Future Flowergirls

In March, the girls are going to be in my cousin's wedding. I've been working on psyching them up with the hopes that they will actually walk down the aisle. We have most of their outfits put together and they have been practicing walking right next to each other while holding their flower baskets. So far they have been doing great, but they might have their own plans for how they are getting down the aisle.

Trying on their dresses - a smidge big, but we have a blue sash to add so that should help a little. They love their little baskets! (Disregard the socks, those are not in the outfit plan)

New plan for getting down the aisle - 4-Wheelers!

Target Dollar Spot

My favorite place to find random craft supplies for the girls - The Dollar Spot. The newest aquistition is the "just add water" painting. Not too messy and they loved it!

High Flyers

What is it with being thrown through the air by your daddy? It makes there girls laugh hysterically. Camryn in pink and Kristin in blue.

Check out this hair! It looks like fire!

Good form

Floating midair

Nurturing

Bath babies get cold too.

Rockin-her-baby

Chaps

The girls are just getting over having really stuffy noses and since they have been mouth-breathing all the time, their poor lips are super chapped. So now they are addicted to chapstick - "Chaps" as they call it. And they love to apply it themselves and even request particular types based on the color of the label. Their favorite is the "black chaps" (the original plain chapstick). If I get the wrong one they politely inform me, "No mommy, black chaps".

Hugs and Kisses

Please disregard the Christmas tree in the background. These pictures were taken a LONG time ago (or 10 days ago...whatever). The tree is down now thanks to Walt and the girls! I attended a wedding shower and came home to the tree all taken down and put away...awesome!

Kristin left, Camryn right

Kristin left, Camryn right

Camryn left, Kristin right

Kristin loves her daddy!

Kisses! Kristin left (notice the sucked in top lip) and Camryn right

Sit and Tumble?

Camryn playing on her Sit and Spin...and then taking a tumble!

Growth Spurt

Why Kristin...you look so tall standing there at the kitchen drawer getting chap stick out all by yourself. What? What's that you say? You didn't really grow super tall overnight?

Oh...you just pulled your 4-Wheeler into the kitchen and used it as a step stool.

Hmmm...very interesting.

She looks so innocent too.

Pull up a Chair

Pull up a chair, and stack some blocks. Oh yeah, and don't forget to say cheese. (Camryn left, Kristin right)

Smooshed Faces

When Kristin "puckers up" to make a kissy face, she almost always tucks her top lip under in, so in an effort to normal pucker, I push on her cheeks a little bit. Well now she does it herself.

Missing her top lip

Smooshing her own cheeks

Camryn getting in on the cheek smooshing action

Camryn got a little carried away

Working on a New Sign

We've been working on a new sign. The sign for "I love you". Hold some fingers up, keep others down. Ends up, it is a little tricky for little hands. Kristin will now demonstrate the deep concentration needed to accomplish such a task.

Cheese

Kristin loves her baby dolls. And she loves to have her picture taken. "Cheese!"

Bone Chilling

Pretty Nails

Our daddy loves us so much! He paints our finger nails and toe nails at least once a week - and he does a great job! We sit so still so that our nails don't get smudged, then show them off to mommy when she gets home. (Camryn left, Kristin right)

Belly Ache

I love the reasoning of a 2 year old. Kristin's tummy was hurting the other day, so what do you need if you have an ouchie? A princess ice pack of course! And how do you keep it on your belly? Why tuck it into your pants of course!

Having a rough day, but still making me laugh

Stickers!

Stickers are so much fun! (Kristin)

Camryn with a sticker on each finger - all by herself

A Great Day for the Zoo

Yep, that is right. The zoo in January. It was not too bad weather-wise and the animals were loving it! They were the most active I have ever seen them. Our first stop was in the Primate House, and we had a really neat experience. The chimpanzees were all sitting toward the back of their enclosure when we walked up to the window that looks into it. We were pointing at each chimp and talking to the girls about what they were doing (eating, cleaning each other) when one of the chimps hopped down from his spot and meandered over to stand right in front of the window we were at. Kristin completely freaked out that he was so close and looking right at her. So in trying to calm her down, I told her to wave hi to him, so she did. Then...he waved back! I swear I am not making this up. He stood right by the window, raised his right hand up by his face and waved right at the girls. He then picked up some food and climbed back up to where he was sitting before. We stayed there for a while hoping he would wave again, but he didn't. He jumped back down and came over to the window a few times, but no more waving.

After the Primate House, we stopped by the cheetahs (all were out laying in the sun), the meerkats (enjoying a snack of peanuts), the giraffes, and the elephants. The elephants were especially feisty and at first I could figure out why. Then I realized that they had ALL the elephants together - usually the 1 adult male is separated from the 1 large adult female and the 3 smaller females. Well the male was...excited...to see the females. We watched the 3 smaller females kick a ball around while the other 2 elephants disappeared behind a barrier. All I can say about that is - maybe we'll have a baby elephant in 22 months!

During our entire visit we could hear the male lion roaring periodically. So after seeing quite a bit of the elephants, we headed over to see the big cats. First up were the white tigers (my favorite!). Their habitat is setup with a viewing window that allows you to only be as far away from the tiger as the glass is thick. Camryn was all about "petting" the tiger as it paced in front of the window. Kristin was not nearly as excited - those tigers are BIG when you get that close. Every time the tiger would walk by, Camryn would pet the glass and the tiger would rub its face on the glass. So cute! Kristin eventually sat next to Cam, and even patted the glass.

We came to the male lion next. Since we had heard him roaring several times already, we had the girls ask him to "speak" (like our dog, Cappy, does). They kept repeating "peak, peak" and then he sat up and started roaring! It was great. He even roared a second time while we were standing there! Such a show-off. He really was beautiful with his long mane.

I overheard someone saying the following, "It is just wrong to put the zebras directly across from the lion so he can just see them all day long, but not ever get to them." It is true that the zoo is setup with the zebras straight across from the lion, but I feel bad for the zebras. Every time that lion roars, it must send a chill down their spines.

Our final stop on this day was in the parakeet cage. The girls love to feed the parakeets from the tiny little seed sticks.

At that point it was getting past the girls' nap time, so we decided to head home. Overall it was a great day for the zoo. Not too many people, not too cold, and tons of active animals.