Lots Going On...And SO Little Time To Blog!

I have been meaning to blog for the past couple of weeks, but something always seems to come up. At the moment my only free time to blog is during nap time. For the most part the girls nap at the same time so that is great. However there are always so many things that need to be done during nap time, that sometimes "me time" gets pushed aside. Anyhow, that is just part of being a mommy of 2 little busy girls and I wouldn't change a thing!

There has been a lot going on lately, most importantly, Justin and Lourdes got married this past weekend!! We are SO incredibly happy for them and wish them the best! We know that they are going to have a great marriage and love one another unconditionally forever, because that is just how they both are.

However, I will go back in time about a month since that is when I last was able to post.

At the end of September Jacob and I threw a couples shower for Justin and Lourdes. We had it outside on the deck at Joe's Crab Shack. It turned out really cute and Justin and Lourdes seemed to enjoy it! We had some yummy margaritas to celebrate!

Jayda taking a picture with the decorations before the shower started.


Justin and Lourdes with our girls, so sweet!


Justin and Lourdes with their nices and nephews!


The centerpieces, I was very proud! The shower was beach themed because their honeymoon is in The Bahamas!


A little brotherly love!


Opening up their gifts, yay!


The happy couple with their delicious cake!


We have been taking the girls over to a nearby park lately now that the weather has cooled off. There is a pond there so we usually take crackers to feed the turtles, fish and ducks. Jayda loves feeding the animals and Sydney loves being outside and watching everything. Most of the time we take Jayda's bike to the park too so she can ride around and have fun.

Jayda playing outside at Pecan Park, her favorite spot!


Right around the time that Sydney turned 7 1/2 months she started crawling! Jayda was at school, so it was just Sydney and mommy at home. She saw a fake chicken wing (some of Jayda's play food) and crawled her little self over to get it! After she did I started moving the toy all over the place so that she would crawl over and get it. Sure enough she did! I was so excited for her so I of course busted out the video camera to get this precious moment caught on tape! The way she crawls is by using her hands/arms and pulling herself up and pushes forward with her feet/toes. She looks hilarious, but it gets the job done. She has gotten much faster the longer she's been crawling and once she figures out how to pull her knees up under her she is going to be super fast!

Sydney started crawling at 7 1/2 months! Yay Sydney!!


"Hey Mommy! Why do you keep moving that toy around to make me crawl?!"


A few weeks ago we went to playgroup at a place called "A Bunch of Fun" out in Katy, TX. The kiddos had a great time! It was like a mini childrens musuem. Lots of pretend kitchen stuff, baby dolls, dress up, coloring, slides, sand pit (with moon sand), and toddler area. This was the first time Sydney was able to participate in playgroup, so that was very exciting!

She loved drawing/painting/coloring on the paper!


Coming down the slide at playgroup.


OK, so now of course that I have some time I have to blog, the internet or blogspot is really messing up! Unfortunately, this always seems to happen!! I have spent forever just trying to get the above pictures posted, and now it will not let me do anymore! Guess we'll have to do a "To Be Continued..."

New Playhouse/Jayda Starts Pre-School/Rivera Visit/Sydney Turns 7 Months!

A lot has been going on around here so I figured it was time to do a quick post. Unfortunately both of the girls are battling a stomach flu, so I don't have much time or energy to write on here. I will put up some pics, but that may be about all I have time for!

First, Oupa finished the girls playhouse a couple weeks ago so we took the girls to Huntsville to check it out. Jayda absolutely loves her new playhouse!! Oupa did a wonderful job building it and it looks amazing! The girls are going to have a great time playing on it for the next several years and we are so thankful to Oma and Oupa for that!

The new playhouse! Thank you Oma and Oupa!


The little bit enjoying her new swing!


How sweet!


Jayda and Molly having a picnic lunch in the playhouse!


Out to dinner with Oma and Oupa to celebrate their 31st wedding anniversary!


Second, Jayda started pre-school last week! Yay!! She loved it and so do I! On the first day it was a little girls birthday so they celebrated with cupcakes and sprite. That was Jayda's favorite thing about school, go figure! She has been getting very worn out at school, but seems to really like it! It is so cute to see her walking into school with her backpack and lunch box. She's getting SO big! I think it is so great for her, in lots of different aspects!

Daddy walking Jayda up on her first day of pre-school!


Jayda and her BFF Riley all ready for pre-school! Their classrooms are across the hall from one another.


Jayda was a little nervous at first. But after a few minutes she quickly warmed up.


Thridly, the Rivera family came to visit us this past weekend! They have 2 little girls, Elizabeth (2) and Kathryn (9 months). So, our girls are very close in age to their girls which is really neat. We had lots of fun hanging out at the house and letting the girls play. We took them to an indoor playground on friday to play and then to the Aquarium downtown to play and have dinner. We had a blast and are so happy they came all the way down from Waco to visit!

Sydney and Kathryn playing together one morning.


Jayda and Elizabeth being silly with the grocery cart. Jayda thinks it is so funny to ride in the cart, and she finally found someone to push her around in it!


Jacob with the girls in the "shark tunnel" on the train ride at The Aquarium.


Jayda riding on the carousel!


Mommy and Jayda!


The babes hanging out together at The Aquarium.


Jayda and Elizabeth posing with the white tiger!


The boys with the big girls touching the sharks and sting rays!


Lastly, Sydney turned 7 months on saturday so I got a few cute pics!

Sweet Sydney at 7 Months!


Say cheeeeese Sydney!

Sweet Girls: Jayda @ 3 & Sydney @ 6 Months

So, I have been meaning to do this post for a while, but just haven't had a chance to do it surprise, surprise. Both of the girls are doing really well and love each other SO much! They are both getting so big these days it is hard to believe!

Jayda @ 3:
-We went to the open house for her pre-school on tuesday and she LOVED it! She starts pre-school next tuesday, September 7th and could not be more excited! This is Jayda's first time to ever go to any sort of school so this is a very big deal!
-The at-ti-tude has set in! Oh wow! Since she turned 3 her personality is really starting to come out, along with some sass and attitude! She wants to do things her way, on her terms, and when she wants to do them. She wants to wear what she wants, however she wants, whenever she wants, and you get the point! I am glad that she is strong willed because it will be good for her in the future, but it is beginning to be a bit rough at times for ole' mommy and daddy trying to deal with, guide, discipline and nurture her free little spirit. Bless her little heart!
-She is still very social and loves to play with her friends and meet new friends. Whenever we go somewhere she has started going up to other little kids and asking them their names. She is definitely not shy at all!
-Jayda LOVES her baby sister, Sydney. She plays with Sydney all the time. She loves to hold her, talk to her, get her toys to play with, and take care of her. She is learning that Sydney can not play with smaill toys so she is always asking me "Mommy, is this ok for Sydney to play with?" She is such a good big sister and is going to be very protective of her.
-She always wants daddy to tell her a story at bedtime.
-Jayda is still taking one nap a day (hallelujah) for about an hour and a half.

Sydney @ 6 Months:
-Sydney is rolling, rolling, rolling! She loves to roll around wherever she wants to go. As soon as I put her down on the floor to play she starts rolling around. She likes to roll off of her blanket and feel the carpet. She touches it and looks at it and tries to pull it up like it's going to come off. She also likes to roll over to the wall bang on it. She is definitely discovering new things!
-She weighed in at 16.4 Pounds and 26 Inches long at her 6 month check up.
-She wears 9 month size clothes and size 2 diapers
-She smiles and laughs a lot, mostly at Jayda.
-Sydney has found her voice, and it is very loud! Sydney has always been a loud baby, whenever she needs or wants something. But, now that she has discovered just how loud she can be, she likes to scream for no apparent reason. She screams all the time just to hear herself. Jayda thinks it's hilarious so she screams back and then they have screaming matches with one another.
-She has eaten a variety of solids including oatmeal cereal, apples, prunes, sweet potatoes, bananas, squash, green beans.
-Sydney has already started pulling her bows off and chewing them. Darn, I was hoping 2nd time around might be different!
-She loves to play with her toys! Everything she gets goes straight to her mouth, so we have to be careful.
-Sydney is doing much better about going out and about and running errands. For the first couple of months she would fuss pretty much the whole time we went out. Now she hardly fusses at all. She likes going out and watching everything that is going on around her. This is so nice because it means we can actually get out and do things again!
-She only sleeps in her crib. She will not sleep anywhere else, or even when we are in the car. I think she is afraid she will miss something so she has to stay awake at all times! But, she does love to sleep in her crib. As soon as she gets in there she goes to sleep. She just now (at 6 1/2 months) started sleeping without a swaddle! She started pulling if off recently and wanting to flip onto her tummy while she slept, so I figured it was time for the swaddle to go (snif, snif, my baby is growing up)! She has slept the past 2 days without the swaddle and seems to be doing well. She rolls onto her tummy a lot or sleeps on her side. I started putting the long sleeve sleepers on her while she sleeps and those seem to work pretty good.
-Sydney loves to jump in her jumperoo. She is quite the jumping bean!

Sydney trying green beans for the first time. Believe it or not, she actually likes them!


A few weekends ago we met Justin, Lourdes, and Grace at The Aquarium downtown so that Grace and Jayda could play. They had an absolute blast together, and always do whenever they get together. They also will both be the flower girls in Justin and Lourdes' wedding, so that will be lots of fun, and be really cute!

Grace, Jayda and Sydney ready to play and have fun at The Aquarium!


Sweet little munchkin chewing on her stroller straps.


Daddy and Uncle Justin trying to convince Jayda to touch the sting ray, didn't take much.


Jacob riding on the ferris wheel with his 2 girls!


5th attempt of a family pic on the ferris wheel...


Think she's enjoying the ride!


Jayda and Grace watching the boys play a game/win them a prize!


Jayda's first puzzle that she put together all by herself, so proud!


Sydney rolling around on the floor, this happens a lot!


Jayda going down the water slide at her little buddy's pool. She loved this slide because she could actually do it all by herself!

Sydney Turns 6 Months/Aubree's B-Day/Trip to Galveston!

Where do I even begin? Well I guess I will pick up after Jayda's 3rd birthday. At the beginning of last week I had to take both of the girls for their 3 year and 6 month well checks. Luckily Jayda got out of getting any shots this visit, but poor Sydney wasn't so lucky. She had to have 2 shots, and we will have to go back next week sometime to get them both 2 more shots! Poor babies, I HATE shots, but I know it's something that you just have to do (or at least I feel that way).

Jayda being such a good big sister while Sydney gets checked by the Dr.


Sweet Sydney after her 6 month shots.


Then, last wednesday, August 11th, was my birthday as well as Sydney's 1/2 birthday. I think it is so cool that Sydney's 1/2 birthday will always be on my birthday, so fun! I had a great birthday! It actually started a few days before my birthday when daddy and Jayda went shopping for me and Jayda brought me home 2 packages of yummy candy and some new pink flip flops. That is what she told Jacob she wanted to get for me, candy and flip flops. She knows me well! On my actual birthday Jacob had set me up an appointment at the spa to get a mani/pedi and a haircut! I was so surprised and excited! He even had arranged for Michelle to babysit the girls while I went out to enjoy myself at the spa. It was SOOO nice get away for a little while and be pampered, can not even thank him enough for that!! I LOVE you honey! That afternoon we used Jayda's gift card she had gotten from Keirsten for her birthday and went and got her a haircut and makeover at Sweet & Sassy. She loves getting her hair/nails/make up/anything done, so you can only imagine how much she looooooved this makeover! It was so fun and special to take her there and we had a great time!

Sydney on her 1/2 birthday!


My attempt at getting the girls picture together.


Jayda getting her hair cut at Sweet & Sassy!


Getting her lip gloss on, and loving every minute of it!


Such a ham!!!


Anywho, because Jayda had just turned 3 and Sydney 6 months, it was obviously "picture time"! So, first we had Brandy come over to the house to take some adorable pictures of the girls here at home in their own element. She got some really good ones! Then, the day after my birthday and Sydney's 1/2 I took the girls to Portrait Innovations, my favorite studio, to get some more pictures done. For this session I had found them matching summer dresses and hats, so I think the pictures turned out a-dor-a-ble!

Pictures that Brandy took at the house:















Pictures from Portrait Innovations:



























After we got all of the immunizations and pictures done last week, we left for Galveston on friday. We went for the weekend to stay at the Moody Gardens Hotel with my parents. We had lots of fun swimming and hanging out! On friday when we got there Jacob took Jayda first thing to Schlitterbahn. They had both been dying to go. So, mommy stayed at the hotel and relaxed by the pool while they went to the waterpark. They had a BLAST! They went on tons of slides, in the lazy river, and on all the fun kids rides. Funny enough, Jayda's favorite rides were the tunnel slides, in the dark! She is such a dare devil just like her daddy! I can not even do those rides!! She absolutely loved the waterpark! After they finished up there we all went out to dinner at Fish Tales. We had been there before and really liked it. We sat up on the balcony and ate dinner overlooking the ocean. It was so nice and peaceful!

Sweet Jayda all smiles after a loooong day at the waterpark!


Sydney waiting for our table with Oma.


Oma with the girls at Fish Tales.


Jayda with her new froggy balloon that she got at dinner!


On saturday we stayed at the hotel all day. We swam most of the day and enjoyed some delicious ice cream! That evening Jayda jumped in the bounce house, for hours, while we hung out on the patio and listend to music, made smores and ordered dinner out by the pool. We had a great day hanging out and relaxing!

Jayda hoola hooping out on the deck on saturday night.


On sunday we got up and headed to the beach! This was our first time down to the beach for the weekend. Jayda loved the beach too! She walked around forever collecting sea shells, washing them off, and putting them in her bucket. We camped out underneath the new Murdochs souviner shop so we had plenty of shade for Sydney. It was so fun to swim around out in the ocean and just hang out. We played at the beach for a while then headed up to Murdochs to get some Galveston souviners! And guess what Jayda found and had to come home with? A hermit crab, of course! So, we got Hermie and headed home with him! Surprisingly enough, Hermie is still alive and seems to be doing ok. Not too sure how long he'll hang in there, but Jayda sure does love him!

Sydney chillin' out at the beach with her toys.


Jacob telling Jayda about the ocean, I LOVE this picture!


Love this pic too!


Jayda so proud of her bucket of seashells.


All 4 of us out at the beach!


Sydney putting her piggys in the water for the first time.


Sydney in her new swimsuit from Mammaw, so cute!


Oma and Jayda's sand castle.


Oma taking Jayda out to catch some waves.


Jayda picking out which hermit crab she wanted.


Jayda with Hermie!