Riley Grace: 2 Year Update (slightly late)

Riley's birthday was March 23rd. I have such a hard time believing that our sweet girl has turned two; it's amazing how quickly time has passed. We celebrated her birthday several times: we had an early "party" when David's parents were here earlier in the year, we went to the park and Chick-fil-A on her "real" birthday, and we had a "real" party at the Hill the weekend after her birthday. 

Here's an update on our big girl. For the sake of time, I'm going to do this baby book style.

Height: about 34 inches

Weight: 26 lbs

Favorite toys: Riley loves all the toys she received for her birthday, especially the cupcakes from Kirby and the tea set from the Shius. She plays with them every day and loves to spread them all over the living room. Riley even attempts to give Caroline "bites." 

Favorite things to say: "Who is it?" "How it works?" "One more song?" "I do it myself!" "Caroline's crying!" "Happy, Mommy?" "Pee pee in special undies? No way, José!" "Go to church!""Cereal, please!"

It's amazing how much Riley is talking these days. From the moment she wakes up and greets us with her jovial "Hiya!" to the moment she goes to bed, she's chatting (I know, I know... she comes by it honesty). It's a blessing to have such a joyful little girl. She's so bouncy and happy it's hard not to smile at her all the time. 

Favorite friends: She loves Landon and Elijah, but I think her best friends are the girls at church from the ages of 10 to 13. They pay such good attention to her and treat her so sweetly she wants to be with them whenever we're at church. She talks about "Lanie" and "Annie" all the time and wants to see them throughout the week. 

During our annual youth rally, Riley made her first friend (all the others have just been there all along). Emily was the speaker's daughter and she just loved running around and laughing with her (not much conversing goes on at 2 years old).

Favorite things to do: Riley asks to go to the park all the time. She loves being pushed on the swing and sliding down the slides on her tummy. She also thinks it's great to blow bubbles and draw with sidewalk chalk in our front yard. 

Things she's learned: Riley can count to 10 (usually) and count 4 or 5 objects (candy, toys, etc.). She can kind of sing the ABCs but it's obvious that she doesn't know that each letter is separate. Some of them come out all blended together (L M N = elemen). She recognizes the letters C, D, E, R, P, L, M, and N and can tell you the names they are "for" (i.e., P is for Papa, E is for Eebee). She knows several shapes, too. Riley can sing 4 or 5 songs just about all the way through; her current favorite is "Deep and Wide." Riley can fill in the blanks on John 3:16.

Favorite foods: Her current favorites are pizza, cake, yogurt, cereal, and chicken. 

Favorite books: Riley LOVES books of all kinds. She sat down on the couch with her little New Testament the other day and said, "I reading my favorite book!" She likes to read Curious George, Babar, and Eric Carle books. Her last favorites were nursery rhymes and she can fill in the words we leave out on at least 10 or 15. 

Favorite games: She loves to play a matching game that my parents have at their house. 

Favorite outfit: Absolutely anything pink. 

Other favorites: She loves talking on the phone or skyping with her family in Alabama. 

Riley has had a few instances of "testing the waters" lately, but thankfully she responds well with our attempts to train and help her become an obedient and respectful little girl. We have truly been blessed with a super sweet, totally adorable 2 year old and we can't wait to see what this next year holds. 

Caroline: 1 Month Update

Caroline turned 1 month old yesterday and I can't believe it. God has blessed us with another sweet little girl and we're so thankful. While there's not much that goes on in a 1 month old's life other than eating, sleeping, and pooping, here's a little update on our new baby girl. 

• First of all, we've got another good sleeper on our hands. We consistently get a good 6 or 7 hour stretch at night followed by another few hours. We've had an eight hour stretch here and there for which I am very thankful. 
• Caroline is quite the little spitter (I actually have a little bit in my hair right now) and has a knack for spitting up either right after a bath or right after I've put clean clothes on her. I just thought Riley spit up a lot. Caroline spits up what I would consider massive amounts. It's amazing to me that she's putting on weight and actually has chubby little cheeks. She's been diagnosed with "reflux" and I'm cutting out dairy - far more involved than I could have ever thought - to see if that helps cut down on the spit up. The doctor said it could also be an oversupply issue... if that's the case, it will regulate in time. 
• Caroline hasn't had too many on purpose smiles, but just about everyone claims to have gotten a couple. She does those sweet sleepy smiles while she's napping, though. We can't wait until we get the full-blown grins, but we're loving the smirks for now. 
• Caroline generally enjoys riding in the car, sitting in her bouncy seat, and being in her swing. I can't think of anything in particular that she doesn't like except for salsa. I notice a huge increase in spit up the days after I eat it... unfortunately, Mommy loves salsa but will have to pass on it for a little while. 
• I'm pretty sure Caroline thinks pooping is her full time job (as I type this I can hear her working on a big one in the bouncy seat beside me). While I realize it's one of the tasks on her job description, she should focus more on being cute and sleeping for now. 
• Caroline enjoys the paci quite a bit during the day, but I've made sure it's not required at night. I really don't want her to rely on it for nighttime sleep, but I'm thankful she'll take it when she's just eaten and still feels like it's necessary to have something to suck on. 

All in all, we're very thankful for our sweet little chickadee. I know she'll be just as fun as her older sister has been for the past two years. I just hope the time goes a little slower (yeah right). 

Yes, I'm one of those moms who takes pictures first and fixes the issue afterwards.