2 Months Old

Quinn is two months old. The time has flown by and she is growing. We went to the doctor on Monday and Quinn weighed 9 lbs. 1 oz. and was 21 inches long. We are in the almost 9th percentile for weight and 31st percentile for height. Her head was the perfect size and was in the 100th percentile (Ben says she has big brains!). She is a peanut for sure, but our doctor is of course not concerned as Ellie was the same way and we just know that we have little peanut babies. Quinn also got her first round of shots, which of course she was not a fan of. I have never seen her that red while screaming. I felt so bad for her. Ellie would get her shots and need one dose of Tylenol before getting to the doctor and would be totally fine all day, Quinn was not so lucky. Quinn got her dose of Tylenol before getting there and two more times in the day and was still in so much pain and would scream if you even barely touched her legs. At one point in the day both girls were screaming and Ben was working late so it was just me and I told him I just had to laugh at what was happening. God says to have joy during the trials and that is all I could do at that moment. Quinn is doing great! She has great head control, even the doctor was impressed, and is smiling and cooing at us more and more each day. She of course hates tummy time, but has adapted well to her big sister's crazy schedule of being on the go and is going more and more with the flow when we are out and about. She is definitely a Mommy's girl at this stage, but what baby isn't when all they do is mostly eat and sleep! Here are the two month pictures without and of course with Ellie!

Homemade Donuts

The other day I looked up a recipe for homemade donuts. They turned out looking just like the professionals. For a quick easy recipe this wasn't that bad, but they were better hot!

Splashpark 2012

Last week we ventured to the splashpark twice. The first day we met Aunt Katie and Baby Laine and played in the water and rode the train. Ellie and Laine loved the train and Quinny slept :) The next day we met our cousins there and all the kids loved the water and the train. We had a great time playing!

Quinny at the splashpark :)

Father's Day 2012

This year I decided to make something for Ben from the girls. Ben ahd actually already bougth some tool and told me not to buy him anything, so we made a little something instead. I decorated two picture frames with nuts and bolts and put the girls' pictures in them for his desk at work. Ben had to work, so before he left we made him open his presents. We made them the day before and wrapped them and the whole time he was reading his cards Ellie was talking about the pictures, but Ben had no idea what she was talking about. Gone are the days of keeping secrets and wrapping gifts for people in front of her!

After Ben got home from work he enjoyed a nice nap, which is really the best present for him, and we went to dinner. We enjoyed celebrating such a wonderful Daddy! Ellie is so in love with him and I have to say that he is so in love with her. She loves having cuddles with Daddy every day and she loves when Daddy does the bedtime routines. She misses him terribly when he is gone. He is a great father for little girls and has even mastered the blow drying of hair! (We are still working on the putting in of bows.) It is awesome to watch him interact with our little girls and listen to the wonderful things he says to Ellie that I know build her up as a little girl and make her feel truly loved. I am excited to see him develop this same relationship with Quinn and watch her devotion to him as Ellie is devoted to him. As my mom and grandmother say to me all the time, I got a good one! I would have to agree and I pray daily that the girls get one just as good as him!

Ellie smiling!

Sweet Little Quinny

We were outside gardening I took the opportunity to try and catch a picture of Quinny smiling. I kind of got some half smiles. She has discovered Ellie in the last couple weeks and she LOVES her. She loves to watch Ellie going from here to there and loves when Ellie talks to her. Ellie gets right down to her level and talks to her with this cute little soft voice and Quinn will watch her and the other day smiled at her, which I made a huge deal about and Ellie was so excited. She is a great little addition to our family and Ellie thinks so too!

I love her wrinkles on her forehead. It is so cute when she is waking up and does it. Just the other morning I was waking up and realized I was wrinkling my forehead just like her!

And yes, we are growing a mohawk! Ellie lost most of her hair on the top and Quinny is doing the opposite and losing her hair on the sides, so mohawk it is for this little one!

Gardening With the Girls

The girls and I planted our zinnia seeds a couple weeks back. I am hoping my green thumb continues from last year. So far so good, as they have been sprouting! Ellie helped out by shoveling the mulch and putting it in the grass and Quinn enjoyed the breeze in her bouncer.

This was Ellie smiling on this particular day! :)

My Sweet Beans

This is my favorite current picture of our sweet Elliebeans. It is always so hard to get her to give us a smile with her eyes open and this day I got it. This sweet face has forever changed our lives and the joy she shows in this quick snapshot is only a small glimpse of the joy she brings us every day. She is the most caring and loving little girl who loves on us and her little sister constantly. I am constantly amazed every day at the love God has given her for her sister. It was a constant prayer of mine while I was pregnant with Quinn and He was so faithful to instill it in her heart. She is smart beyond her young two years and extremely beautiful inside and out. She is joyful and has the best carefree attitude (sometimes a little too free :)). Her independence keeps us on our toes and challenges us more than some days we ever think possible, but at the same time brings us immense joy as she is becoming her own little lady. Her laughter and silliness keeps us laughing every minute of the day. She is one of the joys of our lives and we cherish all the moments that God has given and is giving us to shape and challenge her for Him! We love you sweet Ellie!

Little Sisters Rock

In case you didn't know little sisters rock and when Quinn wears her shirt declaring it Ellie is happy to go around the house saying it all day :) Big sisters are always there to encourage you!

Enjoying the Pool

This year we decided to join a pool close to our house. We don't have a community pool, but this is the next best thing. Ellie LOVES the water, whether it is the pool, shower, ocean, creek or bath, she can't get enough of it! We asked a friend of ours who teaches swim lessons what would be best for her to use when swimming and she told us about this great vest type item that you just pick up at Target. It starts with floats that keep her up and as she gets more independent you take out a level at a time of the float material and she can slowly move out of using the float all together over time. We are looking forward to starting Ellie in swim lessons in a couple weeks and know she will have a blast. We go to the pool 4-5 times a week on our own or with friends. The girls and I pack up and if Quinn doesn't fall asleep I strap her in the Bjorn, since it is washable, and we all get in. Our pool has a great kid's section that Ellie can stand in and the adult area only goes to 5 feet so Ellie loves to swim around there too with Mommy and Daddy. There is also a slide that Ben or I take her down on our lap and after one dunk with Daddy has become super brave and loves to go down. Ellie has now learned in just the past two days to hang on to her noodle and "swim" on her own. She lets me know she is swimming as she floats around with her vest on, hanging on the the noodle and kicking. I showed her this trick only once while we floated together and the next day she hopped in and took off on her own. I have to say she is a smart and brave little girl not to mention way beyond her years in independence. We are looking forward to many more pool days and many summers enjoying the pool! (These pictures are from our first trip on June 1st, so I will try to get some up to date ones tomorrow, maybe even Ellie on the slide and her new swimming skills!)

Work Time

Ellie decided it was time to show Quinn how to pitch in and do a little work around here! At one point she had the keyboard in Quinn's lap and was taking her hand to show her how to type, but they moved to fast for me to get a picture.