New year, new pictures.

As I slowly try and reincorporate blogging into my routine, I'll try and catch up with a few fave photos from the past months... from starting soccer to the annual monarch butterfly crop to a family road trip (Lawrence to St. Louis to Indianapolis) to Halloween shenanigans to holiday traditions.

Abby and Elise LOVED playing soccer and are eagerly awaiting the start of the Spring season. They continue to excel at piano (Elise keeps us moving with "The Entertainer" almost daily and Abby has mastered "Colors of the Wind" with such emotion)... Speaking of piano, I missed their last recital as a certain someone couldn't stay quiet for even 30 seconds and we spent the next 35 minutes in the car. Four of us (sans Anna) read The Hobbit together and then enjoyed movie nights to see it in action - A and E are now working their way through the fourth Harry Potter with John as their nightly read-aloud. They joined student council at school and we got to enjoy a proud parent moment when a teacher from STUCO emailed and used the words "kind" and "mature" and "amazing". Speaking of teachers... third grade will be hard to beat. I practically have to drag Anna away each morning because it is the most inviting, nurturing, and upbeat learning environment (they are in the same class again this year) - the girls have each missed one day of school and even that was too much, in their opinions. I think I can count on one hand the number of times I have NOT done Abby's pigtail braids for school; I can probably count on one hand the number of times I HAVE helped style Elise's hair for school. When fixing lunches each morning, no matter the question ("Do you want a cheese stick or a babybel?"), Elise always answer "I don't care". When Abby is asked, she always answers: "What kind of cheese stick? Is it a white cheddar babybel? Actually, do we have any of the cheese I like from the Merc? Can I have slices of that instead?". This. is. them.

Anna continues to serenade us with "The Twelve Days of Christmas", sometimes loudly in the shopping cart at the store, sometimes quietly through the monitor at night as she yammers endlessly before falling asleep. She was caught marching around Gran and Grandpa's coffee table just last week, chanting "Organize your life! Organize your life!", which is a perfect example of her charismatic personality - she listens to everything around her and we are so entertained by her selective use of certain bits she's heard. I am happy to report that Anna's back-seat driving has subsided... while I thought I was enriching her world with colors and information, little did I know that tuning her into stoplights would result in nonstop directives from the backseat: "Mom, it's green. GO!"... "There's a green arrow. YOUR TURN!"..."It's RED! You can't go on RED!". The latter was the most difficult - toddlers don't seem to quickly grasp "right on red". Sigh... Over the holidays, the official "first movie" was enjoyed and, if you've been with me for awhile, you might remember that Abby and Elise's first movie was "Mary Poppins". While I continue to hold steady on limited to no screen time, Anna's first movie was "Elf". Yes, Will Ferrell. She loved it and told everyone after "Buddy - that's a good name for an elf". At least it followed the real-people rule instead of animation, right?

We took a road trip in October - first stop in St. Louis to see Crazy Uncle Cousin Scotty, Traci, and Uncle Bob. A and E LOVED the apartment John booked for our night there - bunk beds and all... which I think made up for the fact that they had to endure a carsick little sister in St. Louis rush hour traffic shortly before arriving. It was a one-and-done incident, probably thanks to the help of Dramamine thereafter. We hit Fitz's for the world's biggest root beer floats and then spent a good portion of the next day at the zoo. My cousin Scott was a wonderful tour guide and provided unlimited laughter and entertainment.

From there we headed to Indianapolis to see Cousin Mark and Lisa. This was our third trip with Abby and Elise and Anna's first. It is always a weekend of relaxation, wonderful company, fun outings, and 5-star treatment. We went to the Children's Museum, found a couple wonderful playgrounds, and carved/decorated pumpkins.

Halloween brought us Hermione Granger, a Dark Fairy, and a Cat Ghost - how can you argue with those choices????

We are fortunate during the holidays to have ample time free of commitments - with family nearby, we don't travel... John's job allows him to have at least a week off... and we just roll at a steady and slow pace. Anna loved the lighting the "benorah" each night of Hanukkah, she STILL asks to see Christmas lights when we're out after dark, and the taking-down of our tree triggered a meltdown of epic proportion. I think she actually went through each stage of grief over the course of her hour-long episode: sadness, denial, anger... as she was finally calming, I said "I love you", to which she replied "I love you too but I can't talk right now". Tree-trauma aside, 2016 ended quite peacefully.

All that was October

Let's start with you, Anna Panna Cotta...

October marked 5 months for you, Baby Bear. We love you more this month than last... but we are so very, very tired. In the past month, you gave up naps. You gave up falling asleep easily at night. You gave up staying asleep at night. Hence the name "Baby Bear". No, sweet baby - I don't want to hang out with you from 1 am to 4 am.. awake. Daddy has been the secret weapon - many nights he has come to my rescue, stashing you down in the basement (with him as well, of course) and that's where I find you two - snuggled into the couch, you tucked into the crook of his arm. The last week or two seems better... or maybe I'm just finding peace with 4 hours of sleep a night and lots of baby holding. ;) 5 months... you are rolling from tummy to back, reaching and grabbing, squealing and gurgling. You've fallen a bit out of love with sucking on your fingers or a pacifier and, as I think about it, the drooling may have slowed? Or maybe that's wishful thinking. You have been described by a stranger on more than one occasion as "a little pixie!"... your relationship to us has also been questioned on more than one occasion as your looks continue to resemble you, and only you. After having two babies before you who mirrored each other's appearance in so many ways, I assumed number three would follow suit. You did not - your hair is getting lighter, your eyes are still blue, your complexion remains fair. You, my love, are beautiful. The past month also put you back onto the growth chart. Breastfeeding is oh-so important to me and we've had our struggles. This journey over the past month has included a lot of pumping to try and increase my supply as well as a trip to an ENT two weeks ago to have your upper lip tie and tongue tie clipped. We both cried during that procedure - you were crying your "mad" cry because of the swaddling and hands in your mouth. I was crying my "pitiful mom" cry. The whole procedure was quick and the recovery was practically nothing. You are up to 11 pounds, 14 ounces (2nd percentile) and almost 26 inches long (16th percentile). You have been in perfect health and that "tickled" look on your face tickles us everyday - Gran and I saw your first playful sense of humor: I was holding you and you kept leaning back, arching away from me. Each time, in a stern-ish voice, I would say "Anna" and you would move toward me, make and hold eye contact, then slowly start leaning back again, with a very, ornery grin. And guess what - the big sisters still ADORE you (which I attribute partly to the fact that they are very sound sleepers and have been unphased by your nightly shenanigans). I can only imagine what you're going to say back when the time comes...

Speaking of the big sisters...

These two. You ladies are into dolls and dress-up, Star Wars and Dolphin Tale, reading and writing, tree-climbing and bike-riding and playing in the mud. As important as our schoolwork is each day, you are both chomping at the bit to get outside from sun-up to sun-down. I cannot imagine the amount of time you've spent high up in the tree out front lately. In fact, every time we leave the house goes something like this: "Come on, Abby! Let's go out first!"... "Wait for me, Elise!"... "Abby and Elise! Please get out of the tree and into the car!". You girls have been unruly, obnoxious, impatient, and high maintenance. And I say that with love. But seriously - who cares what shoes you wear or if your hair won't lay down flat or who answers the phone first or who checked out which book from the library or if Daddy says it's almost 2:00 when it's 1:46. We have days with school that I throw in the towel and we head to the park. Granted, my lack of sleep might be a contributing factor but even on those days, we are learning. I am learning. This year of homeschooling, while it's proving to take more patience that I ever imagined, is going to teach me so much about your personalities, your learning styles... and about my parenting. You both LOVE activity - Abby, in dance class, your movements are graceful and coordinated; Elise - you climb trees with incredible confidence and strength. You both LOVE words - Abby, your little brain rhymes and has rhythm... you actually came up with the words to one of my new songs for Baby Sing and Sign. Elise, your little brain hears each sound in words so precisely, making you a strong speller. Right now, Abby - you're reading Ramona the Brave; Elise - you're reading Trumpet of the Swan. Our "together book" is The Long Winter. I bought two new books for you from the Wrenly series a couple of weeks ago - on the day they arrived, you finished reading them before dinner that night. You've made countless rainbow loom bracelets and paper-doll clothes galore. Seriously - at my prime in making cards, I thought I had a paper obsession. You two have paper EVERYWHERE! Scraps cut from magazines, drawings and sketches, notes and lists. Amidst all your madness, however, you two are still so incredibly sweet. Abby - you reprimand me every time I call Anna "rotten". Elise - just yesterday, you traded your piece of candy with Abby because she just really wanted the one you had. For art studio class last week, you dressed alike and decided to be "twins" for Halloween that day. Good thing you're both very jack-o-laternish with those missing front teeth. You girls are really something else. 

October 2014 also included our 29th annual pumpkin carving party and Halloween. The pictures from these events tell it all:

October recap

Well hello, ol' friend. So... October happened. Let's share a few highlights from the month...

We road-tripped to Indianapolis. We made this trip when the girls were 3 and we thought it was a piece of cake then! At 5, it was a walk in the park. We got up and left around 5:00 in the morning - I had the car stocked with a basket of new library books, which single-handedly ruined any chance of Abby falling back asleep. "When will the sun come up?"... "Can we turn a light on?"... "I should have brought my book light..." ... "I just can't wait to read these books!". What's not to love about that? And read she did, with her sister joining after the sun came up. There was not a single negative peep out of either mouth - they traveled great, they slept awesome, they ate like champs (as usual), and they were charming guests in someone else's home. John's cousin and wife, Mark and Lisa, treated us to yet another wonderful weekend getaway, which included:

Children's Museum:

Neighborhood horses and fingernail painting:

After John recovered from the beer and tamale consumption that took place in Indy, life settled in as usual...

Lots of reading took place (as it does everyday):

A couple of teeth fell out... is anyone surprised that the girls lost their first tooth one day apart and it was the same tooth??? Oh, and at their 5-year check-up (which we just had done), their height was the same and their weight differed by only .4 pounds. Not FOUR pounds, but POINT FOUR pounds....

I know other great things happened between the teeth and Halloween but you get what you get. Toward the end of the month, we had our 28th annual pumpkin carving party, followed by Halloween. Abby dressed up this year as "an angel named Winter" and Elise danced her way through the holiday as "Liesl, from the Sound of Music". Homemade costumes rock - Abby picked her fabric and jewel for the shirt... Elise selected her shiny pink material for the poofy sleeves. Simple, inexpensive, and well-loved. Abby started coming down with a cold on Halloween and trick-or-treating was questionable... until the scolding began: Elise, finger pointed in my direction, "Mom, you cannot make Abby stay home. She gets to wear her costume and go and you can't tell her no." Typically, I wouldn't condone that type of tone directed toward an adult. But when your kids stick up for one another, regardless of the circumstances, it's worth supporting. Abby, you have your sister to thank for Winter, the angel, making an appearance at Halloween 2013.

Sugary soap box

It's Halloween, a day when candy consumption is just that... consuming. I just read this infographic on forbes.com titled "How much sugar are Americans eating?". It's astounding. Sugar is everywhere. Of all the things I work very hard to limit (pesticides, chemicals, medicine, screen time), sugar is right up there at the top of the list. I haven't posted many recipes lately but the kitchen continues to be my ultimate experiment - almost daily, working to concoct food for my family that is nutritious and delicious. Now, with the cooler temps, I'm back to baking - cookies, muffins, bread. And I use little-to-no sugar. Does a sugar-laden cookie taste delicious? You betcha! But can we train our tastebuds to appreciate and love something less sweet? Of course. I use a lot of applesauce (apple butter, without sugar, is great this time of year), local honey, REAL maple syrup, bananas - all of these have high levels of sweetness without the refined, processed, worthless-ness of sugar. Will Abby and Elise consume sugar-filled candy today? Yes. But are they included in the "average American" category who consumes an equivalent of SEVENTEEN sodas every 5 days? Absolutely not. 

Enjoy your sweets today - I told my mom yesterday that Halloween is dangerous. Her reply? Halloween is delicious - eat what you love and trash the rest. :) 

We had the 27th annual Passman Pumpkin Carving party last weekend - A & E woke up every morning for at least 5 days prior: "How many more days until pumpkin carving?". I love that it is already a family tradition that they are now old enough to remember... expect ... and love.

And today, Dorothy and Glinda the Good Witch have been ready to roll since 7:30 this morning. We made our first round in costumes this morning - visit Bubbe, stop by The Merc. Second round after naps - Daddy's work. Third round this evening - dinner and trick or treating with the Walters. We'll just follow that yellow brick round all around town! We've listened to The Wizard of Oz soundtrack and read the book - once they're old enough for the movie, it'll be the Oz trifecta! :) Happy Halloween!

BOO!

We had two of the friendliest... and CUTEST ghosts that you've ever seen this evening! This year Halloween was FUN... for all of us. The girls were into it 100%, they got to trick-or-trick with their besties, and the candy... oh, the candy. The beautiful thing about not over-indulging your child 24/7 is that it makes nights like tonight so incredibly exciting. We don't keep candy in the house and the awe of being handed piece after piece tonight was sweet and sincere.

I love before-and-after pictures... so here's the change from last Halloween to this one, with these four girls:

Abby and Elise had decided upon ghosts within the last week so after all was quiet last night, I went to work with two pillowcases, some black felt, and my sewing machine. Then today I made some little hair bows and hot-glued them to barrettes. I love all things handmade, and Halloween costumes are at the top of my must-make-by-hand list. These little ghost outfits were so simple and, need I repeat myself, so CUTE!

The night ended with a stop at Gran and Grandpa's, and a final raiding of the sugary treasures. Despite a fall (Elise), a good time was had by all tonight - great friends, great girlies, and great fun. My little friendly ghosts are sacked out and will awaken, without a doubt, full of stories to tell of their Halloween night.