A cute guest

A few weeks ago, my parents went out of town, and we babysat their dogs. Guapo isn't good with kids and had to stay outside with the other dogs (who don't come in the house). Dulce is so little and sweet that I couldn't resist letting her come in to hang out with Grace.
Grace wanted to walk her and since Valley Center is pretty much the worst place in the world to go for a walk, we took her to the library with us and walked around out front.
I wasn't sure what to do from there, but we ran into the librarian who said we could take her with us into the library. So she hung out with Ellie while we looked at books.
And yes, the whole experience made me want a Japanese Chin again. I mean, how cute are they?
It was all in all a fun visit. Well the part with Dulce. The other dog, Guapo (who used to be our dog) ran away and I had to bail him out of the humane society. That was a bit traumatic, but we will save that story for another day.

Our Yearling

Earlier this week, our sweet Elizabeth turned 1! She is full of personality and brings us all such joy. Although she has such a silly side, our yearling has a shy, introvert side. Mostly we see this side at church or other large groups. At home, she is usually found hanging out with her sister. It is great fun now that they can play together.
She also is a huge fan of her sisters markers.
I can't believe how fast she is growing up. In case you need a memory refresher, check out our sweet baby at 1 month, 6 month and 12 months. I don't think we will keep up pictures in this outfit, but I love her sweet baby rolls.
And here she is, every month on the 24th. I love her chubby stage and the ratio change of head to body. I think if you click on the picture it will get bigger.
Lastly, here are some pictures from her birthday! She likes to dance to her own little tune.




Happy Birthday Sweet Elizabeth!

Where we went when I wasn't blogging

In the time since I last blogged we have gone on a couple trips. We went to my grandpa's on our way to Lake Tahoe, so that was kinda a two for one. While there, we mostly just hung out. We usually have time to relax while we are there, which is really nice. Plus, Grace has a great time.


After the few days in Creston, we drove up to Lake Tahoe where we spent a week with our friends the Olivas family.
Tahoe was beautiful. The weather was beautiful. The lake was beautiful. The trees were beautiful. My kids were beautiful. It was a nice trip.


While we are on the subject of trips. We also took a train trip, which I am not sure if it counts, becuase we only went to Oceanside. But it was fun, and since we went on a train, it felt exotic.

What I've been doing intstead of blogging

If you ever check this blog, you might have noticed, that I haven't been keeping up on it lately. And by lately, I mean almost two months. I don't really have a good excuse other than I have been doing other stuff. So I figure I will take the next week to update some quick overviews on what I have been up to with my time since I haven't been blogging.

I thought I would start with my crafts, becuase I don't have to sort through lots of pictures. Tomorrow, however, I will post pictures of my beautiful daughters, becuase I know you are all bigger fan of them anyways.

So knitting wise, I learned how to use four double pointed needles (exciting, huh?) and I made a pair of socks. I had trouble wearing them and taking pictures of them at the same time.
I also made a picnic quilt that turns folds into a kind of pillow/purse for easy transport. I made it for my first great niece who was born this spring. I loved it so much I almost tried to keep it for myself. In an effort to keep myself honest, I put the baby's initials on the pocket so that I would have to give it to her.

There's the front. And the dog. She wouldn't move.
And the back.
And folded it.
I also learned to knit on a circular needle, which was fun. I made these hats for some friends who wore them to comic-con.
Tomorrow I will start with sharing our summer activities, and then my big big big project. I am very excited. Aren't you??

Bates Nut Farm

The day Gunnar left for Mongolia the girls and I were kinda sad. We thought getting out of the house would help and sure enough it did. We took a picnic lunch to Bates Nut Farm to distract us.

We sat out under the trees and enjoyed the beautiful spring weather.
After lunch Grace enjoyed feeding the goats.Elizabeth and I watched her and enjoyed hanging out in the shade.
I think sunshine and fresh air, especially in the springtime, are really the best medicine for almost any ailment!

Girls day out on the town

One of the things I have looked forward to about having daughters is the chance to have someone to do girly things with. I am so excited to have two girls now, as I think someday our days out on the town will be even more fun with a group. I love spending time with my mom and sister and I can't wait to start "girl time" traditions with my own girls.

Grace and I got to start out the traditions by going to the "Sound of Music" put on by the Valley Center Community Theatre. We had four friends in the play, which made it even more fun, not to mention the fact that the Sound of Music is always good time.

Gunnar and Elizabeth spent the afternoon together as neither of them (at this point) truly appreciate a great musical (although I am still hopefully for Elizabeth).

We got all dressed up to head out.
I even fixed Grace's "fancy." Not bad considering she was moving all around and jumping and talking while I worked on it.
We got a picture with some of the nun's after the show. They did a great job!
What would any date be without a trip to Starbucks. I love this picture. I especially how the cup says "express your love."
Grace sat still (relatively) and payed good attention. She loved the songs and followed the story line pretty well. Hopefully this will be the first of many musicals Grace and I (and someday Elizabeth too) will go to together.

Red Chair: 8 & 9 months

I think I forgot to post both Elizabeth's 8 and 9 month pictures, so I will post them both now, as her 10 month birthday quickly approaches.

At 9 months, Elizabeth pulls herself up to standing (she has been doing this since 7 months), she "glides" (aka, walks along the edge of stuff while holding on it) a little, still crawls like a mad woman. She says "Da-da," and recently has discovered her scream. She just moved into Grace's room and is still struggling to make the adjustment (did I mentioned she finally learned how to scream?).

She is still a very snuggly baby and likes to pretend to be shy and bury her head in my shoulder when people talk to her. She loves to "flirt" with Bob and Pat, the older couple that sit behind us in church. She loves following her sister around and looks at her with big adoring eyes. She is babbling more and more and we think we might have another talker on our hands.

She has starting eating more foods, she loves finger foods. Avocados, steamed carrots, tofu, cottage cheese, scrambled eggs, blueberries, and pretty much any soft fruit are favorites. She has three teeth and two more that looks like they will pop through soon.

She is still always so quick with a smile and brings us all so much joy. When I was little my nickname was "Sunshine girl" and I am thinking I may have to relinquish the title to Elizabeth as it fits her well.

So here we go at 8 months (these were while Gunnar was in Mongolia):

And 9 months:

I think it is amazing how much she grew in this one month. It seems like everyday she is doing or trying something new. I wish she could stay small and cuddly forever, but it is so fun to watch her discover new things.