Bike Riding with the Family

After dinner tonight we decided to bring out the bikes and trailer and take the girls on a ride to Winter Springs and back. We put Mady in the bike trailer and Kaitlyn in the seat on the back of Jacob's bike. This was KK's first time on the back of Jacob's bike, normally she rides in her infant carrier in the bike trailer. She had a great time and wore Mady's helmet that Mady wore when she was KK's age. I even included a picture of me with my hot pink bike just to prove that I do participate in outdoor activities with the family! Plus, with the weather turning cooler soon we'll be outside even more!

Kaitlyn in her helmet that used to be Mady's.

Ashley and the hot pink bike, my favorite color.

The sweetest picture ever of Mady on her first bike ride! What a cutie!

Sunday at Sea World

Today we decided to meet up with our friends The Pearsons and visit Sea World. We haven't been since the beginning of summer and with school back in session the crowds are starting to die down. We even brought Kaitlyn along this time. She hasn't been to Sea World since we visited over Spring Break in April when our beach plans got cancelled because of the cold weather. The park was not crowded at all and was easy to manage with both girls. We first visited the sharks and the penguins, and then decided to see the dolphin show. Mady loves this show and was asking all day yesterday if we could see the dolphin show and dog and kitty cat show. I asked her if she wanted to see the Shamu show, and she said no because it was too loud. So, we saw the dolphin show and then went over to Shamu's Happy Harbor. Mady and Emily rode the carousel and then we saw the polar bears and beluga whales. After the whales it was time to see the dog and kitty cat show (Pets Ahoy!). Mady LOVES this show and we have to see it on every visit. After the show it was after 3 pm and time to go home! Both girls fell asleep in the car and woke up as soon as we got home. It was a great day and we're so glad the summer months are almost over so we can visit the theme parks more often!

Waiting patiently for the dolphin show to begin!

All the girls waiting for the show!

Watching intently at the acrobats and high divers during the show.

Attempting to get a picture with dolphins at the underwater viewing area. They literally left when we went to take a picture.

Eating strawberries at lunch. The girls were so good all day!

No trip to Sea World is complete without a ride on the carousel!

Kaitlyn worn out at the end of the day!

We Survived!

Today was our official first day back to school. We were all up and dressed by 7:30 and out the door by 7:40. This is amazing considering for the past two months it was a great day if we were up and out the door by 10. In other amazing news, Kaitlyn is officially walking all around! Very rarely is she crawling these days, and is even mastering her ability to walk and suck her thumb at the same time! She was not happy in these pictures because Jacob had put her down, and apparently whenever you do that these days she has a fit!

Hanging with mommy on the porch!

Crying while walking. She hates it when Jacob puts her down.

Walking to daddy, still crying.

Big sister sitting oh so pretty!

New Smyrna Beach 2009

This past week we celebrated the end of summer with our annual trip to New Smyrna Beach. The weather could not have been more perfect, I don't think it started raining until Thursday and we arrived that past Sunday. That kind of weather almost never happens in Florida. Usually in the summer the storms hit in the early afternoon for an hour or so, this week there was all the sunshine you could want and very little clouds. We did have some rain on Friday, however, it wasn't enough to ruin any plans or prevent us from having a great beach day.

Sisters so happy to be together at the beach.

The week was wonderful with days spent at the beach and pool. Kaitlyn loved the water at the beach and Mady got to practice her swimming skills she learned earlier in the summer. We had friends come visit us twice during the week, and there were trips to Breakers, Mannys, and Mi Mexico as well.

Kaitlyn walking like a big girl on the shore.

Kaitlyn loved the water at the beach and would walk/crawl all around.

Mady's friend Emily came over on Friday and spent the night!

Mady loved spending her days making sand castles and decorating them with sea shells.

Tomorrow our summer is officially over with the return to school and a routine, but I have loved being home with the girls and look forward to jam packed weekends this fall, spending as much time together with them as I can!

Goodbye Summer!

12 Months Old

KK has officially turned One and we made it to her 12 month check-up on time with no illnesses! Here are her official stats:

Weight: 18 pounds, 10 ounces 15th %

Height: 29 3/4 inches 50th %

Head: 17 1/4 20th %

The doctor called her a little peanut while she was examing KK, and Mady shot a look at me because that is HER nickname and she does not like it when anyone calls KK peanut. We've decided that KK's nickname will be pumpkin and now Mady tells everyone, "I'm peanut and she's pumpkin."

KK is THISCLOSE to walking. She's taken 8 steps and is trying to walk all the time. She'll even stand up on her own in the middle of the floor and start walking. We know that in just a few weeks she'll be walking all over the place.

She is officially off formula and is on whole milk. She still takes a bottle in the morning and at night. I'm trying to figure out how to wean her off the bottle. She loves sippy cups that have a straw so we use those during the day.

She is just so cute and adorable and is my little pumpkin. She plays nonstop in Mady's room and I often find her climbing in her chair. She loves Jacob and squeals when he walks in the door in the afternoon and cries every morning when he leaves. Both my girls are definite "daddy's girls".

On Sunday we leave for our last beach vacation of the summer. We are going to NSB until next Saturday and then it's back to work and Mimi's house the following Monday. It will probably be a long time before we head back to the beach so we hope for great weather and that both girls have a blast. I'm sure I'll be taking a ton of pictures so stay tuned for them!

Waiting for the nurse to come back in with the shots!

All smiles drinking out of her sippy cup!

Please, no daytime visitors...

Or else this is what you'll see:

Toys Everywhere!

A mixture of feather boas and who knows what!

All the baby accessories in the living room, thanks KK!

Being at home with both girls during the day is exhausting. If anyone knows me, they know that I keep my house relatively organized and clean. Rarely do I have piles of stuff or toys thrown everywhere. However, I decided at the beginning of the summer I was not going to pick up the house 3-4 times a day like I used to. It seemed like I was picking up the same toys over and over again, only to have them brought out again. Now, I usually pick up during their naps and again after they've gone to bed. Mady is old enough now, too, that she is involved in the clean up process.

Today they must have worn themselves out because I found KK asleep on Mady's floor, and Mady fell asleep on the couch (she's sick, again!). I moved KK to her crib without disturbing her, and I'm going to let Mady finish sleeping on the couch. She had an inner and outer ear infection last week plus a fever, so she's been on amox. The fever and all other symptoms went away over the weekend, but she has a fever again today. Hopefully she'll get better before our beach trip next week. Anyways, guess I better get to cleaning up the messes or else Jacob's going to ask what I did all day.

Asleep on the couch not feeling well.

Worn out from making a mess in her sister's room.

Islands of Adventure, Universal Studios, and oh yeah, Barney!

Since our summer is winding down we're trying to squeeze in a few more fun days before school starts in 2 weeks! (I can barely type that without getting the shakes.) Since we're teachers we get a free 2-park, summer pass to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. We headed over on Friday morning after dropping Kaitlyn off at Mimi's and meeting up with our friends the Pearsons. Mady and Emily were both super excited about heading to the park and seeing Barney. (This is what you do when you become a parent, you visit an amazing theme park with awesome roller coasters, and instead go see a giant purple dinosaur.) Anyways, both girls had their big purple dinosaurs in their arms and we were off.

First, we visited Islands of Adventure and went to Seuss Landing. Here we rode One Fish, Two Fish..., the trolley, and the Carousel. We also ran into the Grinch and the Cat in the Hat. Guess which one Mady had her picture taken with? We walked around IOA a bit and then the girls could not wait any longer, they wanted to see Barney, and they were not going to wait another minute.

Riding the Trolley in Seuss Landing.

A funny bike in Seuss Landing.

The Cat in the Hat!

As we were leaving IOA and walking over to Universal Studios it began to rain. It wasn't a torrential downpour, so we were able to walk through it and head to see Barney. The next show wasn't for another hour or so, so we decided to go to Barney's indoor playground and get first in line to take our picture with Barney when the previous show got out. After having our picture taken with Barney it was still raining so we headed next door to an indoor ball shooting playground. It was kinda loud in here, but once you got used to the noise, the girls (and adults) had a good time shooting the balls and playing with the gigantic vacuum. Finally, it was time to see Barney!

Playing at the indoor playground, waiting for Barney!

Picture time with Barney!

We've been to the Barney show twice in the past, but have never sat in the front row. Well, leave it to our fearless leader, Renee, and we were right up front! The girls had a great time dancing to the songs and seeing BJ and Baby Bop. Since we were right up front the girls were able to wave to Barney several times and he waved back!

Front row seats! (Just a little wet from the rain).

After the show we grabbed lunch and then headed to the outdoor splashground. By now the rain had stopped and it was actually pretty nice out and not that humid. The girls played and wore themselves out. After a quick change it was time to head out.

Playing in the splashground (notice George in the back, hmmm...)

The good thing about going to Universal Orlando is City Walk. There are so many restaurants up and down City Walk and one of them is Margaritaville. Since both girls were fast asleep in their strollers (we were smart and brought the ones that recline all the way back so they could really sleep) we had a few Margaritas and nachos at the bar. The girls woke up just in time to head back to the car where the torrential downpour began. Luckily, we were in the parking garage; unluckily we were heading onto I-4 at 5:00. It was still a great day and Mady loved seeing Barney.