Shining Moments

As I know I have mentioned before life has been pretty rough for me since the addition of Chloe. Things are beginning to show signs of calming down (notice I said calming down and not slowing down... with the amount of energy Piper has SLOW is a word I may never use again). We are in the process of getting Chloe to sleep in her crib again, now that we are all well, and her ear infection appears to be gone... 3 days down and she is seeming to get used to the idea of sleeping alone. :) God bless antidepressants, I don't think my house would survive my postpartum depression without them.

But amongst the whining, and crying, and scolding, and time outs, and DRAMA that are my two beautiful girls, there have been some even more beautiful moments that I felt obliged to share... if not only for my own future documentation, seeing as my memory is nonexistant post-motherhood.

Chloe laughing is one of those moments. Her giggles light up my world, and anyone near her can't help but smile when she laughs. Jason says that she smiles with her whole body... she moves and shakes when she smiles because she is so happy. I love to make her laugh but I love it even more when Piper makes her laugh... it melts my heart to see their love for each other. And although she may prefer me to Jason, she definately has a special place in her heart for him, as he can make her laugh like no one else! :)

Piper has been interesting to handle lately, but she has also been so fun to be around at times. One of her latest joys is to run around the house pretending she is being chased by an alligator... not sure where that came from, but hilarious none the less. She always ends up on her little trampoline saying "oh no mommy, an alligator, there's an alligator" or "Chloe watch out there is an alligator!" Always good for laughs.

And one of my all-time favorite moments of this last month has to be what I overheard just tonight between Piper and Jason. Jason was brushing Piper's hair after her shower and he was trying to talk to her to distract her from the "pain" that is hair brushing. :) He was asking her about the princesses on her pajamas. It was so cute to hear her talking to him about Snow White and Cinderella, and then Jason was telling Piper that she looked like a princess with her pretty hair. Then Piper started telling Jason how her friends Claudia, Charlie and Becca were coming to her house tomorrow. Just hearing them talk to each other, and listening to Jason responding to Piper and asking her questions just made me so proud of him. He is such a wonderful father to his two girls. I firmly agree when he says "it takes a real man to raise girls." He may never get to toss a football with a son, but he will know the name to every Disney princess... and he will love every minute of it! :)

Videos

Due to my lack of personal time, I thought it would be easier to talk about what the kids have been up to by showing, rather than telling! Here are a few videos of the girls I have taken in the past few weeks.

This video is just of Chloe taking a bath... she seemed very interested in the ducky in her tub. *Disclaimer: there is some infant nudity in this first video... I apologize to any who are offended!* ;)


This video is Piper jumping on her trampoline, dancing to Christmas music. (Yes this was taken in the middle of January... i have tried hiding it, but she has a mind like a steel trap)


This final video is of Chloe talking, sounding a little bit like the Devil due to her cold. She subsequently got an ear infection from the cold, which we are now treating with antibiotics... wish me luck! :)

Finally

I am finally posting new pictures to my blog. I am going to have to play the new mommy card to explain to those of you who do read this blog why I have not been posting more often. Two kids is definitely an adjustment, but I think we are beginning to settle in. I love my babies, and it has been a joy to watch Chloe become more interactive over the holidays. We had a great Christmas filled with lots of love, and family, and unfortunately the flu. Piper woke up Christmas morning with a fever of about 103*F. She was very quiet and kinda pitiful, but after some Motrin she perked up a bit. Chloe was loving the attention, she is a very happy baby, and she loves smiling at everyone. We were lucky enough to have my dad's parents in town for the holidays... they normally spend Christmas in Yuma but this year they flew up and spent Christmas with us at my dad's house. Both girls got lots of presents from our families... the big hits this year were the laptop and chalkboard that Piper got from my parents, and the hand puppet bugs that Chloe got from them as well. The big hits for us were all the clothes the girls got from everyone, the watch Jason got from my parents, the matching aprons Piper and I got from my mom and Rock Band for me (thanks again Ken and Susie). But mostly I loved getting to see all our family... from both sides! :) I hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday season and I wish everyone a happy new year. :)

Some recent pictures


Christmas Eve at the Crain's


Christmas Day at the Hill's

Happy Birthday Jason

I want to say happy birthday to my best friend and life partner. 29 years ago he was born, and God took 21 years to prepare him for me! (Good thing I didn't meet him sooner, because he sure wouldn't have been ready) :) I love you Jason and I am looking forward to rubbing 30 in your face next year! :)