Three!

A couple of weeks ago, our oldest princess turned 3.  Seriously can't believe how fast time is flying.  Laney has become quite the little girl.....she's sweet, spicy (although not as spicy as her younger sister), caring, sassy, smart, and a little momma.

Laney loves to sit and read.  We even found her at her friend's birthday party last week sitting quietly in his room alone with a book.  She also loves to play with playdoh, write notes (I won't be surprised if the next time I go to grab a notecard that it's already been written on), play kitchen/tea party, and anything princess (including "click clack" shoes--which is her name for the fancy dress shoes that click on the tile floor).  Oh and she's been completely potty trained for a month or so!  Her favorite panties are those with Ariel on them.....she is all about Ariel these days.

We still wake up most mornings with her sleeping inbetween us...and she's super stealthy about climbing up in bed.  And she's still taking a good nap during the day.  She growing like a weed and is wearing mostly 5T and some little girl 6s. 

And while most kids her age are "why"ers, Laney is definitely a "because"er....she really enjoys explaining things.  She also asks "why?" a lot but not nearly as much as she states "because".

 

We took her (and her brother, sister and cousin) to the park on her birthday morning, after a pit stop at Shipley's Donuts.  These kids just love a good park...and we were able to meet up with some good friends, too.

Since we were traveling the weekends surrounding her birthday, it didn't work out for us to do the joint birthday party with her friend, James, this year.  But we are planning something mid-June for her and her friends....a little (and final) get together with her friends here so that we can eat her special request Ariel birthday cake.

Happy 3 Years, Alayna!

Graduate 2011 #1

Since a month before Hannah was born, we decided to put Josiah and Laney in our church's Mother's Day Out program two days/week....as a way to educate/socialize them and give me some time alone with the baby.  We took them out for the summer last year...we did movies, playdates, VBS, etc.  But they were ready to go back to "school" in Sept and see their friends, so we worked with the budget to make that happen.  They have enjoyed every minute of it...and ask nearly every morning, if it's time for school.

Today, Josiah "graduated" from the MDO program.  So bittersweet.  I always said that if I could just make it to 5 years old.....well, now that we're almost there, I think it's okay for him to stay little for a little bit longer.  I nearly lost it during the slideshow with "Let Them Be Little" playing in the background.

We're not 100% sure about what we're going to do about next year.  Technically, Josiah will be old enough to attend Kindergarten, but with such a late birthday (mid-August), we've been told that boys generally do better when they're the oldest in their class.  We're still praying about it.

Here are a few pics from this morning's program.....

Tiny Bubbles

The kids are always asking to blow bubbles...today Mommy said "yes".....and nothing makes them more happy than to see bubbles fill the air.

Painted

One of the big happenings of the last couple of months is that Laney is potty training.  I would venture to say that our big girl is completely potty trained (both day and nighttime)...we're still working on #2.  In fact, we kinda ran into a bit of a snag with #2, but now we are getting back on track.  And one of the rewards for getting back on track with #2, was to paint her fingernails...for the first time.  She loved it.  Such a big girl.

First Haircut

The record for the earliest first haircut is held by Josiah.  When he was 11 months old, we were getting him ready to take on the role of "ringbearer" in my youngest sister's wedding, and I just couldn't let all of the crazy, curly baby hair be in the pictures.  Sadly, those curls never came back...but I've never regretted sending him in for a trim.

When Laney was 19 months, I just couldn't stand her crazy bangs (the only thing I could do is pull them into a "whale spout", so I took her in to get "real" bangs.  And while I regretted it moments after (I blame my decision on hormones--I was just 1 week postpartum with Hannah), they grew out fairly quickly and they've never been a problem since.  We pull them back in a braid every day to keep them out of her face.

But Miss Hannah refuses to let me pull her bangs into a "whale spout" every day, so I took her for her bangs yesterday.  She did really great, and just sat there (unlike her sister, who SCREAMED the whole time) like a big girl.  And now she does look like a big girl, and while the lady cut them a little too short (they'll grow fast so it's no big deal), I'm glad we did it....it's so much easier and I don't have to constantly wipe her hair out of her face.

Before:

After:

It cracks us up to see how much all of the kids look alike....but in looking through all of the "old" pics, I must admit that if I wasn't looking at the dates, I would have a hard time deciding if it was Laney or Hannah.  haha.

Catching Up

To say that life has been crazy would be an understatement.....we I have been busy decluttering the house, sorting through all clothes, toys, recipes, pantry items, games/coloring books/crayons/markers, and bathroom drawers.  I know we'll be moving more than we came here with, but I refuse to move the stuff that we've moved twice already and haven't used in over 3 years.  Plus, I've been busy sewing the girls' Easter dresses, planning/hosting baby showers, and enjoying time with sweet friends before our 16 hour move North in June....oh, yeah, and working out so that I can lose the last of the baby weight gained with Hannah...only 10 more to go!

I've also been spending some time learning my camera....I even took some pics of a friend's newborn in Feb.  It was fun to research set ups and download new actions in Photoshop...and I was pleased with the end results for a first time session. 

Luke Henry Lazzopina, 2 weeks

During the last 3 months, Miss H has turned 16 months and is now communicating more with words.  She now says "milk", "down", "out", "no" (very clearly, I might add), "ow", "yeah", "juice", "nigh, nigh", "ba-bye" (in the most southern accent).  She LOVES noodles and anything sweet....oh and expects you to share just about everything you're eating with her, even though she might have the same thing on her plate.

Laney is just a month shy of turning 3.  Seriously, can't believe it.  She has grown into quite a little lady, sweet little momma, and very expressive little girl.  Most little people her age are into asking "why?" all of the time...but not Laney, she loves to say "because", explaining the "why's".  She talks with her eyes....you can always tell if she's sad, mad, happy, glad, or sassy....and she's definitely sassy.

And our little man, Josiah, officially turned 4.5 in Feb and was so proud to finally tell someone when he was asked. This little guy will ALWAYS give me a smile in front of the camera, loves to play wii, all things Ironman, Spiderman, and Battle Force 5.  He is completely done taking naps during the day and is doing well if he spends 30 minutes of quiet time in his room without asking me if he can come out....he is a constant ball of energy.  Josiah is a great big brother and is usually happy to play with/keep Hannah occupied.  He loves to make her laugh.  While we haven't started him in any organized team sports, he is becoming quite the athlete...and it will be hard to choose just a few sports.  He loves to play soccer and all things football....although, he's pretty good with a tee and bat.  And he will outrun you, too.

And Randy and I celebrated our 8th Anniversary on March 8th.  Hard to believe....so much has happened to our little family in 8 years, and we are expecting even more in the next 2.  Can't wait to take that 10 year Anniversary trip....wink, wink, nudge, nudge.

Joseph and an Angel

The last day before MDO dismissed for Christmas break, Josiah and Laney participated in the annual Christmas program. I just LOVE watching them do stuff like this....I love seeing them in their costumes and hearing them sing the songs I listen to, in pieces, for weeks leading up to the event.

This year, Josiah played "Joseph" and Laney was an angel. They both did so well. It was such a delight to see Josiah and Laney smile and sing instead of stand still, scared and unsure about what to do (like we saw last year). And Hannah enjoyed watching them and dancing to the songs.

Josiah's classmate, Kenna, played "Mary"....when I asked him if he and Kenna were married since Joseph and Mary were married, he blushed and said, "noooo, we're only married for the program, mom". It was really cute.

The last song of the program was "Happy Birthday"....which they sang while a cake was brought out with a lit candle. The kids loved this part...firstly, because they knew all the words and secondly, because they knew they were just moments away from enjoying Christmas sweets....Josiah couldn't secure a piece of cake fast enough (but only after pictures).