My Charming Husband

Brad had MLK Day off on Monday and made my day by treating me to lunch and surprising me with flowers! He kept the kids home most of the morning, then took them to the sitter's right before lunch so we could have a nice meal without all of the extras. We love the kids dearly, but dinner with everyone is not our most relaxing time of the day. :) I typically only post about the kids, but if they ever choose to read this someday, I want them to know how much their father loves me. I'm so lucky he's mine!

This isn't the best picture, but you get the idea. I kept them at work for a few days, so they aren't quite as healthy here as they were to start. Did I mention he sent a card with them too? I love him.

Milestones

We have had a few changes in the last week. Drew has started sitting up without any help. He doesn't always last very long, but he's getting much better. He loves to see what's going on around him. It's nice to know what's coming when you have a big sister that's running around. :) He's sitting up in this picture playing with his Christmas toy from Nanny and Papaw.

We finally decided to start Drew on rice cereal this weekend too. And he loves it! In fact, I had to get more tonight because 1 tablespoon wasn't enough. I'm crossing my fingers it will help our frustrating sleep pattern at night. He's been getting up way too often these last few weeks. The bond between Drew and me is really starting to kick in as well. If he sees Brad walk in the room at night, he's furious! When he sees it's me, he kicks and waves his arms with excitement. He also began preferring me when we have company. If I'm in sight or he can hear my voice, he'd prefer to be in my arms. He's a mama's boy already!

Alivia's 2 Year Photos

I love her eyelashes in this one.

On the Mend

We've all been fighting colds this last week. Alivia had a fever Friday night and Drew had a chest cold that was progressively getting worse. We decided to take both kids to the doctor on Saturday morning, mostly because it's easier for working parents to go on the weekend and not during the week. Little did we know that Drew had a double ear infection! He hadn't shown any signs of it. After a few sleepless nights and days of medicine, he's finally getting better. Alivia, Daddy and I are all still fighting colds, but hanging in there. It's been a long week! We're hopeful for a quiet, restful weekend.

So happy! :)

Alivia's Fear of Snow

These last few weeks have been a little stressful for Alivia. She hates the snow! She will tell us she wants to play in it, walk in it, etc., but when we actually get outside she wants nothing to do with it. When we ask her why, she says "don't like it." Last weekend I told her there was another surprise in the shed that she might want to see. She was very interested and even put her snow pants and boots on. However, as soon as we got to the door she cried and said "carry you" (which means she wants me to carry her). I took her to the shed and showed her the new wagon for her and Drew. She loved it and immediately wanted to get in and go for a ride. I suggested going for a ride in the snow and she panicked. I had to get her out of the wagon and hold her the rest of the time. It's driving us crazy because she's typically not afraid of anything.

Brad did a little research last weekend and discovered that Chionophobia is a fear of snow. We just decided she must one of those kids that isn't ready to play in the snow yet. But here's the catch - Alivia walked in the snow yesterday with Angela and had no trouble at all. After many questions, Angela figured it out. Alivia was worried she would get her shoes dirty! We couldn't believe it. Here we are diagnosing her with something when really she just has some OCD tendencies like her mother. :)

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Yesterday we celebrated Daddy's birthday. We went to dinner at Olive Garden, picked up DQ blizzards on the way home and Alivia and Mommy sang Happy Birthday. It was such a nice evening until Mommy fell asleep during the Purdue basketball game at 8:30. We must be getting old!

Christmas at Nanny & Papaw's

We were finally able to have Christmas with Brad's family last weekend. The kids had such a good time. Here are a few pictures to show off some of their latest additions to the toy box.

Clothes from Aunt Michelle

The Fisher-Price mailbox with volume control. Thanks Aunt Michelle! :)

Alivia helped Drew open gifts too.

Drew's new toy from Nanny and Papaw.

Alivia got her very own tricycle from Nanny and Papaw.

Grandpa excited to get new pajamas!

Aunt Lane and Uncle Keith

We were so lucky to have Aunt Lane and Uncle Keith here for Alivia's birthday party. They were able to stay another day with us too. We don't see them often, so when they're here, we try to fit in as much time as we can. Brad and I always have so much fun with them. We stayed up late playing games and talking. We felt really old because it took us days to recover from staying up past midnight. These kids are really aging us! Lane and Keith - thanks for your visit. We enjoyed every minute!

Tub Crayons

Alivia loves her new tub crayons from Don, Sally and the kids. She colors everywhere and even trys to get Drew to help. :)

Recliner

Mommy and Daddy bought Alivia her very own recliner for the living room. She sits in it to eat her snacks and watch cartoons. I just love this picture!

Musical Gifts

Aunt Michelle thought it would be a good idea to get Alivia a guitar and harmonica for her birthday. She's actually doing pretty well with the harmonica, but the guitar "disappeared" the other day when Brad was home with the kids. I'm not sure who decided this guitar didn't need a volume control, but clearly they didn't have children!

Playing Dress-Up

Mamaw, Aunt Lane and Uncle Keith got Alivia some dress-up clothes for her birthday. Here are a few of the items that she's most interested in.

Abby Cadabby dress and ruby red slippers.

Cowgirl outfit and heals. She hasn't quite figured out what goes together yet. :)

Daddy modeling the Dorothy dress and hat at her bday party.

A feather boa, cowgirl hat and microphone.