October Events

Our little Bella turned 1 on Oct. 17, we can't believe how quickly the time has gone! She's walking (trying to run) and talking a lot. Some of the talking is still in "her language!" but she's saying a lot of words. We also started Baby Sign (thank you Aunt Mary!) and she's picking up on that really well!

Bella with her birthday cake...."Before"

"After"!

Bella opening some presents...such a cute Birthday Girl!

We had Bella's birthday party on Halloween, and encourage costumes!

The Cat in the Hat and Raggety Anne came! This is a picture with them, our Dinosaur, and (Haley and Larry's) Thomas the Train!

On Halloween we went Trick-or-Treated with my sisters and their families. We had a great time and it wiped the girls out! Afterwards we went to Mimi and Papa's house to Trick-or-Treat and play with them...it was a great night!

Group picture with Spencer, Kiley, Ashton, Brad, Norah, Isabella, and the "Cars" costume is a neighbor kiddo.

Our little "Love Bug" and "Dinosaur"!

The Great Pumpkin

We picked our first pumpkins of the season today...and it was perfect weather!! It was a beautiful fall day with just the right amount of chill in the air! The girls loved the wagon that was at the pumpkin patch...we think it helped having pumpkins inside to keep them interested and snug!

The girls enjoying the wagon ride!

Pumpkins and hugs!!!

We also had Brian's work picnic this weekend. (That's where the new family picture was taken.) It was a lot of fun, the girls had a great time in the bounce house and Norah loved the HUGE inflatable slide! We painted pumpkins and the girls had their first taste of cotton candy...Bella is a fan, Norah not so much :)

As we transfer into Fall, it makes me think of family and friends even more. We are so blessed to be surrounded by so many loving people. We thank the Lord each day for all of you in our lives. Have a wonderful week!

Take me out to the ball game and let's play golf!

Our two little Cardinal fans!

Last weekend Norah got to see her second Cardinal's baseball game and Bella got to see her first! They had a lot of fun and were really good :) Ever since, Norah's been singing "Take me out to the Ballgame" and has learned almost all the words. I think we have a baseball fan at heart on our hands, whenever football is on, she'll tell Daddy that she wants to watch baseball instead! hehehe...it makes me laugh, and makes Brian shake his head!

This weekend was wonderful also, especially since we had a longer weekend. We spent the Labor Day weekend at home just enjoying time with each other. We took it easy and didn't rush around at all. We got to see Grandma and Grandpa and had a lot of fun playing at their house and then today we played mini golf for the first time. It was Daddy's idea to play and we had so much fun!

Bella enjoyed watching us and everyone else play today...and Norah had the best time playing! She would hit the ball and then say "Come on Ball" to get it to move to the hole! The best thing is that on the last hole, if you hit it in the center, you get a free game. Daddy helped, and together they hit her ball and got a hole in one!!! Then she helped him hit his ball, and they got another hole in one!!! So on her first game ever, she won two free games! :)

Posing with the golf ball and clubs....we had to take the picture quickly before something dangerous happens with the clubs!

"Come on ball!"

Bella is getting very very close to walking! She can stand by herself, bend down to pick things up and maintain her balance at the same time. We thought this weekend would be when she took her first steps, but we are still waiting for those to come!

"Peek a boo!"

Here are some more pictures of our little ladies! Here is one of "Daddy O" with a climbing Bella and one of Daddy, Norah, and Bella...












We went to a friends wedding last weekend and the girls got to dress up for the special occasion!

Birthdays and walking

Norah's 2nd birthday was on May 8 and we had a fun party with family and friends for her. She had a great time and has now learned the "Happy Birthday" song and sings versions of it all the time!! She is talking so much, constantly :), and picks up on things so quickly, it's just amazing! Mimi has been teaching her to spell her name and she can spell it even if she isn't looking at the letters! Of course, we're biased, but we think she is pretty smart!

Isabella is growing so fast, she is already crawling around everywhere and this weekend she started standing on her own! We walked in on Saturday and she was very proud of herself, standing in her crib! She's such a ham too, she loves the camera and begins smiling the minute she sees it. Daddy is also very happy-Bella started saying "Da-Da" this weekend, and boy does she love saying it!!

We are having a great start to the summer so far! The girls had their first swim of the summer last weekend and Norah is a little fish. Bella liked the water, but we think it was a little cold for her!

We are also trying to sell our home sweet home this summer. Hopefully it sells soon, with the little ones, we are quickly running out of space! :)

Hope everyone is doing well. Love, Emilie

Pictures, pictures, pictures

I know it's been a while since we've updated the blog....so here are some pics to bring everyone up to date!

Bella is getting so big and she already has her first tooth!! We can't believe how quickly the time is going, she's changing so much every day it seems. She's been rolling around for a few weeks now and gets so frustrated that she can't keep up with her big sister!! We think she'll crawl earlier than Norah did, if for no other reason than to follow Norah around.

Norah is doing great and again, we can't believe how quickly the days go by...she's going to be 2 soon!!! She's a great big sister, but still gets some one-on-one time with Mommy and Daddy. Last week Norah and I went to the Magic House to an art class and she had the best time! Our home is decorated with her beautiful work!

Hope everyone is doing well....love, Emilie

Christmas and New Year

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. We celebrated with my family on Christmas Eve, celebrated with just the 4 of us on Christmas morning, and celebrated with Brian's family on Christmas Day.

Nana, Grandma, Norah, and Isabella

My family (most of us!) wearing our Christmas cracker hats!

Daddy, Norah, and Isabella on Christmas morning.

Norah understood more about Christmas this year and was really excited for Santa to come. Her favorite gift from Santa was the apple in her stocking! Isabella was happy too, and Norah helped to unwrap her presents! :)Isabella and Uncle Paul Isabella watching everyone. Mommy and Norah
It's been a great couple of weeks just being together as a family and spending time with our families and friends. Isabella will be 11 weeks old tomorrow, the time has just been going by so fast. I can't believe she is that old already!Isabella at 2 months old!

She is such a happy baby, smiling a lot and she has laughed a few times already. She loves looking at her lion and elephant toys in the bouncy seat (the same ones Norah loved too) and she really loves watching Norah play! We've gotten really lucky so far since she is sleeping so well! She is still sleeping in her car seat, but we're working on moving to the crib...it's just slow going in that department! I found out great news last week, I get to return to work part-time! I will be working 3 days a week, so I'll get an extra 2 days at home with the girls. I'm more than thrilled about this especially since I'll be with them more than I am away from them.
We hope everyone had a safe and happy New Year and that 2009 is a wondeful year!