We are so happy that summer is finally here. Snow in may and cold wet storms the beginning of June made us think it was never coming. We are looking forward to some camping, hiking, fishing, and road trips to see family. Evalyn and Siena are growing up so fast. Siena is still the happiest baby we have ever seen.

And is showing more and more of her personality every day.

( I swear her hair doesn't always look like this)

We had a "fun"time potty training a few weeks ago.

We started out with salty snacks, lots of juice and her first new pairs of Elmo, and princess underwear.

And a few treats for rewards.

(Thank you Katie for introducing me to "potty training in one day" I will use it with all of our children.

Once training was complete she was handsomely rewarded!

This also included a date with daddy to get ice cream. She stuffed her face and didn't make the four minute drive home.

The other day I pulled out one of my favorite skirts. Unfortunately its just borderline length and I found I wasn't really ever wearing it so...

Evalyn got herself a new "princess" dress. It was an easy sew and she wouldn't take i off until bed.

Dave went out with some friends the other night and we had a "girls" night with just the three of us. Evalyn loved it(especially the oreos). The first of many to come I am sure.

Then, a few mornings later (after a very long night) They both ended up in our bed. They started out like this.... And within a few minutes were almost holding hands. I love it.

Little Angels

Whirlwind

Its been FOREVER since we posted last. Life has been so busy. We are finally enjoying some nice weather! After California we headed to Washington to visit my grandparents and go to a cousins wedding. We had a nice family getaway to St. George for Memorial weekend thanks to our friends, and have been working on our yard ever since. Evalyn is finally potty trained! She was on her way at 17 mo. and then I had a "but she's my baby moment" and didn't take advantage of the fact she loved the potty chair. (not very smart I know) but thanks to my WONDERFUL friend Katie it is really happening. More on that later. The truth is, my life has been consumed with RAGNAR. I cannot believe it's seven days away! EEK I know I am going to have such a blast but I am a little nervous. Two vans full of 12 women, running our little hearts out for two days, and no sleep...you cant go wrong.
Supposedly the first leg I run in our relay is so steep it feels more like climbing then running...bring it on

Easter

I have so much to update and pictures to download etc. However, in the meantime here is my favorite picture from our Easter in California. My sister in law took some beautiful pictures and I cant wait to print a few out.

Our Evalyn is TWO!

Febraury 15th Evalyn turned two years old. My goodness where does the time go? She is growing so fast. Its so fun to hear all the new things she says and does (she makes us laugh every day) and at the same time my heart aches. We have been so blessed to have such a wonderful little girl. We love her more than she will ever know.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY EVIE!

Oh, and meet Norice!

Evalyn's uncle Jordan bought her this TinkerBell doll for her birthday and when she pulled her out of the birthday bag she exclaimed without hesitation, "Norice"! Um......what?!

At first I thought she said Maurice. I guess Norice is a little better? I have absolutely NO IDEA where this came from. Nonetheless, she has been called Norice, or Nory for short, ever since. So, say hello to Norice!

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT

So, this last Sunday night (I cannot believe I forgot to share this last night at girls night) I think I nearly gave my husband a heart attack. The instance went a little something like this...

Sometime in the middle of the night...

Me: "Get it off! Get it off!" (Insert screaming, and I mean SCREAMING)

Dave: (Jumps up in bed yelling) "What? What? Carissa whats wrong?!!!!"

Me: "Get it off" (insert more screaming) "Help me!" (More screaming still)

Dave: "Carissa!"

Me: "Blood worm!!!!"

Dave:......uh.....what?

Me: "Blood worm!!!........Leech!!!! I can't get it off, help!!!!!!"

I jump up and flick on the light ....Then look down at the back of my arm where there lies a long strand of sticky gum

Me:"oh.....I"

Dave: (Insert hysterical laughter as he rolls on the bed trying to catch his breath)"Carissa we're not in the Amazon"

Both of us begin laughing so hard we could barely breathe. I was laughing so hard I had tears.This lasted a few minutes before we could stop. The texture of the gum and how it kept snaping back on my arm when I tried getting it off was literally freaking me out and the feel of it was just like...well...if it were a leech.  I know kind of a stretch.

Nana came to visit the end of January and Evalyn was loving the attention. Nana read plenty of books on her visit.

The Ice Castles!

We took Nana to see the ice castles at the Zermott Resort in town. They were pretty neat and still getting bigger.

Nana could always make Siena smile!

Two girls, too fun

Evalyn is really warming up to Siena. She will even try and calm her down for me if she is crying. Evalyn walks over to Siena and says, "Enna, Enna ok " then points to me and says " See Mommy" as if to reasure her that mommy is right here.

Siena is growing and changing everyday. Time flies WAY to quickly. (three weeks old)

This is the rocking horse Evalyn received for Christmas and she loves it.

The newborn stage is definately my favorite and it fades so quickly. (three and a half weeks)

Here is Evie getting ready to go on a walk with Nana. We are so lucky to have her here in town with us.

Siena

After much debate and some serious thought, we have changed the spelling of our daughters name. The "C" is a little confusing and will probably haunt her all of her life (as if being born three days before Christmas isnt enough). So, since Dave is of Italian heritage, we decided to spell it after Siena, Italy.

Siena May

Going in to be induced...

Siena was born at 6:30 pm December 22nd. She weighed 7lbs and was 18in long. (Tiny little thing)

She came with a thick head of hair just like her sister.

We were so lucky to have my mom here to be with Evalyn. They had so much fun together, dancing, singing, and playing with new toys from her Grandma.  Evalyn misses her greatly!

Siena with her big sister on Christmas morning!

We feel so very blessed to have her here, and I am loving every day with my two little girls!

...Still Waiting...

So, my due date is here and ... no baby yet. I thought this sort of thing didnt happen with your second. Honestly I really wasnt ready until today anyway so maybe it will happen in the next few hours. :)
What do you do when you are waiting around for a new arrival you ask? Well, you clean, clean and clean some more, paint the girls' room (should have been done already), sew Christmas gifts such as rice hot/cold packs, headbands ,and a car seat cover. All in one day. (yesterday) The projects I found are actually pretty fun. Check my other blog http://hobbylane.blogspot.com/  for some fun last minute Christmas gift ideas :) Hopefully the next post you see here will be pictures of our little one.

Fun in the Snow!!!

There is NOTHING like sitting in a warm home with Christmas music playing in the background while watching the snow falling outside your window. The only thing better is taking your little one out for her first time playing in the snow!

These were purchased at KINGS today so we could go outside. They are rolled twice on the legs, and knotted in the suspenders so they will stay on Evie. (yes, they are a 2T:)

Layer, upon layer....

Until she cannot move. (I remember this feeling vividly as a child)

...and so worth it! We had a blast today:)

And with more coming tomorrow, I am sure we will be out again.

Nesting?

Nesting as defined on wikipedia:
"In human females, the nesting instinct often occurs around the fifth month of pregnancy, but can occur as late as the eighth, or not at all. It may be strongest just before the onset of labor.
It is commonly characterized by a strong urge to clean and organize one's home..."


Two questions:
 Does cleaning window tracks with a q-tip count as nesting? And if so, since I am not in my fifth month of pregnancy does this mean labor is right around the corner? All I know is No one around here is complaining.

21 Months...really?

But wasnt I just holding this???

Time moves way way to quickly.

October in a nuttshell (be prepared some of this is scary)

Oh what a month! I cant belive it is already November! We are counting down the days until our baby girl arrives (no name yet). Also, we were so lucky to have Nana out our way to visit. Evie loved every moment of it and we look forward to her coming back soon. Fall has always been my favorite time of the year. I love the colors, smells, and yummy foods. We discovered an awesome little farm near home where we could find our pumpkins, taste fresh pressed apple cidar, and pick our own organic produce. (Time for homemade applesauce) My cousin Nicole had a wonderful baby shower, I just love being pregnant the same time as a friend. Then Halloween came and...well you can look for yourself. Lets just say that my husband is a very confident man. Our friends had a fun adult only Halloween costume party and Dave wanted to be something...original. So here is a glimpse at our October!

Nana and Evie with her new Princess puzzle. She loves this almost as much as her princess shoes Nana bought her. She has a blister on her foot because she wears them 24/7.

Growing up WAY too fast!

This is Evie picking out her pumpkin and below she is simply claiming it. It took us a little convincing to get her off.

Evalyn refused to touch the pumpkin seeds. "Yut" she says.

Nicole and I at her shower, only a few weeks to go!

Ok so here is Richard Simmons and I after the Halloween Party. (I warned you) This is one of many pictures I will treasure for years to come. (How do you like my Mumu?)

And finally, our little lamb! Evalyn loved trick or treating this year. She was so sad when we informed her we had to go inside.

We have had a fun month of  birthdays, canning, eating lots of peaches and icecream, but mostly of PROJECTS. We have both had a summer of pulling weeds, picking up rocks and spreading top soil. And we are so glad to have a front yard, almost backyard as well. I have been painting, and sewing while Dave has kept busy with sawing, sanding, and coating. And I am proud to say we are FINALLY finished with our floors. One sanding, two coats and a hotel room later and we are done.  I will have to post pictures of all of this in a week or two. In the meantime here are a few other things we have been keeping busy with.

Time with Daddy

Watching Elmo videos on You Tube with Daddy

This is Evalyns favorite thing to do with dad while mom is at mutual. Daddy walks into the office for anything and Evalyn is right at his heels asking ELMO? ELMO?

New Sleeping Habbits

Trying to get Curly Sue to eat something (ANYTHING)

Making pizza dough

Cleaning up the flour from the Pizza dough that somehow ended up on the other side of the room.

AND...

Daddys Birthday! (She is such a little daddys girl lately)