Sisters

To use or just amuse

A crafty blogger has posted a PDF of printable gift tags. They are really funny, but you could also print them out and actually use them. I will try to have at least one good post this week about all the pre-holiday fun we've had, but I have some serious, heavy work goals for myself. Keep me in your prayers--I need some extra strength to push through some work problems I've been struggling with.

Christmas shirts

Here are the girls in the Christmas shirts I made for them. Annabelle's says "Jingle Belle" and Rebekah's says "Jingle all the way." The holly berries are red buttons. I liked this picture better than the ones where they were looking at the camera because this is how they look most of the time--Rebekah is making silly faces and Annabelle is looking at Rebekah. You can click on the picture for a closer look.

Shannon's job

Mary has requested an update on Shannon, and since he can't seem to get himself in here to do it (he's too busy checking on the Razorbacks every time he gets near the computer), I guess I'll do it for him. He likes his new job at the bank. The transition from restaurant management was smooth because the work is similar--he's still managing a team of people who are serving customers. He has said that the lifestyle is totally different, in a good way. The hours are predictable and consistent, and he's home with us every night and every weekend. It's fantastic for all of us. He's been through a lot of training, but it's stretched out over a few months instead of condensed. He also likes being able to wear nice clothes that he picks out every day instead of a uniform. He's thrown out all his greasy black pants and gray shirts! Hopefully he'll get in here and give you some more, but for now, that's what's up with Shannon.

Hooray for Christmas!

We're all excited about Christmas out here. We've got the house decorated and we've been enjoying the festivities around town. I'm awfully proud of my mantle. I got the decorating idea from a Southern Living Christmas book that Mamaw Evans sent me for my birthday. After I hung the stockings, Rebekah walked in the room and said, "Mommy! You decorated red socks! That's so silly!" and she laughed for about ten minutes over it.



Our tree looks like something out of a department store because we bought a big package of red balls at Sam's and that's all that's on it now--except for one little white bear that Rebekah found and stuck on there. It will be more personalized and less Martha Stewart-y once we get out the rest of our ornaments. I've always wanted to be able to put my Christmas tree in a window that you can see from outside, and this year I can.



On Saturday we went to Christmas in the Park where we saw a friend perform with her dance class. After that we stood in line for an hour and a half to see Santa. Annabelle tolerated the wait well considering we didn't get done until 9:30. When we finally got to Santa Claus, we knew it was worth the wait. This year was Rebekah's first time to see Santa because I was determined not to subject myself to the long lines until she asked for it herself (we didn't even try with Annabelle). Rebekah crawled up in his lap and hugged him and touched his beard--she was starstruck! She wouldn't even look at the camera because she wouldn't stop hugging him. She did manage to ask him for a piano. When we left she said, "Santa Claus loves me." On the way home both girls fell asleep and Rebekah never woke up even when Shannon changed her clothes and put her to bed.



On Sunday we went to the Christmas parade, which lasted for over two hours! It was so hot that we were wearing short sleeves, and I took off Annabelle's pants and let her just wear a onesie. I actually saw some little girls in sun dresses. Santa was at the end of the parade, so we hung on until the end. Rebekah and Annabelle both perked up for the marching bands, and of course, I'm encouraging that. I just know I'd be the best band mom ever :)

language arts

On Friday, Rebekah brought home a note about what they had been learning in school for the week. For the literacy section, they read a book called Diary of a Worm, so I asked her to tell me about the worm. She began, "Once upon a time there was a little worm..." and told me the story. For the language section, they learned about articles, adjectives, nouns, and verbs. I asked Rebekah if she could tell me about nouns. She said, "Once upon a time there was a little noun..."

We are easily amused

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1131872382

first pets

Rebekah is now the proud owner of her first pets, a trio of goldfish named Goldie, Cheeto, and Cheese Puff. Eventually she will have a larger pet, but I am maintaining my stance of no babies and dogs at the same time. I also stand firmly against rodents and birds. I am so not interested in cleaning cages. For now, she is quite pleased with her fish.

Cooking has commenced

I have made a caramel-chocolate-pecan pie for the adults and turkey sugar cookies for the kids. The pie filling is made of caramel candies instead of Karo syrup, and the crust is crushed pecans instead of pastry.

Halloween Belles

Halloween was a big hit. Rebekah was Princess Belle from Beauty and the Beast--and she was not alone. Every three-year-old girl we saw at the church Fall Festival was a Disney Princess. Coordinating with her sister's yellow dress was Bananabelle, who seemed to enjoy the festivities, too. Her costume was a hit, but the Chiquita label did not hold up well to the excessive drool :) And by the way, please pardon the snotty nose in every picture--it was unavoidable. She conked out before we left the church and did not make it to the trick-or-treating portion of the evening. Fortunately, even though Rebekah is old enough to insist on trick-or-treating, she is young enough that three houses satisfied her. Exhausted, Rebekah has passed out on the couch. Annabelle, refreshed by her late evening nap, is up for another round.

Sunday project: fairy castle bedroom

All of us were pretty much stuck at home today because we are sharing one big cold--just in time for the girls to start their new daycare/preschool. I did manage to get a project done. I created a fairy castle bedroom for the girls out of a Wallies paste-up mural. I have been looking at them online and when I saw them on clearance at Hobby Lobby for $14, I couldn't resist. The kit had a big castle and a little one, so it was perfect for the girls' shared room. Take a look:

Rebekah's side

Annabelle's crib

the window between their beds--Granmommy made the letters on the window

Annabelle's side

Punkins!

We've been to two pumpkin patches in the past week, and we may be going back this weekend. Rebekah is in love with pumpkins and Halloween in general. She keeps asking if she can go trick- or-treating, and then she follows it with an explanation so we'll know how to do it: "If I go and knock on someone's door and say 'trick-or-treat' then I will get lots and lots of candy." I keep reminding her that it only works on Halloween--otherwise it's just begging. I have told her that we are going to our church Fall Festival for Halloween, so she says she will knock on the church door and say "trick-or-treat' and get candy. I can't wait to show you their costumes next week. Last night we painted our pumpkin family. Everyone did his or her own pumpkin, except for Annabelle, of course. I painted hers, complete with one dimple and one tooth. She held it yesterday for a picture, but since we used washable (and non-toxic!) paint, she ended up with green all over her mouth. Below is a close-up of Rebekah's pumpkin. It actually ended up with a face, albeit a small one. Her first concern was to use every color of paint, and once she accomplished that, she was ready for the face. If you look towards the top, you can see two dots for eyes, a dot for the nose, and a straight-line mouth. Above the face is blue hair and below it are feet. It also has ears with blue earrings. She did a good job for her first pumpkin, and she is awfully proud. To see details of the pictures, just click on them.

return of angel baby

Going through hand-me-down baby clothes, I once again found the cutest pajamas ever. I love seeing Annabelle in the clothes Rebekah wore so I can relive some happy memories while making new ones (I know it's corny, but it's true). Stay tuned for pictures of the cutest hat ever--it will be making a comeback as soon as the weather gets cold.

More Annabelle action

Annabelle had her six-month check-up, and she's still in the 90th percentile for height and weight. Adding to her list of accomplishments, she can also pull herself up to standing. Once she gets up, though, she can't go anywhere or get back down, so she just stands there and cries until we come to help her. We have let her fall back down, but she doesn't land on her bottom as she should--she falls head first and lands on her face. Last night we discovered the tiniest ridges of her first tooth poking through her bottom gums. We were so excited and called the grandparents to share the news, but that mood changed when her emerging tooth combined with a fever from her immunizations kept her up all night. Poor baby! (and poor Mommy)

settling in--and Annabelle crawls!

We've moved into our new house. The settling in process is long, especially since every one of us got sick while we were moving, but we already like our house, and everyone is sleeping a little better now. I was worried that Rebekah would have trouble since she's been sleeping in my bed for the last two months, but she was so happy to see her own bed again that she took right to it and hasn't complained (about the bed, that is--she has found plenty of other things to complain about, but that's just a symptom of being three). We had a great visit with family before we moved, and Shannon was happy not to be rushing back to work. He starts his new job on Monday.

In the midst of all this, Annabelle starting crawling--not scooting on her belly, but real actual crawling! She started about three days before she turned six months old. She is all over the place now, which is not the best timing for a move. We keep having to catch her to get things out of her mouth. Rebekah seems to have taken her sister's new mobility as a threat and has launched a preemptive strike, showing that baby who's boss. Most of the time she is sweet and hugs and kisses and plays with her--even as we speak, Bekah is putting on a puppet show and Annabelle is giggling with delight. But several times a day, we have to rescue the baby because Bekah has pushed her over, dragged her across the carpet by her head, or STOOD ON TOP OF HER! We are on high alert because never know when the sweet Bekah will slip away and Bekah-monster will take her place.

Woo-hoo!

Shannon has a job offer for a management position at a bank. We won't have details until the end of the week. Today is his last day at his old job, and he's pretty excited, especially since getting the call this morning. The timing has worked out well, too. He wanted to take a vacation this week to visit family without his cell phone ringing all the time with work problems, and he'll be able to do that. It won't be a real vacation for me, as I will still have to beg, borrow, and steal work time throughout the week, but it will still be nice to see everyone. I hope Shannon will log on and actually post something about this whole thing himself, but based on previous experience, I have to be laid up recovering from childbirth for that to happen. I have some news for Shannon, too. Tomorrow he can sleep in as long as he wants and enjoy his time off. But he better relish it, because no more late nights working means no more sleeping half the day. (And since the girls wake up at 6:00 a.m. every day, 9:30 is sleeping half the day away to me.)

photos by request

G.G. (short for great- grandmother) has requested some more pictures. Actually, in my birthday card she wrote "Send more pictures!" So she's pretty adamant about it :) I got some really nice ones this morning. Annabelle is sitting up fairly well, so Rebekah can easily hold her in her lap, and as you can see, Annabelle wants to crawl right now! She woke up at 3:45 a.m. today, not hungry or crying, just getting up and trying to crawl. I wish I could have slept through it, but she was also very noisy. Every time I tried to feed her and rock her and put her back down, she just got up on her hands and knees and tried to crawl around in her bed. She didn't go back to sleep until 5:30, and I just stayed up after that. I will not be fit to speak to this afternoon.

on the lake

This week I began my last year as a twenty- something. Shannon gave me a cake and a balloon, both of which Rebekah has enjoyed immensely, and he also gave me a bouquet of sunflowers. Those made me smile because he gave me sunflowers for my birthday the year we were dating. Last weekend we rented a pontoon boat for a couple of hours and spent the afternoon on the lake. It was such a nice, relaxing time. Poor Annabelle didn't know what to think of her little life jacket, but she eventually snuggled down into it and went to sleep. Shannon and Rebekah actually ventured off the boat into the water, but Rebekah wouldn't let go of the ladder. Shannon tried to encourage her to get out into the lake, but to tell the truth, I was glad she was too scared! If you ask her, though, she went swimming and she wasn't afraid because her life jacket kept her up.

leap of faith

Here's the big news: Shannon quit his job.

His job as a restaurant manager was good for a long time, but with the kids now, he is away too much. That job will always demand many nights and weekends, and we have decided that it will be better for us to find something in a different industry. This is not a rash decision, but it is a difficult and stressful one, and it will carry a lot of changes and sacrifices. We have decided not to buy the house, and we will move back to the university town that we have come to consider home over the past four years. We have signed the girls up for a Montessori school and we have a lead on a rent house. He's got a few more weeks to go, then it's moving time.

We are blessed to have the support of friends who will once again live close to us. We are so happy to return to our church and have had calls from many members of our Sunday School class with everything from words of support to job offers, and always prayers.

We don't know what the future holds, but we know that this is the best move for our family.

revolving blog title

The blog has another new title: Sarah, Shannon, and Some Silly Sisters. I think we'll stick with that one. It's appropriately cheesy (despite the flawed alliteration--maybe we can convince Shannon to drop the "h").

We have big things to tell, but we're not quite ready to make the announcement (no, it's NOT another baby! Two silly sisters are quite enough for the moment!). Please pray for us as our family continues to go through big changes.

Bekah's first haircut

Rebekah got her first (professional) haircut last week. I brought her into the salon and told her how exciting it would be to be a big girl and get a beautiful haircut. But Rebekah would not have it. She hid behind me and kept repeating, "I don't want a haircut." When I asked her why she didn't want a haircut she said in the saddest voice, "but, Mommy, I have curls." The poor thing thought that if she got a hair cut she would have curls anymore! And she is quite proud of her curls because everyone who meets her tells her how cute they are. After ten minutes of begging and bribing (notice the sucker) and promising that her curls would still be there, she finally consented if I would sit in the chair and hold her in my lap. The stylist cut off the split ends and cut her hair into layers that made her curls spring right up like Shirley Temple. She looks so cute! After it was over, she decided that getting a haircut was pretty neat, and she called both sets of grandparents to tell them how beautiful she looks. She has also been asking to go back to "the haircut place" so she can be beautiful again. When I told her that she didn't need another one, she thought for a moment and said, "Mommy, you need to get your hair cut. It's not beautiful." Nice. I didn't take it too hard. She usually has lots of sweet compliments for me, so I let this one slide. She told me right after that that she hopes we can be best friends forever, so I'll hang on to that one :)

Bouncy Belly

Annabelle (or Belly, as she has come to be called around here--but Shannon says we can't keep calling her that because she can't go to Kindergarten with a name like Belly) has a new toy--Johnny Jump-up! She wants to stand up all the time, and my arms get tired, so I thought she'd like it. The first time I put it up, she just sat on her bottom. Rebekah jumped all around her trying to show her how to jump, but Annabelle just laughed at her. Rebekah can make her laugh out loud better than anyone! She did seem to enjoy sitting up and watch from a different angle, though. Poor Rebekah wanted to get in it so badly, but we had a nice talk about all the things that she can do that babies can't, so she finally felt better. The next day Shannon adjusted the height on the Johnny Jump-up (duh) so she had to stand instead of sit. She still wouldn't jump, though. She scooted around and pivoted on her toes, but she still seemed happy, so I think the toy is a success despite the lack of actual jumping. With a little more practice and sister's help, I'm sure she'll be bouncing soon. For now, it's a great chew toy.

Shannon's birthday

I found a USB cable, so now you're due a run-down of what you've been missing.
Shannon turned 34 last month, and in honor of the event, I made the same Superman cake he had when he turned six. I also made him a chocolate pizza, which turned out really cute.

boxed up

Don't let the silence fool you--a lot has happened in the past couple of weeks. Our worldly possessions are now boxed up in a storage building, and we are in the condo. Lots of family came down to help us move. The girls started daycare. Shannon turned 34. I have taken lots of pictures, but we find ourselves in a predicament--we can't find anything! It's a miracle we have the computer up and running. The printer is not plugged in because we had to steal the power cord to plug in the TV. I've got lots of cameras in arms' reach--video, digital, 35mm, and APS--but not a USB cord in sight. I found my laptop, but not the power cord. I bought Rebekah a new nap mat for school because I had no idea where to even look for hers. Until the next day when I found it in a duffle bag in the bedroom, in pretty much plain sight. But we're managing just fine. We went swimming in the pool (well, Shannon and Rebekah did--I can't find my swimsuit!), and we plan to rent a boat next week and take a spin on the lake. Unfortunately Shannon can't use the golf course that is literally six feet out our door. It's a private club and there are signs telling us that we are not allowed to set foot "in or near" the golf course, even though the golfers drive their carts right up onto our sidewalk looking for stray balls. But the course does make for a lovely view from our gigantic window. I took special pleasure in watching yesterday as a sudden thunderstorm drenched the golfers. I have much to report, but I have to get to work--school has started!

Some crafty things

Worries over moving have led to insomnia, so what better time to blog? As always, my busy schedule has not prevented me from making little things here and there. Crafting is my favorite means of stress relief.

I've saved all of Rebekah's broken crayons for her whole life, and recently I melted them and made them into new fun shapes. I also made some tractor crayons for James. This is super easy. Just sort the crayons by colors--all the various shades of a color will mix into one shade--and melt them down. I used a pickle jar and set it in a pot of boiling water--they melt fast. Then pour the melted crayons into candy molds that you can get at a craft store for less then $2. Warning--I lost the purple ones because I put too much water in the pot and when it bubbled it knocked over the jar. So not only did I lose all the purple crayons, but I also had to wash them out of my pot.

I have also been saving wine corks for years and I finally did something with them. I painted a plain wooden tray, sliced the corks in half, and glued them down to make a wall decoration for the kitchen. If I were to do it over I wouldn't have cut them--that was tedious--but you'd need a lot more corks.

My favorite crafts lately have been greeting cards. I have found that I spend less time making my own cards than I spend at the store picking one out. I like doing these because if I need to wind down after the kids go to bed, I can just get out my box of supplies and make one. It's nice to be able to have a completed project in one sitting. Here are some I did for Mother's Day. The one with the picture of the girls is my favorite. Click on the picture to see more detail.

Yummy!

Annabelle had her first taste of solids today, and boy was she happy! Rebekah was not interested in eating from a spoon until she was at least seven months old, and she never liked cereal, so we didn't expect much. But Annabelle was raring to go. I made some very thin rice cereal, and at first she couldn't seem to figure out how to close her mouth, as you can she in the picture. Once she got the hang of it, I couldn't get it in fast enough, and I mixed more cereal in to thicken it up. She ate the whole bowl! Her eating habits are so different from Rebekah's. When Rebekah was a baby, she would nurse all day long if I let her. A feeding session would last forty-five minutes, and she was happy to live on milk for most of her first year. Annabelle nurses for five to ten minutes and is done. I fed her a bottle with a stage 2 nipple, and she guzzled it down, but Rebekah cried when we gave her a stage 2 even when she was a year old. Rebekah cried the first time we tried to give her cereal or baby food, but I could almost hear Annabelle thinking, where has this stuff been all my life? The funny thing is, Annabelle is growing at almost the exact same rate as Rebekah did. I guess babies just know what they need and are good at telling us about it.

making lemonade

We're taking our lemons and making lemonade. We are moving into a resort condo on Lake Conroe until our house is done. It's furnished, all utilities included, and a month to month lease, so it's ideal for our less-than-ideal situation. It's on a golf course and it has a swimming pool, so we can pretend like we're on vacation for awhile (except for that whole work thing). All of our stuff is going into storage, so I have the task now of figuring out what we need on hand and what we can live without for an undetermined amount of time. And now back to packing.

Annabelle's stats

Annabelle is four months old today! She is not a happy girl right now because she has a little cold and a bit of a fever, and she had four shots today. She weighs 15 lbs. 10 oz., almost double her birth weight, and she is 26 inches long. Like her sister, she is in the 90th percentile for weight and the 95th for height--we have some big girls. She will not lie on her back when we put her down. She rolls right over onto her tummy before you know it. She tried to roll off the scale and the exam table today. At night I still swaddle her to sleep because if I don't she rolls right over and pushes her head up and looks around. It's like she doesn't know how to be still, even though she is so sleepy. The doctor said that since she sits up so well, we might try to give her solid food. I remember being really anxious to give Rebekah solid food, but the thought hadn't even crossed my mind for Annabelle. Now I'm excited about the idea, and I think we'll try it tomorrow. Maybe she'll spread out her feedings a little--she rarely makes it two hours without wanting to be fed. Of course, she sleeps twelve hours a night, so I certainly can't complain.

look at the tickers

This is only true for a couple of days, so look now. Rebekah is 3 years and 3 weeks old, and Annabelle is 3 months and 3 weeks old. Just thought that deserved acknowledgment.

The Blog has a name

Finally, the blog has a title. In anticipation of our move to the land where everyone has two kids and two cars and all the houses look alike, we give you Suburban Utopia. (Title inspired by a recent viewing of the movie Over the Hedge, which could have been written about our neighborhood. Except in the the movie, they have electricity.)

Need advice

Bad news--the house is not ready, so we have to move into an apartment for a time until the electricity is in. (To clarify the problem, the whole street is new and has no electricity at all. There are ten houses all built and ready to go that don't have electricity.)

I'm concerned about how Rebekah will respond. She is excited about her new house and has seen it a few times, but we will have to live somewhere unfamiliar to her and then move her again to the house she's been looking forward to. How can I explain this to her in terms that she will understand? What can I do to make the transition easier for her? I have some ideas myself, but I would also like to hear any suggestions you might have.

Thanks. And pray for us--this is stressful and we're trying hard not to let it worry the kids.

Bekah-isms

According to Bekah, in the day time the sun is in, not out. At night the sun goes out and the moon comes in.

Also, she uses word ol' as an adverb to amplify her chosen adjective, as in, big ol' bug. She also repeats adjectives to amplify them, as in, big big bug. Separately, those are not that funny or unusual. But it was pretty funny when she saw a "big big big ol' ol' ol' ol' wasp" outside.

fussy girls

It has been loud in this house. The formerly pleasant and content Annabelle has lately become Miss Fussypants. She fits right in with her big sister, Miss Sassypants. Between the fuss and the sass, Mommy is tired. But now that they are asleep, the house should be peaceful until about 5:00 a.m. That's when I can expect Rebekah--that's right! the three-year-old!--to wake me up to start the day. The three-month-old will not awaken until 8:00. I put Annabelle to bed and she stays there happily for eleven, even twelve hours. I put Rebekah to bed and she wakes up three times before midnight. What's that all about? I'm hoping the fussiness and the early waking are phases that will pass in the next few days. The sassiness? That is here to stay.

moving update

The progress on the house is still stalled by the utility companies, and we don't have a move-in date yet. The good news is that we can stay in our rent house for a few more weeks, so hopefully that will give us enough time to get into the new house. The problem is the rain, and it's not letting up any time soon.

Thanks to our good friends Courtney and Tom, who babysat the girls, we were able to go out for our anniversary dinner on Thursday. We both appreciated the chance to enjoy being together and to get our minds off the stress of moving for a while.

babytalk

Annabelle has something to say.

Five Year Anniversary

We haven't done anything to celebrate yet, but Shannon brought me some flowers last night. Since we've been married, we've had two kids and moved five times. I'd say it's been a busy five years!

Matching dresses

Here are the girls in the matching dresses that G.G. and Great-Papaw Evans sent them.

Rebekah is 3!

Happy Birthday Rebekah!
She had her three-year-old check-up yesterday. She weighs 40.5 pounds and is three feet three and a half inches tall. She's still in the 95th percentile for both height and weight. She got one shot, and she didn't cry or even day "ouch"--she seemed almost happy about it, especially when she got a brightly colored band-aid. She finally got the Dora birthday cake she's been talking about for months, and she also brought some cookies to school today to celebrate with her friends. Shannon was happy to be able to make it home from work in time to cook hamburgers, in the Peters tradition. When he told her he was making her a special birthday burger she asked if it was going to have cake on it. We have one more special day planned for her on Sunday when we will take her to Build-a-Bear Workshop.

The Singing Bee

That last post calls for a happier story. I mentioned this on my other blog, but I'll elaborate here. The Singing Bee is the best game show ever! We were all stressed out last night over the many things happening in our lives, and then this show came on.

It was about half an hour past Rebekah's bedtime, but she was still up because she had just finished calling all of her grandparents so she could spell her name for them--that's right! Rebekah can spell her name--accurately and consistently! I didn't even know it. I picked her up from school and her teacher told me that she had told her how to spell her name when the teacher was writing it on her art project for the day. Rebekah was so proud of herself and we laughingly bragged that she could spell her name at two years old--she won't be three until tomorrow!

So, we were all still up and started watching the show and singing along and jumping around and dancing. Rebekah thought it was the funniest thing ever to see Mommy and Daddy dancing and singing, and she got all riled up, too. I can't imagine what Annabelle thought of the whole thing! Rebekah didn't get to sleep until almost 11:00 last night, but it was worth it to have an unplanned evening of fun. We've been so stressed out lately that we all needed to relax and be silly. I recommend watching it and playing along--adults and kids.

After Rebekah went to bed, Shannon and I stayed up making and coloring icing for Rebekah's birthday cake. Shannon remembered learning how to make roses when he was a little boy watching his mom decorate cakes, so he tried his hand at that last night. They weren't half bad. I won't be making any roses, but I think the cake will turn out nice. I'll post a picture after I finish it.

Stalled

Bad news on the house--it may not be done by the end of the month. The builders have done everything they can do, but they are waiting on the utility companies to come and put in the meters and whatever else has to be done to a new house. The builders can't finish until the utilities are in, and they can test to be sure that everything works. So everybody's just sitting around waiting. We are in a rent house now, so we have no leeway--someone is moving in here on August 1. So we have quite a pickle. We will literally be homeless. Everything will work out, but it's going to take lots of planning and lots of money that we really needed for other purposes. But moving is always expensive (believe me, I'm an expert on this topic). The best possible scenario is that it will all come together at the last minute and we can move right into our house. We're exploring our other options and trying to keep our heads on straight in the process. Pray for us!

Hello Annabelle!

In the past week, Annabelle has really opened up and shown us her personality. She's so expressive now, and she smiles and coos all the time. I brought her up to the office today, and someone said she's like a little kitten who has just opened her eyes. I took a ton of pictures yesterday (trying to capture a smile--haven't gotten it yet) and I played them on a slideshow on the computer. Annabelle loved watching the pictures and started cooing and reaching out like she was talking to the baby on the screen. We may be biased, but we're pretty sure she's the cutest baby ever. Or at least the cutest baby since Rebekah!

Surprise visit

Between our two trips last month, we got a surprise visit from even more cousins! Mikka and Chris (yet another Uncle Chris) stopped by on their way home from a trip to Houston, and the kids were excited to play together. Here's a picture of Kade, Kyra, Rebekah, and Annabelle. You can definitely tell which ones are siblings--Kade and Kyra look as much alike as Rebekah and Annabelle do.

More cousins!

Sarah and the girls went up to visit the Evans side of the family last week, and in addition to lots of attention from Granmommy and Papaw and Uncle Chris (one of them), the girls got to play with even more cousins. Rebekah and James played on the slides while Annabelle and Lily...well, pretty much just stared at each other. Rebekah got an early birthday cake and a new bicycle with training wheels. We have big birthday plans for next week, too, so she's going to think her birthday is supposed to last for weeks!

house progress

We all visited the house- in-progress a couple of weeks ago, and it's looking good. Shannon stopped by again this week, and the paint and tile are in now. We should be moving at the end of the month.

Edited: Sorry if you missed the picture. It occured to me that it might not be a good idea to publish our house number for the whole internet to see. Maybe I'll put up another one later with our house numbers edited out.

Boo

My rocking chair broke :(

Annabelle's stats

Annabelle had her two-month check-up today. She is 23 inches long and weighs 12 lbs. 8 oz. She got four shots and an oral vaccine and is not pleased. She needs extra snuggles today. Turns out she has mild torticollis, like Rebekah had. Torticollis is a (not painful) condition in which the neck muscles on one side are short, so the baby's head is cocked and she turns her head only to one side. We just have to do some easy exercises to stretch her muscles back out, and it should be gone in a few weeks. It's very mild--you can't even see it in her pictures. Rebekah's was more severe and took longer to diagnose, but since we knew what to look for, I was able to tell the doctor about what I'd noticed and we don't have to go to any other doctors (Rebekah's caused some drama with several trips out of town to see a specialist). Even though it's not hereditary, both girls were born with it. It was likely caused either by neck injury during delivery or by a tight fit in the womb that caused their necks to be scrunched up. They were the same size at birth, so it's not too surprising that they had the same condition. She also got her first prescription for antibiotics today because she's had some serious sniffles for three weeks. I took her to the doctor for it twice and it just looks like a cold, but since it has hung on so long, we're hoping that the medicine will kick it out. In related news, Shannon and I are still sick even though we have finished our medicine. We either have new colds or particularly persistent infections that need even more antibiotics. We've all been sick for a month! It's June--we're not supposed to feel so bad in the middle of the summer! The good news is that Annabelle does not have an ear infection, which is a miracle since her nose has been stuffy for so long. So that's it for now--hopefully I can soon report that our various ailments are cured.

Faces of Rebekah

Not to be outdone, the diva demands attention of the camera.