Little Friends

Audrey had a playdate with her friend Mallory today. They are just a few weeks apart and have to be two of the cutest little things! They read books together, played baby dolls and played beauty shop. It was fun to see Audrey on her own without Ella taking charge of everyone! So fun!

Audrey's stats at 18 months

I had forgotten to post Audrey's stats at 18 months (September 7th)! Our sweet fun little girl is definitely growing...mostly in her head! So many people say how "big" she is, but I think it is mainly because her head in so big that she just looks bigger. She is very verbal for her age--speaking in complete sentences without being prompted and can pretty much repeat any word we say. She has an amazing memory and can recall very random facts. She adores her big sister and lights up anytime Ella is in the room. I think she could live solely on Goldfish crackers...seriously. She loves to read books and is very into playing with baby dolls. She sings a ton and loves "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" along with a bunch of songs from church that Ella sings like "Stand on the Rock." She definitely is exerting her independence and wants to do everything herself...it makes getting into the car seat a miserably long process because she won't allow us to help her! She loves dinosaurs, Tinker Toys, puzzles, any animal and Dum-Dum suckers. She also loves talking on the phone to her best friend Harper and sliding down the biggest slide possible at the parks! Most days we feel like she's going on 4 rather than just 18 months, but then she gives us that smile and our hearts just melt.

Her stats at 18 months...

Weight - 24.8 pounds - 56% percentile

Length - 32 1/4 - 65% percentile

Head - 19 1/2 - 98% percentile---Yes, it is THAT big!

How Are You Mommy?

Audrey is so funny! I really wonder sometimes where she comes up with some of these things. She has started this new thing where she just randomly will come into a room and say "How are you Mommy?" I'll answer her either "good, great, or fine" and then ask her "How are you Audrey?" Her response is always "I'm good Mommy." Yesterday she probably asked me twenty times how our was and I laughed every single time!

Naughty Mat

Well, our sweet easy going Audrey has hit a little "phase" and we now are convinced she is on the way to becoming a bully. After 17 months of Ella grabbing toys out of her hand, pushing her out of the way, and convincing Audrey that she always "wants" the ugliest baby doll in the house, Audrey has begun to fight back. I've caught her in the last few days shoving Ella out of the way and have seen her hit Ella saying "No!No!". The ironic thing is that she does it with a smile on her face and typically is laughing while she does it! Today, Audrey had to go sit on the Naughty Mat FOUR times--and that was between waking up from her afternoon nap and dinner! Oh brother...

What is even funnier is that Ella told me this afternoon, "I've got a mean sister mommy. Why isn't she nice like me?"

Vacation Bible School

We had a great week at VBS this year! Our church does such an amazing job teaching even the littlest ones about God's love. I am humbled and grateful to get the opportunity to be a part of it every year. This year, I worked in the 3 year old area but wasn't in the class with Ella (that tends to work a little better). I got to see her during chapel time, playground and theatre, but she was able to make new friends and had wonderful teachers in her room. Ella's teachers made a great collage of all the kids in the class doing their thumbs-up sign!Audrey made some new friends too and got to sing songs and learn Bible stories! What a difference from her last year at VBS! How precious is this one with my sweet girl holding a little Bible!

It was a very busy and full week which rounded out with us leaving straight from the last day of VBS to catch our flight to the airport to head to Florida!

Audrey at 15 months

Our sweet Audrey is officially 15 months old. I know every parent says "I can't believe they are already ...", but I really feel like it has gone by so fast. I think with the second child you don't get to always relish in every milestone, but she is really such a joy. She smiles so much and her belly laugh will melt your heart.

We went to the doctor this week for her checkup and her stats were

Weight- 22.8 pounds (47%)

Height - 30 1/2 inches (49%)

Head - 19 1/4 inches (98%)

We are convinced the large head is related to her genius brain.

So a little bit about Audrey at 15 months...

She has got the biggest vocabulary! Her words are clear and concise and she can repeat most words we say to her. Some of her faves--popsicle, cupcake, cracker, Ella, Harper, Daddy, Momma, Elmo, Dora, baby, waffle, shoes, bow, bubbles, buckle, outside, cuppy, no.

She is very willing to talk to strangers and is friendly to most anyone, but she has developed a major case of separation anxiety. She just about has to be ripped off me when she gets dropped off in the nursery at church. Luckily, her big sister was just like it, so we are used to this behavior. It will pass, but for now, it does make my heart hurt when I have to leave her.

She is a wonderful eater and loves anything sweet --she got that from her mommy--but loves fruits and vegetables. She devours blackberries, raspberries and strawberries. I can open a can of green beans and dump some on her tray and she's thrilled. She has definitely tried a lot more things than Ella had at this stage, but as second time parents, we just feed her what we're having.

She is in love with Ella. She lights up when Ella comes in the room and the two of them are really playing together now. Audrey learns so much from watching Ella. She's quite the little mommy with her baby dolls --feeding them, rocking them, patting them "night night." She loves to cook in the little kitchen, loves to build with blocks and loves to color. She also loves to brush her teeth. The two of them stand on the same stool and brush their teeth every morning together. It is so cute!

She loves to walk and has basically given up being in a stroller or the grocery cart. She tells me "get down" and then continues to pull everything off the shelves. Errands with two exhaust me!

We love our little Audrey. She gives great hugs and kisses. She still loves to snuggle. We are so thankful for her!

Boo-ca-Boo

Audrey is really into the board books that have the flaps to lift on each page. She can't seem to get "Peek-a-Boo" down when we lift a flap up. Instead we hear "Boo-ca-Boo" on every flip of the page. It is adorable!!

Sunkist

I rarely have soft drinks, but I just can't resist Sunkist. It is the little treat John will pick up for me at the store sometimes when he knows I've had a rough day. During my pregnancy, I wanted it ALL the time, so maybe that's why Audrey was basically trying to lick the inside of my empty bottle at dinner last night!

I read somewhere (not sure if it's true) that things you eat during your pregnancy can translate into things your child will like once they start trying new foods. No wonder my kids can't get enough of ice-cream and M&M's!

Open, Open, Open

I'm not quite sure what she's looking for but Audrey loves to go our fridge and stand at the door, saying "Open, Open, Open." It reminds me of that old Mervyn's commercial from years ago (I know that really dates me). Once I open the doors, she basically points and grunts to anything. My sweet baby...isn't she just the cutest?

We LOVE Blackberries!

Both my girls LOVE berries--strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and especially blackberries! Though I am thrilled they love fruit and will enjoy a berry at any time, they make such a mess and require an immediate undressing and spot treatment on the clothes. Most of the time I end up just undressing Audrey before she gets to eat them. This picture was taken after Audrey had devoured 11 blackberries. Yes, we are going through a container of blackberries a day right now! She had a tinge of deep purple all over her face, arms and hand, but isn't she just so cute anyway!!

Skate Date

This week, Marcy and I decided to take Lincoln and Audrey to Stroller Skate to let them experience their first chaperoned date. Thunderbird Skate Center in Plano opens up the rink each Thursday morning for moms to bring their strollers and skate around (under the lights of the disco ball) with the kiddos while listening to some tunes that were popular back in the day. It was actually a little work out and we had both worked up a sweat after our hour plus cruising around the rink. We had a blast with them and definitely hope to do it again.

Here's a picture of the group

Lincoln checking his lady out...

And... the happy couple

Audrey would NOT keep her shoes or socks on. She spent most of the time trying to chew on her feet. I told her this was not proper date etiquette, but Lincoln didn't seem to mind too much.

Audrey's Birthday Party

Since Audrey's birthday fell on Saturday this year, we decided to have a small gathering of friends and family to celebrate her big milestone. We set up the bouncehouse for the older kids and then let the little ones play on quilts outside and in the house. We had pizza for lunch and then got to watch Audrey enjoy her cake while the rest of the kids snacked on cupcakes!

Her boyfriend Lincoln brought her a pink rose and she got lots of fun presents from her friends!

The kids that were there were:

Cousins Jessica and Wyatt

Madelyn and Harper

Jake, Hayden and Mallory

Will and Lauren

Reagan

Pierce

And future husband Lincoln!

My sweet friend Jen who has picked up photography and is doing an amazing job with it, was so gracious to come capture some pictures of the party. It was so nice to not have to worry about dragging the camera around...plus she gets a much better shot!!

Audrey Turns One!!

Our precious little Audrey Belle has turned one!! It is hard to believe that she is not officially a "baby" anymore. She is sweet spirited and very outgoing. She loves to wave to anyone...definitely something we did not experience with "Stranger Anxiety Ella." She is my great eater and will pretty much try anything I give her, but she has a strong love for cheesesticks and raspberries. She has not quite mastered walking but can stand on her own for a few seconds and then collapses to crawl quickly to her intended target. She is my cuddler and loves to be held. She has finally decided she likes to sleep at night which has been the greatest gift she could give her mommy! She loves to clap and will join in to "If You're Happy and You Know it." She is a very good mimic to most words, however her favorites are Ella, Dadda, Momma, Hi, and Bye-Bye. When you ask her what a duck says, she'll smile and say "Quack,Quack." As you can see from the picture, she is working on more teeth. She's got eight now, but we figure some molars are just around the corner.

She thinks everything Ella does is funny, but is finally able to fight back a little when big sister tries to steal her toys. It makes John and I smile to see Ella trying to take care of Audrey...she really is a sweet big sister.

Audrey has slowed down in the weight category (always being in the 80-90 percentile on the charts), however her head is as big as ever! The doctor told us not to worry about it, so we're convinced she's just got a big brain and she's probably a genius.

Height - 29 3/4 inches - 69 percentile

Weight - 21 pounds 5 ounces - 53 percentile

Head - 19 inches - 99 percentile

We are so thankful for God's precious gift he gave to us in Audrey!

Our Little Ham

Audrey has turned in to quite a little ham when the camera comes out. She is such a happy baby and lights up the minute Ella comes into the room --even though a few seconds later Ella will be yanking a toy out of her hand that she claims she is "sharing" with Audrey.

I love my girls!! I am so excited that they will get the experience the joys of sisterhood like I did!