Christmas

Christmas was wonderful this year. We had a nice relaxing day at Cindi and Marty's with Keith's sister and her family. Estelle and Andrew were very aware of presents this year and were so fun to watch. Here they are opening their stockings.

 

Harriet got in on the present fun too.

 

Here is Harriet all dressed up and sitting tall.

 

 

My best attempt at getting the girls together.

 

And here's Harriet and cousin Andrew.

And all three cousins with Grandma & Grandpa.

Jumping

Estelle has been working on her jumping. She was able to perfect this skill when we were out in Denver visiting my sister earlier this month. They have a trampoline and Estelle had so much fun running and jumping on it while we were there. Since we don't have a trampoline at home, Estelle has been using her bed as the next best thing.   

 

Christmas Cookies

Every year Cindi, Kelly and I have a Christmas Cookie Day where we get together and make our favorite cookies for the season. This year Estelle was able to help me make my chocolate crinkle dough ahead of time as it needs to chill for 3 hours before baking. It's so much fun to have her start helping out in the kitchen.

 

Rice Cereal

Harriet had her 6 month check-up and was cleared for rice cereal. We tried her first bowl the other evening and it went very well. She ate everything I had prepared and even grabbed the spoon and tried to feed herself.

 

Flying

We flew to Denver last week, which was our first experience flying with both girls. All in all the airport and plane rides went smoother than either Keith or I had expected. Maybe it's because we were so worried about how horrible the whole process could have been that we over-prepared a little.

 

We asked Uncle Kevin for an early Christmas present - a portable DVD player to help keep Estelle occupied while flying. Here she is practicing with the DVD player and headphones.

 

 

And here's out little traveler eating her California Pizza kitchen before we left St Louis

 

And enjoying some pre-flight gummie bears. Did I mention the endless supply of gummie bears for Estelle during the flight? Maybe that's why the trip went so smoothly.

6 Months

Harriet is already 6 months old. I can't believe how fast the time has gone by. She definitely has her own look, smile and personality coming out. And it's been fun to watch as she and Estelle are beginning to interact more and more with each other. Here's our big girl.

 

And here's Estelle making sure Harriet is camera ready.

 

Crib Time

Estelle loves hanging out with Harriet in her crib. This works well for me because the two of them can hang out in there while I'm putting away laundry or doing other chores in their room.

 

Getting Dressed

Estelle is slowly learning how to dress and undress herself. She's really good at pulling her socks, shoes and pants off. Now were are trying to get her to put them on. She's mastered pulling up the front of her pants, but can't seem to figure out how to get up the back on her own. It's funny to watch that diapered butt run around.

 

Selfies

My lap is a very popular place these days. Estelle always wants to sit with me when I've got Harriet. So we make room and pile on mom. I love it, but I need longer arms to snap good pics.

 

Mornings

Some mornings can be very hectic trying to get everyone out the door on-time, but then there are moments like these that make me pause and smile.

 

Sisters

I just love this sequence of photos of both girls together.

 

Thanksgiving

First Thanksgiving with two girls. I got excited and dressed them alike. I'm sure they will love that when they get older.

 

And here are the girls with their cousin Andrew.

 

Hair Cut

I gave Estelle a hair cut a couple weeks ago. I've been wanting to do it for awhile, but trying to get her to sit still long enough is a challenge. I successfully cut the back and sides on this attempt. Will need to get her bangs next round. 

 

 

5 months

Late posting of 5 month photos (as she's almost 6 month and we are getting ready to take those photos). She's starting to sit up a little on her own and rolls everywhere. Still no crawling, but we are predicting she will be on the move by Christmas!

 

 

2 Years

Estelle turned 2 on Halloween. It's still amazing to me how fast time has gone by. Here she is at the doctor for her 2-year check-up. Everything looks good. She's right on target (50th percentile weight and 60th percentile height - which makes Keith happy. He want a tall daughter to play sports!)

 

Halloween

I'm very late with posting Halloween pics this year. Here's Harriet as an Owl.

 

And Estelle as a pumpkin with Grandma Cindi (who also shares her birthday).  I'm so glad we got this picture because all of my other attempts to capture Estelle dressed up were a blur.

Papa's Visit

My parents had a trip planned to come out and visit us near the end of October. My mom was not feeling well and had to stay home, but dad decided to come out and spend some time with his St Louis girls.

 

Papa and Harriet

 

Papa and both girls with their owl hats (Estelle wanted to dress up).



 

Harriet sporting the tutu Estelle picked out for her.

 

And Estelle showing off her owl hat and tutu. My two year old is hard to photograph as she is always on the move.

Boo!

We love to play hide and seek with Estelle. In our version she runs and hides in the bathroom or her bedroom, then we jump out and scare her by saying "Boo!" when she comes out to find us. We can repeat this routine 10+ times in a row before she gets tired of it.