HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NATE!

Happy Birthday!!!! Cate, Anna and I can't wait to party with you! :) We love you!

Second Day of School...

Day 2 of school life for Cate and she already doesn't want to get out of bed in the morning! It took a WHILE to get her to wake up, and then when she was awake she wouldn't get up. She even got back into bed twice after I finally got her out. We have a long 15 years of school mornings ahead of us!!

One quick thing I don't want to forget: Nate's family used to say the following rhyme to his little sister Hannah. So, of course, Nate says it all the time about Anna.

"Anna Banana with the meatball eyes, put her in the oven and you've got french fries."

We don't really know what it means. But it just rolls off the tongue like pure poetry. Except when Cate says it. Here's her version, that she thinks is HILARIOUS, and makes even less sense, if that's possible!

"Anna Banana with the meatball eyes, put her in the oven and you've got LUNCH CAKE!"

First Day of School!

Today was Cate's first day of school! Yes, "Baby Cate" is now a preschooler! She has a great teacher named Jeanne (thanks Jen Mo!) and she's very excited about it all. Last night we talked about what she should wear and she said, "I think I should wear a dress." As we were getting her backpack together this morning, she really wanted to bring her scriptures. It was so cute. She also left her "biss" (blankie) behind without much a fight...I just told her big kids don't bring their bisses to school and she didn't question it. When we got in the car to leave, she told me, "I think Anna will miss me. But, you can drop me off later, and bring me home, and then she will be happy!" It was so sweet. When I left her at school, no problems at all. She's ready. It's just so cute. Our little girl is growing up way too fast.

(more pictures to come)

A few other things to remember...
At dinner the other night I asked Nate what time it was (the clock was hanging behind me) and Cate said, with authority, "7-6-o'clock." We thought it was cute and just random numbers, then Nate looked at the clock and sure enough, it was 7-6-o'clock (7:30).

Anna discovered that if she bangs her toys on the high chair, it makes noise. And she likes doing it. A lot. She is also really close to sitting up on her own. Not quite, but we're getting there. We already knew this, but Anna is a mover...it's amazing how she can get around the room with her simple rolling skills. I think she's going to be a LOT more active than Cate...and I may even have to babyproof the house this time around. Dang.

Berlin & Paris, Here We Come!

I just booked our apartment in Paris, so now I'm starting to get giddy about our trip this summer! Nate got invited to a conference in Berlin this summer, so Anna and I are going to tag along! We'll be in Berlin almost a week, then we're heading to Paris for a week. We are finally doing our trip to Paris. Yea!!! I'm so excited I don't even care that the cost of our plane tickets is going to put us in the poor house.

So, here's the apartment we're going to stay in: Rue de Beaune

And here is the neighborhood we'll be in: Go to Google Maps and copy & paste "Rue de Beaune, 75007 7ème Arrondissement Paris, Paris, France" in the search field.

Literally a hop, skip and a tiny jump to the Seine, Musee d'Orsay, the Louvre...Paris here we come!

Oh, and how stinkin' cute is this?!?!


Our parents are making this possible by taking Cate the two weeks we're gone. THANK YOU!!!

Anna's First Food!

Anna ventured into the world of real food on Saturday. It was kind of successful. She started out pretty happy with it and swallowed some.


But suddenly things took a turn for the worst...It was so funny.




My mom was in town this weekend and got to witness the big moment in person! It was great having her here.


I have tons of pictures from Utah...we'll see how long it takes me to get them up here!

A few random shots...

I just did 7 posts, so keep scrolling and scrolling!

Cate has a new "skateboard" - if we say scooter, she corrects us.

She absolutely loves her new helmet.

We got this AWESOME adirondack chair last week. Anna really likes to sit back and relax in it...

Ladies who lunch...

Anna loves the exersaucer. It's so cute - she just looks so busy when she's in it, very focused. The last 3 weeks or so she has really gotten interested in toys and reaches for everything. It's amazing how fast they learn. Doesn't get any less amazing with the second child, either.

A few things about Anna I don't want to forget...she kicks and waves her arms all the time, especially when she's happy and excited. She's rolling like crazy! She rolled over for the first time on March 17, right before we left the house for Nate's defense. She's a mover...we have a feeling she'll be very different than Cate, who didn't care so much about moving around. When she's nursing she grabs my arm HARD and it hurts like crazy...or she practically pulls her own ear off. It's funny. She's just happy happy happy.

Sisters...

I love that my girls have sisters. It's just so cute. Anna loves Cate SO MUCH, and Cate is such a great big sister. Gotta love it!


These two pictures are funny...they're both making the same faces in each shot.


Cate is seriously really cute with her. Except for the times when she's not...which can get scary! But we really have been lucky so far. They're a good pair.

Happy Mother's Day!

I really wanted a picture with my girls on Mother's Day...and it was much trickier than I anticipated...

This is the only one where Anna is smiling at the camera...figures.

Close.

Almost.

Really, Mom? Another picture?

I love this girl!!!

The Perfect Curl

This is honestly what Cate's hair looked like the other Sunday...all on its very own. I'm so jealous.

Anna Photo Shoot

The other day Anna had on her totally adorable "Anna Louisa" t-shirt that one of my clients sent to me when she was born. I wanted to catch a few shots of her in it, and the lighting was so perfect, I WENT CRAZY. This is just a handful of the shots I took. I told you I went crazy. If you're not a grandmother or Paula (she ordered the shirt, which also came with matching burp cloths), then you are probably going to get bored...sorry!

Hello, my name is ANNA LOUISA! :)

I like winking...


...and looking cute...

...and laughing...

...and drooling!

She was out like a light by the time I put the camera away.