Happy Birthday Handley!

I really can't believe that my first baby turned 4 years old today.  I can remember almost every detail of this day 4 years ago like it was yesterday.  However, it's also hard to remember what my life was like without her a part of our family.  My first teaching job was teaching Pre-K and it is really crazy for me to think that she is the age that my first students were.

 Handley has been talking about her birthday for months and was so excited for the big day today.  This morning she woke up with a huge smile on her face and kept it there all day long.  Mimi and Dadaw are in town for the big occasion so she had quite a crowd telling her "Happy Birthday" this morning.

After a cinnamon bun breakfast Robby and I surprised her with a brand new bike!  She was so excited and immediately wanted to head outside in her PJ's and try it out.  She is already doing great getting around on it and looks so big riding it.

After getting dressed Mimi and I took the girls to get their nails painted at a real nail salon.  Handley was SO excited about this special treat.  She chose her two favorite colors, pink and purple, and sat very still watching every move the nail tech made.  Harper got her toes painted too and chose her favorite color, orange.  I had to sway her away from the Halloween orange that she originally picked out, but she was also very proud of her pretty toes.

Next we were off to do a little shopping and then we went to lunch at Handley's favorite spot, McEntyre's.  Everytime we saw someone Handley was happy to announce that it was her birthday.  This afternoon she helped me make a cake for tonight's family dinner party.  Handley was very sweet to let Harper help with the decorating and the final product was a sight to be seen.

This afternoon she got a special surprise from her BFF, Avery.  On our front door we found this birthday sign!  It was SO sweet!!! We had to move it inside because of a big windy storm that was approaching, but she was proud to show it to everyone who came over for dinner and now it's hanging on our pantry door.

Tonight was so much fun.  Gigi, Papa, and Trey all came over to help celebrate.  We had dinner, ate cake, and opened presents.  I even let her pick out a piece of cake from the VERY center because it had the most sprinkles.

She loved every second and as she was going to bed tonight she told me she just couldn't stop thinking about how great her birthday was.  :-)

At 4 years old she:

• is very inquisitive and is constantly asking question
• shares incredibly well with Harper and always wants to include her in what she's doing
• is particular and likes things done a certain way
• is social and constantly asks if we can get together with her friends
• loves following a routine and a schedule
• is extremely affectionate towards her family and close friends
• has an incredible memory
• has a very motherly instinct and is a nurturer 
• is always eager to please 
• has an adventurous spirit
• is strong-willed 
• has started doing simple addition problems and loves using new vocabulary words
• is extremely helpful to me around the house and with Harper
• has become very independent recently and enjoys accomplishing tasks on her own
• loves to act silly and goofy, especially with her Daddy

Happy Birthday Sydney!

Today is Sydney's 14th birthday.  We adopted her from another family when she was 7 years old and I remember our only concern in getting her was that she was already past hear "prime" years.  I know our decision was the right one though because we have had many great years with her and she has been a loyal and faithful companion to us since day one.

 Sydney is probably the most loving and gentle dog I've ever been around.  She has been so wonderful with our kids and every other kid who has come in contact with her.  Last weekend Harper was dancing around and accidentally stepped on Sydney's face and she hardly moved a muscle.  She is very tolerant and understanding of small children.  Something I don't necessarily think was taught, but rather just part of her nature.

When I researched the life expectancy of a golden retriever, most resources I found say between 12-15 years.  She just had her annual check-up and she continues to be as healthy as any senior dog can be.  She spends most of her days sleeping and has a hard time getting up after laying in one place for too long.  However, the second one of us is in the kitchen or if she sees the kids drop some sort of snack, she finds a way to get up on all fours and make her way to "clean-up" after them.  :-)

There are days I feel guilty because I'm so busy with the kids that I know I've hardly paid any attention to her.  However, she never holds it against me and is always happy with any pets or treats that might come her way.  I've really been trying to make an effort to teach the girls to appreciate her while she is still around because I know when she is no longer with us that she will be greatly missed.

We decided to do it up right for her 14th birthday.  The girls picked out some special dog treats at Wal-Mart that really look like cookies dipped in frosting.  We sang "Happy Birthday" to her and loved on her all day long.

Handley's new trick

We enjoyed another awesome weekend at the lake.  It might be our last visit before Hudson's arrival so we made the most of it.  Handley has been wakeboarding with Robby every chance she gets and they have a new "trick" that she can't get enough of. 

Not the best quality picture because it was taken with my phone

She starts out on the board like she normally does and somehow he is able to pick her up and lift her up on his shoulders while holding on to the rope and keeping his balance.  She's so proud of herself while doing this and loves waving to all the other boats as we pass by.

Last week I let the girls take a bath in our master bath jacuzzi tub for the first time and since then they've been begging to do it again.  There is just something about lots and lots of bubbles that makes bath time a magical experience.  They were both squealing and giggling non-stop and Robby and I couldn't help but join in their laughter.   

Swim Lesson Success!!!

I've been really slack about taking pictures this week, but that's just because we've been really busy having lots of fun.  I feel like we've practically lived at the pool this week and it shows.  Not only are we all super tan, but the girls are becoming little fish and they have been so worn out from all the swimming that they've slept until 8 AM everyday this week (such a rare thing in my house for the early risers who are normally up between 6:30-7 AM).  Yesterday I had to wake Harper up after a 3 hour nap just because I was worried she wouldn't go back to sleep that night.  While a lot of our time at the pool has been filled by swimming with friends and enjoying picnic lunches, Handley has also been taking the first 4 of her private swim lesson.  She is taking with the same swim teacher as last year, Mrs. Angie, and is doing SUCH a great job.  I'm so proud of how well she is doing and she's pretty impressed with herself too.  We talked to Gigi, Mimi and Daddy to let them know how well she'd done after her first lesson and she was proud to tell Jen that, "I didn't cry or whine or even freak out at all!"  Ha!  Mrs. Angie agrees that she's come a long way from the scared little girl who didn't want to even put her face in last year.  Today she jumped off the side of the pool and then swam about 10-15 feet alone to the steps.  She's been practicing taking breaths so she can swim further distances, is floating on her back independently and is getting dive toys off the bottom of the pool.

Here's a short video of her swimming yesterday.  You hear someone coughing in the video, but that isn't her. :-)  Also, the video is kind of deceiving because it looks like she can touch the bottom of the pool, but it's too deep for her to reach just yet.  Click HERE to watch.

Harper is not one to be outdone.  When she's not trying to talk me into more snacks, she likes to take her floatie off during Handley's lessons and try to copy everything Handley is doing.  That has resulted in her sinking like a rock a few times, but she could care less and is ready to try to "swim" again and again.

Today was Handley's first ballet class of the summer and she had so much fun.  I was happy to get to peak in and see her dancing away with the biggest smile on her face!

She's also said a few really sweet things this week that I don't want to forget.  One evening as she heard the garage door opening (meaning Robby was home) she and Harper were jumping up and down with excitement to see him.  Handley then told me, "My heart is love full for Daddy." (meant "full of love")

Then, today while we were eating lunch she said she said, "Mommy, I have a great idea.  When I'm a grown up I could be your neighbor on one side and Harper could be your neighbor on the other side."  I couldn't think of a better idea and I'm hoping she'll still think that when she is a grown up. :-)

Lake and Beach pictures

After checking out the pictures I took while on the boat and on the beach, I'm wishing I could figure out a way to bring my nice camera without it getting wet or in the sand.  However, I still was able to capture the week so here it is in pictures.  

We spent day one on the lake at the waterfall cove and the big girls insisted on climbing to the top so up they went with the daddies.  

While they were up there the little kids kept busy with their buckets and shovels.

Another highlight of that day was Avery getting to wake-board with Robby.  Handley was up first and gave Avery step-by-step instructions of how to hold on to Robby's legs as they got up out of the water.  Sure enough, Avery popped right up with him the first time and was so excited!

After spending the day on the water, it was fun to come back to the house and have "happy hour" on the deck complete with watermelon and Kool-aide. 

Next up was a quick wardrobe change and then back out on the boat to head to Tiki Hut for dinner.  It's at the Lake Keowee Marina and always lots of fun to head to dinner by boat.

After dinner we saved our left-overs and fed them to the ducks and giant fish on our way back to the boat. Notice the bead necklace with the attached shot glass around Handley's neck.  Real classy. :-) They were passing those out at Tiki Hut and the kids thought the "little cups" on the necklaces were so cute. Ha!

After day 2 out on the water the kids were all worn out.  Thankfully, all 4 of them had no problem napping on the boat.

Big girls snoozing away

Next up are some pics from our time at the beach in Wilmington.  We all had so much fun on the beach and it makes me a little sad we aren't taking a big beach vacation this year.  However, you can bet that next year we will be spending an entire week somewhere with all 3 kiddos. :-)

Both girls couldn't get enough of the sand, shells, and waves.  It was exhausting for the adults because they didn't want to come out of the water and could have jumped the waves all day long.  The only problem with Harper doing this is that she would jump the waves, fall down (on purpose) and forget that another wave was about to wash over her head two seconds later.  SO, whoever was with her had to constantly have their hands on her and be ready to scoop her up.  She could have cared less about the waves washing over her though and was right back for more.

 Handley loved collecting shells and trying to catch sea-gulls.  The other highlight of her time on the beach was boogy boarding.  She rode each wave in with a giant smile on her face.

On Friday we had planned to spend the day visiting my grandmother, running some errands and enjoying lunch before heading home that afternoon.  As soon as we woke up Handley started asking when we were going to the beach and she was crushed when I broke the news that we weren't going.  However, we did get to come home with a big bag of shells she and Harper had collected and they've enjoyed playing with those all week.

Hudson's Baby Shower

Today I had another baby shower for Hudson thrown by my sister-in-law, Stefanie, and my best friend, Jen.  They did a nautical theme to go along with Hudson's nursery and all of the decorations were adorable.  The attention to detail was amazing and it was such a fun shower with a close group of girlfriends. 

We had a delicious lunch followed by a delicious cake for dessert!  Jen and Stefanie spoiled me with all of the great food.

Stefanie, Me, and Jen

I got some really great things for Hudson including toys, clothes, bibs, burp cloths, hangers, and all things boy!  When I got home the girls loved helping me put everything away in the nursery and got all excited talking about Hudson's upcoming arrival.  We are all ready and very excited to meet our little guy.   

A huge thank you to Jen and Stefanie for throwing this shower and to all my friends for helping me prepare for Hudson's arrival. 

All of the girls at the shower minus one that had to leave a little early

Memorial Day Vacation

Its been so long since I've posted, but we're finally home and now I can update!  Since we couldn't really take a real vacation this summer with Hudson's upcoming arrival drawing closer, we decided to extend our Memorial Day long weekend into a week trip.  We started off at the lake for 4 days.  We were lucky enough to have the Atkinson's join us for part of the weekend and it was SO much fun.  The kids all had a blast and the adults enjoyed each other's company.  The weather was perfect and it was a great weekend.  

From the lake we made our way to North Carolina to visit my family.  While we were there we got to visit with my grandmother, go to the beach, have some pool time, and see a lot of my extended family too.

Since we weren't going to be with my parents for the 4th of July like we normally are, the girls got to do some sparklers a little early.

Robby and I also got to have a night out while we were there and thanks to a suggestion by my mom, we also enjoyed a quiet lunch outdoors by the water, dockside, on our last day there.

I was happy to be able to spend some quality time with my grandmother.  The girls enjoyed rocking on her porch, trying to feed the sea gulls in front of her house on the water, and playing with my dad's old toys she still has around.

(During the week I used two cameras, but unfortunately I've only been able to download from one so far...I'll have a lot of other pictures to share after the first of the week, including details about our time on the boat at the lake and the WONDERFUL time the girls had at the beach.)