"Happy Birthday to me!"

Annabelle's birthday celebration this year was a little bit unorthodox. We celebrated it as a family the day before because Michael had church responsibilities on her real birthday and wouldn't be home til after Annabelle went to bed. We started the birthday celebration by going to the store and getting some balloons. Annabelle had been waiting and waiting to get some birthday balloons. The only problem was that in less than 24 hours after we got them, 2 of the 3 balloons popped. One of them popped less than 2 minutes after we came home with them. Annabelle was so upset that Michael brought home 3 more balloons the next day. After dinner, we opened presents. Annabelle was so excited for this part. I'm amazed that she didn't sneak into the room where we'd been keeping the presents and open them early. We didn't have a cake (we didn't want any leftovers), so instead we made chocolate chip cookies and put candles in a cookie for Annabelle to blow out, then we enjoyed birthday cookies and ice cream.
One gift has been a particularly fun gift for Annabelle (and Michael). We can't wait to play "baseball", as Annabelle calls it, outside in the summer. Here's a video of Annabelle and Michal playing together.

The next day on her actual birthday, we made cupcakes (another thing that Annabelle demanded for her birthday) and we took them around to her friends in the neighborhood (in place of a party). It worked out well because she got to see her friends and we got rid of almost all of the cupcakes. And of course Annabelle had to enjoy one of her birthday cupcakes as well.Annabelle has become a big fan of Mickey Mouse and here she is using her new catching pads as Mickey Mouse ears.

Meanwhile, Jillian was just hanging out and resting during the celebration. Overall, it was a great birthday and finally, Annabelle could say, "Happy birthday to me" and have it actually be her birthday.

Birthday Craze

Valentine's is over and now on to the next big event- Annabelle's birthday! She has been talking about her birthday for a couple months now. I wish I could say that all the birthday talk will end once she's had her birthday, but I seriously doubt it. She wants only 3 things for her birthday- a yoy0 (I have no idea where she got that from), cupcakes, and balloons. She must ask for those things probably 3 times a day at least. Fortunately, she's at that age where the things that she wants are easy and cheap to get. Since her birthday is on Tuesday in the middle of the week, we'll probably do some celebrating tomorrow, since Michael will be home all day. There will definitely be some playing in the snow involved, which she got to do with some neighbor kids a few days ago.And here are some pictures of Jillian at 3 weeks and 2 days old. At her appointment on Tuesday, she weighed a whopping 8 lbs 2 oz, up from 6 lbs 8 oz t her day old checkup.

Special Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day to everyone. We had quite the celebration yesterday to celebrate the day of love. Annabelle received several Valentine's packages and letters from her wonderful grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles over the last week and she has hardly been able to wait until Valentine's Day to open them. I made one of my favorite breakfast dishes and set up all the Valentine's stuff for Annabelle and Michael on the table. Once Michael returned from his usual Sunday morning meetings, we sat down to have a yummy breakfast and open Valentine's presents. Annabelle had about 8 things to open and she loved every minute of it. Thank you to those who sent something. It made the day extra wonderful. Annabelle's tights have hearts on them. There's a very large heart located on her bottom and she loves to show off the "big heart". You can't really tell that's what it is in the picture, but it's there. Jillian made her debut appearance at church. And since it was Valentine's Day, I had to get my girls dressed in appropriate attire. So, here are some pictures of my 2 girls in red.

The next Nancy Kerrigan

Last night just before I put Annabelle to bed, we were watching some figure skating for the Olympics. Annabelle was very intrigued with the skaters and began trying to copy the jumps and the spins. It was quite entertaining.

Sisters

Wow, it's been two weeks since Jillian was born and we are hanging in there. So far, this week has been much easier than I expected it would be. Of course I am always tired, but Annabelle has been very patient with me and her new sister and Jillian continues to be a calm baby who eats really well. I am even feeling emotionally stable. Yea! Today, I noticed how much older and bigger Jillian looks. I'm sure she's gained weight and her thighs are finally getting some fat on them. Here are a few pictures and a video of Annabelle and Jillian hanging out together.

On my own

Well, the time has come. My mother-in-law left this morning and now the reality of having 2 kids is here. I think the hardest part will be getting Annabelle to understand that I have other responsibilities now and I can't devote all of my time and energy to her entertainment. So far, she hasn't really acted jealous of Jillian, but that's because she's had a constant playmate in the form of her grandmother. Now that she is gone, Annabelle will have to learn to play on her own. I don't think she'll need more than a week to appreciate this fact and then I hope she'll be a great sister to Jillian and helper to me.

Here's another video of Annabelle playing downstairs with Cynthia and Michael.

The first week

Sometimes it's hard to believe that it's only been a week since Jillian was born (like now, as I write this blog entry at 5am). Only 3 hours ago, I was also awake, feeding her and here I am again. She is currently having her "awake time", so here I sit, blogging and snacking.

Other times, I feel like the week since she's been born as flown by so fast. It's so rewarding to watch as Jillian becomes more and more aware of her surroundings. Here are some cute pictures from the last few days.