And it Begins

Happy Birthday Princess Paxton!

 Classic Paxton face

 Playing in the creek at the park

 Papa C came to party too!

 Colored icing stains

 Forgot to get a family photo at the park so we did it at home

 New panties were worn on top of clothes-not what I was hoping for it to inspire.

 Pinata time

Paxie Pooh Turned 2 yesterday! We could not have asked for better weather to celebrate with a few friends at the park. This girl is obsessed with "Tangled" so that was the theme (I use that word loosely) of the party. We played at a park and had cookie cake-perfect for a 2 year old. We are so very thankful for this little girl who is spunky and strong willed, but also so sweet and affectionate!

Happy Father's Day

To the best daddy who loves us, leads us, and serves us so well!

Last Day of School and Comparison

Madeline first day of school in September 

Last day of school May 18.  Paxton's gown 2 bricks, Madeline has grown 1 brick

Paxton's first day in September. She actually could not completely walk on her own yet which is why she is gripping the wall.

 so pumped to be taking pictures after her program

 M's end of year program. She is back row 4th from the right

 My hydrangeas are blooming beautifully this year!

 bathing beauties at the zoo splash pad

my beautiful girl

Mother's Day Happys

 Mother's day in front of our house.

 Fun around the house after a bout of hand foot and mouth disease.

 Ballet recital

Changing her own diaper

My Sister's Wedding

 My sister and BIL had a non-traditional wedding ceremony in an ice skating rink! It was cool, but really cold out on the ice! They even rode the Zamboni afterwards!

 The only decent picture of our family

 Only decent shot of the front an back of their dresses (which I found at the end of the season at Belk for $13 each! By far my best find/buy ever.)

 flower girls!

 Paxton walked out onto the ice when she saw me coming and did the splits! Thankfully it was just that instead of falling back and hitting her head. Being airlifted from Breckenridge to Denver's Children's hospital would have been a bummer after the wedding. It was a good laugh for the audience though.

 M took this picture

 My brother, SIL and nephew Vince

 The view of the slopes from our deck

 Matchy-matchy cousins!

We rode the gondola up one afternoon

My sister, Tonya and BIL Sean, were married Easter weekend in Breckenridge, Colorado. Tonya and Sean rented a house and it was a little ski vacation before the wedding. They are both avid skiers (Sean does it on one leg better than any of us do it on 2. I mean he prefers to ski double back diamonds and hardly ever falls!) They even went up after the wedding and took pictures in their wedding clothes skiing down the mountain. It was beautiful out there and really spring skiing. That was the last weekend Breck was going to be opened due to the warm weather and lack of snow, so we were very blessed to have gotten to ski. It was a wonderful celebration and I was so thankful to be there. Sadly, I don't have very many good pictures as I was matron of Honor and mother to the flower girls. I am looking forward to seeing the professional ones. Congratulations to my beautiful sister and amazing brother in law. We love you!

Break

Just a few pictures of things we have been doing this week of spring break. Today is actually the first day we have not had a play date with friends, and its been nice to end the week at home. I think I have been into taking more pictures of Paxton lately out of subconscious guilt for how many more we took of Madeline.

Happys

Just some happy pictures. The month of February is flying by like always. Missions conference, parents visiting, women's retreat, seeing Wicked this weekend. I have been taking a little photography class, which has been great. Though its only made me want to buy more things for my camera to take better pictures. So, I'm betting its March before you hear from me again. This should be easier to blog since I have iCloud and everything gets put on my Mac automatically....what can I say? Sorry.

Poor Second Child

Being a second daughter myself, I swore I would not do to Paxton what was done to me-hardly any pictures, especially not by herself, forgetting to write anything down about her, wearing shoes too small for her feet, etc...Well, I have failed miserably. This baby is lucky if I take a picture of her once a month, and until this week was wearing shoes a whole size too small. I have given myself some grace and let go of the guilt because I realize that all those things are not my gift package (except the shoes-should have seen that one). I find myself alone with her this morning and thought I should write some things down. She plays so well by herself. She loves to play with her babydolls, feed them bottles, rock them. She likes to color, and I think she will be our lefty. Her speech is amazing. Now, she's 17 months, so I am not saying that others can understand her, but her Mama does, which is amazing for me. She will sing the cleanup song "Clean up, clean up, everybody everywhere," and then yesterday sang "happy birthday dear Sissy" for Madeline. This child's hair is so straight. She will only keep a bow or clippy in it for a short time. We lose one a day. Paxie is spunky too. She thinks she is as big as her sister and tries to do what the big kids do. She is also very easy going. Because she is a good independent player, she does not require much attention or help, but when she does not get her way, she can throw down with the best of them. I am so thankful because she is a snuggler! M was/is not, but Pax is good for a hug and kiss any time. Our bedtime routine consists of laying her night-night (blanket) over my shoulder and she lays her head on it while I sing and pray. This girl still can knock back the food. She is constantly on the lookout for her next "nack" (snack). We are so thankful for our second daughter who brings such joy to our home. Sorry baby for the lack of pictures!

Another new post below!

Birthday and Years Gone By

 How did she turn into this little girl so fast?

The hair really came in between year 2-3. Shortly after this picture, M got her first haircut.

Our sweet Madeline turned 5 yesterday. Five?! Some days have been endless but the years have flown by. We have had a fun filled two days that included her school celebration, a field trip to the library, play time at Chucky Cheese, pizza place for dinner, Yogurt Lab for dessert, and then a party today at McWane Science Center. Side note, the incorporation of new toys is the bane of my existence. I need to purge since we had Christmas and birthday one after the other.

Most people who know Madeline refer to her as my mini-me. Not just physically, but in personality as well. She is funny. She loves to joke and say crazy things. She loves playing with dolls, all things princess, dress ups, crafts, and any inanimate object can suddenly come to life in the middle of a conversation or situation. She is very dramatic. She used to be so tough, but has come to take the smallest of pains as major catastrophes which can resurface days later. Her little heart has really begun to understand the Lord more this year. She finally picked a hand! She writes right handed, but still does a lot with her left. She can write her name and most of her letters. She loves her sister, but does not like it when others show her attention. She feels the need to do something to Paxton like hug her or kiss her hard to make her presence known. Her vocabulary continues to increase. The things she picks up on surprise me. For instance, she asked what ominous and philosophy meant the other night. She loves technology like her daddy. The kid can work an iPhone. She is very independent-particularly with being self-directed in her playtime. Her downfalls are that she thinks she is always right, she dawdles, she has keen skills to tune out my voice, and she tends to blame others when things do not go her way. Ah sin....what a bummer. As I get older I see the cross Jesus had to bear for me continue to get bigger. Praying our girl comes to understand the same and that the Lord might (preferably gently) teach her humility. So thankful for our first daughter! She is a gift.