Beach time

It's officially spring here in eastern NC now, so we decided to take trip down to the beach.  We loaded up the car with the dog, his kennel, the girls, stroller and snacks, had some lunch at a pizza joint by the beach, and headed over.  We ended up pushing the stroller in the sand on the beach in the wind.  Sort of a workout!  The girls liked getting out and walking in the sand and Blue loved walking along the beach with us.  We can't wait to get down there a bit more this spring and summer.

Bath Time

The girls LOVE bath time.  They have 800 toys and daddy lets them splash around and have a blast.  Here's some video Josh took the other day of the splash fest.

Rise and shine

Every morning, we bring the girls their milk to drink in their cribs before they 'get up'.  It's like their morning coffee and they're a little cranky until they drink it.  But as soon as it's out of the way, they pop up for some playtime.  When I go in there to get them 20 minutes later, they have usually thrown both sippy cups into each other's cribs, as well as all the 'friends' they sleep with.  On this particular morning I decided to spy on their little game.

This is Piper's crib.  Both teddy bears that daddy bought while they were in the NICU ended up in there this morning, as well as Josie's doggy lovey.  Both sippy cups got thrown on the floor.  Sometimes I am not really sure who drank what milk.  I sat there and watched them pass everything back and forth to each other about five times.

Josie is ready to get up.

The one thing Piper won't give up is the green frog.  She loves that thing!  She usually brings it to her high chair with her to eat breakfast.  

15 Months

Here we are again - another month gone by.  The girls had their 15 month appointment yesterday and they have moved fully into the toddler stage.  Walking, starting to say words, and showing some attitude! 

Here are some updates on measurements and what they've each been up to:

Josie Bear
Weight: 20 lbs 6 oz (10th - 25th percentile)
Height: 30 3/4 inches (50th percentile)
Head: 18 1/2 inches
Words: Thank you (sort of), mama, dada, doh doh (doggy), bye bye, mmmmmm (supposed to be moo for a cow)
Favorite things: snuggling, eating,  sticking out her lower lip when she's upset, showing us her tummy

Piper
Weight: 20 lbs 2 oz (10th percentile)
Height: 30 1/4 inches (50th percentile)
Head: 18 1/2 inches
Words: DOGGY (said constantly all day long), daddy
Favorite things: DOGGIES, her green frog lovey, pointing at things, showing us her hair (random!), pulling my hair, 'pretending' to eat with a spoon and a bowl ( because she thinks she's so big), riding on her Winnie the Pooh car. 

Meet Blue

Meet the newest member of our family - Blue.  He is a Goldendoodle and came home to us last Saturday at 8 weeks old.  So far, he is a very good boy.  He is now used to his kennel (no more crying in there) and starting to 'get' the whole potty training thing.  He's also been on lots of walks already with our nice spring weather and has made it down to the road and back several times (1.3 miles).  We can already tell Blue is going to be a good boy.

The girls have had a mixed reaction to Blue.  Like so many things, they are approaching him pretty differently.  Piper's reaction was priceless.  To her, it was hands down the best day of her life.  Her favorite word is 'doggy' and she says it at least 150 times per day.  I don't even have to describe her excitement because it's all on video:

Josie is characteristically approaching him with a bit more caution.  She has figured out that he has sharp little puppy teeth and isn't interested in getting too close (while Piper repeatedly sticks her hands in his mouth over and over and then laughs hysterically).

Both girls think the kennel is pretty cool:

Welcome to the family Blue!

Utah Wrap-up

The rest of our trip went by so quickly.  We had so much fun and just like our last trip, I noticed how all the fun, the change of scenery, and lots and lots of love seems to change the girls a little bit.  On the way home, a random flight attendant picked Josie up and she didn't cry.  In fact, she giggled and played with her.  I think the travel and the change of scenery is really good for them!  It is hard traveling with kids, but in my opinion, it is definitely worth it.  Seeing them with their grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, makes me really really miss home.  I'm grateful we were able to make the trip.

Here's some more fun we had - Josh, Jer, and the girls with their cousin Riley

 EJ and me with the girls

 My parents with Piper one night right before bed

 Uncle Jeff came up for a visit and for some lunch.  The girls thought the bow was pretty funny.

 Brynn and Nate came over to my parents for dinner one night

We had dinner at Jer & Erika's and Jim & Rebecca and family came down too.  Look at those pretty Jones girls!  The girls jumped right into the mix with their cousins and had lots of fun playing. 

 Grandma Bubba and Piper.  We were eating at Brynn and Nate's house. 

 One night, Josie learned she was supposed to smile for the camera.  "Say Cheese!"

 Playing with Uncle Nate and Aunt Brynn at their house

 Grandpa and Josie

 Can't wait to go back!

Utah trip: Part 2

Tuesday and Wednesday in Utah brought more fun.  Tuesday my dad, Josh and I headed to the Hogle zoo with the girls.  I think the last time we were there was probably a field trip in grade school.  It was another nice, sunny day, so we enjoyed the time outside.  The girls liked the animals - especially Piper.  She pointed and spoke her Piper language.  Next time we come, we hope the BEARS are out! 

Later that day, we all headed up to Ogden for lunch with Conor and Scotty, and that night, I was lucky enough to have a night out at Bunco with my friends.

Wednesday we had a nice lunch with grandpa and Maryann in Ogden before they left for Hawaii.

Piper being sweet

 Josh and his dad with Piper

 Pretty girl

 Yeah, it's getting harder and harder to get pictures with both of them

We made it: Utah - Part 1

We all survived another cross country trip to the land of Zion.  The girls did really well.  Piper slept in the carseat for the entire leg from Atlanta to Salt Lake, and Josie slept in our arms for most of the flight, after starting out with about five minutes of screaming (had us a little nervous for a minute).  We got in very very late (12 midnight local time, so 2 a.m. for us), got our rental car, and headed to Draper.  We were all tired the next day, but the girls adjusted quickly and settled right into napping in their pack 'n plays. 

Sunday evening we met up with the entire Egan family at my grandparents house.  The girls got to see all kinds of second cousins - the family has exploded with babies over the past couple of years - and get some loves and kisses from their great grandparents. 

Josie mixing it up with Hadlee and Kruz, my cousins' kids. 

 Grandma Shirley and Josie

 Grandma and Piper

 Nate and Brynn helping a cranky and tired Piper out with her milk

The next day found us here:

Thanks to so passes Brynn was able to get us, along with some skis complements of the Lifthouse, Josh, Brynn and I spent Valentine's skiing - for the first time in two years!  It started out as a beautifully sunny day.  We had a great time - despite Josh's back pain. 

Can't wait to get the girls up here on some skis!

One year ago ...

We were so tired!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

We're off

We are on our way to Utah and it has been a LONG day so far. I am writing this from our flight. Josie is passed out in Josh's arms and Piper is out in her carseat. We had a four hour layover in Atlanta which was 2 1/2 hours too long. But we are surviving so far.




Piper at dinner at the airport. How sad is that?! She was so tired! And she even napped today - unlike her sister.




Again. Poor girl.




Josie had a minor meltdown on the second leg while she was trying to fall asleep. She's been a very good girl though.



"Dad why can't I get down and run around?"

We can't wait to see everyone. And eat at training table. We are so weird!

14 Months

Here's what happened when we tried to get a photo of the girls on Josh's chair this month:

There have been a few changes over the past month.  The biggest one is that we officially have two walkers!  Both girls really took off a couple of weeks ago and definitely walk more than they crawl.  They still occasionally resort to crawling, but for the most part, they toddle around.

Food is still an 'issue'.  One days they love a certain food and the next day they throw a fit.  Especially Piper.  They are officially done with formula and drink their morning and nighttime milk out of a cup. 

Playtime has become much more fun.  I've noticed that they really take the time to figure out how the toys work.  They concentrate very hard at stacking the cups, or putting the puzzles together the right way.  They have also starting really fighting over toys, which can be funny, and also cause tantrums.  Speaking of tantrums, Piper has started exerting her will.  She gets frustrated very easily and throws a fit when something doesn't go her way.  It is funny and exhausting!

We are headed to Utah tomorrow for a long trip and can't wait to visit everyone.  Then, hopefully we will come back to some nice weather and start to take this show outside!  We are all sick of being stuck inside and now that we have two walkers, they can tear around the yard.  We are also getting our new puppy at the end of the month, so the girls will have another playmate and we will have another baby to take care of!