Snuggles Turns 1!

Just over a month ago, Genevieve turned 1. As with everything she does, it was bittersweet for me. My last baby isn't much of a baby any more. :(

We were in Virginia for Jake's wedding. We were able to spend brunch together with the family (Grandma and Grandpa Obert, Grandma and Grandpa Roy, Uncle Jake, very-soon-to-be Aunt Katie, Auntie Krys and Uncle Pranob and Cousin Asher) to celebrate. The place I picked (forgot the name already) was good, but... it took forever! I felt bad for Snuggles because she was getting so tired and cranky. She didn't really enjoy her meal at all. She just wanted to nap! Poor baby.

She is 21 pounds and 31 inches. She can say "yes", "hi", and something that resembles Adelyn. She adores her big sister and brother. She will nod her head for yes, and shake for no. She has 2 teeth, but working on the uppers. She still loves to snuggle. She can almost sleep through the night. As long as mommy is near by, she is a happy baby.

We love you Snuggles!

Adelyn Turns 5!

Waaayyyyy back on July 3, my first baby turned 5! It still seems hard to believe that she is already 5. On her birthday we happened to be having plumbing issues in our condo, so we spent a good portion of the morning waiting for someone to show up. Eventually we just gave up. (Good thing because as it turns out, they never did come). Uncle Jake was in town so we all packed up and headed to a surprise... the Monte Carlo pool! Adelyn was pretty excited. They have a wave pool and a lazy river. Adelyn spent most of the time without any floaties on. She was so proud of herself (mommy and daddy too). Her birthday happened to be on a Friday, so we had pizza and movie and cake night. What a night!

We went back to MN a few days later and had a birthday party with family. Adelyn was pretty excited to have Malachi, Simon and Coen at her party.

Adelyn, you are a very special girl. I am so proud of the beautiful person you are and are growing into. You are an awesome big sister. You are a great helper. You are smart. Thoughtful. Caring. Sensitive. You adapt so well to our crazy life. I love your smiles, stories and songs. Your hugs, kisses and snuggles I can never get enough of. Happy birthday Baby Cakes!

My Big Boy

(A bit late...)
On April 16 we celebrated Odin's 3rd birthday! I cannot believe it, on two levels. I can't believe he is already 3 and I also can't believe that it has only been 3 years since he entered our lives. It seems like he has always been a part of our family.

We happen to be in MN. The day wasn't the nicest one - it is spring, after all. So, we ended up going to the Maple Grove Maze for something special to do. It was great! We were the only ones there! The kids (and mommy and daddy) had fun running around, exploring and going down the slides.

For dinner we had a family dinner(mom, dad, big and little sister, Jake, Katie and G&G Obert). The birthday boy picked chili and corn muffins for his meal. And since it was his birthday, we let him have a muffin BEFORE eating his chili. He was pretty happy about that. For dessert he picked a cookie monster cake. But green. Earlier in the day we had fun decorating it together.

He got some pretty fun presents. I think my favorite is a plane from cousin Asher. It is a take-apart plane. It comes with a drill (Odin's favorite part) and big pieces to build a plane. It's pretty cool.

Odin, you are such a special boy. I love your snuggles (at night he always asks for one more snuggle). I love how gentle you are with Evie Monster. I love reading books with you. I love how you are shy and want to be at my side when it is a new experience. I love how curious you are. I love your blond hair and blue eyes. In a nutshell, I love you. Happy birthday, little man!

(Stats... about 40 lbs and 41 inches tall, both above 95 percentile).

Happy Birthday Little Man!

Last week was Odin's second birthday. Seriously, where does the time go? The night before, I blew up as many balloons that I could and left them all throughout his room. When he woke up he was pretty excited to see them. Once out of his crib, he went to work at popping them. He loves to pop balloons!

We had planned on going to the zoo, but a spring snow storm was coming through and we decided that we didn't want to drive through snow and traffic. We went to the Maple Grove Maze instead. The kids had a lot of fun. Adelyn was pretty brave and went down the slide all by herself (Karin - remember when she got stuck and Julian had to rescue her?).

In the evening, the grandparents and Uncle Jake and Katie were over for the party. I had asked Odin what he wanted. The only thing he said was blueberries. In fact, that was his answer for any birthday question (what kind of cake? what presents?). Silly boy. We had planned on burgers, but again, the snow messed with our plans. So we made sloppy joe's instead. We had blueberry lemon cupcakes that I had decorated to look like frogs. Odin thought that was pretty cool.

He got some nice presents from everyone. He needed clothes, so that was the primary gift. Can't wait for shorts weather! He also got some toys. And blueberries and a train track from us.

I think the highlights for him was popping balloons and having blueberries.

So, happy birthday little buddy! I'm glad that we had a fun family day together. You are growing into such a big boy. It is an honor to be your mom. I love how you love to snuggle when you are just waking up. You are starting to talk so much. You try and repeat everything. And you are starting to make your own sentences. You like to jump. You try and do everything your big sister does. When we ask your name, you reply, "Adelyn Elise Roy" and then laugh. You have a sweet and sensitive spirit. You eat just about anything in front of you, but your favorites are berries, avocado and beans. You bring so much joy into our lives. We love you, birthday boy! 

Another Year... Wiser?

Last week we celebrated my xx birthday.

I really wanted Monkey Bread for breakfast. But I decided to be somewhat good. So I tried to make gluten-free blueberry pancakes. Fail. The pancakes wouldn't flip over. And when I tried a bite, they were awful. So I added some more flour, some honey, vanilla and cinnamon. They still didn't want to flip. And they still tasted terrible. So, I scratched that and made regular pancakes. Those were yummy!

Jake and Ben went off to ski. My parents, my kids and I went to Kangaroo Zoo. This time both kids could hardly get their shoes off fast enough! They had so much fun.

After the skiers came home, we had cake and presents. I made Better than... cake. Yum. It was hard to just eat a little bit. Then it was off to Ogden to eat some Thai food. Mike and Nayri and some visiting friends met us there. We had so much food. It was so good!

When Ben came to bed he told me about my present. He had ordered some flowers for me. They were supposed to be delivered that day. He even called to confirm. But they didn't actually get there in time. He felt super bad. The next day, they did come. It was worth the wait. They are beautiful!