Where has August and September gone? We have had an amazing few months! But I guess time flies when you're having fun!
Most of August had the weather being either super hot or really rainy, so we have spent most of our time inside. My girls love to read and have me read to them. I have spent countless hours on my couch reading book after book to my girls. There are some books that I don't even need to read anymore because I can tell it from memory! With Vivian becoming more mobile, she's discovered books. Although she can't read and won't hold still for me to read one to her, she sure loves to find our tiny books and flip through the pages!
One of the things I have always wanted to do was raise children who appreciate books! I think I'm doing a great job so far!
Charles and I found out the day after our anniversary (8/12/12) that his great aunt had passed away. We went to her visitation and brought our girls to meet Charles' extended family. They were so sweet and just loved getting to meet a bunch of new people! We got so many nice compliments on our beautiful daughters! I took a photo of each girl before we left, and looking like this, it was hard to not just swoon over my girls!
On August 18th, Jamie and I ran our last run for the Couch to 5K running plan! It was a bittersweet morning, but we finished our 30 minute run without stopping and did it with smiles on our faces! By the time I got back home, I had to start getting ready for Karmen's surprise birthday party! We had to leave around 1:30 to make it to the church to set up before she got there. It was a wonderful moment when she came into the room and was genuinely surprised! She almost passed out! There were a ton of people who showed up! We traveled home, then Charles and I went to Karmen's house to watch The Hunger Games to wrap up Karmen's birthday party!
I have had some difficulty with Caitlin and not wanting to take a nap in the afternoons. I have tried putting her in her bed and leaving the room hoping she'd fall asleep, only to find that she won't go to sleep and ends up waking Rosalie too early. I got frustrated with that because I would have two crabby kiddos instead of one. I had no choice than to keep Caitlin up. But by the end of the day, she was beyond fussy and cranky.
An idea came one day to have her take "rest" time on the couch. She could color, read books, or watch a movie as long as she was laying on the couch and being quiet. And it worked! Some days, she'll stay up, but the other days are ending up like this:
I know she needs her naps! She feels so much better on the days she falls asleep on the couch! Even if it is only for 30 minutes, she gets her rest! This makes me very happy! I'm able to get some quiet time to relax, clean, or craft!
We had a week of cooler weather, so it was a great opportunity to get the girls outside without worrying if they'd get overheated in a short amount of time! I actually had to pull out the girls' fall/winter clothes! While doing this, the girls noticed a pattern in their clothes. They came up to me carrying every shirt that had Dora on the front! It was followed by, "It's time to get dressed with Dora, Mommy!" So I dressed the girls up in Dora clothes and got some photos of them playing on the porch one morning!
The vest that Vivian is wearing actually goes with the outfit that Rosalie was wearing, but she decided to share with Vivian! It was so cute watching her put the vest on Vivian! Caitlin helped!
Vivian got hold of some crayons from Caitlin's color box one evening. Charles and I didn't realize it at first because we were helping the other two color. It wasn't until Vivian climbed up the side of the couch and I reached for her that I realized Vivian had been into the crayons! I saw purple all over my pants and the couch cushion... not to mention, all over Miss Vivian!
Vivi has been very independent lately! She wants to do everything herself. Everything. And she will scream and fight if you try to help her do anything.
Welcome September! I went shopping for some clothes for Vivian and stumbled upon some awesome deals for used Halloween costumes for the girls! The rectory was having a costume sale, all costumes were $1! Caitlin will be SpiderGirl, Rosalie will be a Princess, and Vivian will be a ducky!
The next day, September 2nd, we traveled to Red Oak for my Mom's surprise birthday party at my Aunt's house! We showed up early to help with the food and to spend some time with our family before my Mom showed up!
My Mom really had no idea that we had planned it all behind her back! She thought that maybe we were having a party for her baby brother, but no! It was for her! We all hid in the garage and waited for her to come inside so that we could yell, "SURPRISE!", and then sing Happy Birthday!
September 6th, Vivian turned 11 months old! It has flown by! She is growing so fast! She is petite compared to her sisters when they were that age, she is unique! She has a fantastic personality and is always happy and clapping her hands! When I was trying to take her 11 Month photo, she would not hold still or leave her yellow flower alone! I took about 50 photos and only one turned out good! So I decided to put a fun one and the good one next to each other! Happy 11 Months, Vivian Rane!
September 13th, we took the girls to a Parents as Teachers fun night! The theme was ducks. The girls read some stories about ducks, made some paper crafts, and had a puppet show. We put our names in a box for a chance to win one of the puppet boxes and ended up winning the biggest one! I snapped some photos of the girls playing with it the next morning! They were just tickled that we won it and got to take it home! Vivian didn't really like going inside, so she sat outside of the box and read some books!
September 14th, we took the girls over to Mike and Karmen's house for a soup pot-luck before the hot air balloons had a fun flight that evening. Mike and Karmen live a few houses down from the football field where the balloons drop the sandbag onto the target. So once we saw some balloons in the air, we took the girls over and watched the balloons come really close and fly away! We had an amazing time!
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| You can see the balloons in the pictures, but they are very small in the sky! In the third photo, Caitlin is pretending that the hot air balloon is on her finger! |
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| Watching a balloon land on the football field! |
September 15th, I got to represent the YMCA in the Balloon Days parade that morning by doing Zumba! If you have been following my weight-loss journey, I did the same thing in the fourth of July parade. I was 20 lbs heavier then. This time was SO much easier!
Charles took the girls to the depot to watch the parade! He said that Caitlin sat on the curb and didn't want to do anything while Rosalie was running around picking up candy and waving at people in the parade! Vivian chilled in the stroller next to Daddy.
Mike and Karmen came over for lunch and chilled with us for the rest of the day! Karmen and I watched some movies while Charles and Mike went Frisbee golfing. When the sun was almost down, we took the girls over to the airport to watch the night glow. The balloons line up and do a count down. Once it's time, they all make the balloons glow at the same time. This year wasn't as good as the past years, but we got a few good photos of the balloons lighting up! Caitlin was in awe as she watched! Rosalie kept saying, "Hot. Air. Balloon. FIRE!" Vivian just chilled in the backseat of the car!
September 18th, our Parent Educator, Retta, came over to spend some time with Caitlin and Rosalie! She told me before she came over that she wanted to finger paint with the girls. It was hard keeping it a surprise, but the girls were so excited when Retta and I told them what we were doing for her visit! The girls got right into it and were pros! This was both of their first time finger painting! They also got to watercolor paint! It wasn't as fun as painting with their fingers, but they both loved being able to use a paint brush! They both created masterpieces!
With the cooler weather coming more frequently, I had to switch Vivian's clothes over from her summer attire to her fall/winter attire. Most of the clothes she has that are meant for this season. She is also moving up a size in her clothes. We are finally in 12 month clothes. So when I was switching over her clothes, I had a moment of sadness when I realized that she wouldn't fit some of the 6-9 month winter clothes that her older sisters got to wear, and some that were new to Vivian. Since it was a cool day, I put Vivian in most of the outfits I wanted her to have at least one photo while wearing! She was a trooper and loved playing dress up!
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| She's posed similar in the middle and last photos because she was trying to pull the rosette hairband off of her head from behind! :) Strike a pose! |
This brings us to the end of September!
September 28th, Homecoming parade! I took the girls over to T's house for the Homecoming parade done by the High School/Middle School. We came over a little early so that the kids could play and get the wiggles out of their systems. By the time it was time for the parade, everyone had their own lawn chair that was lined up on the side of the road!
There was lots of candy being thrown and both girls picked it up this time! Caitlin held her hands over her ears most of the time because of the "loud firetrucks". Rosalie took time to wave to each person in the parade and say, "HIIIII!!! HIIIIII!!!" She had the Queen candidates laughing pretty hard and saying, "Oh! She's so cute!" Rosie was LOVING the attention! By the end of the parade, the moment we had been waiting for was coming down the road! My nephew, Austin, was riding on a truck representing his football team! I didn't get a close-up shot of him on the truck because by the time the girls realized that he was on the truck, I had to hold them still because they wanted to run to him! It was super cute! They were so proud of Austin!
Welcome October!
This month is packed with stuff for our family! I am going to to try and stay updated on here! Especially since Vivian turns ONE this month! Her party is planned and I've been working on her party decorations and pinata! There is also the Color Run, other birthday parties, a wedding, Halloween, and more! I'll keep y'all updated as best as I can!
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