There is nothing like a fresh strawberry picked right from the vine. We try to go picking every year the week of the girls birthday. Definitely eat more than we end up gathering and it’s always hot as hell…but we love it nonetheless. Can’t wait for next year…
>To the very best dad any two little girls could ask for…
No better way to celebrate Dad’s day than some carousel riding, tree climbing, snuggles and a little ring around the rosey…
What an amazing year. Like everything we do, we researched and visited as many preschools as we probably will colleges someday. There were so many things we loved about the Brown School. It’s loving environment, it’s school like atmosphere (compared to a day care type center) and most of all, their understanding and willingness to never exclude Kennedy based on her peanut allergy. The entire school is peanut and nut free..something not a single other area school can say. The cafeteria serves soynut butter for those kids who love their PB…and the head of the food department was well versed in her knowledge of allergies and the risks of cross contamination. All that being said, Kennedy still brought her lunch each day as she will have to when entering the public school system…so it seemed right that she always just knows “that’s the way it is”. But no separate sad peanut table for her and no fear of her eating something that would put her life at risk. Graduation was an emotional day. Our baby is growing up. She’ll be in pre-k next year…and kindergarten the year after. But she’s so happy. So ridiculously happy. And as such, so are we.
Oh, and he little musical they did was too adorable for words and I know Kennedy is already greatly missing all of the friends she made this year…especially Megan with whom she seemed inseperatable.
What would a mommy do without her two sweet little gardeners?
>They say this is better than any chair right?? Not sure I can say the same for how close the TV is to those young precious eyes of hers though….
>As much as I love my job (and I really love it), it’s hard to say good-bye to those faces every Sunday…
The end of the year is almost upon us. Do you think these two may miss eachother this summer?
There is no other pirate I’d rather be scared by…
She could have sat there for hours and emptied the entire bubble jug…
For a rare change, she was actually ok with me following her around with the camera today. I took advantage. :)
Man do I love those pouty lips and mini bubbles when she’s fast asleep.
>Thank you to the very best two little girls any mother could possibly ask for. I am one lucky, lucky mamma. :)
This is how hugs go around here these days…more like headlocks than hugs really. But no one really seems to mind all that much…
She is OBSESSED with toes these days…inspecting each and every nook and crannie making sure nothing has found its way in that shouldn’t have.
We really love our Easters around here…and I’m not sure I’ve ever loved their dresses as much as I did this year.
I just love, love, love those first few days you can venture outside, no jacket and finally see some greenery around you.
>I love Spring. I’m not alone. Spring brings out not just the warm weather, but all the amazing things that go along with it…like bike rides. Anyone who knows me well knows I have trouble riding a bike. I’ve received more scrapes and bruises as an adult as I did as a child. Not sure what the true issue is, but for sure, I am not to be trusted with a child on board. So I invested in the Burley last year so the girls could both enjoy a nice bike ride without the risk of being thrown by their clumsy mother. I’d venture to say they don’t mind one bit.
>Happy, Happy Birthday to the very best dad, husband and son anyone could ever ask for….
>I love, love, love our little nighttime rituals. Each night around 7 or so, I run upstairs to grab the girls pajamas before we settle down to watch a show before bed. It’s become our little game for the girls to stand in the foyer, arms stretched out as high as they can go just waiting for me to drop their “jam-jams” over the ledge. Their excited faces and giggles as the clothes fall into their arms are just too sweet for words.
>Well, sorta. We’ve only had a few peeks of actual Spring weather over the last few weeks, and we’ve taken full advantage of each and every one of them. Can’t wait till the warm weather is here to stay!
>Happy, happy 8th birthday Bailey Brown! Thank you for bringing so much love to our home and putting up with our two crazy girls. We love you to pieces.
>While they have their moments…they pull hair, they push, they yell, they cry….deep down, they truly love each other. Like REALLY love each other. They take care of each other when the other is sad and they love to share their food. Well, maybe trading is a more appropriate word. Popsicle nights are just too cute in our home. Within moments, they are swapping spit and germs by passing the pops back and forth, and yet, it’s one of the cutest things I’ve ever seen.
>Never have you ever met a child who loves pizza as much as mine…
>There are many things I love about Kennedy’s school….this is one of them. I think it’s so important she learn early how to not only be musical and creative, but also to be comfortable and confident in front of a crowd full of people. She did awesome. I was one proud mamma this day.
>Happy St. Patrick’s Day from the Bean!
>We decided that Kennedy was officially old enough (and calm enough) to possibly sit through a whole movie, so we made last night our date night, dropped of Missy Lou for some quality Bubble time and then hit up the mall for dinner and a movie with the Bean. She was GREAT. In total awe of the whole experience and I just adored watching the expression on her face as she took it all in. I can’t wait to do it again soon. She’s become such a little girl…
>but there is certainly one member of the family who wouldn’t mind if winter stayed year round.
>Nothing better than snuggles from the two very best grandparents any two little girls could ask for…
>We are really at our wits end (ok, maybe just I am at my wits end) with finding things to do until the weather gets warm enough that we can entertain ourselves outside once again. So we decided to hit up the NYS Museum on this cold wintery Saturday morning. The girls actually quite enjoyed themselves and were rewarded with the carousel upstairs before we headed off to Red Robin for a yummy lunch…where we discovered that dining out with McKenna was much more enjoyable when you treated her like a big girl and ditched the high chair for a booster. So maybe all winter days don’t suck afterall.
>We got this leap frog gadget for Kennedy at Christmas and she showed little interest in it at first…used it more as a doodle pad than it’s actual intended purpose. Until she screamed from the playroom one day “Mom! I made a K! I made K!” and ran out to show me. I don’t remember the last time she looked so incredibly proud of herself. I was pretty proud too.
>This picture just makes me giggle…
>Missy Lou Lou isn’t the only one who I’ve turned into a Starbucks junkie. I am instructed to request a stopper at every Starbucks run, which then must be dipped into the drink and promptly returned to the little one in the back seat behind me to enjoy. I’ve learned that she doesn’t care much for the Carmel Macchiatos, but is a big fan of the Peppermint Mochas and Raspberry Kisses. What in the world have I done?
>I live for those few days every February we get that allows us to really get outside and sniff a little of the Spring that I know is on its way. I wasn’t the only one thrilled…
>She’s WAY into getting all doll’d up and standing on the stairs, I’m sorry “stage”, and putting on a “show”.
It may be the cutest thing EVER.
>Valentines day was a good day! Balmy temps in the 40s and two very happy children. Who could ask for anything more?
>Someone’s getting a little big for her britches….
>Saturday night was fondue night at the Bagyis (one of my favorite nights!). Within seconds, we both posted pictures on Facebook of our meal. I cracked up when I looked at the two different pictures. Keep in mind, they were taken moments apart and nothing had been moved (ok, except the spoon). The only difference was which side of the island the picture was taken from. Just one more reason I so love photography. Something as innocent as a picture of our dinner says so very much about us as people. Can you guess which one of us is Type A??
>Thanks to a crappy encounter with strep yesterday, I couldn’t eat anything. So my sweet, sweet husband brought home a pumpkin spice frapp for me, which I plopped on the side table next to the couch. As I was in the kitchen for no less than 1 minute, I turn around and McKenna had climbed up on the couch, grabbed it and was sucking away, happy as a lark.
What have I done??
>Kennedy has been insisting for a while now that she wants McKenna to nap in her bed with her. For funsies, we threw her in there this weekend. Me thinks this would never end well…
>A few more of my favorites while playing around with my new love…um, I mean lens.
>Next to taking things out of their bin for the pure joy of throwing them across the room as far as possible, her kitchen is by far her favorite “toy”. Almost no tantrum can withstand the challenge to make mommy some “super special missy lou soup”…
>Love breaking all the rules on snow days….which includes extra tv time and breakfast on your lap. :)
>I love my mornings with Kennedy. She often sneaks into bed with her “soft blanket” and a friend or two and ever so politely ask for “tv please!”… and then leans in to give me a kiss and hold my hand in hers before I doze back off for a few extra minutes of shut eye. She’s just too precious for words…
>Apparently the Bean wasn’t quite ready to bring her books back to the library without one last quick read through…
>Not sure how effective our time outs have been lately. Despite my best efforts, McKenna rushes to soothe a usually hysterical Kennedy (often baring a gift of some sort…today, it was water). I should be more mad about it than I am, but I actually find McKennas concern for her big sis quite endearing…
And note, 90% of Kennedy’s time outs these days result about 2 seconds before we are heading out the door. This particular day was because of the hissy fit she threw when she wasn’t allowed to wear her “tights and beautiful shoes” to swim class. Shame on me for insisting she wear something that won’t freeze her to death…
>Perfect lazy Saturday afternoon…
>Momma got a new lens today. I’m wondering how I ever lived without it…
>It’s a special treat when Daddy stays home to say good morning to the girls. Kennedy raced down the stairs like it was Christmas morning and she practically jumped into his arms with pure excitement…and then anxiously watched as he drove away…
>They fight. They yell. They push. They pull hair.
But at the end of the day, I have absolutely no doubt that more than anything, they love.
>We’ve had a few rough weeks with some clinginess issues at school and swim class so in an attempt to get her through it, I promised a special treat if she didn’t cry or fight when I dropped her at school on Thursday. Guess who seems to be over missing me? So easily replaced by sugar in a tube…
>How is it possible to go from this to that one in two seconds flat? Oh, yeah, she’s 19 months…
>If you know only one thing about me, it’s likely my love for Starbucks. I am fully aware of how unhealthy (emotionally as well as physically) it is, but I have convinced myself that I am allowed one obsessive trait. Not sure my checking account quite agrees, but it’s cheaper than fancy schmancy shoes, clothes or bags right? And while I realize my $4.89 gives me only about 15 minute of pleasure a day, I fully believe it’s worth every penny. Anyhoo–I’m rambling for the sake of defending my crazies.
I’m not proud that my girls have become a tad obsessed themselves with the pleasure Starbucks brings. It’s an ugly sight on the days I forget to request a stopper for Kennedy to lick my macchiato foam from. And as of Thursday, McKenna went on a Vivanno rampage. I won’t even get into all that went down after the cups were emptied…but lets say you were lucky to have avoided the scene that may or may not have had social services called had we remained in public another moment…
Shame on me. Shame on me twice.
>I’m trying hard to be a better optimist when it comes to winter so I took this most recent snow fall as an opportunity to grab some pretty shots of my pretty gal before it all turns to ice and slush and ickiness and I again start complaining about the terribleness that is the winter cold. As you can see, Kennedy doesn’t quite share my distaste for this time of year…
>There are few things in life I love more than Missy Lou’s itty bitty footsies…
>…jumpin’ on the bed. Thankfully, no one bumped their head. I just couldn’t resist a little fun with some yummy backlighting (maybe a bit too much, but I love the glowy feel of them). However, I may have created a monster and good luck to dad next time he tells her no jumping on the bed. Tee hee hee.
>There are many many things I love about photography. One of the most important for me is the cameras ability to capture not just an image, but a corresponding emotion. I feel that pictures do for me what music often does. Ever hear a song that brings you immediately back to a very specific moment in time?
So much so that you could close your eyes and you are back in the same room, with the same smells and the same people and the same emotions? I LOVE that feeling. Looking back at images of my girls often have a similar effect on me. And while these images were only taken a few days ago, I still giggled out loud because I can remember exactly how she sounded, how she smelled (it was right after a diaper change luckily) and how she made me feel…which is simply amazing and blessed to be her mom. And I can rest assured that while I know she’ll grow..the sound of her voice and laughter will change and she won’t be quite as amused by my chasing her around screaming dinosaur noises, I can look back at these and have that moment back as often as I wish.
>There is something about being snowed in that makes all the things that typically stress me out instead warm my heart. PJs stay on all day long, hair doesn’t get brushed, TV plays silly cartoons in the background, toys thrown all over the place with no sense or order and lots and lots of snacks are consumed before lunchtime. I love every second of it. While you’ll often hear me complain about the winter and the cold, it’s really not ALL bad.
>Missy Lou has an evil face. Its whenever she’s doing something devilish she knows darn well she shouldn’t do, but is clearly proud of. Here it is in all it’s glory. I hate to admit I see this adorable face much, much to often most days, but she’s so stinkin’ cute, what am I really going to do about it..other than snap a picture.
Lets just say she’s not tall enough to peek-a-boo over the top of the dollhouse without some assistance from floor two…and those wings she’s sportin’ are just a clever cover-up.
