Thursday, April 12, 2012

Easter Sunday & Addi Updates

We spent Easter Sunday with my Dad, Michelle and her family, and Charles' family. Mom went to Belmont to spend Easter with her brother and his family who were visiting for the weekend.

Here are some of the pictures from our day in Charleston. I wish I had a picture of the cake Michelle made. It was so pretty!

wearing the ears the Easter bunny gave her




PaPa with the kids and the dogs :)
We could not get a good picture of them in matching pjs




Addi is thriving at her new school. Being in the 3-year room has been great for her and she enjoys learning about the sounds letters make, learning how to trace various shapes, and participating in group activities. Her teacher is really creative. Some of the things they have done include writing stories together (each child tells the next part of the story...the end result is hilarious!), going on leprechaun hunts (for St. Patties Day), painting rocks, etc. She gears a lot of their activities around letters of the week (painting rocks was during "R" week and bringing in sun shades (sunglasses) to wear to search for he leprechaun that messed up the classroom but left gold chocolates was during "S" week). Now when she sees letters she not only says the letter, but she also says the sound the letter makes. They do a lot of physical activity as well and can go to the gym if it is rainy or cold/hot and of course there is a lot of structured and unstructured play. The only downside is that at 4:00-4:30 it turns into an afterschool program which is basically TV and playtime for the remaining kids. We do our best to pick her up by 4:30, which is where being close to family is beneficial. Mrs. Marie works next door to me so she picks Addi up once a week usually and has already been really helpful as all of our parents have. It is really wonderful having them around to be a part of our day-to-day lives. Addi has also become more independent and wants to do EVERYTHING herself! She is starting to have tantrums, which aren't fun for anyone. Her vocabulary is constantly increasing and she picks up not only phrases and actions but tones from people. She still loves to read and likes to pick out books each night. Sometimes we read them and sometimes she reads them. She is starting to get where she wants to wear certain things, but we are able to still give her options. She is really imaginative which is good, but sometimes she scares herself thinking that a dinosaur is in her room or that the lion is going to get her. We play Candy Land and Match, and I am going to look into more preschool level games that we can play together. She likes to honk at Aunt Nita's, Mimi and Granddaddy, and Sitti and Papa's houses each time we drive by. She says, hit the button and wave hi to X. She can still wear a lot of her clothes from last summer and seems to be growing taller and losing her baby fat. She now tells us that she is a big girl but she still likes to cuddle and occasionally asks to rock like a baby in which we hold her like a baby and cuddle and rock.  Time sure does fly!


Saturday, April 7, 2012

Dying Easter Eggs and Updates

Last weekend Uncle Joe, Aunt Janine, Mike, and Matt came by on their way to Hilton Head. Michelle brought Jocelyn so we could all hang out and so they could meet her. That afternoon we dyed Easter Eggs. As far as updates go, all is going well. We are moving into a rental at the end of this month. It is a lovely house with old charm and is only 10 minutes from my work and Addi's school. Scott's commute to Columbia will only be 30-45 minutes so it will be great that we will be closer. I am really enjoying my job. I've been making progress on my dissertation the last couple of weeks as well. We love Addison's new school and her new teacher is amazing! Here are some pictures from last weekend.

All ready to dye eggs




Addi dressed herself...dress with tutu underneath and black rain boots. 

Just shy of 4 weeks old

Jocelyn and her Sitti


Watering the flowers

Scott Meets Jocelyn (March 17th Weekend)

The following weekend we headed down to Charleston so Scott could meet Jocelyn. Scott was finally in town and starting his transfer with UPS that Monday so he didn't have to go back to Florida. It is so nice finally having him home.

While in Charleston, we went on a walk with the kids. Once we got back to the house, we were all standing around and Jocelyn was sitting in her car seat on the floor below our feet. We hear Addison say, "oh she's heavy" and all look down to see Addison holding Jocelyn. We had to talk to her about asking permission before she picks up the baby. We also had to be careful that we didn't put her in Addi's reach. Needless to say, Addison is in love with her new cousin and always wants to hold her, help take care of her, feed her "under my shirt" as she told Michelle, and see pictures of her when she isn't around. I had fun taking pictures of Jocelyn while we were visiting. I included a few of them below. She slept most of the time so I had no problem getting pictures. I could hold her all day long. She is so adorable and cuddly! She was only awake a couple of times while we were there so it was a miracle I caught it on camera :)

Already into her Irish heritage
Mama, she's trying to get me!

Just watching "her baby"







One of the only times she was awake






Visiting Jocelyn & Elise's 3rd Birthday

Addison was able to meet Jocelyn on March 11th. Her and I went to Charleston that morning and spent a couple of hours with her, Michelle, and Charles. The day before we celebrated Scott's birthday.

Helping Daddy blow out the candles

Holding Jocelyn for the first time


Reading to Jocelyn "Once upon a time..."


After Addison and I visited with them, we headed to Elise's 3rd birthday party. It was so much fun and so great to live close enough that we can actually attend! Addi was shy at first but Ella Russell grabbed her hand and took her out to play. She really enjoyed it!

After the first couple of times she insisted on doing it herself including the jumping off (below). I thought I was going to have a heart attack or have to take Addi to the ER for her first broken bone. It didn't get any easier to watch...even after jump #20. 

Elise and Ella Russell




Jocelyn Violet (March 5, 2012)

My niece, Jocelyn Violet, was born on March 5th. I was so very fortunate to be able to be with Michelle and Charles during the birth. Second to Addison's birth, it was the most amazing thing I have experienced. We spent the entire day together and that evening she was born. She was 7lbs 2oz and 21 inches long.