A trip to San Diego, Disneyland and a 1/2 Marathon too...why not!

For the past several months Steve and I trained for the Disney 1/2 marathon. What a great experience! We both ran the whole thing, lost weight and took the girls to Disneyland while we were there for a few days. FUN! Then on to San Diego to visit family. A great vacation! Of course our Rachel was Princess crazy and Hannah, although scared of most the rides was a trooper while naps were cut short...

Hannah is ONE!

yippee! Ms. Hannah Rose turned ONE and we had a "Hannah, Banana Split" birthday party. She had her first cupcake, opened her first presents and had a great time with friends and family.

Rachel turns THREE!

Wow, has it really been three years already? Geesh, everyone said it would go by fast...it sure did. I love that Rachel says with full compassion and heart-felt words: "Mommy, I want to stay little forever!".....the only thing I can think to say is, me too Rachel, me too! For her birthday I took her to SuperFranks to play during the day (like a Chuck E. Cheese - but WAY better!). We let her pick the restaurant for dinner. She wanted Mac & Cheese at Chili's. So that's exactly what we did and where we went.

We had her birthday party "Little Mermaid" style....character decorations, pools to swim in, sand piles to dig in for treasures, sand art projects and the "real" Ariel showed up for face painting and photos. We had a great day with friends and family. Cousin Madison and her friend Molly spent the night and Uncle Bob and Aunt Margo came up for the weekend too.

Crawling & Curls!

Well, that didn't take long! Hannah is now crawling and has little curls behind her ears. Rachel is learning to keep her little toys in her room and away from "sissy". It has been fun to watch Hannah find the difference between the soft carpet and the hardwood floor. She loves crawling back and forth over the two surfaces....oh, the simple minds! She is also pulling herself up on the furniture. With all the crawling, life has certainly changed and been busy!

Rachel is enjoying the water, playing with her sister more and has such an imagination. The acting, singing and pretend play is all in high gear!

9 months and wanting to crawl!

Hannah is starting to talk and wanting to move! She says, "uh-oh", "baby", "dada". She loves being on the floor and is very close to crawling. Rachel is loving the water activities and her tumble time class.

WE HAVE A NEW HOME!

As we moved into our new home this month the girls have had so much fun! Helping Daddy lay the closet floor or work in the garage, the girls have been there to add smiles and fun to our projects. Rachel loves her dresses, her new room (with Tinker Bell painted by Aunt Ellie) and has been a big help unpacking. Hannah is discovering body parts, found her belly button this month, loves new food, is full of giggles and enjoys playing with her sister.

Busy Times!

Ohhhh life is busy with these two girls! Hannah is able to sit up with help now and as she works on cutting her first tooth everything goes in her mouth. She is happy and smiles all the time. She loves her big sister, their cuddle time together and is easily entertained by her. Rachel loves new places and has enjoyed learning at the Children's Museum and the Oakland Zoo this month. We are playing at lots of parks, going on nature walks and learning to ride a tricycle.

Hannah graduated to a new carseat this month...what a big girl! Rachel has been busy learning how to plant a garden. She is wearing her pj's because she had an accident in the garden earlier. :)

Hannah is 1/2 a year old! WOW!!!

Oh, one of the hardest parts of being a parent is you can't keep your kids from growing. Okay, maybe it's not one of the hardest parts but it sure stinks! I just want to bottle them and make them stay little! Hannah is now 6 months old and has been introduced to cereal...food, so much fun to experiment with! Rachel got to be a big helper and give Hannah her first bite of rice cereal. Hannah quickly decided SHE wanted to hold the spoon....I can see where this is going! Using grunts, screatches and laughs Hannah is learning to get attention with her voice. Rachel is developing into a sweet little girl who loves wearing dresses and pig tails. The girls are really enjoying each other and I can see the life long "sisterly bond/love" developing.