But Annie's not forgotten.  Lily LOVES Annie and is always making sure she's included!  Here are the latest pics of sweet Annie!

It's hard to believe she's big enough for the Jumperoo, but she really gets going!

Does anyone want to suck on those cheeks as much as I do?  

She really pays attention to her Daddy.  Seriously, Jason has his hands full when these girls become teenagers!  I'll be asleep... he can pace the floors!  Yah, right!

Annie is now included at our dinner table.  We actually tried a little rice cereal, because why not?  I don't think anything actually went down... it just came out!  So cute!

Annie is working on a back-mustache... coming in nicely!  Actually, I expect all the dark hair to fall out because everything that is coming in is blonde!  Just like her sister! 

My Bugs

Being a Mommy just became even more fun!  Lily LOVED Halloween this year!  She said "trick or treat" perfectly and just lit up when she got a treat!
CLICK HERE for more pics!

Pumpkin Patch

We had quite the adventure at the pumpkin patch this year!  Lily picked out a pumpkin for everyone.  A big one for Daddy, a little bit smaller one for Mommy, a little smaller one for Lily... And a green one for Annie!  Why Annie has to be so different, I don't know, but it was cute!

She really enjoyed walking on the hay bale maze which is a good thing because when we parked the car, we unloaded everything, shut the door and then realized we lock our keys in the car with the car running! It took a while, but Jason was able to find a way to break in.  Meanwhile, I put Annie to sleep without a pacifier (which was locked in the car) and Aunt Danielle played with Lily.

It was really muddy, so all our shoes got dirty and we started getting a little hungry before we left.  So it was time to go.  We were waiting to turn right out of the pumpkin patch parking lot when Annie added her two cents about the experience... in her pants!  Jason and I laughed so hard we had tears in our eyes... that's the good stuff!

All in all, it was fun!  We got our pumpkins and played outside and got to see Aunt Danielle... can't ask for much more!  CLICK HERE to see all the pics!

Turning Aspens

I moved to Colorado 8 years ago this September.  When I got here everyone at work was talking about the aspens turning.  I had NOOOOO idea what they were talking about.  Finally I risked sounding like an idiot and asked.  And every year since, we've driven up the hill to see what they were talking about.  I have a million pictures from all eight years and they all look the exact same, but it's so beautiful you just can't help it.  Hopefully this year's pictures are different since I focused more on Lily and Annie and less on the bright, yellow aspens!

3 Months & 2 Years

Lily's 2-year and Annie's 3-month pictures fell so close together that I did them together AND dressed them alike!  It didn't dawn on me until Lily and Annie's nanny bought them matching outfits that I have TWO GIRLS and that means I can dress them alike!  Probably not something I'd get in the habit of, but it's sure cute for this occasion!  (Also, thanks to the Hasset's for providing such a nice yard for a backdrop!)

For all pics, CLICK HERE.

"I TWO!"

Two years ago today our lives changed with the birth of our sweet, little girl!  I can NOT believe it's been 2 years!  It has gone so fast and has been so much fun! She has brought so much joy we didn't even know we were missing out on.

We had a birthday party in our cul-de-sac on Saturday.  We had brownies and ice cream!  Everyone came to play and ride their bikes!

For more birthday pictures, CLICK HERE!

Labor Day Weekend

My Mom and Mark came to visit for the long weekend. We were on a 2-month-old and 2-year-old's schedule, but managed to do a few fun things! We spent some time in downtown Golden and took a trip to Boulder. Lily played with her friends, Rio and Bennett, at the park. Here are some pics:

Weekend-O-Fun

We made this last weekend a long one since I went back to work on Monday.

On Thursday, we took Annie with us to do some birthday shopping for a little soon-to-be two-year-old. Then we went to a park, laid out a blanket and starred at our little girl. She is getting so big and she is just so darn sweet. She hands out smiles like they're nothing... I love it!

On Friday we had a typical morning and then decided to drive down to the new Ikea with both girls. We got in the car, drove 40 minutes to the store, pulled in the garage and then realized that it was only 9:20 am! Luckily the restaurant was open at 9:30. We had a $.99 breakfast and a free cup of coffee. Then we stopped in the ever-so-convenient mother's room to feed Annie. And then we were off through the store. The girls did really well. Jason and I got overwhelmed in about 15 minutes. We made our way through the store and left in time to get a lunch and head home just in time for nap. It wouldn't have worked out as nice if we planned it. It just so happened that 9:20 was the perfect time for us to get to Ikea!

On Friday night we had our annual movie night in the cul de sac. As soon as it's dark, we have a kid movie (it was Rio this year) with popcorn. Then after kids (and Lisa) are in bed, we have a grown-up movie (The Hangover this year) with a couple beers. Lily stayed up for half the movie. Of which she spent most of the time in my lap cuddling with me! Here is set up of the movie screen:

Which, by the way, we have the best cul-de-sac ever! On Saturday we had a birthday party in the cul-de-sac that Lily was actually old enough to participate in. And on Sunday we had a brunch party at our house because the pro bike tour went past our back patio. A lot of the bikers are the same bikers who do the Tour de France. It was actually really cool to see... gave you chills! But it went by fast...

I started back at work on Monday. While I was away, 2 sales directors left, 2 marketing directors left and we moved offices. In my first three days back, we had lay offs. I still have a job, but holy cow... talk about change! Back to the grindstone!

The End of Summer

I had the whole summer off and now I'm gearing up to go back to work next week. This last weekend was the end to the craziness and now it's time to get back to reality! Last weekend I flew to KC to go to a friends wedding (pictures to come later). Jason stayed home with both girls! Luckily, his mom, dad and 92 year-old grandma came to help. And yes, at 92 years old, she was able to help!!

So, as I'm at work, here is what I'm going to really miss...

A little 2-year-old who is growing up before my eyes. I can't put her hair in pigtails just because it makes her look too old!

And a sweet 2-month-old who I could literally stare at all day. I'm sure some people think it's crazy, but I could just watch her all day long!

Make It Stop

I struggled with this when Lily was born, but I always knew I'd be having another baby. But now that I think we might be done, I want time to stop. I want Lily to stay a cute little 2-year-old and I want Annie to stay in my arms. Has anyone figured out how to do this? I already think Annie is growing up too fast and she's only 8 weeks old! My mind tells me that whenever I can't hold her like an infant anymore, I'm going to have to have another baby because there's just nothing I love more than cuddling with a baby. But at what point does that end? I could have 20 babies and still miss the cuddles. I guess this is just part of being a parent. Apparently the key is to enjoy every moment because it goes by fast! I just wish time would go as slow as it did when I was 5 years old sitting in church waiting for mass to be over!

I learned today that a new challenge in my quest to learn about photography is capturing 2 little ones in-between wiggles without blur. Not easy... it's going to take some practice! But here is my first shot at it!