Let's meet some babies

One of my best friends from college, Kat, gave birth to a beautiful baby girl last Monday. Although Emily Ann joined the world a little bit earlier than Kat and Scot were expecting, she is healthy and doing wonderfully well! She weighed 6# 10 oz and was 19" long. Our group is so excited to welcome another girl! Thank you Kristi for these great pics of the growing family!

Kat, Emily and Scot--Kat, you look awesome!!!
Ok Scot, you do too :)

What a cutie!

I love the baby "touchdown" pose.
I personally think she's a Colts fan already (not a Bears fan)!

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And the next little baby that we have to announce is Tommy! Tommy is now a month old and last week I got the privilege of seeing him, his big brother Beau and his mom, Brooke. Although life is hectic with two, Brooke has it all put together (any woman who can feed a baby, take care of a 2 year old and still run two blogs definitely has it all put together in my book). You are an amazing mother, Brooke! Tommy (and his parents) had a rough week last week with a visit to the hospital for meningitis but he is doing very well and is home--where he belongs :) Welcome home, Tommy!

He looks so alert! Probably thinking, where is my big brother?

I love this pose!

Getting some lovin' from his big brother, Beau!
Hugs, kisses and prayers for little Tommy--we all love you!!!

Happy Birthday, Jason

September 28th--Jason's birthday! I love celebrating people's birthday and Jason's is obviously one of my favorite to celebrate. Jason is the kind of man you dream of marrying when you are a little girl. He is kind, caring, funny, and loves me no matter what mood I am in (and many of my moods aren't so pretty). And did I mention that he is such an amazing father? There is something about that daddy/daughter bond and he surely has it with both Ella and Laney.

Happy Birthday, Jason! Here are some of my favorite pics.....

I hope you have a wonderful day! Your girls love you!

An outside kind of day

I love our neighborhood for many reason but one of the biggest is the impromptu play dates. If the girls want to play with their friends (which they almost always want to do) or if I need some adult time, just go outside and you can almost always find someone to play with. We love that Carly and Jack are right across the street and Reese and Ryan are a stone's throw away. The kids do love seeing each other. Laney's new favorite word? Ryan... (watch out Jack, there is competition!)

We're in our jeep and ready to see some friends.

Well, Laney took her bike instead.
She was probably sick of getting whiplash from Ella's driving.

Ryan, Jen, Reese, Carly and Jack enjoying a warm day.

Laney Leigh and Reese (Reese loves to say Laney Leigh, which is too cute).

Kristy, this is for you. I had to show you how big Reese
looked on Ella's bike.
I never realized how much taller Reese was than Ella!
Hysterically cute!

Laney and Jack enjoying some popsicles.

It was a good day for a playdate!

Fun time just rockin' away.

Can you help a friend out?

This is how you wear the helmet, Ella.

Now let's do the knee pads.

And the elbow pads---safety first! Just like Dora says :)

And here is the final step! One last elbow pad.

And off she goes! Doesn't she look great on Carly's bike, with Carly's bike helmet? The knee pads and elbow pads weren't comfy to ride with so she took those off quickly.

Thanks for your help, Reese! What a good friend!

The long awaited backpack

We had practiced and practiced a happy smile for Ella's school pictures and today was the day for the big reveal. The photographer picked out the best one to put on their backpacks. Ella has been patiently waiting for her new bag but it was eating her up inside (she would ask about it everyday on the way to school).

She looked adorable in the pictures--not because she was giving a big, happy, cheesy smile but because she was being Ella :) Just being herself in the pictures made me smile!

And here it is! She is so proud of her new bag for school.

So proud she thought she would wear it as a hat

Don't lock me out!

This is what can happen when your preschooler can lock the door.

We came home from church and couldn't get back into the house.

Luckily one window was left open :)
Thanks J for breaking us into our own house!

I stay in my bed aaaaanight

For the past few months, Ella has been finding a way to creep into our room in the middle of the night. We would wake up in the morning and literally trip on her. As if tripping over her wasn't enough, she started to wake us up to let us know she was in our room (usually around 3 AM). It was getting rather ridiculous and led to a tired mom (plus a tired dad, which is a tough combination for a happy home).

We decided to try the sticker chart approach. We set the goal for 5 nights; she had to stay in her own room and sleep the whole night for five nights (no waking up at 3 am thinking that she "slept through the night").

Every morning we would discuss the previous night and decide if it was a good night or a not so good night. When she had a not so good night, Ella knew it. She would get a look of disgust. She would not cry or scream, but was really disappointed. Although I hated seeing her so disappointed in herself, it was nice to see her really comprehend the sticker system.

I am not sure how long it actually took her to complete the five nights successfully but at least two weeks. Well, today was finally Day 5--SHE DID IT! Ella came into our room at 7:15 and looked me right in the face saying "Mom, I slept in my room aaanight." She was so incredibly happy; we were happy it was not 5 AM.

As if a happy mom and dad wasn't motivation enough, her true motivation for staying in her bed was a new stomp rocket toy! Yeah Ella! We are so proud of you!

Kids say the darndest things

A conversation on the way home from Ella's preschool.

Me: "Did you meet any new friends?"

Ella: "Yeah!"

Me: "Great, what are their names?"

Ella: "They don't have names."

Me: "Oh, they don't have names? Then what do the teachers call your friends?"

Ella: "Baby....The teacher calls them babies."


Hmmmm??

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While Laney and I were playing with the dollhouse, Laney put the daddy doll on the potty.

I asked, "Is the daddy going potty?"

She then said her first real sentence:

"My daddy goes pee-pee."

What a wonderful, true first sentence :) Thanks J for being her inspiration!

Laney reading you to sleep

Bedtime at the Willetts

Laney saying Berenstain Bears. I know it
doesn't sound anything like it but when you hold the
book up, she keeps repeating this barbababa
(the official spelling) over and over again. She
certainly knows what she means.

I had to get it on tape before she learned how to
really say Berenstain Bears. She used to say yellow
in the cutest way which involved moving her tongue
from side to side. She quickly learned how to say
wewwo before I got it on tape :(

Reading the Who Hops Book.



They sure love to read--read as many books
as possible so they can push back bedtime :)

Ten on Tuesday ~ Laney edition

1. She is obsessed with her doggy and blanket. The other day she threw a 25 minutes fit in her crib because she didn't have her dog (he was being washed...bad mommy, bad mommy). But once a recent visitor started playing with a rabbit she has (and never liked) she now has added that to her plethora of animals to her crib. Quite a handful!

2. Laney loves having her picture taken. Chhheeeeessee!

3. She is a huge kisser (of us, of Windsor, of baby Jack...she's not picky, just loves to hug and kiss).

4. I read in a magazine that children her age start to enjoy imitating others. Today she took the bottle opener that is on the side of the refrigerator and this is what I heard "hi. I Laney. Bye Bye. Waffle." Then she hung it up on the side of the refrigerator.

5. Loves to play dress up and sweep--preferrably at the same time. Loves those high heals!

6. Her language continues to grow and is over 50 words. Her favorite sayings: I want dad/mom, where dog, bye bye water, where sis, hello (what she calls the phone), shoes. First thing she says in the morning? Where Ella

7. Playing peek-a-boo is her favorite game (especially when she hides behind your back..loves that!) and her favorite song is head-shoulders-knees-and toes. It was "if you're happy and you know it" but she only enjoys the stomping and the hooray part now.

8. Foods she loves: all of them. Foods she dislikes: none of them (except she once turned down string cheese, but that was it). Hence her large and in charge thighs.

9. She already knows how to get under Ella's skin. On our way home from Tennessee, Laney would put her feet on Ella's car seat just to hear Ella scream. Laney would laugh hysterically as Ella was trying to push her feet away.

10. This girls sleeps and loves it (that's my girl!). Bedtime is about 6:30 pm and won't get up until 8:30 am. You go girl!!!

For those that know Laney, you know that she is such a happy girl. She is generally very smiley, very content and loves to flirt. Yes, she has her moments but she really is such a joy to raise. I can't wait to see what is in store for her and what the future brings. We are truly blessed!

Got Dots?

I instantly fell in love with this dress that I saw for Laney.

I am a sucker for little girl dresses, polka dots, and
things that match (her hair bow that she already had matched perfectly).
Given all those factors, I HAD to buy it, right?
Back me up fellow shoppers :)

It was a dot kind of church day.

Laney loved the dots (her new word of the day).

Notice the potty she is standing next to. We brought this up from the basement as the other day she was showing some interest in potty training. We are not pushing it at all but we are letting her explore the idea (mom is not ready to start this whole process yet--she's my baby--she can't be ready for potty training YET--right??)

Does this mean the summer is coming to an end?

Yesterday we went outside to enjoy one of the last days of summer sprinklin' time. It was so hot yesterday afternoon and since we had nothing to do, I asked Ella if she wanted to run through the sprinkler. In a blink of an eye, she had on her suit, brought down 2 towels and had a swim diaper for Laney (she is like mini-me). Some of the pics are a little dark; I need to get better at taking pictures in the sun. Alas, I better read the instruction manual :)

Trying to catch the water.

Checkin' out Ella

So cool and refreshing!

Nothing like running into your older sister--literally.

Ella shouting down to her people (aka me!)

I HAD to get this on camera...they were sharing, sort of.
Ok, I begged Ella to give the toy in her left hand to Laney
but at least she gave her something similar. Does that qualify as sharing?

Are you picking flowers for your mama?
Although I planted these flowers myself I still loved seeing her pick them.

Who is Horton and why does he hear a who?

Ella and Jason went on a daddy daughter date this morning, which Ella has been excited about for the past few days. Jason's friend, Joel, and his daughter, Reese, went as well (which was a wonderful source of excitement for Ella).

She woke up at 6AM today excited to go the movies with dad and Ree (aka, Reese). 6AM....really?? On Saturday (or any day) is that necessary? They went to the movie "Horton Hears a Who" at a local theater. Armed with a kid's meal from the theater (popcorn, fruit snacks and drink) in they went. Jason said she spent most of the time in his lap as it was rather loud. Her favorite parts were sitting next to Reese and eating the popcorn (who can blame her?). There was an intermission half way through and both girls decided it was time to go. It was a fun time but I am sure it will take her a few more times to feel comfortable with the movie experience.

I love seeing Ella and Jason have their special "dates"!

Ella's First Day of Preschool

Today was Ella's first day of preschool--yeah!! I had no idea how she would react. On vacation we had talked about riding a horse. She got so excited and then once she was on the horse, she lasted about 15 seconds before crying. So although she was so happy to go to the blue school, I didn't know what to expect.

Jason, Ella, Laney and I drove up to the school's circle driveway. Minivans lined up and automatic doors slid open. The children have to wait until a teacher gets them from the car and today, Miss Linda picked up Ella. While still in the car, Ella walked up to the front seat and gave us hugs and said bye bye. She was very well composed and I started tearing up. I have been the one most excited about this day and yet I was the one so emotional when the time came. Miss Linda walked her in the house and away she went.

I picked her up 2 1/2 hours later and wow.... I am not sure I have ever seen her so excited! She was talking and talking and talking. Today was their school picture day (we have been practicing a pretty smile as opposed to her usual cheeesssee constipated face). We'll see in a few weeks how those turn out :) I asked Ella if she met some friends and she said "yeah." When I asked what their names were, she said they didn't have any names...hmmmm.

Laney and I had some great one on one time together (something new and different for Laney). We went to the gym and then came home for play time. When I picked her up from the gym the ladies who work there asked me where Ella was. I said preschool and the ladies said that Laney would not stop asking "where Ella." We then enjoyed putting together puzzles where Laney showed me how she can now say apple, wagon, teddy bear and puppy dog.

What did we really do when Ella was in school? We played in a box!

Who needs toys when you can be so happy with a box!

After this pic, guess what she asked?
Where Ella...imagine that :)

Laney's first hair cut

Today was the Willett Women's haircut day. While my hair is getting highlighted (and you thought that was all natural), my hairdresser will usually cut Ella's. But today we added another to her list--Laney. Laney's hair has been falling in her face so I figured it was time. She did so good for Ms. Susie and even played with the brush afterward.

Smiling the whole time

The final product. It was just the bangs but it made such a difference!

Ella also got a new do and had about 2-3 inches taken off. It looks so cute, if I do say so myself. The classic bobb; now she is all ready for school tomorrow.

Look at me!

All serious

She saw Carly outside and wanted to show her the new haircut.

The dueling jeeps but in fact, they are driving the other one's jeep.
Always wanting what the other one has.

Time for a break

How can you resist the face full of ketchup :)