Spring is here...

...and then some days it still feels like winter. Such is Ohio. However, unlike most Ohio springs, the sun has been out shining most days and it's a great help in coping with the wintertime depression that sets in about now.

Anyway, today was a decent day and we took the girls to the playground. We had a great time and I really can't wait to go back! Emma was a little hesitant at first with the slides, which was totally weird for her since she LOVES slides. She soon warmed up and of course we couldn't get her off of them after that!

Maggie had her first ride on a swing and she absolutely loved it. She had a blast. So much so, she was cracking up!

Here are lots of pictures because I can't just pick a few...enjoy!

oh, and here's a couple pics because I just think this is neat:

Emma

Maggie

Just a quickie...or is it quicky...quickey -- oh hell, now they all look silly!!!

I just have a few pics to update with...not much is going on. The only new updates on the girls are Maggie has her first tooth and we've registered Emma in preschool for next September!

Ryan and I are doing well...we all can't wait for warmer weather so we can go outside and play!!!

So here are some pics:


Emma chillin' in the laundry basket watchin' some Thomas & Friends...

She asked me to put her hat on....so there she stands, playing on the computer with only a sweatshirt on, a hat, and no pants:

You can't see it in this picture, but Maggie has her very first tooth!! It's barely showing in this pic...if at all...I'm not sure I see it, but I thought I took this picture for that reason...

Emma's crazy static head on the couch....

The girls interacting!!! It doesn't happen often, so I try to capture every and any moment I can!

****** edited to add another little bit of info:

Emma can now read the words yes, no, cat, egg and Emma!!!

Thank you, Michelle!

I came home today to a message on my answering machine from a very dear friend of mine, Michelle. Unfortunately, we don't talk often at all, so to hear her voice was quite a surprise. So I call back immediately to find out what's up only to get grief for not having updated this blog in so long!!! So here I am, I've made it a point to sit down and keep my promise to Michelle to update our blog tonight.

We've got a lot of catching up to do!

In my last post Maggie was 2 1/2 months, she's now 5 months (as of this past Sunday) and still growing like crazy.

At her 4-month well check she was still of the charts weighing in at 18 lbs. 8 ozs., and she was 25.5 inches. I'm still nursing her and we've added some cereal to her daily menu as well as some vegetables. She LOVES to eat!

She's just started to sit independently and is in the process of mastering the art. She still sits with a pillow behind her in case of accidental tipping, but for the most part does rather well at catching herself if she starts to lean. She has mastered rolling back to front and has since made diaper changes very challenging!

Emma still amazes us with something new every day. She's so so smart, I can't get over it! She's still very much into playing on the computer, and for Christmas Santa got her a Smart Cycle, so she spends a lot of time between the two. When she's not playing those two things, she's playing with her trains, or cars, or tools (she got a Handy Manny tool set for Christmas). She's definitely not a girly girl; however, she does like to put on makeup with Mommy, so she's not ALL tomboy either ;) Her words and phrases crack me up daily. She uses 'fillers' in between words...it's like she needs to still make noise even though her brain is looking for the right word to use. If she wants Ryan to help her play with the Smart Cycle it's, "Daddy eeeeee bike eeeeeeeee please?" She knows her entire alphabet, upper and lower case, numbers 1 through 20 (although when she recites her numbers, all her 'teens' sound the same; we just found out she knows what the numbers actually are, though), she knows all her shapes including half-circle, crescent, hexagon, pentagon, octagon, and my favorite trapezoid ("da-daweeed"). When we're in the car going somewhere she calls out triangle or trapezoid depending on the shapes of the houses we pass. And one more thing to brag about: She knows how to read the words "yes" and "no".

Before I end this, I'll add that for Christmas I received Photoshop from my mom and dad, and although I don't have tons of time to learn everything the complex program can do, I have learned a couple tricks. Here are some before and afters.

I'll update again soon!! (NOT two months from now considering I know there are some who check this blog regularly) And I'll post more pictures....it's late now, time for bed!

Again, thanks Michelle for kickin' my butt into gear!