July Fun

We had such a fun July and didn't have much downtime. 

We started out the month with George and I attending our third Concerts in the Gardens with our good friends, the Amersons. Concerts in the Garden is a fun Fort Worth summer tradition. The Symphony plays at the Botanical Gardens, and you take blankets, chairs, food, and beverages and sit out on the lawn and enjoy. The third show we saw was the traditional patriotic/4th of July concert with an impressive fireworks show following. We had so much fun! 

We celebrated Independence Day with George's family (and a special visitor that was in town - Dom's mom, Sue) over for grilling on Friday and then went to Granbury on the actual Fourth. The girls rode in a boat for the first time and seemed to love it, although they both napped while en route to our lunch destination. 

After the Fourth, Daddy George had to go out of town for work for a few days, so Grandmother and Nonnie came and kept us company. We had so much fun with them! With Grandmother, we went to the Zoo and the park and loved every second. With Nonnie, we visited the Splash Pad and played around the house. It's hard for me to take two active toddlers to places like that by myself during the day, so it was great to have an extra set of hands. 

After a couple of days here, Nonnie and I drove the girls to West Columbia to spend some time down there. We enjoyed seeing Pawpaw and also many other family and friends, We got to play with Jax and see Allison, Connie, Gloria, Shay, Missy and our beloved Aunt Dixie. We also went to Clear Lake one afternoon and got some playtime with Cousin Caroline and her parents and grandparents. Cousin Caroline had such a cool playroom that we LOVED and also a small bounce house in the backyard that was our very favorite. We were worn out after lots of playing! Later that week, Daddy drove down from Fort Worth and joined us for the weekend, and we got some playtime with Cousin Blaire and Aunt Coco and Uncle Matt. I got to have dinner with Cortney, Megan, Taryn, Kellye and Jenna Saturday evening, which was such a special treat. We hadn't all been together and just able to chat in so long. There's something about friends that have stood by you during school days, college, (literally) weddings and celebrated babies with you that just warm your heart. No matter how much time it's been, we always seem to pick right back up where we left off. I love those girls dearly and am so blessed by their friendship. 

We came home and stuck pretty close to our house over the next couple of weeks. But we enjoyed coloring, playing with our best friend, EV, playing (before the mall hours) at the indoor toddler playground at the mall, swimming and trying to stay cool. The end of July was miserably hot, and we started (prematurely) looking forward to relief in the fall!

We had so much fun in July! We can't wait to see what August has in store! <3 font="">

Eighteen Months...

Sweet baby girls...you aren't babies anymore! You turned eighteen months old yesterday and I feel like we just found out we were pregnant with you. You amaze me every day with how smart, sweet, and loving you are to each other and everyone else. It is so fun to watch you interact. I try to take as many pictures as I can, but lately I've been trying to just sit back and take it all in. As a mom with young kids, I have heard so much that the "days are long, but the years are short." That couldn't be more true! Some days are tough--we all need a timeout (even Mommy), but the weeks, months and, now, year and a half, seem to almost evaporate. I want you to know that I love being your mom. Being a wife to your daddy and being your mom are the two best things in my life. They're all I've ever wanted, and I wouldn't trade one "timeout" for a second doing anything else. Right now, I would describe you two as a delight. You make life so delightful. 

Annabelle Jane

Annabelle weighed 23lbs, 4oz (61st percentile) and was 33 1/4th inches tall (90th percentile) at our 18th month check-up. 

Annabelle, you are a mover and shaker! You love running, climbing and, recently, hiding. We were at Nonnie and Pawpaw's house a couple of weeks ago, and you loved sliding the pocket door open to their utility room and hiding inside. I think Daddy videoed it. You giggled and squealed so loud! You are such a little daredevil. Nothing is too high or scary for you. When someone rings the doorbell, you run to see who it is (even with the dogs barking like crazy). You absolutely adore your sister. The first time we ever heard you actually make the kissing sound, it was to give Ashley a kiss on the head. You affectionately call her "Asha." You put "a" on the end of a lot of words. You have about 15 words, but still babble like crazy (and seem to be telling us something very specific). You are so independent and get such joy out of doing things for yourself. I love watching you grow, love, and learn. You bring such joy to our lives! I am so incredibly enamored with you!

Ashley Dianne

Ashley weighed 21lbs, 13oz (40th percentile) and was 30 3/4 inches tall (19th percentile) at our 18 month check up. 

Sweet Ashley, you are a lover and cuddler! You love being close to us (especially me) and get a little upset when I leave you. It makes me so sad, but I know that we can't be attached at the hip 24 hours a day. You love to talk! You've recently gotten very into naming body parts, and love pointing to and showing your belly button and looking at everyone else's. It's so cute! Yesterday, you tried to show Dr. Worsley mommy's belly button, but he said that he believed that I had one and you didn't have to show him. It made us laugh! You love your sister! You love to tap her on the head and say, "Annabelle" and then give her a kiss. You always smile so big afterwards. You two also enjoy chatting and jumping on your beds before you go down for a nap. It's so cute. Oh--and you are very attached to your baby. It's a pink plush blanket/animal thing and if you can't find it, you frantically say, "baby" and start looking for it. I can tell that you will be a great mommy one day. You are just so sweet I could eat you up! I love watching you cautiously discover this big, crazy world. You make my heart smile so big!

Happy 18 months girls! I can't believe we are halfway to TWO! I could never have imagined how much you would enrich our lives. We are so blessed by you and hope that we can raise you to be sweet, smart, God-loving girls with lights that shine so, so bright! We love you to the moon and back!