Get off my back!

On Friday Ellie went to the cardiologist for her 24-hour holter monitor. Her six-month check-up is in a couple of weeks so Dr. Papez always orders a holter monitor before he sees her.  I imagine that because it's been six months since the last time Ellie had the holter monitor on it probably feels like a brand new thing to her. The last time she had to wear one she wasn't walking yet and she wasn't quite as wild of a sleeper.

She wore it all day at school and the teacher didn't mention any issues with it. Once we got home and ate dinner we saw how annoying it must be to wear one though. They had the big recording device wrapped up and stuck in her onesie on her back which made it hard to sit down or lean back. Then after dinner it started sliding down and eventually out the bottom of her pant leg. I took her in her room to change her and mid-change she managed to rip two of the leeds off her chest. I tried to put them back in the same spot based on the little red circles imprinted on her chest but don't know if it worked. I guess we'll find out in a couple of weeks!

That night I put her in footy pajamas and put it on her back again. She mostly sleeps on her stomach so I figured that would be the best place for it. When she was really little we could just put it in the bottom of her sleep sack, put her on her back and she didn't even realize it was there. Well, not anymore. I have a feeling it's going to get more and more tricky as she gets older.

Our little hunchback.  :)

Our Babes

We had a whirlwind morning this morning running errands after breakfast - Goodwill, Target, Home Depot, Gas Station, and Costco. The girls both brought their babies along for the ride.  Ellie got her baby from Nana at Christmas and she just loves it. She looks like SUCH a big girl in this picture, doesn't she?  Not sure if it's the shorts, or the hair, or the fact that she doesn't look like a baby anymore...

Tats

On Monday we had our photographer take family pictures to capture how Hayden looks as she's turning four. We've done it every year and love to look back at her pictures and see how much she's grown.

So of course Monday was also music day at school which means that the girls both got HUGE stamps on their arms. Perfect for pictures!! I convinced Hayden to scrub the stamp off before the pictures only by bribing her with a tattoo later. Fast forward to today when she reminded me that we hadn't put a tattoo on yet. (Oh really?! I must have forgotten!)

As soon as Hayden's was in place Ellie stuck out her arm to say, "hey! Don't forget about me!"

Sucker Day!

Every Friday at school is sucker day and the girls love it - duh.  Hayden picked out their suckers this week and they both got blue (by the way - how is it that kids KNOW that the blue one will always make the biggest mess and select that one?!)

Getting the kids all sticky, blue, and hyped up on sugar really is the best way to start the weekend though. 

Ummm...I think you're doing that wrong?

Too much sugar - we need to cut you off!

Hanging with our Buddies

Our sweet friends, the Morris', are moving into a new house that's only 10 minutes away. Hooray!!  Hayden and their daughter Taylor are really good friends, Holli and I have become great friends and are in Book Club together and Shawn and Matt work together.  We are so glad that they are moving so close to us and can't wait to spend more time with them.

Earlier this week they were packing up their old house and asked if Taylor and Colton could come and play so that they could get finished up. We were happy to and had a fun night with the kiddos. Although, I can't imagine having four kids under four. It was a LOT of work - even with both of us watching them!

We ate mac and cheese for dinner, the kids took turns jumping on the trampoline, Hayden and Taylor played in dress up clothes, and the six of us went for a walk through our neighborhood.

We're so glad you're moving closer to us Morris family!!

Matt, Ellie, and Colton lead the way with Hayden
and Taylor bringing up the rear!

Colton and Ellie shared some cookies during their wagon ride.

Cupcake = Happy Girl

Daddy/Daughter Pancakes

Yesterday morning I had a coffee and shopping date with my friend Kristen so Matt got to spend the day with his girls.

They were all up early making pancakes as I walked out the door. Each gal was standing up on a chair next to the island watching Daddy make picture-perfect pancakes.

Matt said they both ate pancakes as well as eggs with ham and cheese. They spent the rest of the morning playing and watching Shrek.

I'm so thankful that Matt loves spending time with his girls and that he gives me time to go out with my girlfriends!

Mmmmm...Ice Cream

Swimming in April?!

Yes, today is April 22 and we were in the pool. It was still a little bit chilly (the water was 82 degrees) but the weather was 102 today. YUCK. It's way too early for the weather to be so hot but I guess it was a nice excuse to get the girls into the pool!

Hayden has only been back in swim lessons for a few weeks so she wasn't very interested in doing a bunch of swimming but enjoyed playing on the baja step with her goggles on. Anabelle totally enjoyed the water and let us throw her up in the air a bunch.

Now that we got that out of the way Mother Nature, how about you bring the temperature back down for a little bit, eh?

Disney on Ice

Last weekend we arranged a play-date with our friends the Morris' and their two sweet kiddos to see Disney on Ice downtown. Their daughter Taylor is one of Hayden's favorite people and they were so cute watching the show together. The show was two hours long and went through about 15 different movies: Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Toy Story, Mulan, Pinnochio, Little Mermaid, Cinderella, The Lion King, and Finding Nemo and Mickey, Minnie, and Goofy were the emcees for the evening.

Both Hayden and Anabelle did really well during the program and we had a fun afternoon!

Enjoying some popcorn before the show starts

Holli, Savannah, Anabelle, and Colton getting ready!

 .

CHEESE! Our little ladies in their princess costumes

Daddy and Hayden enjoying the show

Mommy and Ellie

Team Wolach!

The girls after the show holding hands back to the car.

Love these sweet girls!

Who Loves the Easter Bunny?

Well...not Hayden.

A couple weeks ago Hayden's dance teacher asked the Easter Bunny to make a stop at school during their dance class. When we got the pictures back I looked through some of the other pictures and saw girls wearing bunny ears and smiling while sitting on the Easter Bunny's lap. Then...we got to Hayden's picture. I have to say, I was totally cracking up when I saw it.

I love that the Easter Bunny is doing the lean and that Hayden has a smile but is clearly thinking that's she's gotten far enough away from him but is still in the picture.  So funny!

Silhouettes

A couple weeks ago a gal came into the daycare to do Silhouettes of the kiddos so we signed the girls up to each get one done. I think they turned out so well (please disregard the streaks - I guess I need to clean our scanner a little). :)  Enjoy!

Howdy Cowgirl!

Mr. Cheese

Chuck E. Cheese, to be exact. Last weekend I hosted Book Club at our house so Matt took the girls on a date night to Chuck E. Cheese. They ate pizza, rode little rides and played games. It was a fun night here at the house with my Book Club gals and while it was a handful for Matt to go out solo he said they also had a bunch of fun.

We have a feeling Ellie would be a GREAT air hockey player..
if only she could see over the edge.

It doesn't look like it here, but Hayden had a blast on date night!

Sick Babe

Poor Ellie. She's been having a heck of a time being sick this winter. She started getting fussy on Thursday night, was running a fever, and didn't sleep well. The next day we had to pick her up early from daycare because her fever was at 101. Luckily, we were scheduled to take her to the ENT for her 6 week post-op checkup. Turns out she had a double ear infection. She's been pretty fussy all weekend and has been running a fever off and on too. We're hoping the ear drops we got for her start working and we get our happy girl back. In the meantime though, her big sister has been doing a great job helping take care of her.

Checking for a fever

View from the Top

Tonight we decided to move Ellie into a booster seat at the dinner table. She was totally digging it and now I have a great new view!

Pirates say Aaarrrrrr!!

Yesterday morning Hayden came into the bathroom as I was getting ready. She put her hand in a fist and then up to her eye and said, "Pirates say Aaaarrrr!". Love her imagination and ability to improv. :)

Easter 2012

We had a lovely Easter this year.

Dave and Sarah came up on Saturday afternoon and watched the Masters with us and helped us dye Easter eggs. After we got the girls to bed we had a gigantic Italian dinner outside on the pool deck. On Sunday morning the girls were up by 7:30 and ready to check out their Easter baskets and look for eggs.

We spent the day eating candy (a LOT of candy), eating a three-course brunch, playing outside, watching the Masters, and relaxing. The weather was a little bit warm but it was so nice to be outside.

Matt and I were reminiscing about previous Easters tonight. This is our seventh Easter together, Hayden's fourth Easter, Ellie's second Easter (but first that she could actually participate in), and our first in four years that we didn't get to celebrate it with Ash and Afton. It's still so sad that they don't live nearby and can't spend holidays with us like they used to. (We miss you guys so much!!)

But, we really had such a nice Easter. Enjoy the pictures - there are some funny ones in there this year.

Easter 2012

I Moustache You a Question...

Bean Burritos

We now have two daughters that LOVE bean burritos. More specifically, bean burritos from Taco Bell - no onions, thank you very much.

Bedtime Routine

Just a little glimpse into our nightly bedtime routine:

Get into matching jammies (some nights they match)

Brush Teeth

Sister Snuggles

Hugs goodnight!

You are my Sunshine!

Ice Cream Date

A few weeks ago there was a deal for Mojo on Groupon so I bought a couple of them ($5 for $10 worth of frozen yogurt) - heck yes!!  Our plan was to go on Friday night after dinner but that day Hayden threw up at school and had to go home early. Boo! So on Sunday we ate an early dinner and then drove about 10 minutes to a place east of our house called City North. It's a pretty quiet little area and there's a Mojo there. We stopped in and we each got our own little cup of fro-yo with toppings. We walked across the street through the palm trees and down next to a little fountain but it was a little chilly out so we decided to walk around to warm up.

Hayden didn't really want her picture taken but Ellie was happy to say cheese for the camera.  It could have also been that she was all sugared up and had a perma-smile. We also realized that we hit a new dynamic as a family.  We each had our own cup of frozen yogurt, we were all walking, and we were each eating independently. Wow!! So many new opportunities for us as a little family!

Fun at the Park

We headed to the park to play with the new t-ball set that we got and while we were there the girls wanted to play on the swings and playground. I've picked up Hayden at school and have seen her on the swing a few times (and I couldn't believe how high they let her go) so I wasn't surprised when she wanted to get on the swings. She has gotten so good at pumping her legs and she gets going SO high!  I think Matt was a little surprised at how high she was going as it took him a few seconds to notice that Ellie is not nearly as big a fan of the swings as Hayden.




After the swings Hayden wanted to climb up the "rock wall". She's been climbing up on stuff since she was super little (flashback to finding her in the middle of the kitchen table at 18 months) and she's definitely still a little monkey.  We're finding that she's at the age where she has no fear.

Batter Up!!

During our weekly visit to Costco Matt found a three level t-ball set. The first level has a spot to sit the ball on, the second level pops the ball straight up, and the third level pops the ball out.  So on Sunday we took the girls to a nearby park and let the girls play with it.  I'm not sure who was having more fun though - Matt or the girls.

Did I mention that Matt loved this?!

Ellie looked so cute in her yellow outfit fielding ground balls

Hayden's legs have gotten so long in the last few months

She made contact!!!