Party Girl

Juliet in her party dress! 

Run Away Matty

Trying to get a picture of the birthday boy was not an easy task--he kept running away and being very silly!

Numbers

Matty was asked numerous times what kind of cake/party he wanted for his birthday--his response?  "A number cake!  A number party!".  When pressed, he would say, "I already told you! A number cake!".  Easy enough!  Matty got a #4 shaped birthday cake and a "number" themed party--hopscotch, #4 shaped gingerbread houses for decorating, number stickers, etc. 

HAPPY 4th BIRTHDAY MATTY!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MATTY!!

Today, Matty turns 4!  Can you believe it??  He is getting so big--seriously, just looking back at the pictures from this past year, he has been doing a great job of getting taller and taller!

We ordered some festive birthday balloons for Matty's birthday and went to pick them up on Saturday.  He ran into our bedroom on Saturday and exclaimed, "My dream has come true!  We get to pick up my balloons today!!". 


I hope all your birthdays are as joy filled and exciting, Matty! 

We love you!

Matty Growing!

Counting down the days until Matty's birthday!  Thought it would be a good time for a flashback Friday....

January 2013

January 2012

January 2011

January 2010

January 2009

iPad Snuggle Time

Juliet and Matty snuggling on the couch sharing a little iPad time...

Where Did Juliet Go?

Where did Juliet disappear to?  She must have noticed Mommy's iPad on the counter, so she pushed a chair over and started playing.  Time to find a higher shelf for it!

Look Ma, No Cavities!

Matty did great at his dentist appointment.  He picked out marshmallow-flavored toothpaste and was very still and patient while they cleaned his teeth.  The hygenist also remarked on what great teeth Matty has and that he even has a ton of space between all of his teeth, so much so that he doesn't even really need to floss (except to get into good habits).  Well, he definitely got Daddy's teeth--that's great!

Juliet Visits the Dentist

Juliet had her very first dentist appointment last week!  Matty had his teeth cleaning appointment and I was planning on bringing Juliet to the dentist later in the year, but after Matty got out of the chair, she hopped right in for her turn!  They had an opening, so we decided to go for it.  She was great--what a big girl!!

Peek-a-Boo!

Soup's On!

Matty requested soup for lunch today, so instead of saying "No Soup for You!", we made him some good old fashioned chicken noodle soup.  As he was eating it, his exclamation of "It even comes with chicken!" seemed perfect for a commercial. :-)

Note:  Juliet's hair is only done in a top knot in the pics to keep it out of her food. 

Who's ready for swimming?

Even though it's winter, it's never to early to get ready for the summer season, right?

Time for swim lessons!  Matty and Juliet hit the pool every Wednesday now to learn all the basics. 

Is this what Santa intended?

Juliet's new doll stroller from Santa has been well used lately.  Only in addition to using it for dolls and other toys, they have decided that it is super fun for Juliet to ride in the stroller while Matty races her around the house.  Oh dear. 

2013 Resolution Time!

It's time for our yearly resolution post.  Hoping everyone has a very happy and healthy 2013!

Let's see how Matty and Juliet fared on their 2012 Resolutions:

Matty's 2012 Resolutions:

1.  Start preschool

Success!  Matty has been going to Pre-K 3 since September. Some days, he says he doesn't want to go, but he always seems to have fun!    

2.  Get dressed by himself

Success!  Even though this means that many days he trades the outfit that Mommy dressed him in for his Despicable Me minion shirt or his bathing suit.  

3.  Eat lots of fruits and vegetables

Success!  He enjoys peaches, pears, apples, and oranges.  He always has some veggies with dinner (sometimes willingly, sometimes not).  He's also a big fan of Greek yogurt these days, even though it isn't a fruit or vegetable, it is healthy for you!

4.  Write his name

Work in Progress!  He's doing a great job tracing out the letters in his name and we are working on writing them, too.  

5.  Practice his letters and numbers

Success!  & Work in Progress!  His favorite numbers at the moment are 1 & 4, his favorite letters are probably still M and W.  :-)

6.  Be kind and helpful to his little sister Juliet

Success!  He was even helpful enough to assist her in escaping the crib in 2012.  I'm sure this dynamic duo will get into even more together in 2013. In all seriuosness, Matty is a great big brother to Juliet. 

7.  Be adventurous and remember to smile!
Success!  Every morning he asks, "what is our plan for today?".  Matty's belly laughs are one of the best sounds in the world.  He'll start giggling if you mention any bad words (poop, fart, burp, butt, etc) and keep going for at least 10 minutes. 

Juliet's 2012 Resolutions:

1.  Learn to walk

Done and done!  Juliet is fully mobile and can run with the best of them now.  Don't you dare try to leave her behind--she will not stand for it!

2.  Say her first word

Done!  First word, first sentence--why stop there?  Juliet is a chatterbox!

3.  Try out a swim class

No dice--Mommy tried and couldn't find a class that would work--a lot of places didn't offer the little tot classes or only on weekends in the summer--, but this is one resolution that is definitely going to be tackled in 2013!

4.  Sleep through the night** (Pretty Please??)

Hooray!!  So excited that Juliet has succeeded with this resolution.  

5.  Try ice cream

Success! Juliet definitely has the sweet tooth. Over the summer, she would eat more ice cream than Matty.  

6.  Be nice to her big brother Matty

Success!  (Well, mostly!)  She sure does love her big brother Matty.  Lately, if Matty falls done she'll go over to him and make sure he's ok--"OK??"

7.  Be our happy little girl!
Success!  We love our smiley, happy lady.  Please don't go away during the upcoming terrible twos!! 

2013 RESOLUTION TIME!!
Matty's 2013 Resolutions:
1. Learn to write his name
2. Learn all his letters (upper and lowercase)
3. Practice his swimming skills 
4. Stay in school! (Preschool, that is)
5. Keep asking those tough questions
6. Be nice to his little sister Juliet
7. Remember to laugh!


Juliet's 2013 Resolutions:
1. Take a swim class
2. Try out a toddler gym class
3. Make the move from the crib to a big girl bed
4. Say bye-bye to diapers and get potty trained
5. Be nice to her big brother Matty
6. Keep on dancing :-)
7. Smile!
 

GG and her little ones

GG celebrating Christmas with her 4 great-grandchildren:

Christmas Best

In all of the craziness of Christmas, we didn't have one good picture of the kids together in their Christmas outfits. Luckily, we have the great pictures from our Christmas card:

(Thanks again, Jenny!)

Quality Daddy Time

Juliet and Daddy love:

Christmas Morning Craziness

Christmas morning mayhem!  So many things to look at and play with!

Christmas Morning

The kids waiting to tear into their presents.  Of course, they are stopped for the obligatory top of the stairs pj picture.  Matty already spotted that Transform Dino and he is so excited!!

Thank you Santa!

Santa came--hooray!  And look--Santa brought Matty a red T-Rex Transform Dino just like he wanted! 

Christmas Eve with Cousins

All tired out after church and waiting for dinner with the cousins...

They were watching the Christmas favorite...Despicable Me. :-)

Dapper Matty

We went to 4pm mass on Christmas Eve.  The kids were really good and were (mostly) quiet.  The priest was discussing how everyone should remember to keep Christ in their hearts and come to church throughout the year, not just on Christmas and Easter, etc.  Matty heard the discussion of holidays and turned to me and said, "Can I be Jake for Halloween?" (of Jake & the Neverland Pirates).  The priest was talking about holidays, after all...

Doesn't he look so handsome??!!

It's Time to Bake the Cookies...

Christmas cookie baking!  We thought it would be fun to start this tradition with Matty and Juliet this year and make Christmas cookies.  They had a great time--Matty loved decorating all of the cookies with Daddy and Juliet loved eating all of the sprinkles.  A LOT of sprinkles were lost forever in this process.  It was really, really messy, but completely worth it. 

Juliet starting on her sprinkle soup.

Matty and Daddy decorating. 

Matty concentrating on his creative thoughts.  I have never seen so many sprinkles piled on top of one cookie before...

A tray almost ready for the oven! 

The sprinkle aftermath!  If you think this is bad, you should have seen the floor. 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

It was a busy holiday season for us and thankfully the kids were back to being healthy for Christmas and New Years!  Hope everyone had a very happy and healthy holiday season!

Santa comes around on the firetruck the Saturday before Christmas and gives out candy to all the boys and girls.  Juliet and Matty ran outside to see him and get a treat.  Juliet did not want to let go of her Kit Kat.  When I tried to take it from her, she started crying.  Luckily, we had just finished lunch before Santa's arrival, so it was technically dessert time.  We split the Kit Kat, except for Matty who had absolutely no interest in eating the candy.  Juliet--she definitely has a sweet tooth!

The candy stand-off