lunch date

We had a nice family lunch date today. The weather was beautiful, so we sat out on the patio of the restaurant. Emma Jane wasn't feeling 100% so she was especially lovey dovey. Vivian really likes to be out and about these days. She is happy to sit wide-eyed taking it all in. After lunch we took a trip to "Home-dee Depot" (Emma Jane's pronunciation) in search of pots and spring flowers to spruce up our back porch. We're looking forward to putting our little gardener to work. Emma Jane has her very own rake, shovel, and hoe and she can't wait to put them to use!

little readers

Today at nap time Emma Jane asked me if she could read a book to Vivi. Well, sure, why not? Of course, I figured this would last all of two seconds, but Emma Jane settled down with little Viv and "read" the entire book to her. She has this particular book memorized, so she really went page by page and told the story with all of the usual Emma Jane bravado. Vivian was mesmerized and really seemed to pay attention to the story. It's moments like these that make me especially proud to be a mommy to these two sweet girls.

long johns in march?!?

Spring sprung and then took a flying leap! The weather has been cold and rainy all week. At least the weather gave me an opportunity to put Vivi in these precious hooded long johns and snap a few pictures. This adorable outfit was given to us as a gender neutral gift, so after the first couple of shots I girl-i-fied it with one of the many headbands I've made for Vivi. Isn't she a doll?

let's get moving!

Little Vivian surprises us each and every day. This girl is determined to get moving! I've been concerned that her reflux would keep her from developing physically as quickly as other babies her age. Since we have limited her tummy time and time laying flat on her back, I just knew we were holding her back. NOT the case! She is holding that head up high when on her tummy, turning over from belly to back, and sitting on her own for a few seconds at a time. She is REALLY working to flip over from back to belly, but that hasn't happened just yet. Today she actually scooted herself out of the boppy pillow while on her tummy. She went right over the pillow and tumbled onto her back! Thinking it was just a fluke, I put her back in position and she immediately did the same thing again! We are so impressed with her strength and can't wait to see what she does next!





I had to include these cute shots of Emma Jane with Lily. These two are quite a pair!

playtime for vivi

Vivian had her first playdate without big sis. We went to play with Charlotte and Evan on Friday while Emma Jane was in preschool. It was fun to observe these cuties who are all in different stages. Charlotte is 8 months, Evan is almost 6 months, and Vivi is the youngest at 4 months. For most of our visit, Vivi sat in the bumbo looking around wide-eyed while chewing on her hands! It will be exciting to see another group of baby friends growing up together.

zoo crew

Emma Jane, Vivi, and I spent the morning at the zoo with the Sadler girls earlier this week. Since Vivi has taken over the stroller, Emma Jane was free to walk the zoo. Freedom usually leads Emma Jane into trouble, but she was a pretty good listener on this trip. She still shows little interest in the animals, but she had fun climbing rocks, fences, and animal statues. I'm pretty sure that galloping ahead of the group was her favorite part, but she would stop and wait for us to catch up. Of course, the merry-go-round is always a highlight. The big girls also took a ride on the train, but both were sobbing by the time it was over. This was Emma Jane's first train ride without mom or dad, and I think after two laps around she thought she might be stuck on it all day! Vivian enjoyed checking everything out from the carrier, but I'm not sure how much she was able to see under the great big sunhat she was wearing. All four girls were tuckered out when it was time to go home. Emma Jane even caught a ride with Lily in the stroller as we made our exit!

what's for dinner?

Vivian tried her first solid food a few days ago after getting the green light from her pediatrician. We got her all set up in her bouncy seat and gave her a very soupy mixture of rice cereal and formula. She wasn't sure what to think about that scary spoon and the texture of the cereal seemed a little much for her. We'll keep working on it!

We are always amused at Emma Jane's imagination at the dinner table. She does anything she can to postpone the actual consumption of the food on her plate. She has just recently discovered the tiny seeds inside her green beans and tries to open every single green bean to find them. The other night she said, "I'm looking for the treasures!" and took every seed out of each bean and lined them up on the rim of her plate. She then proceeded to count her seeds. Although we try not to encourage procrastination during meal time, it's hard to discourage behavior that broadens her imagination and often leads to a teachable moment.

sitting pretty

Emma Jane is so happy that Vivian is starting to interact with her. She asks to hold Vivi several times throughout the day and she thought it was really cool that her baby sister could sit up next to her in her chair today. She even offered to share her special blankies with Vivi and THAT is a BIG deal! I'm pretty sure Vivian is enjoying all the extra attention from her big sis, too!

homerun!

Emma Jane woke up screaming a few nights ago. When Paul went to check on her, he said she shouted over and over again that her baseball hat was missing. Well, she doesn't own a baseball hat! We could only guess that this nightmare originated from the fact that she's seen some of her buddies wearing baseball hats recently. We didn't want our little girl to continue having such terrible dreams (ha!), so I took Emma Jane baseball cap shopping the very next day. We checked several children's stores with no luck. Emma Jane would tell the employees, "We can't find a baseball hat ANYWHERE!" Finally, I found a USC hat just her size that is adjustable so that it can grow with her. She was so excited! She wore it out of the store and sweetly stated, "My daddy is going to LOVE it!"

4 months and growing!

Our sweet Vivian turned 4 months old yesterday. She had her well-check appointment today. We are happy to report that she now weighs 14 pounds and is 25 inches long. Our girl is growing! Her smiles brighten our days and we are crazy about her. She truly is a little miracle.