Michigan

Last weekend we went to Michigan to visit Grandpa Shorty. We spent 13 hours in the car Friday, then spent 2 days visiting, then 13 hours in the car on Monday! The girls were awesome travelers. Leah sat in the 3rd row with her own cooler of snacks and DVD player as well as a backpack of activities. She entertained herself almost the entire way there and back. Amazing for a 5 year old. She definitely has a new favorite movie- She watched "Alvin and the Chipmunks, The Squeakquel" over and over again. Occasionally, she threw in "Scooby Doo Goes Hollywood" to mix it up. Amber slept almost the entire way there and back, waking primarily when it was time to eat.

Leah enjoyed spending time with Grandpa Shorty, swimming in the hotel pool and feeding the fish at Cabela's. Amber had her first introduction to a pool and really seemed to enjoy it- of course, that is, until it was time to eat. This girl has no buffer- when it is time to eat- it is TIME to eat! We also were able to go visit Great Grandma Benner and make a stop at Bronners Christmas Wonderland. We had a nice, but too quick, visit!

Leah colors in the car


Amber awake!


Leah's view from the third row


Love that Leah has not become bored with Amber- She still loves to help with her cares, especially holding her.


Amber, Great Grandma Benner, Leah, Grandpa Shorty, Joe


Andrea, Leah, Joe, Amber

Feeding the fish at Cabela's

LOVE this picture of Leah

Grandpa Shorty and the girls

Amber's first time in a pool

Leah is singing in the car to her favorite singer- Taylor Swift. That is Amber in the background near the end. She is competing for my attention already! She stopped as soon as I stopped the camera and started to talk to her.

And, speaking of Taylor...Leah gets to go to her concert tomorrow night. I am taking her. Joe is in the process of making her a t-shirt. I am so impressed...hopefully it will be enough to get her backstage!

Sisters

You might have to turn up the volume, Leah's voice is very soft! I guess she is pretending to be shy!

Leah loves to skate

Leah just finished beginning skating- 5 sessions. She absolutely loved it! She did tell us that she doesn't like to fall down- because then she has to wipe off her pants! She did a great job, and I am sure that this is not her last skating lesson!

Amber is 2 months part 2

Amber had her 2 month check up yesterday. Poor baby had to have 3 shots and an oral vaccination. She cried for a good 5 min then slept for a couple of hours, but once waking up, she was not in good spirits! Tylenol helped and now this morning she is back to her happy self!

Here stats:
Weight: 12lbs (80%)
Length: 22.25in (45%)
Head circumference: 14.5in (8%)

Just for fun, here is a snapshot of Leah at 2 months:
Weight: 7lbs 11oz (premie chart 50%)
Length: 21.25 in (premie chart 50%)
Head circumference: 13.75in (premie chart 25%)

Amber is 2 months

It is hard to believe that Amber is already 2 months old. She has lost that newborn look and is sporting the look of a healthy and happy infant girl.


About Amber thus far:

• She is working on her tummy time and lifting her head. She has some great control and is able to raise her head and turn it while on her tummy.


• She has started to play with her play mat- kicking the ball and staring at the fish.


• Speaking of fish- she loves watching her fish mobile while swinging on her swing.


• She also like to be bounced (manually) while sitting in her bouncer


• She loves to go on walks. It has been great spring weather, so we have gone on many walks. Most of the time she falls asleep in the front carrier.


• She still is sleeping in the bassinet at night and usually naps in the swing or bouncer as she seems to have a dislike for the crib- you put her in it, she wakes up!


• I don't like to talk about this - because it might jinx us, but she has been sleeping about 6-7 hours/night the last few nights. Prior to that we usually could get 4 hours.
• She still doesn't have any type of schedule. We definitely need to work on this before I go back to work!


• She loves to take baths- and her sister loves to help.


• When she is fussy she prefers you stand and walk/bounce her rather than sit with her.


• She has a beautiful smile that she is showing off a lot which melts your heart and shows off her 2 lovely dimples.


• She is cooing a lot and telling all sorts of stories! It is fun to watch her discover her voice as her whole body moves to make a sound.


• She recognizes the voices of mommy, daddy and big sister.
  
• Speaking of big sister, she loves it when Leah entertains her by reading to her, singing to her, and teaching her how to play with all of her toys
  

Easter

We colored eggs together on 3/31/10. Well, I supervised and Amber watched while Joe and Leah designed. They did a nice job.




We celebrated Easter with my parents, Dan, Tiff, Delila, Thea, Renate, Jamie and her boyfriend and his kids, Aunt Anne (Tiff's great Aunt), and 3 of Dan and Tiff's neighbors. We had a nice day. The weather was fantastic. After church, our day was spent at Renate's house. There was tons of food and lots of Easter treats. The kids had an Easter Egg hunt. The girls were so very lucky because the Easter Bunny not only visited our house, but Renate's house as well. Amber and Leah both looked adorable in their Easter outfits.

Easter Basket #1


Our beautiful girls


The fam


Our first photo as a family of 4


Thea, Delila, Amber, Leah


Easter Basket #2

Easter Egg hunt

Joe and I had our first date night since Amber was born on 4/7. We went to see Bon Jovi while Nonna came to our house to babysit the girls. Both girls did great for Nonna and we were able to enjoy a night out at a great concert. Thanks mom!

Some recent statements made by Leah:

"Mommy, how did you get so big back here" as she pats my rear
"Mommy when I get bigger, you will be old"

Thanks Leah (insert sarcasm here)!!:)

Happy Birthday Mom

We celebrated my mom's birthday on Sunday. Happy birthday mom, thanks for all that you do.

Amber had to have her tongue tie cut on March 22. On March 18, she just stopped latching on. The doctor had told us that her tongue may be an issue in feeding, but up until this point, we thought she was doing fine. We had thought that she may have been colicky, but it turns out she just was not ever latching on well, and was not getting enough to eat! We had to start giving her a bottle as we had to wait over the weekend to see the doctor to get the tongue cut. She took easily to the bottle, then after the tongue was cut, she still preferred the bottle. So she is now being bottle fed and I am stuck to a pump multiple times a day (which is okay because at least she is still getting the good stuff). Leah loves to be able to help feed her.

My niece Thea celebrated her 4th birthday with a party at Chuck-E-Cheese.

Amber is now almost 6 weeks. She is smiling and cooing. It is so precious. She has been sleeping a bit more at night times. We usually get between 4 - 5 hours, but sometimes only 3. She loves to be held and bounced. She also likes to be entertained by her big sister!