Post Shower Fun

The kiddos have been showering together and it's been a lot more fun for them over Ady taking a bath and Drew showering. They enjoy playing games in there together and we find it's easier to wash them as well. But it's after the shower when the most fun starts. Ad strips off her towel and runs up an down the hallway until Drew will chase her and she squeals her head off in delight. Due to her chunky, dimply tush running back and forth, it might or might not be my favorite part of the evening as well. 

National Museum of American History

In our quest to conquer this city one historical stop at a time, we visited the National Museum of American History on Sunday. It was awesome and we didn't even get through half of it before the kiddos were done. We'll definitely be back!

They had Abe Lincoln's hat from the night he was assassinated!

Cereal Thief & Basketball Star

This is her thing now. Stealing cereal. You see, she's learned how to open the pantry, select which box she wants and open it. I think it's adorable.

And this one had a rough first game of basketball but has greatly improved each time!

Randoms

Snapped a few pictures while there was a rare quiet moment of them playing together...

I volunteered to be a driver for Drew's preschool class on their field trip to the firehouse recently. It was a hit with all the kiddos!

Baltimore Aquarium

We spent Sunday in Baltimore enjoying the amazing aquarium they have there. Just like every other city, it was crazy expensive, but this one was actually quite awesome. It's ranked up there with the Shedd in Chicago and I would say it earned that spot. The aquarium housed hundreds of different species and Drew got to touch a jelly fish! We saw divers and the biggest turtles you've ever seen and HUGE sharks! Ady is really entering a fun stage as well where she enjoys outings like this.

Derek snapped this one right before the mini dolphin show which both kiddos loved despite their bored faces...

Definitely worth a visit if you're close by!

Happy Valentine's Day!

My little lovebugs this year...

Concentration Cheeks

The more she concentrates, the bigger her cheeks look. 

And hellooooo eyelashes.

Ady // 18 Month Update

Dear Ady -

Just like that you're a year and a half old. I feel like we just had your 1st birthday and then bam. Tomorrow you'll be closer to 2 than 1. This has definitely been a growing 6 months for you. Both in size, but in personality and intelligence. Somehow you can give the sassiest of faces but turn into pure sweetness only 3 seconds later. I often say you play hard, fight hard and love hard. Your snuggles and hugs are to die for.

You pick up things SO fast it's unbelievable. Animal sounds, directions, the names of things, words. It's all too cute how well you mimic and imitate what we're doing. Sometimes I throw you in the shower with me and when I put my leg up onto the bench to shave them, you try to get yours up too. But the mimicking has it's downside. You want so badly to climb into big chairs like your brother and hop up on tall stools. Someday baby girl. Someday.

Right now your appetite is really good. You will try almost anything and you make the cutest face when something is cold or tart. You are still obsessed with milk but that's pretty much the only thing you drink. You are a carb kid, though, just like mommy. If there is bread or crackers around, you'll munch on those forever. Overall you are pretty good with fruits and veggies and you get upset if there is banana in sight and you aren't eating it.

You still have a full mouth of teeth except for your second molars which we're expecting soon based on how early your other teeth all were. You have seriously NEVER slobbered and that's been a welcome change in this household. You are a champion sleeper at night getting anywhere from 12-13 hours of sleep, but during the daytime is a different story. Most days you nap 30-60 minutes, but once and a while we'll get 2 hours out of you. :)

Your independence is outstanding. When we are getting you in the shower, we can tell you to take your socks off and you do. I have enjoyed taking you to gymastics class each week and watching you follow the bigger girls around. Your willingness to try everything there is awesome and I can't wait to watch you make friends in the future.

We couldn't have asked for a better addition to our family and I'm so excited for this next 6 months with you. I love you with all of my heart, deeper than you'll ever know.

Weight: 25.5 pounds
Height: 31-ish inches

- Mommy

And now for your 18 month image comparison as well as Drew's for fun....

And a few more cause you're just too damn cute...

Snowstorm Jonas

We finally got it. It was too good to be true that we were having such awesome weather this winter and we got it. 26 inches of snow in about 30 hours. Derek and Cal had to snow blow every 4 hours to make sure we could get out if needed and the pathways look crazy with 2 feet of snow on each side. The city has been shut down for 5 days now with schools closed as well. We've been enjoying sledding and snowball fights daily and, of course, hot chocolate. 

Some pics are phone pics below...

And our pumpkin pie 3 generation shot from 2012 (couldn't find the non watermarked version) vs last week...